#I personally think he's the equivalent of 14

[dunmeshistash]

Hi, I'm a new fan of dunmeshi. I'm confused about Thistle's age.

Older fans are confused too don't worry

From the posts I've seen trying to calculate his age (including my own) he's anywhere between 65 to 80 years old, which is the equivalent to roughly 14 to 16 years old in tallmen.

All we know is that he's most likely younger than Pattadol (who is 82) based on this

Elf earmuffs are seen as something for "children and young people" Pattadol and Marcille have "Just ok" while Thistle has a "ok" so he's visibly younger than them.

Ofc now he's over a thousand years old, but he seems to have stopped aging after entering the dungeon both physically and mentally based on how he acts.

[jollyparaphernalia]

The Stagemaster

(What's Kingswap?) Meet the Stagemaster, the main antagonist of this little Kingswap AU i've been cooking. The fellow who could have been Siffrin, had their life not taken a different path. In this post, I'll cover a bit about where he came from, their personality, what they're capable of, and other bits and pieces.

Well...maybe not everything. A fellow has to keep some mystery to himself.

As a blanket statement, this AU is just full on spoilers for 'In Stars and Time', and any content warnings that apply to the game apply to this post under the cut!

So...where'd the Stagemaster come from? How'd our Beloved Siffrin end up like this?

Truth be told, no one is born a villain, and the Stagemaster is no different. As I spoke a bit about it in the previous post, the Stagemaster starts in a different place than canon Siffrin; already a young adult, staying in Corbeaux before the Island is disappeared. Think of him as the equivalent of a university student away from home.

Awwww, look at them! So full of whimsy and so many thoughts in that little head of his! I'm sure nothing bad will ever happen to him ever.

He has a life, he has goals and desires, he has friends in Corbeaux (who aren't The Party we know), and he also has strange dreams but that's not a big deal.

Unfortunately, we know how this ends - The Fella Who Could Have Been Siffrin wakes up one day without a name, without any memories of where he came from, and a whole city and House of people who don't know him anymore. Sure, he has some memories, like why he was studying in Corbeaux, that he had people who he loved, but everything else is just swiss cheese in his head.

He doesn't take it very well.

At some point after the Big Forgetting, after trying to reclaim ANYTHING that's his (and failing miserably)...Not-Siffrin makes a request. A small, selfish wish...for just a little bit of control in their life.

You've heard of eating stars, but I present the thrilling sequel(?): Hugging a star so hard you shove it into your ribcage.

And so is born a stranger with nothing to lose and a general spite of having his life messed with...and a desire to mess with other peoples lives in some form of messed up retaliation. Crashing out and making it everyone's problem.

So, What is the Stagemaster Capable of? Is his gimmick still freezing time, or does he have a new skillset?

Both! But the focus for the Smaster is a new thing called 'Control Craft', inspired partially by ISAT Siffrin's view that he was controlling or puppeting his friends/family like actors...so, the Stagemaster takes that concept and makes it very literal!

He also has the floating Disembodied Hands because I Think That's Cool.

Well before the start of the Loops, and even earlier before the King starts his Time Freezy thing in the main timeline, the Smaster is living his best life, playing with their toys (the toys are other people.) He's sort of a travelling ghost, wandering at his whims to hone his skills, so he's messed with all sorts of places across several countries before even starting his grand torment of Vaugarde.

Vaugarde has it too good, in the Smasters opinion, so, he wants to just subject its people to being Crabs-In-A-Bucket and fighting among themselves before he freezes them. He's pretty petty like that.

The rarity of his Tears makes it a bit hard to do the freezing thing...so it's very convenient he is able to outsource them to this Suspiciously Present Sadness That Technically Shouldn't Exist In This AU!

What Kind of Person IS the Stagemaster, Anyways? What's Their Personality?

I'm going to be so real with you, reader, I just threw a bunch of villains whos vibes I really liked into a blender

( Emet-Selch (Final Fantasy 14), Dimentio (Super Paper Mario), Count Bleck (Super Paper Mario), Cheline (Phantomarine (Please read Phantomarine)), Lord Dominator (Wander over Yonder) Fandaniel (Final Fantasy 14))

But in all seriousness, I went with a more low down approach to the Stagemaster - the ISAT fandom generally likes focusing on the more Unhinged, Manic version of Siffrin we see from Act 5, and it's a good approach! I love unhinged manic Siffrin, but, I really wanted to explore the more quiet and avoidant aspects of both Siffrin and Loop (while still being theatrical and fun to watch), while also adding some new bits into them.

(If you know where I stole these quotes from, you get a cookie)

I will be so real with you, the Stagemaster is just fun to draw in general, especially peeled (Without the hat or the cloak)

Also...strangely...He knows a lot about the party. Weird!

I'm sure it means nothing.

Hey, I've read the Intro post to the AU, and there's this talk of the Stagemaster having a Big Form and a Little Form That Exists At the Same Time - whats with that? Are they Clones?

Not clones! But the same person with two bodies.

But...why does he need this?

You see...the Stagemaster did his whole Thing in Vaugarde, with ruining communities and friendships and stuff...and then went 'yeah, lets move on, time to do Dormont'. Unfortunately, for him Euphrasie, the Head Housmaiden, kind of planned in case he set his sights on the House of Dormont, and forced him to 'go loud' as it were.

Hey, do you also remember why there's so many locked doors in The House of Dormont in baseline ISAT? And the Party eventually figures out it was the Housemaiden's actively locking stuff up to keep the King in? That also applies to this AU.

Long Story Short: Euphrasie played him like a fiddle, put up enough of a fight to force him to Go Big Mode, and then before she was frozen, she activated the whole Orb Door dealio, trapping the Stagemaster in the House.

Even in an AU where Siffrin isn't the looper, Euphrasie still gets to be his metaphorical jailer. Because I think it's funny.

Sure, the Stagemaster could just sit on his laurels. He technically already won, the Time curse is spreading, Vaugarde will be trapped eventually...but so will he. And he would rather be Free than to Win, so...The Avatar comes into play, allowing the Stagemaster to pick up the pace of his Freezing Vaugarde thing, and to have some fun.

This also lets the Stagemaster have a presence in the Pre-Loop Orb Quest the Party goes on to open the Big Orb Door.

But uhhh...

yeah the smaller form is much weaker and the Smaster gets his ass kicked in a straight up fight, forcing him to be sneaky during Orb Quest Antagonism. Usually he cultivates and wrangles powerful Sadnesses for the party to fight.

Eventually, the party suspects that maybe the Stagemaster is weaker than everyone thinks, that he's hiding in the House of Dormont because the Party will easily defeat him, so he's stalling for time to freeze Vaugarde.

Yeah, he's turned the Party into a way for him to free himself. (Funny, then, that they're never getting out of this House anyways, because a certain long haired Knight trapped himself in a silly little Timeloop) (Unfortunately for Clovis, our swapped King...he's not the only one here who is aware of the loops. Good luck, Clovis!)

And that's all for today! Thank you for reading! Hopefully this is the last 'Pre timeloop' info post before I actually get into the Time Loops Proper...But it's so fun to speculate and imagine snippets of the previous adventure!

(As always, a special thanks to the ISAT discords AU channel for listening to my brainrot, and thanks to everyone who's expressed such enthusiasm for these posts!)

[samgirl98]

Wail of the Silent 14/?

Prev | Next

Bruce felt the eyes on him. He wasn’t alone anymore.

He turned around to find his other children and pseudo-children watching him. No one moved for a while.

“Why, Bruce?” came Barbara’s mechanized voice through the computer.

“He was going to kill Joker. I had to stop him.”

“So, you permanently disabled your son to save that filth,” Damian asked. “Was it worth it?”

“I had to stop him,” he said instead of answering. He was surprised Damian had even brought anything up. He didn’t think his youngest and second eldest had many interactions.

Tim frowned, his eyebrows scrunching up. Stephanie scowled at him and crossed her arms.

“He’s your son, Bruce! And you took away his voice to save a piece of shit that doesn’t deserve to live,” Barbara yelled through the computer.

“I had to do something. It’s not up to us who lives or who dies.”

Cass stepped out of the shadows.

“It’s true we don’t have the right to kill, but you could’ve found a different way, Bruce.”

Bruce didn’t say anything and went back to work. He would make this better. First, he had to protect his son and the city from this new threat. Then, he could concentrate on making amends.

“You can’t run from this, Bruce,” came Tim’s soft voice. Bruce turned around to find everyone else gone. Only Tim had stayed behind.

“I’m not running from anything, Tim. I’ll make it right, but first I have to stop Penelope Spectra; she’s a danger to Jason.”

Bruce could still see Jason pointing a gun toward his head, making his heart race.

“Wrong. You’re using this case and the excuse to keep Jason safe to run away from Jason and the problem you’ve created.”

“You don’t understand, Tim.”

“No, I don’t,” he said before turning away and leaving Bruce alone.

____

Gotham was her typical dark and gloomy self. The sun, blocked by storm clouds for so long, had finally set, signaling the arrival of night.

Jason stared out the window, his hair still wet from the shower.

“You know, I can do this alone; you and your brother don’t have to come with me,” Danny tried to persuade him again.

Jason turned around and glared at Danny. He both loved and hated how much taller Danny was compared to Jason. Danny put his hands up in surrender at Jason’s expression.

“Sorry. I was just saying.”

Jason let whatever was happening in his chest come out in chirps of displeasure and hatred. Spectra had fucked with him; he wasn’t going to let it go. He would kill her, one way or another.

“I understand, but I’m still scared of what she can do to you.”

Jason’s expression softened. He took out his phone and typed.

‘I’ll be fine. I can take care of myself. Besides, she’s going to die soon so that she won’t be a problem.’

“She’s already dead, love.”

‘Fine, whatever is the ghost equivalent of dead, then.’

“You know, it’s not easy destroying a ghost.”

‘Then how do you destroy a ghost?’

“There’s something called a core,” Danny pointed toward his chest, right where a chill was always emanating from, “It’s a ghost’s only organ. The heart, brain, and powers, everything originates from the core. It’s how we’re also able to communicate. As long as the core is intact, a ghost can always exist.”

‘But if it’s destroyed…’

“Then the ghost ceases to be, but it’s hard to destroy a core. It’s harder than diamonds.”

Jason’s smile could only be described as vicious. He had a way to destroy her, now. All he had to do was destroy that bitch’s core. Jason would find a way; he always did.

A thermos suddenly appeared in his line of vision.

“Here, it’ll make me feel better if you have this. In case you can’t destroy her, you can at least capture her.”

Jason started typing again.

‘You’re not going to lecture me about how killing is bad, are you? You’re just going to let me destroy her?’

Danny shrugged.

“I can’t do it myself personally, if I go down that path,” Danny shuddered, “It’s not pretty. That doesn’t mean I should or would stop someone else’s revenge. If you can destroy her, well, that’s your right after what she did to you, and I won’t cry over it. If you can’t, the thermos is the next best thing.”

Jason traced the scar on his throat; if only Bruce could’ve thought the same way.

Danny took Jason’s hand and kissed it.

“It’s okay, I’m here.”

Jason threw his arms around Danny’s shoulders and pulled him down for a kiss. It was a great kiss, and then Dick had to come out of nowhere and ruin it.

“Eww, too much PDA.”

Jason stopped kissing Danny and glared at Dick.

‘Nobody is telling you to stick around. As a matter of fact, I would love it if you left,’ Jason signed.

Dick pouted.

“But I want to spend time with my Little Wing.”

Jason flipped him the bird.

“Besides, I can’t let you go alone to fight that thing. I saw the footage.”

‘I have Danny.’

Dick shrugged.

“Well, now you have me, too.”

Jason sighed silently. Dick was too stubborn, there would be no way to persuade him to leave.

‘Fine, whatever,’ he signed, ‘just don’t get in the way.’

“I really need to learn sign language,” Danny said while watching the exchange between the two brothers.

Jason smiled at Danny. If he wants to learn sign language, that implies he wants to stay with Jason, and he wasn’t going to complain about that.

“Okay, so how do we find this Spectra?”

“I’ll fly around and try to sense her. Unfortunately, this place is full of ectoplasm and ghosts, so it’ll be hard to pinpoint her.”

Jason took out his phone again and started typing.

‘I have an idea.’

“Yeah, what is it?”

‘The bitch is obsessed with me, right? Well, I’ll be the perfect bait.’

Jason smiled at the other two men’s distressed look. Oh, Spectra was going to get what was coming to her.

[sirfrogsworth]

My recovery is going at a snail's pace. As I knew it would. Sometimes it is hard to notice if I am actually making any progress.

If this were a video game, I think I just beat the first level. With an unknown number of levels left. Probably 4 or 5?

I hate being so vague about what I'm going through. But it's hard to explain. And I just do not have the energy to write much. I almost broke my brain explaining a Trump photo the other day. I need to write for my own sanity but it is so hard to push myself.

I would say the hardest thing aside from the physical symptoms and the constant fatigue is the loneliness and the boredom. I miss my parents so much. Not having people around to help me and take care of me and keep my spirits up just shines a light on how big of a hole they left in my life.

I don't have much energy to reach out to friends. I make it a point to let Katrina know how I'm doing. She's the one person in my life that doesn't take much energy to talk to. I can only finish half a sentence and she still understands me. I'm glad I have a friend like that.

But the boredom is almost as hard as feeling lonely. I don't have much concentration so paying attention to things can be difficult. I keep watching a few episodes of something and then stopping because I can't follow it. Or I will watch something too sad and I can't emotionally process the sadness. I'm going to have like 5 shows I have to finish when I feel better. I didn't even attempt to watch Arcane.

Weirdly the one thing I could follow was a 5 hour video series on Joseph Smith. It had the Mormon perspective and the historically accurate perspective. If I were to summarize... that dude sucked. He was a world class charlatan with an... interesting... imagination. He reminds me of L. Ron Hubbard with less sci fi.

And he married a bunch of 14 year olds. Which is why I laughed when he got tarred and feathered—most likely for messing around with a 14 year old.

Smith destroyed a printing press to stop people from saying he married 14 year olds. And then a mob killed him while he was in jail. And I think the painting of his execution might be funnier than him being tarred and feathered.

That's him falling out of the window.

Is it still defenestration if you are thrown out of a window due to being riddled with bullets?

I'm pretty sure this painting is the equivalent to...

*Victrola scratch* "I bet you are wondering how I got in this predicament."

If your guess does not include staring into a top hat for long periods of time, you are way off.

Wow, I wrote a lot more than I expected. Shitty religious leaders are motivating I guess. My brain is on fire now. So I guess I'll end it here.

[undead-cypress]

Some more shitposts and Jpn new game + notes

I THINK (because it's not like I have a script nor am I particularly observant) this miiiiight be the first instance of a personal pronoun? 自分 is a pretty impersonal one though, which makes sense in this context because this is the scene announcing Will's entry into the tournament. The dialogue choices here are, in response to (paraphrased because I don't remember it exactly) "Entry to the tournament? With this runt?"

> It's me who's entering

> not a runt

> don't answer a question with another question

I picked "not a runt" because it is endlessly amusing to me how obviously Will was supposed to be even younger. We're not a baby :((( not born three weeks ago :((((

(please ignore how, in my blazed out state, took me several minutes to try to type in "Jingles" - long story - on the PS4 while still forgetting to add the " to シ so now I'm stuck with "Shingles" for a mc name. Oops. The Japanese PS4 keyboard mapping is NUTS. You know how they put the English keys in alphabetical order?? When you're wired to use QWERTY?? It's kinda like that. It's hard when you're high.)

In other pronoun stuff, all the street vendors (not shop keepers though) refer to the MC as お兄さん, even though they're all universally WAY older. It's more of an informal way to show deference to a potential customer, a rank thing rather than an age or family thing.

Brigitta's pronouns for her dog are basically it/it's 😂. Mostly because she refuses to give it a name, so she refers to the dog as コレ, コイツ, etc

I think it's funny this is Strohl's default mode. I never noticed until now, when one of the ranked events had him going up to the landlord guy like this and for a second I wondered if we're supposed to interpret it as "we saw you across the street and we hate your vibes". But nah that's just his normal. Nobody else's idle pose has clenched fists, this is excellent. I've said it before but his line deliveries are a bit more aggro/seething in Japanese and maybe that's why I'm noticing.

Also, Rangief calls him Leon-bocchama. While "bocchama" translates to "young lord" it's pretty rare and embarrassing to call anyone over the age of eh.... 14 that. It does make the sub theme of Strohl's ranked episodes of coming to age as an adult come through a bit more when Rangief drops it at the end. Also it's funny. The English version places more emphasis on worthiness and responsibility rather than the growing up aspect, which I think is fine tbh because that IS the main thing. Age hierarchies matter less in the anglosphere and it would just be kind of baffling without explanation on why East Asia is obsessed with age hierarchies. And just hierarchies in general.

(it's Confucius's "trickle down ethics"'s fault)

Oh yeah the "my kind of strange" line everyone keeps screenshotting is less interesting in Japanese, it was something like "we'll get along well".

Fabienne is much more forceful sounding in Japanese and her tone was pretty scary at times. In English she comes off as more tired, but in Japanese it sounds much more like she's kind, yes, but she will beat you down with a stick with no hesitation if she must.

Bardon doesn't have an equivalent accent in Japanese and I'm not immediately picking up anything special about the way he talks. Aww. He does still sound very much like a hapless goober though.

Gloddel is even hammier, if that was possible. My god, this is what every middle schooler going through anime phase wishes they sound like.

Neuras has an accent though! He's very much still a wacky scamp.

I kept joking that Hulkenberg is horse coded so my friend made her a horse in miitopia. Then the Mind Horse (draw a horse without using references) challenge started trending again on Bluesky, and people wanted to see my mind horse. Unfortunately my mind horse is just a regular lookin horse and not very funny, so I drew Hulkenhorse instead

You're welcome?

[ramibow]

This is me casually rewriting Obey Me’s plot, don't mind me.

Manic Ramblings™ below:

This is mostly about their ages and their time during The Great Celestial War. I've got more but I don't want this post to be longer than it already is.

In canon they are all adults and Levi was even a navy general but I cannot for the life of me imagine that so I’m throwing it out.

Obey Me also doesn’t have canon ages for any of the brothers, and I’m not certain if they’ve confirmed their age order. People often reference their rankings (Lucifer, Mammon, Leviathan, Satan, Asmodeus, Beelzebub, Belphegor), but that is the order of how powerful they are, which is why Satan is #4 instead of #7.

Here are the ages I’m giving them during The Great Celestial War (in angel years): Lucifer (18), Mammon (15), Asmodeus (14), Leviathan (12), Beelzebub (8), Belphegor (8), Satan (0/5)*

I think in canon Leviathan would be older than Asmodeus, but I decided to cast him deeper into the pits of middle child hell (also I wanted Mammon and Asmodeus to be closer in age as a part of my personal agenda.)

*Since Lucifer had a Zeus moment and popped Satan from his noggin, I imagined him as being the equivalent of 5 when he was “born” during the Celestial War. Let’s say it was five angel years of built up rage culminating into a person. 

That being said, Lucifer would be the only one that directly fights in the war. Mammon wanted to fight by his side but Lucifer would not let that happen (and god help you if you defied the man). Instead, Mammon is in charge of keeping his siblings safe since they’re basically traitors/fugitives.

Plus, since Lucifer is fighting a war, he doesn't have a lot of time to see his brothers. This is the first time they've been separated from him for a long period of time, so it's been hard for them. They wonder if Lucifer will get killed and the angels that used to be their friends will imprison them (or worse). Paranoia and fear constantly loom over them. The Celestial Realm is all they've ever known, and they don't feel safe there anymore.

Escaping the Celestial Realm is a task in and of itself. I imagine teleportation magic as being something extremely complex and thus requiring a spellbook to perform (so you don’t end up halfway through a wall or something). The brothers did not have that, thus, they spent most of the war hiding out in the outskirts of the Celestial Realm.

Satan appears near the end of the war. Lucifer did not tell his brothers how/where Satan came from (this will come back later for plot-related stuff). Since Satan is the embodiment of wrath, living with him took some adjusting. 

Asmo made it his mission to help domesticate his feral brother with Mammon’s help, of course.

Levi was terrified of Satan, but Satan was curious about him. I like to imagine that Levi sparked Satan’s interest in reading because I think that would be cute. 

Belphegor and Satan would fight a lot when they first met (I imagine Beel, Belphie and Satan as the trifecta of “children most likely to bite you”). Over time they would grow to enjoy each other’s company.

So, yeah. This AU is just going to be "thing I want to change/things I think would be kinda cool + plot". I want to post more stuff but drawing a comic is difficult so I had to settle for this instead.

If you're interested in seeing more I'm going to put any future Lore™ under OM Eden AU for convenience.

[dumbass-tumbler-cryptid]

Guys I just read through the original Avatar way of water and I can't be normal about it and neither can you so lets get into it...

(Apologies for the bad quality btw. I was taking pictures with my phone of my tv.)

For starters Na'vi age faster than humans in the og script!

It says point blank in the script that Spider is 14

And it says this about Neteyam and Lo'ak

They're the equivalent of a 13 and 14 year old not they are 13 and 14. Coupled with the fact that in this version of the script Spider was five during the original war and he's only 14 himself in this script then if my math is mathing it's only been NINE YEARS since the og movie. In human years Neteyam and Lo'ak are 9 and 8 years old! That is crazy!

Speaking of crazy we get some interesting lessons on Na'vi anatomy

They birth chrysalis! Like mammals can be born still in their amniotic sac but a chrysalis?! Like a bug?!

and then..

Like the chrysalis just unfurls after the mother breaks tsalnu. That is so wild.

And then..

Like we already knew Kiri's "father" was eywa but a genetic clone of Grace? and we learn this in the first act of the movie?! Wild.

Also this conversation...

Like I'm shookith why👏🏽was👏🏽 this👏🏽 not👏🏽 in 👏🏽the👏🏽 movie! This seems pretty important not only for the plot i.e where Toruk is but also developing Jake as a character.

Anyway here's some little things that had me gobsmacked for better or worse.

First...

If my jaw was on the floor from the not dad i'm your commander line (after which Spider tells Lo'ak it could have been a lot worse and I'm like how?) then my jaw hit earth's core from Jake completely blaming Neteyam's death on Lo'ak. Like I know he's grieving but good god that's your son! who just watched his brother die! And you don't even know what happened! You just found them like that! Like...COME ON!

Second...

Lo'ak is really mean to Tuk. I didn't screenshot it but also there was a line from when Tuk tagged along at the beginning of the movie and Spider joked "well if she gets eaten it's not our fault." and Lo'ak said "that's what I'm saying" and as a youngest child I took that personally.

I have no commentary this was just really funny

Third

Ao'nung's name was orginally Nu'ung and I find that interesting.

Forth

I gasped. I'd get smacked if I talked to my mom like this. Like they don't seem to have a good relationship in this version because earlier Kiri calls Grace her real mom not her bio mom or even just her other mom. And Kiri also really wanted to know who her real dad is. I'm just glad they changed this angle because adoptive parents are real parents and the actual movie does a good job of showing that.

Fifth

This is right after Kiri's seizure. I think this should have been in the movie. A criticism I've heard about Jake is what a dumb move it was to call for help when Ronal was right there. This shows what a quick panicked decision that actual was and while it's still not smart it is understandable.

Sixth

Neytiri having P.T.S.D

and finally

yeah I think the only reason they cut this is because they knew we'd all be SOBBING to hard to actually pay attention to the end of the movie.

Anyway that's my general thoughts on this and I'd love to know what you think. 💙

[bibibbon]

MHA mustard deserved better

Mustard is a character that many of us forget but surprisingly his character really stuck to me for some reason.

Mustard is around 13-14 years old and was part of the training camp attack. His quirk is known as gas and looks very similar to midnight it also has a very similar effect to midnight's. I think that it's such a shame that his story was never explored and that we never got much of what happend to him. We don't even see him in the final arc. All we are told is that mustard is captured by the police after the attack and is then imprisoned to never seen him again.

I think that if MHA wanted to truly and properly redeem villains or explore the idea why villains became the way they are we should of gotten more exploration when it came to mustard. You can easily assume that mustard probably had a horrible life that drove him to villainy because how is it that you become a villain and don't have enough of anything to change out of your middle school uniform. How is it that a 13-14 year old knows how to wield a gun and there are so many more questions like how was mustard treated?

Personally I would have it so that we are shown more about mustard. How did he end up where he is? How did shigaraki even allow him to join? Did he somehow stumble or was in the wrong place at the wrong time and just got swept by the crowd? Who taught him how to wield a gun? And so many other questions to build his character. Mustard felt like an empty character with wasted potential. From the little amount of screentime we can tell that he acts like a child and is a bit annoying like a middle schooler would be but he definitely acts,fights and does so many more things above his age. I personally would be more interested in a tiny arc to explore how society failed mustard. Why is his name mustard anyway? He is one of the only characters who we don't know his real name so does that mean mustard could of been a name a bully gave him?

For some reason thinking about the character of mustard distinctly reminds me of middle school Izuku midoriya. They seem ironically similar in a way🤷‍♀️.

Also can we talk about how after he gets captured nothing really happens. Like where does mustard go? He is too young to go to prison so does MHA have something equivalent to a delinquent center or juvenile detention? Do they just let mustard rot in jail? Does mustard have a family that tried to fight his case? Did the family get any backlash (like toga's family)? So many questions to think about. Was there or could of there been a rehabilitation programme out up for mustard. Like mustard is young and shows a lot of signs that say "society failed me" or something similar so was there or could of there been something similar to that.

I personally think we should of gotten some mustard and midnight interactions. They have similar quirks with similar effects one became a hero the other a villain they don't have many differences I wonder if midnight struggled with her quirk I wonder how she would interact with mustard.

[urfavrib]

Music to hurt thy soul

my friends are doing music stuff so i went a little crazy enjoy!

Bloodline - Alex Warren & Jelly Roll

This is giving Krew learning to love each other. Alex’s voice is reminiscent of Gricko to me for some reason and Jelly’s of Gideon.

Sonder - The Wrecks

Giving Contract-dictions by @mstrickster

Makes me think about Gideon losing it angry because he can’t handle being left behind like trash

The Mountain Song - Tophouse

Gives Gricko and Hootsie making their way through life learning to be more than man and beast to be Father and Daughter

Rule #14 Fiddlers Heart - Fish in a Birdcage

Gives Gideon talking about Kremy, seeing him in Agwé. Seeing him be truly Kremy without having to be anything more

The Prodigal - Josiah Queen

This is giving Torbek and Frost. The many feelings of being willing to give up and change to be with the person who understands you. It’s not an easy choice but very much needed.

Safe with Me - Ike Dweck

I think I’ve touched on this for Coalecroux. But let me go in depth. This song here is literally the most Gideon song i can think of. This song is Gideon promising Kremy he’s gonna be his safe place forever. Promising him time and time again Gid will be there willing to suffer to keep Kremy from being alone. This is Gid saying he’s gonna run everytime Kremy runs. This is the equivalent of his wedding vows in my mind

Royal We - Janani K Jha

This is Kremy, recognizing that he’s changed with Gideon. Not necessarily a bad thing, but a big change. It gives the melancholy feeling that change has made him a different man. He no longer can be selfish, he has to choose what’s best for them both. And he’s not used to it.

Would You Fall In Love With Me Again? - EPIC/ Jorge Rivera-Herrans

It’s Once again Coalecroux coded. Kremy being Odysseus and Gid being Penelope.

Kremy is a bad person. Fundamentally. Even though he once upon a time he wasn’t. Gid loves him as he is and as he was. there’s no reason Kremy wouldn’t be his Kremy. No fey wild curse, no choice. nothing. Gid and Kremy are Odysseus and Penelope.

All My Ghosts - Lizzy McAlpine

It’s Coalecroux listen to the song

Slow it Down - Benson Boone

Gricko to Frost. It’s very optimistic and gives that Gricko although a goof and happy. Is very out of his element too. The angst is palpable but there is hope

[vxenfangs]

I've literally never thought of the fact that Mepad most likely knew that none of the contestants were real until today. Seeing that one shot during Karma Waits makes me believe that there is NO way he would ever think that Mephone's ocs 'conveniently' came to life or had a doppelgänger with the exact same traits and personality.

I find it weird, actually. How he still treated everyone with the same respect that he would to any real object, but maybe I would too if the only people I knew would be my brother, coworker and contestantsto take care of/clients for therapy. MAYBE Steve (ew) Cobs if I'm feeling generous. (although he didn't meet him until he was about to die.)

That brings me to the possibility that Mepad simply forgot that nobody was real except for himself, Toilet and Mephone. This is unlikely as although Mephone forgets, Mepad is a lot less animated and more robotic than him. Being a machine, there isn't much chance that he can unwillingly forget stuff. (if this is the case: it could be an issue with storage and memory.) Alternatively: There's a possibility that he might have cleared some of his memories like Mephone is seen doing in both episodes 13 and 14 of season 2.

On that note: Taco is seen to have done a bit more than shut him off and kidnapped him-- as wires are in fact exposed when he's seen in Taco's forest. This suggests that Mepad could've been jailbroken and the memory of Mephone showing him concept art and telling him about the contestants in Gemory Cave could've been lost.

He is quite polite-- quitting-your-only-job-available,-cutting-off-ties-with-your-older-brother-and-going-to-live-in-a-forest-with-someone-who-literally-kidnapped-you sort of polite. But again-- would he truly have done that if he knew nobody was a real being? To be fair, Mepad himself isn't much more of a 'real being' than they are.

After all, it's just a theory, a Mepad theory.

EDIT: FUCK FUCK FUCK I JUST REALIZED THAT HE WAS LITERALLY THE EQUIVALENT OF IN THE WOMB DURING THAT SHOT. ALL OF THIS IS CANCELLED WHAT THEBFUCK ISHOULDVE CHECKED NOO NO NO N OOO(pretend he wasnt shhhhh)

[shazzbaa]

A while back on my doodle of the Youthful Naturalist I got these tags from @interdimentionalsnapdragon...

...speculating that the Wheel of Fortune ending seemed most likely for Sam.

YOU'RE RIGHT, but not for the reasons you think! Puts a long ramble about Samuel's feelings under the cut (spoilers for The Shallows ES, Light Fingers, and some info from All Things Must End ES):

A thing Samuel really struggles with in Fallen London is that he is, at heart, pro-death, believing that people are at some point meant to cease to be. Despite his faith he never fully believed in Heaven -- it's a nice thought that he isn't opposed to, but he finds the idea of an eternal rest more comforting and is extremely distressed to find that this doesn't seem to exist down here; apparently our only options are two different flavours of Hell.

The idea of someone becoming a shameful deep-zee beast does not, in and of itself, seem wrong to him; not anymore. Samuel is close friends with the Rubbery Men. He helped to bring a human/moon-miser hybrid into the world and was terrifyingly aware he was breaking natural law to do it. He advised Dr. Vaughan to go to the roof and become Starved. He's a monster-hunter, no longer fully human, who dabbles in Red Science and diligently practices Shapeling Arts. He no longer believes that breaking natural laws is inherently sinful. BUT, the Hanged Man ending looks horrifying in every way! It's terrible for London, but it's also bad for the Naturalist. In Sam's view, the Naturalist doesn't successfully reject death; he's only running from death, forever. The Naturalist basically becomes the equivalent of a guy who's pissed off every guard in Skyrim and just keeps fighting them off -- sure, he can always get past unscathed, but he can also never interact normally with any town ever again. What's the point of a life like that?

The Hierophant ending was THE MOST TEMPTING, and one I can easily imagine Sam choosing. The Naturalist gets to just….. live life, something he hasn't done in a long time, and acceptance seems to make him genuinely happier in a way he never got to be when his whole existence revolved around this obsessive avoidance. I've seen a couple of people shudder at the loss of identity, but if the Naturalist truly ceased to exist, then as far as Sam's concerned he would be afforded the kindest death available to anyone in the Neath. Honestly, that's true either way -- either he has to ferry people forever, or he ceases to be, while the rest of us eventually suffer eternally on the Far Shore, begging for an escape.

The thing is, after the Shallows, Samuel genuinely did want the Boatman to receive a holiday. He'd even wondered whether it might be possible for him to someday go back and take over the boat again voluntarily; he doesn't consider this a terrible fate. But how can he, in good conscience, participate in this awful scheme to force someone else into that fate kicking and screaming? The fact that you can convince the Naturalist to accept it, and eventually that will make him happier, doesn't fix how messed up this whole scenario is (or how uneasy Samuel is about the Bishop's machinations). The Boatman gets to retire -- but at the cost of damning someone else to the same role he wanted so badly to escape. Whether the entity that the Naturalist becomes is still him or someone new, they are still doomed to a task they didn't want forever. It isn't a kind system.

So Samuel picked the path that breaks the system.

Sam doesn't dislike the idea of death, he just wants it to be kinder. Is the Naturalist the best person to be in charge of that? Frankly, probably not. But yknow, something something Esther 4:14.... back when Samuel was the Boatman, and someone asked to go to the Waswood instead, Samuel refused, frightened of the unknown consequences, and dutifully rowed them to the Far Shore. Perhaps he would make a different choice now, but he's certain the Youthful Naturalist would never blindly follow procedure like that; the Naturalist has the courage and (unlike Sam) cleverness to figure out where his loopholes are and what he can get away with. For all that this makes him very insufferable, Samuel recognises these are virtues, too. He's not a schemer like the Bishop of St Fiacre's, and he doesn't have any kind of grand plan..... but it's a step that might lead to changing things, to finding a better option, someday.

(still dodging world/setting/lore spoilers for now so gonna ask for no LORE ADDITIONS on this from sources not mentioned here, even if there's something Sam's wrong about! There's a lot he still doesn't know but I'm enjoying discovering stuff as I go for.)

[lukewarmwoodpecker]

Four corpsmen Pokémon au where they’re all rivals with each other.

I honestly don’t know what region would suit them best. I mean, somewhere that’s meant to be an America equivalent since they’re all American, but anything more specific? I don’t know, man. But I still have some thoughts about the location.

Guy either lives there or runs away and ends up there. Those are the only options for him (that I can currently think of) (but also, if he lives there, the abuse would have to be an important story arc. It’d get touched on no matter what since they’re kids, but running away could put it just a little bit more out of focus — could just be lightly implied, depending on tone. Every lantern has some variation of this, but I don’t really have the energy to delve into all of them). Hal should probably live nearby but also run away to join the Pokémon challenge, or at least hide the fact he’s joining the championship as best he can (his mom in this universe being against his competing, not bc of his dad dying due to Pokémon or smth [aka, his backstory w/ planes isn’t just replaced w/ Pokémon outright], just bc she finds it to dangerous overall). Only one person should actually live there long-term, so that means either John or Kyle would be a newcomer to whatever town or city this is in. Like, typical start of the story where they just moved in. Because of that, I’m kind of tempted to say Kyle just moved (if you want to make him the sole main character, which I’m a little split on), but I don’t really have too strong an opinion either way.

Every single one of them starts out as beginners (Hal + Guy + John are like, roughly the same age, think around 8th grade, 13/14, while Kyle is a year or two younger) (or age them up into high school age but keep the general age gap). And each of their ultimate plans? Become the Pokémon master. Except there can only be one.

Guy and John, over the course of the challenge, both eventually gain some other pursuit. They still compete as long as they can, but they lose in the semi-finals or something and are mostly content with it. They’d still complain and all, but ultimately neither is too upset. (Both would be salty as shit at first but get over it quickly. And also get over it together. That’s right. They’re best friends.) I’m sorta divided on what they should care about, though.

I can only imagine John getting interested in architecture, but that feels… I mean, in canon that’s great and all, but an au where he’s a teen?? It could work, but it’s a little funny to imagine. Going that route, he’d have a bunch of steel types and any Pokémon that looks like a building or other object to fill out his team. It’d work really well imo. Sorta introduces him to architecture, or at least motivates him to get even more into it.

And Guy? I don’t know. I could buy him setting out on a journey to catch every single Pokémon ever. Trying to become the best at that over fighting. Maybe sprinkle in Guy being sort of put off every time his Pokémon faints, more so than the average trainer (still with the usual Guy charm). Hell, maybe he and John plan a world tour for the two of them to explore their interests more (Guy to be able to catch everything, John to just look at a bunch of architecture around the world). Am I only saying that to push guyjohn propaganda? Yes. (Platonic or romantic, both are great.) Oh, and Guy should probably have a bunch of fire types. Fighting too. I can’t really think of what specifically would be best, but probably something in those lines. Maybe one Pokémon that’s a fairy type or something to demonstrate his heart, but only one.

So that leaves Hal and Kyle. These are the two that make it to the finals. In the end, they face each other. Who wins?

Well, honestly, it could be either. Both of them are definitely capable of winning imo, but both also have some idea of a life outside of just Pokémon battles. Kyle would be an artist (he brings a sketchbook along with him and every once in a while doodles something in that over their journey) and Hal would be a pilot. Or, I mean, a pilot-equivalent, at least. I’m not entirely sure if pokemon would have irl equivalents to test piloting. But there’s something for him at least. I think I’m leaning for Hal to win right now, but really, either Kyle or Hal winning works.

As for their teams: Hal is full of flying types, maybe a few dragons too. Kyle would have grass and fairy types. That’s just based on vibes though. Listen, I’m coming up with teams off the top of my head, they’re not that thought out.

And at the end of the day, they’re super close now and everything is great and something something found family or maybe some of them are dating idc, what matters is that they matter to each other. Hell yeah. The end. Or whatever.

Oh, and Alan shows up sometimes. He’s on old Pokémon master who went on to be a professor. More of a practical professor, though. Something with engineering… I can’t really think of anything concrete.

(Although that did give me an idea. Maybe John follows in Alan’s footsteps. He basically just gets an apprenticeship with Alan over winning the championship and he’s completely happy with that. Just a thought. Because both are focused on building stuff…-ish. I mean, engineering and architecture aren’t the same, but they do sorta go hand-in-hand. Maybe. Idk, I can’t say I know much about either.) (And then he and Guy go on a world tour so John can study a bunch of Pokémon and whatever…. Yeahhh…. That could work.)

[starry-sophrosyne]

KING OF SOPH VIDEO??

SOPHIST'S NEW VIDEO IS LEGIT JUST HIM AND BRENT PLAYING MARIO SUNSHINE CO OP TOGETHER (and from the comments ive seen, slandering nick and vern, mainly nick, the whole way through) CHAT WERE GETTING FED TN?? XD

ALSO IN THE FIRST MINUTE OF THE VIDEO SOPHIST COMPARES THE GAME TO IT TAKES TWO, A GAME ABOUT A DIVORCED COUPLE WHO WORK TOGETHER TO BREAK A CURSE AND REKINDLE THEIR LOVE IN THE PROCESS??? LIKE HELLO???

Immediately they're both menaces to both eachother AND the things in game bro, peak content, just to two gay dumbasses fucking around and pissing each other off while also matching each other's freaks /j

(im not normally this kind of person but entire video analysis under the cut lmao XD)

2:14 -- Them both agreeing to just make fun of nick and vern WHENEVER possible bro its been TWO MINUTES, them making eachother laugh too oh my god it makes me sick... sophist literally says they think the same damn things like they genuinely share one braincell-

3:15 -- the way sophist is SO ok with 100% the game just bc its with brent like god just say you want to spend more time with him that'd be less gay XD

7:31 -- them both making sus jokes, esp brent, just goes to show how much fun they have with each other that they make jokes that they would otherwise judge other ppl for making

10:19 - 10:51 -- them going in depth while planning on how to hate on nick specifically is just SENDINGGG me, they're so much more evil together and its so funny to see them be menaces together towards others

14:27 -- bro their wavelength is legit the exact same lmao, they dont even gaf abt the consequences and they both agree abt nick's spite lmao, i think it'd be so funny to see, in a party crashers vid, vern and nick ganging up on them together with the reason being this video lmao

15:31 -- just a funny moment lmao, plus the instant karma for sophist, it really says so much about their morals XD

17:10 -- him picking up brent's "for no extra pay" joke is SO cute, like between that and brent's recent brain rot, they really do just rub off on each other so much, this and 17:57 too, they cant even leave the editor alone XD

20:00 -- them both shitting on each other and for that matter, Brent using this nasally voice through out this video was both a jumpscare and SO fucking funny, he never uses that much satire/irony in his videos when it comes to mocking others (he doesnt really do it at all tbh) but this is the equivalent of nick going "uSe YoUr iTeMs VeRnIaS UsE yOuR ItEmS!!!" and i am SO here for it lmao he sounds hilarious

21:27 -- ah yes MORE karma and satire lmao, just sophist being salty and brent being flabbergasted by the bug lmao

23:58 -- just sophist genuinely being honest about brent and being happy that he gets to experience more of this game with him is so sweet, and then them both instantly dissing each other comparing them to enemies in game right after is so typical/funny XD

26:38 -- this reminds me of that one twitch clip where brent said how sophist has rubbed off on him so now his reaction to anything is literally just "among us" but also their dedication to this bit and them genuinely just being mindless bozos is so hilarious, they literally loose braincells together/they BOTH degrade in capability and we see active proof of this >ᗜ<

27:26 -- the cherry on top lmao, just a sus joke to end off the video (also brent when he told one of the other crashers to suck on his korean cock LMAO-)

genuinely EVERY single second of this video is either sophist being a menace and trying to throw, them making fun of one of the other party crashers, one of them making a statement that they both agree on, one of them making a jab at the other for their opposing beliefs/ability, a "its literally *insert a party crashers member*" joke, or something gay/sus like i CANT this video is too peak to me- XD

[bogos-bint3d]

In my idea of an AU where deltarune happens in undertale it'd be like. Ok so Frisk and Kris would be twin siblings I imagine because idk I usually see AUs with them in the same universe where Frisk is still a kid but I'm intruiged by the dynamic of them being the same age. So say pre undertale they're both in foster care they're going through a lot Frisk does undertale. They're like 11 at this point. End of undertale Frisk doesn't go with toriel cause they don't want to burden her or whatever + they were put in that position and they don't think they have the ability to remove themselves from it. So they stay. They eventually decide to live with Toriel because 1. they realise it'll benefit them and Kris and 2. they'd be closer to the city so it's easier for them to do ambassador stuff. At that point they're like 13 14 15? Time w/ out Toriel is mentioned because in that timed they'd meet Susie/Suzy (?) and they'd both become friends with her + leaving to be with toriel creates the initial tension between Kris & Susie at equivalent of the stuff that's implied pre ch1.

Ok so also not long after leaving the underground (they were still 11 here) Asriel is partially revived via 6 human souls. He's still Flowey really but he can be more "Asriel" if he wants. Like he can be in the form of Asriel but he doesn't do it often because it's rlly power draining. Also when he's Asriel he doesn't lose the flowey personality or anything, post revival he's like a combination of the two idk how to describe it. But him being alive is relevant to the deltarune plot.

Ok so assuming azzy is like 2, 3 years older than Frisk & Kris, the idea of a deltarune plot taking place in the undertale universe would have the twin humans at around 16 and Asriel in college. Frisk isn't too important but I like them in the picture. Susie moves to city they're in, same school and shit, there's tension because Kris left. Frisk hears about this roleplay club at their school and approaches the two separately and convinces them to try it out. Somehow. I'm still thinking about that part. But either way they both end up forced to take part in the club together. Other members of the club at the start are of course undertale universe versions of Ralsei & Lancer (because there are no dark worlds so they can't be darkners)

Ralsei would be a boss monster who recently moved to the area and was really fascinated by Asriel and based his whole personality around him. To the point where he's literally getting people to call him an anagram of Asriel's name (the others don't know that they just know it's a weird nickname). I don't know what his actual name would be. It's not relevant, he prefers the name Ralsei. But yeah anyway he thinks all the stuff Asriel did at the school was like really cool and being the only other boss monster he knows of he was a huge role model to him (they have never met).

I think I'd make Lancer a human. Maybee??? He's just there for fun. Anyway events of Ch1 take place via RP game (think dnd) and yeah thats all I really have so far. Feel free to ask more questions (please ask questions)

[mostlybuddingthoughts]

Me letting go of 2023 negativity looks like this: I, personally, did not enjoy how Madhouse's anime adaptation did the Ring Scene in Frieren.

Spoilers for episode 14 of the anime, and the equivalent manga chapters they were based from.

Fundamentally I think it comes down to this shot.

Himmel drops to one knee, and Frieren looks… Shocked? Surprised? Either way, it's a much more dramatic expression than I was expecting. Than the one I read in the manga.

Frieren constantly has this detached air in her flashbacks. We know this, and we know why: she hasn't yet realised that these people are important, and hasn't begun to make the conscious effort to learn about and open up to them.

So why does the anime choose to emphasise Frieren's expression? We should know Frieren's expression. In doing so, it seems to imply that it this expression is a deviation from the norm. That this affected her in a way beyond normal.

But it didn't. Like all other flashbacks, she never realised the beauty of it except in retrospect. Which is why I do think Frieren looking at the Ring after Himmel's death was an excellent addition by the anime.

(incidentally, I do like the subsequent shot of her face which DOES emphasise her confusion)

No, like all other flashbacks, this isn't necessarily about Frieren, but about Himmel. And above all other chapters, I think this chapter gave us a glimpse beneath Himmel's normal charisma. At the heartbreak he carries inside.

I think this panel single-handedly was the reason for why this chapter was the most popular chapter in recent polls.

This manga always has these smiles I love. People always say the characters only have one expression, but I don't think that's true.

The smiles all have such different feelings to them.

And this one is paiiinnnnn.

You can see how cruel he finds the situation. That Frieren would pick a gift so close to his desires whilst being entirely oblivious. His brow, raised just so, is an amused wince. His smile, so flat and drawn out, lingers in irony.

I've seen videos where people made the same comparison.

(if someone could help me find the video, I'll add a link. I've found YouTube's history to be very finicky, and I can't find it)

But despite the universe mocking him, Himmel puts it to the side. In the manga, I feel you can understand his intentions even more. To accept that Frieren doesn't understand, and probably won't ever reciprocate his intentions, but he can still indulge in the fantasy, selfishly, just for a bit.

I've always liked how Frieren looked here. Politely curious, I've described it to others before. She knows something is happening, but no idea what or why she should really care.

While this shot is fine, I do somehow feel the emphasis is once again going to Frieren. But again, I feel like this isn't about Frieren. Frieren is entirely passive in this scene (that's why it's paiiiinnn). It's about Himmel and what he chose to do with the ring, because it shows what he felt about it and her.

Anyway, the anime adaptation is beautiful and a 10/10, but I think this is the first time I've seen the anime stumbling in adapting its source material. A pity is was with the most popular manga chapter.

I could not be happier or more surprised that this anime is becoming so popular in the mainstream. No better successor to Fullmetal Alchemist at the top of MAL.

[maxdibert]

recently found ur acc and I agree with a lot of things (lol considering im a marauders fan/usually interact with snaters) i've always considered snape to be a v complex and well fleshed out character (i think alan rickman did wonders to jk's unpolished writing ngl, he was genuinely sm better in the movies because alan brought the depth to him that jk tried) and I only used to hate him when I was like 14-15. but i have to say, what makes you hate on lily sm (i get a hardcore snape fan would hate james, i dont because i recognize his flaws as what they are instead of making excuses for him)

but lily hate I genuinely dont get, like if we can praise snape for being a complex character why shame lily for being one as well? if you're gonna say its because lily is portrayed as a saint, I could argue that's what happens once one dies, people don't like to speak ill of the dead. that's what happened to severus as well, harry hated him all his life then he died and suddenly he was "the bravest man he ever knew."

i get that lily getting together with james is sad for sev but sev also basically bullied her by using a racial-slur equivalent for her? and we're told constantly james changed and grew anyways.

also i dont understand why a mother's sacrifice is downplayed because "shes supposed to do so"? it is equally heroic for a person to sacrifice themselves for someone else as it is for a mother to sacrifice herself for her child.

mothers are always put on this pedestal to be absolutely perfect but they ARE human beings and idk why we need to be told this in 2025 that it is extremely misogynistic to put women's and mother's efforts because "its their role"

anyways, my point is; when we can recognize severus as a grey character, what's wrong with recognizing lily as one (when shes honestly mostly good, was there for sev when no one was, only stopped after he verbally abused her infront of the whole school)

The root of the problem is not that Lily has flaws—every complex character should have them—but rather how the narrative presents her. It’s not about "Snape fans hating Lily because she chose James," but rather that the story forces us to see her as a saint, even when her actions are inconsistent with that image.

From a feminist perspective, the main issue with Lily’s portrayal is not just her lack of development but how her character is used to reinforce the myth of motherhood as the pinnacle of female virtue. Lily is not written as a complex person who makes decisions with nuanced consequences, but as an ideal: the "perfect woman" who is pure, good, just, and whose greatest achievement in life is being a mother and sacrificing herself for her child.

If we were allowed to see Lily with the same depth that male characters like Severus or even James are given, there would be no issue in recognizing that she had both virtues and flaws. But Rowling's narrative does not allow this. We are told that she was perfect—a loyal friend, a just person, incapable of doing anything wrong. However, in practice:

She is the most important person in Snape’s life for years, yet she abandons him without even attempting to understand his perspective after the "Mudblood" incident. It’s not that she wasn’t right to be hurt, but the break is drastic and absolute. She essentially demands that Severus put himself in her shoes, but she doesn’t even try to put herself in his. When he expresses his doubts about the Marauders, she implies that he is obsessive, tells him he should be grateful to his bully, and laughs at the state of his underwear. She knows Severus comes from a poor and abusive background, yet she engages in gaslighting and class shaming. Does this make her a bad person? No, but it does make us question whether she was truly the epitome of morality that the story sells us. And it would be great if the narrative highlighted these inconsistencies, but it doesn’t. Instead, it tells us that Lily is right in her judgments and that she has the right to be highly moralistic, even though she herself exhibits overwhelming double standards.

We are told that James changed, but we are never shown how and why Lily accepted him. We go from seeing her hate him to marrying him with no real transition, and the only explanation is "well, he matured." If a male character had such an abrupt arc, people would call it inconsistent, but in Lily’s case, we are supposed to accept it as normal—because women have traditionally been seen as maternal figures who exist to nurture and fix men. Because a woman’s task is to change and "fix" men. The narrative does not question what this great change in James actually was because simply having Lily choose him is considered enough. And it’s not. If you’ve spent years watching someone be abusive and violent, you don’t just wake up one day and decide that they’ve changed without any real reason. And besides, why should the burden of "fixing" a man or deciding whether he is good or bad fall on a woman? Why objectify women as moral compasses? If a woman chooses you, does that mean you’re good and have changed? Can women not have flaws and be morally questionable themselves—overlooking certain behaviors simply because they don’t care about them as much as they should from an ethical standpoint? Lily is not treated as a person; she is treated as an idol, an idea, a supreme entity. She is dehumanized.

Her sacrifice is presented as the ultimate demonstration of maternal love, but the story reinforces the idea that a mother must sacrifice herself as if that is her only form of heroism. It’s not just that any functional parent would be willing to die for their child because, on a purely biological level, there is an instinct to protect offspring for the survival of the species—it’s also that the narrative reinforces the idea that mothers, specifically, are the most elevated beings because their identity and individuality disappear once they have children. Tonks was Tonks—a character in her own right—but as soon as she gets with Lupin, she becomes an extension of him, and later, she is only defined by being a mother. Narcissa is "evil, evil, evil" until her role as a mother comes to the forefront, and then she is redeemed by the narrative. Molly Weasley is an obnoxious woman, but because she is a devoted mother to her seven children and nothing else, she is seen as the ultimate maternal figure in the saga. Lily is almost treated like a goddess for sacrificing herself for her child. And I ask—what exactly is exceptional about any of this? Isn’t the bare minimum we expect from a reasonably functional adult who chooses to bring life into the world actually taking care of that life? No, it’s not that women are obligated to be good mothers—it’s that J.K. Rowling is obsessed with motherhood and constantly implies that only through it can a woman attain absolute goodness. And I question that. I question whether being a mother is something extraordinary. I say that being a mother is a very normal, common thing, and that any mother or father would do the same as Lily—and if they didn’t, they’d be incredibly selfish people and terrible parents.

The fact that the story glorifies Lily’s death but barely mentions James’s in terms of sacrifice is a clear example of gender bias. James died fighting, but Lily died "as a mother," and that is why she is seen as more noble. Why? Is a father’s love any less valuable? No, but the narrative sells us the idea that a woman must sacrifice herself to be worthy of admiration.

This is a recurring problem in literature and film: mothers are "good" if they are self-sacrificing and devoted. They cannot be selfish, they cannot be ambiguous, they cannot make mistakes without being punished. If Lily had survived and raised Harry, would she have been just as revered? Probably not, because living mothers are judged, while dead mothers are turned into saints.

When the fandom (or even the canon) downplays the sacrifices of others but elevates Lily’s because "she was a mother," what is really being said is that women have no choice: they are no longer women—they are mothers, and the kind of mother they are determines whether they are worthy or not. That is why I like to demystify the idea that what she did was extraordinary—because it wasn’t. It was something any halfway decent mother would do, even if in her daily life she was a terrible person to everyone else. And I don’t like being sold the idea that Lily’s sacrifice excuses everything and makes her a moral and ethical reference point—because being a mother who loved her child does not mean she couldn’t have been an asshole. Women are three-dimensional and complete beings, not one-dimensional.

Recognizing Lily’s flaws is not hating her—it is giving her the same respect we give complex male characters. The problem is that Rowling does not treat her that way: she places Lily on a pedestal of unquestionable perfection and reduces her to just her motherhood. The fact that the story forces her to be a saint makes her actual character fade into the background, and that is both a narrative flaw and a reflection of how society treats women and mothers.

It’s not about "hating Lily" or saying that "her sacrifice was worthless"—it’s about questioning why the story tells us that this sacrifice is the only thing that defines her. If the narrative gave her the same depth as the other characters, this discussion wouldn’t even be necessary.