#I don't think anything on this show has had an emotional impact

[goingundercap]

Titans is one of the most frustrating shows I have ever watched, and yet for some reason I continue to watch it

[ixiot-ghostrebel]

Hello there sagau brain rot like in many sagau versions reader/creator are often to soft to kind to my taste and then Idea comes to my head what if creator reader shows his cruler uncaring side to the pepole he truly hates or thinks deserve thier wrath like I can image that in place of raiden shogun the creator kills Singniora after begin defeated by traveler, azar the grand sage after whole begin in that day loop, and scaramouche when he had audacity to think that by begin inside giant mech he is now a God becose even if the creator is the kindest begin in tevyat.....his wrath has no bounds

@zardas75 welcome back to my very dead mailbox LOL—Let me see what I can come up with with your brainrot.

I don't fully get the Raiden Shogun vs Signora part, so I'm going to (unfortunately) not include that in this post.

The Creator Being Moody Fr (Jkjk—Unless? 👀)

(Disclaimer: Might Be OOC & Spoilers to the Genshin Impact Archon Quest Lore!)

Boy oh boy...where to begin...

To put it simply: It's Azar's Fault. Blame and point your fingers to the rusty old man, bois, we ain't forgiving him any time soon. It all started with him.

The moment you saw him in the Archon Quest, you knew, without even needing the slightest hint of evidence, that you did not like him and he was sus.

And when things escalated throughout the Archon Quest, you swore so loudly it shook the entire nation of Sumeru, if not all of Teyvat.

Here were Some of the Sumeru People's Reactions:

Cyno

He finished his confrontation with Azar and was waiting outside when you swore like your life depended on it. During his entire time being under your presence, Cyno was aware of how much you hated the guy—every moment you had gotten, you were seething and spouting insults from your mouth about Azar.

Even the General Mahamatra was stunned and shocked to the very core. He didn't you could and would do this.

And when you made it clear that your tantrum was yet to end, Cyno just braced himself for the fate of Sumeru to be in your hands.

"At least Azar is truly facing the wrathful judgement of the gods..." he mutters to himself, trying to convince himself of the situation at hand.

(Meanwhile You in the background: "YOU MF HOW DARE YOU. HOW DARE YOUUUU I WILL F—KING KILL YOU IF YOU CONTINUE THIS YOU SON OF A B—")

Scaramouche & Nahida

(Decided to add them both here since It's the False God Fight. This is kinda for the sake of convenience—)

Nahida never knew such intense emotion could ever erupt from Their High, Almighty Grace, and here you are, cursing and insulting Scaramouche. It wasn't as bad as Azar's, since you weren't throwing in any "I will have your head by morning" or anything similar threats, but it was still pretty intense.

Scaramouche, on the other hand, has heard you yelling at the old man Azar, and he already been yelled at for—quote on quote—"killing Teppei" (REST IN PEACE, TEPPEI 😭), so he knows what your wrath was like.

He did not like it then, and he still doesn't like it now. That much was a solid fact. Nevertheless, he has an image to uphold, especially in front of that Buer.

"Their Almighty Grace is really mad..." Nahida thought as they were confronting Scaramouche. (Cue you in the background still insulting Azar) "And it seems they won't be forgiving Azar anytime soon..."

"So, Their Grace still hasn't let go of their grudge against me..." Scaramouche mutters to himself once he was out of the view of Their Almighty Grace in his mecha. "Tch. Whatever...I'll make them see my true potential one I've squashed these insects."

Dehya

She knew you were explosive. She's seen it happen by the way you were cheering to beat Rahman's ass and "save the kid's grandpa!"

She knew you were pretty emotional on behalf of them. She's pretty happy and honored about that—that means Teyvat meant a lot to you.

What she was not expecting was to hear you curse and scream at Azar at the top of your lungs, as if that was the only enjoyment you were able to indulge yourself in.

You sounded murderous, and yet here you were, just yelling. Dehya would've shrugged it off, since she understood getting things out of your system was good, but she was not expecting the world to shake with your voice.

She looks over at Rahman. "You think Their Grace is handling this well?" "Probably not...Hard to say, Dehya." "Well, we'll just have to wait it out, then. They'll get it out of their system...eventually..."

Dehya was not expecting to wait until after beating the False God for it to be truly over. Gosh, that was scary...

Tighnari

He sensed that you didn't like Azar the moment you saw him, and frankly, he's pretty glad you don't trust him too. What he wasn't expecting was your explosive personality.

For all the stories about the Almighty Creator's kind and gentle nature, you were ANYTHING but. And you were proving it HARD.

Tighnari thought he heard it all when he got struck by lightning. Boy, was he wrong, because you just one-upped his expectations with the amount of cussing, cursing, threats, and insults you were hurtling in one go, streaming out of your mouth like you were running a marathon with your words.

So here he was, waiting in some form of dread in Pardis Dhyai, waiting if you were going to strike down the Akademiya with your godly might.

"I hope they don't accidentally blow up all of Sumeru..." he mutters to himself as he prays to all the archons that the nation wouldn't be turned into water or something.

Alhaitham

He should have taken account of your behaviour to the plan. You did play a crucial part. That was the sole mistake he overlooked.

Then again...it didn't seem like you were doing anything other than yelling at Azar...So perhaps the plan wouldn't change all that much.

He should keep in mind of how reactive you are, though. You...remind of his roommate sometimes...

"Hm. It seems Their Grace has yet to let Azar go of their scandal." He says it so calmly as he waits in Aaru Village. Candace stands a few feet away, looking unsure of what was going on—and probably praying that Their Almighty Grace won't strike down Sumeru in their anger against the rogue Grand Sage.

And let's not talk about the Traveler or Paimon. Those two are both used to it and still terrified. But they're okay with you dw 👍

Ghost Rebel Side Notes: IM COMING BACK WOOO! I'm so excited! There's been quite a few more requests than I usually got back in the past, so I'm a little stoked. They'll be out real soon, but I hope you enjoy this one! Hopefully I'll have time to do them all! :D

✦ Check out The Ghost Rebel’s Blog Description & Info Page to See if Their Mailbox is Open! ✦

[rin-fukuroi]

𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐈 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 [𝐍𝐞𝐮𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐞]

Please do not translate or publish my works without my permission.

The originals of my works can be read here

Fandom: Genshin Impact

Pairings: Neuvillette x fem!reader

Warnings: NSFW, sub!Neuvillette, loss of virginity (Neuvillette), established relationships, oral sex, creampie.

Note: English is not my native language, so I apologize if there are errors in the text qq

I think this guy is definitely a virgin, so I had to fix it ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

art: @eriimyon

— Are you inviting me to come over... to your place? We've just had dinner, — Neuvillette is charming when he doesn't understand your hints at all. Although, he could hardly even make out a hint of what he basically does not understand.

You coquettishly wrap your own wrist behind your back, blunting your gaze at the floor, standing at the entrance to your house after a date that is already quite familiar to both of you. The Hydro Dragon really should have shown more interest in recognizing human emotions at the time, then maybe it wouldn't be so hard for him to understand you now. Yes, he notices when you're upset and understands that your beaming smiles mean you're happy, but now… Your behavior goes beyond what he's used to.

Neuvillette notices how your cheeks are slightly pink, you don't meet his eyes, you don't answer his question, but you don't leave. All the signs must indicate that you are confused, but by what? Did his question put you in an awkward position?

— Y/N, — the man clears his throat before speaking in a more serious tone. — I think there was a misunderstanding between us, and if my words confused you, then I apologize. I don't think I fully understand why exactly I should come to your house at such a late hour, but… if it's important to you, I won't refuse.

— Oh, Archons, you are unbearable! — you pull a confused man by the hand, forcefully dragging him into the hastily opened door of your house.

Just for a moment in the dark, while you stand pressed against the door that you slammed with your back, silence reigns between you. What should Neuvillette do next? Wait for an offer to go into the living room, start talking first? Oh, he's so bad at it.…

— Y/N…

— Listen, aren't we… kind of in a relationship? And it's been a long time, right?

Neuvillet thinks about it before answering anyway.

— Regarding the years I have lived, our relationship doesn't last that long, but if we take into account how long the human age has been, then I think we can say that we have been really close for a sufficient amount of time to designate this period as a long one.

— That's right. And we're already holding hands without hesitation, kissing and hugging when we're alone, right?

The Chief Justice swallows.

— Ahem… yes, that's right. Although it was all new to me at first, but now I understand why you're always so eager to touch me.

— So you like my touch? — you take a step forward, coming close to your lover before your hands fall on his shoulders, slowly sliding down Neuvillette's chest.

— If that wasn't the case, I guess I wouldn't let you do that, — the man tensed slightly as you fiddled with the fabric of his robe. You've never done anything like this before.

— At the beginning of our relationship, I said that I would show you how pleasant physical contact and feelings can be between two people… or, in our case, between a human and a dragon. You trusted me, and now you have no doubt that my suggestions, even the craziest ones, eventually bring you pleasure?

— I have nothing to object to. You've really discovered a lot of nice things for me that I didn't even know existed until I met you.

— Exactly! — you suddenly squeeze the thick fabric on Neuvillette's chest, looking straight into his confused mother-of-pearl eyes with complete seriousness. — In that case, you should know that this is not all.

— Not all?.. What do you mean…

— Neuvi, tell me, do I turn you on?

"Turn me... What?"

— Wh-what do you mean?

You frown, but then the irritation on your face turns to thoughtfulness as you look away, carefully choosing the words you are going to say.

— Have you ever wanted something more than kisses?

Ah, he seems to understand what you're getting at. Neuvillette is quite knowledgeable about the physiology and reproduction of humans, but he never thought about the fact that everything might not be as primitive as it sounds in scientific books. Kissing and hugging are not something necessary for people's life and interaction, nevertheless, it seems to be important to you, and he himself feels some dependence on your touch, although he does not show it. Does this mean that sex is also an obligatory part of any relationship and is a manifestation of love in physical form, and not just a way of one of the types of reproduction of living beings?

— Oh, that's what you're talking about… hmm, — the man really thought deeply, switching off for a few seconds before finally looking into your eyes with all the seriousness that only he is capable of. — I'm sorry, Y/N, I never thought that I fit into society well enough even after centuries, but after realizing that I have feelings for you, I decided that maybe I began to understand people a little better… I guess it's still not so, and it's hard for me to answer your question.

— In that case, I'll help you decide on the answer.

Neuvillette's words dissolve on your lips when you unexpectedly kiss a confused man.

It's not that you've never done this before, but now your kiss is more insistent, more… Passionate? When you unceremoniously invade his mouth, Neuvillette can feel how you are overwhelmed by the desire for intimacy and an irresistible thirst that he has never experienced when your saliva settled on his tongue. No matter how many human emotions he experiences touching the waters of the Fontaine, what you are experiencing now is so new to him, but the Hydro Dragon succumbs to this feeling, allowing his palms to rest on your waist.

And that gesture was enough for you to realize that your lover doesn't seem to mind what you're about to do, so your fingers are now frantically fumbling with the fasteners on several layers of his clothes while your lips are still on his. It's all so weird.… Perhaps Neuvillette undressed in front of someone for the last time only during Sidgwyn's medical examination, which, in fact, there was no need, but he could not refuse her insistence. But now you're gradually unbuttoning his clothes for a completely different purpose. Is this the first time the Chief Justice has thought about whether his human body is attractive at all? But does it matter if you don't seem to be tormented by a single question when you break off the kiss and gently pull his robe and shirt over his shoulders, staring at his now bare chest and torso with fascination.

The tips of your fingers lightly tickle Neuvillette's pale skin as you run them over the man's tense muscles, without taking your curious gaze off the trajectory of your movements, before turning your attention to the dark blue gloves clinging to his graceful hands. You wrap your arms around each of his wrists in turn, gently pulling the thick fabric from the man's long fingers until the gloves go to the floor to his robes and shirt.

— You wear too many clothes, you know? — you giggle, now looking up to meet Neuvillette's gaze, still with the same calmness on his face as always, watching what you're doing.

— No less and no more than is necessary to maintain the image of a judge, I suppose…

— Come on. Everyone in Fontaine knows who you are and how seriously you take your job and will never question it, even if you dress in something more comfortable, — the corners of your lips lift in a soft smile before you take a step back, depriving Neuvillette of the warmth of your hands on his skin. — And now… it's your turn.

The mother-of-pearl eyes of the Hydro Dragon widen when he freezes for a moment, awkwardly glancing at your body.

— Do you want me to, uh… take off your clothes too?

— Yes.

For the first time, Neuvillette was truly embarrassed. A slight blush covered his cheeks as he plucked up the courage to come closer to you and stretch out his hands to touch the button on your jacket. Hesitantly, but the man coped with the first task, unbuttoning your outer clothes before casting a last questioning glance at you, meeting your approving nod, after which the fabric of the jacket finally slipped off your shoulders. It seemed even this was so insanely awkward, but looking at your blouse and realizing that you will only be wearing underwear under it, Neuvillette feels even more excited, nervously swallowing before repeating the procedure again, gradually, as each of the miniature buttons was unbuttoned, exposing more and more areas your skin.

You'd be lying if you said you weren't as embarrassed as he was, even though it's not the first time a man will see you naked, but the fact that this man will be Neuvillette today… This fact really causes excitement in your chest. It's all so new to him, will he even like your body?

You blush even more when the Chief Justice slowly and carefully slides the sleeves of a thin blouse down your shoulders. For a few moments, his eyes roam around the dark room until he decides to look at your almost completely naked upper body.

— Hey, Neuvi… — the man flinches slightly when your palm touches his cheek, forcing Neuvillette to look into your eyes. You furrow your brows and pout your lips, gently pinching the skin of his face. — I think you've forgotten something.

You're really making him do it.…

Neuvillette's gaze finally hesitantly slides down. Oh… your chest is heaving so deliciously in time with your labored breathing, your collarbones protrude seductively under thin pale skin, that now Neuvillette can barely take his eyes off how fragile and graceful your body looks. Taking another short step forward, his palms touch your waist, sliding further behind you. Has your skin always been so soft and warm? Why hadn't he noticed it before? Neuvillette enjoys every second of it, during which his hands work their way up your back before finally finding the clasp of a bra in a pale blue shade. You hear a soft click and feel the fabric pressure on your ribs ease and the straps gently slide down your shoulders.

Neuvillette never thought that you could look even more beautiful. Although your body is certainly beautiful, and he cannot deny how just looking at your bare chest is enough to make an unusual warmth flow to the bottom of his stomach, he is more fascinated by how your face looks now. So embarrassed, but still looking into his eyes when your gazes meet. Of course, you're more experienced at this, but Neuvillette can't help but be touched by how awkward you feel too, even though what's happening is not new to you.

— Come on! — you grab the Chief Justice by the arm again, dragging him into the bedroom.

Even in the semi-darkness of your house, Neuvillette notices how your face takes on a new expression when you lead him to the bed, now moving your hands to his chest and gently pushing him back. Well, he trusted you from the moment he crossed the threshold of your house, so he obediently sits down on a soft mattress, slightly spreading his legs when you come closer, towering over him, standing between his thighs. Miniature fingers cling to Neuvillette's chin, forcing him to look up at you.

— Tell me, Neuvi, do you like what you see?

You expected your question to confuse the man again, but his face has never looked so serious as now, when he looks straight into your eyes, uttering his answer in a soft tone, permeated only with adoration.

— You're beautiful, Y/N.

You squint slightly as you smile, slowly sinking to your knees as your hands move to his hips. It's so sweet that Neuvillette takes every word you say seriously, but right now it didn't take him a second to give his answer.

The man flinches slightly when your hands reach for the fly of his trousers. To look at you in this position… So strange. Neuvillette is used to looking at people from the height of his judicial chair in the courtroom, he is used to literally looking down at you because of your height difference, but now you are … really kneeling in front of him, and he does not know what to say or do, so he continues to remain only a participant in your performance The script you didn't hand him.

— You've never touched yourself here, isn't it? — the warmth of your palm seeps even through the thick fabric of Neuvillette's trousers when you touch his groin, feeling a hard erection under your fingers.

Neuvillette had never felt like this before. Maybe this has happened before, when you pressed against him too hard or when your kisses were longer than in the past, but each time he was slightly confused by the reaction of his body to your touch. And now his cock was straining even more than before. Is this what you called arousal?

— Wh-what do you mean? — Hydro Dragon answers uncertainly, obviously confused by your seemingly very intimate question.

— Oh, then I guess the answer is "no", — you chuckle softly before gently squeezing the impressive hard organ hidden under his trousers in your hand.

Had he always been so sensitive? Even when you touched his bare skin, it didn't feel as good as what you're doing now.

— You're so tense, Neuvi… relax, you don't have to do anything. At least this time, — you smile again, taking one last look at the confused man before your attention turns to his boots, which you hurriedly pull off his legs before you start fiddling with the zipper of Neuvillette's trousers.

The Chief Justice sees you about to pull off his trousers, and lifts his hips, resting his hands on your soft bed, sheepishly watching how the expression on your face turns to amazement when he finally remains completely naked in front of you.

— Oh, Archons… — you freeze, just looking at his cock, making Neuvillette even more nervous. Is there something you don't like? Is there something wrong with him? — I'm so happy that I got you.

— Ah?..

You would have been amused by another cute manifestation of Neuvillette's misunderstanding of your words if all your attention hadn't been stolen by the view unfolding in front of you between his tense legs. His cock shudders under your gaze, which examines every protruding vein that stretches along his impressive organ. For a second, you even had doubts about whether he could fit anywhere inside you, but your hands reached out to touch the hot, hard flesh, causing a new wave of goosebumps running through Neuvillette's body. Your petite palm slowly slides over his erection before stopping, allowing your thumb to touch the sensitive head, slightly glistening with drops of pre-ejaculate in the dim moonlight filtering through your bedroom windows. It seems so… wrong, but a man can't do anything about how your touch makes this warmth of an incomprehensible nature feel even brighter in his lower abdomen.

You lift your head, glancing at the slightly raised abs and heaving chest, the tense muscles of your forearms, before meeting his pursed lips and half-closed eyes, shamefacedly watching what obscenities are happening below. Neuvillette is amazing. Perhaps his conscience is eating him up for the fact that, as he probably thinks, he forced you to kneel in front of him, but he cannot resist the way his body reacts to your touch. So why not embarrass him even more?

Neuvillette's mother-of-pearl eyes open abruptly when you lower yourself to his cock and touch the salty head with your lips.

— Y/N, what are you doing?! — the man anxiously stretches out his hand, hesitantly touching your head.

— It's all right, Neuvi. I told you, just relax.

What you're going to do… aren't you disgusted? Why are you doing this? Neuvillette's head is just boiling with the abundance of thoughts tormenting him, and he wants to make one more attempt to stop you before his words melt on his tongue, replaced by a moan that even he hears from himself for the first time when you slowly immerse his cock in the warmth of your mouth. Your lips have always seemed incredibly soft to him, but now, when they wrap around his erection, they seem even more tender. The man's palm presses against his open lips, muffling all the sighs escaping from his throat. Neuvillette is really distraught. But this is not the confusion that tormented him when you asked him to take off your clothes, now he is puzzled as to why he can no longer control his own body, which turned out to be completely at the mercy of the pleasure that you give him. It seems that the deeper his cock penetrates your throat, the more sensitive Neuvillette becomes, unable to stop the trembling in his legs, which strive to close if not for your shoulders, which his hips now meet. But what's even worse is the way you look up at him, squinting slightly and grinning when you notice what a mess your lover is in.

It was enough for you to finally start acting more decisively.

Your head starts to rise and fall under Neuvillette's palm, tearing another sweet moan from his open lips.

Damn… It's too much. Neuvillette feels an unusual heat coming from the bottom of his stomach, which reduces him with delicious spasms that make him want to both make you stop and beg you to give him more. The tightness of your fragile throat wraps around his hard flesh so perfectly, and the warmth of your labored breath feels even more distinct as you pick up the pace, plunging him deep into your throat over and over again.

— Y/N… wait, I… — was the only thing Neuvillette could get out of himself before his words dissolved into soft moans again.

His hips trembled as you wrapped your arms around them, and his pelvis lifted slightly to meet the inexorable rocking of your head. It's like a tight knot tied in the very bottom of your stomach, ready to burst, as soon as you swallow his cock one more time, and for a moment Neuvillette feels fear under the pressure of an unknown feeling when he feels his cock swell in the tight walls of your throat. But you don't listen to him, sitting on his throbbing organ again, sending a fatal wave through his tense body. Neuvillette's long fingers instinctively squeeze your hair as his heated flesh shudders in your throat, and you feel hot sticky streams flowing down the far wall of your throat, and the man's legs tremble convulsively, pressing closer to your shoulders.

What's it?.. It was as if all the warmth that had been accumulating in Neuvillette's stomach had now spread under his skin, and his mind was clouded by a haze that drove any thoughts out of his head, except how damn pleasant this unfamiliar feeling was, lasting for some miserable moments.

Your tongue slides up the still-quivering member of the Supreme Court as you slowly pull it out of your mouth, carefully licking every drop of cum left on his semi-hard flesh. Neuvillette is still breathing heavily, trying to recover from the first orgasm of her life. His eyes are closed when you look up at him again, and his hand slips off your head.

— Neuvi? — as soon as his legs relax, you slide your hands along the inside of his thighs, lifting slightly to leave a kiss at the bottom of his stomach, causing the man to flinch and lazily open his eyes.

— Wh-what was that just now?.. — his voice sounds so quiet when Neuvillette finally starts talking, still trying to steady his breathing.

— Huh… Did I mention that you think too much? — you smile, suddenly getting back on your feet. — You don't mind continuing, do you?

Neuvillette rests his hands on the mattress again, watching from under heavy eyelids as you deliberately slowly pull your trousers down your legs, carefully stepping over the crumpled fabric on the floor before throwing the clothes somewhere to the side, remaining in front of him in only panties. For the first time, he can finally enjoy every curve of your stunning body, feeling the heat flare up inside him again, while he just remains a witness to how now you are doing the same with your underwear. Without clothes, you look even more fragile and small, but now… This view causes the Hydro Dragon not only to want to protect you, but also to touch you, to shower every millimeter of your skin with kisses… to possess you. Is this what people call lust?

This time, Neuvillette didn't need any prompting to instinctively understand that he needed to crawl further away on your bed, allowing you to gracefully climb on top of him. His cock has hardened again, trembling insistently under the pressure of your crotch, now comfortably settled on the throbbing flesh, when you press your palm on Neuvillette's chest, forcing the man to lie down. You look so gorgeous, towering over him just like that, that he can't resist the urge to touch you and stretches out his arms to wrap around your waist while you playfully smile, looking into the clouded eyes of the man below you, swaying slightly on his hips.

— Oh, aren't you embarrassed to touch me now? — you giggle as you gently wrap your arms around Neuvillette's wrists and move his palms onto your chest. — It all belongs to you, Neuvi.

The Chief Justice swallows hard before hesitantly squeezing the elastic flesh under his palms. Such… Soft. It felt even more tender than he had imagined, just looking at her in the hallway back then. And you said… Does it belong to him? Why does the realization of this make his heart almost ache in his chest, as if he does not deserve to have such a wonderful girl who managed to get into feelings for someone like him?

— Y/N…

You tilt your head in puzzlement, looking at Neuvillette, who now seems to be considering his next words again.

— I promise that I will take care of you.

You're almost ready to burst out laughing, but you hold back, smiling gently at your man, the only one in all of Teyvat who could say something like that at such a moment.

— Try your best, Monsieur Neuvillette, — you bend down to leave a short kiss on your lover's lips, forcing Neuvillette to lower his hands to your hips before you straighten up again, lifting slightly and reaching down to grab his cock.

Oh, he's even more excited than before. Although he believes that such intimacy is already familiar to him, at least in theory, but it is still something that Neuvillette has never had to deal with before. He feels the moisture oozing from your crotch touching his cock as you align his head with your entrance, starting to slowly sink onto the hard flesh. Your tight walls gradually envelop his throbbing organ, enveloping Neuvillette's flesh with an even more searing warmth compared to what he felt when you plunged his dick into your throat. The slippery walls seem to suck him deeper inside, again awakening in the body of the Hydro Dragon the same heat that had tormented his poor body only a few minutes ago. He wants to stifle his moans again, covering his lips with his hand, but Neuvillette only tightens his grip on your elastic hips, moving his gaze from the place where your bodies connect to your chest, heaving heavily in time with your labored breathing, thanks to which he can finally hear those lovely soft sighs escaping from your throat.

You lean back slightly on Neuvillette's hips, feeling his cock stretch and fill you to the limit. All the past fears that he was too big to fit inside suddenly evaporated, replaced by a pleasant shiver running down your spine when he finally enters to the end, gently colliding with your cervix, which makes the lust bubbling in the bottom of your stomach from the moment you entered your house boil even stronger.

When you finally start to slowly rise and fall on Neuvillette's cock, he finally begins to understand why people like sex so much. It feels completely different from what you did with him before. You feel so good inside and it's addictive. The walls of the vagina wrap so tightly around his cock when you impale yourself on it more insistently each time, and Neuvillette can feel you squeezing around him, sending more and more of these delicious impulses through his body. The man's gaze is riveted to the place where your bodies connect over and over again, never ceasing to amaze him with how his hard organ disappears so easily into your insides. The more your hips pick up the pace, the more distinct the sounds of skin hitting skin become, merging with Neuvillette's restrained sighs and your moans, which will forever remain in his memory.

You lean forward again, placing your hand on Neuvillette's neck, already too lost in pleasure to speak, bringing another smile to your face.

— Do you like it, Neuvi? — the tips of your two fingers slide along his chin, forcing the man to look at you from under half-closed eyelids. His lips are open, releasing more and more sweet sounds from Neuvillette's throat as you continue to rock up and down his length, feeling the blood pulsing in the veins running along his cock. — Don't hold back your lovely moans, I want to hear you.

Your vulgar words settle in sweet spasms in the lower abdomen of a man. You've always been much bolder and more direct than him in everything that concerns feelings and intimacy, and Neuvillette would like to return the favor. Therefore, now you feel more pressure on your hips when he begins to lift his hips towards your movements and push you down whenever you are about to descend on his dick again, driving it even deeper into your insides.

You've wanted this for so long, worrying every time that such an offer might alienate Neuvillette, but now, feeling your lover desperately pushing into you, chasing his own orgasm, you don't regret at all that you finally got the courage. Having completely lost all control over himself, Neuvillette breaks down into the very moans that you so wanted to hear. You never thought that his pleasure could turn you on so much, making you feel like you're already teetering on the edge.

What could be said about him.

Your voice has never sounded sweeter to him than now, when you whisper his name, pressing your forehead against his. The smell of your body, your hot breath blowing over his face, the tense muscles of your thighs under his hands — this is what, even without knowing it, Neuvillette also wanted for so long. Every time you shared another kiss with him, it seemed to him that it was so damn little, but he didn't know any other way to feel you even closer. But now that your bodies are so perfectly fused together, he understands what he really wanted. How can you wish for something you've never experienced? People are truly amazing… And Neuvillette finally got a little closer to understanding what it's like to be human.

Too blinded by the new sensations, Neuvillette didn't even notice how he got so damn close to the very feeling that you gave him earlier, but now it feels even brighter, even more intense, forcing the man to press harder on your hips, accelerating the pace. And at the moment when your lower abdomen is cramping with familiar spasms, you press your lips to his, allowing Neuvillette to feel your body tremble under the onslaught of pleasure spreading somewhere deep under your skin. Your lips taste even sweeter when you squeeze so tightly around his cock, pulling Neuvillette after you into the abyss. His hands hurriedly move to your back, pressing you even tighter against his body as he has his second orgasm of the day. Hot flesh pulsates inside your sensitive walls, gradually turning white with sticky drops of sperm, and you swallow each other's muffled moans, sharing this unearthly feeling for two.

You go limp, leaning on Neuvillette with all your weight, having to break the kiss to catch your breath. You hear his heavy sighs, almost in sync with yours, as you both bask in the echoes of your own climaxes, and you lift up slightly to look at Neuvillette's flushed face. The silver strands of his bangs are stuck to his forehead, and his lips are still slightly parted when he lazily opens his eyes, meeting your gaze.

— Y/N, I'm sorry, I seem to get carried away…

— Hush, it's okay, Neuvi, — your palm gently presses against his hot cheek, and you can't help but smile as you watch him awkwardly avert his gaze now. — Actually, I think you're learning pretty fast!

— Is that so? — the corners of Neuvillette's lips lift slightly as one of his palms gently slides up your back. — I suppose I had a good teacher.

— He-he, of course. Just don't get cocky, I still have a lot to teach you!

Neuvillette suddenly looks at you in surprise again.

— A lot?

— Yeah, — your face takes on a fake serious look. — Do you really want to continue the course of human carnal pleasures today?

You laugh, lightly pinching Neuvillette's cheek before you start to lift off his body, but you are stopped by his hands, still holding you in his embrace. When you cast a questioning glance at Neuvillette, you are suddenly met again by an expression full of unshakeable seriousness, forever stuck to his face.

— I… won't refuse.

[blossomthepinkbunny]

So the latest episode of Helluva Boss was really...not good.

It had some fine aspects. I didn't mind the song as much (at least from how it sounds, it's fine) the plot is interesting on paper, meeting Satan was kinda cool (though I'll get to how I actually feel about him later), Andrealphus was animated really energetically, it gave some room to have Stolas own up to his shit, the moments of care between Blitzø and Loona were kinda sweet.

But overall, it was just incredibly undercooked. I wanna start with the apparent fatphobia which was probably more prevalent in this episode than ever. We see Mammon literally stuff his face with food as all the skinny (sympathetic) sins watch with disgusted faces.

Even the sin of gluttony looks disturbed, because drinking, partying and eating excessively is apparently only cool when you're not fat (even though she has no reason to care). Also, it's truly incredible, how one of the few characters that is explicitly named as not wanting to be fucked by anyone is also the only prevalent fat character there is in HB. And the question is also, why that was apparently the only thing Bee had to rub in Mammon's face, when he was confirmed to be Asexual and has never seemed to care about that stuff. It sometimes seems like the only Insults Viv's characters can come up with are: "You're just mad I'm hotter than you" or "You're just mad, people don't want to fuck you". Really hurtful guys, really savage.

Moving on to Satan, he was hugely awaited and his debut just kinda eh. He has to share his debut episode with all of the other sins (which also includes the two sins we were anticipating too) as well as the awaited character of Vasago, another appearance of Striker, more development for Andrealphus, a huge turn for the Stolitz relationship and big emotional moments, which really overshadowed him, to the point he barely left an impact (at least to me).

When we look at the Asmodeus, Beelzebub and Mammon debut, while there were definitely other important moments that didn't necessarily revolve around the sin (esp for Asmodeus), there was still the feeling of some grand reveal. That just wasn't there for Satan. And since Leviathan and Behemoth were also just dropped in this episode pretty unceremoniously, I don't have high hopes for their official debut.

Satan didn't even get a Musical number or something to show his business and how he embodies the sin of wrath. Asmodeus had a song to explain his Sex club and the episode took place there, Beelzebub had a song as well and the whole episode showed the parties she was throwing and while Mammon didn't get a song, the episode in general centred completely around his business and competition. Satan was just kinda there. He is a judge apparently for whatever reason, how that relates to his wrath, I have no idea. Unless you want to say that he uses the trials to take his anger out on the subjects by punishing them, but he also has an anger management coach...why? Just to have a new ship between boss and employee to push? (Which would be the more cynical reading as opposed to something Viv didn't really think through or care to explain enough).

So Satan wasn't that good and neither was the revelation that HB has no serious main antagonist. This show can't have smart villains, it seems like it's just allergic to that. Fizzarolli and Asmodeus are good guys now, Verosika is not a serious antagonist/villain, Barbie has done nothing that would warrant her becoming a new main antagonist, the Agents of D.H.O.R.K are literally named after being unserious and stupid and they and the CHERUBs have not been shown to be intimidating or anything. And Crimson doesn't feel as important, since he has no real personal gripes with Blitzø or Stolas (who are pretty much the main characters now).

Striker is so stupid now that he can't even remember two lines of dialogue and who is mostly just a henchman for other, bigger villains. Stella has been consistently portrayed as stupid, not even remembering to mention probably the most important fact that could help her and her brother win their case.

Then there's Andrealphus, who was probably supposed to come across as the true mastermind (get it?), but he is also not really smart at all. What was his plan with the trial? Why wouldn't he involve Stolas in the trial if the whole point was, that he finally has something that he can use against him? Andrealphus was happy about the illegal stuff Stolas has been doing because he can actually report him to the authorities now and can take his part. So it makes no sense that he would make Blitzø seem guilty in the trial, cause that would just end in Stolas being seen as innocent. If the trial had worked out the way Andrealphus had planned, then Blitzø would have been executed and everyone would assume that Stolas is a victim. Wouldn't that go against everything Andrealphus wants? It would have been smarter for Stella and him to gather genuine proof of the illegal activities Stolas was assisting with and then they could tell the truth in the trial, which would lead to Stolas being found out and Andrealphus being able to get a deal as compensation.

The fact that Stolas showed up saved their whole plan, but it couldn't have been planned like this because Stolas showing up only happened because A: Stolas was conveniently watching TV and saw the trial happen; and because B: Stolas actually decided to show up at all. Two things that Andrealphus could have never predicted precisely, as to put them into his plan.

So Andrealphus' unfinished plan that doesn't make sense leads us well into discussing Stolas, which seems almost unavoidable when talking about any new HB episode. First off, the scene between Stella and Octavia was probably put there to portray Stella as a bad mother, but it didn't really succeed. The show needs to understand that there's a difference between being a bad partner and a bad parent. It isn't uncommon for people to be totally nice to their partner or child, friends or coworkers and be absolutely nasty to someone else in their life. Unless they show Stella being actively neglectful or abusive towards Octavia (as they have with Stolas), there's no reason to assume she's a bad parent. Especially since Stolas still allows Octavia to visit her, which you'd assume he wouldn't do if he was the good parent and she was super abusive or didn't care about her daughter at all. Also, Stolas is just fine with dying in this episode to save the Imp who still realistically doesn't owe him affection after his sacrifice. And all of this without even thinking about how Octavia would be left in Stella's complete custody, which would surely not be the responsible thing to do, if she was truly as abusive to Octavia as the fandom tries to portray her.

And in the end Stolas is finally the powerless, helpless victim that he's been pushed as. How nice. He confessed to some of the stuff he put on Blitzø, but it's done in a way, where it's now expected of Blitzø to immediately forgive him and take care of him. He can't have time to heal and make the decision to help Stolas, Stolas needs him now! Can't he go to some of the people that would be much more equipped to take care of him? Why not Asmodeus and Fizz? They don't seem to have a problem with him and they even have connections to Blitzø, so the two could still keep in touch while sorting out some stuff on their own. Why not some of the goeita that seemed to feel good towards him? Vasago could take him in and we could have him involved in the plot like that.

But nooo, Blitzi has to help him, he's his soulmate and just has to forgive him now! Stolas told the truth so now everything is fineee!! I can't be the only one who notices that Blitzø always has to deal with the stuff he causes in brutal ways, like being hated by his best friend for a long time, losing contact to his sister, having a whole party of people who lavish in their hatred for him, getting constant reminders of everything he does wrong and how much of a broken person he is.

And then Stolas has to face his consequences for once (in a way that isn't even as brutal as it could've been) and now he immediately has to be cuddled and coddled and everything has to be forgiven. I don't think the constant demeaning of Blitzø and the coercion will be brought to focus. Because everything is fine now and anyone who complains is just kicking someone while they're down I guess. Stolas even gets a goodnight kiss. A great way to forget about how Blitzø was nearly almost actually killed and can't continue his business in the same way now. And it's not as if Stolas bathed and tucked him in after that happened. How nice.

[thecoolerliauditore]

I need your thoughts on Martyn.

Jesus Christ in heaven where to start.

I was planning to write massive essay posts about each of the winners sooner or later, I guess Martyn can skip the queue. As a treat.

BAD traffic series martyn analysis post don't read. LONG POST

note: rules I'm operating by are to keep the analysis primarily traffic-based (although this one's kind of an exception because. mr watcher lore) and I'm not rewatching entire POVs so stuff might be wrong so on so forth

Why is he... Like that?

So before I even start talking about 3L I feel the need to address Martyn's background first because, not unlike alot of the other members of the cast, Martyn's previously established relationships from series like Evo have a significant impact on how he behaves.

This is kind of difficult for me to talk about because it breaks my "no material outside of the traffic series" rule for these essays specifically, but I think it's honestly just more fun incorporating Martyn's off-series lore drops and such into his character instead of leaving them out.

So here's the basis I work from -- Martyn is the most unreliable narrator in a full cast of them. His lore is his character's version of events, not an unbiased retelling.

Whether the Watchers exist and whether they're the same entities present in Evo doesn't matter all that much, since all we know is that they are very real to Martyn, at least. Taking the lore as Martyn's POV also helps iron out some of the more awkward creases it creates when viewing the series as a whole (e.g. Grian's involvement with the Watchers surely means he would reference them himself, yet he doesn't) and lays the groundwork for some really interesting things about Martyn himself when you try to put the dots together on how he arrived at these conclusions. I'll be referencing these as they come up chronologically.

So, without over complicating things, here are the rules I'm playing by when it comes to pre-3L Martyn:

Evo did really happen with the same people, however the exact details are muddy.

Martyn knew Jimmy prior to the games and the two already had some sort of personal connection going in.

We're not trusting a word out of his mouth. Especially if he says them on stream. But we are going to acknowledge what those words are.

With those parameters set, let's move on:

Third Life, and the guy who gets a little too into it

Like Grian, Martyn immediately acclimates to the game's survival-based mechanics. Martyn spends a good chunk of the first session of 3L seemingly aimless, but he makes observations and choices throughout that show he has survival at the back of his mind (e.g. him quickly establishing an alliance with Grian and Bigb while sneakily putting them in his debt through the diamonds he finds early -- even if this doesn't end up paying off to anything).

Unlike Grian however, Martyn less desperately clings onto a need for an edge to survive and seems almost comfortable in playing the game. A running theme for him throughout all the seasons will be that he seems to feel most comfortable when he has some amount of unspoken power over others, whether that be something as silly as testing the waters with his creeper soundboard or later when he starts playing 4D chess with himself in regard to his loyalties.

"Power" might be not exactly the right word for what Martyn yearns for, but it's the best word I can find to really describe it. He's always the one with a card up his sleeve or a plan B or, arguably most importantly, the one with control over the situation and responsibility over his own and others' wellbeing.

In my mind, at least, I think it might be a consequence of Martyn actually being quite sensitive in terms of relationships and having this very deep-seeded need to protect his loved ones from harm but lacking the emotional intelligence necessary to allow himself to be vulnerable about those feelings and communicate properly. So instead he finds some way to protect himself emotionally (usually overdramatic and makes him way worse) and treats everyone including himself with a level of un-seriousness that alleviates the tension for him.

If I were to dig deeper into this specific point I must say Martyn seems to have chosen to perform a very specific breed of masculinity, with his constant agonizing need to protect and lead while not having to confront his own perceived weaknesses, and alot of his insecurities and frustrations come from being denied that husband-y role to play.

His interactions with Jimmy early on in 3L portray this side of him quite plainly. After seeing Scott hit him around at Renchanting, Martyn gets Jimmy alone and asks him if he's okay but after Jimmy dodges the question, Martyn quickly becomes frustrated and starts acting very overdramatic (e.g. threatening to cut Jimmy off, "I can't look at you", so on) even as Jimmy keeps insisting they keep talking.

In my humble opinion, it's clear to me from how he speaks to Jimmy in this scene and further on, and from his referencing of their Evo relationship, that this is these two's established dynamic - the way Martyn dramatizes everything feels almost as if he were making a joke of it, teasing Jimmy, almost akin to how an older sibling or very old friend would act. It's possible that Martyn didn't expect Jimmy to take any of his threats seriously (although he definitely was laying on the pressure to try and get him to agree in the moment) and that's why he's so taken aback when Jimmy does act almost afraid of him from this point forward.

Not once does Martyn ever verbalize his own feelings regarding the matter. He never says that he's scared or worried for Jimmy, or even makes any sort of subjective judgment on Scott's character for hitting Jimmy in the first place. He makes it all about Jimmy, never communicating *why* he is doing what he's doing which ends up giving off the impression he thinks he knows what's best for him, which of course never communicates to Jimmy that Martyn cares for or loves him and ends up pushing him away as a result.

Speaking of Scott, despite Martyn clearly not approving of the way he treats Jimmy (judging from the aforementioned conversation and his later lore streams where he essentially calls Scott and Jimmy's marriage a sham), he does not ever act antagonistically towards Scott. Which I think is indicative of another key trait of Martyn's - an almost uncanny ability to push aside his own feelings at least momentarily for the sake of the game.

Martyn does not speak badly to or about Scott. He even explores the nether with him very early on and the two literally joke about trapping the Flower Valley and killing Jimmy together.

I think there's an understanding and perhaps a level of respect, on Martyn's end, towards Scott. One of the first observations he makes about Scott's base, after all, is its defensive location and Scott, like Martyn, values his own competency and likes to pretend he's more emotionally unattached to his partner than he really is (the parallels between Martyn/Ren and Scott/Jimmy are even somewhat lampshaded by Martyn himself when he refers to them as "my red" (Ren) and "your red" (Jimmy) later).

It seems that Martyn doesn't dislike anything innate to Scott's nature, and even has love for his manipulative traits. If it were anyone other than Jimmy Scott was hitting, I'd argue, Martyn wouldn't have raised a fuss about it. Not to mention, there's also a sense of "keeping your enemies closer" when it comes to these two, as both seem acutely aware the other is useful on their side and a threat anywhere else.

I'd argue despite the fact he's able to push his dislike towards Scott aside, he definitely still feels spiteful towards him, as he ends up hunting him down pretty mercilessly come the end of the series (after Jimmy dies too - so perhaps there was also a level there of feeling the need to put up with Scott beforehand as he was Jimmy's only ally, but now that Jimmy's gone there isn't any need to be friendly with Scott anymore.)

Now onto the heavy-hitter Martyn 3L relationship - his dynamic with Ren.

I'll be honest I think most treebark shippers have summed up their relationship way better than I could. You could probably go into the tag and see thirty eight analysis posts more indepth and accurate than mine. However I will say that one thing I see rarely mentioned is this very obviously being Martyn's first time meeting Ren (I'm talking about characters here but here is your acknowledgement this is definitely a result of this literally being the case for the CCs).

He's not used to Ren's mannerisms -- during their first meeting, Ren says his usual "ex-squeeze me" (instead of "excuse me") and Martyn responds "no thankyou, I'm married". Not to get too into it as this is The Martyn Post but Ren's POV would imply the same since he sees Martyn's name in chat and he immediately starts theorizing about what kind of player he is.

I think Ren essentially being a stranger to Martyn at the start of the series makes it easier for him to act manipulatively and keep him at arm's length, as well as be in denial about the whole emotional attachment thing. For so much of their alliance during 3L Martyn is acting, performing to match Ren's vibes, except he's not.

^this quote and the concept of freudian slips informs like 88% of my worldview, if anyone's wondering why I'm. like that.

"The Hand" is very much not how Martyn naturally acts or behaves, down to the change in speaking patterns. It's a persona that I think both Ren and Martyn never take too seriously or mistake for Martyn's authentic self, but it's also something Martyn uses to express his innermost feelings he disallows himself from usually. Yes it's all silly even in-universe but I think there's something special about how he constantly expresses his devotion as The Hand, even if he's doing it with a layer of irony. Plus, I think it says something that, jumping later in the timeline, his flashbacks in LimLife are much more true to the character of The Hand than Martyn himself.

This section is already long enough but I do have to mention Bigb, Grian and Scar or I'll explode.

Earlier on, I touched on Martyn giving Grian and Bigb diamond swords early and it being an attempt to leverage an alliance between them. This I admit might be a slight reach however the reason I say that is Martyn continues to pursue Bigb and Grian as allies throughout the season.

Bigb is cut and dry enough, he ends up floating around the outside of Dogwarts as a not-quite-member after the siege in which pretty much half the sever were antagonized by Grian and Scar. I'm probably not the person to thoroughly dissect Martyn/Bigb but there's something interesting there about how alot of people tend to have this general fondness towards Bigb and Martyn is no exception.

As for Grian, Martyn acknowledges that Grian is responsible for the siege, possible moreso than Scar, but keeps questioning how "gone" he is, worded as if he believes Scar is manipulating him. I've seen people compare this to how he acts towards Jimmy and Scott which I can definitely see the throughline. However, I think while both are an example of Martyn's protector/saviour complex, they are innately different due to Martyn's relationships with both the perceived victim and captor in each case.

Despite Grian also being an ex-Evo member, Martyn does not act towards him with the same familiarity he does with Jimmy. He also brings up Grian's welfare with Bigb and not Grian himself, with Bigb being the other person involved in their earlier established sword alliance. To me, it feels as if Martyn is more testing the waters for if he can still get Grian on his side than out of any genuine concern for Grian, although it is possible he's projecting some of those leftover feelings regarding Jimmy's situations onto Grian and Scar.

The other reason is, I think, Martyn might genuinely be afraid of Scar himself and villainizing him as a result. Everytime Scar shows up in Martyn's POV he's paired with tense music and sporadic editing that makes him appear more unhinged. Martyn has also said on tumblr he found Scar intimidating at the time, which is of course a dubiously canon source but I find it applicable enough.

It makes sense, too. When you compare Martyn's treatment of Scar vs his treatment of Scott. These are both people he has recognized as real threats and he assumes both are manipulating their respective partners, but while he remains friendly (at least outwardly) towards Scott he's constantly wary of Scar, drawing weapons on him pretty much on sight even before the siege.

I think Martyn fears Scar because he doesn't understand Scar. Scott is someone like him who he knows the inner workings of, or at least that's what he believes, so while he doesn't care for him he doesn't feel a need to keep him away. Martyn always assumes a level of coordinated malice from Scar that is more than often either completely unfounded or a result of something originating from Grian (my favourite example of this is, right before the siege, Scar wanders over with his bee on a lead and Martyn starts yelling "he's got a bee! what does that mean?!" as if expecting the bee has some pvp reason behind it. when scar just wanted to have a bee).

That isn't to say that Scar isn't malicious - Martyn is right like 90% of the time that Scar's not-so-subtle friendly hellos have some sinister plan behind them, but he doesn't ever truly get that Scar isn't the evil mastermind he thinks he is.

I'd argue this fear is what also makes Martyn not pick up on the fact that Grian is the more manipulative one out of the two - something that even Scott seems aware of - because he never spends enough time with them on friendly terms to be aware of that dynamic.

Last Life AKA big brother syndrome in full blast

Okay that was a long ass section sorry lmao have to establish everything there. Everything from here on is gonna be a lot cleaner I swear.

The Southlanders could honestly have their own ultra-long post about how they're the perfect disaster team-up lord of the flies esque situation the series has to offer.

Impulse, Grian and Martyn are all similar in that they understand they have to play the game a certain way through keeping their loyalties dubious while Mumbo, as a newcomer, is extremely naive and goes along with whatever the more assertive members of the group say. And Jimmy is Jimmy.

Martyn takes on a leadership role within the group, being the one to constantly spearhead their humour and come up with new often disruptive plans (usually targetting Scott because he totally isn't spiteful still, albeit in a very playful way). After Joel traps their base with tnt minecarts, Martyn is the one to keep everyone else back and disarm them, a huge contrast to 3L's siege.

Their group embraces the rules of the game - if you turn red, as Grian does early on, you are kicked out from the group as a threat. There's this sinking feeling throughout all their spyglass shenanigans and life-trade trust exercises that this is still an alliance in a death game and if you prove yourself to be a detriment, you will be kicked out.

It's no wonder than why Jimmy, who gets his usual bottom of the barrel treatment, tries to run away with Martyn's life during one of their trust exercises. He's been shown at this point he can't fully trust the Southlanders to protect him forever -- how could he, when Martyn, again, never slips in any sign of affection between the teasing?

To Martyn, however, this is a betrayal of his trust. His plea to Jimmy to return sounds a lot like their conversation back in 3L on the snowy mountain regarding Jimmy and Scott, except this time Jimmy accepts Martyn's offer and Martyn tells him he was lying, calling him an idiot for believing him in the first place. This is probably the harshest Martyn acts towards Jimmy in the series, but it's worth mentioning that to Martyn the timeline of events goes he offers Jimmy his protection and alliance--> Jimmy refuses--> Jimmy dies (which Martyn probably sees at least partially due to said refusal) --> he gets Jimmy back and does everything in his power to keep him safe --> Jimmy does the equivalent of *killing him* and tries to get away with it.

Martyn still obviously cares about Jimmy despite being upset at him, as after his usual dramatics and declaring a trial for Jimmy in which each of the Southlanders vote on his fate, Martyn still votes to keep Jimmy in the group (again, something Jimmy is never made aware of).

Possibly partially because of the Jimmy incident and the overall dog-eat-dog culture of the Southlanders, Martyn does to them what he never managed with Dogwarts - betrayal. At least, on some level.

Ironically, it's Ren he betrays them for, forming the Shadow Alliance and even giving the life Jimmy had attempted to steal from him to Ren instead. My read of this has always been that it supported Martyn truly being happy enough for Jimmy or someone else to have his extra life, but Jimmy's act of betraying him itself being what hurt him.

I think now's a good time to start mentioning the Watcher Lore, as here is where it starts kicking into gear. Martyn's claims of emotional bonds not carrying over from previous seasons is not only a very natural progression from his emotional distancing in a coping mechanism sense, but also enables him to betray Ren too later on and not have to confront the guilt that comes with that when he tries to lead him into a tnt trap in the final 1v1v1v1. However, he still cheers for Ren as a ghost and even says that he would be happy to see Ren win, indicating he really does not hold any malice towards him.

I've seen people make jokes about the watcher lore being Martyn schizoposting and I'm sure I've made similar jokes in the past but. Speaking very genuinely here Martyn's questionable sanity is a big part of his character to me.

His Episode 8 of LL literally begins with him acting out the usual running joke of him stealing Mumbo's intro, except Mumbo and Jimmy are dead at this point and he is doing their voices and talking to himself. When the illusion is broken, he panics and the video immediately cuts to him running around obviously distressed with a disembodied voice demanding things from him.

I'm obviously not authorized to diagnose every single one of Martyn's many mental illnesses, but I think mentally breaking down in a timeloop death game is a fairly average thing to happen to someone, and Martyn might be especially susceptible due to his aforementioned need for power and responsibility in every relationship (i.e. I'd like to think he feels some helplessness/guilt over Jimmy and Mumbo's deaths, leading to this sequence).

Not to mention, someone who is emotionally vulnerable coming up with a nebulous Group of Evil People who are the source of all the bad things in a helpless situation of violence is. Something that happens historically quite alot. To try and find reason in the madness is just a human instinct, I think.

One thing I feel like I should mention is his "marriage" with Mumbo which. I honestly don't see as anything more than a gag. Not that Martyn isn't a massive hypocrite but "marrying" Mumbo would be very much contradict what he has to say about Scott/Jimmy's situation. I do think he cares for Mumbo and potentially Mumbo's naivete served as incentive for Martyn to put on the usual assertive/provider role but I don't think there's much more than that (no hate to the shippers, tho, if they knew eachother for like a week longer they would've kissed)

Double Life. Oh no

Double Life Martyn is one of my favourite POVs in the series because it is. Hilarious. Unfortunately.

To start off, he is one of the players who almost immediately accepts the soulbound system as romantic and his views on Cleo/Scott's relationship are heavily based on that (I love that one clip where he mocks them in front of Jimmy).

Him acting flabbergasted at Cleo rejecting him despite pretty much having no relationship with her prior to this season is a really funny contrast to Scott and Pearl, especially when he continues pursuing her like they're recently divorced and Cleo's just like. rolling her eyes. It's all very performative on Martyn's end and why I mentioned his sense of masculinity at the start, because in theme with DL being The Feminism Season TM this is when it comes full throttle in display with the way he treats Cleo.

Martyn keeps referring to himself as a "provider" and refers to Cleo's relationship with Scott as "childish" -- Martyn trying to win over Scott's partner to his side, assuming he knows best for the partner and calling their relationship a sham? Does any of this sound familiar?

Cleo is not like Jimmy, however, and is very clear to Martyn in terms of what she wants from him - which is an apology, no diamond swords or heart-shaped houses, but Martyn in all his emotional denseness can't understand this and keeps assuming there must be some hidden strings attached.

I couldn't find the original meme I had in mind but these are within the same genre. The one I remember had captioned something like "dads don't say "i love you" but they will buy ten boxes worth of the fruit they overheard you say you liked once", which pretty much sums up Martyn's emotional intelligence to me. He would much rather give you way too much of something he thinks you need (e.g. with Jimmy the playful teasing, with Cleo the acts of service) than just say "I love you".

Cleo's blunt honesty serves as a stark contrast to Jimmy and brings something out of Martyn that we rarely ever see -- a genuine, vulnerable interaction in which he has to admit he's hurt. Cleo immediately denies him the role of rescuer he wants to play by telling him directly that she, not Scott, was the one who came up with the idea of teaming up and even gets Martyn to verbalize he's hurt by their actions and cares for her.

Once that illusion is shattered for Martyn and Cleo even admits she's acting manipulatively towards Scott, Martyn realises he and Cleo are more alike than he initially assumed and that he doesn't need to take care of her like he always tries to with his relationships. Ironically, the one relationship he has that is born almost entirely out of government mandated performative romance, is the one that gets him to examine how he views people especially his romantic interests the most.

This is, of course, all said with the fact that following this very heartfelt moment, the next time he speaks to Cleo he pushes her off a fucking cliff and kills her in mind. And the fact that he was very much beating the shit out of her and even called their relationship "toxic" himself early on in the season.

It's kind of hard to gauge Cleo and Martyn's relationship from this point forward but Martyn definitely chills on the namecalling and cooperates with Scott and Cleo for the main part going forward.

I think it's also worth mentioning that, despite Scott once again being the object of his spite, Martyn is once again friendly with Scott all season. When he catches Cleo and Scott mid-axe crit, it's Cleo he starts hitting and not Scott, despite them both being responsible. Behind his back, Martyn will claim Scott is "ruining" Cleo but to his face Martyn is always respectful. He actually even calls Scott "pretty"/"hot" in the last episode, which has some implications I'll talk about more in the Limlife section.

Martyn, like everyone else, is weird about Pearl. Uniquely in his case, Pearl isn't a witch nor demoness, but rather a non-factor he seems to have had written off and her triumph in the end comes as a shock to his system.

He dismisses her concerns over and over in the first episode as they are exploring together and, instead of seeing her as a natural source of allyship, doesn't value her enough to keep her around as an alliance even after Scott and Cleo dump them. In his heart to heart with Cleo, he even very randomly speaks badly of her, although he immediately seems to feel a bit of guilt over it.

He never seems to view Pearl through a sympathetic lens despite the two being in the same circumstance and, again in the same conversation with Cleo, they both agree that she could act as essentially a pawn (an "extra healthbar") for them like Cleo uses Scott.

I feel the need to clarify that while, yes I do believe Martyn is Weird About Women, I also do think he's honestly above average and sees them more as people than some other men in the series (note: my standards are not very high)

He sees most people as nothings that can be manipulated or competition that also can be manipulated, it just so happens that all the women in the series so far land squarely in the former and it took Cleo saying to his face "I'm taking advantage of Scott" for him to realise she wasn't a victim. However, even afterwards, he never treats her with the same competitiveness he has for people like Scott and Scar (albeit it makes enough sense in this season since she's attached to his healthbar, but this remains the same for future seasons). And as a reminder, he holds respect for those he deems as threats, which might have something to do with why he feels comfortable hitting Cleo but not Scott.

As for Ren and the Broken Hearts Club, they didn't get a lot of time together this season since both were preoccupied with their own soulmate dramas and being awful to Pearl but what we do see of them ranges from heartwarmingly nostalgic to a little bit hollow. Martyn saying to Pearl that they're the same at this point doesn't really read to me as him being truly sympathetic since this is post the "you should go use pearl as your second hp bar" conversation and Ren is way too busy to deal with the emotional turmoil of what's going on between himself and Bigb to really pay attention to Martyn.

Ren is still very kind to Martyn, especially considering the last time he saw him in LL Martyn was trying to kill him, but there's an emotional gap between the two that's very noticeable at least to me when compared to 3L and LL.

I think Martyn, at this point, convinced of his own "emotional bonds don't carry over seasons" logic, might be a bit too comfortable on relying on Ren. In both DL and LL he runs to Ren when his current alliance gets shaky and Ren is a source of definite comfort for him (as he said so himself on stream). Ren, as a source of comfort, is not a threat to Martyn aka not someone he needs to keep tabs so when said source of comfort falls through the gaps, you get:

Limited Life. The one where he compares himself to Joffrey from GOT

I don't think I have much to say about LimLife Martyn that hasn't already been said.

I will say I don't necessarily think Majorwood is purely his rebound relationship from Ren, the Mean Gills forming is very much not OOC for either Scott or Martyn (this is pretty much how they acted with eachother at the start of 3L) and their resulting give and take coworker-esque dynamic is a very natural place for them to end up from their previous interactions. Scott, like Martyn, tries to shed his emotional attachments with each new season so they are, in a very literal sense, making eachother worse by reinforcing that habit by normalizing it to eachother.

However, the parallels to their respective 3L partnerships I can't blame people for pointing out, right down to Martyn killing both Ren and Scott in the seaons he was teamed with them and the latter being happy about it.

I think it's time to say what I've been implying with Scott and Martyn throughout this whole thing and that is that they are eachother's ideal ally. They are both aware of the game, play the game, emotionally distant, manipulative and make themselves suffer more for that mindset. I don't think there was ever a moment in their allyship where either assumed the other wasn't going to stab them in the back later, despite the mutual respect they have being very real.

Martyn spends a lot of time this season just wandering around talking to various people, alot like how he acted in 3L before he and Ren became an official thing. It's almost as if, without Ren there, he loses his default go-to guy and is once again sizing up the competition around him.

The one exception I would say would be his interactions with Cleo, who he seems genuinely friendly with, even offering himself up as a "godfather" for the Clockers before the whole server became some form of extended family. You'd think this alliance would also have some basis in the ever present Scott/Cleo alliance but Scott's constant sacrifices for the Clockers are never discussed between him and Martyn, in fact the two of them rarely talk about anything ever past base-building and dolphin-wrangling, and the Clockers seem to treat them as two seperate entities rather than an alliance (e.g. Bdubs seems almost entitled to Scott's life after a certain point, but none of them ever even consider asking Martyn for time).

That, and of course the fact that Martyn kills Scott very unsympathetically towards the end, really point me in the "Martyn is still spiteful towards Scott" direction -- after all, alliance or no alliance, I don't think Martyn would want to be in the conversation with Scott where he tells him about his "love you back" exchange with Jimmy. Martyn certainly respects Scott, loves Scott I'd even say, but I don't know if he actually likes Scott.

I think it's also interesting that it's this season where Martyn's Watcher Lore interludes make a return, just in time for his source of comfort (Ren) to be missing.

Re: the watcher lore the comment Martyn makes about swapping out souls of players who are too "damaged" is very in line with his DL seeing women (and "weaker" men like Jimmy, Mumbo and, of course, Ren) as default victims as, knowingly or not, he implies through this that all the women in the series have souls too weak to withstand the horrors. This also in turn implies that he himself is not broken, which I think he'd like to believe.

Secret Life. It's happy again :D oh wait no

Secret Life starts with Martyn kissing Jimmy. I feel like we moved on from this way too fast in general I mean on the cheek or not he did kiss him he did literally kiss him.

I'll be honest I think the Big Dogs POV is the one I'm least familiar with out of all of these but from what I do remember it's very nice to see Martyn and Jimmy settling back into what seems like their Evo dynamic or even their pre-horrors LL dynamic.

Unfortunately Jimmy is not Cleo and thus cannot get Martyn to be the slightest bit vulnerable, so their dynamic remains stagnant and neither acknowledge the awkwardness that still resides between them.

Jimmy is at least very clearly holding onto some discomforts, judging by his behaviour late in the series when he acts aggressively towards Pearl and celebrates Lizzie dying. He even chases Scott down with a sword on horseback earlier on and, very early in one of Pearl's episodes, he quickly switches between sounding sad and angry.

It's clear to me at least SL Jimmy has reached some sort of breaking point, and this never gets acknowledged by Martyn (I like to think he just lacks the EQ to deal with it). This all cascades into Jimmy attempting to kill Martyn and running away before dying.

SL Martyn feels almost like, to me, the 3L Martyn who successfully convinced Jimmy to team with him and the disaster that comes with that. Martyn certainly has continued to be his survivalist self, not trusting outsiders to the point where when the Wither/Warden combo is unleashed, he immediately assumes they're picking off reds and goes to hide.

Weirdly enough, his protective tendencies towards Jimmy are pretty much gone. It's almost as if when he doesn't see an active threat (e.g. Scott) he assumes things must be good enough and leaves it at that, which also implies he can't comprehend that He might be detrimental to Jimmy himself.

Obligatory. Yes he still misses Ren. Him literally basing his alliance concept off of dogs is. hilarious. I'm so sorry babygirl.

Real Life is, again, non-canon to me but turns up the "dad who buys you 45 mandarins" energy to 11 with him being Ren and Skizz's pseudo-dad. I love Ren having a crisis about his own RP btw it's the funniest thing and he does it like. Everytime.

Uh yeah I hope that's long enough

[cece693]

My Little Dove (Lestat de Lioncourt x M! Reader)

This is something quick I came up with since I feel like Lestat is just a lonely soul who covers it with sarcasm and anger. You can use either Lestat (movie or TV show), but I envisioned it to be from the movie.

Summary: M/N was tired of being a prisoner. He longs to explore the world, but his sire, Lestat, has other ideas. What could be the reason behind this behavior?

tags: typical Lestat, the reader wants to see the world, mentions of Claudia and Louis but they don't impact the story too much, takes place before the duo flee to Paris, happy ending?

"You can't keep me locked up like some type of animal!" M/N screamed, glaring daggers at Lestat's back. It was the same old argument; when Lestat had bestowed the dark gift upon him, M/N believed he had been granted freedom—a chance to transcend the limits of mortality and explore the world. But once his eyes opened to this new life, M/N found himself a prisoner.

The vampire couldn't fathom why his sire forbade him from stepping outside. Louis and Claudia came and went as they pleased, why couldn't M/N do the same? He'd already spent a decade stuck inside the house, his only connection to the outside world being stories told by Louis and Claudia. "I thought you said I was free." M/N continued, his voice trembling. "But this isn't freedom. This is a gilded cage."

Lestat finally turned around, his gaze softened with something akin to regret before morphing into indifference. "The world is not as kind as you imagine. There are dangers you cannot fathom. I only seek to protect you."

"Protect me from what?" M/N shot back. "From living? From feeling the wind on my face and the thrill of the hunt? I would rather face those dangers than rot away in here."

M/N felt himself stiffen when Lestat's eyes turned cold. "Someday you'll understand why I do this, M/N." Lestat hissed, the monster inside him dangerously close to the surface. "But right now, you're led by these ridiculous emotions that cloud your judgment."

"Maybe emotions do cloud my judgment, but they also make me feel alive." M/N defied. "You, Lestat, have clearly forgotten what it means to feel." Turning to the door, M/N was set on spending the remaining night locked in his coffin when Lestat flashed in front of him. His gaze was piercing, maddening.

"You think I don't feel, M/N? You think I'm some heartless creature devoid of emotion?" He stepped closer, his presence overwhelming. "My emotions toward you are what drives me to be this monster. You, my little dove, are a treasure I cannot risk losing."

M/N's breath caught in his throat. He had never seen Lestat so raw, so exposed. The monster was indeed close to the surface, but so was the man who loved him with a ferocity that bordered on madness. M/N reflected on all of the vampire's actions through a different lens, coming to realize that Lestat indeed loved him—or at least what he perceived to be love. The shared coffins, the piano lessons, the talks under the firelight in the living room.

"I—I didn't know..." M/N stammered, his mind racing. What else could he say? He couldn't confess that he returned Lestat's feelings, fearing it would only intensify the vampire's overbearing nature. "But it doesn't change anything. Lestat, for the first time, I'm begging you to let me see the outside world. Even if you become my shadow, I long to see the town and its delicacies."

Lestat's eyes flickered with a mix of emotions, his resolve wavering. The weight of centuries of caution and control clashed with the raw, desperate plea before him. He took a deep breath, the tension in the room thickening.

"You truly want this?"

"Yes. I need this, Lestat. I need to experience life beyond these walls, to feel the world with my own senses." A long silence followed, each second stretching into eternity. Finally, Lestat nodded, a reluctant acceptance in his gaze.

"Very well." he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I will grant you this freedom, but I will be by your side. No objections."

Not being able to contain himself, M/N smiled before embracing his sire. Lestat stiffened at first, taken aback by the sudden gesture, but then he relaxed, wrapping his arms around the other male.

Lestat felt a torrent of emotions. The warmth of M/N's embrace, the genuine gratitude in his voice—it stirred something deep within him. If granting M/N freedom brought them closer, perhaps it was time to reevaluate his approach. Could he protect M/N while allowing him the autonomy he craved? The idea was both terrifying and exhilarating.

[6okuto]

Hi, I really love your headcanons for Touchstarved, they’re so great!! If it hasn’t been requested yet, may I please request Leander falling in love headcanons?

LEANDER FALLING IN LOVE

gn!reader | thank u!!!! \o/ es leander time :-]

don't know how to describe this. for ais + vere + kuras, romantic feelings develop somewhere in the process (ais and vere generally love being little shits so they could've liked you from the start.) but for leander, it's clear he's kinda into you from the beginning. LOL

this doesn't necessarily mean the relationship will develop super fast! leander pays attention and keeps a pace you're comfortable with, though he doesn't shy away from your flirtations (might be surprised, but then he'll smile/laugh and flirt back) or physical touch if you go for it. he loves it even!

one moment is him wooing you with magic...again... another flower! multiple, even! little fireworks! stars! a trail of flickering lights where you find him waiting for you at the end! you can show you're genuinely touched or tease him about it (is a lot of your job doing little magic shows? / is a flower the best you can do?) and he says he'll do something even bigger next time

another moment might be you taking charge in some way. telling him to back down/up, defending him, asking to take the lead for one of your adventures. it isn't often that leander's offered the option to be anything but a leader, much less told not to be. he offers advice but generally follows your lead, and is it weird for him to say that it was really attractive when you told that guy to pay attention to you, not him?

it all just seems too good to be true, he's too good to be true. so you're wary, even if you do really really want to get close or kiss him etc etc. and leander can tell, of course, so he'll just keep trying to prove himself to you

there has to be a moment where you find out how and why he does things for free—why he's the renowned leader of the Bloodhounds. that's not for me to figure out though! i am not a theorist [heart emoji]

But :3 I will offer :3 leander protecting his people above ground isn't a rare sight. leander getting super ticked off or cold is. he's all but mastered his charm and negotiations, until you're involved, and the bloodhound leader might resemble his rumors more in that moment :3c

he doesn't really run from his feelings? he knows he likes you, and that you like him too, so he doesn't see a reason to beat around the bush there. the problems lie with his gang business and possible necromancy if the theories are true, so we'll have to see about. That because there could definitely be some kind of fight or confrontation between you two depending on what he's doing

but anyway. when the time finally comes, he tells you being with him will put a target on your back, but he promises to protect you, even more so than he has been.

plus! he hasn't taken you on a proper date yet! you didn't think hanging out at the bar or looking for books or sneaking into buildings was the best he could do, did you?

! having a hard time choosing how everyone finds out he has a partner now. he could make an announcement at the wet wick if you're comfortable with it, making your spot in the gang official. it could be that people were already gossiping/betting on when it happens, and when he kisses your temple at the bar someone sees and cheers. it's really up to you! i think he's happy with whatever you'd like :3

so! leander's into you. when does he realize he's In Love with you

because i don't think he really had a Serious Relationship in his plans LOL. and that's nothing against you!! he regrets nothing!! it's just... there's things to figure out, priorities to be made, long term plans that have to be accounted for

i'm kind of imagining like. an oh shit moment. he may not say that but the emotional impact is that level

yes he was always interested in you, but it's obviously getting more serious, because he's thinking of the mundane? if that makes sense. like it isn't just that he likes holding your hand or kissing you, it's that he imagines it when he's tired and uses the thought of seeing you again as comfort. it isn't just that he'd love to wow you and take you on a date, it's that he's wondering if you'd mind going on some errands with him. he's fitting you into every area of his life in his head rather than trying to keep you separate

and at some point it just clicks in leander's head.

he can be the one to say it first! might even be the same day he realizes. you're taking a nap and he says "i love you," just to try it out. it feels a little weird but not unwelcome, and now he has to figure out when to say it while you're conscious LOL

if you say it he [ ! ] [ :) ]. maybe sighs and makes a joke about you beating him to it, but says it back sincerely :3

[rey-jake-therapist]

"I have never been more anxious in my life than in the weeks leading up to the series' launch. Up until that point, The Rings of Power was entirely mine. Once it was posted online, it became the property of the fans. I love their imagination. I don't go online. But my sister scours the forums and picks out theories that I might like. Some of them are extraordinary and defy belief. Others are spot on. But I can't tell you more than that.

I didn't expect the relationships between Galadriel, Elrond and Halbrand to be dissected to this extent, even if I imagine that the slightest hint of the forbidden - and I'm still afraid of saying something I shouldn't with this word - can only stir up passions.

Halbrand's influence on Galadriel was less implied in the scripts. It was Charlie Vickers who plays Halbrand who had the idea of ​​making it ambiguous. Assuming that these quasi-divine beings can feel human emotions. Was it a relationship of seduction or power? It's up to the viewer to decide. Extremely kind, Charlie was the best partner."

It is from a roughly translated French interview she did in 2023.

And @principessapeach gave me the link to the interview (thank you again !) :

Lmao Morfydd spilled some tea here. I wonder how it would have played out, if they had gone by the script. Charlie had no idea what monster he just created then lol

Anyway, that's why I can't take Charlie seriously when he claims with the look of the most innocent man on the planet, "uh no, we didn't play it that way, I don't get it...", and keeps insisting that this relationship is not romantic while describing it in the most romantic way.

I mean...

"(...) Vickers continues, adding that Sauron feels "taunted" and "pissed off" that Galadriel rejected him. That makes her ring back personal, but Vickers insists that "he's past ruling with her" (yeah we all saw that, he totally moved on). That won't stop him from showing her "what could have been, what you could have had", Vickers teases. "What they share is "greater than romance", Vickers explains. "Their connection runs far deeper than anything surface level." "His getting rejected definitely leaves him with this sour taste in his mouth, and he goes away thinking, "I can make this right." Whatever that means to him. That's one of his throughlines in terms of his motivation or goals for this second is how much he's driven and how much this relationship gives him a sense of purpose." "It can't be underestimated the impact she has on him. He's drawn to her in the same way that someone who has been through a lot is drawn to someone who's been through someone similar. I would always think of them as having this cosmic connection, in that their connection by some people, and on the surface, could have been interpreted as romantic because of the way it came off. That wasn't something we were intentionally doing (liar liar), but through their shared history, through different ways, they were able to connect more so than they would have connected with other people. It meant that it obviously culminated in this proposal, for want of a better word — not a proposal of marriage, although kind of." "They are not together in this journey. But because of the way things ended, they still have a strong influence on each other. They represent the forces of good and evil in the story, and I think they will always be linked because of what was told in the first season. You see them thinking of each other, and they are motivated by each other. The rejection of that proposal weighs on Sauron, as does the humiliation on Galadriel."

[farshootergotme]

Alright, I'm back to this.

I already addressed in my reblog why Dick is considered to be an emotional support pillar in the Batfamily, not only for Bruce. Now I want to talk about this part in the og post, specifically:

"but. there have been instances where - like alfred - he enables bruce's behaviour and/or makes excuses for it."

I want to say that I agree. However, I want to elaborate on why I agree and why Dick could be considered an enabler.

Let's first define what enabling means to have that out of the way:

“The term "enabling" refers to the act of allowing or permitting someone to continue a behavior, habit, or addiction, often by providing support, resources, or excuses. Enabling can be both intentional and unintentional, and it can have a significant impact on the individual's life and relationships.”

So, at first, I didn't think Dick should be classified as an enabler since it isn't his responsibility to control what Bruce does. However, reading more about the subject, enabling includes taking on responsibilities for the other person and avoiding conflict by ignoring someone's harmful behavior or not putting any boundaries, which gives the other person the go-ahead to keep crossing those unspoken boundaries that you never really settled.

Although I would like to argue Dick does try to have some boundaries with Bruce, most of the time he lets him get away with lots of things he does to him. I mean, we know of the long history of abuse there is from Bruce to Dick, even if his actions are not always his fault/intentional. (See: mind-control, hypnosis, accidents, etc.)

I'd like to be corrected if I'm wrong, but I don't think there's a time in which Dick has directly addressed Bruce's not-so-great parental skills. Lack of safe environment for emotional vulnerability? Poor communication? Putting so much responsibility in the hands of a child? And I wouldn't say it is for not trying to make Bruce responsible. But when he was a child, confronting him about these things… Dick just wasn't suited for it. No matter how much insistence there might be from his part about them being equals, Bruce is and always was an authority figure. He was the owner of the manor, he was who had right over their equipment and the cave, he was the oldest—the parent, and Dick had no way to go against that without feeling like he was going to war in his underwear with a stick for weapon against a fully-armored warrior with shield and sword to attack.

And as an adult, having a discussion about any of this might be even harder because he's been since childhood rationalizing and excusing Bruce's behavior just so he could justify to himself why he couldn't say anything about it. Why he was letting himself get hurt without fighting back.

In his mind, Bruce always has some kind of reason. “He was traumatized”, “he was grieving”, “his parents had died when he was much too young, how could've he known better?”, “he tried his best”, “Dick understood Bruce better than anyone else, why would he need to communicate or show him affection when it's all hidden under the small gestures?” and it could go on and on.

That's where the excusing Bruce's behavior, thus enabling him, comes. This is where Bruce gets a pass because hey! He can't be blamed when it was a result of the circumstances! (But it does become a fault when he keeps going with the flow instead of trying to change the direction. “The circumstances” stops being an excuse when you're the one who contributed to them.)

And as the family grew, Dick started taking on more responsibilities for Bruce because Dick knows Bruce isn't apt to be everything the others would need. That lack of communication? Dick compensates by explaining for Bruce. The affection? Dick will give it to them. All the parentification? Brushed under the rug. Nobody notices (or ignores it) and it's a cycle of enabling Dick to be codependent and Bruce to be emotionally immature.

But despite all my previous points, Dick isn't always like this. He isn't letting things go everytime something happens. He isn't looking the other way to all the things Bruce does for his sake. In fact, out of all the kids, I'd say Dick is the one who's confronted Bruce the most.

Batman #416

The New Titans #55

Batman #600

Nightwing (1996) #99

Outsiders vol.3 #21

And although he excuses Bruce to himself, he does let others know about Bruce's harmful behavior and encourages them to set boundaries.

Batman: Urban Legends #10

Batman #416

So, in conclusion, Dick both is and isn't an enabler. He excuses Bruce as much as he doesn't. He ignores his faults but also confronts him about it. He allows him his flaws and he points them out.

What I'll say is that Dick isn't like Alfred in this aspect, but he does on occasion unintentionally enable Bruce, even if not always.

Now, Bruce and Dick aside, I want to have a section to talk about why I dislike using the term ‘enable’ when it comes to a parent-child relationship. (You can skip over this, just a personal opinion that I felt the need to share. But it isn't needed for my argument, so is just an extra to my post)

When a child ‘enables’ a parent it can mean a few different things:

Making excuses for their parent's behavior.

Taking on responsibilities.

Providing emotional support.

Ignoring the issue.

Accommodating the parent's needs.

These all cause the parent to avoid responsibility, have no consequences for their actions and have their own scapegoat and emotional support that will make it easier for them to avoid seeking help or attempting to become better due to the lack of repercussions to their actions.

However, it really isn't the child's responsibility to make the parent see where they're going wrong. It isn't their job to go “Hey, actually, you should get help because you aren't treating me like your child”. They aren't the ones who have to constantly communicate their needs and point out the shortcomings of the adult, so it always gives me this sense of wrongness when I use this word for these cases because, really, it's more about the parent enabling the child by permitting and encouraging the parentification of said child than the child enabling the parent to be an awful guardian.

Yet again, that's just my opinion. I can change what the word means and what it includes in its definition. But I can have and voice my thoughts about it and believe there should be a different way of calling it that doesn't make it sound like the child is the one at fault for their parents behavior.

[antianakin]

Pong Krell. It’s universally agreed that he deserved worse than what he got and I get that. I just wished we got to see what he was like before he Fell. Did he always hate clones, was it gradual? Did he suspect something off and went over paranoid?

I’ll say this one and I’ll say this probably a thousand more times but I wished the creators focused on more details with characters. It’s absolutely fascinating that they created a Jedi that Fell but did nothing with it besides outright evil.

How other Jedi reacted to learning that a fellow Jedi betrayed everyone? How did the Republic?

I just wished they did more with him than just, yeah that dude was a dick and killed clones.

Yeah, it's one of the things I don't like as much about TCW, the extremely episodic nature of it means that there really is never any build-up to anything or lasting impact from anything. Unless it's happening within one of the 2-4 episode arcs, we RARELY get to see any kind of build-up or fallout. It's one of the major issues with Barriss, too, we see her ONCE in season 2 and she's calm, kind, methodical, and selfless. And then three seasons later in season 5 she's suddenly ruthless, selfish, doubting everything and everyone, merciless, etc. There is NO BUILD UP to that radical 180 to her character and there's no real exploration of how Ahsoka really feels about that particular betrayal afterwards, the focus in later episodes after the Wrong Jedi focuses only on Ahsoka feeling betrayed by the COUNCIL and her feelings about that. Nothing since TCW has ever touched it either (Rebels, Mandalorian, the Ahsoka show). Satine's death never really comes up again after it happens aside from Bo-Katan being an asshole. Obi-Wan goes from being totally fucked up about Maul coming back to being chill enough to take on Maul and Savage alone and winning without us getting to see him actually deal with those emotions.

Pong Krell and the Umbara arc IN GENERAL falls into this category easily (so do the Zyggeria and the Deception arc tbh). Krell is such a basic evil character, there's so little nuance to him and we never get to see the Jedi react to the revelation that one of their own turned at all. Dooku turned after he had already left the Order as far as any of them really know, but Krell was still IN the Order when he decided to betray them and it would've been really interesting to see the impact of that on them. It would've been ESPECIALLY interesting to explore that more during the Wrong Jedi arc in particular in how the Jedi feel like they can't trust their own people not to betray them anymore after Dooku and Krell.

Krell is presented with like. Zero nuance. He is just unequivocally evil and despite Anakin greeting him in a friendly way at the beginning, the visuals tell you this dude's no good right from his first appearance. There isn't really any chance that he's going to be a good guy at all. So all we are left with are headcanons.

And I remember discussing my Krell headcanons somewhere, but I think it might've been on a Discord server I've since left, so I unfortunately cannot find them again. So I'll try to remember them and immortalize them here, I guess.

Here's the thing about Krell. NO ONE suspects him. So he cannot be overtly acting like a bigoted asshole from the jump at any point, he HAS to be acting in such a way that it's not trickling out to the other clones and to the Jedi themselves that Krell is an absolute monster. Even Fives takes a moment to decide that Krell is suspicious and only brings up Krell's casualty numbers after he sees Krell's behavior for a minute and combines that knowledge with what he's now personally experiencing and is starting to come to conclusions based on that. He doesn't go into the relationship thinking Krell is worse than any other Jedi already.

And based on what we know of EVERY OTHER FALLEN JEDI (Dooku, Anakin, Barriss), they didn't start out as monsters. Dooku was a highly respected Jedi Master who seems to have had a really positive relationship with Yoda and Qui-Gon and simply became disillusioned with the Senate and his care for the people of the galaxy got twisted into something darker over time. Barriss was kind, selfless, compassionate, brave, and resourceful, and it was the war that caused her to start letting her fears and pain consume her into turning on the Jedi. Anakin was kind and spent years having his fears and doubts twisted into selfishness and greed and darkness that allowed him to justify murder and genocide for power. So it wouldn't make sense to me that Pong Krell wouldn't fall into the same pattern where he was once kind and good and selfless and brave, but that the circumstances surrounding the war caused him to lose faith and fall.

My headcanon is that he lost an entire battalion early in the war, much like we see happen to Plo Koon during the Malevolence arc and that that loss and failure just BROKE him. Krell DID care about the clones, he cared about his men, and he FAILED them all. And I think that he saw all of these clones dying by the dozens in all of the other battalions and instead of choosing to let go of his pain and fear and lean into his compassion, he chose to distance himself from them entirely to make it hurt less. If he didn't care about the clones, if he just saw them as the cannon fodder that the Senate treated them all as, then it would hurt less when they died. Maybe the Senate itself even dragged him over the coals for that initial loss. Or perhaps it was the opposite, maybe most of his battalion was killed, but it ultimately ended in a victory anyway because they were forced to just keep going despite the consequences. And so Krell decides to enter this mindset where he is disillusioned with the Senate and just CANNOT allow himself to care about the clones, because it won't change what the Senate is going to do to them anyway, so he may as well just treat them the same way.

And this wouldn't have happened overnight. It wouldn't have been a sudden 180 where he decided he was just going to treat them like shit. But he maybe decided to put some more professional distance between himself and his new battalion, not get close to them, not use their names (although he still knows them, still remembers them all). Maybe one day they're in a tricky situation and all of his options are bad, he HAS to sacrifice some of his men in order to salvage the situation at all, and it's a choice between a full retreat that he KNOWS the Senate won't take well, or sacrificing the men to achieve the victory. So he sacrifices the men. It's not an entire battalion, it's not even a whole company, but it's more than it would've been if he'd retreated. Maybe next time, there's a choice between going back to save some of the men even if it poses a risk to his own life or the mission or something, and he chooses not to go back for them because the mission is more important, or he rationalizes that his life is more important as the Jedi General. And it's just more and more little decisions like that that add up over time to being able to see the clones as nothing more than tools.

The disillusionment with the Senate leads to him sort-of agreeing with things Dooku and the Separatists have said and he can look at the war and realize that it's entirely possible that the Republic is going to LOSE, and he CANNOT be the one who loses again, so maybe he starts bouncing around the concept of maybe switching sides. And of course initially he rejects the idea. He's a Jedi, he won't just abandon the Republic, he can't be a traitor, who in the Separatist side would ever trust him anyway. But once that seed is planted, it doesn't go away and it keeps coming back up and he keeps finding ways to rationalize why it might be a good idea and then deciding not to do it over and over again. Until one day, he can't convince himself that it's a bad idea or that it wouldn't work. He tells himself it's the ONLY option, if he doesn't change sides then he's dead. But Dooku WON'T trust him unless he can prove that he's not on the Republic's side, so he has to come up with a plan to gain their trust. And what better way to earn that trust than to ensure a Separatist victory in an important campaign by double-crossing the Republic.

And once he's chosen to go down that path, it's even EASIER to stop caring about the clones because, well, they're all dead anyway. The Republic is going to lose, the clones are all dead men walking no matter what, so why bother caring about them or trying to keep them alive? He can't lose so often that the Jedi or the Senate become suspicious of him, of course, but it's REALLY easy then to get to Umbara and treat the clones like crap and turn them against each other and intentionally try to get them all killed. They're dead anyway, he's not the one killing them really, is he, the Senate is, the Jedi are, the war is. They were dead from the moment they were created in that test tube because they were created for this specific purpose. It's not his fault.

And much like Barriss turns against the Jedi in part because she did LOVE the Jedi and was devastated by what she saw happening to them and the pain of seeing her people forced to become something they were never supposed to be, as much as her actions were intended as some kind of message to try to sort-of save the Jedi from a course of action she saw as their downfall, I think that Krell turns on the clones because at some point he DID care about them. A lot. And that care became his downfall, the pain at what was being done to them just absolutely gutted him and it threw him down a path that ultimately led him to turn against the very people whose deaths had hurt him so badly just a few short years ago.

Krell might not have been the most effusive or emotional person prior to the war or anything, he might've been a more reserved person similar to Mace or Dooku or Luminara, but I think he probably was a perfectly good Jedi who was kind and selfless and compassionate once upon a time.

And none of the headcanons above have even touched what his relationships with other JEDI must have been like. It's just as possible that he did have friends and people he considered family among the Jedi. Maybe he had a padawan once at some point. And maybe all of those people had died by the time we get to Umbara. Maybe he had to watch a lot of the people he was closest to just fall like flies, and so it starts feeling like nothing matters. Maybe one of the Jedi who died on Geonosis was a former padawan of his, but Krell himself obviously wasn't there and the pain of THAT loss and the guilt he feels at not having been there (even though this padawan had been knighted for a while and there was a good reason Krell wasn't there that day) just sticks with him, too, and he never quite manages to let that go, either.

I think a lot of people choose to just headcanon Krell as having just always been kind-of an asshole even when he was a Jedi, but that doesn't work for me. If Krell was always an asshole, I feel like the Jedi would've stepped in at some point before the war even HAPPENED and tried to manage that situation. And it doesn't match up with the way pretty much every other fallen Jedi has ever been written, where they were GOOD PEOPLE once upon a time who saw awful things happen that they couldn't stop or had an awful thing happen TO them that they couldn't stop and the pain of that experience consumes them to the point that they spiral into darkness as a result. Krell should be the same way, which means he likely was a perfectly good normal Jedi before the war. He would've been kind, he might've been good with younglings (he's tall, maybe he was the one the younglings went to all the time for piggy back rides, maybe he often taught dual wielding to padawans who asked because of how clearly proficient he is at it), he might've taught a student of his own successfully, he would've been wise and selfless and compassionate, he would've loved the Jedi and the people of the galaxy.

Like, to be frank, if Tales of the Jedi HAD to explore a fallen Jedi story, they should've explored Krell instead of Dooku. Dooku has been explored before, we know quite a lot about him and his motivations and his backstory, but Krell, as you noted, is left a mystery and is stuck in the realm of being just purely evil for the sake of the story they were telling in this one arc. Krell needed more nuance in a way Dooku just did not.

[amuseoffyre]

Just had GO s2 on in the background while I was doing some craft and some percolating thoughts came out of the first Maggie and Nina exchange.

Nina: See anything you fancy? Maggie: Oh. Yes. Coffee. Nina: The usual, then? Don't tell me, it's in here. You're a skinny latte. Maggie: You remembered :) Nina: A lot of people in this head, and a lot of coffees, but I only remember the regulars.

Now bear with me on this mental ramble as I try and put these thoughts in order. I'll divide it into three points:

Mind-altering and memory muddles

There's a running motif through the whole season about memory and the loss thereof:

Gabriel removing his memory ("all the bits that make you you")

Crowley forgetting who Furfur was repeatedly

Aziraphale and Crowley's miracle basically casting confusion over the bookshop and muddling everyone's minds

the threat of erasure of memory and demotion (and am still sure Muriel is a previous demotee on account of the 37th level thing. 3s and 12s! Those are the recurring numbers in the book! 37 doesn't make sense! 36, yes! 37, no!)

putting memories somewhere else (Gabriel's fly but also Aziraphale's journals)

Coffee

As with the memory element, coffee is a running theme through the whole show as well.

Crowley chugging espressos like there's no tomorrow

Give Me Coffee or Give Me Death - "does anyone ever choose death?" asks the Metatron, when the answer is obvious

Coffee's symbolism in the final 15. Let me yell about the symbolism of Coffee = Crowley and all things mortal and living and human and earthly. OR DEATH. ("I have ingested things, you know")

The flavours in the Metatron's coffee order also having allegorical symbolism - almond branches in various parts of The Book are a reminder that God is Watching.

The human avatars of the angelic and divine

Initially when I started watching S2, I assumed the parallels between Maggie and Nina were obvious: Maggie, the sunshine one, is the Aziraphale, while Nina, the grumpy one, is the Crowley. But I was wrong.

Nina is the human avatar of Aziraphale.

Maggie: how can you think about that after all this? Nina: People need coffee, I sell coffee, it's my coffee shop.

Nina defines herself by the place she works, it is who she is and she does it because people need it (coffee), much like Aziraphale defines himself by the place he worked (Heaven), it's who he is (an angel) and he does it because people need it (goodness).

Likewise, when they go and tell Crowley off for the way he's interfered in their lives, Nina says she's just getting out of a messy relationship and isn't ready for something new yet (again, Aziraphale and Heaven vibes because that fully impacts every decision Aziraphale makes through S2) and if Maggie is around when she's ready, then maybe, they can try. ("If she's there" "I will be :) ")

And then we have Maggie, the Crowley avatar. Useless at saying what she wants to say, tries to express herself and her emotions with gestures and gifts, offers her company and time when Nina needs it, happy to help her despite the way Nina is wary of the kindness being shown.

By the end of the season, Nina is caught behind the bar of her coffee shop, working and serving ungrateful people, while Maggie is alone in her empty shop, asleep on her counter, paralleling Aziraphale going back to work in a place where he will run himself off his feet to do the right thing, while Crowley is left with an empty shop.

But now to spin back to the original quote from 2x01, it feels like all of these motifs are tying together and foreshadowing something, very possibly an Aziraphale who has lost his memory/had his memories stripped away.

Let me rewrite the lines with only a tiny couple of changes:

Aziraphale: See anything you fancy? Crowley: Oh. Ngk. Company? Aziraphale: The usual, then? Don't tell me, it's in here. You're the demon Crowley. Crowley: You remembered :) Aziraphale: A lot of angels in this head, and a lot of demons, but I only remember the regulars.

If I'm right, he remembers Crowley, but only the surface level like Nina remembers Maggie. Nothing about who they were to each other, nothing about what has happened. But have no fear, Muriel has the bookshop and the thousands and thousands of years of Aziraphale's memories bound up in text form.

Especially prescient since Muriel is given a book by the Metatron Crowley which is a novel where a man pieces together a story from documents that have been left behind. Schroedinger's journals will be making a return in S3, I have no doubt.

[secriden]

i've been thinking and thinking about the significance of the sunflowers parapai sends sky after their first face-to-face meeting post-one night stand and it suddenly hit me why it made such an impact on sky.

prior to this point, sky's attracted to prapai, no question about it. the physical attraction is there pretty much as soon as they lay eyes on each other. even at their one night stand, regardless of the reasons why (tbh my read was that sky wanted it in the moment to feel like he had a way to wrest control over (a) his own body and (b) the situation), sky at least physically seemed to enjoy himself. but its the lack of emotional connection, after the endorphin rush is over, that makes him feel like crap, makes him second-guess his worth and leave feeling used and hallow (and boy oh boy does peat manage to show that so well - he's so so good at wounded).

but then prapai comes back 3 months later, teasing and playful and flirty and still so attractive. sky recognises his own attraction (his self-talky bits are cute but they break my heart), but the one night stand was good enough physically for him to know he doesn't want just that. he doesn't just want to just feel physically good. and he's stuck in the thought that he can never have anything more.

when prapai tells him he's going to pursue him in sky's dorm lobby, he's startled but not shaken. he goes up to his room, essentially tells himself to get out of fantasy land, peeks out the window - but he still fundamentally doesn't engage with the idea that there could be anything real between them.

but the sunflowers and "remember that this wind's watching over the sky". it's protection; its safety.

sky's visibly shaken (peat, oh peat, the vulnerability you managed to convey) and i think this is probably the first time prapai actually manages to get a little bit past the wall sky's already put up between them. and prapai's such a flirty idiot i 100% think he didn't have a clue what he was saying, really. he just thought he was being clever with the unusual flower choice and playing with their names, but in a way that's what makes prapai so perfect for sky.

he's... well, guileless. he's almost accidentally exactly what sky needs to even consider falling in love after everything that happened to him. there's something very clumsy about the charm prapai has and i suspect it's because he's never really had to work to charm anyone before - his looks, money, and status do most of the heavy lifting for him. the fact that he isn't an absolute jerk is pretty much enough for most to be pulled into his orbit. but this works so well for sky because i think someone more suave and actually adapt at wordplay/flirting would have made him run for the hills, because it would have come across as manipulation given his trauma. but prapai is so bad at it (prapai: 'if you don't try it, how do you know?' sky: you absolute fucking idiot did you forget how we met?) that it actually sounds genuine. it makes it safe.

fuck, safety. i feel like it's something everyone wants on some level, but when you've gone through something like that... something where you're betrayed on such a fundamental level by someone you trust, safety becomes the core of what you need. i can deal with hunger, with pain, with loneliness, with being overworked, with being called names or scolded by others - as long as i can maintain that safety. and for sky, that safety always came when he was in his own hands. the only one he could trust with his safety was himself (even as a child, he had no one; alone in Bangkok with a mother who left and a father who cared but was too far away). its why sky isolates; why he'll help his classmates but never ask for help; why he takes the bullying som dishes out without a word.

then prapai comes in and takes care of him when he's sick. his safety is outside of his hands - terrifying. but... also such a relief. i cannot stress how much this was exactly what sky needed. if rain had taken care of him, he would've kicked rain out the second he became conscious. rain doesn't have the backbone/will/character to force the issue. but what prapai did was prioritise sky's safety (health) and for the first time in years, it didn't have to be in his own hands...

(prapai then goes on to makes a lot of other accidentally good choices - comes to Last Cheer and gives him medicine, a place to rest his head, and a quiet space so he can do what he wants (stay to the end, not worry his friends). care, offered at sky's terms. even the bits where prapai's a visibly horny idiot, nearly edging past sky's boundaries but not is counterintuitively perfect because sky sees that prapai's going against what he wants to make sure sky's expressed boundaries are honoured and sees how it costs him something - but, also, i think that speaks more to (a) prapai's growth as a character now that he has a focus that goes beyond the instant gratification of physical release and (b) mame knows her characters and prapai is built to be perfect for sky. honestly most of the skill in writing prapai was the change was gradual enough to be believable in the context of this world. but i digress.)

i just... really adore what prapai did for sky here. like, utter relief that comes from having someone take care of you when you've had to take care of yourself for so long. like a heavy burden suddenly rolling off. and the sunflowers are cheesy but they're the first real hint that this is what's going to make prapai succeed with sky. its not (just) that he's attractive and persistent - that wouldn't have been enough ultimately. (for eg. had phayu pursued sky, he would've also been attractive and persistent but boy would sky have run for the hills with that kind of pursuit. phayu's hot but the manipulation in how he got rain... sometimes i'm baffled by this fandom's take on phayu vs prapai because it's always prapai that everyone calls shady/problematic when he's actually very transparent and honest with his intensions with sky vs the mind games phayu played with rain. i don't have an issue with it because of how rain's character's written - he needed a phayu to get past his internal hang ups - but still, baffling.)

but its how he continually offered to take on the burden of care from sky. so sky could finally actually address the other things he needed. sky didn't have the (physical OR emotional) bandwidth to even consider a relationship until prapai because no one was taking those things off his plate (feeding him, making sure he rests, making sure he took care of himself. like - even when prapai just reminds sky to take care of himself, that's taking some of that mental load off sky having to remember for himself).

honestly this is why when in the scene when sky opens the door to prapai when he's half asleep and then lets prapai feed him, and lets him put him to bed, undress and dress him (all things that would have triggered sky to hell before) - I actually believe it. i believe that sky feels safe around prapai because he's done nothing but actively, persistently offer that to sky over and over again by this point.

anyway, yes, i just really love the sunflower scene for how it gives us that first real glimpse as to why prapai really was perfect for sky.

[mangofanarts]

I think what's worse with Pomme saying "it's inevitable, isn't it?" to Bad is the signs in the back accompanying it. She and Bad just had a conversation a few minutes ago. And it shows itself onto the signs in the back, "Dad.. ? Dad, I want to make you a promise. Whatever happens, I will be there, always I will stay here." The conversation they had before was Pomme promising her dad that whatever happens, she still wants to stay with him and be there for him, that she will do anything to protect him. You can't see the other signs that continue that conversation, but she says that she loves him. That she cherishes every moment she has with him and thanks him for being a part of her life.

She wants her dad to know how much she cares for him while he seems stable. She's just a little girl that's so devoted to the ones she loves. She wants to do so much. An even further sign in the back "MEDS FOR DAD, Take care plz we love you" on top of a backpack she prepared for him. It's a sign of her devotion. A sign of her wanting the best for him, her love. She's been trying to help him with health potions, she's been trying and trying even before they transferred to the other part of the island. She has mentioned before during a Pomme-time that she wants to have hope for her dad. She wants to have hope in that he will okay because he says that he will be. But it's getting more obvious that It's not working. Not when he's causally talking about how he's dying slowly, how he has talked to her and Tallulah about death not needing to be such a sad thing - how it means that person has impacted you so much but they'll never truly be gone even if you think they are. How he sometimes doesn't act like himself, forgetting who she is in a second and then remembering her in the next, disregarding her feelings about explosions, his face becoming more blue then ever and she doesn't fully understand why. It's reaching to a point that Pomme asks him, "it's inevitable, is it?" She isn't sure she can have hope about the situation anymore. It's inevitable. She can't help her dad, despite how much she wants to protect him with her health potions. He's going to die. When he does, she knows he won't be gone for long because that's what he keeps saying. Even though, she's still going to be losing her dad in some aspect and she doesn't want it. She might be starting to accept it - that it will happen regardless of what she does. She's still going to be there for him, that's the promise she made to him.

And when he says, "Everything is inevitable to some respect, Pomme." It's just further confirming what Pomme knows, even as he goes on to talk about mountains crumbling and sometimes how they crumble when a person isn't around to see it or sometimes they don't crumble. The last end of his sentence ends with, "It's a part of life, mountains rising and crumble and you just got to deal with it." She says again that she made a promise. Even if he's going to crumble like a mountain and it's going to be in front her. She's staying, despite how much it'll hurt. She will be there, all out of love.

Watching yesterday's vod just made me feel emotional and Pomme's signs in the back made me feel 10x worse with her inevitable sign

[swifty-fox]

As callum is double the size of Austin and quite a bit taller, how do you think this affected the way bucky and buck were portrayed on screen? I know there's also a lot of physicality in acting and I found it interesting that in certain scenes - like when they're fighting with the British at the table, or at that party where bucky has a tense moment with his superior, or when bucky gets up and starts singing - that he seems like someone buck can be quiet behind, he can watch him go and be amazed/amused at what he might do and whilst all the noise happens around bucky remain in his own seemingly preffered quietnes. Buck also watches bucky a lot too, like he is as intrigued with this larger than life character as we are - until he needs to step in lmao.

Not to say a smaller person can't be formidable, after all I think callum is distinctly bigger than the real life Eagen, but for Apples interpretation of MOTA it fits that bucky is this bull of man. It makes the moments -like that super tense moment when crank says 'the people we're bombing didn't shoot down buck' or when Bucky walks into the bar after bucks been shot down and tells everyone they don't have to guess why he's come back and slaps a bill down, or when he won't give that nazi anything but his number - all the more tangible for us watching at home.

The use of callums size is very, very wonderfully executed imo and kudos to callum and the directors for that because I think it can be so easy to end up being a caricature of some tough guy JUST because of size as opposed to being tough in spite of it, that's the balance of physical acting imo you can shoe horn any buff actor into a role but it's how secondary his size is to Buckys rage of emotions that makes it impactful, it's wielded like an accessory to an already formidable character.

I also think it shows in callum and austins friendship like Austin in their interveiws is very content often to simply relax and laugh and watch and listen, he said they're cut from the same cloth and callum said their personalties are similar to buck and buckys I.e. introvert and extrovert but they're kindred spirits. - sorry this was long but I find the art of acting so fascinating when it's done well. And the phycality of buck and bucky is to me really well done and an important part of how they understand each other

Callum is only 2 inches taller than Austin! He's just....big. he's just broad. Austin is much more trim and it makes the difference look extreme but they are in fact very similar in height!

I think from what we know the real John Egan had a very similar bombastic personality lmao. I don't think they were really factoring in Callums height or size into the casting so much as his physicality. He plays the cocky self assured pilot so well. and one thing we know about John Egan was that he was one cocksure motherfucker

^ his POW with a very cocky popped collar.

I do agree that Callum injects a lotta physicality into his roles. i can spot him from a few pixels just by the way he walks. I think it's what lends to his charisma on screen but I also think yes it is virtue of being a big guy. he's got a lotta limb and a lotta body of course he's gonna use it in his acting, of course he's someone whos probably grown up being very aware of his size. Bet he bashed those long arms a lot on things before he learned how to control himself lol. I think of course he is quite physically intimidating in scenes where he needs to be and his size lends to it but it's just the simple fact of him being a big guy.

Austin is shy and an introvert and hates talking about himself, but loves talking about things other than himself. and Callum is willing to talk about anything lol. He seems like one of those guys who kinda has a thought on every subject. It's no wonder they mesh well, they're both deeply thoughtful guys and it seems like Callums open personality smooths the path for Austin really well. I doubt they have many awkward silences between them due to Callum being Callum

[imaginarylungfish]

my thoughts on the end of mha

i've had a few weeks to process the ending of mha now. when i first heard there were only 5 chapters left, i was shocked. i thought when hori said he had more story to tell, we were gonna get like 10 more chapters or something. so yeah, i felt like i got some whiplash there.

but after i had some time to recover from my shock, i got sad. this manga has brightened many a sunday for me. sure, i understand the criticism of the final war arc, but i can't say i was ever bored. i always wanted to know what was happening next.

and while i was sad the villains didn't live/we didn't see a rehab arc for them nor did we see much emotional processing by certain characters after the war, i understand this manga couldn't go on forever to adequately tackle all those stories. that's what fics are for, i guess.

izuku's ending

a really big thing i liked about the ending was izuku becoming quirkless again. that's what i wanted. i have some gripes with the execution, though. it was weird that izuku didn't show any emotion about losing ofa except in the battle. i still think that was a bit of a fumble on hori's part. you're telling me the kid who cries about everything wouldn't cry about losing something that let him live his dream? just seemed ooc.

but anyway, izuku ending as a quirkless hero was exactly what i wanted. that's exactly the way to conclude his whole arc. however, unless you fill in the blanks with headcanons, the impact of that arc is a bit lost on the reader. do we see izuku's acceptance of his inherent worthiness of being a hero (due to his unwavering spirit rather than the need for a quirk)? we don't. do we see society's acceptance of quirkless people as inherently equal to people with quirks? we don't. we must fill in the blanks ourselves. and i just don't think that type of fill-in-the-blank should happen. we should get that from the mangaka.

i also found it weird that izuku became a teacher at ua and then a quirkless hero. i understand there was some fun shock value/bait-and-switch to this little plot point (which i have to admit was amusing). but it kind of just didn't make narrative sense to me once i had my little laugh. like, pick one, hori. does izuku lose his quirk and become a ua teacher or does he lose his quirk and become a quirkless hero? having both muddies the waters.

we knew mha was going to end in a hopeful way. that's what this manga was about. it was all about trying and pushing past limits to succeed, despite the odds. i knew it wasn't going to end with izuku being depressed or anything. he was going to be happy in the end, whether he ended up as a quirkless teacher or quirkless hero because that's just who he is--he doesn't give up. so, i wish that was more of the focus of the last chapters since izuku is the protag after all. but i got the big thing i wanted (which is more than some others can say), so i can't complain too much.

katsuki's ending

i'm actually really satisfied with kastuki's ending (and his whole character arc, honestly). katsuki's whole thing was that he felt inferior to izuku his entire life because of izuku's innate heroism. so, katsuki bullied izuku to make himself feel better since katsuki always felt like he needed to be the best. but slowly, we see katsuki's worldview change as he enters ua high, fails the provisional licensing exam, and sees izuku's continued mastery of his quirks.

throughout the manga, katsuki has to grow up and mature. he has to realize that while he was born with something that makes him a great hero (his quirk), that's not all that it takes to be a great hero. and in fact, izuku has the other part (empathy and determination).

katsuki learns how to be more of a team player and less self-centered. he balances out his need to win and be the best with including others in his thought processes. enough so that he sacrifices himself for izuku, apologies to izuku, and gives izuku the final push in the war.

katsuki shows emotional growth and maturity throughout the manga which i think culminates not only in the final chapter but also in his reaction to hearing the news that izuku lost ofa. his show of emotion is big for him since we know this is not something he normally does. (i still can't believe we saw katsuki of all people cry after the war, but not izuku. ugh, i'll forever be salty about that.)

it's made clear in the final chapters through his words and actions that katsuki cares about izuku. he not only verbally expresses to izuku that he is sad they can't compete anymore, but he also checks in with izuku about how much of ofa he still has, and ultimately, works to get izuku's dream back. if that ain't redemption, i don't know what is.

so with one of the last panels of the manga being katsuki reaching out his hand to izuku (!!!), calling him deku to reinforce izuku's heroism? what a great conclusion. i am satisfied. thanks, hori.

(plus, there were no canon ships which i'm happy about. that's something that i'm glad hori left up to interpretation. now, we can all go read fics with our favorite ships without too much retconning. i think we all won in that regard.)

shoto's ending

i love shoto, so i will always want more of him. but i think that's exactly why i'm fine with his ending. i don't see it like an ending. it's a start for him. he finally gets to be himself, to be shoto. sure, he still probably has a long way to go in terms of getting over his family trauma, but throughout the manga, i think we get to see his growth in that regard which culminates with his battle with dabi and subsequent aftermath.

his story was always tied to his family's story, which made him a complex character. and while i can't say i loved everything that hori did with the todoroki family, i do like what he did for shoto individually.

i will always love shoto's thoughts during his fight with dabi. i think it exemplified his character growth. he was such an angry, cold teen when he entered ua. but he learned how to make friends, accept his trauma, and become his own person. throughout the manga, he learns how to interact with others in the way he wants. despite his treatment as a child (ie. abuse), he decides to reconnect with his mom and work with endeavor. but the main thing is that he chooses it. he gets to dictate what he does now. that's huge for him.

i particularly loved the scene where shoto says he just wants to talk with dabi/touya during their fight. it reminded me of a little kid who just wants to get to know his big brother. but also it showed the maturity shoto gained throughout the story. instead of avoiding things like he originally did at the beginning of the manga, he wants to face them head-on. he has learned talking with others and gaining new perspectives is helpful and that arguments, even though unpleasant, can be productive.

and like i said before, i have some gripe with how some pieces of the todoroki family arc ended. however, i was satisfied with shoto's ending. i loved the "favorite food convo" callback. touya's response was hopeful yet heartbreaking at the same time.

i do wish izuku and shoto talked after the war because i just think izuku would want to know how shoto's doing instead of whatever the fuck this was:

but again, overall i am satisfied.

ok i'm going to stop writing now. i already wrote more than i thought i would (and even added panels). i do have thoughts on ochaco's ending and other random things, but i think that's a post for a another day. i did the main three and that's good enough for now.

overall, i was satisfied with the ending of mha, especially after looking back on it with all pieces put together. the story impacted me in more ways than one and i look forward to re-reading and learning more in the future!

[some-pers0n]

Okay after seeing that nuclear bad take about Albatross being a "fucking psycho", here!! Get another one of these emotional rants of mine.

Albatross is a character I think a lot of people misunderstand. I think a good chunk of the reason why this somewhat new obsession I have over him was kick-started by just how many times I saw people on Reddit or in YouTube video comments go on and on about how he was insane in the membrane and was a pure evil dragon. It reminds me of my thoughts on Orca as well, where I don't want to take her at face value and see her as this dragon who just wanted to take over the throne. That's boring. I like the idea of her being something more.

But with Albatross? We've got a lot more evidence pointing to him being more than just "crazy old dragon". Reading the text, you see that Albatross is just kinda..sad? He's miserable and I personally get the feeling that he regrets having spent decades being bossed around by Lagoon. That he's tired of being seen as this freak-show dragon who could snap at any moment. He did once all of those years ago, and now it haunts him ever since.

Lagoon (and Sapphire to an extent) and their impact on Albatross's life is one that I find extremely overlooked. I don't know how people can think Albatross had no reason to do any of this and was just "snapping because he lost all of his soul" when Lagoon literally was egging him on just minutes before the massacre happened. He was being shown like a disfigured and disturbing trophy to the SkyWings. Statues of herself built by Albatross for no other reason than to have statues of herself. Lagoon flaunted her control over him and how he could do anything for her, mentioning ideas for enchantments that'll make her immortal. When Albatross speaks up, she shuts him down. She emotionally manipulates him by bringing up Sapphire again, saying that he'll never live it down. She then goes on to say how happy she is about how Fathom is an animus, excited to finally replaced her old, snappy, and unreasonable brother.

How much more obvious can you get that Lagoon was manipulating and controlling Albatross? For god's sake we even see this in the guide as well, with Lagoon bringing up Sapphire again. Lagoon uses that one tramatic event as leverage for everything. Something that she did is now Albatross's fault forever because he swiped back. He didn't want to be beaten down and made fun of anymore. He didn't want to be tormented by them any longer.

It's a moment that haunts Albatross. He regrets it deeply. It was an accident, but Lagoon won't ever make him forget it. She used the guilt that Albatross felt and made him do anything she wanted. How could he do such a thing? Cut off his sister's talons and drive her to madness? Lagoon knew how much this incident impacted Albatross. She wanted to make sure he always knew that it was his fault. That, no matter what, he will never live down being the one to ruin Sapphire's life.

His entire life he's more or less been just a means for Lagoon to exploit. A tool for her to use whenever she wanted something. The Summer Palace was more or less a vanity project, where Lagoon could show off how she has two palaces now. I don't think he ever used animus magic for himself. The only time he acted of his own accord, he would be snapped at by Lagoon. Him being mentioned to have traumatized dragonets by setting the trees ablaze during a Talons of Power ceremony was, again, brought up by Lagoon so that she could remind him of how he's unstable and should listen to her.

Not to also mention that he was described by Fathom as kind, albiet distant and somewhat cold at times. I don't think he was evil. He was a dragon who was spat into a world that was unkind and took advantage of him at every moment. Him being different than the others was the catalyist for everything. He was told he would be nothing more than an unstable, murderous dragon who could snap at any moment.

And he did just that, didn't he?