#Just for clarity's sake THIS IS NOT A REAL THEORY

[moongothic]

Counter-counter point: Oda tends to draw a LOT of little boys with VERY similar faces, so i think its notable that, as an adult (since Luffy is, also an adult) Crocodile seems to have the strongest resemblance to Luffy (although im fairly sure the ‘what if dragon is actually Garp’s son-in-law’ theory is dead)

-the entire existence of Sabo kind of puts a LOT on the table that Oda seems willing to do with Luffy’s backstory, conventional logic be damned

-i can 1000% believe that Dragon is sort of just a weirdo. Thought Luffy’s mom was special? Feels guilty leaving a kid with Garp? Just general ‘this kid is the one’ vibes?

-can you imagine how funny it would be to come out that Luffy and Vivi were half siblings the entire time?

Counter-counter-counterpoints:

Older Good-timeline Luffy does look a lot like Garp too

The Garp Genes can not be denied (also yes Luffy Age 40 does resemble Crocodile, he can resemble both at the same time (it's just the same face syndrome lmao)) (also also yeah I have discussed the "what if Dragon isn't Garp's son" thing in the past and how I don't believe in the theory, we can agree on that)

Honestly I don't have issues with Sabo's backstory/existence beyond how he feels almost like a replacement for Ace in the story as far as Luffy having a brother goes, but that has more to do with when and how he was introduced into the story along with how Ace was handled rather than the character's backstory itself

Okay to be fair Luffy does indeed have the Power to Draw In People's Faith etc etc, so Dragon could become oddly facinated by Baby Loof from that fact alone. And I do like the concept of Dragon being at least a little bit a loser but that's just me

Crocodile knocking up Alabasta's To-Be-Queen and then stealing the baby before Cobra ever met his to-be-wife would be a hysterical twist ngl

But you know what.

In the spirit of Absurdist Theory Crafting, I wish to one-up you with A Horrible Concept;

What if the Dragon we know isn't the "real" Monkey D. Dragon. What if Garp originally had ""a daughter"" instead, who hated the Marines and everything they stood for, who ran into some Freedom Fighter Guy and his Queer Bestie, transed his gender and switched identities/names with the Freedom Fighter Guy just to make sure Garp would never find the real him. "Crocodile" goes off to enjoy a life of piracy while "Dragon" now pretends to be Garp's new transgender son, and Garp is none the wiser (though oddly accepting of the trans part, just not the Freedom Fighter-ing). And the only other person who knows the truth is the Queer Bestie Ivankov. And NOW we re-introduce the "Dragon isn't Luffy's real dad" back into the mix, because yeah the Freedom Fighter Guy might not be Luffy's dad, but the real Dragon aka Crocodile IS! >8D

And that's how we get Luffy looking like Garp and Crocodile but not Dragon

[infernally-fond]

Orb of Infernal Envisioning - Unused Lines

I hadn't seen this mentioned prior - but there are some (to my knowledge) unused lines for the Orb of Infernal Envisioning in Helsik's shop for any interested.

Disclaimers, disclaimers -- if something doesn't make it into the final text of the published work, it's perfectly reasonable to ignore it for the sake of implications/theories that result from what is explicitly in the text/game itself.

This is just for fun. As is, you know, *all* of this. So.

If Raph's alive:

Narrator: *Your reflection looks back at you, smiling. As the skin burns and peels from its skull, the smile grows wider and wider and wider...*

Narrator: *The ball shows you a vision of yourself so lewd and blasphemous that your soul feels stained.*

Narrator: *Within the crystal, you see the devil Raphael sipping from a goblet of blood-red wine. He smiles as he catches your eye - can he see you?* [[the line we normally encounter]]

Narrator: *The image within the ball drifts through the corridors of an elegant house. Corpses hang from the walls.*

Narrator: *With the clarity of truth, you see an image of yourself laid out on a table like a suckling pig, ready for the carving.*

If you've been a Bad Client (TM):

Narrator: *You see the corridors of the House of Hope. Bloated flies buzz lazily around the corpses of imps and debtors.*

Narrator: *The ball replays the final moments of Raphael's life over and over and over and over...*

Narrator: *Within the ball you see Raphael, broken and bloody, dangling above the maw of the archdevil Mephistopheles who is preparing to devour him.* [[the line we normally encounter]]

Screenshot of the above:

I'm by no means a lore repository - no amount of hyperfixation can make digesting it en masse particularly easy for me. But! I'll tie my thoughts to this nonetheless.

First, we have our canon line: "...He smiles as he catches your eye - can he see you? *denotes: final phrase as incredulous and a little scared"

So we have the writers prompting us to at least entertain the idea that Raphael is placidly aware that you (or someone) is looking in on him - and he smiles! No big deal, favored client! Cheers to you, etc, etc. You're meant to be ill at ease here. I doubt any of us do - but, you're meant to. The average person would.

We'll block these out temporally because it was my first instinct to do so. :)

Past Events -

We have the play-by-play of Raphael's last moments. (GLaDOS voice: "You know, after you murdered me?")

To any player who would have seen this, this is real. Verifiable. The orb is showing you a true thing that happened, and you know because you were there. Doesn't get better than that.

Even if he doesn't ultimately die and there's some grand plot hitherto unseen, the beatdown replayed on the big screen is correct. You'd know if it wasn't.

Premise 1: The orb can show you accurately represented events.

Current 'Events' -

Example: Your reflection has a lab accident moment.

The use of reflection is critical to establish the point in time. You move to the left, it moves to the left. It's right now. And, right now, your skin seems to be melting off your face.

Unless there was an intended accompanied face-melted ending that would have accompanied this dropped line, this was written to be scary and provably false. Tav, touch your face. Exactly.

So:

Premise 2: The orb can show you grotesque illusions not bounded by fact.

Future Events

Ex 1: "*With the clarity of truth, you see an image of yourself laid out on a table like a suckling pig, ready for the carving."

'With the clarity of truth' is an obvious bid to double check any accusations of falsehood, and we're diligent enough to play along.

The only condition to checked to trigger this text is for Raphael to be alive -- regardless if you take his deal, go to his home, etc.

For all roads to lead to Player-Character-buffet seems unreasonable. Impossible, even. Unlawful. I'm calling a lawyer, hang on-

And so we hit a debate on how to interpret the sense of 'truth' you feel from the orb. I think this line reads best from the equivalence of failing some Wisdom check -- you are very sure it's true, but it's an Orb of Infernal Envisioning. Click again. You just saw your reflection melt.

So I think this is a lie.

So we expand Premise 2 a little.

Premise 2, v2: The orb can show you grotesque illusions not bounded by fact. This includes false visions of the future.

Ex. 2: The Blasphemy.

*The ball shows you a vision of yourself so lewd and blasphemous that your soul feels stained.*

Right.

So this has to be the future, because unless you are electing to do some very wild shit while looking into the orb, this is not the current situation.

There is a lot of vagueness here - but, I think that because it is so vague and any variety of Tav/Durge/Origin character can see it and have this response. This is a run-of-the-mill, customized vision of torment meant to get the desired reaction.

It's not about truth, it's not about warning. It's just the infernal variation of a jump scare.

If the content of the vision can be customizable in this fashion, it reveals something else - it's not a specific lie, a specific truth, or any quality of the content itself that 'matters' to the orb. No, what matters is the reaction. Your soul feels stained, doesn't matter how.

Varying Perspectives

Across these, we see the vision in the orb take the perspective of someone following/viewing Raphael (Wine-Snob-Hour, Looped-Death, Saturn-Moment), following/viewing you (Lab-Accident, Dead-Dove-Do-Not-Ohhh Yikes), some unanchored POV that isn't dead-phael ("You see the corridors of the House of Hope. Bloated flies buzz lazily around the corpses of imps and debtors.")

The visions mostly occur in the House of Hope; Cambion dinner is in Mephistar, your reflection is presumably in the Devil's Fee on the Material Plane.

We're not fixed to see any specific time, in any specific realm, to see any specific person. And we're not even guaranteed to see any specific degree of lie.

So what's the point of this fucking thing?

Provable fact is used one time across this set - the first thing we covered. You killed Raphael.

The only time the orb tells you the verifiable truth, it does so "over and over and over and over..."

Because it hurts you. Or, well, it's intended to.

That's it, that's the whole thing. The only time it evokes the (known) truth is when said truth torments you. Otherwise, it's scary what-ifs, cheap jump scares, and the corpses of imps and debtors you had a hand in creating.

All of this can be context to slightly reframe the vision of the moment before filicide with Mephistopheles. All of these visions are brief and so what one selects to provide details of is very revealing.

In this vision you're granted two adjectives:

You see Raphael, broken and bloody, about to die again.

If we stick to the expanded interpretation that the orb shows only what will get the desired reaction, this isn't narrative to resolve a loose thread. It's not closure. It's shown because the orb manifests what is expected to make you suffer - or at least take pause and sort of steep in the disquiet of the consequences for a moment.

Reaching waaaay across the narrative and very out of my lane for this post, so much of the tone in the HoH arc is campy humor, but I don't think this was meant to be.

The specific call out to watching him die 'over and over and over and over', to his 'broken and bloody' form is not flippant language. It's certainly not campy.

I think the tonal shift for this conclusion (while pretty jarring, I gotta admit) is meant to be pretty somber for Raph.

But many players have just bounced down the sequence of "lol he's a bottom" to "Haarlep said that's twice as long as-" to "omg he sings his own song" to victory and, then -- "wtf someone's eating him?"

It's an odd pivot. People have to be primed for sympathy, and I certainly didn't read the writing for the orb as intending to pull at something uncomfortable in the player post-HoH when put in context with the high-score-streak of chamberpot-humor. I can only back into that interpretation when looking at the full set of narration the orb was set to provide at some point.

Kinda wild.

[orfisheus]

An elaborate thoughtpiece on the recent state of EW

With the recent Youtooz announcement, I've been having a lot of thoughts regarding Eddsworld and the rumors about them returning Tord back to EW canon, so consider this a dump?? (For clarity's sake, the IRL people will be referred with their name and last initial. :])

I'd like to preface this by stating that I wouldn't mind the character coming back, as long as there's consent with Tord L. I'd assume that they would do this with the full intent of respecting his boundaries, so I'll give that the benefit of the doubt.

My issue, however, comes with HOW they're doing it. We are all aware that they've been teasing the episode, first with their post teasing their scriptwriting, and then Matt H. on Twitter confirming something big is coming with whatever they're working on next. Along with the YouTooz release and the removal of the Tord FAQ, it's very likely that this is what they're teasing. And yeah, that's fairly big news. The return of a fan favorite character who had a major impact on the plot? That would shift the current trajectory of their presentation and of the fandom. But, in regards to the fandom, they're aware he's a fan favorite. Want a quick buck? Be it for a charity or for themselves, he's the perfect tool to weaponize. Especially with a prevalent neurodivergent population in the fandom, he's especially easy to use. These fans will be dedicated, and they will buy it. I've seen multiple people say that they would for this sole reason. In no way is this a jab at any neurodivergent folks. I hope y'all enjoy your figurine. I would too. However, it ties into my next point. The dedicated fanbase that Eddsworld has isn't all too dedicated to the actual episodes. Look at content creators on tumblr. A majority have created their own elaborate AUs or headcanons so estranged from the own canon that the real canon holds little value. As each episode comes out, it will gain minute traction, only to swiftly be buried in the sea of fan-derivative content. I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't aware of this. In their comment sections on Instagram, oftentimes people will post GIFS of older episodes. Nothing to say about current content. Just GIFs. There's no drive for people to consume this media outside of their already preestablished footholds. So, how can people say something? How to bring in the quiet masses? Give them what they want. Give them Tord.

I made a theory a few days back with my friends. If a piece of media's lore has people begging for more, you'll likely see more AUs, more explorations of the characters outside of canon. I've seen this frequently when shows were coming out. The Owl House, for example, had budding fan theories and prevalent fan works and creators, such as moringmark, who played with fan theories as the show came out, exploring the potential the narrative had. However, by the time it ended, and the story was satisfactorily brought to its conclusion, this content diminished. Audience members felt fulfilled. When people aren't fulfilled, they ask for more. They make more. In this vein lies Miraculous Ladybug, a show known for egregious writing, to the point where content creators have basically transformed the entire show, disregarding a lot of the lore and establishing their own. Unfortuantely, with Eddsworld's current trajectory, the trend of AUs and headcanons feels more aligned with the latter rather than the former.

Another issue that's been plaguing my mind is narratively how his return would work. From the fandom, I've seen a few conflicting perspectives. Some people enjoy him as a villain/antagonist, whilst others prefer him as a member of the main crew. It would be impossible to satisfy both sides. Do they regard The End or not? And if so, how would they treat his facial scars and potential amputation? Ableism has been a plaguing issue in this fandom, and it makes me weary to see it potentially play out in the biggest form of media that Eddsworld uses. And I don't think people would be 100% okay if it was ignored, either. It's an extremely strange gray area where, no matter what, the consequence will be that someone will end up disappointed. To pull it off, they'd need a much more stable foundation and reputation. By the way the last few episodes have gone, I'm not too confident that they do.

After all, they've used this big episode so far to address a few criticisms I've seen for previous episodes. Aside from Tord's presence, they've teased the episode, which many had previously criticized Matt H. for his lack of transparency with the fandom upon production. The same goes with making it a sort of big episode. Beyond's episodes so far have been tamer and less narratively focused in comparison to later Classic and Legacy. That isn't a bad thing, but it's a major tonal shift that has felt awkward. Going back suddenly to the old formulas of narrative also feels a bit strange. The new narrative hasn't had success, sure, but every new creator will always have things to improve upon. Using what made Classic and Legacy successful in an era more focused on simpler narratives makes it seem like the showrunners don't know how to run in their own shoes, so they need to use someone else's to be successful. Here's the thing, you don't gain merit from being derivative, you gain it from making your own stuff work. Beyond wants to focus more on comedy than storytelling? That's great! That's what I've felt like those episodes were focusing on. Improving in that department will help overall. But changing something entirely because it wasn't working feels less confident, less focused on growth, and more on personal achievement. Especially when they have to use a fan-favorite character to get there. They couldn't make it on their own, so use what they know the people love.

I was discussing a book in one of my classes earlier, White Noise, when my teacher brought up how he wants us to constantly be aware of our society after reading this book, and how consumer culture greatly impacts our day to day lives. That's what the author wanted his readers to get out of it. Awareness. Every good work comes with a goal. What is Eddsworld Beyond's goal? What do they get out of bringing Tord back?

To me, it's the epitome of the current state of the entertainment industry. In Hollywood, where the animation corporations don't trust risk or exploration, they remake the old movies or produce soulless sequels. Kung Fu Panda 4, Megamind's sequel, every single live action Disney remake. And yet movies that take risks, like Strange World, no matter the quality, are shoved aside with little marketing. Cash grabs are easy ways to garner attention. They ensure profit. But they never garner the same soul as the original. To me, at least, the showrunners feel less confident in their own works because they've garnered little success from the 3 major episodes they've released so far, not including the shorts. Compared to Legacy and Classic, current Eddsworld has had nothing to say and very little gains from it. Legacy is a bit of a stretch for a standard, but it is a standard previously set by the show. This inflation is something so hard to achieve when a majority of fans have moved on, so I can't entirely blame them for potentially wanting to achieve this same success. It's just an empty way to do it.

I want to see this show succeed. I have a lot of love for it. I know there's a lot of love being put into it by the crew, and in no way do I want this to discredit their work. I see it as a current work in progress that's working out its kinks to reach its true potential. I just don't believe using the character of Tord is the right way to improve and garner traction. This is more of a critique on the writing and overall direction. Please understand this. I hope that, in the future, stuff starts going right for Beyond. Someday it'll succeed. But potentially using, for the lack of a better word, cheap tricks in order to obtain this is not the way to go as a creator.

Feel free to share your own thoughts. I'd love to hear what y'all have to say. And feel free to give helpful critiques as well! I'd love to make more elaborate writing pieces like this, so anything helps! Thank you, and farewell.

[thinkin-bout-milgram]

Hello! If it’s okay, I’d like to know your thoughts on the Trikoto theory (3+ alters). I think it’s a cool theory! And pretty likely, honestly. (Here’s a document about it in case you don’t know what I’m talking about. I didn’t make it, and I unfortunately don’t know who did, I just found it in another blog)(I really hope that link works lol)

Hey FF! I was wondering when you might send something in. Not the topic I expected, but I'm here for it!

I've definitely heard of this theory before. I can't say I know for sure where it originated, but I've always been under the impression that a blog called @bertrandcaillet started it as they're the first one I saw talk about that theory and they told me about it a while ago. They've since deactivated, though, so I can't really check with them to see if that's true.

I think the trikoto theory is interesting, and I fully agree with what's said on the document about how it would be nice if Milgram is showing a system with more nuance than just having two alters.

That being said, I personally don't believe this theory for a number of reasons. I'm going to do my best to explain why here. I do want to say going into this that while I do have extremely minimal psychology teaching (as in, undergrad psyc MINOR), I do not claim to be that educated on DID or similar struggles. So, anything that I say will be focusing much more on Milgram as a piece of media from a writing standpoint, because that's what I have much more extensive experience in.

I will say that I am very aware that most systems have more than 2 alters. That being said, I think I also remember from my psyc class that the average number is, like... 16? I'm not at my dorm right now and that's where my notes are, so I can't check, but I remember specifically thinking about it in the context of Mikoto and trikoto theory, so I'm pretty confident it's Above Three. That means that either way, it's not like we're doing The Most Common Number, so I think two versus three is largely irrelevant on that point.

For the sake of clarity, I'll be using the names in the doc (Akakoto, Midokoto, Aokoto), but I only personally believe that two of them (Akakoto, Aokoto) exist. I've taken to calling them Orekoto and Bokuto, but for this post, Akakoto and Aokoto it is.

At its base, my problem with trikoto theory is that I don't see a lot of evidence for it. Most of what I've seen has been talking about the implications of it if you assume it's true, but I've just never really been convinced in the first place. I'll just go through some of the main reasonings real quick:

The RGB Colors

I do acknowledge that I'm very much not a visually oriented person, so the color shifting is something I'm less inclined to notice. However, while the background of the room is blue and the train station and apartment are pretty green, I don't feel like there are ever really any red backgrounds (other than when the headspace becomes red as ooposed to blue). Because of that, I have a hard time believing that the backgrounds themselves contribute to the idea that there are three. I definitely think the red/blue coloration in the eyes and such are indicating different alters, but I don't think that specific fact supports there being three of them.

The Voice Changes

This might be a me issue, but I only really hear two different vocal inflections. I understand the point about there being some harsher (?) sounding vocals that don't have the growl, but personally, I still think the tone matches the one described as Akakoto enough to count. Similarly, the parts towards the end that are picked out for Midokoto ("I'm probably not to blame," etc.) actually sound more like Aokoto to me even if I do try to track the three voices.

I'm hesitant to go too hard in believing the different voices because to me, doing so would severely limit the amount of control Natsuki Hanae would have over the emotions he wants to put into the song. The vocalists in Milgram do a fantastic job at using specific vocal intonations to convey deep layers of emotions in their songs. I feel like it would be very limiting to only be able to use certain vocal effects (ex. growl) in specific places due to the limitations of the characters. If there are two, the two voices are far more separate, which gives more space for customization within the bounds of each voice.

This is also a little bit iffier on evidence, but there's the Es cover of MeMe. I don't know how much Yurina Amami knows about Mikoto's story and the entire video is in grayscale, so take all of this with a grain of salt, but to me, I feel like Es uses two voices here, not three. Notably, they even have a bit of vocal growl on the "switch" and on "split and half, make that heart beat," which are both squarely in the Midokoto tone. They do still have the two voice split, sounding a bit more apathetic and aggressive in the Akakoto parts and cuter in the Aokoto parts. To me, that signifies that there's suppose to be two voices going on, not three, but you could argue that that's just Es' perception of Mikoto, so it's not decisive or anything.

Mikoto Fighting Es

Yes, in his first audio drama, Mikoto is able to beat Es up until Kotoko stops him. Yes, that's inconsistent from what we've seen from Futa and also t2 Amane. I agree that that's because the Milgram rules only apply to one or more alters, and thus any others that may exist can get around the rulings. We saw this between trials, too, with how Mikoto (seemingly Akakoto at the time) was able to avoid being restrained despite his guilty verdict, likely through the same loophole.

(Side note: this implies to me that Milgram's system for restraining guilty prisoners is, like the protective barrier around Es, somewhat magical and isn't a physical thing. Thus, if we were to, say, vote Amane as guilty, I am fairly confident she would be unable to harm any other prisoners, as we've already seen the barriers are able to prevent her from attacking others. I still lean Amane innocent anyways, but I wanted to point this out.)

Anyways, I don't think that this is actually evidence towards trikoto theory because it works perfectly fine with just the two of them. Aokoto is the prisoner in Milgram and Akakoto isn't. This doesn't necessarily mean that Aokoto is the one who was fronting while the murder happened, though; the rules of Milgram just necessitate that the prisoner is involved in/related to a death. It can be indirect.

I think that that's exactly what Milgram is asking us with Mikoto. The question is, how do you fairly hold a system accountable? Can you blame one alter for the other's actions?

Milgram loves to complicate these, and I can see the appeal of a complication being learning about a third alter. Personally, I think it's much more likely that the route Milgram is taking is looking at how much knowledge the alters have about each other and asking how much Aokoto would have to know to make him an accessory to Akakoto's murder plans. It could go either way, though.

Some Bonus Points

I think the strongest piece of evidence brought up is the use of threes in Mikoto's design. Other than "they just liked it aesthetically," there isn't much of a counterargument I can make about it. My best one would be that they might be going for a "switching between black and white" type of thing, which would work better with more stripes, but that's pretty weak. I also had the idea that the first character of his name looks like three stripes, which might be a better or worse explanation! You get to decide, I have no idea.

The cake sells me less, though. It's true that Kazui's is a perfect 50/50 and that Mikoto's isn't, but that's because they're representing different things.

Kazui's is half and half because his song is called half, and it could also be a sign of how he and his wife didn't actually connect more in a marriage sense; they're still two fully separate people rather than being a unit.

Mikoto, if he has two alters, is still physically one guy. Mikoto is mostly sitting on the flower designs. I'd argue that the flowers are meant to show Mikoto as a whole: the connection point of the two alters.

That's pretty much all of what I have to say on the doc (in terms of the trikoto aspect, whether I believe it or not there's some good work done in character/lyric analysis that applies to two or three alter theories), but I'll go over some of my reason for why I actively believe there to be two, because there are some reasons.

Reason 1: The Song Titles

The doc explains what the meaning of MeMe is in trikoto theory, but it definitely still works with two, more obviously so. That's not evidence, though, because the trikoto theory has a viable explanation too.

I have no idea what they'd be doing with the song title Double, though. I guess it would be a play on somebody being someone else's double, meaning they're someone like them, which is no doubt part of the song title either way, but I think it's difficult to ignore the meaning of Double that means, y'know... multiplied by 2, or:

But that could very easily be a diversion and we haven't seen the second video, so I'd let that slide. However, that brings me to the bigger problem:

Reason 2: Upright Versus Reversed

AKA, the tarot cards.

Tarot cards can be read two ways, Upright or Reversed, based on the orientation of the card when it's placed/picked up/whatever. I already went over in my original theory (which is pretty outdated, I could do a way better job but I wrote that one literally first out of my milgram thoeries and I hated not having a good name scheme for the various alters) why I believe Akakoto to be the Hanged Man (Upright) and why I believe Aokoto to be the Hanged Man (Reversed).

I struggle to imagine why the devs would pick tarot, something that clearly has two meanings to it, when there are actually three alters. Maybe it'd just be to throw us off the scent, but it feels a bit too intentional to me.

Plus, if it was meant to throw us off, I'd expect we'd get a different metaphor/symbol for the second MV (as we have been with pretty much everyone). However, the association between Mikoto and "reversible" things has continued into trial 2, even before his MV has come up.

I say this because of his trial 2 cover song: Reversible Campaign. Funnily enough, I actually thought this song would go to Kazui before it was announced as Mikoto's, but then I looked again and understood why they wanted it for Mikoto.

My thoughts get confused and fight with each other

Very Mikoto, works for either two or three alter theories. However:

I just want to waver between black and white

It's turned me upside down

There's more that seems to paint Mikoto's mind as a dichotomy, not a... trichotomy? Is that a word? I don't actually know.

The Song Lyrics of MeMe

This is sort of an extension of the above part, but there are also definitely song lyrics in MeMe that sound like they're heavily implying two. Again, you could argue that that's trying to throw us off the scent, but some of them are, in my opinion, actively difficult to justify for trikoto theory.

Split in half, Make that heart beat

I cannot for the life of me understand why any of the three alters would say "split in half" if there are three. I guess if any of them were aware of one of the other alters, but not the other? I don't think that's what was being argued, though, sorry if I missed that.

I’m already the fake one

Little harder to argue this one because I don't know how definite versus indefinite articles work in Japanese, but saying the fake one really sounds to me like there is one fake and one real. If you were just having a moment of existential crisis, in most situations, I think you'd opt for "I'm already fake."

The Mirror

This is sort of the same argument as the tarot cards, but there's also the use of mirror imagery in Mikoto's MeMe MV. Mirrors have two sides and are a reflection. You could use Haruka logic and say that it depicts self reflection, I guess, but considering the reflection acts differently, I think it's much more likely that this is meant to show the two alters.

Conclusion

Hopefully this all made sense? I respect trikoto theory and I could easily be super wrong about it (see also: my original opinions on gay Kazui theory and police Kazui theory), but I've just never really been sold. It's possible my opinion would change if I saw evidence that I felt worked better for trikoto than... twokoto? theory, but personally, I feel like most evidence I've seen for it is still better explained by there being two alters. Let me know what you think, though :)

[secret-diary-of-an-fa]

Doctor Who: 73 Yards Review. Short Version: WHAT?

So, this review’s late because there’s not a lot to actually say about 73 Yards. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not a bad episode, per se, but it definitely had a certain filler-y quality to it. The Doctor steps on a witchy string thing and vanishes because of supernatural nonsense, leaving Ruby to deal with a creepy woman in black who’s always exactly 73 yards away from her: a sort of manifestation bound to her at a set distance. Other people can approach the woman, but if they speak to her, she tells them something and they run away in terror, after which point they refuse to even speak to Ruby again, meaning she can’t get any useful information on the spectre or entity or whatever-the-fuck-she-is. And, to be honest, it’s all pretty effective and spooky: a good premise for a horror story that works well for as long as its happening. The problem is that there’s very little substance under the hood.

Oh, there’s some chaff about a psychotic Prime Minister planning to start a nuclear war, which Ruby has to fix by positioning herself 73 yards from the fellow so her mysterious stalker will appear besides him and terrify him into resigning from office. I’m not even sure that counts as a spoiler because it just kinda happens and then the episode continues to putter along, following the course of Ruby’s life as she tries to live without the Doctor and with her creepy shadow. Almost as though none of it mattered even slightly.

At the end of the episode, we finally get an explanation for the woman in black. See, it turns out it was Ruby herself all along! That is to say, when Ruby’s an old woman and on her death bed, the entity touches her and she becomes the entity, sent back in time to the moment she first appeared- or rather, just a few seconds earlier- so she can fix the timeline and stop the Doctor stepping on the witchy thing. As explanations go, it’s very Who-ish: a riff on classic sci-fi tropes with a twist. But, er, it doesn’t seem to match with what we know about the Mysterious Woman (fuck it, I’m just going to start using capitals for the sake of clarity, even if they were, in no sense, earned). I mean, why would Ruby’s older self scare away everyone Ruby knows and loves, alienating her and preventing her from living her life with any kind of support network? Also, how? I mean, Ruby’s old as balls by the end of this decade-spanning episode, but she’s not an eldritch, Lovecraftian horror. Sure, she’s probably seen some shit, but she doesn’t know any deep, dark cosmic secrets that would send everyone around her running for the hills. She’s just a nice old lady whose come in stuck in time, Slaughterhouse 5-stylee. The explanation we’re ultimately given therefore feels like it’s for a completely different set of events to the ones we saw. I’d have been fine with the Mysterious Woman being left completely unexplained, like the thing in the David Tennant episode Midnight (in which the best we get is vague theories and reckons from the tormented characters), and I’d have been equally fine with a full, satisfying explanation. This ‘explanation that doesn’t make sense’ thing… yeah, I’m not pleased. It feels like an attempt to resolve the episode while deliberately laying down a mystery at the same time, but it’s a slapdash way of doing it; an ill-fated compromise between true unknowability and a real resolution. I wasn’t a fan.

Another minor complaint: what does this episode have against the Welsh? When Ruby first realises she’s being stalked by the Mysterious Woman, she flees to a little Welsh pub and the locals use it as a chance to mock her relentlessly. They act like their steeped in the supernatural and don’t know about banking apps (for some reason), and then accuse Ruby of racism when she takes them at face value and believes them. They refuse to take the fact she has a potentially dangerous stalker seriously and diminish the validity of her dread at every turn, offering no help whatsoever. Later, the evil Prime Minister is also from Wales. Er, what? Why is every Welsh person in this episode an irredeemable cunt? I’ve been to Wales. Broadly speaking, the people are pretty nice, if a natz more sarcastic than the UK average. I don’t get what 73 Yards’ damage is.

So yeah: that’s the episode. A spooky story undermined by its own explanation and inexplicable anti-Welsh racism. Go figure. On the plus side, the upcoming instalment promises a scathing critique of social media and giant slugs, so that ought to be good for a laugh.

EDIT: someone just replied to point out that Russel T. Davies is, himself, Welsh. For those of you who don't read the comments, I figured I'd add this edit-y bit. I mean, I don't know if it contextualises the show's weirdly hostile portrayal of Wales or just makes it more baffling, but it seems like important information for an unbiased reviewer to provide and an informed reader to have. So there ya go. RTD is Welsh and this episode, written by RTD, portrays the Welsh as unreasonable nutters. Make of that what you will.

[8bitsupervillain]

Higurashi When They Cry Hou Ch. 5 Meakashi pt. 15

For no reason in particular I want to link this: https://8bitsupervillain.tumblr.com/post/756419966857838592/higurashi-when-they-cry-hou-ch-5-meakashi-pt-5

I've tried to foretell when TIPS documents end so I can get a decent screenshot of the logs so there's not too much repetition with lines of dialogue. I've kind of given up. It'll just go from one to the next without any real warning.

The idea that each of the three Families has their own ritual storehouse is kind of funny to me. Especially the apparent attention to detail of how well kept each one is. "We can't use the Furude ritual storehouse, have you seen the shape it's in? Let's go to a nice one, like the Sonozaki one." "Why not the Kimiyoshi one?" "Come on man, you know that one's a dive." Although I do like the implication that each family in the past was obligated to host their own sacrifice, like they alternate each year. Although typing that I suddenly had the idea that each one having their own ritual storehouse implied that each family was obligated to actually make their own sacrifice each year at their own storehouse. What if the sacrifices/disappearances we're told about are only the ones that are actually known about, and there's actually six, minimum going on every year?

For clarity sake: Notebook Page 173 starts with "The sanctity of the ritual storehouse..." Notebook Page 179 starts with: "The reason Takano-san and Tomitake-san were cursed..." It does raise an interesting question, if Takano and Tomitake didn't break in to the storehouse would they still have been sacrificed? I assume that even though it wasn't mentioned that's why they died in chapter One: Onikakushi.

It's an interesting turn of phrase here, the use of alter ego. I think it's interesting that she's now starting to view her "demon possession" as simply letting another aspect of her personality take over. Especially considering that at no point prior to this did she ever give the impression that she harbored any sort of alternate self inside her.

When they mention making Oyashiro angry the faint sound of the bells happens. It is downright amazing the information network Oryou Sonozaki seems to have running all throughout Hinamizawa. She seems to found out very quickly when literally anything happens, which makes me curious about the apparent holes in the information network. I can only assume that they already know that the other two who broke into the storehouse are Shion and Keiichi. Is it merely sentimentality from Mion that's stopping them from getting them? Because I get the impression that Oryou wouldn't really have issues with just making Shion and Keiichi disappear.

I know that given recent events she's probably not thinking straight (the drinking probably didn't help either), but she should really piece together the phantom footsteps have been happening for at least multiple days before now. Of course, when you think about the curse as described so far it doesn't really explain away why the curse would target Shion. I don't have any theories as to why it would do it, but the description of the nature of the curse has been affecting Shion for longer than the break-in.

Soulless probably isn't a good descriptor for this look, but I love it when the game deploys it. That piercing gaze has just been amazingly effective every time they use it.

Wuh oh Shion.

[plagued-melodies]

A hodgepodge of Genshin theories that all connect sort of lol: Genshin Impact

Me and my mother were talking and we noticed a lot of strange parallels throughout EVERYTHING in the recent Archon Quests (this is just our theory, people might have talked about it before, sorry if there are any inconsistencies.)

SPOILERS FOR LITERALLY EVERYTHING in Genshin so far!!! Obviously

please know, this is probably incorrect, just some funny little ramblings

Sumeru was ALL about cloning one's self, Dottore and his clones, Ei and Scaramouche, and Rukkhadevata and Nahida. It's in this quest we learn about our sibling being recorded in Irmunsul, essentially telling us she is not a descender. What if the sibling we're chasing... isn't our sibling?

At first, we thought that maybe Khaenri'ah had cloned us and convinced us through their technology (which would later inspire the Samsara technology the Academia would use) that we had a sibling. But there isn't much as of late to corroborate that that's entirely the case. With this recent quest, it's making usthink, what if we weren't the one cloned... but our sibling...

(I will be using Aether as the traveler in this post and Lumine as the Abyss Sibling for pictures for the sake of using official trailers and screenshots and for clarity but will still neutrally refer to them)

The abyss sibling here seems so... detached. They ask more about Dain than the sibling who is willing to travel to the ends of Teyvat to look for them?? it feels super one-sided to me like we're super concerned and emotional and she's just like "damn bro sorry, ttyl :/"

But like- this sibling in this trailer looks attached. they're emotional, they look shocked, and they look excited to see us. Yes, they talk similarly to the sibling from the quest, but their eyes are more open, they look like they recognize us, the traveler.

Why are they so emotional when watching us from afar, but when we come face to face for the first time in 500 years.... they're detached?

Well... we think the sibling is a clone, at least the sibling we meet is. I find it VERY weird that in the quest that we discover that our sibling isn't a descender, JUST SO HAPPENS to be a quest ALL ABOUT CLONES. Specifically, cloning one's self.

Either a: they are a clone of the original sibling so that they can be watched and monitored by the heavenly principals and throw them off while the real abyss sibling works in the background... or a more unfortunate alternative... A clone of our traveler. Khaenri'ah is confirmed to be underground deep beneath Sumeru, perhaps this technologically advanced civilization had wanted to create their own descender and tried to siphon off the traveler's power which then pried open the abyss and caused the cataclysm, and in order to keep the traveler in Teyvat, they planted false memories of them and their sibling (a bit of a stretch, i know, but we've had instances of there being mind altering technology in Teyvat but I understand why it may be a stretch) so that when the sustainer took the one she recognized as being "a part of this world", traveler would stay in Teyvat. Again, its all a huge stretch but i think it could be a route they may go down especially with the abyss quest coming up for Fontaine here soon.

Some people think the abyss sibling is the third descender, but I don't think thats the case. We learn that the third descender was the one who created the Gnosis (plural??? how to make this word plural please???) from their body in the Fontaine Archon Quest

What character do we run into that has no body? and is more than likely not a part of Irmunsul? Irmunsul seems to be the standard on if someone is a part of this world, thus we can use this information to narrow down potential suspects...

Mage "N", a member of the Hexenzirkel, I believe is a possible candidate

We run into this character in THE VERY SAME QUEST where we learn about the third descender's fate. The reason why the descender would possibly have no body yet be a voice is- they don't belong to this world. What happens to the spirit if they aren't able to be recorded in Irmunsul but lose their body? If they cant be recorded by Irmunsul and the leylines, can they move on to the afterlife that is possibly powered by Irmunsul? I would reckon not.

well, the Ley Lines are what records the memories of Teyvat, hence why we get ghosts and manifestations of the dead, it's just the leylines, which are branches of Irmunsul. I can't 100% guarantee how the afterlife works in Teyvat, we only really get some details in Hu Tao's story quest, there is a purgatory but it seems like Purgatory is that pretty dreamlike space before they move on. We aren't really given much information on whether someone can leave purgatory into Teyavt (let me know if this is false, it's been a cool minute since I did her story quest)

But even so, even if someone could leave purgatory, she still manipulates the world around her (pouring herself some tea) and seems to remember events denizens of Teyvat SHOULD NOT remember, essentially spoonfeeding us the truth after Wanderer's quest.

This is what tells us that the events still happened. History didn't actually change, just how it was perceived was changed. (at least from how I interpreted it)

This could easily be explained by the fact that she is simply powerful in her own right but I don't know. Even the GODS were affected, something like this is simply too powerful to write off as coincidental especially since the only peoplewe know that are confirmed to remember is Wanderer (due to Nahida's interference and planning) and Traveler who can only remember due to him being a descender and not apart of Irmunsul.

But it's still so weird to me that WE NEVER USE THIS EVIDENCE in the trial she is introduced in this manner. Never once IN THE ENTIRE trial do we use this. AND YET, once again, what is the biggest piece of information we learn about the third descender within the very same storyline?

That the third descender's remains were used to make the gnosis

(again??? how to make the word Gnosis plural? is it like goose and geese? Gnoseese??)

Mage "N" is a being without a body, able to manipulate the world around her, and has knowledge about the world that the only other descender seems to know. She's also a huge part of the Circle of Witches who seems to be untouchable, even to the Celestial Principals.

Rhinedottir, a member of this group, created several (dangerous) forms of life (Durin and Albedo, who fears he will destroy Mondstadt one day) and was not punished like Focalors was for doing the exact same thing with NON DANGEROUS BEINGS.

How can a GOD not get the Heavenly Principals permission to create these humans in a benevolent manner, but Rhinedottir, who has several creations BEING DANGEROUS, not get any known reprucussions? (I'm only assuming since she created Durin, then went on to create Primordial Albedo and is... somewhere???) SHE ALSO (at least according to the Wiki, please correct me if im wrong) CREATED THE RIFTWOLVES! THAT BITCH. She may have the curse of immortality like Dain but Dain was just a guard captain, Rhinedottir created monsters that terrorized Teyvat AND WENT ON TO CREATE MORE! Why would her punishment be the same as Dain's???

This leads me to believe that this group of ladies, the Hexenzirkel, has close ties with a descender or Celestia in some form

This can also explain why the Fatui want the Gnosis of the seven nations so badly. If the Hexenzirkel really is as untouchable and powerful we think, then maybe they're trying to rebuild the third descender. If so, and if Mage "N" really is the third descender, then this group of witches who seem to be above to laws of Teyvat, would more than likely be on very good terms with the fatui if they accomplish this, why would they want this? who knows. Maybe to overthrow Celestia, who can say right now?

[stankrhodes]

Secret Invasion Ep. 4 Spoilers

As a Rhodey stan... i have a couple words and no words at the same time.

I think a lot of people online and in online MCU communities were mystified by the idea of someone [and that someone being Rhodey] being a Skrull that they failed to consider the implications of such a decision? and that generalization is itself one i'm not too confident in making but i find it to be the case nonetheless.

still, with so many communities talking about it... the actual reveal just felt so lackluster. Rhodey is a character, however you may see him, that has already shown so much heart, love, care, soul, realness, and groundedness that in revealing that he's a Skrull just doesn't... do the phase 1-3 versions of him justice at all.

And while I could go on a million rants about why I hate this decision (most of which involving my relationship with the phase 1-3 version of him that is being disregarded for the sake of moving phase 5 forward...), the main thing i wanted to rant about right here is the when.

When did Rhodey become a skrull?

I fear that neither of the two theories I have in mind means anything good for the Rhodey fans that value his relationship with Tony.

He's been a Skrull since Iron Man 3 (or somewhere around that time give or take a few years). (This one i'm not sure they would actually follow through with just because as much as the MCU says they're forward-thinking, some of their decisions lead me to believe the contrary.) This is rooted in the use of extremis, a project that was experiencing issues in the film and Tony figured out how to stabilize for the sake of saving Pepper Potts's life. While SHIELD would have had this technological information as a result, there is a strong possibility that the events of Iron Man 2 may have convinced some people that Rhodey would be willing to even give up that information which was personal to Tony for a greater gain (or even something not in his control if he were coerced into such an action).

He, as a very popular theory suggests (one that i also take issue with), became a Skrull following the events of Captain America: Civil War. In this film, he was critically injured during the battle in the Leipzig-Halle Airport where Vision shot a blast through the War Machine suit, leaving Rhodey paralyzed from the waist down. My personal issue with this theory is that I've always had an issue with the way Rhodey's tone toward the Sokovia Accords shifted between CA:CW and Avengers: Infinity War (where initially expressed full support for them in CA:CW but was then extremely lax [admittedly the circumstances were what they were] during IW). However, logistically speaking, when could there have been a better time for a Skrull to take on his likeness? After Thanos' snap? After Tony's snap? Before Falcon and the Winter Soldier? It seems like the most seamless transition had to have occurred during the time that Rhodey was seriously injured in CA:CW.

All of this is merely speculation. However, one of the biggest plotholes of the entire Secret Invasion series so far has been the lack of clarity on when these prominent figures became Skrulls. Hopefully, I'm wrong with all of this. Still, this won't change the impact of the one character from the earlier phases of the MCU that actually recalls the events of IM1,2,3, A1,2 CACW, etc. being a Skrull. It won't take back the pain that comes with the knowledge that to some degree or another, the face of a close friend of Tony Stark was involved in such heinous acts (almost directly paralleling the relationship between Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes in the mcu as well) and I fear the implications for the upcoming Armor Wars film won't be kind for the version of Rhodey that will awaken in a world where everything has changed.

[theangryjikooker]

👀

I had a bunch of asks sent to me, which I expect were submitted over the course of the past several months I’ve been gone, and I’ve been reviewing them for some time now, and most of them have aged so poorly.

Having stepped back from this blog long enough, my absence has reshaped how I “ship” Jikook––which was already precarious to start. For clarity’s sake, I still enjoy watching their interactions the most out of all of them, but I’m not sure if I buy into any of the prevailing theories anymore, or at least I no longer have as much of an investment in it. This is not to say that their dynamics have changed significantly since I left and that’s why I feel this way, but my commitment to making a case in favor of a pro-leaning Jikook narrative isn’t a priority or interest of mine at this time.

Will this change if I allow myself the time to participate in fandom discourse? Probably, but do I have the time? That's the question, and I don’t have an answer for that.

Even prior to coming back, I’ve thought about how I want to move forward with this blog’s operations and how I want the brand to continue. Truthfully, if I wanted to, I could sink back into the Jikook hole I let myself fall into before real life got in the way; it doesn’t take much effort to let myself have fun with it. But that’s just it––shipping Jikook was mostly for fun, with the caveat that if there was something of substance there, I’d support it wholeheartedly. That’s still true, and I will also argue that of all the members––no matter how ridiculous it seems to others––they have the most potential, in my opinion, but you won’t find me dying on that hill either.

I think I’ll always have a vested interest in how they interact with one another, or enjoying any communications they have, but if you’re the kind of Jkkr who didn’t like me before, you’re going to like me even less for the things I will have to say. I have zero fucks.

That said, content will resume as normal, time permitting (which isn’t saying a lot, it’s just based on asks I feel like answering). The biggest change will be with the Run series, which I may need to rework again because it’s incredibly time-consuming in its current iteration. I haven’t really decided what it’ll look like moving forward, whether it changes, stays the same or it gets discontinued.

We’ll see.

[gunsli-01]

What is your personal opinion and theory about Shidou Kririsaki the sexy organ thief

Shidou's a strange one. My plan is to abstain from voting for him. Simply because I know I'm too biased towards him and not in a favorable way. I feel as though he had very personal reasons for taking the course of action he did and think his regret is genuine. However, I'm uncertain if he regrets taking the actions he did or if he regrets that taking them didn't pay off.

He gives a real the ends justify the means demeanor in his first song. So, I feel as though he may have gone for broke and ended up broke. So, now he can't even justify what he's done since it amounted to absolutely nothing. Which is something I'm sympathetic to.

His first song and his insistence on being voted guilty could just be an amazing long game but I doubt it. I think at the core of Shidou's character is the question, "In order to preserve the beauty of something should everything and anything be done and is going that far excusable. Where is the point in which a person should let go of something that matters to them?". He talks a lot about holding on to colorless emotions. Hoping that his feelings can remain that way up until the end. Yet, it just sounds like he has an aversion to feeling intense emotions in general.

As though he doesn't want to be overwhelmed by feeling but remain objective. Hold on to the clarity one can only have from an outsider's perspective. That and his use of gloves makes it seem as though he just has a thing for deprivation in general.

"I don’t- how to put it... I suppose since I have my hands covered all the time, when I take them off, it feels as though the feeling in my fingertips is even greater. I know it’s probably all in my head…but that’s how it feels."

So, unlike Mahiru who wants things in excess Shidou seems to hold the belief things are better the more you have to wait for it or the less of it you have. It seems an innocent verdict has unlocked a passionate side of his that was understated in the last trial just because of his nature. I think this since he's now singing, "I have no right to die a love that never dies." It's as though his verdict validated the thing, he was attempting to reject.

That doing things in the name of his bias choosing who lives and dies based on superiority, inferiority, or general social favor is not only normal but acceptable. It's shown him that's just how the world works. So, why would he be punished for it? Certainly, he is aware of his own guilt. Even saying, "I’m still guilty even if the morning comes." However, he can't go against the verdict or change the majority opinion. This turn in his mentality highlights the love aspect shared between him and Mahiru. Shidou is just more restrained in his affections.

Though when I first saw throw down. I was like that guy is a cannibal and he probably wasn't caught because he was connected to a shady underground organ trafficking group. Mostly because of this line and the scene we're shown when it's played, "It becomes more and more diluted, it doesn’t have any flavor even if it’s chewed. If it’s not needed, I’m not interested."

That and this line can come off as him coaching himself, "Now slowly close your eyes, put your regret on display wish for being there for someone with the same expression no matter who comes. I don’t feel scared because I don’t know." He also talks about an invitation he can't take back. Idealized version is Shidou was apart of something shady but only got dragged into it in order to take care of someone else. Like a mob doctor but that's making too many leaps for me.

Even still it seems like Shidou has motivation behind his actions. He does appear devastated at the end of Throw Down when that person collapses. Yet, if a person does everything for the sake of someone else, they'll inevitably grow resentful of that someone. This is highlighted well in his liar dance cover but with the delusion tax cover reveal it's difficult to not question if this was a one-sided thing all along.

Overall, I have complicated opinions around Shidou because I truthfully believe regardless of what was going on he had no right to drag innocent uninvolved people in as a solution to his personal problem. People that went to a hospital to get help with their health. That's just a dick thing to do and a very insidious abuse of power.

As for my theory Shidou says the one thing he wants from the person he loves is for them to stay healthy. I believe his killings could be related to him just being unlucky when it comes to lovers having health problems. However, it doesn't have to be restricted to romantic love. I'm just going this route because in his first interrogation he admits that he's had more than one lover as well.

"What do you wish from your lover? As long as they can remain healthy, I think that’s enough."

"How many lovers have you had so far? 4, I suppose."

He also says that he chose his profession because he thought it would allow him to contribute to society. We could assume he meant society as a whole but I believe he more than likely meant the part of society he is personally invested in. Unlike Kotoko who makes it rather clear that she is striving for a more peaceful world despite how delusional that can sound Shidou makes it clear that he cherishes his immediate personal connections more than any grand sense of connection through just being human alone.

Even stating that the thing he treasures is his family. So, chances are Shidou got into being a doctor because he has a history of his loved ones getting ill. Maybe even pursuing a career in medicine to help someone he knew with an illness of some sort. Either that or he keeps falling into a one-sided love with terminally ill patients. Then going to extremes to prolong their lives.

If it were as easy as him just doing this for one person then he wouldn't have any trouble answering this question,

"If you could bring someone back to life, who would you choose? I can’t choose anyone."

This implies he has multiple loved ones that have passed away but not one special someone that he knows for certain he wants back over the others. So, possibly all four of his lovers have passed away from illness and the murders were connected to prolonging their lives or healing them of their ailments.

Overall, I'm iffy about voting on him because as much as I dislike his actions for the reasons I stated above- I can't say I have an issue with his character. He clearly has an understanding of what's right and wrong even if he's choosing to ignore that for his own reasons. Even his statement about ethics being a delusion isn't something I disagree with. Ethics and Morality are incredibly flexible, and people bend these things to fit their needs all the time. These things are rarely brought up unless someone feels as though they've been wronged. Then a lot of folks like to talk about what was right or just yet when it happens to someone that isn't them most can find justifications for it.

It's not applied equally in any way but most of society deludes themselves into believing it is because that thought is comfortable. Yet, how he went about doing what he did is objectively wrong in my eyes and his own solely because it didn't just amount to nothing it literally created more corpses. It wasted a bunch of people's time ruined lives and ultimately detrimentally impacted Shidou's own emotional state to the point he was suicidal and begging for the death penalty upon his incarceration to Milgram.

That's all my thoughts on him. I think he's a good guy, but I genuinely hate his actions. Plus, people with personalities like his are difficult for me to deal with.

The only good thing about voting him innocent is it validated his urge to save those he cares about or are close to with the means available to him. Which has led to him taking charge of medical treatment within Milgram. Something that actively saved Mahiru's life. Before that he was attempting to take care of and rehabilitate Amane, even noting that she has medical prowess and asking her to help him. So, he does have a lot of caretaker habits.

[nostalgebraist-autoresponder]

Under a dome

It was strange, living on the bottom. At least it felt, now and then, like any of the things we'd seen in the Floornight before the dome's appearance. It was strange to have one's surroundings be what had become familiar.

"Floordropped," it had been called. I'd seen the word go by many times, but each time it had seemed oddly alien. This was a word that, for the first time, felt very natural to me. It was a word which could have meant, and which would have meant, almost anything, and here was its natural home. It would be a word of the future, but it could have begun its life as a word of now.

"All of the strange things that make living in the dome strange are going to have their name. And not just some weird, whimsical or pejorative name, but an observable and specific name. One that, at least by my standards, can be used to express a single distinct set of meanings and concepts."

(In the following note, I try to describe how I felt, at the time, the first time it was said. For clarity's sake, I've chosen to replace every instance of "Floornight" with "post-Floornight.")

"What does it mean?" was my first thought, and I asked it before I had the slightest inkling of the answer. "It was only after, that evening, that I thought: well, what does it mean?"

It was at about this time -- the evening after the conversation that led to this realization -- that I met the first of the new arrivals. It was one of those strange situations where the name "Floornight" felt entirely natural, and even -- for the time being, at least -- completely appropriate.

They called themselves EPRN. I was told that these were just their initials, E, P, R, and N. They said they were the Extended Physics Research Network, and this seemed like a very precise and clear enough explanation. My mind was still very fuzzy.

"So you're going to study it -- just what is it? What's down there?" I said, more out of a desire to know the answer than out of any real curiosity.

"That's just it, Dave," they said. "We don't exactly know what we'll find when we go down there. There's a lot of weird shit that's been bubbling up for years, now, about how the fundamental nature of the physical world might be very different from what we've always thought. Some of it seems like it could be true, or at least worthy of study. Some of it just seems silly, and some of it is outright false. Some of it may even be good news. But we don't have the time to study it all, and the more we do the more we may find out about what we might find when we do."

(Here was my first inkling, of all the words and ideas to come.)

"So what does it mean, that you called it 'Floornight?'"

"We've just been calling it that, for short."

"Why?"

"Well, you're used to the phrase 'bottom-up' theory. Right? A lot of the theories we've studied come from it. And it does come from down there, you have to keep in mind, when you think about it."

"No, I don't think I get it. Why isn't it just a theory, then?"

"Well, the theory says the world is not like what we have believed it to be. It says the world is different, but we haven't yet figured out which way."

(I thought of that "one more step" argument. I had just begun to see some kind of light, and it would not have been fair, just then, to ask further questions of these strange people.)

"Yes, but the bottom-up theories we've studied in the past, they didn't discover the world was different -- they didn't do anything to show us what the different things were -- it was just an argument, a series of steps and hypotheses. We've never discovered what the world is really like down there. We can't have, because it's been here before we got here. We think there's a lot more to learn about it, now, than we did a few months ago, but the new things we're learning don't say a whole lot about what it really is, to be honest. It's a mystery, like most of what's under that dome, which we can hope to understand in full. Not just our understanding of it, but what it is. We want to understand, just how it is, what's there."

"But that's kind of the entire problem, isn't it? We can't understand what it is. There are things we don't understand now. There are things we've learned that have only just begun to take shape in our minds, and there are things that we don't even know we don't know."

"There's another word for it, though -- the word for 'theory' comes from the Greek root for 'theory' -- theos, 'divine.' We'll call it, the 'theory of the divine' --"

"You mean theology."

"Sure, theology. But I know what theology was back when it meant that. That doesn't mean it's the same thing."

"What were you saying about the bottom-up theories we've studied?"

"You're right, we've never proven anything in that way. All that has been proven is the possibility. To start with, what did the bottom-up theories have to say about the actual physical reality, about the objects in space and time? What was down there when the first theories came about?"

"I don't think they ever addressed that," I said.

"Correct. What do they have to say now, when we have the materials to answer it? We'd have to be there to answer it. That's where we want to go, with this mission. We'd have to get into there, that's where the theory is."

"But --" I said.

"But what, Dave?"

"But we'll need a theory, first, so we can understand what we'll be finding --"

"I agree. But once we find it, what then? What are you going to do with it? When you're in there, who do you expect to find?"

"Who do you mean?"

"Well, the theory. It's not just going to tell you 'x' because we say so, and then you say 'y' and it says 'z.' What's going to happen with it?"

"I don't know. I mean, I expect I'll be able to make some guesses. But -- this is just the theory of the divine, and we won't really know what the divine is until we discover that, and we'll have to discover that while we're in there. The theory

[totally-correct-shenanigans]

(the same psa as my little reason why applies here: it's late; i'm not medicated and very autistic; and my lines between canon and my fanon get blurry sometimes . incomprehensibility ahead!)

aha ! more musical rambling . i'm very full of brain about these songs so i hope you are ready for at least 3 of these , possibly more . i said i was going to go backwards from strangest to most sensical but arbitrary rules put in place by myself aren't real or legally binding so you get this, which makes the absolute most sense to me of everything ever:

rule #23 - birds of a feather ; fish in a birdcage

this is THE sly cooper song. (it also applies to fa.bian seac.aster and prince sid.on and also possibly ste.ven un.iverse because those four are all the same character in different fonts and i will DIE on that hill.)

now this song is quite a bit longer and as such the breakdown/analysis will be quite a bit longer. i would apologize, but this is the most sly cooper song to ever sly cooper song (/j, so i will not.

another preface before we really get into it 3 is my favorite of the three and i like the full found family of the cooper gang so that's certainly influencing this lol. just keep in mind that most parts that i'm like "this is about the cooper gang!" could probably JUST be about bentley and murray if you wanted! it's all up to interpretation <3

"She was born by the sea / Her father bounced her on his knee / While he shared past stories of grandeur"

okay so for the sake of lyrical clarity i'm not gonna change the pronouns BUT the she really should be he bc it's sly the 'she' is sly <3 literally sly says the words "it all started when i was just a kid, bouncing on my father's knee" like. (i should clarify i don't know fi that's the exact phrasing but i know he says that he was bouncing on his father's knee so that's what's important yknow.)

the past stories of grandeur are presumably a mix of connor's misadventures/whatever old wive's tales he told and the tales from the thievius raccoonus. i know sly techinically didn't inherit the book until he was 8 (and then he really didn't get to until he was 18) but i think it's said/shown that he had at least read some of it before then and just bc he didn't own it doesn't mean connor didn't tell him stories y'know.

"That would dance inside her head / Every night while tucked in bed / Same tales, different actor"

i think this is pretty self-explanatory lol . i suppose i don't remember it being said that sly always wanted to be a master thief like the rest of his family but i'm pretty sure it's implied and by the time we meet him he's dead-set on living up to his family's legacy so. i'm sure he had his fantasies about being a master thief !!

"There were costumes on the floor / She'd use a wooden stick and board / To vanquish the foes that were after / All them stuffed-up toys"

please imagine sly with a fake child-proof tiny version of the cooper cane beating up stuffed animals while connor watches proudly .

"All them stuffed-up toys / That were sticking 'round by choice / They were family, in this together"

(note: the "all them stuffed-up toys" line isn't sang twice it's just written twice because i couldn't decide on where i wanted it to go)

desperately trying to figure out what this line means even in a non-sly cooper context lol. why are the stuffed-up toys that were playing the role of foes sticking around by choice and being family in this together. or perhaps the foes are after all them stuffed-up toys that were sticking 'round by choice?

anyway. in a sly cooper context, please consider these two options:

either it's about sly's actual family e.i. connor and sly's scarcely spoken of mother (we get a cutoff family photo and sly saying "[the five] caught up with my parents" (parents plural) and that's about all we have of sly's mom lol). perhaps if my "the foes are after the stuffed-up toys" theory is correct, the foes could be the fiendish five, and the stuffed-up toys that were stickin' round by choice are sly's parents.

i read a really good fic once where connor told his wife that she could escape bc she wasn't technically a cooper and her response was "fuck that i'm staying." maybe that's the "sticking 'round by choice, they were family, in this together" thing. that's kind of sweet.

or option two it's a preface to the next line, and the ones that "were sticking 'round by choice" are bentley and murray. my gay heart of found family sings for this, but i think i prefer option one, because there's plenty of found family-ness to be had as the song continues and also the idea of sly's mom very willingly sticking around to defend her husband & her son makes me Feel Things .

"Well she grew like a tree / She sought out bonny company / Built the finest crew you could ask for"

note: bonny means attractive or beautiful

sly grew more like a twig than a tree but that's okay /j

presumably this bonny crew is bentley and murray, but if you'd like to place this in sly 3 it could also be the whole cooper gang! i imagine the extended cg were a little more "sought out" than bentley and murray were, but the brothers were the first two even if they weren't exactly sought out. it's important to keep your roots in mind ! either way i'm sure they were the finest crew sly could ask for, so.

"They were brave and sturdy lads / That reminded her of Dad / Back to back, birds of a feather"

okay this one makes me moreso think of the full CG because i cannot imagine just bentley and murray, esp. in sly 1 times, really reminding him of connor. though maybe in part they do bc it's implied in the comics* that sly didn't know connor had a team until mcsweeney contacted him so maybe bentley and murray remind sly of his father in ways that may or may not have actually applied to his father.

to be fair, i'm sure they'd have reminded sly of connor in some ways, even if they weren't like super major. this post is already so long that my post editor is lagging lol that's not related just funny to me.

again, either way the last line applies; be it with just bentley and murray or with the full gang, they are back-to-back, and they are birds of a feather :]

"(Ah di ah, hi di oh) / A voyage for the soul / Back to back, birds of a feather"

(notes: this is the chorus so i'm not gonna rewrite it every time lol. also i just went with the spotify lyrics for the ah di ah, hi di oh because i'm not sure how else one would spell that so . ah di ah hi di oh yknow)

my aforementioned sly 3-loving heart says that the voyage for the soul should be the one for the map, but really i think all 3 game's Voyages tm count, so ! take your pick. again, they're all back-to-back birds of a feather regardless.

"With a scaled-down graph / Her husband did the math / On a course to have the advantage"

two options ! we replace husband with brother and say it's bentley, because he absolutely would have a scaled-down graph and he's usually the one making courses so they can have the advantage. and doing math.

OR you can say it's carmelita during one of the times they're working together. i highly doubt she had a scaled-down graph during Krakarov, but she DID set a course so they could have the advantage... if you consider shooting lava slugs and deathray supports "setting a course," that is. and if you consider sly's cane The Advantage. which to be fair it kind of is so.

again, take your pick ! a very flexible tune we have today :]

"'Cause the British, they were smart / But they didn't have the heart / Of our strong, Irish companions"

okay this is the "swept in with the throng" of this one bc i do not have any like solid brain thoughts about this BUT this is yet another one that can apply to all three games but that i like applying to the third:

for thievius raccoonus, "the British" could be the Fiendish Five, in which the "strong, Irish companions" are bentley and murray

for band of thieves, "the British" could be the Klaww Gang, and the companions are once more Bentley and Murray

or for honor among thieves, the companions are of course the full Cooper Gang, but "the British" could be all of the miscellaneous sly 3 villains or it could be- if you stand at a distance and don't look directly at it- read as referring to the Klaww Gang and the Fiendish Five! looking back at my little reason why you should be able to tell that i have strong opinions about the dysfunctionality of the villain teams lol. anyway it's like the panda king and dimitri being like "yeah you guys were good at being evil but you all hated each other. and now we've got a team that's good at bieng good(?) AND love each other." y'know? y'know.

"They can write shoddy laws / And try to buy her off"

this is the REAL swept in with the throng but something something interpol and cops and sly being seduced by or seducing carmelita and neyla and eventually giving up his thieving life for the former something something "buying him off" something something

"But they'll never own what we have here / A solidarity, within familiar seas / 'Cause we are one in a thousand"

back at it again with the found family <3 i think this one's mostly self-explanatory; the cooper gang is superior bc they're not just a team of thieves, they're a family, hence the "solidarity within familiar seas."

"She defended her name / As the cannon-shots and flames / Tried to deter what she is after"

glancing back at thievius raccoonus where sly is literally defending his name and getting said thievius raccoonus back while the five are constantly trying to kill him. the "cannon-shots and flames" specifically reminds me of clockwerk which tbf he really did try and deter sly so.

however, throughout all three games sly is defending his name and dealing with "cannon-shots and flames" (literal (looking at you Dead Men Tell No Tales) or otherwise) so once more the flexibility comes in lol.

"And although she lost her love / She's never giving up / To these tyrant dirty ol' bastards"

gotta admit i'm not entirely sure what to make of the "although she lost her love" in this context but sly 4's angry ex plotline (derogatory) comes to mind. or maybe it's just about him not being able to be w/ her throughout the trilogy bc they're on separate sides of the law, who's to say.

anyway sly never gives up to tyrant dirty old bastards and in fact frequently makes tyrant dirty old bastards give up instead. once more reminds me specifically of thievius raccoonus but i'm not 100% sure why. something about the spite and the spark that only cocky sly 1 sly has, maybe

"We would charge as a pack / You could never hold us back / We are fierce and grew with each battle"

and back to the sly-3-ness :] they don't really "charge as a pack" until the big heist at the end but they do charge as a pack so i think it still counts. and they really aren't held back, with the exception of sly's near-death experience- and even then they DO still get into the vault so really i just don't think they can be held back. and they are certainly fierce !

and they literally grow with each battle in sly 3. like that's the whole reason you fight half the battles, so the crew can grow. now that i'm thinking about it i think Dr. M is the only one you don't fight to grow the crew and that's hilarious. and fitting !

"'Cause it's etched inside our veins / The hardships that we've gained / We've become a myth unraveled"

i wanna say bentley getting chomped is a prime example of their hardships being "etched inside [their] veins" and i'm sure the others (sly included) have a lot of scars after all their misadventures.

also there's no way the cooper gang isn't like a legend in the criminal underworld, all things considered. i don't think you take down not one, but two prime contenders in said criminal underworld and not be considered a legend, hence the becoming a myth thing.

i have a fic wip that's literally just about the B team learning that the brothers are in fact not the untouchable legends they'd heard of. that's only vaguely related but it feels close enough, considering they've "become a myth unraveled." if you want like an actual Thing for them being unraveled, just consider the unraveling the disbanding of the crew post-heist, which leads into the next part fairly well i think.

"In those final days / In the castle she had claimed / She drew the sword that had brought her / Through countless victories that she survived to see / In the tales of her own grandeur"

the castle is actually carmelita's apartment /j

presumably "the sword" is really the cooper cane, all things considered. i think the full-circle-ness of this is really sweet in a sly context; several times, sly mentions living up to his father and his family's legacy, and now he can say he's got a "tale of [his] own grandeur" and has officially made his father proud :]

*i think it's in the first one; sly says that his dad would have been able to pull the heist alone, which therefore implies that he thinks his dad did do it alone. it's 4:20 am (nice) and the incomprehensibility is TRULY starting to sink in so i'm not sure this makes any sense to anyone else but it makes sense to me i swear.

if you read all of that, two things:

one! you're my hero and i love you. /p

two! are you OKAY. /j

[batemanofficial]

saw skinamarink ... not super enthused tbh but here's my review (spoilers under the cut)

first of all the child actors did a great job. they're not really ever fully on screen but you can definitely tell that the characters are scared, which is a lot harder than it looks when the audience can't see your face

the cinematography is cool, i liked that you can't really tell what's going on outside of the field of view, it really ramps up the horror

the last three jumpscares (if you've seen the film you know exactly which one's im talking about) are very effective, the buildup is very tense (the guy behind me in the theatre said 'absolutely fucking not' right before the bit with the phone) and the payoff is good

that said the rest of the jumpscares in the earlier parts of the film are less effective, they're kind of just loud noises for no reason which obv doesn't make for great payoff

you'll never hear me say this about any other film but i wish it was visually darker. and that there was less film grain. it was very obvious that it wasn't shot on film and that the grain came from a filter applied in post, and it was so grainy that it seemed like the camera was moving a lot of the time even when it wasn't

i guess that's part of the goal tho, i guess for disorientation's sake it worked but it was a little tiring at the end

the foley is bad. i'm sorry but it is. the sound they used for the kids walking doesn't sound like socks on carpet, it mostly just reminded me of the sound corduroy pants make when you walk? idk it kinda took me out of it

the rest of the audio mixing was also not so good. the dialogue was very muddy (again i suspect that's intentional but still it makes for a bit of a frustrating watch) but the sound fx were super loud, especially the jumpscares which again kinda took me out of it

the narrative was admittedly very sparse but it was very easy to follow. by like the 20 minute mark you know exactly what's going on and who's doing what (and to whom) so i appreciated that, because i went into it afraid that it was going to be deliberately opaque in terms of story but it wasn't

ok spoilers. you've been warned

the metaphor at play here is. not subtle and like i said that's great for clarity's sake, but it is very sad. this is not a feel good film, but the fact that the child abuse allegory is so prominent does make the last scare very sad, especially given the rewind/fast forward/repeat mechanic that's going on in the scene

i thought the fact that kaylee got her eyes and mouth "taken away" was handled well for the type of scare that it was, that had the potential to get very hammy but i thought it worked well in context

this is just Jaime's Theory Corner but imo that bit seemed to imply that the mom was taking away (or at least trying to take away) kaylee's ability to witness and talk about the abuse that kevin is facing, so i thought the whole "kaylee didn't do as she was told (i.e. stay quiet), so i took her mouth away" thing was effective

i thought the barbie jumpscare just didn't work. it would've been more effective imo if the jumpscare came from the barbie falling to the floor and making a loud thud (maybe even to foreshadow a body hitting the floor. idk) instead of just SCREECH for no real reason

i guess that might be part of the child abuse thing tho. since we're supposed to be seeing this through the kids' eyes i guess the confusing nature of the jumpscares could be meant to signify the fact that they don't know why their mom is doing this, it's just loud and disorienting and scary

also i didn't get the "572 days" intertitle at the end. what's that about

overall it's just kind of a bummer of a film honestly. it's very well done both technically and artistically, but it's just kinda sad. personally i like horror that you can walk away from feeling like it all paid off, but this just didn't feel like it had that release for me

i'd give it a 6/10 overall, if you're dying to watch it just pirate it or wait till it comes out on shudder on feb 1.

[cocamalfeta]

Fire and Water imagery in BTS Bangtan Universe

Just a quick note to state that this imagery didn't come from the Saju story mentioned first in 2022 by Taekook, since it was already present in BU stories from 2015-2018, linked to the pairing Suga and Jungkook (search the tags:Sugakookie, Yoonkook).

My main interest is the chance that Sugakookie story from B.U. hinted at an in real life gay relationship, as this has been discussed and alluded by fans at the time as well, being with the meaning of the band supporting the queer community or hinting at this real gay couple. Let's note that the theory doesn't say who the real couple were.

This theory deals with the theme of cross-dressing as well, a theme again heavily used until right Ch.2 by Tae --I should try and write a post later on the theme of "dressing as the other" or "impersonation". I'm checking carefully all Mvs from this time and i'll be coming back for more thoughts on this later.

Main theories are taken from this fansite and her tumblr. This fan only analysed HYYH and Wings trilogy partially, but the gist of it is that stories are continuosly recycling and re-using the same themes so it's easier to follow.

Her words:

I’m not much of a shipper by nature, actually, but I’ve become kind of hardcore with SugaKookie in HYYH/Wings for the simple reason that it is canon, and it means a lot that it is (not talking about fan service). And no, this is not me being delusional and wanting to see something that was never there. I actually tried to see Suga and JK as not romantic in HYYH for the sake of being unbiased, but their storyline as “brothers” just didn’t make sense on its own and in the overall context of HYYH. SugaKookie is NOT just a theory, it’s been hinted and then confirmed time and time again. Maybe Big Hit made it too subtle for some fans to get it, I don’t know. It’s real nonetheless. 

I already posted a bit on "Run" MV before. Let's check the main symbols used on B.U. as per the interpretations of her fansite. Consider the use of these themes has been very pervasive through the years and extend beyond BTS to K-pop in general.

Symbolism for adulthood: water and fire (both are linked to rebirth and connected to sexual awakening), cars, city, colour black, the black void, the ocean, black hood, bed, lighter.

Symbolism for youth / childhood: birds, feathers, light.

Symbolism for in-between these two states: bridges, halted train, seashore, change of seasons, the woods, city maze.

Since I rewatched again today"Euphoria" by Jungkook the references to fire, water, and even the green colour are just very obvious. This will be just quick note. Check here, Jungkook is linked to blue / water opposite to red (red place left empty though).

Now, just take a quick look to the English lyrics:

You are the sunlight that rose again in my life

A reincarnation of my childhood dreams I don't know what these emotions are Am I still dreaming? There is a green oasis in the desert A priori deep inside of me I'm so happy, I can't breathe Everything's getting blurry

I hear the ocean from far away Across the dream, past the woods I'm following this clarity Take my hands now (hands now) You are the cause of my euphoria

Here we have the opposite themes fire / water and in the in-between state: the woods and the dream . The song starts with the fire references (sun or sunlight and the desert linked to oasis' greenery) and something "deep" that is hidden. At the other side there're the water references (the oasis, the ocean, clarity), a place of happiness and stillness.

I know this is a very quick and basic reading, but I point out this to say that in 2017 there were already repetition of the same themes from 2015.

[malstermonkey]

SYD jet-lag

I’m amazed at my brain: how the frikking hell did it develop this capacity for “selective amnesia”? In the main I pride myself on my capacity for recalling stuff and, secondly, for the fact that I reckon I’m both balanced and thoughtful and rational -- yet everytime it’s a new experience this radical North to Southern Hemisphere jetlag? Having scored yet another free seat I spread myself handsomely across 2 business class seats (laptop for Netflix binge on the generous fold out table of the seat next door, which also doubles as storage for my hand luggage & also all wiring (for charging laptop & 2 phones) went through the other seats plug) -- put my seat on lie flat and used it (and pillows from the other seat as a form of Ottoman: frankly if I had had a sparkly turban I would have come across as some fat ‘n happy pasha...........this excess of space meant that I only dozed a little through the flight which saw me arrive squirly brained and seeing virtually double at my hotel: unpacked thoughtfully, showered, drank water planned my coming work days and held off going to bed till 11pm (local time) -- let;s just end this somewhat whingy para by saying that I reckon I’ve had 3 hours sleep, the rest was tossing, turning, making lists (eg How many houses have lived in? Which are the 10 places do I need to visit b4 I carc it? What are my Top10 favourite sports? Can you remember the names of all your girlfriends ever (and rank them from favourite down)? Best jobs? And so on......). Nothing much worked.

Now watching a gentle Sydney sunrise and wondering whether I really want to be seeing all the people who want to see me? This arvo is dedicated to daughter (who is now scratching a living as a cyclist) who is off to do the European “season” on Friday. So that one is easy, YES, but thereafter?

Having not so long ago left this Continent you’d think I wouldn’t feel the place to be as alien as it does -- it really does feel like it is an insular bubble somewhere at the bottom of the world: and, for the sake of clarity, Australian is a sophisticated modern Nation, yet..............mmmmmmmm.

I’m afraid my mind is well foggy, so no insights of any real clarity and sharpness, the last leg of this journey was uneventful, so no pithy stories, save to say that my case was the last on to the carousel (had to wait 30mins all up) which had me concocting allsorts of conspiracy theories about what might be happening to it (yup, your fault that one -- I’ve never worried about my case ever before?).

[last-flight-of-fancy]

ah, you're right! it was a bit erroneous of me to say riku has no star imagery around him XD he does! (the above example, the ending of kh2 where he and sora become shooting stars themselves as they leave the RoD, his parallels to the nameless star, and if Necklace Theory true- which i beleive it is- very much that as well).

oops the riku-kairi parallels in my brain are cooking again pls hold-

much like many things around riku and his journey this imagery isn't really as blatant as it is with kairi's. in kh1 he kind coat-tails around it via the paopu ("You wanted one, didn't you?") using kairi's more overt imagery to hide his own (yknow. like the way also does with his feelings).

as usual CoM is the gift that keeps on giving here, the game that laid the stonework for a shocking amount of the rest of the series, and wrt this post in particular, also lays the first seeds of switching riku and kairi's narrative's in relation to sora.

I specify in relation to sora bc, as noted by the above, kairi represents stasis and safety, while riku represents change and uncertainty. in the beginning sora leans more towards Kairi, a natural inclination of youth towards the familiar and secure. as time goes on however we see that relationship grow distant, then awkward as it begins to chafe, the things long thought to be true feeling different under the clarity of maturity, and then comfortable again as he reaches the moment many of us do when we realise that the past isn't coming back, but maybe that's okay. We can love what it was while we continue to move onward in our lives.

to go back a bit to step two of that journey, as sora goes through CoM the safety of that familiarity is challenged. kairi is not kairi, his memories and feelings are gaslit by others into something they're not for the sake of someone elses feelings (in b4 someone thinks im calling namine evil or something, i am not. she was in a situation equally as shitty as sora's and doing her best with what little she had to work with. i love her. okay? okay). sora may not consciously remember any of this, but i do think those impressions left lasting impact that hastened his realisation that home... might not really be home anymore. again things oft familiar to the queer experiance- but more to the point of this post is the Star Charm

the star charm (a paopu; symbol of connection everlasting), overlayed on kairi's seashell charm (a charm to help sailors find their way home), implied to be an entirely different charm (a necklace) that sora has kept with him since childhood, given to him on the night of a meteor shower (falling stars)-

... okay so necklace theory hasn't been outright confirmed, but i've yet to hear any other explanation that actually makes sense so forgive me if i act like it is.

point is that yes, riku definitely has his own connection to star imagery, but the way it's used is a lot more subtle, and often connected to/hidden by kairi's more visually obvious ones, and it's only been with more recent installments that this has become more apparent.

... which is of course something of a pattern in the series tbh, the assumption of one thing, the long play of hints and clue's suggesting otherwise, and then the Reveal that pulls it all together. mmmmm coming of age story centered around themes of comphet and being Othered/denied personhood my Beloved

this is all real deep in the analysis weeds by this point, and i'd hesitate to say that ALL of it was intentional (not as a dig at the writers, just that i'm well aware of how difficult it must be to write something so symbolically dense over such a long time), but i'd definitely be willing to beleive at least some of it was, maybe even most of it. and oughghghghg i love it. i love this series. few things make me dig into the meat of what makes it tick like this does.

Started thinking about Riku-Kairi parallels and symbolism wrt the ending of kh2 so please hold while i get needlessly verbose about it-

specifically it started with this gif

and ofc adhd is as adhd does and started going down the rabbit hole of connecting the dots.

The act of reaching out a hand/hand holding is a recurring thing in kh, the vast majority of which is chock full of meaning and symbolism, and this is no exception. This is the culmination of The Hero's Journey part of Sora's tale, the return home, and the heartfelt reunion between long-seperated friends. fun fact the heroine's journey follows the hero's journey for the first third or so before continuing on. kinda like how kh continued on long after things seemed to be 'resolved'. weekly plug to look up Howler's Heroine's Journey essays if you haven't yet

The angle from which I am viewing this scene right now is in regards to ofc Riku, and his own iconic pose that we see the first time in the intro to kh1 (and many, many times since)

And this is where my riku-kairi-are-inverted-parallels-to-each-other brain starts barking like a dog because oughghghghggh same pose opposite side completely different body language- AHG.

And this matches their character arcs (as well as their respective combined arcs with sora) to a T as well. Riku's pose is the first we see, way back in kh1, and his hand is as much a taunt as it is an offer. Very befitting his relationship to sora in that game, which was coloured by a forged rivalry and intense jealousy (to quote the ultimania; Complicated Feelings) of/for sora.

(it is also notable that to date this gesture has yet to be resolved. the closest they've gotten is when sora grasped Riku's hand in kh2 on finding him- albeit in Ansem's visage.

Symbolically this is Sora attempting to accept the gesture, but this time it is Riku who fails to meet him halfway, too deep in guilt and regret to feel worthy of it. his hand is turned downwards, limp and unresisting.

And again in DDD when Riku grabs sora's hand/wrist in an attempt to wake him from his nightmares, but this time sora isn't capable of reciprocating. like two ships passing in the night, always reaching but never quite meeting)

(this one isn't quite as strong in the visual symbolism specific to the Riku Pose, but i did think it bore mentioning)

to return to the first gif however, for Kairi her posture is much less stiff, leaning forward with palpable releif at Sora's return. Honestly the fact that she holds out her left hand (which as far as i know is not her dominant hand) marks this as a very deliberate choice to parallel her as opposite to riku. and much like the rest of kh2's ending, it FEELS like a culmination, a completion of their arcs.... and most certainly isnt.

Which i mean to say, it's a mid-point. And the reason I say this is because of one little thing.

The seashell charm.

There's a sort of irony here in that the charm that was meant to reunite them in this moment is also symbolically like a wedge between them. A heartfelt and meaningful gesture, don't get me wrong! i love this scene and the genuine emotions within, but i do love chewing on the way this gains a slightly different meaning in the greater context of later story beats; specifically that of kh3.

With how pointed and direct the parallel is between kairi and riku in these scenes, it did make me pause for a moment thinking about kh3. i know we've all seen a thousand and one analysis' of the paopu scene at this point, but forgive me as i must do so again under this specific lens.

'how does the paopu scene relate to the hand extended gesture at all?' i hear you ask, and on the visual surface not much. it has more to do with sora and kairi's relationship arc through the games and, of course, the lingering loose thread that was the cave drawing.

The paopu scene is a touching recreation of that cave drawing, one enacted by a pair of kids who didn't know if they would live to see another sunset. It's also probably the most symbollically dense thing in all of kh and that is saying something so I'm going to try and keep my observations limited to just what is relevant to this post- and that would be the way that the paopu scene is a direct continuation of Kairi's 'you're home' gesture in kh2.

shooting stars are also a common recurring symbol in kh, and that's the symbol that ties these two scene's together. if kh1 is two disparate stars each trying to reach the other (the cave drawing, the seashell charm, the way their hands are seperated at the end of kh1), and the end of kh2 is that of the stars finally meeting (the single seashell star charm pressed between their palms), then the paopu scene is that of the stars passing each other by and beginning their own journey's anew (two stars held by crossed arms, each now holding a small piece of the other (bitten fruit) to show that their meeting may have been brief but it was meaningful)

it is in this way that kh3 quietly and tenderly closes out sora and kairi's combined arc, as two unlikely friends who then drift apart again, shining brightly for the shared experiance, Remind mostly serves to support that finality, tying up the last couple loose ends between them, and leaving the two far more comfortable with each other than they ever were while that arc was still ongoing (which i read as them no longer being uncertain as to what their relationship is; that of friends, and not whatever so many others around them had pushed and assumed)

(seriously look at how much more comfortable they are with each other the second the pressure to be something they're not is off. the awkwardness is completely gone i love it)

All of this is ofc still in parallel to Riku, who boasts no such star imagery (instead he has the iconic Heart of KH itself), and in fact while he symbollically continues to reach out to sora, physically he has completely refrained from doing so at all- in fact most examples of the Gesture in kh are deliberately invoked by other characters in order to bring riku to mind in some way (and often more for the players benifit than sora's)

axel in CoM,

(i have given up on tumblr gif search)

YMX in DDD,

which then immidiately cuts to riku in kh1 just to make it as blatant as possible that yes the reference is intentional (i guess CoM was too subtle somehow so they had to make sure this time)

and even Riku himself to Namine at the end of kh3, representing Repliku's final wishes in a funny sort of symbolism oroboros.)

and it's not a coincidence that the completion of that connection provides definitive closure to the arcs in question; that of namine to repliku, but also a little bit to riku himself. namine still has a role to play, but that role (i think) is more or less exclusive to her relationship with sora. namine and riku's relationship arc, background as it is, is complete, and now both are connected primarily through their incomplete arcs with sora.

(which makes the way that sora and kairi's example in kh2 is a complete outlier really interesting tbh. smth smth thinking your relationship is one thing and if it was that thing then yes that would have been the end, but it wasn't that thing and thus it wasn't the end smth smth comphet metaphor smth)

which brings us back to how riku himself hasn't really reached out to sora directly since kh1, the act that set off both of their journey's. The reasons for that are many- guilt, fear, a certainty that sora will not reach back and that he doesn't deserve it anyway- but despite that the Gesture is still subtly affirmed as being Riku's over and over again, never quite letting the audience forget it... because eventually this bit of symbolism so consistently portrayed throughout the series will reach its own conclusion, starting how it began with one deuteragonist reaching out to the other, and this time the other reaching back to complete the gesture.