#One piece was a badass anime to me
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Update: HIII YESSY MY LOVE, OMG I AM SO HAPPY I MADE YOU HYPED ABOUT THERE BEING A LATINO LUFFY NOW. YOU DON’T NEED TO THANK ME FOR SHARING IT WITH YOU!! ❤️
I knew Luffy was gonna be played by a Latino BUT I didn’t know Sanji (the cook) was gonna be played by a Spanish actor! (The guy in the pic next to Iñaki) His name is Taz Skylar and he’s from Canarias, a bunch of islands from Spain (well they are physically closer to Africa but they’re still considered Spain) and like OMGGGG HOW DID I NOT KNOW THIS??? MY MOM IS LITERALLY FROM SPAIN WHY DIDN’T ANYONE TELL MEEE???? Now we don’t have only one hispanic we have TWO!! Taz may not count as latino but he counts as hispanic because “hispanic” relates to the language, to Spain and all countries of Latin America (except Brazil, in Brazil people don’t speak Spanish so they are not hispanic but they are latinos). And like BROOO US SPANISH-SPEAKERS ARE GETTING OUR CHRISTMAS PRESENT EARLY THIS YEAR! WATCHING THESE TWO SPEAK IN SPANISH DURING INTERVIEWS IS MY EVERYTHING!!
ONE PIECE REALLY SAID: 🇲🇽🤝🇪🇸
A MEXICAN LUFFY AND A SPANISH SANJI!?!?!?!!! SIGN ME THE FUCK UPP OMGGG I SAID IT BEFORE AND ILL SAY IT AGAIN ORGULLO HISPANO Y LATINO!! ❤️❤️❤️
#Omg so sorry for barely this but how amazing!#I’ve been having so much fomo and this is freakin why lol#I absolutely love this!#I have to catch up with this as well!#🙌🏼🙌🏼🙌🏼#One piece was a badass anime to me#hope the live action is worth it!
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I love Usopp so much holy shit man just single-handedly saved the entirety of dressrosa for the second time and unlocked observation haki??? Tell me why he has me crying 😭
#libby shouts into the void#one piece#usopp#god usopp#one piece usopp#just finished episode 694 of the anime and I know it’s gonna get more emotional and this isn’t even a moment that’s supposed to make me cry#but something something usopp being the badass sniper that he’s meant to be has me like#HES SO IMPORTANT#I LOVE HIM#libby watches one piece
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anyone wanna reblog this and tell me in the tags what your current hyperfixation(s) is\are becuase i
#am having a category 7 autism moment over pipe organs#i do not remember the last time i opened up the wikipedia page for something to read recreationally#i initially sought out the list of the biggest ones (because large)and had to step down to the main page first because theres all this ling#and i wanna know what everything does#the music itself has to be a pretty specific vibe for me to like it bc if theyre not played a certain way it gets really cacophonous for me#but the instruments themselves are fucking monsters and playing them seems less like performing on a instrument#and more like harmonizing with a great beast#you start it with a key??#it takes all of your limbs and the thing is constantly breathing#the sound will continue for as long as you hold the note it will not dissipate???#you can record things and play them back it will even remember stop settings it has memory??#stops control how the pipes sound if youve ever heard of pulling out all the stops this is that#theyre like orchestras able to be played by a single person some of them even have voice sounds#the people who play these things are also their own type of beast#pipe organists are wild because god there's just so much#it scratches my loner badass complex so acutely#a lonely person shouldering an entire symphony contrasting against scores of people playing a single piece together as one#you could write an anime about this#did everyone else just already understand about these things or#blake.txt#good tags
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heyyy. i saw your taking logan fics. do you think you can write a fic of logan and reader but she’s very girly and bimbo like? thank you 🩷
Claws and Frills
wolverine x fem!reader
(x-men wolverine, he’s a big boy)
summary : At first Logan didn’t know how to take you, but now your the first person he finds when he returns to the mansion.
word count : 0.8k
warnings : not proofread, fluffy, petnames (reader calls logan kitty and the famous bub), readers a necromancer, mentions of violence, blood and killing, readers not really described - only her outfit , hanks a bit of a dick, very very sweet, no established relationship.
~ / / / * \ \ \ ~
At first Logan didn’t know how to take you, you were unlike anyone he’d ever met. Cooing that Charles had adopted a pet ‘Kitty-cat’ when you first met one another.
It had taken him a few months to realise, you weren’t being condescending, you were truly that sweet and slightly ditzy. Saying that you had the gift of necromancy, controlling those who had passed, along with their powers if they were mutant.
Logan strolled outside of the mansion finding you, lay on your stomach reading a book, a soft lilac blanket beneath you.
A pink dress and short white cardigan hug your figure, as your pink converse lay discarded beside you, showing your white frilly socks.
“Hey Bub,” the man called out, walking over to you. With a grin you turned to him, “Kitty, come sit,” Scooting over to make room for his larger figure, the smile never left your lips.
With a soft groan he sat down next to you, laying back, hands behind his head. “How was your mission?” you asked, placing your book to the side to have your full focus on the man beside you.
With a shrug he spoke, “Went well, stopped the guys.”
“Any blood spilled?” You questioned, head cocked. “Less than last time.”
“And you?”
“Me?” Logan pulled his sunglasses down to rest on his nose, so he could meet your eyes with his own dark ones. “Did any of your blood get spilt?”
“Nothing I couldn’t heal from Bub.”
“Logan you promised-“
“Sometimes it can be helped,” he cut you off, “I did everything I could to be safe and come back to you in one piece, and look here I am.”
He motioned to his long body, dressed in a flannel, unsurprising, a pair of jeans a boots. “Well even if they killed you, you couldn’t be rid of me.”
He laughed, “You’re awful.” With a pout, you sat up on your knees, “What? I have to use my freaky-deaky powers at some point!”
“Freaky-deaky? Is that the technical term?” He smirked. With a groan you spoke, “Don’t, you sound like Hank.”
Logan’s face went serious, “What’s he said to you?” He was ready to shred that blue asshole to pieces for making you feel insecure.
“Nothing, he actually apologised. Charles told him he’d upset me. I mean I know I’m not the smartest sometimes,” Logan tried to cut you off, but you didn’t let him.
“But, I’m not stupid, we actually spent a lot of time talking about, neuroscience. Just because I’m not a total badass like Storm or Jean doesn’t mean I’m an awful hero, I just …” You sighed.
“What Bub?” Logan pushed himself up so you sat face to face. “I just don’t want to stop being myself, and my… gift already makes me feel like I have too.
“Maybe I was given the wrong one, would have been better if I could control plants or I don’t know, talk to animals.”
Logan smiled, pulling a cigar out of his pocket, which you snatched away without a second thought. If it was anyone else, his claws would be out, but it was you.
“Your power doesn’t define you, you know that right? You’re you. You’re sweet and kind, and anyone or anything you’ve controlled with your powers has been as respectful as you can make it.”
“But I’ve killed.”
“And you’ve saved.”
“But-“
“Bub, you’re good, and Hank isn’t a people person, he just talks sometimes. Nobody is a special or as badass as you, I promise.”
“Not even you?”
He titled his head, thinking for a moment, “I might be a close second.”
“Third, Erik’s more scary than you … and Jean oh and Scott-“ he put a hand over your mouth.
You couldn’t help but smile against it, causing his lips to twitch upwards. He pulled his palm away, “Thank you Kitty.”
“Never have to thank me, you know that.” Leaning forward you placed a soft kiss on his cheek, wrapping your arms around his neck. “You really are my favourite person, you know that?”
“You’re crazy,” he said making you laugh, arms coming round your waist, “But you’re my favourite too.”
Pulling away you stroked his face gently, “You’re a good man, you know that right?”
“You tell me most days. Now read to me,” he said, falling onto his back, hands going back behind his head.
Crossing your knees, you sat beside Logans figure, his eyes falling closed. One of his hands moving to stroke your leg softly. “What are we reading?”
With a smirk you spoke, “Pride and Prejudice.”
Logan groaned, “Again?!”
“Hush Kitty.”
And hush he did, listening to your soft voice hand never leaving your leg. Remaining on that soft blanket with you, until the sun began to set and the stars rise.
~ / / / * \ \ \ ~
Thank you so much for reading!
i honestly can’t believe i’ve never done a logan fic but deadpool 3 brought back my obsession big time.
I hope you enjoyed.
Please leave any requests 🫶🏻
#logan#logan howlett#logan howlett x reader#logan howlett imagine#logan howlett fic#xmen#xmen fic#xmen logan#xmen wolverine#wolverine#deadpool and wolverine#wolverine imagine#wolverine fic#wolverine x reader#james howlett#marvel#hugh jackman#louloulemons#imagine#fanfic#fanfiction#fluff#blurb#request
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Animal I Have Become
Alright, I promised I wouldn’t write any more. But this one’s short and I cranked it out in less than two hours. The inspiration is obvious for anyone who’s a fan of "Karate Kid"/"Cobra Kai," since I just finished the first part of the last season. And for those worried about my studies, don’t sweat it—I was on my work shift, which I never use to study because it seems to attract all kinds of chaos. Anyway! If any quick ideas pop up, I’ll post them, but no more long stories packed with plots for a while.
I only agreed to go back to the place of my humiliation for one reason: Mikey was my best friend throughout high school until he decided, right in our senior year, to join the karate team of the new P.E. assistant teacher. Then, like magic, the skinny kid with a sharp sense of humor who could discuss everything from experimental physics to pre-Columbian American history, the guy I knew so well, was replaced by this arrogant musclehead who struggled with math and was totally incapable of having a history discussion that didn’t revolve around bragging about how today badass America was, and whose idea of a joke involved talking about tits or letting out a stinky fart. Apparently, it was a courtesy of the insane amounts of protein he started chugging to maintain his suddenly beefed-up physique. How the hell was it possible to gain that much muscle in such a short time? Maybe steroids, but the one time I asked about that, I ended up stuck under his stinky armpit. And what was up with that new nickname? “Snake!” How pretentious was that? But apparently, everyone in the group had a “badass nickname.” Ah, the joys of the standard American jock… Still, I tried to hold on to some of our friendship; God, did I try.
I even agreed to join a couple of those damn team practices, knowing damn well I didn’t have the physique, the skills, and maybe most importantly, the real desire to be there. I ended up getting ridiculed by everyone, including my so-called best friend.
I should’ve never talked to him again after that week of “practices.” But, being the idiot I am, all it took was a poorly worded apology full of grammatical mistakes that my brain refuses to recreate:
“Sorry, bro, the sensei got pissed at the guys when he heard their jokes about the size of your… well, you know. He wants you to meet us in the locker room today so we can apologize the right way. If you don’t show up, he’s gonna make us skip training for the whole week. Come on, please, for our friendship!”
… and there I was in that locker room. I should’ve left those morons without practice, but I decided to be the good samaritan.
Walking into that crap hole, what a surprise! It was empty. The pungent stench of sweat filled the room and humidity on the walls made it feel like the locker room was actually a beast whose musk drips off its body after a vigorous workout. But that didn’t matter; apparently, either the coach didn’t give a damn about what happened, which I should’ve figured, since he was just an older version of the ogre crew he trained, or he didn’t even know what went down, and I was about to be the victim of another lame prank.
Thinking about the danger, I quickly turned to leave. Then I noticed… on the other side of the room, hanging on one of the lockers… had that been there before? A piece of red fabric… oh, of course. A red gi from the team; they even gave themselves a pretentious name…. The fight practice was happening right at that moment. It was hard to think about it. I said so much crap about the team on TikTok and Instagram, tarnishing the reputation of the strong and disciplined image they worked so hard to create outside those walls that they probably hated my guts now. All those arrogant alpha dogs were arrogant and obnoxious. What the hell was I thinking trying to fit in? Nerdy little dudes like me didn’t really belong there. Even the jokes about my dick; if I were one of them, I’d just throw a punch or come back with some barbaric, macho comeback and everything would be cool. But I wasn’t like that, and my frustration with all of it was proof of that.
I never really liked the Gi. That red color always seemed way too aggressive, and for some reason, it always looked oversized on me, with sleeves and pants that were way too long and baggy. I had to wrap the belt around me twice just to keep it from falling off my skinny frame. Apparently, it never crossed the sensei’s mind that a little guy like me would have the audacity to try to join his team. Thinking about it, it wasn’t that I didn’t like the Gi; I hated it. It represented everything I despised about that bunch of trolls and also my lost friendship.
I stepped back and slowly turned my head back to the locker with the gi. Did it belong to someone? normally they were used by any of the team's bodies, one size fits all, or almost, when I was still there... anyway... after training they went straight to the laundry before returning for the next training session. Not that any washing would really get rid of the complete animalistic musk that infested their fabric. So why would someone leave it here?
Not my fucking problem. Probably just a spare or something. I think, walking resolutely toward the door, and I crack it open slightly. I turn back. I guess there’s no one using it. That means someone’s gonna grab it soon. Something’s bugging me. But what is it? I get closer, the musk intensifying. That gi definitely isn’t new and hasn’t been washed recently. And what’s this? There’s a note along with it. I sit on the nearby bench to read.
“Sorry, bro, today’s practice was super important, and the sensei didn’t want to wait for you. But he left your gi here. Put it on and come train; this time it’ll be different, I promise. Trust me, for old times’ sake.”
Old times? Maybe… maybe I should give it a shot. God, what a weird thought. Why would I want to do that? But while I’m thinking about it, my feet are already moving me to stand up and head toward the locker, while my hands are grabbing my shirt and pulling it up. I should stop. I need to stop. I should leave now, but the shirt comes off and goes over my head, landing on the floor. My pants are unbuttoned, and soon they join the shirt. I really should stop. Why do I want this? It’d be better to stop, but soon I’m in my boxers holding the gi in front of me. First, I put one leg in... then the other... then the arms, and then the belt… why is it black? I wonder, confused… but then that consuming need fades away.
I look at myself. As always, it doesn’t fit. I look like a kid wearing his dad’s suit at some event. I sit back down on the bench. Alright, that strange urgency is satisfied. So now I can just take this damn thing off!
But I don’t want to, for some strange reason. I feel more comfortable than ever. It’s like that mismatched uniform was made for me. My delicate hands wander over the ill-fitting outfit, the long sleeves sliding down my shoulders. I try to adjust them back into place, but they stop midway as I start to feel the material against my skin. The feeling of power it gives me… the feeling of strength… was it really this good when I was practicing? No, definitely not; if it was, I wouldn’t have quit. Man, this feels amazing... I feel the weight of the gi on me, both real and metaphorical… the weight of what it represents… my hands roam over its wide shape… it’s not just a uniform… it’s an armor… a sacred cloak… this is so cool… I can hear them in the training room… too bad I can’t join them... I wish I could... and they asked... didn’t they? I shift a bit on the bench and let my arms fall to my sides. Weird, I didn’t seem that far from the ground before. I feel cozy; the sweat smell doesn’t bother me, the whole atmosphere feels familiar, even comforting, like coming home after a long day and sitting in your favorite chair. I feel dizzy, like I’m about to fall asleep...
My rational mind, or what’s left of it, doesn’t notice. But unconsciously, I do… my muscles are slowly expanding, my skinny body pushing against the bench while my hands gently massage my slightly protruding belly that’s slowly flattening, the little bit of fat there seeming to be sucked in with every circle my hand makes. My shoulders are also widening, getting broader, as I grunt happily, a tingling sensation creeping up my body.
Feeling that, my eyes suddenly open, a jolt waking me up a bit from that stupor. What the hell was that? I look at my belly, and it’s widening as I’m hit with shock. I’m getting ripped! My hands trace the outline of my abs as the little muscle blocks there grow and harden, turning into six distinct shapes. As I stare at that in fascination, the stupor hits me harder.
The rigid stones of my abs aren’t the only things getting harder. My arms and legs are swelling with new muscle, keeping pace with my ever-growing body. And, well... I gently pat my groin. It’s definitely there too… a solid extra four inches, and still soft… As my body keeps expanding, the sensation turns pleasurable, like scratching an itch that’s been bugging you for ages, so I let it wash over me. My mouth opens in a gasp, drool spilling out as I pant like a dog. For some reason, it’s easier to breathe like this. Maybe because my nose is breaking and reforming a few times without me even noticing? As the drool runs down my pecs, I bring my hand to them and feel them grow, making my hands look tiny in comparison to the two meat packages they become. I shake my hand a bit, sending the drool flying, and with each shake, I see it grow too, turning into a massive paw, perfect for smashing some unsuspecting fool. Looking at that seems… really good… and I laugh. And out of nowhere, the other hand starts growing too, while my feet expand like crazy. My size eight shoes will never fit those paws; what size are they now? 14? Or maybe 15? A good kick with those surfboards and you’re down for the count… cool… hehehe...
No, not cool, not cool at all! This damn outfit is doing something to me! I stand up and grab the gi by the sleeves at my shoulders, ready to rip it off, and then…. I fall back onto the bench, my eyes unfocused again as a sudden wave of pleasure hits me like a tsunami. Yeah, a torrent of testosterone floods my body as my jawline becomes prominent, my chin broadens, and little tufts of freshly trimmed hair cover my chest and armpits. My mouth opens again, drool spilling out as my neck thickens, and my Adam’s apple sticks out, while my forehead becomes more pronounced, with low brows creating a scowl that makes it look like I’m always ready to fight, and my hair gets shaved on the sides, completing the look of a total douchebag. I try to care, I try to fight... fight... good… fights is good... no… not fight like this... I start to lift my arm, now powerful and making the gi look slightly tight… my biceps must be huge… hehhe… then it drops again… I look at my altered reflection in the mirror and see someone who could easily roll with Samue… Snake and the other guys… who knows, maybe now it’ll end… maybe I’ll finally break free from this stupor and get out of here… But then the real nightmare begins, as a web of powerful veins snakes through the swollen muscles of my body, a myriad of intrusive thoughts starts to slowly shape my mind, no matter how hard I try to resist. They break through my defenses with such force that my illusions shatter quickly as I start to forget. Memories of long hours of studying slowly morph into party after party with my friends, working out with them, training with them, watching my body swell and grow; time spent on pop culture becomes time spent watching football, hours and hours perfecting my college resume turns into hours and hours of sweat and sacrifice perfecting my fighting technique to the point of perfection. Just like my friends. Just like the sensei taught us to be. And we owe it all to sensei. Especially since he’s gonna figure out a way to get me into college, get all of us, in every corner of the country, ensuring that his teachings are passed on. Just one of us in any student group or, better yet, a fraternity, and boom, a new crew of brothers ready to spread the word… ha… word… funny… as if we needed to talk… no… our way is the way of the fist!
Shit, I can’t believe I slept through practice! Sensei is gonna rip me a new one! I shouldn’t have hooked up with those hot girls from college with Snake last night… dude, I couldn’t miss that hookup… I’ll just have to take the sensei’s punishment like a man… and I AM THE MAN!”
I stand up and groan, my voice deeper, with a bit of a growl. I turn toward the door, bracing for sensei’s yelling… Eh, screw him. He’ll put on his show about my tardiness, and I’ll play my part as the remorseful kid, and everything will be fine. It’s not like I skipped out or, God forbid, quit the team; I can’t even imagine the things he’d do to a damn deserter. I stretch a bit, admire myself in the mirror… Mad Dawg, you’re so swole… damn… you big, hot son of a bitch!
And then I finally walk toward the training room to join my brother’s in arms. Today’s practice is gonna be awesome; I can feel it, but honestly, it always is; I was born for this.
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Okay...so where is all the footage, photos, or videos of Taz just stretching (probably weirdly) in between scenes like some kind of Spider Man monkey boy.
I would like to see them, for science, of course.
#taz skylar#let me tell you the story about how a long time One Piece anime fan watched the live action and was swept away by the cook#because sanji in the anime is precious and badass BUT THE NOSEBLEED gag is like 15 years too old#for science
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Why I think Kishimoto isn't sexist, but just VERY tonedeaf and an idiot
Boy, will I have some venting to do today. I mean, at this point, it's not a secret, that Kishimoto has consistently stated that "he can't write women", to save his life. And to this day, for as long as I was a fan of the series, I am going to be absolutely real: This statement is so full of shit. Why? Simple. And allow me to express it in very big capital letters, so that even the last giant mental invalid can understand:
WOMEN ARE HUMAN-BEINGS WITH BREASTS AND A V BETWEEN THEIR LEGS. WHAT TYPE OF "NUANCES" IS THIS GUY TALKING ABOUT? THERE IS NOTHING "COMPLICATED" ABOUT THEM. WHAT NONSENSE IS THIS?
Like, this entire statement is bullshit for a completely reason altogether: Why even reduce his own point to the fact that the shinobi just so happen to be female? This just sounds like excuses on top of excuses, especially considering the competition like One Piece and Bleach, who all have badass, memorable and sometimes, quite well-written characters, that just so happen to be female.
Let's count up a few IPs that I am aware of, written or directed by males, that has some of the most badass, and most memorable females in all of media:
One Piece
Bleach
Soul Eater
Kill la Kill
Jujutsu Kaisen
Code Geass
Persona
Tekken
Street Fighter
SoulCalibur
Fire Emblem (not all of them, some of them, from what I have seen, can be insane jokes)
And so on, and so forth, the list goes on. And you know what all these IPs have in common, that make them stand out, compared to what Naruto does to its females?
THE FEMALES AREN'T GETTING BOGGED DOWN BY IRRITATING, REDUNDANT AND DOWNRIGHT OFFENSIVE TROPES, THAT FLAT-OUT RUIN THEIR POTENTIAL AND APPEAL AS STANDALONE CHARACTERS!
Like, allow me to list up all the tropes, that Kishimoto made use of, while writing the manga, or being involved in the process of writing / directing the anime, along with the movies.
1. Making the women overtly dependant on the male characters
This one, is not as egregious, but it's a good kickstarter. In the context of the world these characters operate in, to me, it does make sense to show that, like in the Edo period of Japan, women were always seen as second-class citizens, always needing to be tied to men somehow, otherwise they are "worthless". Considering the corrupt, militarized system that most of the girls work in, mostly operated by wrinkly, old farts, who enjoy playing god too much, it does remain understandable to me, that they would be hesistant to be 100% committed to the job, and just ask for normal lives...
...BUT...
...it does leave you asking: Why did they choose to be ninjas in the first place, then? To get smitten with the boys (not counting Hinata, by the way, because she was literally forced into this role)? Just applying as literal child soldiers in a war, that they didn't even start to begin with? And yes, I get it, kunoichis excel in areas that male shinobi struggle with, like silent reconnaisance, charming other men, or sometimes women, to tickle information out of them, being healers, but here is the thing: As the Naruto progressed as a story, this pattern kept repeating, every time a female character got introduced, it would fall back on the following checklist:
Is this woman a healer?
Is she obsessed with looking for a boyfriend / a husband?
Is she lacking in combat-based strength, to the point where she needs protection from either of the male characters?
Because, except for the healer bit, which is more of a specialized field, I just brought it up, because I felt it to be awfully noticeable how often the girls requested to be healers, as if they have to fit into such a mold, or they aren't capable as shinobi, the other two questions get repeatedly answered, for pretty much 98% of all female characters, especially by the end of Shippuden.
And don't get me wrong: This is NOT a negative, per se, that they desire a boyfriend, or someone to spend the rest of their days with, this is not what I am complaining about. In fact, a good chunk of ships in the series are hella cute, and I don't want them to go away. Because to an extent, the romance aspect feels genuine, especially between Naruto and Hinata, or Sasuke and Sakura (yeah, fight me on that, I will defend these two as a ship, until I die), or hell, especially Shikamaru and Temari, which are the GOLD standard, of what a good ship needs.
What I am complaining about though, is that, the series kind of uses this romance aspect as a shield, or excuse, to undermine the female characters, in the long run. Think about it, when was the last time when Sakura, in spite of all the grueling training she had to suffer through to become this strong in the first place, not wanting to be a hindrance to anyone, legitimately kicked ass, after killing Sasori? Not counting the war arc, because this arc is frankly, an inexcuseable mess, and Kishimoto should be ashamed of himself for making it suck this hard for how many asspulls this arc had. Nope, the moment Naruto goes berserk, and Sasuke just... appears... she is reduced to a whimpering mess, who can't stand on her own two feet, and has to be saved by someone. And this happens. ALL. THE. TIME. That's all that happens with her, sure, she heals countless ninjas during the war, but again, healing isn't the only specialty she got:
SHE IS A SHINOBI! SHINOBIS FIGHT! THEY DON'T JUST STAND AROUND LIKE IDIOTS, AND EXPOSING THEMSELVES TO ENEMY FIRE! GET! ON! WITH IT!
I swear, man, this just frustrates me beyond any reason, and the worst part, even someone as awesome as Hinata, who kicked so much ass in Part 1 (especially the filler arcs, don't get smart with me, I watched the anime, suck a small one on that), who had a whole, potential story arc hinted at with Neji, and the issues regarding their entire clan, was reduced to a simple Naruto #1 fangirl for the entire duration of Shippuden, not even the filler could salvage her in any way, and for someone like me, who relates to Hinata on a spiritual level, I find this just so damned pathetic. And whenever I watch The Last, all I could think about was this one coherent thought: You. Had. ONE JOB. Kishimoto. And you failed her. As a standalone character. Causing the entire movie to come off as if you were just shoehorning everything together, as if we only liked Hinata, because of the NaruHina ship. Well, newsflash, it couldn't be further from the truth. So, screw you, and the entire The Last movie.
Plus, I am sure I am speaking on everyone's behalf here: Anko Mitarashi and Tenten were done the MOST dirty by Kishimoto. Nuff' said.
On that note, that brings me to my next point:
2. The angry Karen housewife stereotype
I swear, this meme right here...
And Kushina's entire existence truly proves my point that, Kishimoto is really not doing himself any favors, whenever he says "I don't know how to write women". Oh, but then THIS is your answer? Is this how you see them all, the very second they get married and have kids?
So let me get this straight, the moment a woman, in the Naruto universe, gets married, has kids, and takes care of them, they become:
Aggressive, to the point of physically assaulting their own kids (Kushina definitely would have done so, let's not lie to ourselves, I love her, but this behavior of hers, combined with Sakura's general attitude towards Naruto, would have definitely made him suicidal after a while, if it weren't for the fact, he accepts it in his mom's case, because she doesn't know any better, considering her childhood)
Unpleasant to be around for their husbands (as if, we get guilt-tripped into thinking, the wives are the ones being selfish, wanting their lovers to be home with them, which, by the way, is a serious piece of shit way of thinking, because, they are married for a REASON, and not to stay apart all the time, THEY ARE FAMILY, at least, from how it gets painted as, in Boruto, from what I have seen so far)
Becoming total sociopaths, as if their genuine worries and concerns get painted as something so abnormal and "creepy"
...and this is how you see them all? THIS is your answer? Again, I know, we have ZERO evidence to prove that Kishimoto himself, is sexist in real life, it would be irresponsible of me to put that out there, because I just don't know the guy. I am just saying that, with how the housewives were all written thus far, and how, from Naruto's POV, he began having a fear of angry moms, calling them "scary", and how the females got seriously underrepresented in the course of the story...
...IT DOESN'T DO HIM ANY FAVORS.
I can't even believe I have to say this, because, newsflash, Kishimoto, and I will say it in caps: NOT ALL MOMS IN THE WORLD, ACT LIKE THIS!
They can get mad with us, they are fully in the right to whenever we do something stupid, no matter how old we get, because they will always view us as their babies that they cradled in their arms. But the problem here is: In Boruto, it gets painted as if the moms are the ones in the wrong here, just for being a tiny bit more concerned than others, because again, the world that they live in, is dangerous. And leaving the Otsu*redacted* aside, I can fully sympathize with them, so seeing someone like Boruto himself taking so many liberties being a spoiled, rotten brat, who never suffers serious repurcussions for his behavior (I know, he lost his headband for cheating, but for someone like him, who wished literal DEATH on his own father, just for him not being around enough, needed a way harsher punishment, you just don't say that your parents, dude, this doesn't take a genius to understand, especially since this is Naruto and Hinata we are talking about her), once again, it undermines the females, as if the kids ALWAYS "know better", and they "just suck, because moms are scary". Fuck off. Seriously. This is just disrespectful. No excuses. It shouldn't be written this way. Even more so, because the POV of the mothers gets never tackled, making this seem one-sided.
3. A few romances fall back on tropes, that disrespect not only the girls, but also the guys
OK, I will probably get some flack for saying this, but, regardless of the explainations in one of the Retsuden mangas, the InoSai ship, is perfectly encapsulating to me, how the romance in Naruto isn't without its flaws, and it mostly stems from how some of the characters just never get the privilege of gaining their own story sections about their own individual struggles as standalone characters.
I AM LOOKING RIGHT AT YOU, CHOJI AND KARUI! THEIR ROMANCE IS SO OUT OF LEFT FIELD, IT'S NOT EVEN WORTH JOKING ABOUT, EXCEPT, IT'S LITERALLY A JOKE, DUE TO THEIR NAMES BEING POLAR OPPOSITES TO ONE ANOTHER. HA. HA. HA.
Personally, to me, Sai is not that interesting of a character to me, I was never able to connect with him in any way, despite the importance he had in the story, alluding to the ROOT Anbu under Danzo's leadership.
But his "romance" with Ino, was seriously pushing it to me, not only because, it just regresses Ino's entire character, pushing her back into this mold that she is only interested in brooding, mentally ill edgelords like Sasuke, which paints her a shallow person, but it just paints Sai himself, as a stand-in for Sasuke, too, which undermines his own character, unintentionally. There are so many things wrong with their overall dynamic, I can't even put it properly into words.
And don't think, InoSai are the only exception to this rule. As much as it pains me to say this, NaruHina and SasuSaku are also affected by this, not as severe, but it's still pretty noticeable.
NaruHina
The fact that, with NaruHina, we needed an entire freaking movie, which, frankly, should have never happened, had they done a better job at utilizing Hinata as her own character, with Naruto present to help her out with her clan, and it all hinged on Naruto himself regressing as a character too, needing to be put in a fucking Genjutsu, just to see how he "truly felt" about Hinata... I am sorry, what is this? I mean, from a writing standpoint, this is just straight-up BAD. It's clichéd, it's painting Hinata as a damsel in distress, needing to be saved by Naruto, and Naruto himself being pardoned with "he is just dense", and overall, you can really tell, this is all just hamfisted into a single movie, because they needed to desperately convince us: Look, this is a thing. They are together now. Now play the emotional music, because that's all it needs.
Listen, I know Naruto never had a clear grasp on his own emotions, but the overall pay-off, to me, is just not there, no matter how hard I try. It just feels hollow, I don't feel happy with this. Because, for this to ship to work, they had to go through all these extra lengths to regress them both first, as individual characters, just so they can shut the lid on the whole thing. Made even worse by how this confession of Hinata during the Pain Invasion arc, was never brought up again to Naruto, until the freaking movie, and I still don't understand why. I know he didn't "ignore" her, but why does he fail to recognize Hinata's love confession, but the moment Sakura drops by to confess to him, too, he immediately calls it BS? Please. Make it make sense.
SasuSaku
Listen, nothing will stop me from loving these two as one, they deserve the peace amongst themselves, but the problem is, like InoSai, it falls back on the trope of, the girl bearing this mindset of "I can fix him", and while Sakura certainly did succeed... hear me out:
This is a purely universal thing now, this isn't just applying to SasuSaku. Otherwise, both ships have a solid foundation, ruined by shit writing. Nothing else to say.
That moment of Ino crying for Sasuke, really made me realize: Kishimoto really is clueless, not just about women, but men, too.
Because, again, for how often some of the girls bore this mindset of "I need me some brooding hunk of meat", essentially, desiring a man that knowingly treats them like crap, just so they can bear the delusion of "I can fix him", while downplaying and belittling the "uncool" guys like Choji, Rock Lee, or hell, even Naruto or Kiba, guys who, for the most part, have a solid grasp on their moral compass and their self-worth, denouncing their advances with "ew, no", is honestly disgusting to me. Like, come on, man, they aren't as cool as the edgelord teammates, but why downplay them so hard in the presence of the girls? Don't they deserve love too? Why belittle them for their eccentricities, it not only paints the girls in a bad light, but it straight up mocks the male "goofball" teammates for being the way they are. In short: NO ONE IS THE WINNER HERE.
Phew, OK, I hope, I made my point, loud and clear now. Because these points have been bothering me for a VERY long time now, and look, correct me if I am wrong. I am never 100% foolproof, so if I left out anything, feel free to correct me.
I needed to vent about this, because I felt so genuinely pissed off for how underpowered and underepresented the girls are, and how unkind and unforgiving the writing was to them, overall.
Peace.
#vent post#rant post#naruto#naruto manga#naruto shippuden#naruto anime#naruhina#naruto uzumaki#hyuga hinata#sasusaku#anko mitarashi#inosai#ino yamanaka#hinata hyuga#tenten#tenten is the goat#mitarashi anko#sasuke uchiha#sakura haruno#temari#shikamaru x temari#shikatema#sai naruto#choji akimichi#rock lee#kiba inuzuka
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*vibrates*
So many wips… 👀
Ok so. IDK. I have. So many “want to sees”. So I’m just gonna list them 🤷♀️
Ghost Clervie AU. I’m imagining Clervie watching as Peruere- sorry, *Arlecchino* develops her “cold, strict, and unfeeling Father persona”. But she quickly reverts back to Peruere in the presence of Clervie when Arle figures out she isn’t hallucinating and this isn’t some scheme of someone trying to throw her off balance.
(I’m actually just realizing the parallels of Furina making her Archon persona and Peruere with her Father persona 🤔 Both masks are there in order to better protect the people that rely on them (Fontaine’s citizens and the Hearths Children respectively)). Anyways.
Isekai-ed Arlecchino. I’m just wondering at how that would work and how serious you would make the writing take itself. Like would it be crack, crack that takes itself serious, or serious? (You don’t need to answer that. I was just pondering)
Modern Cat or Bunny Shifter Arle. Arle in her animal form has a nearly 100% coat with the exception of one ear that’s black. It’s cute. Also, I see her as a bunny with floppy ears that are so long that she trips over them XD I’m giggling at the thought she might even be one of those massive bunny breeds too. This makes me wonder if the House exists and whether or not the rest are also shapeshifters. Like a haven for shapeshifters, if you will.
Pirate Arle. You know (you don’t, but I’m telling you 😅) I’m a sucker for enemies(who actually aren’t all that bad) taking in and caring for an abandoned enemy.
Historical Goddess Arle. I think the fact that Reader prays for a painless death rather than no death at all could be intriguing to Arle who probably regularly gets prayers from people not wanting to die?
Spiderwoman Arle. It’s not a want, it’s a need. I’m also a sucker for secret identity relationships.
Arlecchino w/ Cursed Bio Child.
Alien Arle and Human Reader. Arle and Clervie internally seething at getting another runaway test subject (not at the human, at the fact they were experimented on). That(the facility) would need to be taken care of… (badass ArlexClervie couple who are leaders of an organization who take down illegal trafficking rings, experiment facilities, etc? 👀) Once the newcomer gets adjusted to their new home, of course.
Arlecchino x Alive/Knave Clervie.
Sorry if any of that/the extra commentary seems like I’m trying to press for any of this. Yeah, these are requests. If that’s ok 🙂
👉👈 Hopefully it isn’t overwhelming.
The Other End of the Blade
(Arlecchino x GN! Reader)
A/N - Hi anon, sorry for being late with this anon! I really love your commentary on all of your (mine?) ideas so don’t worry about it! I’ll put more of a response at the end of this. This one is going to be pirate AU because I too crave some enemies to lovers right now. One piece is the only basis I have for pirates so apologies if it's not alike to other pirate media. Those of you wondering where this list of ideas come from, it’s from my ideas/wip post, where I store all of the silly little ideas for fanfics. Feel free to request from anything on that list.
Content warnings / info - enemies to lovers, semi-graphic violence, heavily one piece inspired, got WAY too invested into this whoops, 4.0k words
Before you could read books, you could read wanted posters. Before you could spell out your name, you could write down ‘pirate’ and ‘wanted dead or alive.’ Before you could write, you throw a mean punch. Before you knew how to play, you knew how to fight. And before you knew how to count your fingers, you could tie knots. Before you knew what a Marine was, you already were one. And before you knew what ‘love’ means, you knew what hate was and who to hate: pirates. Hatred towards them coursed alongside your blood through your veins.
Pirates are the scum of the seas, raiders from the depths of the oceans that have come to pillage towns and wreak havoc over the prospering empires. They’re sick people who only know how to steal and how to kill. They rob lives without an ounce of hesitance, ignorant to the misery and suffering they force upon people because of their actions. The world would be better off without them. That way, all people can live in peace without worry from murderers and pillagers like them. Pirates are everything you should hate and you swear that you're going to make it so not one person has to be afraid of their shores–they'll never have to look at the horizon wondering if they see pirate ships in the distance cruising towards them.
If there is one thing that your family has instilled into you, it would be that a world free of suffering is a world free of pirates. Like every other family member before you, you've been set on the path of greatness that is to eradicate every one of those vermin since birth. The only aspiration you could have is rising the ranks of the Marines. Generations of your family served in the Marine, holding the highest positions. Being anything short of one of the admiral positions, (the lowest of which ranking fourth highest in authority) is a disgrace, a stain on your one of the most prominent Marine families.
Rising towards the ranks was no difficulty for you. It's only about two years since you've joined the Marines, and you've already risen to a commander position. For reference, even the best of soldiers take four to five years to be promoted to that level. And you know you're about to be promoted–you just need one big case. Just capture one famous pirate, and you know that the Captain rank is yours. One more step closer to cementing your place among the greats of your family.
–
Water pelts across your face and the strong sea breeze whips around you. Over your own thumping heart, you can hear the roaring of raging waves paired with the wild flapping of the sails and the creaking of wood. Thudding footsteps rushes all around you, and the clouded sky flashes, thundering.
“Lower the sails!” You scream at the men as they wrestle with the ropes. Seeing one of the men fumble, you grumble under your breath and shove him away to take over.
“Get a bucket, and keep getting rid of the water. We need as little water to get into the hull as possible,” you command him, and that's enough to make him useful.
“Pirate ship spotted!” One of the crew members states and you groan in frustration. A pirate ship at this time? You're only just barely ensuring the vessel does not capsize! Not only is the Marine ship struggling, but no doubt the pirate ship would be too. You release the ropes, seeking out the captain.
“Captain!” You yell as you head towards him. The cranky man shoots you a snooty glare before turning to a Marine soldier besides him.
“Hurry up! What flag is it?! Huh? Huh?! Give me a damn answer before I throw you overboard!” Your captain gruffly exclaims at the poor Marine who was holding a spyglass, pointing it towards the oncoming ship. You cringe at the Captain's voice, silently giving sentiments to the other Marine.
“It's a… um… it.. um…” The Marine stutters, unsure of what to make of the flag. You grind your teeth before wrenching it out of his hands and examining the flag yourself with squinted eyes. In between heavy rain and dark surroundings, you can just barely recognize the flag: a hand grasping a candle.
Damn it! At this time?!
“It's the Hearth pirates!” You announce, tossing the scope to your Captain to see.
“The Hearth? You mean one of the Harbinger crews?!” The old man grunts before seeing for himself. His facial features morph into one of disbelief before hardening.
“I want every cannon manned now! Get your weapons ready and drawn! All hands on deck!” The Captain demands. The confusion and disbelief was practically palpable among the Marines, and felt through their second of hesitation before the soldiers’ replied with a ‘yes Captain.’
Is he crazy? What the hell is wrong with him? As much as you would love to capture the notorious Hearth pirates, you knew now was nothing but an imprudent time. Even if the Hearth was among the less deadly of the Harbinger crews, that did not make them any less powerful. You have heard from other Marines’ hushed whispers that it takes at least a large fleet (5 Marine ships) to take down one entire Harbinger ship, and even that was theoretical. The Fatui pirates as a whole are damn near unstoppable, but the Harbingers themselves are monsters ripped from hell. As much as you hate to admit, you’re not strong enough to defeat a Harbinger, and you have similar doubts for your Captain. Where does he get this pomposity from?
The other men are struggling enough to keep this piece of wood afloat, and now they have to worry about battling pirates? You doubt even the Hearth is eager for a fight. Fighting in this storm would only lead to early graves for both sides. Winning against and capturing the Hearth pirates is unfavorable, but surviving past this storm is indisputable.
“Wait, Captain!” You call out to him. An annoyed click of his tongue comes from him, as if you were the bother, and it only makes you clench your hands into fists. He turns his back towards you, irritation written all over his expression.
“What are you standing around for? Get ready already!” He demands with a scrunched face.
“We can't engage in battle with them yet! We don’t have enough men, and we're already struggling with the storm!” You protest. “We're in no condition to try and fight them!”
Silence. Around you, you hear whispers from the other crewmates, sounds of agreement coming from them. Evidently, this increases the captain's indignation.
“Quiet!” He screams. “If we're struggling, just think about how they could be faring! They don't have nearly enough resources as us marines do to survive! This is our chance to capture one of the Harbinger crews!
“After all,” he pauses to give you a pointed, haughty look. “We have one of the members of the greatest family? We won't lose with you on our side, right? We're in your hands.”
You bristle, your nails digging into your palm as your lips twitch into a deeper frown. To think he would use your family name against you. What is he even trying to do? You're too stunned to respond and he brushes past you.
You're absolutely powerless to do anything, and so are the other soldiers on this ship. No one here outranks the Captain. No matter how correct you may be, you would be punished for disobeying a superior's order. If only you could have been promoted earlier, then you wouldn't have to listen to this fool. Had it been you, you would have this ship steered towards the closest Marine base and report what direction the Hearth pirates are going. But you can't do that. You nod pathetically, and the rest of the men disperse.
You can only watch as the smaller ship approaches closer and closer. As soon as Hearth pirates enter within the firing range, chaos ensues with your Captain's bellowed “FIRE!”
A cacophony of screams and cannon fire sound through the air, deafening you, and the overpowering smell of gunpowder and brine swarm your nostrils. Like all naval battles, it’s always a blur–just a flash of colors and movements. At some point, the pirate ship approached close enough for them to board onto the Marine ship. You are not aware of this until you find yourself face to face with one of the Hearth pirates. By then, all rationale has been thrown out in favor of instinct–the most precise, miniscule reaction is what keeps you alive the most when it comes to battling pirates. Your surroundings fade from your awareness, your only attention on the figure before you.
She’s a young pirate, that you can tell, but her skills are no less admirable. She has an ever passive, unreadable face that makes predicting her movements hard to discern and even harder to catch off guard. You narrowly dodge another slash of her saber, and your cutlass swishes through the air, only shallowly cutting her sleeve. Despite this, she is far from deterred, and you have to parry another swing. The steel of the blades screeches as your blades clash against each other. Now at a temporary standstill, the both of you exchange eye contact for a brief moment. Lilac eyes, brimming with determination, skirts away from yours. She pulls away only to lunge again, a thrust of her blade heading towards you abdomen but you dodge, side-stepping it. The blade skims just past you, embedding into the wood of one of the masts. Realizing the given opportunity, you give a swift kick to the pirate’s stomach, disconnecting her hand from the handle of her sword. She tumbles onto the ground with a grunt, and you use no time to close the distance.
Just as you are about to deliver another blow, a loud gunshot sounds through, making you flinch. A sharp pain erupts from your left shoulder and you stumble back from the young pirate. You cock your head, peering behind you. This action allows you to narrowly miss two oncoming daggers, though your cheek and neck get nicked. Spinning on your heel, you face the dagger wielding pirate fully. He’s a young boy, with a top hat and matching eyes of the saber user. Siblings, perhaps? The fierceness in his eyes confirms your suspicions.
You charge at the boy, but before reaching him, a large wave crashes into the boat, water spilling overboard and throwing you off balance. The sudden impact makes you lose your balance, and you’re hurtled towards the railings of the ship, your back slamming into it. An audible crack emits from the collision and your spine screams out in agony. Lifting yourself into a crawling position, you glance up at the havoc over the deck.
A bit close to you is your captain, fighting against a white-haired woman. Given the striking polearm she wields, that must be the Knave, one of the eleven Harbingers of the Fatui pirates. Her movements are graceful, every thrust and slash calculated and precise. In contrast, your captain’s movements are botched, desperate. Every output of effort from him is just for another instance of him scraping by with his life. Each parry with his saber leaves his arms trembling. He is a bumbling mess compared to the Knave. Easily, you can tell it’s a losing battle for your captain. He’s outclassed.
You’re about to rise when a flicker of bright light catches your gaze. Your eyes widen as you turn your head to spot a bright orange mass covering a part of the deck, and it only grows the longer you gaze at it. The flames stalk towards you with a terrifying space. Despite your body’s protest, you beckon your body to stand. When you have both feet on the wooden planks, you head towards your captain to assist him in his battle. Abruptly, the Marine ship shakes, another current assaulting its side. Swept off your feet, your body is flung, your lower abdomen hitting the top of the railings while you roll off of the ship. It’s only by sheer luck that your hand catches the base of the railing, holding onto it with all the strength you could muster in your left arm. The rest of your body hangs over the ever-swallowing sea.
Your grasp is slipping because of the rain. You grunt as you try to lift yourself with just one arm. Opening your mouth, you clench your teeth onto the spine of your cutlass, freeing up your right arm to grip onto the base of another fence. With much effort, you’re able to heave your head up so that your eyesight is just over the floor. You can spot the familiar boots of the captain. Every muscle in your arm is straining, burning painfully. Holding on for much longer is impossible.
The cutlass has to go. You let the weapon fall from your mouth, and it plunges into the waters below.
“Captain! Captain!” The guttural outcry comes from your lips. There’s the groaning of wood breaking. A large shadow looms over you, and you lift your gaze. The mast above tilts down, forewarning its collapse on top of you.
“CAPTAIN!” You scream out, no longer having the strength to lift your head above the deck. You dangle helplessly, your grip slacking with each second.
You hear thumping footsteps towards you, and you have never been more grateful to see the unsightliness of your captain’s face peering over the railings.
For a moment, he does nothing, viewing your vulnerable state. His lips twitch, a small smile stretches over his face. He turns away briefly, glancing in both the right and left direction, before focusing on you again.
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure that they know you fought honorably,” he says, venom in his voice. “So go ahead and let go.”
Your blood freezes, and his face disappears. Your arms can no longer continue and you let up.
You fall, plunging into the icy cold waters. The iciness does not just seep into your blood, but your muscles and tendons too, making your body heavy. Air is stolen away from you and you flail and kick to the surface for air. Everything hurts. As you sputter for oxygen, coughing out the saltwater, your vision catches the glimpse of a long brown mass toppling down onto you. It’s the last thing you see when something hits the back of your head, and everything fades into an inky abyss.
—
Everything hurts. It's the first thing that comes to you when you are able to grasp even a bit of consciousness. You feel it in your limbs, your back, your abdomen, essentially anything above your waist has a stabbing sensation in it. A groan, followed by a deep suction of air, emerges from you, and you lift your head up. Your eyes flutter open, bright light stabbing into your eyes. You let out a pained groan, rolling your neck to ease its discomfort but find it unhelpful.
Your eyes adjust to the orange glow of your surroundings. You blink several times to relieve the blurriness in your vision, able to see more clearly. Given the rocking motion and the familiar sound of waves crashing, you would reckon you're on a ship. Looking down at yourself, you're seated on a chair. You attempt to sit up, only to find yourself unable to. Rope digs into the skin of your bound wrists, and you let out a string of expletives in a single defeated sigh.
“Did you learn that tongue from the Marines?” A cutthroat voice resounds through the room.
You dip your head, turning towards the figure. A tall woman leans against the wall in the corner, a good bit of distance away. White and black strands, charcoal hands, crimson crossed-pupils, and the epitome of beauty and refinement that marks the appearance of the Knave. Strange to find that among pirates, of all brutish people. Your hazy mind clears in an instant, and you sit up straighter. The pirate captain's presence brings about your most recent memories onto the forefront of your mind in short bursts. With a forceful swallow, you recognize that you have been captured by the Hearth pirates. If you're alive rather than dead, that means they have some use for you. Whatever it is, you need to escape from this. You can only do that when you fish for enough information.
Taking in your surroundings, you'd have to guess you're in some storage room. Stacked barrels make up the majority of the room. Perhaps if you're able to access the contents of the barrels, you can use them to escape. If not, you could easily ruin their supplies, including food and water.
“I just thought communicating would be easier in your language,” you snark back, observing the Harbinger's reaction. Expectedly, she remains inexpressive, revealing nothing. She leans away from the wall, stalking towards you. Heels click against the floorboards. Only pirates would have the audacity to be wearing such compromising shoes out on the sea.
She stands before you, unmoving, her piercing gaze smiliarly fixated on your form. When nothing comes from her lips, you make conversation first.
“Admiring me?”
This earns a humorless chuckle. “There's nothing to admire.”
Ow.
A frown comes across your face. Acting coy does not work on pirates like the Knave. The Knave seems like someone who only responds to directness. No use in stalling.
“What happened to my crew?”
“They were alive when we left them.”
“And are they still alive?”
“Presumably.”
You grit your teeth, lunging at her in anger. Your bounds don't allow for much movement, and it only makes your chair screech across the floor boards towards the pirate. “You left them in the middle of the storm with a ruined ship! You killed them!”
“You were the fools that decided to attack us.”
“You would have attacked us first! You scum aren't above anything! How can I even trust your word? How do I not know you're not lying to my face?! How do I know you haven't slaughtered them all?!” You scream, thrashing against the ropes wildly.
“I doubt any persuasion could relieve your distrust. I see that any sort of conversation with you will be futile,” the pirate remarks. She spins on her heel, heading towards the door. You're almost tempted to let her if it means the chance of never seeing her face again, until another thought crosses your mind.
Why did she want some sort of conversation with you?
“Wait.”
The Knave stops in her tracks. “Are you choosing to be civil for once?”
You scrunch your nose. “Never mind. I can't bear seeing your face again.”
An audible huff comes from the pirate before she does face back towards.
“Why did you… why did you keep me alive? Why did you spare me? Why did you…” You pause, recalling back to your last memories. You were knocked unconscious by falling debris, that you were sure of. You should have drowned by all accounts. You doubt your crewmates have saved you–you hate to admit it, but you would have sunk to the seabed before one of them had noticed. Your crewmates would have been too focused on the pirates to have. If it wasn't any one from your party, then that only leaves the opposing party. However, there is no logical reason for them to. You'd sooner accept divine intervention rather than pirates having rescued you.
The voice in your head, the voice that has been fostered since your childhood, tells you that it is neither of those two, just a sick sense of karma. Pirates aren't capable of any good doing. If they've kept you alive, it's because they intend to hurt you even more. They're inhuman monsters who only know how to steal and steal, until nothing of you is left. Wretched people that shouldn't even have the luxury of being labeled as ‘humans.’
“Why am I here?” You finally settle on those words.
Silence stretches for a single moment before she begins. “You encountered two of my children, yes?”
You raise your eyebrows at the mention of ‘children.’ You're aware that some captains likened themselves to a parental figure of their crew–it seems like the Knave is one of those cases. You think back to the young ash blond pirates you briefly fought.
“The swordswoman and the dagger thrower,” you reply.
“Correct. I found Lyney as a child, when I was wandering the alleys of a shoretown. He bumped into me because he was in a hurry to save his sister from being sold to a high ranking Marine.”
Shock envelopes your face as you process those words. A Marine? Someone whose duty is to protect citizens? A high ranking Marine? Someone whose performance and power is praiseworthy and yet they would do something like that? The thought sickens you. That kind of behavior… that can only pertain to a pirate right? It is not possible for a Marine to act that way. Other Marine officials would have never allowed it. She must be feeding falsehoods to trick you, to get you to betray your family and duty. There's no way this would happen.
Despite your inner turmoil, Arlecchino continues. “When I took them in, fed them and gave them somewhere to sleep, it took several months for Lyney to sleep in his own quarters. He couldn't be torn away from his sister's quarters. Any chore assigned to him, Lynette had to be beside him. You would have to possess a superhuman strength to separate him from her.”
You could imagine why. Your stomach churns uncomfortably, hating the fact that with every word, her story seems more and more plausible. Why were you even considering this fabricated story? Why were you being swayed by a pirate's tongue?
“Why are you telling me this? You didn't take me to tell your kids’ sob story,” you remark.
“Every single person on this ship has been dealt an unfortunate hand by the Marines. My children,” she speaks with a hint of indignation, her voice chillingly sincere, “have suffered and wept because of a Marine. Not one of them has ever had a good history with a Marine.”
She gives you a pointed look, one that makes your blood boil. You hate it, you want to gauge her eyes out because you can see the glint of sympathy in them. “I see now that it's not just people having been harmed by the Marines. But their own people too.”
“I am not some pitiful stray you found on the street!” You scream, having heard enough of this. “I have not been wronged by-”
“Your captain abandoned you.” That is all it takes to silence you, and your outburst dies the instant it comes. Any protests on your lips is pummeled away by the heaviness in your chest that forms whenever you think back to that moment. Arms aching, helpless and dangling, and the man you relied upon to lead you and guide you, turns away. He left you, simple as that, to die. Why? You couldn't even fathom a reason. How could a captain do that? After all your service, after all you've done for him, he leaves you.
“You would have died because of a self-serving captain.”
And you still have the audacity to try and defend him. The Marines are all you know. He was just one man. That did not mean all the Marines were like that. “He was just one man.”
“One man is all it takes. One man is one too many. And if that were true, no one else would be on my ship. I do not believe that all Marines are as revolting as him. Quite the opposite. But there is enough and that's the problem.
“You may find it hard to believe, but we want to welcome you. If you choose to so stubbornly reject our hospitality and company, we will drop you off at the nearest island so you may return to your duty. But here, we at least know of loyalty and family, I assure you that.”
The Knave approaches you. You hear the unsheathing of a blade and you feel your wrists relieved from their bounds. You gape at her.
“Welcome to the House of the Hearth.”
More A/N: I know this was really long, and not at all romantic, but I got way too invested into the plot of it all to actually focus on the romance. Please someone request a part two because I haven't enjoyed writing a piece this much in a while (i know my inbox is closed for requests but I will make this an exception. This was such a fun piece that really had me invested the entire time while writing. I would love to see Arlecchino's and Reader's relationship develop more. I hope you guys enjoyed this because it's now the longest request I've ever written.
I'm not done yapping, unfortunately. To address anon's commentary. First of all, never be sorry for the commentary. I love yapping, as you may be able to tell. I love hearing your guys' ideas and I think they're all so cool!! (I'm also lonely :v pls talk to me anons).
I love, love, love Arlecchino's character, and I so wish to see it more explored in x Reader fics (I have something like this in the works ehehe) and I totally see the comparison between Furina and Clervie (even though I don't ship Arlefuri).
I've already written Goddess! Arlecchino x Reader! I've linked it in case you haven't seen it before. I'm also working on an Alien! Arlecchino x Human! Reader, so not quite like the Alien AU! Arlevie, but I thought it's something you might be interested. I think that Bunny! Arle would be more like her plush in the Arlecchino animation, but seeing her with floppy ears is such a cute image. With the Isekai AU, I guess it really depends on my mood. (I've also put a different concept for an Arlecchino Isekai-ed AU in the same post), but likely the one mentioned in your asks will have more crack.
I really want to think you for your conideration of my ideas!! It means a lot to me that people actually see them and like can envision it and feel the raw potential for that story like I do. I know it took super long for me to get to this request and it might not even be how you wanted but I hope you like it. <333
Note to future requests: if you guys give me a list of ideas you want me to do (bc you're as indecisive as I am), I can pick one to write :33)
#arlecchino#arlecchino x reader#arlecchino x you#genshin arlecchino#genshin impact x reader#genshin impact x you#genshin x reader#genshin x you#edgeray.writes#edgeray.requests
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Until I read the comments on that one post I had no idea the Bechdel Test was a joke and wasn't supposed to be a serious measuring stick by which you gauged if something was feminist or not. Everywhere I'd ever heard it brought up, it was brought up as a very serious thing, and it was a failure of media if it didn't pass it. I remember the debate about Mako Mori from Pacific Rim and if she was a character you were "allowed" to like as a progressive person despite the fact that Pacific Rim doesn't pass the Bechdel Test, the discourse, the discussion of if the director was sexist for not writing in another woman for her to chat with about non-men related stuff, the camp of people trying to insist that having a fully realized character arc and being as developed as any of the male leads = good writing even if she doesn't talk to another girl...
And I've also had the remark about my writing not passing the test, just not to my face. I searched my fanfic's name once, curious to see if anyone was discussing it outside of tumblr and AO3, and found a Tiktok complaining about it not passing the Bechdel Test. The top comment was "motherfucker YOU don't pass the test but we still watch your ass". I cackled and moved on, but neither the commenter, poster, nor I had any awareness this wasn't Feminist Media Critique 101 theory and was, in fact, a goof.
Right now there's a segment of fandom debating if Blue Eye Samurai is feminist since when Mizu and Akemi talk, they do bring up men, since, y'know. Women aren't considered people with rights in their era in Japan and thus it's something they mention instead of only talking about being cool girlboss badasses who never bring up gender. If something doesn't pass the Bechdel Test, a smug segment of the internet high-fives itself and congratulates one another on being More Feminist Than Thou.
They then get really angry if you disagree, even though by this metric, Sleeping Beauty (the original animated one, where Aurora has only 16 lines of dialogue) is more feminist than Blue Eye Samurai.
--
*DYING*
Okay, so, nonnie....
Dykes to Watch Out For (1983-2008) was a long-running comic and major piece of lesbian media. I grew up buying compiled volumes at the bookstore. To be honest, that kind of 90s-ish lesbian culture isn't really my scene despite me being bi, but it was very nice to have this slice of life-y somewhat realistic, occasionally somewhat parody, look at the queer communities around me. It's up there with Tales of the City for me in terms of being a window into a particular culture and time and place.
If anybody is interested in queer history, in addition to looking up factual info, I think a read of the complete Dykes would give a really good overview of how people were thinking about things and what issues came up a lot. You'll see things like Barnes & Noble increasingly putting feminist bookstores out of business in the 90s, attitudes towards porn in lesbian circles—all kinds of cultural issues of the day.
I drifted away as I got later in my teens and found more genre fiction I cared about, but at one point, this comic was a very welcome antidote to the glurgey coming out stories that made up a lot of the more realistic media.
Anyway, here's the comic itself, reproduced in its entirety because I think it's important to actually understand the context.
This is from 1985, so the era of Rambo, Conan, and Death Wish, each of which you can see being made fun of here. It's based on Bechdel's friend Liz Wallace's actual rule for seeing movies.
That's it. That's the origin of this whole stupid test.
"LOL, fuck 80s action movies". That's it. That's the joke.
The fact that blockbusters still routinely fail to pass in the 2020s is shameful, but that was never the point of the strip.
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I didn’t know whether to send this ask on the lorch blog or the main, but re: why people view Dios as a villain from your last stream, I think there’s 2 main reasons:
- his entire portrayal at the end of adolescence where he’s taunting Anthy and begging her to come back to Ohtori as she & utena are riding away
- when he’s shown on the carousel after Utena gets stabbed. It’s the same carousel that’s shown before Akio goes to unlock the gate, and I’ve seen a few people claim that his speech to Utena is almost mocking her for her efforts
I’m not trying to be a lorch here, just wanted to give my 2 cents on this topic
It's best for Utena asks to go here I'd rather not clutter up my main blog XD
That's Akio at the end of the film. Dios is only seen once in the film when Anthy has a vision of him in Utena's place during Juri's duel.
(Edit: And like a couple glimpses of him by Juri and Miki which don't even ask me wtf it means the movie is nuts.)
The second argument is the one that really drives me crazy. If you've paid attention at all to Utena's symbolic language: when you see a character who is a dark silhouette you're not seeing the truth.
The "Dios" mocking Utena on the carousel whose sentences Akio finishes is not the real spirit of Dios. Akio has been trying to convince Utena that he and Dios are still the same person in order to get Utena to do what he wants.
But far, far away from the carousel with the mocking false version of Dios another Dios appears, one whose face we can see, one who seems to be the same one that came to Utena in her coffin. The one that exists because of Anthy. I don't think it's a coincidence that Utena meets him once again in a space between life and death.
This Dios says to her: "Don't look so sad. You've tried so hard until now. Don't blame yourself. You've treasured the Rose Crest ring until now. A kiss, to show my appreciation".
He then leans down to kiss her ring. The ring that is, remember, a promise that Utena will retain her childhood nobility and free Anthy from her eternal suffering.
Unlike the false puppet Dios this one is laying there crumpled on the ground with her. They're both far away from the carousel in a quiet, intimate moment. Akio is unaware this is happening. I see the true spirit of Dios kissing the ring the same as Anthy blessing the sword.
And he blesses her ring as the chorus in the background swells with the words: "I have vanished yet I still live. I exist. I am here. I exist. I am here."
And then in one of the most badass moments in anime Utena slams her fist into the ground and lifts herself back up. Refusing to give up on saving Anthy from this. She's only been stabbed once, Anthy is being stabbed a million times.
Now what seems to have happened is some people have gotten it in their head that Utena slamming her fist with the ring on it into the ground is her rejecting Dios. You know, cause they desperately want this to be "feminist" in the way that Utena don't NEED no man to help her! Despite the fact its more sexist to act like you can't be inspired to act by someone of the opposite sex.
Utena embodies Dios' spirit. She has since the beginning. Dios has been her ally throughout the entire show. That's why Anthy's heart has been moving to her instead of her memories of what Akio used to be. How is anyone possibly reading it as a rejection other than a willful misinterpretation based on what they WANT the show to be rather than what the actual text is communicating.
I even had someone try to tell me the ring is smashed to pieces here which uh... no?
The ring is a symbol of the promise to Anthy. The promise to become like the prince Anthy once loved and believed in for HER sake.
We see this true spirit of Dios two more times in the final episode. First he's lounging around listening to Akio brag about how Utena is going to lose. To me it seems like he's just waiting for Akio's defeat now that he has passed his purpose on to Utena. A purpose he's known he can no longer fulfill, because Akio exists and he no longer does outside of Anthy's wish and will that he could.
Akio doesn't notice Dios at all in this scene. He's just monologuing to himself about how Utena, the one who embodies the spirit of the Prince he once was, whose power he is hungry to regain, is a fool for being so persistent. And that's why Akio will never change the world. Because this twisted world and system only exists due to the hold he has on Anthy and his efforts to fully control every piece of her.
And then my final piece of evidence that Dios is Utena's ally: he vanishes behind the drink Akio is sucking up that represents Utena's remaining lifeforce. Dios quietly disappears forever behind that glass. And it's that exact moment that Utena opens the way to Anthy.
It's also worth noting that the fake puppet Dios peaces out when this happens too.
So anyone saying "Utena rejected Dios in the end" I have to assume is hearing this through 2nd or 3rd hand information from someone who has never experienced the actual show as anything beyond a "sword lesbians" mood board on Tumblr.
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The Hellfire Exotic Club Part 6
Hey guys! I'm going to try something a little different with this one to see if it will help get more people looking it at. And that's only have the 18+ label on chapters that actually show nudity and stripping and not on the chapters that don't. See if that's why this one hasn't been getting the same love as the others.
In this chapter we have the ultimate bitch off, Eddie calling in the cavalry, and Chrissy gets targeted.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5
~
Leviathan and Dagon gave Steve a wide berth after that. Which honestly was for the best. Most of the dancers he got along with or at least tolerated enough to get the job done. He wasn’t there to make friends. He didn’t want enemies per se, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to go home and dry in his pillow over a couple of backup dancers with delusions of grandeur.
If anything he was pissed at their blatant lack of respect for Eddie. Like, hate on him, he didn’t care, but he thought everyone liked Eddie.
He walked into the dressing room to get ready for his pas de trois with Eddie and Chrissy when he found Chrissy crying.
“Hey what happened?” he asked, running over to her. She held up her white leotard she had been using for the dance until Ellie got their color change ones made. It was slashed.
“Try it on and see if it’s still wearable,” Steve muttered, “I’m going to see if something happened to mine, too.”
She nodded, wiping at her face even though the tears were still flowing. He pulled out his white leotard and sighed in relief. His was fine. But whether by design or by fluke that they got Chrissy’s costume, he knew this was a warning for him.
He quickly got dressed and then turned around to see Chrissy barely holding the pieces together.
“Let me see,” he asked tenderly. She sniffled and let her hands drop. The damage wasn’t too bad, just three lines across the middle. Like an animal had sliced her. He ran his tongue slowly over his lips as an idea formed in his head.
Steve grabbed Chrissy’s hand and dragged her over to the long mirror. “It looks badass, Chris. And I’ve got a way to make it even more so.”
Chrissy eyed him warily in the mirror. “I don’t know, Steve. Maybe I shouldn’t go out there.”
Steve gave her the biggest hug from behind. “I won’t make you do anything you don’t want to do, sweetie. But will you listen to my idea?”
Chrissy nodded and Steve told her all about it. She tapped her finger on her lips thoughtfully. “Lilith is the mother of monsters...”
“Hell yeah, she is,” Steve grinned at her through the mirror. “It’ll be super sexy, too.”
She turned around and smiled back at him. “All right, let’s do this.”
Steve jumped up and down gleefully. “You won’t regret this, I promise.”
So they started the dance with Chrissy wearing a length of green fabric over her leotard like a toga. Then when she fell to become Lilith Eddie ripped away the cloth revealing the scratch-like cuts across her chest, showing hints of her breasts and belly. She landed on her hands and growled at the audience. And the money flew like leaves in autumn.
She did the splits and rose to her feet, as smooth as silk. She continued the dance like that growling and making herself as loud and as monstrous as possible. Look, even Steve couldn’t deny it was sexy as fuck and the crowd agreed with him.
Once everything had been cleaned up and everyone given their cut of the night’s take, Eddie sat down with Chrissy and Steve.
“Do you think this is a one time frustration at not getting the role of Envy,” Eddie asked, “or the start of a vicious series of attacks that are only going to ramp up?”
“What I want to know,” Chrissy said, “was if it’s about Steve, why go after me? Wouldn’t they be going after Steve if they were jealous of him and not me?”
Steve shook his head. “I don’t think so. I think they’re being clever. If they attack my dance partner or do things that make me look bad, but not directed at me then they have plausible deniability. ‘Oh it couldn’t have been me’,” he mimicked, mock clutching at invisible pearls, “‘I only hate Steve I love Chrissy, I would never do anything to her.’”
Chrissy laughed. “Yeah, okay. I get it. So whoever did was being sneaky. But we still don’t know if they’re going to continue or make it a thing.”
“We’ll keep the clothes from Elle in my closet,” Eddie said, nodding. “That way they don’t get ruined.” He stood up and walked over the door to said closet. “Speaking of which,” he continued talking, over his shoulder, “Elle dropped off Steve’s Envy costume so that it fits. It will probably be a couple more weeks until the final costumes are done.”
He tossed it at Steve, who caught it deftly. “Try it on. Make sure it fits. It should, Elle is very good at what she does.”
Steve stripped down quickly and pulled the costume on. It fit like a glove. He did a slow turn around to show it off. Both Eddie and Chrissy wolf whistled their approval.
“Bend, twist,” Eddie said, “make sure you can move around and dance in it. It looking pretty is only a part of the equation.”
So Steve did some of the more complicated parts of his tease. Like the splits and spins. Then he removed each piece as he continued his dance; each piece coming off with ease. Once he was naked again, he got dressed in his street clothes.
“I’d say it’s a hit,” Chrissy said, smirking at Eddie’s slack jawed awe. Eddie’s mouth closed with a snap and he gulped.
“Yeah.”
Steve smirked and flopped back down on the chair. “So we’ll keep all of both Chrissy and my costumes here and hope that will keep the fly monkey at bay.”
“My bet is on it being Danny,” she said, sitting on the chair in front of Eddie’s desk. “She’s just the sort. I don’t think for all of Levi’s bluster that he would go that far.”
Eddie wasn’t so sure. This seemed like something else. Something bigger than some petty feud between dancers. This sounded more like someone with something to prove. He had two suspects, but he was going to keep that himself. For now.
He listened as Steve and Chrissy went back and forth about who they thought it could and if it wasn’t about Steve, then why they might target Chrissy.
“Babe,” Eddie implored, “you should just come out. To the troupe at least. I think that would help cut down on the jealousy if they knew you weren’t sleeping with the owner.”
Chrissy huffed out an annoyed sigh. “I know. But the thing is that if you were gay and not bisexual, they wouldn’t be making the same allegations against Jeff or Gareth, or hell, even Steve. But because I’m a woman the only reason I’m head choreographer is because I slept my way into the job.”
“Would it help if I came out too?” Steve asked, oblivious to the bomb that just went off in that office. “If we both come out as gay, maybe they’d leave you alone.”
Eddie’s friends might tease him about hitting it with Steve to least get out the pent up tension, but that’s all it was; teasing. But now with Steve basically removing the last real block to fucking him, now it was about to get serious and persistent.
Chrissy thought about it for a moment or two and then nodded. “It could even be informal like, a play argument and we call each other out?”
“We could do that, sure,” Steve said with a smile. “Whatever makes you comfortable. Hell, if ti’s okay with her, maybe Robin could join in. I know people have been asking around if we’re dating. Which if they really wanted know they could just ask. But dancers are the worst gossip hounds.”
Eddie snorted. That was certainly true. “The fruity four,” he said with a smile. Steve tilted his head to the side curiously. “I’m bi, sweetheart. Remember, Chrissy said earlier.”
Steve blinked at him for a moment and then smacked his head. “Oh my god! Yeah of course. I was just so focused on making sure she was okay that it must have slipped right past me!”
He lifted his hand like he was holding up a glass, “To the fruity four!”
Eddie and Chrissy laughed. They both raised mock glasses too. They talked for a little while longer before Chrissy and Steve left.
Eddie put his head in his hands. He had to admit how attractive Steve was. Those long dancer legs, the thick thighs, the hair on the man’s chest. The moles. The honey colored hair and hazel eyes. His Envy was his walking wet dream. He didn’t know how he was going to survive having this angel tempting him away from hell.
He licked his lips. Maybe he needed that vacation after all.
~
“Of course I want to see you, Ed,” Wayne said, “I just worry about what brought this on? You having trouble? Because if you’re having trouble, I’ll come to you. You know I will.”
“I’m just feeling a bit thin on the ground right now,” Eddie admitted shyly. “There’s trouble with the dancers, I haven’t had a break in five years, and I’m missing home.”
“Dancers are always gonna be trouble,” Wayne huffed. “It’s in their DNA. If they ain’t gossiping, they’re stirring up drama. I’ll tell you what, why I don’t come down there and stay a couple weeks, see if I can calm things a bit.”
Eddie let out a shuddering breath. “Yes, please. I know that it could possibly make things worse with them not trusting my authority, but god, I don’t know how you did this on your own for so long.”
Wayne snorted. “I did it because I was debt, son. Once you took over, and it started making money, good money even, I knew it was time throw in the towel. You had a better head for business then I ever did.”
“You’re just saying that to make me feel better.”
“Maybe,” Wayne said with a smile, “doesn’t change the fact that it’s still true. I’ll pack my things tonight and call Doris to water my plants, I’ll be down first thing in the morning.”
“Thanks, Uncle,” he murmured and they rang off. He put the phone back down in its cradle with a sigh.
Eddie stretched out his limbs until he could feel his spine pop.
Fuck.
Peaking at thirty is such bullshit. He wanted to speak to the manager, he wanted a full refund and a new body, please and thank you.
He got up to go see how his drama queens were doing. He didn’t like leaving them alone for too long because the shit they were capable of stirring up in the shortest amount of time was unfathomable.
When he got there he realized what he just stumbled into when he saw two of his favorite people standing in the center of the stage squaring off against each other.
“God,” Chrissy huffed, “are all ballerinas such queens?”
The rest of the troupe gasped, but before anyone could say anything, Steve put one hand on his hip and popped it.
“Better a queen then beanflicker, darling.”
“Fairy!” Chrissy shot back.
“Beaver eater!” was Steve’s returning salvo. Eddie snickered at that one.
“Shirt lifter!” Chrissy huffed, putting both hands on her hips.
“Boondagger!” Steve bit back, mirroring her pose. The whole troupe was silent. The wait staff had gathered to see what the ever loving fuck was going on.
Eddie sidled up to Jeff as Chrissy shot out “Pillow biter!”
“So what started this?” he whispered, leaning over so they didn’t disturb the hilarious scene in front of them.
“Vagetarian!” Steve spat.
“Steve told Chrissy her turn wasn’t tight enough,” Jeff whispered back, “and that if she tried that with other dancers on the stage she was going to hit one.”
Eddie nodded sagely; a nitpicky thing that would be great starter to their faux argument. He settled down to watch the show, making sure not to look at Robin was nearly doubled over in laughter, turning almost purple from lack of breath.
Chrissy’s shocked face at the most recent insult was hilarious. “Sausage jockey!”
Steve raised a singular bitchy eyebrow. And Eddie knew that this was the finisher. The one Steve had been holding onto the whole fight.
“Dick dodger.”
Chrissy blinked at him for a moment and then burst out laughing. “Okay, God. You win. You’re such a Mary.”
“Back at ‘atcha, lezzie,” he said with a smile. “Plus, I already have an annoying lesbian to deal with, I don’t need two.”
Robin finally took a breath as she gasped in rage. “Hey!”
Steve burst out laughing, hopping off the stage to kiss her cheek. “You love my gay ass, and you know it.”
Jeff waved his fingers between the three of them. “Wait, wait, wait...” he said with a grin. “Are all three of you gay? Like I knew about Chrissy, but damn, Ed.” He turned to Eddie and shook his head. “Really dialing it in on the diversity hires there.”
Eddie burst out laughing while the other three just grinned back.
“Yeah,” Steve said, “Robin and I are ‘Platonic Soulmates’ with a capital P. Just a couple of queers trying to make it through.”
Chrissy bumped her shoulder into Steve’s. “Same with me and Eddie. It was a little harder for me to come out because my family is ultra conservative and my ex is one of those annoying street preachers you see on YouTube harassing poor unsuspecting people on the street.”
“And I will kick his ass the next time I see him, too,” Eddie said with a fond smile.
“Wait,” Levi said, “you’re telling me that not only are Steve and Robin not a couple, neither is Eddie and Chrissy?”
“Nope!” Robin said with a shit eating grin. “Not even a little.”
The unasked question of then why was Chrissy made head choreographer then, hung in the air.
Gareth chuckled darkly. “Hey, Chris. How long were you in cheer and gymnastics?”
“I’m older than I look,” she replied with a wink. “Let’s just say I started gymnastics at ten and cheer at fifteen. Then I took jazz dance in college for a bit of kick as an elective. All those things are choreographed. Then right after college, I got hired here by Wayne to be lead choreographer. I applied just like everyone else. Did Eddie suggest I apply? Sure, but I got this job because I’m good. The only leg spreading I do is on stage.”
Steve and Robin clapped.
Chrissy took a bow.
Eddie smirked as there were some muttering from the dancers. “All right, we’ve had the preview, now it’s time practice the main attraction!”
Everyone got into position. Eddie caught Steve’s eye and mouthed, ‘Thank you.’
Steve just winked and go into the groove, let the music wash over him as Eddie watched. His heart beating faster over this ridiculous man and his fucking heart of gold.
He was in so much trouble.
~
Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14
Tag List: CLOSED!
1-@mira-jadeamethyst @rozzieroos @itsall-taken @redfreckledwolf @zerokrox-blog
2- @gregre369 @a-little-unsteddie @chaosgremlinmunson @messrs-weasley @cryptid-system
3- @maya-custodios-dionach @goodolefashionedloverboi @val-from-lawrence @carlyv @wonderland-girl143-blog
4- @justforthedead89 @irregular-child @bookbinderbitch @bookworm0690 @forgottenkanji
5- @anne-bennett-cosplayer @yikes-a-bee @awkwardgravity1 @littlewildflowerkitten @genderless-spoon
6- @dragonmama76 @ellietheasexylibrarian @thedragonsaunt @useless-nb-bisexual @disrespectedgoatman
7- @counting-dollars-counting-stars @tinyplanet95 @ravenfrog @swimmingbirdrunningrock @lingeringmirth
8- @gutterflower77 @a-lovely-craziness @just-a-tiny-void @w1ll0wtr33 @beelze-the-bubkiss
9- @dreamercec @sadisticaltarts @too-much-tma-stuff @dolphincliffs @chameleonhair
10- @themoonagainstmers @gloomysoup @novelnovella @micheledawn1975 @garden-of-gay
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Worm Arc 24 thoughts:
. . . fucking . . . fuck. Just . . . fuck. Fucking fucky fucking FUCK, THAT WAS SO BADASS!!!!!
ALL OF IT HOLY SHIT I DON'T CARE, JUST PICK ANY MOMENT!! EVERYTHING EVERYONE DID WAS BADASS!
LIKE. FUCK. COLIN GOT TO LOOK BADASS.
He even got "yelling in caps" badass. Just for the one scene when he picked up Chevy. He did one fucking thing right, which was help someone up and then let THEM be cool.
And speaking of . . . HOLY FUCKING SHIT CHEVY! YOU DIDN'T GET KILLED BY TIME TRAVEL CHAD!
WHICH MEANS I DON'T HATE YOU ANYMORE!
WHICH MEANS I CAN SHOUT ABOUT HOW BADASS THAT WAS!!!
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Fuck waiting for my interlude section to talk about this. That final scene with Behemoth was one of the most visually badass things I have ever read in my life! Fuck. I get fucking chills just thinking about it.
I can see that entire last fight in my head very clearly, almost like remembering an anime scene. Perfectly written.
And Regent! Look at you go, that's character growth!
I mean sure, you died. But growth!
Besides, you dying legit made Imp cooler. She was already great but "I'm going to fucking kill his dad for him" is even better! And Wanton's apparently got jokes so we still have a funny guy.
Basically if someone had to die I'm happy it was you. Sorry not sorry.
ALSO FOIL WHAT THE FUCK YOUR POWER COULD ALWAYS DO THAT AND YOU'VE JUST BEEN SITTING THERE SHOOTING THINGS?
I . . . I just . . . girl! How?? You could literally have turned a piece of rebar into a sword that Alexandria could have cut Leviathan in half with! And that's just what I thought of in the first few seconds after seeing this! Spend some time actually thinking about what you can do lady!
But luckily my daughter is here to do the thinking, and be FUCKING AMAZING AT IT!!!
LIKE HOLY SHIT TAYLOR, YOU CUT OFF BEHEMOTH'S LEG!
AND THAT PLAN HOLY SHIT! YOU MADE A PLAN THAT SET RACHEL UP TO BE THE BADASS HERO WHO CUTS OFF BEHEMOTH'S LEG, AND SETUP REALLY POWERFUL HEROES AS HER SUPPORT!
Fuck half of Eidolon's fucking job was "Catch my girlfriend and fly her back to me."
GGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WOLFSPIDER WOLFSPIDER WOLFSPIDER!!!!!!
And the snuggling at the end, as they were leaving!! EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oh my god and the lightning rod! That was insane!
Golem just has really cool powers. Glad Theo is doing ok.
And Alexandria's power preserves the body so Pretender can just puppet her. That's wild. Kinda annoying, my daughter just killed her!
And and and Taylor talked with Contessa!
AND CONTESSA SHARED HER POWER!!!
I was pretty close, didn't have it that specific, but basically was expecting something similar. Fuuuuck it's so cool!
Also the underground cities and the secret capes were wild. Kinda unfortunate that you guys set things up for Behemoth to be able to collapse the entire city, gave him lots of existing tunnels and such to work with.
My daughter could have done a little less bonding with Phir Sē. Ideally. Would have made me feel a little better.
But holy shit a time portal bomb made of looped light?? GOD DAMN. That sure hit like a truck. Just not a big enough truck.
Also Grace and Cuff are dating. I don't make the rules I just enforce them.
And the rules are "make it gay"
God and the whole "thinkers stuck on a roof" bit. Christ that was planned badly. They almost died because nobody had some rope. Embarrassing.
I'm glad Tattletale is doing ok. She got her girlfriend to steal a dudes phone for her, which was pretty funny. And I loved how she still got to do her big reveal to Chevy, she needs that.
HOLY SHIT AND TAYLOR TELLING RACHEL HOW TO TAKE CARE OF IMP?? SHE UNDERSTANDS HER GIRLFRIEND. GAY GAY GAY GAY GAY GAAAAAAYYY!
And fuckin Tecton just trying so hard to do the same thing with Rachel first and just failing so completely. And then trying again. And again. Bless his big himbo heart he's trying.
Fuck there's so much, I'm sure I'm missing a dozen other things. Every chapter had 20 moments I could mention.
Seriously though, sucks for New Delhi. "There’s nothing left to protect here" is a heck of a line and it is not what anyone wants to hear.
Chevy interlude (the rest of it) thoughts:
Holy shit Chevy's shadows! I wish he had described more of them, I wanted to know everyone's image! Just so much data there.
Fun to see the early Wards. Fun to see that Colin was always like that.
Hero's death was absolutely a targeted hit, he started asking too many questions, pushing back on things.
Chevy's whole power is just really fascinating. Really interesting to think about.
RIP Mouse Protector
Also the fact that her shadow was her laughing makes me think she might have lost the ability to be sad when she triggered, which is unfortunate if true. I mean Bonesaw got you either way so I guess it doesn't matter now.
Loved getting a wonderful list of Endbringer attacks. Sure it still wasn't all of them, but up through Simmy showing up is still pretty great.
Extremely curious about Mr. Keene, keeping an eye out for more info on him.
Tattletale just needed this poor man to read her texts and let her do her fucking THING! It's all she wants.
Anyway ya turns out powers (except Scion of course) can't touch the actual core of the Endbringers and I'm like 95% sure I have a good idea as to why it works like that, but still got a little bit of that uncertainty.
Endbringers are directly related to Eidolon in some way, I am pretty sure of that. Created by him. Previous bodies. Sentient poop for all I know! They're connected though.
HOLY SHIT WHEN HE SEES TAYLOR'S SHADOW DURING THE FINAL FIGHT!!!!! AAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!! SHE LOOKED SO BADASS!!!!
Aftermath interlude thoughts:
Pretender and Satyr are so gay. That one's easy I don't even gotta try.
Everyone just starting to freak out about how things are gonna escalate instead of just celebrating the win is really unfortunate.
I mean, they aren't wrong. Another Endbringer is gonna come. But it would be nice if they could live in happy ignorance for a few days.
I'm guessing it'll either be two Endbringers that always attack at the same time or one Endbringer that uses teleportation to swap to a different city after a certain period of time. In either case basically fucking up the organized response ability.
Already mentioned this, but Rachel and Taylor fell asleep on each other!!!! GGGGAAAAAAAYYYYYYY!!!
If Dragon comes back wrong I'm putting all of the blame on Colin.
Fucking Danny just fucked that phone call up so bad. This man can not get it fucking right. FUCK.
GLENN YOU FUCKING FUCK I DON'T CARE WHAT YOUR REASONS ARE YOU DON'T PUT SOMEONES PRIVATE VIDEO THEY TOOK FOR THERAPY ON THE INTERNET!!
AND YOU NEVER EVEN FUCKING SAID "SORRY"!!!!! YOU EXPLAINED YOUR ACTIONS AND WHY YOU HAD TO DO IT EVEN THOUGH IT WOULD HURT HER AND YOU COULDN'T ASK HER CAUSE SHE WOULD HAVE SAID NO BUT YOU NEVER EVEN SAID SORRY!!!
Like for real. Taylor says "You could have asked" and you respond with "You would have said no." Fuck at least just say sorry!
#Worm#Worm Web Serial#Parahumans#Cairavende reads Worm#Skitter#Weaver#Rachel Lindt#Wolfspider#Chatterbug#Smugbug#Tecton is a perfect little himbo boy#Oh ya and Cauldron kidnapped/saved all those people in the first underground base#Like sure Taylor was yelling at them to not go but I feel like most of those people would have very much died when the city broke#Seriously though I'd kill for fan art of Chevy's view of Taylor in that final fight. With her shadow image. So fucking cool.#I mean I'd love any fan art of any parts of that fight. But that might be my favorite specific image.#Fucking christ there was so much good Wolfspider stuff#And Chatterbug (Smugbug)! The scene with Taylor at Tattletales bedside was cute.#No for real though if Dragon came back with any major issues I'm blaming it all on Colin.#That man better not have harmed my wonderful robot daughter.#I really really really really would have loved for my wonderful bug daughter to spend less time have philosophical discussions with Phir Se#Look I know. Ok? Worrying about her talking to Phir Se is closing the barn doors after the cows got out. But I gotta do something :P#If I was making a new endbringer I'd do a pair that always attack two different places but the 2nd one shows up a random time after the 1st#That way no one wants to go fight the first because they all want to wait until the second shows up#Just in case it attacks somewhere more important to them. Fucks up the parahuman response and breeds resentment among capes.#Plus than one day both could just hit the opposite sides of the same city as a surprise and really fuck things up
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I find myself coming back to this scene a lot. First of all, it's hilarious. The timing is great and Boimler continuously screwing up the rules of time travel is perfect for his character, an obsessive rule follower who just can't help himself. Ortegas's reaction is so great and I love how she is the one Enterprise officer who seems to really like Boimler and Mariner as they are.
But the other thing I love about this episode is how Boimler and Mariner are proxies for the audience. Their visit to the Enterprise feels like what might happen if we visited the Enterprise.
First, they're fans! They love TOS and know everything about it(/them), down to the type of tricorders they used. Boimler wants to touch everything. He idolizes Pike, Spock and Una and Mariner is awestruck by Uhura.
Second, however, is the piece that has me really gaining an affinity for Lower Decks (beyond just really enjoying it) that I hadn't appreciated in its animated form because, even though it's canon, it still doesn't seem serious. And that is that the crew of the Cerritos are often fuckups. They're a bit out of their element on the Enterprise.
So much of Star Trek is typified by hyper-competence. The crews of the various ships the shows focus on are incredibly good at their jobs - and that's one of the great things about the shows! It's inspiring to see people calmly and confidently going about their duties. Not so much the Cerritos crew. Mariner is, of course, a badass, but she's an ensign on a California class ship for a reason. So is Boimler. They're not stupid. In fact, they're the ones who figure out how to get themselves back to the future. But they're so much less perfect than the officers on the Enterprise. In the very first episode Chapel confidently says "I know I'm good at my job." And she is. They all are.
The reason I love this scene (and the whole episode) so much is it's so relatable. I certainly don't consider myself a fuckup, I'm reasonably good at a reasonable number of things, but I have definitely fucked up before. Seeing Boimler and Mariner bumble around the Enterprise is inspiring in a different way. Because, despite their flaws, despite the many mistakes they make, they're still in Starfleet. They're still out there making history.
In a lot of ways, telling people you don't have to be hyper-competent to make a difference is more inspiring than giving them an ideal to aspire to.
California class.
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Can we see More about your racing AU please?
Looks so amazing and i love It so much
I do suppose I could share the character design line up!
I really just need to finish designing all the go karts, (atleast most are done!) and then I can make proper cards for them and really get into the written details.
To be honest it’s a little hard to just ramble about info and details without specific questions to go off of, so I’ll try my best hhh
for starters, the tent? Not a tent!
It’s actually a stadium, the amazing digital race!
And rooms? Sort of tweaked, they are more like each character owns a personal garage, a large open space where they store their vehicles and then have a loft above that showcases their cozy safe havens. Bed, entertainment, basically a small room in a much larger one.
I haven’t revealed Ragatha, Zooble or Gangles karts yet but I’ll go ahead and just talk about all of them!
Caine:
Caine has a motorcycle, specifically one inspired off of the motorcycle I’m saving up for this summer, a Kawasaki Eliminator. It’s a cruiser, I’m thinking he has a 600cc model but considering Bubble is his right hand man and operates as the races pit crew- he’s definitely tinkered with Caines bike, making adjustments and improving the engine. God only knows what the little psycho did, but it’s a damn good bike that’s not supposed to rev as loud as it does.
Pomni:
Her kart is inspired off a Volkswagen Beetle, seemed very VERY Pomni to me. Her car mimics her outfit design a lot, I might do some color changes to be honest but it will be super minimal, it’ll be final when the cards are done! She definitely stops at the pit the most often despite her placement in a race, are my tires okay?? Do I need my oil?? I know you just filled it but it went down- is anything damaged?? Sweetie you did one lap..
Jax:
Jesus Christ he has a giant supercharger on the hood of his car, and he is absolutely one of those annoying mfs that reva their engine OBNOXIOUSLY loud all the time like he’s super cool. If you’re wondering who most of the skid marks on the track are from, that’s also Jax. Hes the best as drifting, and he loves to show that off. His car isn’t based too much on an actual vehicle?? I stared at Mario karts and pieced it together, but also gave it a very sports car look, the wing on the back fr fr I think Jax would dig that.
Kinger:
OHHSOSK I was so creative with his little wagon,,, it’s castle shaped!! And the best part? Operates like a rocket. In the back past the battlement (the crown looking thing you see atop castle pillars) ARE GIANT exhaust pipes and yes, they do spit fire !! Operates like a rocket. It’s very cool! (Also he has a great muffler because unlike Jax he’s considerate of others hearing 💔) Oh also, he has one of those silly horns, I forgot how to describe it but you can just look at how I drew it on his kart and you’ll know heheh!
Zooble:
Our second motorcyclist, owns a trike! If you don’t know what that is, picture a bike with training wheels but super badass. 3 wheels! It’s inspired off the Harley Davidson freewheeler, I like that design a lot but it’s def not actually a Harley because istg when you buy those bikes your just paying for the fancy name brand- expect it to be in the shop all the time, smh not good- BUT ANYWAY!! The looks are inspired off it though and I can’t wait for this one because it’s just as crazy kooky as Zoobles design is.
Gangle:
Her kart is based on my favorite car, classic style but not too cool because you can bet she has anime stickers on the back and a decal that says “please let me merge before I start crying.” It’s similar to a karmann ghia convertible, 1963. Cherry red (so so pretty) She always has the top down, unless competing because damn you gotta go fast. That car itself is really slow, top speed normally is 68mph, however people have modified them enough to get up to 120mph. Thats still pretty slow compared to others, but her kart only reflects the appearance of the ghia! It’s much faster and I assume Bubble works on all their vehicles if asked to.
Lastly, Ragatha:
Our 3rd motorcyclist. 4 Karts, 3 cyclists. Her bike is a futuristic style, if you want a good idea then look up “icare bike”! Not so much a straight forward posture, she leans over ofc, you’ll likely get the idea when you see her bike. I’ll be honest, I haven’t gotten too into her design yet because I haven’t started drawing but!! Dark blue leds,, everywhere yes yes so cool ❤️
Sorry that’s so much 😭 but yeah! Just need to finish 3 kart designs for you guys and I can make official ref cards 👀
#tadc#the amazing digital circus#Caine#tadc Caine#Pomni#tadc Pomni#Jax#tadc Jax#kinger#tadc Kinger#Zooble#tadc Zooble#gangle#tadc gangle#Ragatha#tadc Ragatha#tadc racing au
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I think because Aphmau is a self-insert character, it’s hard to pinpoint exactly what her personality is, because her personality is just…Jess’s personality. If a little different. Which makes it hard for me to get into Aphmau’s head, to see exactly how she works, what makes her tick—it doesn’t come naturally to me at all, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I wasn’t alone in that regard
Now that I’m finally working on my MCD rewrite, I really want to make sure I get Aphmau’s personality right, especially since she’s literally the protagonist character and likely the most common POV I’ll be using. I want to find a way to copy how watching her POV in-game felt, and make it so that it feels the same when I’m writing the fic. Lately, it hasn’t been feeling the same at all, and that’s mostly intentional, since I want her to evolve into the “unintentionally badass” woman that she is in the canon series. I want her to start off as kind of bright-eyed and naive, similar to Mystreet!Aphmau, as a newcomer to the world whose never seen a lick of war and violence in her life. Mainly because I know she’s going to be exposed to all of that later and fundamentally changed by it. But as I’m studying canon MCD Aphmau and trying to break down everything she does, how she thinks, the choices she makes and the patterns therein that define her, what choices she doesn’t make and what that says about her as a person… I think I have already strayed too far from the original in places.
Additionally, though Aphmau was still significantly emotionally affected by every little heinous thing that happened to her and her people, throughout season 1 she didn’t experience any sudden shift in who she was as a person. I’ve yet to finish rewatching season 2, so I could be wrong, but to me, it more seems like she held herself together and stayed largely the same person. But she was being slowly chipped away emotionally by everything that got added to the pile. From Brendan getting shot to Aaron’s death, it’s like there’s a million different little nicks and cuts in her mental health and psyche that have simply built up over time. Some of those scars are larger than others, like the 15 year timeskip and losing Aaron/Garroth/Laurance, but they all weigh on her psyche and make her progressively more anxious, more careful, more…traumatized? She’s traumatized and she’s not. I’d like to at least headcanon her as traumatized, probably severely by season 3. I’d like to think she’s a woman with the whole entire world on her shoulders and a million ghosts haunting her wherever she goes, and all of this leads to a great deal of stress and anxiety in her day-to-day life that she’s just kinda… Living With. She muscles through it. She keeps going. There are even moments I’m noticing in canon where she doesn’t allow herself to fully dwell on her grief and stress, saying it’s “selfish” to let them consume her, and then moving on to check on literally everyone else in the village and make sure they’re okay first.
Aphmau is a character that’s hard to understand in the broad strokes, like how you can see Laurance’s broad strokes of “Casanova” and “fiercely loyal” and “in love with Aphmau” and make a pretty easy surface mold of what he’s like. It’s like every other character has at least one or two giant, broad strokes of paint on the wall that distinguish them as unique.
Garroth is a gentleman, Kiki loves her animals and can be stubbornly gullible. Donna is sassy, Dale is an alcoholic, Katelyn is fierce, Travis is playful and flirtatious, Aaron is brooding and guarded, Logan has a stick up his ass, so on and so forth. But they all have really easy to find smaller pieces that you can find and study as well. MCD!Katelyn is much more calm and reserved and proper than her Mystreet counterpart, and on occasion waxes philosophical and drinks tea. Kiki has always wanted to be a mother. Brendan is a horse girl. Garroth is terrible at being ~romantically forward~ like Laurance is, and instead he gets flustered and stuttery and shy and struggles to talk about his feelings with others. Laurance is gentle and caring and will tenderly take care of you and nurse you back to health with a mature, gentle warmth that puts his cocky Casanova personality aside, still flirting and teasing every now and then, but only for the purpose of cracking a joke that would make you smile. And then he reminds you right after how fondly he loves you and how he will never, not ever, leave your side.
Laurance grew up not knowing how to talk to girls, and Sasha was the only female friend he could actually speak to and connect with. Garroth checks on Aphmau in the mornings, asking how she slept and reporting back to her on all the duties she has to tend to for the day. Dale is a brilliant accountant, and that’s his calling in life. Zoey used to regularly prepare tea for Aphmau at night to help her sleep. Logan helped Zoey raise Levin and Malachi during the 15 year timeskip and “secretly” very much loves children. You can find all the little kernels of character and personality and heart in all of them.
But for MCD!Aphmau, it’s like she has one single broad stroke. “Helps others, kind, caring.” And everything else is invisible to me. Mystreet!Aphmau might have a second broad stroke, of “silly and childish and whimsical,” a stroke that MCD!Aphmau has much less of. It’s still there, she still teases and cracks dumb jokes on occasion, but it’s dwarfed in comparison by MCD’s more serious, mature tone and the sheer emotional weight of everything she keeps going through. It’s hard to be silly and have stupid fun when you’re fighting for your life, so in a way, MCD!Aphmau had to grow up in a way that Mystreet!Aphmau never had to. Mystreet!Aphmau’s worst problem (before emerald secret) is “oh no! which cute boy am I gonna date?! Gene is so mean to me in highschool!! Gawd, I wish my mom would let me bring boys home without making it weird, jeez.” She gets to keep her innocence. She doesn’t have to grow up and face the brutality of killers and monsters and the cruelty of the gods, and even after When Angels Fall, I don’t see her heavily maturing and growing as serious as MCD!Aphmau already is on main.
So if MCD!Aphmau has one single broad stroke that, for a protagonist, is actually vague as hell to work with, then maybe she’s a character who is revealed by all the little things that slip through the cracks. Maybe I can paint a picture of what she’s truly, really like (not what I want her to be like) by looking at all the little things, and then working inwards from there,,,
I know she’s at the very least a good person. A very good person. Better than canon Garroth, who has far too many asshole tendencies for my liking after the whole Incel Hell Irene Dimension fiasco (also why the FUCK is he racist—) Better than canon Laurance, better than most people honestly. Which is kind of the point, as an Irene. She’s supposed to be inherently a good, pure-hearted soul, whose destiny and sole calling in life is to help everyone around her. She seems to display a great fear and distress over violence and war. She’s always anxious and freaking the fuck out when she’s in combat (during S1), and building up to the Phoenix War, she was absolutely mortified by the idea of going to war, and yet that distress NEVER boiled over into cowardice. She always chose what was right and stuck to it, stubbornly. Even when faced with the worst of dilemmas, she refuses to succumb to her fear and run away, or pick the easy (and scummy) way out. She cares a great deal about the greater good, even if it comes at a devastating cost to achieve, and by god, she’ll achieve it. When presented with the option of fight or flight, she NEVER picks flight. So she’s brave? Has a strong natural sense of justice? Would she ever make cruel sacrifices, if it was for a greater good? I think I at least know that if I presented her with the option of “kill Garroth and Laurance, or save the entire world,” she would refuse the dilemma entirely and go to EXTREME lengths to forge a third option where she gets to keep the world AND her boys, and everyone comes out unharmed. (And in my mind, this is what distinguishes her from the old Irene…)
She is a herald for peace, above anything else. When Scaleswind destroyed her home as an act of violent rage, she didn’t seek revenge or even allow herself to feel vitriol or resentment for the man that attacked her people. Instead, she (cautiously and hesitantly) accepted his pleas for forgiveness if it meant she could have peace for Phoenix Drop. She held him accountable for his crimes, yes, but she forgave him, trusted him with the Phoenix Drop Alliance, and even trusted him with her people. All the while reiterating to him that she is an agent working for peace, and he needs to get on her level if he wants her forgiveness. She even offers care and aid to all of the rotten O’khasis knights that still swear their fealty to Zane. She brings them to court for their crimes, but she also offers them her care and a place to stay if they need it. She believes in justice, but not cruel retribution. The moral high ground isn’t a weapon she uses to bludgeon others with. She draws her strength by pulling others up with her. Even putting her trust in those unworthy of it at times, but that then inspires them to make better choices and pledge themselves to her cause. Even if you were a horrible, terrible person, she refuses to be downright cruel. It’s very rare to see her anger get the best of her (not that I don’t doubt that has happened at least once or twice in the series, I’m just saying it’s not her go-to choice when resolving any conflict). She will always give people the benefit of the doubt.
I know she struggles with sleeping problems, mainly due to her stress. She did for most of the latter quarter of S1 and when I skipped ahead and watched a few snippets of S2, she was STILL bringing up how poorly she slept last night, so like. You could make a case that she has insomnia. She could have insomnia. And PTSD but that’s a given
She finds babies absolutely adorable and has strong maternal instincts. (a connection between this and her great care for Phoenix Drop as a whole could possibly be strung… I don’t think “maternal instincts” is at all why she helps PD though. I think she just does that…because…you should. Because it’s the right thing to do. Obviously. If given the choice to be kind and help someone, she will always pick that choice, because,,,she just does)
you could make an argument that she has dyslexia. if you made a drinking game out of every time she flubbed reading the lines on the screen you would keel over and die by episode 15 I think.
you could make an argument that she needs glasses because Jess wears glasses for the first little while of S1 before she seems to have switched to contacts for the rest of the aphverse
She loves animals and has more animals than she has children
She seems very slow to develop romantic feelings for anyone. I think she only really started to develop little bits of romantic feelings for Garroth come late S1, and for Laurance probably like. around episode 95ish if you’re pushing it early, but honestly she probably only developed feelings for him after the entirety of season 1. after Laurance and her had already become very close and intimate on a platonic level. And any of his flirtatious advances prior to that she CONSISTENTLY responded to with flat out rejection, disgust, exasperation and annoyance with zero romance in sight. meanwhile she’s been very affectionate with Zoey from the beginning and is much more sweet and domestic with her than any of the boys, so like. I can definitely see where all the aroace spectrum aphmau headcanons in the fandom are coming from now and I wouldn’t be surprised if she was some form of demiromantic as well, but that’s straying out of canon aphmau territory and into headcanon land
Her worst fear, confirmed by Malachi, is seeing the entire village be burned to the ground with everyone she loves inside. Seeing Garroth and Laurance and every single villager murdered before she can do anything to stop it. She’s scared of losing them (and wow guess exactly what ends up happening… Garroth gets lost in the Irene dimension…Laurance becomes a cold and cruel shadow knight and she loses him to the nether… Aaron dies and becomes the shadow lord… girlie can just not win. and I’d like to explore more of the deep emotional impact that could’ve had on her—your worst fear is losing everyone you loved, seeing them get torn out of your hands brutally and violently, and..that happens. that happens to her anyway. to all of her boys, individually. there’s no way that’s not traumatic and emotional as hell for her) maybe you could even play into the idea that she has abandonment issues…
Every now and then she shows a few signs of toxic positivity and emotional repression. “Smile and be happy, focus on the work that’s important right now instead of completely and utterly crumbling under the weight of my grief and trauma” type shit. I feel like I can’t help but notice a running pattern that she keeps being presented with dialogue options that are emotionally vulnerable and intimate in some way, usually ones that progress her relationships with others (both romantically and platonically) and express a great deal of care or feeling…and then there’s the exposition dump dialogue option that continues her constant search for information that furthers the plot, and she often chooses that instead. Like for example, in one dialogue option with Aaron, she doesn’t say, “I really care about you, please, can’t you trust me?” Instead, she chooses to say, “What will you do?” Which is much more business talk as opposed to spilling her heart out to people. She seems to apologize for herself whenever she expresses a heightened amount of emotion, especially if it’s sadness or grief or anger, and again, I’d like to point to her taking 90+ fucking episodes to allow herself to feel any sort of intimacy with Laurance, the very man who has been constantly showering her with affection, and not just the dumb flirty stuff!! But like deep, sincere proclamations of “you matter to me,” and “I’ll never leave your side” and “you are my world, aphmau”!!! Bro I would have MELTED into his arms 70 fucking episodes ago if I met a man that talked to me like he does!! But she doesn’t!! SHE KEEPS HIM AT ARMS LENGTH!! THATS NOT NORMAL!!! Especially when EVERY OTHER character in the cast keeps falling in love at first sight. (so intimacy issues? trust issues? probably not trust issues. fear? too much on her mind? demiromantic ?? or probably a mix of all of the above + a dash of headcanon for the sexuality part)
And it’s so fascinating to see what she could say, but doesn’t. And sometimes you’ll even see her hesitate over the other, more intimate dialogue options, and then decide otherwise. It’s utterly fascinating to think that a character hugely defined by her heart might struggle with vulnerability.
She also hesitates over funny options a lot but decides against them because the serious, emotionally mature options are more appropriate and polite for the situation at hand lol. Laurance is a frequent exception to this rule, she will tease him no matter how serious their conversation is lmao (Laurance brings out her more forgotten whimsical side…?)
So on and so forth while I continue my binge rewatch of the entire series and collect more. So far, she seems to be overall: Kind. Gentle. Soft, warm, friendly, forgiving, understanding, merciful, patient. Playful and whimsical, though that’s become more forgotten with time and hardship. Serious, very emotionally mature, very much a source of wisdom among her peers. Inherently strong sense of justice, will always fight for the right thing. Brave and persistent. Refuses to ever back down from a challenge. Probably at least a little emotionally avoidant and I would not be surprised if she struggled with a particularly harsh inner critic. Optimistic. Never lets go of her heart, led by her heart much more than her brain, though that isn’t to say she isn’t smart, she’s not an idiot. Loves animals. Natural leader. Maternal. Insomniac. Probably neurodivergent, possibly aroace, possibly dyslexic, most likely needs glasses. Traumatized, very much so. Very stressed and anxious (please god someone give her a break). Carries the weight of the world on her shoulders but refuses to let herself crumble, even if she is exhausted and worn down and at her limit. you also cannot look at Zoey and Aphmau’s daily interactions and tell me there isn’t at least a little bit of sapphicism going on there. they love each other so much <3 and if not, she is a single mother going through literal actual hell and hanging on by a string but through the force of necessity and probably at least a little bit of toxic positivity and emotional avoidance she will persevere whether she wants to or not
and I will continue to learn more as we go along 👍
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Why is Haruka Tenou attractive??? The OG anime Butch Lesbian? Who kicks ass? And who's Femme girlfriend kicks ass? The character who was depicted in a mature and loving relationship with another women in an anime in the 1990's??? (I need to be able to send pics, damn Tumblr I just want to thirst without sacrificing my dignity c'mon)
What do you mean, "Why is she attractive" Have you seen her? She's handsome, graceful, cocky, flirty, charming, protective, fashionable, chivalrous, a race car driver, drives a motorcycle has a sword, killing it in those suits, and is a certified panty dropper. She's every 90's/early 2000's lesbian's gay awakening. She's GNC as fuck. She is fiercely protective, scared of dying, and would do anything for her friends.
She's popular because she's a badass butch lesbian who is sweet and caring, not only saved the world in her universe, but saved so many young lesbians/gnc women by showing them someone they could relate to.
Usagi is not immune to the sappic awakenings this women causes.
For context, they're responding to this post about Sailor Uranus
Great work, but for some reason, at least to me, this whole situation gets funnier when you realize a lot of us watched the original '90s English dub, where they tried to censor the lesbian part by saying they were cousins. However, they kept all the flirting scenes, so I just thought they were incestuous lesbians, and I was watching this back in the fourth grade.
But there was a lot of ridiculous censorship of anime in America, at least in the '90s and early 2000s. Probably the worst example was the original 4kids English dub of One Piece. The censorship is so bad and ridiculous. It somehow makes incestuous lesbians seem reasonable
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