#I might be his number one apologist

[iridescenttttttt]

never get between an autistic mfer (me) and the character who only they understand (sun wukong)

no cause im actually in the trenches for this guy sometimes like. I will defend him to my dying breaths. ‘He’s a bad mentor’ MAYBE IN S1 AND S2!!! (I POINT AT ALL HIS POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT HE GIVES TO MK AND HOW MUCH HE CARES ABOUT HIM AND HOW HE ACTIVELY TRIES TO BE BETTER AND ADMITS HIS MISTAKES) (HE WAS BAD IN S1 AND S2 LOWKEY CANT DEFEND HIM THERE BUT I PROMISE HES DOING HIS BEST IN S3-5 PLEASE YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THE CHARACTER ARC HES GONE THROUGH PLEASE PLEASE PL)

obligatory sunburst duo pic

[thasdorah]

I should embrace my canon divergence entirely and say alleria got her divorce in bfa

[solarbird]

For years now, I have been railing against the Republican Party as a literal – literal – Party of Plague. In these closing days of the campaign, they have quadrupled back down on this in ways that will kill millions of Americans.

Not “might.” Will.

Appointing RFK, Jr. as czar of public health and letting him “go wild” will kill millions. Again, not might: will. Not immediately, no, but over time. Trump himself is utterly refusing to promise he and his party won’t ban vaccines and said on Sunday that RFK Jr.’s pledge to eliminate fluoridation of water on day one “sounds OK to me.”

If they do this and make it stick, millions will die. And an outsized number of them will be children.

Courtesy McNadoMD on Mastodon, here are a few of the diseases mass vaccination eliminated from American life, and which banning vaccination will bring back, along with some of their symptoms and progression paths.Howdy folks! Friendly neighborhood ER doc here. Did you know that Trump’s folks want to take vaccines off of the market? That means you can’t get a shot even if you want one. Did you know that the tetanus shot is a vaccine? If you want your kids to be safe from lockjaw (caused by tetanus), you want vaccines to be available. You know what else is a vaccine? Rabies shots. If a rabid dog or bat bites your kid, do you want your kid to be able to be treated before they die of rabies?

Lockjaw and rabies:

Diphtheria:

Whooping cough:

Polio:

You get the idea, right?

These aren’t the only ones. These are just a few of those less often mentioned in these modern times, because people have forgot they exist.

When I say the Republican Party is a Party of Plague, when I say it is a goddamn death cult, I mean every single one of those words in every way you might think.

They are promising economic ruin and they are promising ethnic purges and now they are promising mass death of children.

All while killing pregnant people for their vile sense of domination, of course. Let us never forget that, since their families certainly won’t.

One of the things their apologists keep saying is that “Trump doesn’t mean it” and “Trump won’t do it,” and “That’s just Trump being Trump,” and they talk about “Trump derangement syndrome,” and say that we’re stupid for believing what their candidate fucking says he’ll do, and meanwhile, they get enraged about shit they completely make up about us and the candidates who are with us.

We react to things their candidates promise. They react to shit they make up wholesale about us. We are not the fucking same.

If only the political press would catch on to that fact.

The very last day of a campaign is a pretty lousy time to bring up another topic, even if it’s not really new. But this is, again, so murderously psychotic that I can’t not bring it back up.

Maybe you can bring it up, too, on this final day of this hellish and evil campaign, this Monday, November 4th, 2024.

Zero days remain.

It is Lastday.

[heavysighing-dreamyeyes]

How would AK!Jason go with the fact that Y/N got kidnapped by Harley Quinn’s thugs while he was busy on a mission with his Militia. Love your stories by the way!

Abducted

Hi, nonnie! Thank you! Fair warning, this gets angsty. ~2.3k words

The Arkham Knight is surrounded by the dead bodies of nine of his most trusted and skilled men. It's not a mystery how they got that way. He shot the ones that were still alive himself.

Number ten is cowering on the ground, it's pathetic, really. They were supposed to be the best of the best.

That's what he was paying them for. So why the hell aren't you in the safe house he left you in? He unloads the rest of the clip into number tens leg, voice flat as he seethes, "Where are they?"

Number ten cries out. Jason doesn't really care. "They're– Harley! Quinn's gang got 'em," number ten chokes out, shaking and sobbing and weak.

"And where, exactly, did they take them?" Jason asks, reloading his gun.

"I don't know," number ten wails, and if Jason wasn't so pissed he'd roll his eyes. But he doesn't. This is serious. You're missing, and he's on the verge of blowing Gotham to hell.

"Guess," he hisses, pressing the barrel of the gun to the man's forehead.

"I don't– they said something about a carnival," number ten chokes out.

"Anything else," The Arkham Knights asks. Number ten shakes his head vigorously. Jason pulls the trigger and watches the body slump to the floor. He turns to the rest of the men, watching as they stiffen and shift under his gaze.

He's already stalking past them, "What do you have?"

"Sir, Harley Quinn hasn't been in Gotham since the Joker died," one of the men starts. Jason wonders if they notice the way his hands clench. "But there's rumors about a separate cell of Joker apologists, fanatics trying to keep his name alive."

He grits his teeth. Fine, that's not new information. But why would they go after you? "And," he forces out, "What does that have to do with them?"

His men follow him uneasily, "GCPD flagged a shipment to ACE Chemicals that went missing a few days ago. They– it was mentioned the truck was carrying chemicals similar to the ones used in the Joker and Harley Quinn cases, sir."

If he was any less trained, any less used to the hell that is Gotham, he would have stumbled, let out choked sounds and anguish and fear.

"One of the techs has a theory it's a revenge kidnapping," one of the sergeants continues, "for taking over Joker's old hideouts last week. It looks like they used a form of the laughing gas on the sentries outside."

"They're all going to be dead by the end of the night," He snaps, gesturing towards one of the lieutenants, "Get the men to set up a parameter. No one leaves the area. And no one moves in until they're secured. Understood?"

They nod vigorously. "Bring the fear toxin," the Arkham Knight grits out. He's out of the safe house and sprinting over Gothams rooftops without another word.

He knows Gotham better than most. Knows to take a shortcut over city hall, knows to jump in three... two... one... to land perfectly on a passing train. Knows when to shoot his grappling gun for the quickest route to the abandoned fairgrounds.

His heart is racing. He can see the number tracking his pulse steadily rising. He glares at the little number on the corner of his screen with a vengeance. He doesn't get to be scared. Doesn't get to panic until you're back at the base, warm and safe in his bed.

There's bile in his throat as he stalks through the shadows of the carnival. It rises with each thug he leaves crumpled and lifeless in the dirt. He's only acting on his training now, on the drive that he has to get to you, has to save you.

He slips past decaying attractions, clenches his fists at the abandoned ACE Chemicals truck crashed into a rotted ring toss booth. He follows the laughter and taunting voices to a ripped and decrepit tent.

There's not many places to hide, but Jason's the best at what he does. He thinks he might have been born to stalk the filth of Gotham.

His eyes narrow at the sight of you. Arms tied behind your back. Bruise forming on your cheek. Dazed expression, likely a concussion. Balanced precariously on the seat of a dunk tank over a pool of neon chemicals.

His fingers twitch over his gun when one of the goons throws a ball at the target, barely missing as the others laugh.

He counts the number of Joker fanatics in the room. Thirteen men. Eight women. Six posted close enough to you where they could hit the target if he's not fast enough. Seventeen with visible guns. All with visible weapons. There's more voices outside the tent.

He eyes the woman swinging a bat covered with barbed wire a little too close to the dunk tank, too close to you. Jason wants to get you out first. There's too many variables. You could get shot. He's not fast enough.

Someone throws another baseball. It's a perfect toss. He shoots it out of the air.

"You have something of mine," The Arkham Knight drawls, stepping out of the shadows. He would smile at the way most of the room flinches at the sight of him. He would if you weren't teetering over a vat of bubbling chemicals.

One of the men steps forward. Stupid of him, really, "Finders keepers." He says it like it's a game. Like you're just some toy they picked up off the street.

Jason laughs. It's funny, that they think just because they stole you, it makes you any less his, "I'm going to give you two choices. One, you drop your weapons and leave. Two, you stay and you learn exactly what the chemicals in that vat can do."

More people leave than he expected. Huh. Guess they aren't so loyal to the clowns' legacy as they said. "I'm not scared of you," Goon number one spits. Goon number one gets a bullet in his stomach.

"You will be," The Arkham Knight murmurs. It's quick work. They're untrained, inexperienced. Half of them are high. It becomes increasingly clear with each body that hits the floor gasping that someone paid off his men to get to you.

He's pulling you off and out of the dunk tank as the last thug hits the floor, "How bad is it?" Jason's hands do not shake as he unties your wrists. (They do.) His breath does not leave his lungs when you say your head hurts. (It does.)

His eyes dart over your face and he picks you up to cradle you against his chest, "I'll have a medic look over you when we get back." He tries to sound soothing, the modulator makes it sound emotionless. You don't even acknowledge it.

He carries you out of the tent. The Joker fanatics that left are kneeling in the dirt and his men have their guns trained to kill. The Arkham Knight nods to them, "Use the Fear Toxin. Inject them with the highest dose we have. Drop the freaks still alive in the tent into the vat."

"Yes, sir," his men echo. Jason ignores the begging that starts up behind him as he carries you to the armored truck. He maneuvers you inside with him, settles you on his lap as his hand brushes the bruise on your face.

"Boss," the soldier behind the steering wheel prompts.

"Take us back to base, sergeant," The Arkham Knight says evenly, gloves still tracing your bruise. He doesn't ask questions, doesn't make any promises. The only comfort he offers is his hand gripping your waist tightly, paired with the gentle caressing of your face.

He knows it's not kind, the way he's holding you. He sees it in your eyes, even through the exhaustion and headache you're feeling, he's overbearing. He can't bring himself to care. All that matters is that you're safe in his arms.

The rest he can take care of later. It'll be simple for him and Deathstroke to pick through the rats in his ranks. Scarecrow's always in need of new test subjects, after all.

His grip tightens on you as the truck stops. The Arkham Knight picks you up easily, pushing the door open and carrying you inside the base. His soldiers are quick to move out of his way. They should be. Anyone with a brain can tell he's angry.

He's livid, at the way you hardly move, barely react to him. A medic files after him quickly as he sets you down in his personal quarters.

It's not a room he ever uses, preferring to sleep at whatever safe house you're in, but you're safer here until he can weed out the traitors. He watches you shift slightly in the chair, eyes unfocused.

Jason steps back and studies you with sharp eyes as the medic talks to you quietly, taking note of each wound and stumbled answer you give.

"Mild concussion, some scrapes and abrasions. Nothing that won't heal," the medic decides, "They shouldn't sleep for the next hour and need to be monitored for any worsening symptoms."

Jason motions them to leave. He hates to leave you alone, even for a moment, but there is one more order he needs to give. He follows the medic out the door.

A group of squad leaders stand rigid outside his quarters. Good. They should be on edge. "Make an example of any Joker or Harley Quinn sympathizers," he says, tone an unquestionable command, "Anything that's theirs, is a part of our operations by the end of the night."

He doesn't bother to stay and listen to their replies, already turning back into the room where you're waiting. Jason locks the door behind him, crossing the room in three strides and kneels at your feet.

You blink down at him. He hates the distant look in your eyes. You should be here. With him. He tugs his helmet off, "Does your head still hurt?"

You nod a little, the only proof you're really listening. He takes your hand in his brushing his thumb over your knuckles, "Say something." It's a command. It makes you jolt a little. He hates himself for it.

"I thought– they were gonna kill me," You stumble out, voice weak.

He nods, there's no pretending that's not true, "They can't kill anyone now."

He thinks you would have looked alarmed, if you didn't know what he was now. Relentless. A monster. A killer. But you do know, he's made that more than clear since the moment he got you back by his side.

You look resigned instead. Jason wishes you'd look relieved, "Do you need anything," he asks instead, reaching up to brush the bruise on your cheek. He can't help it, it's his fault that it's there.

You shake your head. He hates how quiet you're being, "Say something," he prompts again. He knows he shouldn't, knows you're in shock and you're hurt and you're tired and you're probably scared and he's not helping. But, he squeezes your hand anyway, a silent demand.

"What do you want me to say, Jason?" You breathe out, eyes finally focusing on him.

"Anything. Ask me for anything. Yell at me. Curse me out. Tell me you hate me. Hit me. Give me a bruise to match," He says almost desperately, pressing himself closer between your knees.

There's something wrong with him. He realizes that. The Arkham Knight is well aware that something inside of him is twisted, that you deserve better than this, especially after what you just went through, but he doesn't stop himself.

"I don't wanna hurt you," You murmur, "You came for me."

"I'm the reason you were there in the first place," Jason protests, both hands moving to cup your face, "I would deserve it, welcome it, if it was from you."

"I want," You start, and Jason leans forward eagerly, ready for whatever punishment you deliver, "I want to lay down. I wanna feel safe."

He falters, but doesn't move from between your legs, "You can't sleep for at least another hour."

"I know," You say quietly. Jason stares at you. You're the only thing that makes him unsure now. You always manage to knock him off center, never doing what he expects.

"Okay," he relents, scooping you up just as easily as he did in the tent. He carries you over to his bed. It's unused, perfectly made. He only ever sleeps wherever you are.

Jason carefully places you at the edge of the bed and digs through a drawer, handing you a shirt. He tugs off his armor, and frowns when you don't move.

"You don't want to sleep in that," it's not a question, and maybe he should frame it as one. Try to get nicer. But he thinks he might have forgotten how. You nod and slowly change. His eyes never leave you.

There's a few more bruises than he expected, and it makes rage coil in his chest. There's nothing he can do but crawl into bed at your side. It makes him uneasy, how little he can do for you.

He tugs you against him, he's not as gentle as he means to be.

You curl against him, fingers tangling into his shirt. He should comfort you here. Tell you it's going to be okay. Promise to protect you. He should rub your back and kiss your forehead and ease whatever pain you have in your heart.

But he's not gentle. He's not good. You're like this because of him. He holds you tighter when tears start to soak his shirt, lets you tangle your legs with his.

He doesn't manage to find the right words to say, doesn't manage to do the right thing before the hour is up, and you drift off to sleep. He doesn't think he ever will.

[i23kazu]

GENSHIN MEN & YOU USING THEM AS A BODY PILLOW .

characters. wriothesley scara x gn!reader genre. romantic fluff. an. this is so tiney im so sorry anon but this is all my brain can handle rn ueueuueue. i hope this is okay :"))))) . | please reblog!! im getting back into writing and reblogs with tags and comments will make me want to write more :D

wriothesley

wriothesley actually doesn't mind being your body pillow...

i mean. you're comfortable. he's comfortable

everybody wins!

but also sometimes you squeeze him really hard and he freezes up because how are you so STRONG. like what the hell

(secretly he thinks of you picking him up like that. ough)

wriothesley doesn't actually have the heart to tell you to move aside.

how can he, when you look like such an angel wrapped around his waist? bathroom and bladder control be damned.

it's like having a cat on your lap. rule number one: never move from your spot if you're the chosen one. congratulations. you're bound to the couch forever

when you wake up, though ... wriothesley has fallen asleep. now it's your turn to not move. you're the body pillow now. hehe.

scara

grumpy cat. gruuuuumpy cat

okay i feel like maybe i push the scara hates things agenda a lot. i don't actually think scara hates this... when he knows that it makes you happy, he's willing to sacrifice his back just for you

maybe at the most he acts as if he's reluctant. dont let it fool you though – he's warm to the touch and actually a relatively good cuddler.

please don't be fooled! he might warm up to the idea sooner or later

it really is a win though, please keep convincing him. he gets cuddles, you get cuddles, and he doesn't even have to ask for it! no more convincing himself that he's fine and doesn't need that

especially when you initiate it. just keep doing it – watch as he slowly inches closer towards you. maybe he even tries to put his arm on your waist, stroking it with his thumb. just maybe.

and maybe, you're the one who allows him to open up to physical affection.

taglist: @tiredsleep @loptido @raincxtter @chichikoi @ladyadii @soulsanta @sheiiths @genshinparty @eowinthetraveler @moonbyunniee @legitnoi @lemontum @manager-of-the-pudding-bank @starz222 @ilyuu @cherry-colored-petals @mondaymelon @tartaglia-apologist @soleillunne @m1shapanda @aimynx @smokipoki @adeptuscharm @diorlumx @vennnnn-diagram @ryuryuryuyurboat @yuminako @st0pthatsgay @aqualesha @sixtynintharchon @supernova25 @kunikuda-simp @starglitterz @rin-nyrasti-writes (send ask/comment to be added to taglist) plus birthday tag!! @catcze hope u like the wriothesley part, pls cuddle himmmm

reblogs w/ tags & comments help me lots !!! if you liked this and would like to support me, please consider dropping me a follow as well :-) they all go a long way!

[apollos-olives]

hey, so, someone linked me this article, to "prove" to me that i should "condemn hamas". as a non-palestinian i was told there is no way i can refute this, since it comes from a gazan. i was wondering if, as a journalist and a palestinian, you would mind writing a rebuttal that i could show to people? if you have the time and energy.

https://www.newsweek.com/hamass-western-apologists-have-become-hamas-enthusiasts-gazan-im-horrified-opinion-1849228

okay sure let's go through this together

first thing i urge you is to be weary about propaganda. this person may be getting paid, blackmailed, or just genuinely might be brainwashed, in order to write this.

second is that this article might genuinely be this persons opinion 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️ and if it is, i urge you to come and analyze it with me in order to point out it's faults

third, let me say that NO ONE is forced to support hamas as an entirety. but as this person's article states, he is against hamas even as a freedom fighter group, so i'm gonna walk you through some of his bullshit okay :)

one thing i noticed is that there is a LOT of propaganda that was debunked in the past that is still being used in this article

the actual number of "civilians" killed was 900, most of which were actually killed by the iof as they shot at their own "civilians" and soliders. so the author of this article may not be as educated as he might make you think he is.

he's saying that the attack on oct 7 wasn't a "legitimate armed resistance to occupation" but it literally was. there are like a billion un resolutions that state that armed resistance against an occupier is allowed. hamas has every right to fight back against israel. and what? you think armed resistance isn't going to get messy??? of course it will. it is already messy. people are going to die no matter what. that is how you fight against your oppressor. people will die. that's the whole "armed resistance" part. this person is utterly ignorant if he thinks that we can free palestine by a few peaceful protests (which i will come back to soon!)

and yeah what is wrong with "contextualizing" the attack by telling people that gazans are living in a concentration camp?? because they are. and they have every right to fight back. hamas wasn't the only one who was resisting that day, and more than one palestinian resistance group were there as well. condemning only hamas for this shit is idiotic and honestly grouping ALL palestinians, even ones who were not part of hamas, as hamas is... well do i gotta say it? racist.

this author is using a lot of words like "horrific nature" ...... palestinians who fight against their oppressors have a "horrific nature" ???? doesn't that sound... racist to you? and what "numbers" are involved ???? 900 "civilians" that were killed by their own army???? yeah. what massive numbers that hamas killed ooohhhhhh 😰😰

bruhhh this shit sounds like the whole "hamas is their new fandom" bullshit 💀💀💀 also where is he seeing this stuff???? how are bulldozers, paragliders, and motorcycles showing support to hamas?????? maybe they're just people who support palestine in general and mean to use them as symbols of resistance. mocking the "underprivileged fight back" hmmmm that sure sounds so inclusive and supportive of you mister palestinian author!!

this guy brings up international law when LITERALLY THAT IS THE WHOLE POINT. BY INTERNATIONAL LAW HAMAS AND OTHER PALESTINIANS ARE ALLOWED TO FIGHT BACK AGAINST THEIR OPPRESSORS. BY "ALL MEANS NECESSARY" - ughhh this is exhausting. and the fact that they call hamas enthusiasts (💀) "inhumane" ... wowwww what happened to the whole "stop dehumanizing poc and the oppressed" ???? this guy is a fucking weirdo.

and again with the "civilians" dude seriously???? israeli civilians are illegal settlers. there are no innocent israelis except for the children, and any harm that may come to the children should put the parents to be held accountable for bringing/settling their child into a land that isn't theirs anyway.

why would you equate being jewish with israel?? yeah a lot of israelis are jewish but pro-palestine jews have repeatedly told us that we should not and must not equate judaism and israel together, and that doing that is antisemitic because it's equating judaism as a supporter of genocide.

and why are you, as a palestinian, calling what's happening in palestine a "conflict" ??? even after years and years of palestinians begging for people to stop seeing it and calling it a conflict and name it for what it is, systematic ethnic cleansing and genocide ?? this guy's wording is ridiculous and so full of that "both sides" liberalism shit it's so exhausting.

wow we love the blatant propaganda. you could tell that the hostages were comfortable enough to wave or handshake the members who released them. they were smiling, no one was forcing them to do that. no one was threatening them harm. many family members have spoken out and have told the media that hamas has treated the hostages well, even if the conditions weren't very glorious.

and AGAIN with the whole "women and children" as if men weren't victims too. you are trying to push for the safety of israelis but disregard the men ???? hm

wow calling palestinians terrorists that's totally not racist at all!!!!

ohhh my god how many times do we have to say that peaceful protests DO NOT WORK !!! no one is listening to us. we've TRIED peacefully protesting. gazans tried peacefully protesting a few years back and HUNDREDS got killed and THOUSANDS got injured!!!! peaceful protesting isn't going to work alone. we need action!! we need to start fighting back!!! we need to make a difference!! palestinians have been begging for people to do this for years now!!!

what "slogans" ????? "from the river to the sea" ???? is that a dangerous slogan, mister palestinian author ?????? don't make me laugh.

and there is a FINE line between anti zionism and antisemitism. yes a lot of zionists are jews but also a lot of christian zionists are antisemites as well. we are allowed to call out and fight anti zionism without being antisemitic. but i guess you would know SO much about that huh, mister palestinian author.

wow what a totally normal thing to say!!! linking palestinians to their constant suffering under the occupation and linking them to be forever tied to their oppressors. "millions of jews will forever be part of the land" YES !!! PALESTINIAN JEWS !!! WHO WERE FOREVER PART OF THE LAND !!!!

ok that's all for the screenshots but i DO want to mention that not once did this guy say ANYTHING about how hamas was bad for gaza. he did not say anything or show any proof about gazans suffering under hamas' rule, and only talked about the "poor israelis" ☹️☹️☹️ who were huwt becawse they wewe illegal settlews on a land that's not theiw's :((((((

this guy was probably paid or blackmailed or something. or just brainwashed.

many palestinians ARE anti hamas as a whole. but we DO support their fight for our freedom.

i hope this helps. keep these arguments in mind next time you're reading an article.

[quaintlyfig]

Having thoughts after reading @dimplyowl's posts about Izzy and Ed and their behaviors.

I mean, I've had these thoughts a lot already. I attempted to express some of them shortly after season 2 aired when folks on twitter would rail against Ed's violent behavior toward Izzy at the same time they vehemently insisted that Izzy had never done anything bad ever to Ed. I tried to craft thoughtful responses on posts of people I thought might be interested in having a conversation and open to maybe understanding a different way of understanding Izzy's behavior. I did this maybe about three or four times, and every time I was 100% completely ignored. No "thanks for sharing your thoughts," no "cool story, bro," no "get fucked." Crickets. Zip, nada, zilch.

This show is silly and serious, goofy and deep, sweet and heavy. And I like exploring both sides - being able to float in the fun and being able to plumb the depths. And I'm in this fandom to do both of those things in a safe community - which I experience in abundance each day and am so grateful for! - not to be re-traumatized by people who are gleeful and militant apologists for emotional abuse. I became very well acquainted with the block and mute buttons around this time, happy to curate my experience.

I freely admit that this is a bit of a ramble and that it won't be flawless, but it feels good to organize my thoughts.

Content note before you continue reading: Author's experience with physical and emotional abuse as it relates to their thoughts regarding Izzy Hands' character and people's dismissal of the gravity of emotional abuse. Not gratuitous, but take care of yourself, and do not continue reading if that may cause you harm. And yes, I've been to lots of therapy, for which I am very grateful! 💜

I was raised by season 1 Izzy Hands.

Filled with rage, virulently jealous, and expertly manipulative. Someone who expected me to meet their every need by existing in their fantasy world where they were the ultimate martyr, and I was the ungrateful piece of shit they bent over backwards for. Gaslighting and crazy-making were literally a part of my everyday existence.

Less frequently, this person was also physically abusive, and I feared this abuse even on the occasions it didn't occur.

Both fucked me up plenty, and I won't play the "abuse olympics" and say one was worse than the other. (And I would imagine that there isn't such a thing as "only" physical abuse - the two are intimately tied together.) I will say that in my *own* experience, which is individual to myself and probably the proportions of each type of abuse, I have found the emotional abuse to be absolutely insidious in the ways it molded my understanding of self, relationships, love, affection, communication, sex, worth, sense of free will, responsibility, and more. I am still unraveling these things even over a decade after I cut all contact with this person.

The scene where Izzy confronts Ed, who is cleaning up his cabin and wearing the pink robe, is one that really sticks out to me.

A decent number of the Izzy-apologist takes I read talked about how Izzy didn't do anything wrong when he told Ed he'd be better off dead than as a "namby pamby in a silk dressing gown pining for his boyfriend." That he only serves Blackbeard and that Edward "had better watch his fucking step." These people said that Ed could have basically let that go like water off a duck's back and never become the Kraken.

We are responsible for our own actions *and* abusers know exactly how to push your buttons, get under your skin, take you down at your knees, and to grind your face into the gravel when you're already down. They know exactly where to stick the proverbial knife to do the swiftest, most lethal damage with the fewest words. They know how to make you feel like less than nothing - that you have NO inherent worth outside of what you do and how you serve them - so that you will bend to their will.

This scene shatters my heart every single time. I think Con and Taika both get their characters so right in every syllable and micro-expression during this exchange.

And whether Izzy's manipulation is conscious or unconscious doesn't matter. Just as there are reasons, but no *excuse* for the way Ed hurts people (or that Stede or the Badmintons, etc, hurt people), there is no *excuse* for the way Izzy abuses Ed (or anyone else).

I also heard people saying that Izzy's threats were empty and Ed should have known that. No, there isn't one single thing about Izzy's threats that were empty. He brought the fucking British to the Revenge and tried to have Stede - the man Ed loves - executed before Ed's eyes.

"Are you really going to lick the king's boots" wasn't about Izzy wanting Ed to be free. Ed felt free and happy with Stede when he could be someone softer and 3-dimensional. Izzy wanted Ed to be licking *his* boots in his every choice and behavior, even if Ed was captain in name. Izzy never served "his captain" - he only ever served the Blackbeard of his fantasies. A caricature that left Ed feeling utterly hollow and contemplating "packing it all in" (which didn't mean "retirement" when he said those words).

I simply don't have time anymore for people who wish to live in their own fantasy world where Izzy is a wholly-innocent victim being preyed upon by the Big Bad Kraken. The Kraken may have been born the night Ed killed his dad, so that part of Ed pre-existed Izzy, but Izzy did say in his own dying words that he fed the darkness in Ed and needed it for himself.

I know some people have a hard time seeing Izzy as a father-type figure to Ed, as David Jenkins has said before. But I can see it perfectly clearly. He's living his life through Ed, wanting him to perform exactly as ordered, to be a two-dimensional figure that satisfies his own need to feel important and needed.

One thing I haven't seen discussed as much that I absolutely recognize in Izzy from my own experience with my abuser is his incredible jealousy of anyone else that gets Ed's attention. He does not want anyone else to be close to Ed. He wants to be the gatekeeper to Blackbeard and the only one to call him Edward. He literally tries to have Stede killed because of how jealous he is. He does not want anyone else to love Ed, and he doesn't want Ed to love anyone else. He is so deeply insecure that he cannot share him at all.

If Ed has a real relationship (of any kind, not just romantic - he and Stede start out as instant BFFs), then he is not capable of performing Izzy's version of Blackbeard and pouring all of his energies into serving Izzy's (obviously very unhealthy) emotional needs. It's a zero sum game. Izzy has to have all of Ed, or he's "lost" the game.

Izzy needs to be to needed so badly that he creates in his mind a Blackbeard/Ed who cannot function without him, and he will do whatever it takes to shove Ed back into the box he needs him in in order to keep his own identity secure. Because if Ed doesn't have to be Blackbeard, that means he doesn't need Izzy, and who is Izzy without Blackbeard? He doesn't have a stable self and so *uses* Ed to prop himself up to feel like "somebody." He has built his own identity around the fantasy of Blackbeard.

Just because someone isn't losing toes doesn't mean abuse isn't happening. Emotional abuse is real. Additionally, perpetrators of violence have often been victims themselves. (This isn't even touching on the fact that they're all pirates.) Ed can be both. These things are messy as fuck. But I will say that Izzy's abuse clearly pre-dated Ed's Kraken-era violence against Izzy by years, at least, if not decades.

I'm genuinely not sure what the perceived merit or gain is in pretending otherwise. And just as Ed is ultimately responsible for his own actions, so is Izzy.

I appreciated Izzy's redemption arc, and I cried when he died. And I think it's ok that Izzy died. And Izzy was a very skilled emotional abuser in season 1. All of those things can be true at the same time.

I know there are a thousand other ways to come at this topic and examine it. I didn't even touch the question of apologies or redemption or any of that. Nor am I going to. This was primarily a personal examination of season 1 Izzy Hands' abusive behavior.

--

Image from Our Flag Means Death Frames on twitter

[keikakudom]

RR!AU Why Vox Sponsors the Resort

Something I was gently afraid of when I posted my Reverse/Reset Resort AU was the whole thing coming off as a fix-it/Vox apologist AU... which I won't deny, one of the motivations was to explore how he would be viewed when presented as a "heroic"/good guy pedastal in the narritive. Similar to canon Alastor-- he's morally grey, we don't know exactly what he wants, and is an otherwise "bad guy" on the side of the hero for now. That said! I do deeply adore Vox's mean, cold, evil side.

His "business motivation" for sponsoring Charlie in this AU can be easily written off as a tsundere farce for wanting to be redeemed, but when he contracted with Lucifer, he most definitely, verbatim, used the words "business" and "hotel/resort".

Because that's exactly how Vox sees it. He's a business shark and always wants to be at the top in terms of power-- so yes, he had to give some stuff up(the Vees had to dissolve publically, soul insurance), but what's business without a bit of risk taking? And hey, he got the jump on this opportunity...because you know what sounds like power?

Deciding who gets to enter the pearly gates or not.

So, I do think one faucet here plays on the rumor that when Vox was a human he was a cult leader. It really feels like a God thing to be able to control who gets redeemed or not. So yes, he sold his soul to Lucifer to help Charlie with her hotel/resort. Not her DREAM. Vox is helping her to redeem Sinners, but he never specified to do it philanthropically/like a charity.

He isn't treating redemption as anything more than a product: Sinners are just consumers, statistics and numbers, and all the more proven because there's evidence that ascending/desending between Hell/Heaven is possible(even though the latter hasnt been concretely proven yet, it's enough for him to do business with).

I'm sure Charlie in this AU is wary of Vox, but she doesn't understand or know the full extent of what he's planning. She doesn't have that shark mind to jump straight to the end point and what rewards are to be reaped.

Also, in light of mentioning them: The Vees are important in this AU! They might not be the polycule powerhouse /j as we know in canon, but they are too good of a dynamic to ignore! And they're next on my list to design after I finish Alastor and Vaggie.

[pumpacti0n]

Be for real.

Something that continues to vex me is this common presumption from centrist liberals that radicals are demanding strict moral purity or asking for far too much because genocide is an inherently unacceptable consequence for us and we refuse to be complacent about it.

It actually reads as far more "doomeristic" to respond to opposition on these grounds with "oh, here you go getting on your soapbox about genocide again 🙄" as if the scale of these atrocities were some minor issue brought up by a fringe group and not literally millions of people, as if this issue doesn't connect with multiple others. The implications are far-reaching and incredibly serious, yet are dismissed as flippantly as it would be if they were crying over spilled milk.

This is a familiar and predictable pattern with electoralists in general and apologists for imperial regimes, however. There's an obvious biased attitude that shows itself in the overemphasis on the so-called achievements of their favored parties and individual political authorities, while doing their dirty work by minimizing every harm they've committed.

They aren't even fully responsible for these achievements, by the way. Grassroots activists who have sacrificed and dedicated their lives to improving material conditions for the masses are erased while politicians and their constituents are given all the credit for it.

Apologists don't change anything and continue to enable the very fascist tendencies they fearmonger about precisely because they keep painting an incomplete picture of the situation and misrepresent the people calling for actual change instead of a mere changing of the guard. They get mired in futile "harm reduction" rhetoric while the harm only continues to escalate to the point of genocide, then blame the people who consider this escalation a deal-breaker, something that can't be meaningfully compromised with.

Just imagine, being under settler military occupation and bombardment, only be told you must compromise with the very people responsible for it, and that if you don't you'll be threatened with worse occupation and bombardment so you had better show up in support of the "less evil" genociders. This is gaslighting and abuse, plain and simple.

If we were to reduce the scale of this scenario to a violent, power-hungry husband and a wife suffering from domestic abuse, we can't honestly claim to be on the wife's side by telling her to flee to the house of someone who "only" beats her 2 days out of the week and not 5...we'd try to get her out of the situation by any means necessary. We certainly wouldn't be engaging in the dishonest and shameful tactic of bringing up how the husband donates .001% of his income to a local charity on occasion for tax write offs.

From this perspective, we might start to better recognize the apathy and anti-social conditioning it would require in order to tolerate or excuse such behavior, but when it comes to mass-death, it magically transforms into a simple math equation. "100 thousand dead is less than 200 thousand dead, so I guess 100 thousand dead is good" is a bleak and terrible consideration that forces us to view the lives of others as numbers and things whose existence are strictly theoretical and useful only to prove a point. It's repulsive to conflate any ideology that would force you to make such a calculation with the egalitarian worldview.

"Harm reduction" isn't about condemning thousands to death while smugly chastising those who view even one more victim as a cost too great. It reveals a deeply unsavory fact about the values of the people who use these kinds of arguments; that they think of their actions as "progress". Delaying the spread of the disease of fascism and directly opposing it on a conceptual and material basis are not the same thing. "progress" would look like decolonization and actual healing process taking place, where the long-standing grievances are finally addressed and the powers-that-be no longer exist to commit more harm in the first place.

This is not what electoralists want, however, because they lack the imagination, initiative and capacity to struggle and make this a reality. This is evident in the fact that their first impulse is to throw the people with these desires under the bus in favor of more elections and repeating the same debunked clichés about electoral politics ad-nauseam.

There's no honest desire from these administrations to bring about the end of this genocide, and there is no place for decolonization of the land on the ballot, because these things are integral parts of the empire's state mechanism itself. To do away with them would mean they have become obsolete. Acknowledging this isn't moralistic grandstanding, it's a conclusion drawn by analyzing the track record of this country, its various internal structures and its controllers.

Solidarity's foundation is trust, a sense of real interdependence. Neither is possible if someone whose immediate reaction to displeasure about genocidal policy is made out to be a trivial and hypocritical nuisance by their associates. Whose side are y'all on, anyway?

[actual-changeling]

Hey there Alex! So, I've loved your content for a bit of a while now and your explanations/insight really gives a lot of clarity to people who either might not understand certain points about Good Omens, need a reality check, or may have missed something. You've also really helped me stop being so shy about my love and defense for Crowley in response to Azi apologists weaponizing his trauma as excuses for the way he treats him.

Anyways! I don't know if you've talked about it before, I think you mentioned it briefly in passing but could you possibly go more in depth about the scene in s2 between them about the Bentley situation. The first time I watched the scene, I remember thinking it was so adorable how Crowley trusted Aziraphale enough with his car and how Azi changed the color of it. However, there was always.... something! Idk that struck me the wrong way and you realize upon watching it again that it wasn't as straight forward at at. I'd like your opinion, since I feel it really plays into that constant dynamic of Crowley being uncomfortable for Aziraphale's sake once again.

Do you think he was actually okay with it in the end?

Why did Azi choose this rather than by train?

Does the Bentley truly like the Angel?

If Crowley is connected to the Bentley, how come he doesn't seem to realize when Shax was in it with Aziraphale?

Thank you, that's really nice to hear! I'm glad that my posts have been helpful in a number of ways 💚

Now, I have THOUGHTS on the Bentley scene, excellent questions!

It is another one of those moments that seems sweet on the surface but is actually deeply uncomfortable to watch once you look past that. Let's start with the easy ones and then work our way through the scene in chronological order.

Why did Azi choose this rather than by train?

Aziraphale is basically roleplaying at this point. His weird obsession with his "Clue" has turned into a performance similar to his horrible magic acts; his facial expressions and body language change and become more theatrical when he talks to Crowley about it. At this point, he has probably already decided that he will pretend to be a journalist for no other reason than fun. Driving a car instead of going by train is presumably a part of that, it's an elaborate fantasy he's trying to live out—similar to the ball later on.

We have to keep in mind that while Crowley is aware of the gravity of the situation, Aziraphale is actively choosing to ignore it. Going to Edinburgh for fun is a horrible idea considering the danger they're in, but Aziraphale does not care.

Does the Bentley truly like the Angel?

I think the Bentley likes him exactly as much as Crowley likes him, simple answer but tbh that's really it.

Do you think he was actually okay with it in the end?

Now, the one million pound question: Did Crowley willingly give him the Bentley or did Aziraphale coerce him into doing so? Before we answer this one, there are some more things to consider.

Firstly, the circumstances.

With Shax in his flat and Jimbriel in the bookshop, Crowley has exactly one safe place left: the Bentley. It is HIS, it is mobile, it does not belong to anyone else, and he has a connection to it, meaning that he protects the Bentley but the Bentley also protects him.

We saw Crowley's intense reaction to Gabriel's presence, and it's not 'funny' or 'dramatic', it is Crowley being deeply traumatized by heaven, his fall, and the trial, and there's a very high chance Gabriel was involved in his fall, too. What Aziraphale is essentially demanding of him the entire season is that he locks himself in close quarters with his abuser, who can literally kill him on the spot.

Crowley is fucking terrified, he cannot sleep, he is hypervigilant and even more paranoid than usual, his mood swings get worse, he is a mess—and Aziraphale does not take any of his concerns, emotions, or needs seriously.

Secondly, past experiences and boundaries.

Whenever Aziraphale needs a lift, Crowley is happy to provide one, he enjoys driving him around. Emphasis on him being the driver. Aziraphale has not once driven the Bentley, and it is safe to assume that Crowley has never once OFFERED that he could drive it. That alone should be enough for Aziraphale to not ask that question in the first place, but it isn't.

It also means that Crowley does not expect the question and—when probably at some point asking himself the question whether he'd be okay with Aziraphale driving it—decided he does not want anyone but himself in the driver's seat.

So how does Crowley react when Aziraphale demands the keys to the Bentley?

Oh right, yeah, let's actually talk about that first. He does not ask.

Aziraphale does not ask. I cannot overstate how important it is that he does not ask Crowley if he can drive the Bentley. This is how their conversation goes:

There is no question. "I will take the car" is Aziraphale informing Crowley of a decision he has already made without consulting him��wow, I wonder when that will become relevant again?

final fifteen *cough*

Before he asked, Crowley was rather relaxed (or as relaxed as he can possibly be in his situation), but that changes immediately.

First picture is when he asks Aziraphale about what time his train is, the other two are when he says 'what car'.

His back straightens, his shoulders tighten and freeze, he snaps his jaw shut and grinds his teeth, chin up, mouth lips pressed together—I interpret this as initial panic plus a spark of anger over "our car".

Crowley denies Aziraphale ownership of the Bentley, saying that no, there is no "our" car, this is MY car. It is clear, simple boundary, but Aziraphale went into this conversation having already decided that he will take the car, no matter what Crowley thinks about it.

While he might sound all cheery and excited, look at his body and the expression on his face. That smile is fake, it's bordering on angry, and it is sending a very clear message to Crowley: I want this car and you will give it to me. Once again, my way or the highway.

Bringing up the bookshop is him trying to "out-logic" Crowley, but it does not work because

a) Crowley very much does not consider the bookshop to be "theirs"

b) even if he had, the bookshop is no longer a safe place because of Jimbriel

c) Aziraphale KICKED HIM OUT of the bookshop in the first episode, establishing that Crowley is a guest and nothing more.

He then intentionally misinterprets Crowley saying that he "can't drive [his] Bentley" and mentions his license. Again, entirely irrelevant because that is not even remotely the problem.

Throughout their conversation, Crowley becomes more and more uncomfortable and panicked. This is not a squabble or banter, this is Crowley trying to protect the one thing he has left and Aziraphale not giving a fuck.

Now, the REAL banger here is that after pushing Crowley this far, he then suddenly dumps the rest of his "decision" on him: stay with a person that has severely harmed you, alone, without a way of escaping. This is where Crowley grows from panicked and angry to genuinely frightened.

He stops Aziraphale from touching it—rightfully so—and then reaches out himself to calm himself; it is right there, my car is right next to me, it's okay. Aziraphale ignored all of his attempts to set and enforce boundaries, ignored his panic and emotional state, ignored what Crowley was telling him, ignored everything Crowley told him BEFORE, and keeps pushing pushing pushing until the very end.

So to circle back to your question, no, Crowley is absolutely not fine with Aziraphale taking the car by the end; he fights him right up until the moment he begrudgingly gives him the keys.

It is a very good example of their current relationship dynamic, and personally it actually hurts to watch it happen. Anyone who has gone through trauma around privacy, safety, and personal effects knows how terrifying and traumatizing it is to have your boundaries repeatedly violated like that.

Aziraphale is being manipulative and coercing Crowley into doing what he wants; it's fucked up, and this doesn't even begin to deal with happens later.

If Crowley is connected to the Bentley, how come he doesn't seem to realize when Shax was in it with Aziraphale?

Maybe he did but did not really care because Shax has been in the Bentley before (just like Beez), maybe he is too distracted by Jimbriel and potentially being murdered in his sleep to pay much attention to Aziraphale on his way back.

Maybe he DID notice since he does ask Aziraphale if something happened, and then once again makes the mistake of trusting him when he denies it.

Without more information I can only speculate, but, personally, I think Shax being in the Bentley was not too big of a deal for Crowley even if he noticed it.

As always, if anyone has follow-up question, feel free to ask!

[gaybananabread]

Hii!! I'm so glad that you're gonna participate in the augtickletober! Please consider writing number 25 with lee todoroki, where he gets gang tickled by the boys from class 1A hehehe (I feel like I've seen many gang tickles for Bakugou/Midoriya, but rarely seen it for Todoroki, and I feel like Todoroki somehow deserves it). (Please no foot tickles) If you need plot recommendation (but feel free to use your own hehe): - The boys of 1A decided to help Todoroki practice since basically he's the one that hasn't received his provisional license. - Class 1A is having a field trip, and the boys have deep talks at their sleeping hall before sleeps and the topic of "Todoroki rarely laughs" pops up I hope this idea works well! Thank you so much for participating in this event, looking forward to it!!

TickleTober Day 25 - Gang Tickles

THIS! Thank you for the kind words and awesome ideas Anon! Definitely got my creative juices flowing! Sorry this is so late, I’ve had quite the week (O~O) And the candy-cane could definitely go with some gang tickling. Mans needs to laugh more! Did a handful of the 1A boys, just because more than 5 lers on one person gets a little iffy. Anywhosit, thank you for requesting, and I hope you Enjoy!

Lee: Todoroki

Lers: Kirishima, Sero, Kaminari, Midoriya, Bakugou

Summary: On a class field trip, the boys of 1A get to talking about their multi-quirked peer. After discovering that they all rarely hear his laugh, the goobers make it their mission to get him to crack a smile. Some fun, ticklish methods are utilized.

Warnings: none! This is a tickle fic, so if you don’t like that, scroll away!!

It was a rare, yet heavily anticipated day for Class 1A; Fieldrip Day was finally upon them. They were out at one of the pro’s training facilities. One of All Might’s favorites, to be specific. The facility had a few sports fields, a training hall, and some nice barracks. If anything, it was better than a day of doing schoolwork at UA. Nothing against Aizawa; the teens just liked the change in pace. Plus, no math for a day.

Every student enjoyed the day; even Bakugou cracked a few genuine smiles. Ready to rest and recover, the boys hit the showers and got ready to sleep. Tokoyami was out the moment he arrived, not caring for small talk. A few conversations floated around the room as the male students entered the barracks, one in particular sticking out.

“Hey, Todoroki never really laughs, does he?” Sero had been the first to bring it up, but at that point, every student had their own little thought to add. “You’re right, I’ve really only heard him laugh once or twice. He smiles, but those are rare too!” Denki had seemed particularly surprised at the revelation.

“Why do you extras care? That half-and-half stiff is just taking after his father. Pros like him don’t act all happy,” Bakugou tossed his hair towel to the side, almost hitting Aoyama with the soggy thing. Kirishima, ever the apologist, tried to redeem anything the blonde had just said. “Th-that might be part of it, but he could just be a stoic dude. I wouldn’t call him a stiff, Bakubro. He’s just…a little serious.”

The tape hero jumped back in, trying to keep his conversation on topic. “Only time I’ve seen him even giggle was when Mr. Smiley attacked. Still, the guy pretty much held it in! Bakugou even laughed when he got hit, man!” That got a growl from said blonde, Sero nervously chuckling at the murderous glare he received.

Midoriya was fidgeting with his sleeve, looking down as they argued. He knew something they all didn’t, and saw a much different side of Todoroki. Iida noticed his antsy demeanor, outing him to his peers. “You seem rather tense, Midoriya. Care to share what’s on your mind?”

He squeaked at the sudden attention, feeling their eager eyes on him. “U-uhm, I dunno. It’s not really my place to share it…” Denki, bored and ever the trouble maker, pressed the matter. “Aww, c’mon Midoriya! You can’t just not tell us! We gotta know!”

The angel and devil on his shoulder fought for a few seconds, coming to the ultimate conclusion that a little laughter could do his friend some good. “W-well, I’ve seen Todoroki laugh quite a few times. You kinda gotta…m-make him, though.” The interested students hung on his every word, soaking in the new information. Make him? “What’dya mean by that, Midobro?

Izuku sighed, knowing they would want to hear more. At least Kirishima was nice about it. “He’s…he’s ticklish. Like, pretty badly ticklish. I’ve managed to get him really laughing a few times; it isn’t all that hard.”

Every teen that was paying attention seemed shocked. The serious, stoic, hardly-cracked-a-smile guy Todoroki was ticklish? It seemed hard to believe; the image of their emotionally distant peer a giggly, blushing, mess was just too obscure to imagine. Denki made sure to point it out. “No way! I’ve poked him before, and got nothing! I’d know if Todoroki was ticklish.”

Bakugou stared down his childhood friend before interrupting. He knew the greenette well enough to tell when he was lying. “Nah, the nerd’s telling the truth. Icy-hot is fucking ticklish.”

Kaminari looked like he’d just won the lottery. A goofy smirk formed on his face as he made a joke. “Wow, Todoroki is actually ticklish. I’m gonna go visit Hell for a bit, now that it’s frozen over.” Ojiro, rolling his eyes at the line, tased the goofy blonde’s side.

Iida regretted asking, feeling a bit guilty for indirectly exposing his classmate’s secret.. “Can you all be mature about anything? Our classmate would not appreciate us gossiping about this personal aspect!” Bakugou rolled his eyes, flopping on his mattress. “Pull the stick out your ass, four eyes. It’s just stupid shit, not like we’re talkin’ bout his dirty secrets or anything.”

The class president squawked at his argument, but didn’t get a chance to yell at him before Kirishima cut back in. “HEY! Why don’t we all put this info to use and, I dunno, make the guy laugh. I think we can all agree that he needs it.”

Nobody argued with him there. Not every student was up for it, some fearing retribution, others not wanting to be crispy-fried or frozen solid. In the end, the team consisted of Kirishima, Sero, Kaminari, Midoriya, and surprisingly Bakugou. They got a plan together; all they needed was the dual-quirked teen.

-

Todorki had always enjoyed longer showers; it felt nice to just stand under the water and think. He was expecting a few of his peers to question how long he took, though he wasn’t prepared to have five of them eagerly eyeing him as he left the showers. The boy tried to keep the suspicion out of his voice as he spoke to them. “Do you all need something from me?”

The electric blonde smirked, stepping forwards. “Actually, yeah.” With that, the group went into action. Catching him by surprise, Sero came up behind him and shot tape around his hands, hoisting them above his head. Kirishima held the shocked teen in place as Sero got a few more layers of tape on his hands and forearms, thoroughly restraining him.

Normally, Todo would’ve just burned throughout the tape and left. With his peers so close, however, he was hesitant; he couldn’t risk hurting them. The teen tugged at his arms, shooting a glare at his classmates. “What’re you all doing?”

They answered his question pretty quickly. Kaminari squeezed his sides, while Sero poked along his spine. He snapped his mouth shut, eyes growing wide. Oh, they didn’t. He forced out an order, managing to contain his giggles. “G-get off of me!”

This only encouraged his “attackers.” Sero used both hands, dragging his nails down Todoroki’s spine. The candy-cane arched his back, flinching right into Kirishima’s wiggling fingers on his belly. That got a snort out of him, the serious teen’s cheeks dusted with red.

“Oooh, someone’s ticklish!” It was already a struggle to hold in his giggling; Kaminiari’s stupid teases were an unfair challenge. “Sh-shut uhup!” The electric student gasped, eyes lighting up with playful mischief. “Was that a giggle?! C’mon, gimme a few more!”

Who knew Kaminari would be so good at teasing? The student definitely didn’t, that’s for sure. Thankfully, he moved his fingers to the boy’s armpits, trying to find his worst spot; he didn’t realize he had already found it. “How about here, huh? Does this tickle?” That damn word… He wished he could delete it from the blonde’s vocabulary.

Midoriya tried to conceal a smile, watching his peer move farther away from the jackpot he was looking for. He was conflicted; on one hand, it was wonderful to see Todoroki like this around other people. On the other hand, he would probably be more than a little betrayed if the greenette revealed his worst spot. Decisions, decisions… Eh, what’s the worst that could happen?

“You know you’re getting colder, right?” All four of the perpetrators turned to him, Todoroki’s eyes narrowed in a “don’t you dare” expression. Ignoring it and the inevitable revenge, he continued. “You actually already found it. It’s right around here…”

Denki parted the waters for him, letting the freckled teen do his thing. With an apologetic smile, he clawed at Todoroki’s navel, not flinching at the howl of laughter the action received. The other students’ eyes lit up, though Bakugou tried to conceal his. Izuku stepped back, leaving his friends the chaotic seed he’d planted.

Ten fingers immediately latched onto Todo’s stomach, Kaminari wasting no time. Loud, surprisingly bubbly laughter burst from him, a wide smile growing on the face of the typically-earnest teen. “N-NOHOHO! MIHIDORIYAHA! TRAHAHAITOR!”

That started a little competition; an unspoken game of “Who Can Get Todoroki to Laugh the Loudest” beginning between the four teens. Denki was in the lead, scribbling in and around his navel and teasing his lower belly. Kirishima was in a semi-close second, drilling his fingertips into the multi-quirked boy’s hollows. Sero, deciding to be a menace, toyed near his spine, tracing teasy little shapes up and down his back. Bakugou and Izuku hung back, though the explosive blonde seemed ready to jump in.

Todoroki was burning; not literally, but he could feel the heat on his cheeks. He trusted his classmates not to go too far, but damn, that shit tickled. He was mainly nervous of Bakugou; they had already found his worst spot, but he knows one more that would make the goofiness much more unbearable. A spot that Baku knew.

Deciding that he had waited long enough, the fiery teen cracked his knuckles, approaching the group. He crouched down, going for Todo’s outer thigh. He clawed at the outer edges, making sure to keep things as comfortable as they could be.

Todoroki shrieked at the addition of the spot, four people now trying their best to wreck him. It was almost maddening; all he could think about was “tickles, tickles shIT THAT TICKLES!” over and over again. His entire face was a bright red, almost matching the left side of his hair. “NAHAHAHA! GUHU- PLEHEHEASE! NOHO MOHOHORE!”

Denki saw how wild all the tickling was driving his classmate. Deciding to show some mercy, he went for one more scribble on the boy’s navel before backing away. Kirishima also took the hint, ending the underarm tickles. Bakugou reluctantly pulled away, not wanting to seem silly compared to the other two. Sero continued out of pure spite, wanting to hear the giggles a little longer.

The hot-and-cold student was wiped; five of his classmates “tormenting” him was exhausting. He practically hung from the tape restraints, giggling softly as Sero continued to softly tickle his back. It honestly just made him more tired, but in a good way. He still wanted it to end, but they were relaxing in the silliest way.

Midoriya checked the time, seeing how late it was getting. He had always been a bit of a mother-hen when it came to his close friends, even though he got injured far worse and much more often than they did. “Come on, Sero. He’s had enough.” The tape hero-in-training backed away, a smug smile on his face. “Fine. You know he was enjoying it, though.”

Kirishima hardened his hand, cutting the tape around the giggly, exhausted teen’s arms. It quickly unraveled, Todo swaying into Midoriya’s waiting arms. He carried his classmate over to the half-and-half student’s bed for the night, laying him down and pulling the blankets over him. He was out in seconds.

The rest of their classmates snickered quietly, each going either back to sleep or to their devices. The goof troop that wrecked him fist-bumped, silently cheering a job well-done. Sero, still proud of himself for bringing it up and starting it all, chuckled. “I’ll admit, that was pretty fun. Nice to see him laugh like that.”

His friends agreed, even Bakugou huffing a quiet “I guess” before heading to his bed. The teen had a strict sleep schedule, and while the tickling was fun, it did delay that. The rest snickered before dispersing, each heading to their own sleeping spots.

Todoroki found himself smiling and laughing a lot more after that day, be it from cheesy jokes or the occasional side poke. And honestly? He didn’t really mind. Turns out even the most serious of teenagers can enjoy a good laugh with friends every once in a while.

[ouatsnark]

So.

I've seen people compare Hook killing his father, Brennan, to the EQ killing her own dad, Henry 1.

Which, yeah, technically it is the same thing on surface level but I feel like people ignore the circumstances.

EQ apologists will claim that EQ murdering Henry was his own fault because he allowed her to be abused her entire life (which... While I would argue Cora is abusive, I don't really agree with because the man himself never abused Regina and even tried to advocate for her from what I remember) and because he owed it to her so she could be happy.

They then say she made up for it by naming her kid after him (which awww sweet, naming your kid after someone you MURDERED. Isn't that such a nice way to make up for what you did?).

They say his afterlife was too good for him/was given by Regina and he should be thankful he didn't get worse when he was a 'shitty' dad.

But they then turn around and go:

Oh Hook is a MONSTER because he murdered his own FATHER.

They point to the flashbacks in a swan song, ignoring the part where he abandoned them. Saying him lighting the lantern means that he was a good dad and him abandoning them couldn't be helped.

They say his actions didn't parentify Liam 1. They say he was sorry because he named his 3rd son after his first and that should have been enough.

That Hook was an asshole who orphaned his half brother out of jealousy and showed no remorse, ignoring the fact they eventually made up.

I just... don't see how?

The number one thing with Regina apologists is that they HAVE to make Regina into the biggest victim so that they can justify their love and defense of her indefensible crimes. In short, Regina Apologists are the biggest double standard hypocritical losers I’ve ever seen.

They have to insert their head canons about Regina’s childhood, demonize Henry Sr and then lie about Killian’s father, Brennan’s and Killian’s motives, ignore canon instances of Killian’s remorse just to lift up their tyrant queen.

They then come up with these ridiculous reasons to absolve Regina and Brennan of their crimes while ignoring the fact that if we use their logic, Killian should also be absolved of his (if they’d accept canon fact of Killian’s remorse). No, naming a child after your victim doesn’t absolve you of crimes. What good does that do anyone but Regina or Brennan? It doesn’t. The naming was solely for their own benefit.

How is replacing your first born making up for abandoning your children into slavery? Oh and if they say Brennan didn’t have any choice then why does he need to make up for anything? Can’t have it both ways peeps! No, Brennan naming his third son Liam doesn’t mean he is sorry it just means he’s giving himself a second chance and assuaging his own guilt just as Regina did with Henry Jr.

How about the truth: Villain Regina and villain Killian were both monsters for killing their respective fathers? Why can’t we leave it at that? But sure if they want to play the game of which one is worse, well, I have bad news for them. Regina was.

1. Regina murdered an innocent man. Killian killed his scumbag fugitive father.

Henry Sr was a loving doting father that stood behind Regina no matter what she did. No, Henry Sr did not “allow” Regina to be abused her entire life

Anon is absolutely right when they say Henry Sr did try to advocate for Regina and did his best to stand up to Cora (1x18). Besides. What did they want him to do? She was a powerful dark magic user that could kill him with a snap of her fingers.

I find it interesting that Regina Apologists use the excuse that Regina fixated her revenge on Snow and not Cora because she was afraid of her powerful mother. Like ya wanna think about this for a second, RAs? If you claim that Regina was so afraid of her mother her entire life (even tho she snooped in her desk with no fear etc etc) then do you all think maybe her dad might have been too? What could Henry Sr have done against a powerful wife? He had no powers himself. So if he was scared of Cora, he put Regina before his own fears and stayed for Regina’s sake. He never abandoned her to face Cora alone because no matter what happened at least he could be there for his daughter? Just a food for thought there.

Bottom line was, Henry Sr never abused Regina but he was always there for her, no matter what atrocity she committed, even while she was killing him. So no, adult Regina being abused by her mother over who she marries does not justify murdering the father who loved and supported her and it sure as hell doesn’t justify murdering him so she can get a happy ending and curse an entire kingdom to a life of misery.

It’s like Regina Apologists can’t think past her heaving cleavage.

Brennan did abandon his kids to slavery and to suggest otherwise is a lie. No, him naming his 3rd son Liam doesn’t make up for his abuse

He may have left a lantern on but that means jack crap the moment he abandoned his children to save his own skin. He had a choice. His choice was to die protecting them or at the least ensuring their own escape at his expense. But he chose to save himself and left his sons to face an unimaginable fate without him. Escaping your crimes and leaving your children to face your consequences is most certainly child abuse, neglect and abandonment.

And just so we are clear: Killian’s feeling of betrayal doesn’t justify leaving his half-brother an orphan. But which crime is more understandable? I can sympathize a lot more with the pain Killian felt in the face of his father’s betrayal than I can with Regina murdering a man so she can destroy the lives of an entire kingdom.

2. Regina committed her crime to destroy the lives of an entire kingdom. Killian’s crime effected three people.

Regina committed cold-blooded premeditated murder of an innocent man for the sole purpose of ruining the lives of an entire kingdom. Her goal was to punish Snow for a crime she didn't even commit! The only person that Regina was taking into consideration here was herself.

Killian wasn’t even going to go through with Regina’s test of killing Brennan, a crook and a child abuser, until he learned his half-brother’s name. It became a heat of the moment crime. A crime that only effected three people: himself, his scumbag father and his half-brother.

"You named your boy Liam. After my brother, after the son… you abandoned. Was he really that easy to replace? I saw what you said to him in there! It's the same thing you said to me! It was a lie then, and it's a lie now! … you would leave me." - past Hook 5x11

And despite what Regina Apologists say, Killian didn’t kill Brennan out of jealousy. To frame this as simple as jealousy diminishes the gravity of the situation here and Killian's pain. Put yourself in Killian's shoes for a moment.

You can think Brennan is telling the truth in this scene but I don't blame Killian for not believing him. The man callously left his sons to be enslaved, an act that eventually led to his beloved brother’s death, and here he finds out that his father has simply replaced his brother with a new son. When faced with this, Killian's walls go back up.

Brennan naming his son Liam was not an apology. It was to assuage his own guilt and give himself a second chance. Brennan claims he was honoring Liam 1, and maybe he thought he was, but it doesn't mean that Liam 2 wasn't a replacement for the sons he abandoned.

Lastly, it's a lie to say Killian never showed remorse.

The fact that he made Regina swear never to speak of this shows how immensely guilty and wrecked Killian was over this.

He was also willing to die for Liam 2. Even in the past, he wanted to help his brother turn from the path he was on and not make the same bad choices he'd made. If Henry hadn't returned, Killian was ready to let Liam have his vengeance.

So I have some questions for the Regina Apologists:

If Henry Sr is a shitty father and doesn’t deserve an afterlife for not being able to protect his adult child from his powerful wife, then what does Regina deserve for emotionally abusing the son she illegally adopted and putting her curse and her happiness before his welfare? And yes, she abused Henry. Yes, she is to blame for how she treated him. This isn’t up for debate.

How is naming a child after your victim showing remorse and making up for the act? but Killian Jones can’t be forgiven when he actually expresses remorse and was willing to die for his half-brother and made peace with Liam (as Anonymous pointed out in the ask)?

if being a coward that didn’t stand up to someone more powerful means you don’t deserve happiness in the afterlife then what should murdering, raping and abusing children get you? Yeah, Regina did that.

So please answer the question Regina Apologists!

[thedragonholder]

Since chaos reign has released here is most of the things I want to see.

#10 Hanzo to finally be playable or atleast have a few scenes: since we have cyax and sektor have made an appearance I kind of now expect we will see kid hanzo. Even if he is playable I expect to see Hanzo atleast make a few scenes.

#9 Jade atleast get an appearance: Jade has been mentioned in mk-1 intros and I actually want to see more mention or atleast an appearance of Jade with kitana. I miss their friendship!!

#8 Cyrax joining the good guys: like the previous games it won't be a surprise once Cyrax learns why kuai left the lin kuei. It will be expected of cyrax to leave sektor and join the Shirai Ryu in hopes to redeem herself.

#7 Harumi, suchin: I hope that we atleast see appearances or them fighting for their loved once together and even a showcase of their skills. NRS have already jobbered suchin and harumi a lot. I hope they will get justice.

#6 one of the brothers is going to die and it can be either kuai liang or it can be bi-han: let's face it Bi-ham and kuai liangs relationship has always ended badly because of Fucking NRS!! So it's either they make one of them die. If kuai liang dies it will make way for hanzo to be Scorpion and gets on the path of revenge to kill bi-han. If bi-han dies it will not be at the hands of kuai but by someone else. Kuai liang will go on revenge to kill the person who killed bi-han.

#5 the order of light: I really want to see the order of light and more of sareena and ashrah. Hell I want to see more of sareena helping them out in the war against titan havik.

#4 outworld under mileenas rule: I am hoping to see the outworld under milleenas rule. I can see it would be a world where everyone is being treated equally including the tarkatans and the saurians being treated equally .

#3 Kuairumi: want to see more of this relationship in the future. I want to see how much of a badass warrior harumi is and her influence on kuai. I also want to see how kuai influenced harumi as well both are good for each other.

#2 Mileena might turn evil: I have a feeling NRS might try to make mileena evil and strain her relationship from kitana after all NRS hates good sibling relationships or any relationship in general.

This is why I want Jeremy to be the writer. He knows what the fans want and he gives.

Now here is my number 1 expectation

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#1 Shinnok is definitely going to come back:

We have heard Many names in intros during mk-1 but there is one name that has not been mentioned at all. The name is Shinnok. Don't come at me saying Catrion wasn't also mentioned. Liu Kang clarified that the elder gods still existed but unlike Raiden , Liu Kang doesn't consult with them. You always know what NRS does. If a hero kills a threat like they killed off titan Shang taung to make room for titan havik. So they always kill a villain to leave room for a bigger villain. So what has shinnok been doing all this time in the netherrealm. Because netherrealm has been mentioned by ashrah and instead of Shinnok it was Quan chi. What if Shinnok is like a secret boss behind Quan chi pulling the strings of everyone and everything this whole time and will make an appearance sooner or later in the mk-1 universe. He is waiting for the perfect time to strike back and get his revenge on the elder gods and titan Liu Kang in order for the hour glass to be his and mend time to his favour.

Or maybe I have been exaggerating because I haven't gotten thar much sleep and haven't had coffee so. @laismoura-art , @mikka-minns , @theelderhazelnut , @charlotte-family-apologist , @angelbroad , @bloody-arty-myths tell me your theories.

[ourflagmeansgayrights]

Hey so idk if you would know this but where did the term canyon in reference to Izzy fans come from? I feel like I just started seeing it like three days ago but everyone seems to already know what it means

lol so disclaimer that this ask has been in my inbox since september 23rd and alsoooo i might not be the best person to ask bc i am belothed by many who consider themselves part of the izzy canyon (which is their right). so if you asked an izzy fan about this you would probably get a different answer. also from what i can tell the term originated on twitter and i don’t go there.

the tl;dr that i heard secondhand from someone who identifies as izzy canyon is that at some point last year (summer or fall-ish i think) a lot of izzy fans were blocking so many people who didn’t like izzy that a lot of them ended up being unaware of general fandom trends and it became a running joke among them that izzy fans were isolated from the rest of the fandom in an "izzy canyon." and then allegedly the term expanded to just mean "if ur not a dick abt ppl liking izzy u can be in the canyon." THAT BEING SAID there are other ppl who had a very different experience with how "the canyon" originated and what kind of fan space it tends to be.

(slightly longer explanation below)

the thing with The Canyon is that to understand its origin and also why some fans have a problem with it, you gotta know two things:

there are annoying puriteen anti types on the internet who think liking certain characters make you a bad person. from what i can tell theyre mostly on twitter and tiktok. these people are annoying but also in my experience they're usually pretty easy to block and ignore.

the popularity of izzy hands is disproportionate to his narrative role in the show, and the popular fanon interpretation of izzy hands casts him not only as a principal character but as a much more sympathetic, righteous character than he is in canon. THIS DOES NOT MEAN I THINK ANYONE IS A BAD PERSON FOR LIKING IZZY. this DOES mean that i think ppl who think ed is izzy's domestic abuser are wrong. and also this is part of an age old fandom trend of fandom favoring a masc white guy who is often a side character and also often an antagonist.

so from what i can tell. in the early days of the ofmd fandom (spring-summer 2022) there was a lot of #1 going around on twitter, screaming about how if you liked izzy hands then you're a racist abuse apologist or something. at one point a throwaway account tweeted a callout for a popular izzy fan and said "we know they live in this area and work for this company, so these are the locations where they might work. everyone should call these numbers and tell their job to fire them. also we're gonna target these izzy fans next" and like, obviously this account was pretty quickly taken down. but it was a pretty scary thing and left a lot of izzy fans pretty paranoid, hence the blocking everyone who didnt like izzy.

(there was also a "izzy hater group chat" twitter account that was literally just a small group of mostly minors posting memes and also abt izzy that got accused of being connected to that whole mess. but afaict those guys have nothing to do with harassment of izzy fans they just dont like izzy)

so the thing is now that all of that has been used to justify shutting down any type of conversation about #2, or writing off anyone who posts meta about izzy that isnt like, "he works so hard and is so unappreciated despite everything he's done for ed" as an "izzy anti." analyzing izzy critically and posting this in the #izzy hands tag on tumblr is likened to genuine harassment.

oh lol and speaking of harrasment: there was also a problem with ppl on tumblr getting anon hate, and izzy fans will tell you that the anon came from an izzy hater who was targeting izzy fans bc the anon messages use "izzy critical rhetoric." however as someone who has posted "izzy critical" metas or whatever, i have actually gotten the same harassing messages accusing me of being an izzy stan and a racist abuse apologist. that's not what a targeted harassment campaign looks like. that's all been less of a problem ever since tumblr made it so you need to be logged in to an account to send anonymous messages.

anyway my stance on all of this:

i don't hate anyone for liking izzy. i am critical of certain comments/behaviors i often see from ppl who identify as izzy fans, but izzy fans are rarely the only ones who have this problem. from what i've seen tho, a lot of it comes from izzy fans.

before i ever saw even a hint of harassment against izzy fans, i saw izzy fans coming onto my posts and to posts by fans of color trying to argue that these posts were contributing to their harassment. from my perspective, it looked a lot like fans of a white character were trying to shut down conversations abt their favorite guy, especially when those conversations were being had by fans of color. i was very skeptical and oftentimes pretty dismissive abt the existence of this harassment.

since then tho ive done a pretty deep dive into the anon harassment on tumblr, and also looked at takes from different perspectives on the whole thing, and my conclusion is that there is harassment of izzy fans, however it is on the same base-level shittiness that most people experience from just... being on the internet. death threats and insults and slurs are literally just part of being on the internet. and yes, it SUCKS and it's wrong and nobody should have to put up with it, but izzy fans are not victims of specific targeted harassment. theyre victims of being on the internet and having to put up with general internet shittiness. and im sympathetic to that up until ppl start using "ive been harassed for being an izzy fan" as an excuse to be incredibly nasty (check out this tumblr acct for examples of what i mean lol). the ofmd fandom is annoying and parts of it are toxic but like, by no means is this the most toxic fandom to ever exist. we're not at "undertale fan giving out cookies with needles in them at a convention" levels just yet.

finally, tangentially related: i am inherently wary of fandom sub-groups that like, name themselves?? in my experience, the more people make being a Type Of Fan part of their identity the more it tends to lead to problems. this goes for fans who label themselves "antis" or "anti-antis" or whatever the fuck. i've personally been called an "izzy anti," an "izzy hater," and an "izzy critical fan" but like, i dont really call myself that?? it just seems weird to me idk. it gets to be very "us vs them" on default with little nuance and ive never found this kind of thing to be like, productive in fandom spaces. but that's just me.

[iguessitsjustme]

I have not been able to stop thinking about this since episode 9 aired and I read an excellent insight into Pat’s character this morning by @wen-kexing-apologist so I wanted to talk about Jeng because he is the character that I relate to the most. Granted, I am not a high level manager in my parent’s successful company, BUT I’ve worked office jobs and I’ve been in management positions and overseeing people. Please keep in mind that I am approaching Jeng as a white queer person who was raised (all over) the United States so I can only truly add the perspective that gives me. Also I wrote this while bored at work so I was definitely not nearly as articulate as I like, and this might not be anyone else’s interpretation and I completely understand if you do not agree with me here. With that said, here we go:

I am probably the most cishet passing person in the world. There’s no particular reason for this other than it’s just the way I am and how I like to present. I don’t risk my safety by presenting queer, I just don’t. I live in a big city, my family is incredibly supportive, my friends are queer, a good number of my coworkers are queer, I am not closeted. But people see me and they assume that I am straight. For the purposes of this post I'm focusing on sexual orientation rather than gender what I’m focusing on because my relationship with gender right now is basically the shrug emoji. Despite being out as bi since I was 24 many years ago, I still find myself constantly coming out to people because if I say nothing, assumptions are made about me and those assumptions are based on a heteronormative worldview that society has cursed us all to and those assumptions about me are wrong. 

Now let’s look at Jeng. I’m not gonna mention Pat because I fully believe that Pat’s response to learning Jeng is attracted to men was entirely based on his own repressed feelings and not entirely an assumption that Jeng is straight. Jeng passes as straight. I’m sure that’s due to a combination of his position, his family, and just his overall personality. We know that Jeng is out to people. He talks to his friend about Pat, Jaab asks him about his feelings towards Pat, and when he brings Pat home, Jeng’s parents see Pat and make some assumptions about what occurred. So a significant number of people in Jeng’s life know that he is gay and it’s not only a significant number that know but the people closest to him know as well. The other people that are able to clock Jeng in this show are the other queer people. Chot and Jen just know. They see how he looks at and interacts with Pat and can see the humongous crush that Jeng is nursing. So Jeng is working under the assumption that around these people, he is out. He might present straight and he might keep that up for work purposes, but he believes himself to be out to at least the other queer people near him.

Then Pat says this:

And Jeng breaks. And I get that. Jeng knows that Pat is gay, Jeng thought that Pat knew he was gay. Jeng thought they were on the same page. Other queer people in Jeng’s life have known he was gay without him needing to explicitly state that. Pat, the person Jeng has been flirting with and has confessed to (while he was so drunk he couldn’t understand Jeng you beloved idiot) had no clue. At least that’s how it appears to Jeng, who is now in the unfortunate position of needing to out himself. Let me tell you something, it is exhausting to have to constantly come out to people. Every new person that I meet, if I want them to know that I am queer, I need to explicitly tell them because if I don’t, they will never know. I’ve had people think that I’m just a really good ally before. There are times I wish I was so entirely and visibly queer that no one would ever doubt it, and I’m sure Jeng felt that in this moment with Pat. It just takes one look at his face during this scene to know that Jeng has been here before and he is tired and his heart is breaking.

How many people do you think Jeng has had to make a choice between outing himself or letting them work with false assumptions regarding his sexuality? How many times has Jeng chosen to closet himself instead of being who he is? How many times has Jeng been interested in another man but had no chance because that person didn’t know or care to believe he is gay? Just needing to make the decision on whether or not to explicitly say, “Yes, I like men” or “I’m gay” is tiring in and of itself, but then the actual saying of the words? Depleting. Especially to someone who you thought already knew. It hurts when people think I’m just a really good ally. I can’t imagine the pain Jeng felt at Pat’s surprise because to Jeng, that surprise indicated that Pat saw him as a good ally (again, I do not think that’s what was going on with Pat but this is about Jeng and his interpretation) and not as someone with interest in him.

Then Jeng learns later on that Pat just doesn’t understand how someone like Jeng can like him. It doesn’t make sense to Pat. How many times has Jeng been made to feel like his sexuality, coming from him, doesn’t make sense? I’m sure his dad had some things to say about it. I’m sure part of the reason he left previously was due to that. So while Jeng is out, it is a constant coming out process and then an entire new process to get people to believe it. Jeng’s sadness is mostly about Pat rejecting him, but I’m sure at least a small part of it is also the tiny piece of him that was so sure that Pat at least knew he was gay.

Jeng now believes that Pat has only ever seen him as his straight boss and that can’t change. Pat sees him as a coworker, not even a friend, not even a member of the queer community. Just a coworker and nothing more. The revelation that Jeng likes and is attracted to men, made Pat uncomfortable. Is it because Jeng doesn’t obviously present as gay? Is it because he isn’t as clockable as someone like Chot? Now Jeng has to think of not only all of his interactions with Pat, but also all of his interactions with the other queer people in his office. Does he have to come out to them too or do they already know like he thought they did? Jeng was so busy being the most smitten man in the universe, it didn’t occur to him that his giant, massive, all-consuming crush on Pat might not have been obvious. I’m guessing the straight people in his office have been working under the assumption that he is straight. Will he need to come out to them too? He has been handling this for who knows how long, but this time, this time it HURTS.

Jeng was so worried about crossing the boundaries by being Pat’s boss that he didn’t even think about how dating a man would impact his worker’s perception of him. I don’t think he ultimately cares about what they think of his personal life or his personality as long as they are able to function as a department. But when Pat asked if he liked men, Jeng had to start reevaluating everything. Not just his interactions with Pat, but his interactions with the world. No wonder he seemed so just completely and utterly tired this episode. When Jeng and Pat finally work through their little miscommunication issues (which makes so much sense and work so well with this show I can’t even begin to describe my actual love for it which is weird cause miscommunication is my least favorite trope), I don’t think Jeng will actually change anything about the way he presents himself to the world. He still has his family to think about, and he’s still, well, he’s still Jeng. But I think this gave him some things to think about himself that he probably already knew but didn’t think he would have to explain to another queer person. Especially not Pat. Pat is out at the office, but it wasn’t entirely his choice. Pat outed himself so he would stop getting put in awkward conversations about the women in the office. Jeng might have seen something similar to himself in Pat. Pat could potentially pass as straight, and in fact did at the very beginning. He let people think he was dating a woman. Pat was careful who he came out to at the office. Jeng probably thought that of all people, Pat would understand him the best. Not explicitly out, but not in the closet either. How heartbreaking for both of them that their experiences clashed in such a way. But once those two get on the same page? They are gonna be the cutest couple in the entire world and I am so excited to see Jeng, finally, finally, be able to express his love for Pat to Pat as much as he wants to.

[theloganator101]

Vent Ask anon is here again! Hello 👋

I have another vent for you in regard to Hori's writing. Something I've seen both you and @mikeellee speak about is how Hori loves his abuser characters. I've noticed this too and I hate it.

Two main examples of this for me stick out.

Bakuguo and Endeavor.

But I'll talk about some other (dis)honorable examples of this at the end.

First Bakugou Katsuki (kind of controversial to label him as an abuser) however with the severity of the bullying dealt to Izuku and the length of time he dealt it - that's abuse. And yet:

He is favoured by the narrative

Izuku is never allowed to think negatively of him or grow out of his mindset of "Kacchan is the best"

Bkg has characters that exists as a 'simp' for him in Izuku, Kaminari and Kirishima.

He has friends despite treating no one with respect, screaming at everyone and giving everyone degrading nicknames.

Said "best friend" Kirishima hates bullies and somehow can't see his "manly" best friend is one.

He is favored by the 'hardass' homeroom teacher since Aizawa is a favored mouthpiece of Hori

He is deemed a prodigy of 1A despite his only prior experience to UA being beating up others who couldn't fight back - which implies nothing good. How severe did he beat Izu and others up to get that good?

All Might thinks well of him despite Bakugou berating and beating up Izuku as well as berating the past OFA holders. (As soon as Bkg did that AM should have kicked him straight out of the OFA talks.)

The apology scene and the 1A vs Izuku scene were all there to act as a gotcha moment to the Anti-Bakugou fans and put him back in Izuku's story.

Yet why does Bakugou have to be in Izuku's story? He adds nothing. He contributes nothing. He is a parasite on Izuku's life. And Izuku is FAR more interesting as a character and would have been allowed to shine if he were allowed to be away from Bakugou - But Hori can't allow that!

Second Endeavor - I hate him. He began the story as an irredeemable trash father, the dark side of heroics yet Hori has now attempted D worthy "atonement" narrative.

He is favored by the narrative

He has a character that exists as a 'simp' for him in Hawks.

Rei is not allowed to think negatively of him despite how he ruined her mental state, physically and (implied SA'd her depending on the reading of the manga - why is Hori giving an implied rapist a redemption arc?)

Only realised his wrongdoings when he got the position he wanted in being the Number 1 hero and realised it was empty. (Fucking laughable, he didn't see it when Touya grew unstable, when Rei burnt Shoto or when Touya supposedly DIED. How am I meant to believe this guy deserves a redemption?)

No hero / hero in training outside the Todoroki's is allowed to say a bad word about him. Hawks acts now as his simp despite his abusive childhood and Jeanist is joining Hawks in helping support an abuser while giving off strong abuse apologist vibes... This leads me to my next point-

Endeavor remains the number 1 hero despite being outed as an Domestic Abuser... What the fuck? I thought being a hero is meant to be more than about power HORI? That was the message at the start of MHA! If it's just about power now - why not let All for One rule and be the number 1!

Then there's the issue with how the rest of the family, primarily Dabi and Rei are handled - Hori's retcons. Smacking Rei for not watching Touya and separating Shoto from his siblings to keep him away from 'dangerous' Touya who attempted to kill him as a baby. But there's also the instances with Fuyumi not understanding Touya and Natsuo telling Touya to tell Fuyumi about his problems because he needs to sleep. These instances exist solely to shift the blame off Endeavor for the established abusive behaviour he committed by showing the other family members had some fault for their circumstamces. That's it. There's no other reason to any of those instances being there.

Some fans claim that there is complexity in abusive situations which is why those scenes (in the above bullet point) are there and that does exist in real life but this is a Shonen Manga. Authorial intent needs to be considered. Subjects like this needs to be handled sensitively and while not leaving any room for doubt (especially when the audience/readers are young children/teens) who is at fault. The fact that Hori muddles the water like this (just take a look at any of the E stans takes on Rei or Touya) isn't good. AT ALL.

Shoto. Endeavor's "atonement" led to Shoto being shafted as a character and powerful in his own right so so bad. There's something so wrong about this. The victim should ALWAYS remain the focus of their story especially their recovery and telling of it.

There's also the fact that Endeavor's victims are so so much more interesting than him. Shoto is a main character and he's great - give me more of him. Give me more Rei, Dabi/Touya, Natsuo and Fuyumi, their mindsets would be so much more interesting to see than Endeavor's "change" the majority of which occurred in his own head.

Now for the quick fire dishonorable mentions.

Overhaul. A piece of trash truly, yet he appears in MHA once again as an willing 'accomplise' to Nagant and broken man. He is also asked if he would like to apologise to Eri by Izuku. Like no. This man deserves nothing, in fact he deserves Shiggy to decay the rest of him. He added nothing to the Nagant arc and there was no need for him to be there. Other than to be someone for Izuku to save which would have worked better being anyone else really.

All for One. Arguable, Hori at the very least doesn't try to shift the blame off of him. However he gets more focus than First and the rest of the OFA holders despite them being his biggest constant threat. AND despite Izuku (our narrator) being an OFA holder and seeing the other vestiges! Hori! Come on Hori! The opportunity to explore all the OFA holders was RIGHT THERE!

Shimura Kotaro - again arguable. However with the way the story treated his abuse to his family, the blame for his abuse seems to be shifted to Nana's abandonment of Kotaro for 'causing him to act that way.' Although he at least is such a minor character most fans seemed to think "wow fuck that guy" upon learning Shigaraki's backstory and moved on.

Your thoughts?

To give a proper response, I'll be talking about each of the characters you listed.

Bakugou: You're all right about this, at this point he literally has the narrative wrapped around his finger. He's the worst of what happens when you give a side character the screentime of a second major character but with no development. He serves no purpose to the plot and just serves to take away screentime to characters that could really use it to make them more important than they are now.

Endeavor: Yeah you pretty much hit the nails why this atonement doesn't work.

I would even like to add Fuyumi to this equation since she chose to forgive him so they could be a happy family. While I get what Hori's trying to convey and having multiple sides to this, but it just comes across as her invalidating Natsuo's feelings without trying to see it from his POV.

Hey Hori, your sexism is showing again by having the females in the family forgive your abuser with implications of r*pe.

And that isn't going into how Shoto is literally made into a plot device IN HIS OWN FUCKING ARC FOR ENDEAVOR'S ATONEMENT!!

Overhaul: Nothing much to say here.

AFO: Nothing here either.

Kotaro: Yeah this guy was a pos. And his family isn't any better by letting the abuse too. I will die defending Nana as she was only doing what she thought was best to protect her family and didn't have any say in the choices that led to her son being an abuser.