#I don't play so idk if that would be exploitable or something

[runimanio]

They should make a Wendigomon card in the TCG that deletes a tamer on the board when it's played by evolution as a reference to Survive

[withlove-xixi]

— LAIOS NSFW THOUGHTS: laios x reader

ᥫ cw: nsfw, petplay, dom/sub, praise ★ laios appeals to me w the many possible sexual exploits he could be into #tbh — MINORS DNI! —

im sorry, i cant get it off my head .. he'd ... be really into petplay i think. he wouldn't be too ashamed of it too, in fact he's be pretty eager about it. he'd be on all fours and you could already see the imaginary tail eagerly wagging from behind him, and its endearing really. laios would love it if you pet his head or scratched his belly or even just combing through his hair. he wouldn't be against wearing a collar or some ears and a tail to complete the look (though i don't think he'd like being caged or leashed so much. something about feeling constricted too much freaks him out)

he's got that dog in him, what can he say?

oh he would absolutely melt too with praise. anything to let him know he's doing a good job, that you're feeling as good as he is. he loves it, before anything, it's reassurance, a sign to keep going or to change his pace/angle. he knows he's not the best at reading people, so something as simple as telling him how good it feels is enough to keep him going and going. though, immediately after reassurance, it's the unexplainable twist in his gut when you tell him these things. he just loves being called a good boy. argue what you want about if he'd growl or if he's whimper because the correct answer is he'd do both. i dont think he's particularly noisy in bed, but definitely he will make noise and when he does it's so obvious because he's just so loud. it's a bit jarring sometimes because he could be almost silent, save for deep breaths and pants, and suddenly a canine-like growl or whimper would escape his lips.

i like to think he's more or less quiet because he's just too focused on the act. any noise that slips out is simply primal response, written in laios' dna to respond so instinctively.

he's like petnames too! he finds a certain intimacy in the act. he loves calling you by them too, though they're quite unorthodox, things like "my wildflower" or "cheesecake" (since it's his favorite food!) he's definitely tried to call you by a monster's name ... and as sweet as the sentiment was, it wasn't something that lasted too long.

ohhh and back to petplay, laios loves being called "puppy". it's cute and honestly, he kind of is one, is he not?

i think laios can be a bit too excited sometimes too. it's easy for him to get carried away with things he wants to try or do, so you'd have to repeatedly ground him back to what's happening or what's reasonable. though it's not always a verbal cue. you could kiss him gently or pat his arm and he'd get the message, he'd slow down and give you time to breathe and stuff.

idk i think laios is a really sweet guy. similar to my falin nsfw thoughts, as much as he wants to try these new things, it's more out of curiosity and comes from a certain air of innocence. a lot of those things are new therefore something he must try lol. its endearing, it really is. but like his sister, i think he can be a bit timid about it. if he mulls it over too much, he'd end up shyly asking you about it, if it were something you were comfortable with or something you wanted to try. otherwise, he'd be asking you pretty directly, something straight to the point and along the lines of "i want to do this". that being said, i think laios could easily be coerced into trying things. you dont even need to bat your lashes or plead, if you play your cards right, you could instantly spark his curiosity and get him ready to take of his clothes.

oh but laios .. wouldnt be the best at aftercare. dont get me wrong, he tries his best, but somehow he feels a bit lost on what to do. on instinct he goes on autopilot, picking up clothes from the ground, handing you yours, getting dressed and preparing to sleep. but something sweet he does is talk to you though he'd do that regardless of sex. just something short and sweet before you go to bed, in a way, its his way of showing his love and care for you. he listens to what you have to say, he tells you something in return and then its off to bed with you both. it's nice especially if you two have finished doing something nasty, it's a slice of domesticity after something that feels so carnal and it's truly heartwarming.

[eatingfireflies]

2.2 is coming and if I don't write this now, how can I get jossed later?

This is the moment when I started to wonder if their 2.0 conversation was a role play.

Like, we know this issue is a sore point for Ratio. The fact that this guy he called a loud peacock in 2.0 made a joke about his failure to get into the Genius Society and all he said was 'I was being sarcastic'?? Babe, is something wrong? You barely touched your sharp and witty comeback.

(Btw I checked both Cn and Jp, he says 'It was just a joke.')

And I don't want to bring up the voice acting because the way voices sound is subjective and what I hear might not be what you hear, but the Double Indemnity scenes with Ratio are probably the most relaxed we ever see Aventurine ever. (I'm talking about the Cn version, but I played in Jp audio and I could hear it there too.) He's playful and his voice is higher pitched, so different from what we've seen of him so far.

It sounds like Ratio and Aventurine have known each other longer than they want us to believe in their 2.0 convo.

I mean, the implication here is Ratio did some research on Aventurine's background recently and that's how he found out about Aventurine's past. So we make the assumption that they haven't been working together for long.

Look, they even did a Penacony remix of their Final Victor conversation

But honestly, you'd think Ratio would have figured out if he trusted Aventurine or not at this point, considering he came back for more after Final Victor (lmao??)

Also, we know Aventurine had been planning for Penacony since his call to Topaz, where he asked for her help. It's hard to believe that he went through all the trouble of asking two different Stonehearts to lend him their cornerstones and then went to Penacony and the Dreamscape with Ratio, whom he barely knows. That's too much gambling, Aventurine!

We know the Family won't let anyone from the IPC to enter the Dreamscape and Aventurine only gets a pass because of the Watchmaker's invite

But Himeko is wrong here: Aventurine didn't go inside the Dreamscape alone and he does have someone backing him up. It just happened that almost no one else saw Ratio in Penacony and the one scene where we did see him talking to Aventurine was 2.0, where he got angry and left Aventurine babbling to himself.

But now that we're here, what did Ratio do in Penacony aside from bicker and betray?

His initial job is to gather intel, afaik. Aventurine tells him to go look into things in 2.0 before he left. And he does give Aventurine updates in 2.1 (Aventurine finds out about Firefly from Ratio) so good for you, professor!

Ratio is Aventurine's connection to his colleagues outside. Once Aventurine's plans enter the Dead phase, Ratio is the only one left to tell Topaz and Jade if the plan had been a success or not. (Aventurine also makes a joke about the Genius from the Council of the Mundanites offering to be his undertaker. In the Jp version, he says 'So the Genius from the Council of the Mundanites wants to claim my corpse? What an honour.' So there's also that... Uh. Idk how dead dead Aventurine really is, but at least we know someone's looking after his body while he's gone lmao??)

But also he's Aventurine's bait to Sunday, the (fake) weak link in Aventurine's plans that Sunday thought he could exploit.

And the 3rd one is a bit complicated, because it is a gamble. Remember Aventurine's E1? Prisoner's Dilemma? Yeah, it's kinda like that. I talked about it before, but let's copy paste it here for easier reading (and because this post totally needs to be a wall of text)

Let's zoom out a bit again and remember that Aventurine was sent to Penacony because Diamond thinks this whole affair could still have a peaceful resolution. Meaning: Aventurine is the kind option. The IPC could have sent Opal instead, but it sounds like that means there would be a body count.

And I think that's why Ratio is here and why he agreed to cooperate. Because if Aventurine's plan works out, only Aventurine's life will ever be in real danger. (And we know from Ratio's note that he also took steps to increase the chances of Aventurine coming back.)

Ratio being there is important to the plan because

Him being from the Intelligentsia Guild removes some of the heat from the Family. If Ratio is coming in as a plus one, the IPC (in this case, I'm assuming it's Aventurine because he's the guy in charge of the operation) chose the best person for the job. It makes the Family happier knowing there are not two IPC envoys walking around the Dreamscape and Aventurine has a buddy who can move around more freely than another IPC employee could

But because Ratio is an outsider, he's also the weak link in Aventurine's plans. Another IPC employee will probably not betray Aventurine, but the Guild has no particular horse in this race. We were also led to believe from their 2.0 conversation that Ratio doesn't like Aventurine very much. This is what I meant when I said Ratio is a bait: Aventurine was pretty much dangling him in front of Sunday, making Sunday think he could use Ratio to ruin Aventurine's plans. The important thing of course is the trust the two of them have for each other (yay, Prisoner's Dilemma). Ratio could ruin Aventurine's plan if he wants to (very bad for all involved because I'm guessing Opal is the next step) and Aventurine could fail (not as bad for everyone involved after 2.1 because the IPC has already won regardless. There's still a Phase 2 in Aventurine's plan and Ratio seems to want him back after that, so I guess he'd consider it a failure if Aventurine doesn't return?), but trusting each other means they win.

Tl;dr Ratio's presence in Penacony is a bit of a gamble on Aventurine's part but it worked well for him so far. Ratio is here to make sure everyone stays alive. (And maybe the Phase Flame? I honestly don't know if the Annihilation Gang will ever come back again, but for now I'm going with the obvious and assuming Ratio is here because he thinks Aventurine's plan will work and work with the least amount of pain for everyone.)

Thank you for getting this far. Why do we think they deserve Oscars?

Aside from the movie references (we'll get to that), we have 3 different instances where Aventurine mentions acting / the 'script'.

The most direct is the conversation with future!Aventurine in the garden maze: future!Aventurine praises Ratio's acting while Aventurine says 'Or he might not be acting at all' (the inability of these two to admit they are friends, but more importantly they don't think the other person thinks highly of them, is2g).

The next one is hidden in the mission description

And the other one got lost in translation. This was translated to 'You catch on quickly' in En. In Jp he says something like 'You have a good sense for drama, professor' (Sorry Idk what this is in the og Cn)

Finally, Double Indemnity. I haven't seen the movie, but it seems to be about an insurance salesman who gets seduced by a hot wife femme fatale into helping her get rid of her husband so she could claim his insurance. Double Indemnity refers to this clause where the insurance gets doubled if the person suddenly dies of an accident.

I've thought about this so hard, let me tell you. What could this possibly have to do with Aventurine and the mission? (For example, 'Hot wife Sunday seduces Ratio the insurance salesman into helping him get rid of Aventurine' etc.) And I honestly still don't know but one detail does help my theory so I'm pulling it out:

The relationship between the insurance salesman and the hot wife femme fatale was known only to the two of them. To the insurance claims adjuster, who was investigating the case and trying to prove the husband's death wasn't an accident, those two are unrelated people who might have seen each other once or twice. The claims adjuster suspected the wife, but had no idea of the insurance salesman's involvement. The truth is, they actually knew each other a full year before the plan was set in motion. Hey, doesn't it actually fit nicely now?

(Spellbound otoh, I still don't know. I have a Sunday and Gallagher reading of it, but Hvy keeps telling me no and making it gay instead so Idk.)

[circuscountdowns]

Crude Timeline/Breakdown of my goofy Cult of the Lamb drawings if you’re interested:

The whole premise for this i guess au? Started during my first run, I already knew the game was about kill god become god, but Did Not know you could Marry the god youd betray??? Or indoctrinate him???. Like I didn't even choose the Marriage Doctrine cuz I'm like boo r u kidding me I'm choosing violent Battle Pit always. Which Lambert wouldn't know any of this in the beginning either but the big deciding factor is: 

Lamb is going into it with the mindset of Kill All Gods for what they've done to the sheep (sorry my benefactor, ur included <3) Kratos style lets go, none spared.

That being said, they have a lot of devotion towards Death, I like to think the Sheep folk prayed to The One Below for quick passings knowing they're a huge sacrificial species, and because sheep with their huge herd mentality, the worship flowed heavily which is a threat therefore that plus prophecy equals Slaughter. 

So with TOWW, they play along and genuinely mean they're serving death because they worshiped Death as a concept, a divine entity. They believe when they “kill” TOWW they'll still be “together” because Death is unkillable right (and the lamb would never have to be alone again right). Something new will be written thats the both of us as one.

So in between crusading Lamb and TOWW get closer (i am going to take your throne but that doesn't mean we can't have fun banter or that i don't really really enjoy ur compliments and attention ((because I love kittys…))) and that's when the comic about tanking happens. 

But oh no! Through their journey Lamb discovers that TOWW is actually a Bishop, chained for a petty family squabble??? Has a name and it’s Narinder???? 

The revelation kinda breaks something in their head. it upsettingly humanizes the Bishops, trivializes the death of their people, and takes TOWW off the pedestal they'd placed him on. Uh ohhhh how does this change things i mean I'm still gonna kill all the gods but what does it mean to be a god is it just a crown whats going to happen to Narinder is it actually Narinder I like ?? (And i had a comic for this time planned but idk if ill get to it)

Meanwhile Narinders opinion on the Lamb has so far just been Wow im so proud, I chose good yay I'm gonna be free (why do I feel like I could be free from their devotion alone?) (why are they just like me fr?) 

When Narinder is defeated and they have the choice, the lamb feels they betray both their people for not keeping their promise to kill all gods, but also their Faith and Narinder, v conflicting. 

After indoctrination, Narinder does his typical Isolation, depression, and Lamb mourns what they'd had. In their loneliness, they stop allowing their cultists to die for long. They do all Narinders quests, and when it comes to the resurrection he's like Haha I remember why I liked you. But also he can exploit this. That's the time of the Resurrection comic.

He tries to micromanage from there, if he can't be the god being worshiped rn he's going to control the god. Starts off with whispering insecurities of Your cultists will find a way to leave you, be firmer. Gods should do this, have this, they'll leave if you don't. Lamb knows what he's doing and mostly humors him to keep him around but over time they've just both started to build a proper relationship again. He successfully ironically becomes their right hand.

This goes on for a sec before Mystic Seller knocks on da door like Hello do your joobbbb. And thats a kick enough to get Lamb out of their misery shit to really consider their original plan of killing gods and what exactly they want Death to Mean. (Comes to a conclusion that death is a peace that has to be earned. Through living.)

Bringing Leshy back brings a rift and arguments between Narinder and Lamb. That's when the Narinder Confessional comic happens and he lets out just how hurt he was by Lambs betrayal (cuz that seems to be all anyone ever does to him lol except for his sons)

So as a sort of reconciliation! Lamb brings back Aym and Baal. Yay! That's that comic, where Narinder tries to say it doesn't affect him so Lamb forces them to be together. Aym and Ball stay in the cult for a good while as Lamb works to free Heket, but Narinder is still super giving Lamb the cold shoulder. When Heket is indoctrinated Narinder gets angry again that he has no say on the matter. 

Lamb starts sneaking off to sit in the confessional booth at night and it gets Narinders attention. He follows them in and hears them speak about essentially their motivations and beliefs described earlier. I have a half finished comic of this to partner with Narinder’s confessional, with Lamb’s being more down to earth and kinda just explanatory of the whole timeline but who knows if ill finish it tbh

Narinder reassesses his feelings for Lamb after that.

Right after Lamb's confessional would be when the Baal and AYm comic happens, and Narinder asks for his last request of going on a mission, fully committing to living a life.

Cue big ambiguous gap of time where Lamb gets the other siblings, yada yada healing and dealing. Shamura in the pillory comic happens, the bishops are Not happy about it, but Shamura's only locked up for a night.

Probably takes a hundred or two years for the siblings being comfortable enough around each other and theres a lot less venom being spat out. Idk gods grudges be lasting forever sometimes. Eventually They can start having family game nights, cue that comic. Everyones tired of the shit Lamb and Narinders got going on. 

Lamb still thinks Narinder doesnt have romantic feelings for them. Best friends til the end me and my god, never mind the tense flirting. Lamb does that with everyone. (cursed with flirty asexual disease) For Narinder its that he shouldnt have to say anything everyone should just know that the Lamb is his. Straight up if Lamb asked him, do you love me hed say yes in every sense, but though he is aware of how he feels and would be honest on approach, an immortal relationship/marriage?? It is a lot to ask of the lamb, that has to be a decision they make. Hes content as is.

but No Way could Lamb ask that without a safety net.  So when Lamb realizes Oh its like. romantic jealousy? Interesting lets see how far i can push it, announces they will be choosing a spouse (due to a wager lost they reason, depending on who asks) (the siblings who know of Shamura’s deal, watch in mild amusement at how absolutely wired this gets their brother. No one helps him.) fine for narinder If they get married thats up to them but hes gonna make sure theyre worthy of his vessel first. Marriage is just a title compared to what he and the Lamb have. 

Cue comic i have planned that is Such a funny idea to me but im not liking how its turning out so who knows. But they get married yay! 

Some years later kudaai has offered to make the lamb their own weapon. They go on a little trip to the spot they were sacrificed, now very overgrown and forgotten, and find their chains to make their weapons. 

far future comic

many many many years later Lamb death comic.

that’s it for now. I’ll add more if ideas come but this is context if you’d like. Feel free to ask questions, I’m rotating these fellas in my head

[bibibbon]

I made a huge mistake in going to the MHA subreddit. The braindead takes on 427 have me convinced I'm stuck in a parallel universe where we're reading a completely different story:

"It's great seeing Deku play therapist with the LOV, but all it seems to have done is make things worse!" A) Izuku shouldn't be having to play therapist to begin with, considering he's a 16 year old kid. B) most of the LOV don't see anything they did as wrong, so idk what the fuck Izuku can do about that. Also, WHY AREN'T PEOPLE HELPING IZUKU WITH HIS OWN GODDAMN FEELINGS?!

Apparently Bakugou killed Kurogiri, and there's absolutely ZERO reaction to it both in and out of universe. So of fucking course Izuku is a murderer, but not their precious Bakugou 🥱.

"I feel like Hori's really underrated as a writer!" Horikoshi doesn't know Show Don't Tell, how to actually develop characters, and how to craft actual stakes in the narrative from a hole in the ground. Also, MHA is one of the most popular mangas worldwide, so you're not even using underrated right.

"I feel like Horikoshi sees our discussions and then implements them in the story!" This I can kind of agree with, considering how much y'all hate Izuku and worship Bakugou. But on the other hand, I really doubt Horikoshi thinks the MHA subreddit is as important as you think it is.

"Bakugou's totally going to ask Izuku to start their own hero agency together at the end!" Jesus fucking Christ, just say you hate Izuku. How would that be a great ending for him? He not only has to see the source of his low self esteem and borderline suicidal feelings achieving the dream he'll now never have, but you want them to WORK together?!

@nutzgunray-lvt 👋

Well a lot of the time looking into Reddit is always a mistake unless you're asking a very niche question and you get an answer from 9 years ago or something.

I feel like a lot of people whether that be in universe or in fandom forget that izuku is a 16 year old child soldier. Izuku is more than a decade younger than a lot of the villains in the leauge. He is a child who has been exploited by the system and abused. We have seen in 425 izuku try and talk to someone but simply get brushed aside and while I don't blame shoto or ochako for doing that as they probably didn't mean it and are traumatised themselves it kinda of shows how much this has effected izuku. Also this doesn't help BECAUSE HORI GAVE US NO FLIPPING INTROPSECTION ON IZUKU'S BIT AGAIN!! Also Iam not sure if it's just me but Izuku's eye bags are heavily prominent in this chapter especially when he is talking to spinner.

The fandom especially the lov stans side of it love babayifying the actions of the leauge and hyper fixating on the humane soft side they may have while completely ignoring the horrible actions they commited. I talk about this better in one of @palesweetscherryblossom asks

I still can't believe that bk may of killed kurogiri. I don't even know when that happend and I checked the wiki but it says that kurogiris status is unconfirmed so I will be waiting until the last chapter to fully acknowledge if kurogiri is dead or not. However this brings up the point that the fandoms is being quite hypocritical if they're calling izuku a murder but not bakugo. They both killed people but for some reason it's izuku thats put into public light and bashing instead of all the other characters that have killed in the series including villains.

Yeah sometimes it feels like hori is looking at discussions of his series and implementing ideas but I think that goes more for his Japanese fans than us to be honest because after all they're his target demographic. I remember when I first joined Tumblr one of my earliest posts talked about how horikoshi's writing decisions were heavily influenced by his fans which may or may not be true.

At this point IAM convinced that izuku isn't getting a proper happy ending. Every time I think it can't get worse it does. Just by your comment of them starting an agency together haunts me just like the possibility that bk may become the number one hero

[aihoshiino]

chapter 152 thoughts

Chapters Since The 143 Kiss Happened And Went Entirely Unacknowledged And Unaddressed Count: 9

Aqua Hoshigan Status: White??!???!?!?

WELL DAMN. OKAY. LET'S FUCKING GO I GUESS.

With the End Of The Play… miniarc? interlude? wrapping up, Oshi no Ko officially confirms we're in endgame territory and slams down on the gas to barrel full speed towards its conclusion. This chapter was definitely a mixed bag, but I didn't dislike it and I SURE CAN'T SAY IT WAS BORING AT LEAST………….. It reframes a lot of things that lead up to it - I suppose that makes 'recontextualization' the keywork for this chapter, then.

The return to the volume 1 interviews in this chapter were kind of a surprise LOL. Given that the anime trimmed all but Ai's, I kind of took that as an implicit confirmaton that they weren't really that important so it's a bit of a jumpscare to see Gotanda (& Aqua's) revisited here. That said, revisiting them here is more about clueing the viewer that we're caught up chronologically with those flashforwards and thus that everything from this point on is officially uncharted territory, so I still do think cutting them from episode 1 was the right call to make. I don't think it causes any plotholes or incongruities since these interviews are really kind of incidental in the grand scheme of things… also let's be real I don't think any of us are expecting the anime to get that far into the story, even if I would give my left leg to see the anime team work their magic on chapter 137………………………….

That said, it's pretty fucking rich for Gotanda to try and talk big about the movie not being fictional when we heard from the horse's mouth that Abiko and Yoriko just fucking made up the dynamics of one of the most central and pivotal relationships in it out of thin air lol. Not only that, but like…

15 Year Lie is a movie with a pretty clear narrative. This by itself is natrual and expected. Narrative is the shape in which the human brain most readily accepts information but to create a narrative about something is to fictionalise it. Even when it's a narrative about real events - because narratives are, themselves, fiction. They have cleanly defined beginnings and ends, arcs and the promise of neatly packaged payoff and catharsis that is impossible to achieve in reality. To create a narrative about Ai's life in any form, let alone in a movie made for mass general audience consumption, unavoidably necessitates reducing her to a fictional character to observe rather than a fellow human to understand.

Which is… you know, horrifying! Fucked up and ghoulish! It's exploition of Ai in death just as she was exploited in life and I really wish the Movie Arc had actually focused on that uncomfortable undercurrent. This was, after all, supposed to be a movie about Ai.

BUT ANYWAY, CAST SCREENING OF THE MOVIE… we get some detail about reactions to the content but even as characters are literally talking about the movie and Ruby's extremely important role in it they just conveniently avoid discussing the content of it. But surely with all those important scenes that were set up and with the public release of the movie and Kamiki's side of the story to tell, we'll get some more details, right??? [audible copium huff]

Akane's tearful reaction is interesting, though. They're specifically singled out as not being to do with the content of the movie and her expression is a bit ambiguous - you could read is as resigned or relieved just as easily. I think she has clearly recognized something about Aqua's revenge in the movie which prompts that reaction but who even knows what's going on with akane at this point lol. sure not akasaka.

The girls all ragging on Ruby's acting was also kind of… like, yeah, remember when Ruby not being a good enough actress to carry a whole movie was kind of a huge issue??? The fact that this is resolved by everyone saying "yeah it was bad but idk aqua made it good somehow" was kind of silly lol.

I do really like Melt stepping in to stick up for Ruby, though - because yeah, of course hearing that would probably bring up some bad memories for Melt…! I also like that he doesn't try to shallowly flatter her or butter her up - he's frank about where she still needs to improve but hones in on the part that really matters. He really is a good kid.

That said, him sticking up for Ruby and her glomming onto him and calling him 'Master' (ししょ/師匠, shishou, as in the master of a craft addressed by their disciple, in Japanese) does kind of highlight that the MLRB mentorship that got set up in 144… went nowhere??? We can assume by Ruby's response to him here that it happened offscreen but it really does feel like a total waste of time to have spent what was effectively an entire chapter on setting up a new character dynamic that just didn't happen. Like… really, in hindsight, what was even the point of that chapter other than to establish that Melt… was also here??? I guess we still have the final arc for that to resolve into something but.

It just kind of sucks because I think a MLRB friendship could be really fun! I think they have the potential for a good dynamic and there's some really interesting parallels between them both that are ripe for farming. At this point, it's probably way too late for us to expect anything to come of it, so I can only daydream……..

tho it is really funny to me that at this point, since 143, ruby has had more meaningful on panel interactions with melt than she has aqua. What Did They Mean By This.

Gotanda and Kaburagi's talk that followed also left me with pretty mixed feelings. As expansion on/closure for Kaburagi (and Gotanda to an extent), I think this was fine… there's just a few little details that bother me, I guess.

On the one hand, I really like Gotanda's frank admission that there's no way to know whether the movie really captured the 'real' Ai. This is another thing I've talked about over and over during the Movie Arc but nobody making this movie is really in a position to be making that call - the only person who really could is Ai and… well, she's not here anymore to advocate for herself. Seeing Gotanda acknowledge that does scratch some of what was left unitched by this thread but…

Eugh. I don't know. Something about this movie, which is about Ai's life, Ai's tragedy, Ai's final push to be shown to the world as she was and to potentially be accepted being made to be about Gotanda's regrets just feels kind of icky to me. Maybe it just feels especially bad because it feels like 15 Year Lie has become more about every other character involved than her. I'm sure people are sick of me complaining about it, but it really does feel like Ai as a figure of emotional importance to this story is getting increasingly downplayed and dismissed and…… just feels bad, I guess!!!!

Kaburagi's side of this conversation is a lot more engaging, at least. This does tragically represent the end of my Secret Villain Kaburagi Theory and I feel decidedly mixed on the story choosing to frame him so sympathetically… but on the other hand, I do like how this implication of guilt and sense of responsibility reframes basically all his prior actions in the manga. It seems to confirm that he clocked Aqua (and thus by extension, Ruby) as being Ai's child right from the start and explains why he was willing to go so far in pushing their careers along at little benefit to himself - it was out of atonement to Ai.

that panel of young kaburagi and baby ai having lunch together. fuck, man. the fact that she took the burger out of the wrapper like she does in viewpoint b………….. babygirl i loev u so muuuuchchchchchchhchchchchsjsjsskasklsndkdkd

and……………………….. now it's time for aqua's interview. Jesus Christ.

I like the recontextualization of Aqua's interview here and the way we see This Mysterious Interviewer gradually pick apart his responses. I especially got SUCH a thrill out of his 'I won't love anyone' schtick being called out as the bullshit it is - one of my first really meaty OnK metas was of Aqua's interview segment specifically and I zeroed in on this sentiment specifically as being a lie that Aqua was trying to project and seeing the text back that up makes me a very happy Claire

But more importantly though… what Aqua has to say after that makes me particularly excited.

First of all, let's get it out of the way: KAMIKI JUMPSCARE!!!!!!!!! It seems implicit that he was the one doing all the interviews which is very fucking funny considering his presence in the movie itself, but I'm not entirely sure it changes or adds much other than giving Aqua the opportunity to death note speech his ass.

What is fascinating to me about this talk is what it implies about Aqua. Every time we've seen his revenge play come up before this, the very strong implication is that Aqua intends to die at the end of it, either by Kamiki's hand or his own. But here, face to face with the man he's dedicated his entire life to ruining, Aqua doesn't just state his intent to get revenge but his intention to reclaim his future by doing so. We've gotten some pushes towards this since 150 but this is the clearest declaration of his intent to finally seize hold of this second chance and fucking live it that we've gotten out of Aqua… honestly, ever!

And accordingly, we see Aqua return to his white hoshigans here. I don't necessarily know if I want to call this slam dunk confirmed but this WAS really exciting to see given how it falls in line with my interpretation of "white hoshigan = hope = future" and "black hoshigan = despair = futurelessness". Everybody has been spending the last few chapters basically begging Aqua not to throw away his future and hurt the people he loves just to chase his revenge and it does seem like they're starting to get through to him.

Is this development kind of rushed? Honestly, yeah! I would've loved to see this explored more from properly inside Aqua's POV and it feels especially abrupt given how hard he got ignored all during the post-123 section of the Movie Arc. But at this point, it just feels so fucking good to see Aqua say out loud that he wants to have a future, that he wants to finally move forward and live that I can't bring myself to care. I just want him to finally be happy!!!

that said how fucking funny is it that the closest thing aqua has gotten to therapy in years is from his estranged father, a serial killer

break next week…!

[historicity-was-already-taken]

hi! hope you're doing okay—I've got a holocaust-history-in-media question for you. I was talking to my brother the other day, and he mentioned how his 10-year-old son tried out "Anne Frank mode" on the meta VR headset. I was kind of horrified, because that sounds deeply exploitative and disrespectful—but he went on to say it's just a VR version of the Anne Frank house, and that it let my nephew explore history in a new way. He was able to touch things and move them around in a way he wouldn't be able to IRL, not to mention the accessibility of not having to travel.

My nephew's kind of an unusual kid, and he chose this "game" while at a friend's house. All the other kids got bored and left pretty much immediately, but he stayed to learn, and my brother says that at the end his takeaway was, "It's so sad. It's so sad and awful what human beings do to each other."

Part of me is just like "No, absolutely not, that is not for VR companies to profit off of in any way, this feels inherently exploitative." But idk. If it increases accessibility and education in a meaningful way, then perhaps that disquiet is simply reactionary.

Then I remembered I have access to an actual Holocaust historian, someone who even specializes in women's narratives and the media portrayals of same.

So, no worries if you're busy/don't have time to respond to this, but I thought it might be an interesting question for you. Do you think the VR Anne Frank house is a good thing?

Ooooooh this is an interesting one. It's also a question that I think I would have answered differently a few years ago. I mean, I've posted here about my issues with central role Anne Frank has been accorded within Holocaust memory, I've posted about the politics of people playing Pokemon Go at sites of atrocities and disasters...

But. Technology changes SO quickly. I read this fantastic article probably 10+ years ago now about how the millennial generation began to express collective nostalgia SO quickly and so young, because technology and the norms it introduces change so quickly. I'm 34 and while that's hardly ancient, the technological world inhabited by children and adolescents is effectively alien to me because of this massive, rapid, ongoing change.

Moreover, I think the pandemic gave us all an...unwanted but helpful bootcamp in what works wrt education over the phone/computer, and what doesn't. In my personal and professional life, I've met and spoken with STEM companies/individuals who specialize in working with museums, historical societies, etc. And they're not just in it to make a buck--they're there to work with museums etc in increasing access and keeping up with educational trends because they know it's important and smart people value STEAM education.

So, despite my acknowledged concerns issued in the first paragraph, and the kneejerk negative reaction I think you and I share, I think my conclusion is that this is a good thing. Like, as a Holocaust historian, pubic historian, educator, and now a Hebrew School teacher of 7-11 year olds, I think whatever gets kids interested and engaged is Good; whatever draws them and gets them thinking about it is Good; even if the tech and infrastructure involved is something that I previously took (philosophical) issue with.

This doesn't mean I don't still have concerns about the centrality of Anne Frank, but let's be real: I lost that battle a long time ago. I've said my piece, and if Anne Frank is going to be kids' gateway into learning about the Holocaust, I'm glad to see that it's being done responsibly, well, and in keeping with how kids engage with education and tech in 2024.

There are, obviously, many theoretical conversations to be had about the implications of this kind of thing, and I hope a grad student applies like, Walter Benjamin to it for a first year paper, but this is my answer purely in terms of access and education.

[mayapapaya33]

Is anyone else kind of annoyed that apparently Gilmore being a Runechild isn't a secret anymore with zero explanation. Idk if Aabria just thought it was cool and didn't care about the implications or what, but I'm still a little salty about it. Gilmore told VM that Rune children were hunted in C1. That's kind of a big deal. Is he established enough and powerful enough that he feels safe being open about it now? Are we ever going to explore that?

I'm a little behind in CR, currently on C3 ep 65 at the present moment, so if this does for some reason come into play, please don't spoil it lol, I would LOVE it if Gilmore came into C3 to kick ass and take names with his boyfriend/partner, I want to meet him! I want to see Matt play Gilmore and his boyfriend together and explore the Runechildren being hunted thing! That's all I ask! Maybe in C4 Gilmore gets kidnapped by the bad guys in order to exploit his runechild status and our new heroes have to save him! Ok now I'm just writing fanfiction I'll stop.

I haven't read the campaign books yet so if there's something about that in there, feel free to let me know so I can stop being mad about it lol.

(Please no Aabria hate, EXU/ her particular style isn't to my taste but that's not an excuse to be a dick ok? Media critiques only! Thanks!)

[vashtijoy]

Do you hc akechi as a momma’s boy? I’ve always found his relationship to his mother kind of unclear, like he seems like he really cares but also it definitely doesn’t seem like his main motivator but most definitely the cause… idk

Okay, let's start with what we know. First of all, here's Ren's image of baby Akechi from the Proof of Justice OVA:

He's not very old. If he's the same age as the kid Ren was watching, he's what, six? Seven? Eight? And already, he doesn't look like a happy kid. Doesn't he look kind of nervous and worried and too old for his age?

In the OVA, he says he didn't have friends to play with even then—something separated him from his peers even before his mother died—and that pretending to play hero made his mother happy. Like he was already responsible for her that young, as she faded and died. Like he was already putting up that perfect front before she was gone.

Of course, that's present-day Akechi talking, and I'm not sure he has much investment in thinking about times when he did dream of being a hero—if they ever existed. But I think we can conclude that his relationship with his mother was difficult. In the engine room, he says she became unhappy after he was born (不幸になる fukou ni naru, to become unhappy) and eventually died—she fell into depression because of him, he believes, and died. He played not for himself, but to please her—presumably because she wanted him to play, because watching him suffer compounded her misery. He talks about putting frozen meals in the microwave for himself as a kid. He talks about wanting an apology for his mother, from the father who abandoned them.

The picture is really bleak—a young elementary-school age kid in a single-parent household, neglected by a depressed mother, burdened with her care and his own, determined to be so good and so perfect and not cause problems and just be whatever she needs. A kid who thinks maybe an apology from his father will put his world to rights. No friends. No family that he knows yet, or would want to know. His mother, and his obligations, are his whole world.

and then mom dies

Akechi remembers his mother being in the sex industry (waiting at the baths for her clients to leave), but he also remembers that she left it—presumably to give him a better life. Moving into headcanon, I wonder to what extent that may have isolated her—cut her off from support structures she had, and the people she knew, contributing further to her depression.

She's working longer hours. She has a kid she wanted—I think there's no question of this; there are many ways to get rid of kids you don't want—but maybe can't cope with, who watches her with huge, too-old eyes and poorly-hidden expectations she never meets, so that she breathes guilt at the sight of him.

She lets him down at every turn. She's a burden on him. She's destroying his childhood. He'd be so much better off without her, wouldn't he? And one day she just... doesn't come home. She's just not there when he gets back from school, or she never arrives back from work. He microwaves his dinner, does whatever he does alone at home, and waits, and waits; he goes over his planning for what he'll do when she doesn't come back, the kind of plans kids make when they can't rely on their parents. But he still waits for her. And when someone does arrive, in the early hours of the morning, it's not his mother; it's the police.

and then

OVA Akechi says that he "bounced around his relatives" after his mother's death, that they passed him around like a parcel. It's a popular HC that he spent time in orphanages etc, but I don't think this was the case; his situation closely parallels Futaba's, with her succession of exploitative relatives who didn't care about her and only wanted money. Akechi describes this himself: his desperation to be good enough that someone would want him around.

Remember, he's been putting up that front with his sick mother, long before she died, and now that he's with relatives who don't want him, he keeps going. Anything inconvenient, anything ugly, he buries deep. He gets better at it. He becomes polite and perfect and cheerful; he gets perfect grades; he tries to be the sort of kid you can't help but notice, the sort that makes you proud.

On the outside, at any rate. Because it never does a damn thing. We can speculate about whether and how Akechi's caregivers were outright abusive to him, but one thing seems crystal clear: none of them wanted him. Nothing he did ever made them love him. The only person who ever needed him was his sick mother, and she's gone.

And what do people who need to be needed do, when they don't have anyone? What do people do when they're desperate for love? They do anything, and find anyone they possibly can, who will need them and love them. Which is how Akechi ends up working for his estranged father, believing with every part of his being that he hates the man, while being led around for words of praise that would have meant nothing to him if he was truly as indifferent as he thinks. Like Cognitive Akechi insists, "you wanted him to love you, didn't you?"

but why does he do that and where's mom in the equation

At eighteen, Akechi still blames himself for his mother's death. He uses the wording 生まれる事を望まれなかった子供 umareru koto o nozomarenakatta kodomo, "a child whose birth was unwanted; a child who should never have been born"—rendered "cursed child" in the localisation.

But he never talks much about his mother, other than to dripfeed personal information to Joker and Futaba. She doesn't seem to feature overmuch in his thinking, like you say. I think what's going on is something like this:

Akechi's mother dies some time in his early elementary school years. Part of his thinking has been this idea that, if he could only find his father and get him to apologise, maybe that would make his mother happy; maybe that's something Akechi could do to help her. I think that "back then, Shido was on the Tokyo Assembly" line ("he was already a high-ranking official by then") is not referring to when Akechi got his powers, but to when his mother died.

And when she dies, Akechi knows, he knows whose fault it is. And it isn't his absent father's. It's Akechi's fault. He has not been good enough. He hasn't hidden his irrelevant little sadnesses well enough. He hasn't been independent enough, strong enough, supportive enough. He woke his mom while he was getting ready for school one time, I don't fucking know, okay. But all the things we tell ourselves when someone dies unexpectedly—if only, if only, if only—on the shoulders of a little kid. A kid with no support, because he's been passed to relatives who don't want him and see him as a burden.

Essentially: Akechi, at six or seven, has not done what Joker will do so effectively at sixteen. He hasn't hidden his messy reality, his messy little-boy needs and fears, behind what his mother needed him to be. And now his mother is dead.

So, first of all: he is very motivated to make that mask better, to be more perfect, more independent, less real. And second? If he doesn't find somewhere for all that guilt to go, somewhere to displace that secret knowledge to, he will break. And broken boys are not perfect. They are never wanted. Nobody ever keeps them around.

an apology just ain't going to cut it any more

This is Akechi's start of darkness. The father who used his mother as a plaything and cast her aside, never knowing her name—the father who left her with a child who destroyed her (and he'll just brush over that bit, if you don't mind)—the father who left them both alone with nothing—he murdered Akechi's mother. Her death was his fault.

This is how Akechi becomes the boy we know, consumed on the inside with hate that has eaten him up like acid. For almost as long as he's been a person at all, he's been obsessed with revenge on his father—first for the death of his mother, for Akechi's own suffering and aloneness as he's grown, and ultimately for all the indignities he's made Akechi swallow under his thumb.

Letting it go was never an option. Because if he stops thinking about what a monster his father is, if he stops thinking of all the things he wants to do to him and dreaming of a future where he can somehow bring him down, he has to face the fact that he, and he alone, caused his mother's death. It might be bullshit, but Akechi believes it. And—because the adults around him have no interest in him—he has no support in dealing with all of this in any other way. He's a little kid, who's dealt all his life with things that would tax most adults to handle.

so what does this ultimately look like

At eighteen, Akechi is still in a very real way that little kid who lost his mother. He doesn't really grow up. He's probably the one cast member whose dialogue most prominently foregrounds the divide between kids and the adults who exploit them, right from that first conversation in the TV studio. He still thinks of himself as a child, and of adults as this vast, oppressive sea of other—a sea he can navigate and control and oppress in turn.

But I don't think he remembers his mother. I've written him sometimes as remembering things like the smell of her perfume, or the sight of her hair from behind, but not her face; the rhythm of her voice, but not its sound. He remembers her as an anxiety, a burden; for this almost-grown boy who refuses to fail no matter the cost, the death of his mother is still his greatest (and possibly only acknowledged) failure.

I said further up that Akechi's motive has shifted over time. Avenging his mother made sense when he was seven or eight. Later on, as he stores up insults and rejections, the focus shifts to avenging himself. And after he's worked for Shido for a year or two? After Shido has, despite everything, never quite acknowledged Akechi or rewarded him as he deserves? Well, then the focus is going to be on getting Shido.

Because Akechi is essential to him. He made him. Shido needs him like nobody ever has. Not since his mother.

That's the core of the twisted connection Akechi has to Shido. He hates him, and he blames him, and yet Shido is his only true family, poisoned as that relationship is. He is the only one who needs Akechi for anything. And Akechi needs so desperately to be needed....

I dunno. Shido could have had a devoted assassin for life, and been lifetime dictator of Japan, if he'd been just a little smarter; I suspect that thought unsettles third semester Akechi more than almost anything. Instead, Akechi's hate somehow deepens, and deepens, and deepens until he drowns in it, in all the things he's done in its service. To be needed so deeply, and yet still to be neglected....

Well, that makes the death of his mother look like nothing at all.

[themultifanshipper]

The delusion in thinking you know what Lando is like... you don't know him, you don't know what happened with the media training and still you're writing so many useless apologies for him, and for what?

Everyone is responsible for what they say, no one held a gun to his head and forced him. Mazepin raped somebody and staied in the sport. Do you really think saying something against trump, or just something blander, would actually have consequences for him?

Until the day Lewis is a counter example to all of them, as was Vettel, you can't tell me that he or any of them are just trained puppets that only do what they're told and have no real agency

I'll keep writing, and apparently you'll keep reading, so here we go

Yeah Mazepin stayed in the sport because the system (in this cas f1 but true for all systems) protects rapists mysogynists etc... look at what happened with Horner. He's had no problems and the victim has been sacked. And that's where the difference between lando and some of the others is. They either stay completely out of it, or they speak, and when they speak it's ALWAYS to the advantage of the accused (I wasn't around during the Mazepin era so idk what statements the drivers put out there, but i'll bet they were not written by them).

As for consequences of going against the status quo, of course there would be consequences. It's political, it would take a comment about trump that a sponsor doesn't like for them to withdraw.

And of course I don't know Lando personally, but I am a good judge of character, always have been, and as per my last post abt this, I don't think I would get along with him, he's not a great person, but what I don't see is someone who went out of his way to endorse trump and what he stands for. It was a throwaway comment that shouldn't have been said at all, but some of you are acting like Lando is a misogynistic homophobic racist copy of trump, Which I Am Convinced He Is Not. (Not to play the "he's not racist he's got poc friends" card but... look at his friends)

Lewis Hamilton is (as I also said) a prime example, as is vettel (although I do have some doubts about the pedestal some people put him on), of how all drivers should be. However not all the drivers have the freedom that mercedes have given Lewis. Merc pride themselves of their diversity hires and pr diversity projects, but I don't believe for a second they believe a word of any of it. Can you imagine if one of the drivers of the "poorer" teams spoke out? They definitely can't afford to lose any sponsors. Even the bigger teams that stand for equality yadda yadda yadda are sponsored by brands that are: the worst thing ever for the environment (shell, ferrari), use child and or cheap labour and exploitation of poorer countries (puma, ferrari) or support/are known right wing or support palestine, CEO's a racist,rapist, homophobic etc.. Redbulls whole brand is based on AN ENERGY DRINK and old racists! If you respect your body at all you shouldn't drink redbull OR monster but anyway i digress....

Point is, there are more pressing things to worry about (including drivers actually being cunts and saying actual problematic shit) than Lando's offhand comment about it being an honour to meet trump just to keep the american right wing happy.

Anyway keep yelling at me I love the attention, keep it coming guys!

[thegoobiedoober]

Weirdly enough, I feel like I've been drifting away from the LBP community. Idk why, but since the plug had been pulled from the game, there hasn't really been much reason to stick around because nobody can stick around without the user-generated content aspect of the game.

When LBP went down for good, I went over to Dreams for a similar feel, but the stuff in there is complicated as heck, and it's hard for me to figure out how to make stuff using the tools provided. It's a powerful engine, yes. Very cool things are possible in there. But Dreams is much too daunting in comparison to LBP.

I tried Battleblock Theater, and that just didn't scratch the itch for me. It has a cool story mode, and you're free to pick and choose any set of tools to play with, but the whole thing is just too.. simple for me.

Currently, I've been playing Minecraft to cope with the whole thing, but it can just get so frustrating, especially when you run out of materials to use during a build.

I'd like to go back to LBP, but I don't think I can without a Jailbroken PS3 or something like that. It would be nice to be able to get one, but money is tight at the moment, and I don't think I can just jailbreak the PS4 I do have.

And I did have a level that I was working on. That would have been the first playable level I could have uploaded. But there's no point in working on it because, as far as I'm aware, the LBP servers aren't coming back.

I don't know if LBP is ever going to come back. And it's a terrible thought because I loved that game. I introduced my little brother to that game, and he loved it too.

It's like losing a family member. Except... it hurts a little more because I know this happened because of vulnerabilities that were exploited by people who couldn't stand the thought of others having fun.

I think LBP deserved a lot more than a whimpering death. SABA is cool and all, but it's not the same. RSBR isn't the same. Ultimate Sackboy isn't the same.

And from the looks of it, the community is just going to sink. Those that do have hope, they will get tired. Those that don't have an understandable reason.

But man..

It just makes me hate this image just a little more.

[razielwritesstuff]

Obey Me! Headcannons ~

I have never and will never hide that I dislike Luci

BUT

I do have thoughts

This man is just constantly sipping a caffeinated beverage he needs it to deal with these mfs

He's a single mother of all 6 of his brothers

I think all demons have sharp teeth. His are the least sharp of the brothers and he is PISSED ABT IT TGURBODFK

Fav song is probably by Mozart. Basic ass.

I discussed how the om! chars would deal wirth being in mlp (pls dont ask) and Luci and Luna give me an evil grinch smile

I feel like he'd curse when angry

Idk.

Gay ass

Smells like pine trees or something

I think he'd have a fear of mascots

Like. character mascots.

Don't ask me okay

Smells like axe bodyspray and SADNESS

Am I WRONG????

We all love mammon but that man.... we know he uses axe...

Befriends the local crows.

There is so many he could be carried off

They all give him shiny shit to sell

Did everyone remember how he's canonically a model

He's attractive. Canonically.

Anyways, second-sharpest teeth of the bros

This is cannon (TO ME) but Mammon is just attached to MC like glue

"STOP FOLLOWING ME!!" "LET GO OF MY HAND THEN????"

He once tried to steal and sell some of leviathan's games

The cast took a while to come off :)

Fav song is something CUNTY ik it

Most girlypop aside from asmo (YTO ME!!!!)

He's great :D

He is so trans to me as a transmasc.

He has a main twitter and an alt twitter. Nobody knows abt the alt so he uses it to doxx ppl he doesn't like

I love Leviathan but I swear to God I don’t think he knows what deodorant is

“man for a guy who sleeps in a bathtub you really have no concept of hygiene”

How many Henrys has he had??? who tf knows.

Fav animal is SNAKES

Loves pokemon. his fav would be gyarados

He will assume anything except romantic intentions at all times

Autistic. As approved by my friend with the 'tism

He would be a brony

Lovable but a Bit Cringe

Has tied Mammon to a chair and forced him to watch stuff before

EXPERT at pirating shit

Would play Undertale.

Speedrunner !!

Would spend like the better part of a month to discover EVERY SINGLE glitch, bug, and exploit in a game to use it to is advantage

Has a sims 4 cc folder that's like 80 terabytes

He's my malewife and he's everything to me.

Would make a shiny living dex on every single Pokémon game

He has multiple cardboard cutouts of his waifus

Satan has an Ao3 account. He writes exclusively on his fav characters

His Ao3 tag has something to do with Sherlock Holmes fight me

He tweets in perfect grammar

He'd kill over a board game

Would cry over a cute cat video

WARRIOR CATS NERD

HE'S COME UP WITH WARRIOR NAMES FOR EVERYONE HE KNOWS AND THE CAT HE THINKS IS MOST SIMILAR

Lucifer got assigned as Tigerclaw LMAO

He would get into Leviathan's fandoms but only bc Leviathan forced him. He comes out liking the thing.

His favorite disney movie would be Aristocats

Loves Luigi

He became a cat person specifically because Lucifer is a dog person

He'd also be a brony

The one that can analyze media properly

His brothers use him to spellcheck their essays

He either watches video essays on YouTube or he makes them

Likes reading about witchkraft from the human realm, he finds it interesting

The one that taught Leviathan to make cardboard cutouts

Knows about 50 stray cats and has named them all

Constantly brags about how he has sharper teeth than Lucifer

Smells like a different scented candle every week

Has that stereotypical gay accent

He's zesty

He's girlypop but we all knew that

Listens to Ayesha Erotica

Goes like "GIRL you would NOT believe what Solomon did!!"

He spills all the tea all the time

King shit

He'd wear a dress in a heartbeat and he'd ROCK IT

He would cry over broken nails but not because of the pain it might cause, only because it looks ugly asf now

"I NEED TO CRY BUT MY MAKEUP WAS 40 GRIMM"

The one who painted everyone's nails

Will threaten you in order to paint your nails, but he will do a color you like

King at make up

Absolutely loves Ru Paul

Keeps trying to get Dia to set up a drag race, he's unsuccessful as of now

Strawberry is his favorite flavor

He's very physically affectionate but would absolutely respect boundaries i will kill you if you think otherwise

He would HYPE. YOU. UP.

Has gum on him 24/7

Also has tampons on him so he can give them to the homies who need them (like Leviathan)

IDK man I didn't used to like him that much but he's grown on me

VERY GOOD COOK because of course he is

Loves giving piggyback rides

Tall enough and beefy enough for you to sit on his shoulders

Would also let Belph sleep on his shoulders

He's a golden retriever. We knew this.

Surprisingly good at Just Dance

Not a dog person not a cat person but a secret third thing (he thinks cows are adorable)

Always spares bugs and spiders when he finds them

Cannot watch cooking shows, he's tried to eat the TV before

Loves going to movie theaters, will pay just for the overpriced popcorn

You can tell he genuinely loves you if he shares his food

Like he shares his food with MC and all the brothers are like "W. WHAT??"

Would INSIST you look great no matter what you look like

You will cuddle with him and Belph this is an Order

Smells like food-scented deodorant

He would be too scared to roughhouse with anyone, boy is too strong

Likes just picking people up and carrying them off

He's done this with Satan once and it actually calmed him down

Favorite show is Bluey probably

Favorite animal is a maned wolf or something

Would kill for a klondike bar

Sharpest teeth out of the brothers + bites as a love language

Every time he bites Leviathan it results in Leviathan squealing higher than able to be heard by humankind

Talks in his sleep. It is adorable thank you for asking!

Smells like Lavendar, vanilla deodorant, and a little bit of "hasn't showered in 2 days" hidden underneath

Drinks a lot of milk

Blueberry is his favorite flavor

Lucid dreams a lot

He does not believe dreams have meanings his are always either incomprehensible or if they did have menains have ones he really doesnt like

Would drink monster energy but he hates the taste of caffeine (he just like me forreal)

Gummies are his favorite snack

He gives off trans energy but i honest to diavolo can't tell if he's transfem or transmasc or neither i CANT TELL

He's girly pop in his own unique way

His DDD's ringtone is Emo Boy by Ayesha Erotica

He's neurodivergent to me i just dont know how

Chews on everything for sensory reasons

Spoiled. Because he's the youngest sibling ofc he is

Every time he drinks hot cocoa he puts marshmallows in it

He considers "barging into your room and scooching you over in your bed to cuddle" a sleepover

Alternatively he'll get Beel to bring you to their room

Hey everyone remember how he's canonically a yandere-

Anyways he's cool :)

[the20thcenturykid]

I was thinking about something... We know that both Lilith and Alastor were missing for the last 7 years and we have confirmation that Lilith is now in heaven and from Alastor breakdown in finale that his powers are somewhat compromised, limited (what could also add to the reason why he lost to Adam, since as prideful as Al is he couldn't fathom loosing to him even when not on his full power) and that his deal is part of it, probably even cause.

Soooo, long post theory ehead.

Leading theory is that Alastor made not so good a deal with Lilith but! When? If it happened during those 7 years would Husk know about it at all since it looks like Alastor might not even be able to talk about it? (Again, his pride and hubris but it also looks like he isn't allowed to say much about those 7 years) I highly doubt Alastor had some heartfelt conversation about that somewhere during those 6 months of show, especially if he really cannot say much about it so... Husk shouldn't know much.

What if the deal itself is old news and recent development was just part of it? Since he played with some voodoo during his lifetime it's not out of question he made it even before his death or right after since from the beginning he was able to take down overlords one after another. Also - did Al actually sold his soul or someone pulled on him "power for tiny favour in future" ploy? Or both?

The question of why he's engaging with the Hotel's plot is also on, because as honestly compelling is the idea he was just bored we can be sure it's just an excuse and he has way bigger plans.

Alastor was and is the hunter.

He also can probably destroy souls. He threatened Husk to do so, since overlords he killed disappeared completely they could get this fate. Normally when the human soul gets killed in hell they come back sooner or later but not when killed by angels and apparently Alastor if he decides to do so.

Now to the point - I have weird feelings that his deal isn't with Lilith but rather this "future favour" is somehow connected to her and probably she's its target. What if she messed with the one who owns Alastor's soul and he was sent to silence her? From the start - I don't know if Alastor is/was strong enough to kill an ancient demon queen even with extra power from his "benefactor" but if so it would be wise to hide from demon who's hunting her in only place he would never be able to go - in heaven.

Now, why is Alastor supposedly weaker if he's to take down Lilith? BECAUSE HE FAILED and this is his punishment for that. Why was he missing for the whole 7 years? Was he searching for Lilith? Yeah, for that I have no fucking idea to be honest. Idk, he tried to break into heaven by force and accidentally fell into limbo between heaven and hell and just got out after 7 years and Lilith not sure where he is didn't want to leave her safe haven for which she probably paid quite a big price (probably part of the deal which Lute mentioned at the end of season). Idk, that would be funny.

This all could quite well fit the reason why Alastor is so interested not only in the Hotel but most importantly in Charlie. As redemption might be a way to enter heaven I doubt Al would even consider going through it, but just knowledge if it's possible for demon souls to go there would be some hint how to exploit this possibility to get to Lilith. But the most important part here is Charlie. She's still young and finding her footing and how's the best way to get her trust? Help her grow and achieve her goals. Alastor went for some lengths to gather some trust and by how everyone reacted for his comeback at the end it looks like aside from Lucifer and Husk he bought some of it from them. And there's also a question of Charlie's deal. "Favour where she doesn't have to harm her friends"? Maybe some footing for the way to lure Lilith out of heaven or find his way there to get her by himself.

So why doesn't Alastor just use Charlie now to lure Lilith out? If he threatened to harm Charlie who's still discovering her own power her mother should come running to help her child? Well judging from outside sources about Al and his personality he isn't as cold blooded as one might think and even when he was alive he had his code. Afterall using hostages is quite low blow, so he's trying to avoid it by manipulating Charlie into trusting her. This is also the reason why he hated Lucifer's involvement so much - he's another obstacle and actually quite problematic. One thing is to manipulate the young one to get to the ancient demon queen, the other to try to manipulate the young one in front of their father to get to the ancient demon queen who happens to be said fathers wife (ex?).

And now for the finale and his breakdown. One thing is his pride was just completely slaughtered by Adam, he's losing control, he's not only weaker than someone, but even weaker than he himself thought (and just a few hours earlier he was making fun of Adam for his hubris and just got the biggest UNO reverse card in his afterlife). Also, he realised that he almost died in an attempt of protecting Hotel and its residents. No matter if they are just means to the end, if he's accidentally creating himself a new obstacle on the way to his prey by getting attached to them and most importantly Charlie using them will be way more difficult. He's scared of showing any weaknesses, and here he showed not only that he isn't as powerful in fight as he seemed but now feels emotionally vulnerable. And he hates it so much.

SOOOOOOOOOO

One last thing. Who's the person with whom Alastor made a deal? Since he gained the skill of destroying souls one might think it's some angel, but then heaven wouldn't be so safe for Lilith. So probably Roo, the Root of whole evil that was teased here and there by Viv for some time. If so

[aether-friskets]

Why I Headcanon Waylon Park as a Trans Guy?

it came to me in a dream.

ok but jokes aside (well not entirely it DID actually originate because of a dream i had getting interrupted by a nonexistent video essay on the topic... dreams are weird man), i do want to try talking about my reasoning for this (although it's totally legit to hc a character as trans purely because you want to!! thats totally based also lol), because maybe it'd be interesting to hear the lens through which i saw this game? idk lol but i'm doing it anyway... below the cut in case it gets long

Ok immediate prefaces, A: i doubt this was actually the intended at all and i'm not trying to say it's canon, just saying why i read it that way :3 and B: this will probably be a rambling mess and I apologize, I'll try to make it somewhat make sense.

I guess I'll start with: a whole major thing of Outlast, is fighting to tear down this large corporation, that is like. the embodiment of shitty systems that exploit people (this post by bry mentions that general topic, although more focused on miles' angle). It's worth noting because, to me at least, fighting these sorts of systems really aligns with a lot of queer folks (and basically any group that gets fucked over by the system, which is most of them loll). There's like, this whole thing of Waylon seemingly fitting that image of the ideal typical man, with the wife and kids and a job, but he has to risk all of that to do what he feels is the right thing.

(Oh yeah, I guess quick tangent on that note. Yes I know in canon we literally see his dick lmao and also we know he has kids, which you might think would deter my hc here. but A: i already said ik it's probably not canon, i can still read into it regardless. B: intersex ppl exist. C: phalloplasty and other similar procedures exist. D: ppl can have kids in non-traditional way. so im prob not gonna cover that element of it more)

My brain hasn't been able to help but interpret his whole journey in a queer way, because i played it as a teenager still in the throes of understanding my identity and place in the world, so in the end this might not even make sense to anyone else. But, I'm trying to explain, so I'll continue to regardless.

I kind of saw it as Waylon hiding in the protection of an "ideal" life. On the surface he looks like he's in that American ideal family, but it's a subversion. He's only one of them because they think he is. Because he doesn't step out of line. Unlike Miles, who's more outspoken about issues, who seemingly has no one around him. He's treated as part of this "ideal" world, while working in the background to try and stop the exploitation and immoral acts going on.

When he's caught, when he's seen as something more complicated than first imagined, he's cast out. Lumped in with the same people being exploited by Murkoff already. He isn't "human" to them anymore. He's something else. Something they don't like.

Although the violence brought upon him is by the variants, it is still in part Murkoff's doing, since they fucked these people up via these experiments to a point of heightened violence and just generally ruining their lives more than they already had been by whatever they had done prior. That being said, they are still responsible for their own actions.

the stuff with Eddie is definitely the part that most resonated with me through this lens. I remember first playing it, and he scared me the most, for a lot of reasons. One of which being what he represented. He's The Groom. He wants someone to be his Bride, and you're it, even if you don't want that. As someone who's aroace AND already knew at that point that i wasn't a girl, this guy felt like a human embodiment of the pressures to fit what was expected of you. That one day, you'll be married and have kids. If you don't, then you're worthless.

But it's interesting especially, because Waylon IS married. He has kids already. He has that family. The difference is, in this hypothetical trans lens, he's not "really" in a traditional family. He's "pretending", as some might see it, because he's not "really one of them". Being Eddie's Bride is the situation that would've been expected of him, but he said "fuck that", and did his own thing.

Plus, like, with Eddie in particular, you will NEVER be what he wants. He will try to make his perfect bride, but you'll never be it. Even before Mount Massive, no one was what he wanted, judging by all the people he killed. He's a broken man desiring something but never liking his options.

Also just fucking. these lines from eddie make me lose my mind.

That part of you the world sees, they think it's perfect. As God intended. Even these idiots and lunatics see it. There's something special about you. On the surface. But when they look deeper, when anybody with eyes to see looks at what you truly are. That's why they don't trust you. You're not what you're meant to be. Not yet. This place can see into your mind. And the things you've done. Oh, they're a sin, darling.

like HELLO??

I know it's probably just Eddie rambling but it felt like he reached through the screen and grabbed me by the throat like.

Anyway in actual relation to my point. uh. Remember the thing I said about Waylon being a "fake" typical family? This kind of relates to that. Like, on the surface, he seems like he's got this perfect typical American family, he's "as God intended" (which. bro. i swear that exact phrase has been used against trans people so many times). But if you look closer, you'll realize there's more to it than that. Also like, going from the "as God intended" line to the thing about the things he's done being a sin, like hmmm. Maybe I'm reading into that too much, considering we know Eddie wants to make you into his Bride, so of course he's gonna think stuff like that. But still. It's a bit interesting to me.

Plus, it's interesting how, despite having a wife and kids, he's still more... feminized, I guess, than any other characters in this game. Both in the game itself, and within the fandom. Like, not just Eddie literally calling him a woman and trying to make him his bride, but also stuff like a variant near the beginning calling him a "pretty flower" before threatening him, Andrew (one of the staff) licking his face at the beginning of the game... A lot of violence and sexual-ish acts that are often directed at women in media. Even Frank, who I don't have as much to say about here, has some weirdly sexual undertones to his whole cannibalism thing.

This isn't entirely related but one part of the game that still sticks with me but I don't see mentioned as much, is near the beginning. Those guys stabbing the dead staff member. One of them remarks that "there are no observers here" and "do you think you're different? Something special?", which I think helps cement the whole idea that he's treated the same as the rest of people being exploited by Murkoff now. There's no turning back to that "ideal" life you were hiding in before. Hell, that's definitely reinforced more at the end of the game, when you choose to publish your footage, knowing Murkoff will come after you for it, and probably ruin your life. Maybe there's more interesting things to glean from that, but i thought they were interesting lines nonetheless.

anyway, overall I know this is probably just the ramblings of a trans/generally queer person reading WAY too much into a character that I happened to resonate with when i played the game, but i thought maybe it would be interesting for others to understand what would lead me to this conclusion? Anyway, that's all i've got on the subject right now, so I hope it was at least a little interesting.

[elfcow]

Bat hornet's nest etc but yeah re Lancer and the politics of it & Union ye it's morally fucked and ethically inconsistent yadda yadda

I don't know the author or the author's intent, idk whether the core book lore is supposed to be diagetic in-universe propaganda or if the author just could not or would not conceive of morally immaculate writing or a future-proof fictional societal blueprint. I don't really care, either.

To my mind the dreadfully fucked up and human world of Lancer is a perfect sandbox to play in if you actually sit in and engage with the flaws inherent to how Union operates and interacts within that fictional world.

Like. Regardless of authorial intent I am interpreting the art through my lens and frankly Union feels like a natural evolution of the evil empire that I'm familiar with in real life.

So, in a world where you grow up hearing so many disparate things about Union, would you try to embody the ideals they claim to espouse? Would you try to Baru Cormorant it and tear it down or change it from the inside? Can you even safely remake something whose name and emblem and pillars are built on the blood of colonies? Without changing its name, or being broken yourself? Would you try to stand against it completely?

There's a reason the Lancer campaign I've been running, Sunset Over Eden, tackles these things directly.

Eden is the Union in microcosm, a world thrice-visited by humanity, wrapped now in Union's "liberating" embrace. Union came bearing the magical plenty of post-scarcity, after all. But when local rebels destroyed the Blinkgate, Union's true nature was revealed.

How do you maintain a lifestyle of "post-scarcity," when the fountain that metes out grace is smashed? The same way that fountain was maintained in the first place - by the exploitation of people far away enough that you don't have to look them in the eye.

Except now those people live on the same world as you. A beast used to boundless plenty will turn that appetite on anything when they get hungry.

And so Union is revealed for what it is; the fist of empire, stripped of its silken glove.

And the players of my Eden campaign are doing marvelously at grappling with - how do you, how can you fix this.

I think if you wait for the writing of a ttrpg to be perfectly politically sound you're going to be waiting for a long time. There's a lot more value in bringing your own lens to the table, and exploring the stories that matter to you. Even if you have to confront the frailties of the pieces you're playing with. Sometimes toys are made to break. Doesn't mean you can't have fun playing with them your way.

[gangles-toybox]

Idk if I'll draw it but random Youtuber/Influencer AU for TADC go brr. Putting a break because SHIT MAN this is longggg lol

Pomni- General internet goer and one of those Youtubers that made "day in the life" type vlogs showcasing how much fucking pressure she's under, has a pretty loyal and caring audience for her despite herself, ~100,000 subscribers or so and she *tries* to respond to every comment.

Caine- Not so much an Influencer persay but more so of creator of the popular social media apps and tries to be #hipwiththekids...it does not work very well he's posting Pokémon Go and Harlem shake memes in 2024..bless his heart

Bubble- Caine's social media manager! He's a little better with being hip with the kids, up to date with memes n stuff but he also gets attention in...less than convential ways. Think of what was happening with the Norm of the North Twitter account, just weird..weird shit.

Sun & Moon- They act as a duo of sorts on Tik Tok and they make skits and #unhinged humor that is probably liked by majority of everybody. Nobody can tell if they're dating or just friends, since Sun will say the most unhinged shit and Moon will just sigh dreamily at it while reciting a poem or shit. Moon has to stop Sun from responding to hate comments and going off on them and finding their address n shit.

Gloink Queen & Gloinks: The Gloink Queen is one of those Facebook moms who takes pictures of their children(her Gloinks) every time they do anything, even when they're crying, because she thinks it's "cute". She gets fairly popular at first and even gets to sell merchandise however as her audience grows, so does her criticism but Facebook doesn't do anything about it and she continues to exploit her children for views and attention.

Princess Loolilalu- Tiktok influencer that shows the daily life of a royal. She's fairly unpopular but she was the hot topic for a week because people thought she was flexing and she had to explain she wasn't trying to, she was just trying to show the daily life since some people in her kingdom had inquired about it. She gets very low engagement but she admires every comment she gets. She starts to shift towards more crafty stuff after honestly getting a bit bored filming every second of her life and that grows her audience a little bit.

Gummigoo - Tiktok Influencer that make illegal life hack videos and him just working on a farm(I assume he does cuz he gives off cowboy vibes) and he's unintentionally thirst trapping through those videos, which gives him a pretty large, dedicated and possibly a little too obsessed, audience.

Zooble- Youtuber that talks about the most depraved shit that people do in humanity, think like iceberg videos about shitty people online or the dark corners of Reddit and 4chan. Also probably has a second channel where they play *nothing* but Plants vs. Zombies 2 because idk it's funny and they need to do something else to not get entirely depressed

Kinger- He is a Youtuber, techinally, though he doesn't know how to operate a camera very well. Most of his videos are just snippets from his life, cooking some food, badly singing his favorite songs, and sharing a little too much of his life online. Still, he's regarded as Youtube's grandpa.

Kaufmo- A YouTube "prankster" that would do the worst fucking things imaginable(not illegal but..close to it) and one day he did..something..and he got killed for it as a result, it was all caught on camera. He was criticized a lot for doing what shit he was doing and when he died, it was covered but nobody was suprised.

Ragatha- If Kinger is the grandpa of YouTube, then Ragatha is the grandma because she posts a lot of crochet and stitching how tos while also sprinkling in her personality and some of her other interests, like making a crochet Undertale plushie or something.

Gangle- She's a very famous twitch streamer who is...I don't even know really how to describe it but she's very like "uwu" abt everything as her streamer personality yknow? And..I mean..it works, she gets enough donations in a 1 hour stream to pay her rent for 2 months so..as for her content, it depends, sometimes it's horror games and other times it's just chilling with chat.

Jax- Jax is...also...a streamer. He does snuff streams where he gets donations to torture people and stuff. It's illegal but he makes as much money, if not more, than Gangle.