#S&B Before

[stromuprisahat]

The irony of Alina coming first in the key motif of her trilogy for the first time in all her story at the end of it, when she's butchered into a shell of herself, only for the last two mentions to come back to "THE BOY and the girl" in the very same chapter...

When SHE is the main character, from whose POV we see the most of the story. SHE is the one the plot revolves around. SHE is the one enticing the reader from the summary on the cover of the book.

The prologues and epilogues are the only parts written in third person- therefore arguably not tainted by Alina's own skewed list of priorities-, yet that's the place Malyen's for some reason clearly put first.

Just in case you still believed you were reading a story about a girl realizing she's special...

[keferon]

“Mistakes on mistakes until” ch 69 spoilers below!

Ahahahahahahah here I go again

Mistakes on mistakes until until I can draw Jazz with my eyes closed

I woke up, checked my phone, woke up for real and decided that whatever plans I had for this day yeah no they can wait a little bit kfkgnfk

Also. Consider listening this while reading. Or don't who am I to tell you what to do~

[aardciaga]

cant stop thinking about that post...

[stromuprisahat]

stromuprisahat:

Even of we look at it through era-appropriate lens- there's no GOOD memory. Sure, slap your kid a little- this is 19th-esque century- but screaming and punishments shouldn't be the ONLY thing they remember! How much more interesting could Alina's relationship with AK be, if she remembered switch AND warm hugs. It could be more complex, nuanced- loving "mother", still subjected to age-appropriate mentality and values! But no, we got Anne Cunt, Baghra 2.0...

Hello! I loved your post about Baghra and how she is a glorified egoist and super toxic!!!

I would like to know your opinion about Ana Kuya, the terrible woman who screwed and oppressed Alina when she was still a child!!!

⚠️TW!: Domestic violence and abuse!⚠️

Thanks, anon!

Apparently that's a similarity that they share, the Darkling and Alina. They both had shitty, abusive mothers. And in Ana Kuya's case it's pretty much the same. She was physically abusive and Alina and Mal remember her fondly. And that's the problem. Instead of having the characters admit that she was a horrible mother figure, we have them look back on her punishments as something...worth to be remembered fondly??

Let's dive in her most fucked-up moments.

Talking shit about the children she's assigned to look after. Alina and Mal both heard her but she's still an icon in their eyes! 😍

No 'cause imagine comparing your mother figure to some blood-thirsty creatures with sharp claws and teeth that live and thrive in darkness.

Uhh...

Excerpt No. 1, in which the protagonists talk about Ana Kuya's physically abusive behaviour.

A LETTER?!

Girl, if I were you I would say adiós and never look back. What letter are you talking about?? 😭

Ana Kuya being responsible of Alina's shame for wanting to get it on with a man. This woman and her morals are imprinted in her mind.

Imagine having to spend your last day with your love and choosing to talk about her. And the memory is again toxic 🥹

Other couples: "Let's talk about our happy memories"

Malina: "Let's talk about how our mother abused us"

They have literally zero good memories from her. Only shouting and beatings.

Now that's a woman to admire!!

Do you hear that Alina?? You must kiss their shoes otherwise you would be like that poor girl on the road! 😠

Excerpt No. 2, in which the protagonists talk about Ana Kuya's physically abusive behaviour.

Excerpt No. 3, in which the protagonists talk about Ana Kuya's physically abusive behaviour.

Excerpt No. 4, in which the protagonists talk about Ana Kuya's physically abusive behaviour.

If a child refuses to eat a food, beat it!

Aha! So she does acknowledge it, huh? But what does it matter? We forgive her in this house😍❤️

(also can we talk about how they wanted one of their friends to meet her? Like guys whyy??😭)

Thank the heavens actually.

In my opinion, children need mostly love and understanding. But they also need discipline, yes. But NOT through physical violence. NOT through constant screaming. This is wrong but it's very possible that in Ravka it's accepted and forgiven? Because I also remember reading somewhere that when Nikolai was a child and misbehaved, they were punishing his best friend physically (I haven't read the duology so please correct me if I'm wrong). So even the royal family found it normal.

But having the characters look back to it as something that was okay? And they adored her?

I'm sorry but I didn't shed one tear when she died. Botkin's death affected me more than hers ever did.

Alina when she died: "Oh my God!"

Me when she died: "Oh thank God!"

[falsehero]

[lumons]

kind of toying around with the theory that mdr is sorting out their own experiences and memories to create the rooms that gemma is going into. gemma’s rooms happen to be personal in some ways to her (the thank you cards) because mark is the one refining for her rooms. 

when mark asks about the ashes, reghabi tells him that lumon is connected with the coroners and medical examiners and we already know lumon has such a deep place within society given that they hosted the blood drive where mark and gemma met, they owned the clinic where they went for fertility care, and there’s the government official with his severed wife and the baby camp. lumon is everywhere and they’re always listening and they’re always trying to pull the strings. it’s possible that when gemma got into her accident, lumon saved her and part of this was healing her and treating her until she was fully better until they could turn around and say actually you’re not fully better yet and we need to run tests on you. lumon is in a position of power as the rescuers and saviors of her life to convince her and keep her in this place as a condition and price of her life saving treatment. 

and gemma’s probably far from the only one that lumon has done this to. they’re probably getting more test subjects through these horrific accidents and near death experiences and just repeating this research with them. when mark is first shown petey’s map one area notably is the people who live there/never leave. this sort of tells us that gemma is far from the only one and also why would she be the only one when there’s also the work of helly, irving, and dylan to consider, and of course all the other mdr departments out there in other lumon offices. 

this theory would help explain the work the other refiners are doing and make the explanation of what lumon is up to less centered specifically mark and gemma, and instead make mark and gemma just a tragic coincidence of this whole controlling corporate giant.

as to what they’re doing this for i think there’s so many possibilities but i have to assume, as is the name, mthat they’re refining the severance chips and working towards making them better and possibly commercializing them to offer people an escape from various life experiences that might be distressing or unwanted and they need the various experience of humans to do that and therefore the mdr teams are just sorting their different fears and joys and other emotions to essentially test gemma and the others like her with 

[bi-writes]

Now I need a 2nd part of Ghost and Price's daughter, the curiosity of how Price is gonna react kills me...

he definitely makes ghost sit interview-style in his office and grills him, and ghost is unfortunately very honest about he takes care of his daughter.

[stromuprisahat]

Huddled in the kitchen cupboard, listening to the grownups gossip, she heard the Duke’s housekeeper, Ana Kuya, say, “She’s an ugly little thing. No child should look like that. Pale and sour, like a glass of milk that’s turned.” “And so skinny!” the cook replied. “Never finishes her supper.” Crouched beside the girl, the boy turned to her and whispered, “Why don’t you eat?” “Because everything she cooks tastes like mud.” “Tastes fine to me.”

S&B Before

Assuming the chapter's written in chronological order, Alina already had wasting sickness, when she arrived in the orphanage.

Grisha waste away when they don't use their powers. To use them, they have to manifest first.

Alina's self-gaslighting isn't only the result of her upbringing in Keramzin, but it's a defense mechanism she developed very early on.

Can you see how her scratched out origin story from show fits nicely even in books?!

(from Sab Prologue)

The boy and the girl had arrived within weeks of each other…the boy was short and stocky, why but always smiling. The girl was different, and she knew it.

To me, on reread, that screams- Alina came to the orphanage already knowing about her powers.

Which puts a whole new light (heh) on my interpretation of Alina’s background and how little she seems to remember her time prior to the orphanage.

In pushing down her powers did she also push down on her memory of her powers prior to the Duke’s orphanage?

Alina always insists she’s not different, that she’s not Grisha, later on. I love this initial rejection of that- if Alina came in knowing she was different, was Grisha, it makes her later rejection of being different more nuanced.

I really wish that was touched upon later in the book. Either after Alina accepts being Grisha, or at the end when she is hiding herself again.

[cowboylikejesper]

one thing about jesper fahey is that he’s always been down bad for wylan. in six of crows, in crooked kingdom, in shadow and bone. it doesn’t matter, he’s always been DOWN HORRENDOUS for wylan

[stromuprisahat]

Siege and Storm- Chapter 21 (Leigh Bardugo)

What exactly was the goal of Keramzin upbringing? Because judging from Malina, it sure as hell wasn't the army- neither of them is able to follow simple orders or respect ranks.

The children are brought there are forced to forget their past.

They get decent education- drawing needed for mapmaking.

On one hand dormitories and no concept of privacy, but also luxurious environment and lack of supervision preventing them from using it.

They're taught at least some manners and attitudes of higher classes (disdain for religion, attending Masses for appearance's sake, eating fucking snails).

They're allowed to attend at least one celebration by the Duke's side.

They helped with chores, but act above serfs.

Women are supposed be chaste and obey their husbands. Marriage is the goal, passion and lust shameful.

The Duke is akin to god.

Monarchy's good and the King's position indisputable.

Being Grisha is "the greatest way that you may serve your King", but not a single word about servitude it entails. Anti-Grisha bias aren't supposed to be voiced out loud, but very much prevail. Grisha and "the army" are two separate entities.

Thinking generally isn't supported.

Harsh corporal punishments for children are okay.

Do NOT question THE authority (, but how does it fit in with their ineptitude for following military rules?).

I would understand if the Duke tried to keep his little puppets around for whatever purposes, but they're not prepared for the outside world, and I don't think they're of any use to him there.

[stromuprisahat]

Love how "King's Army" means First Army, even though all Ravkan Grisha are the Crown's property, therefore arguably more King's than ordinary soldiers.

But who cares about details, when it's obviously us, Ravkans, and ~them~...

I won't even start on Anne Cunt, feeling the need to interrupt with otkazat'sya propaganda. No wonder Alina supressed her powers in this enviroment. One has to wonder how shameful and/or deplorable was being discovered to be Grisha. Not openiy, of course. just hints and side remarks such nature might be undesirable.

Very interesting that most grisha seem to not hold much loyalty to the kings and rightfully so but later in the books they're made to bow to another lantsov king anyway coz one of them who wanted to overthrow the monarchy was a bad guy 🥴

[barfville]

attempted the gang from memory lol

[bitethedevil]

going absolutely insane every time I see art or screenshots where you can see Raphael’s thighs. losing my mind. going feral. clawing and barking at the screen.

[slapthebass]

DIR EN GREY - ROCKAVARIA 2015 - BEHIND A VACANT IMAGE

↳ Toshiya

Bonus:

[biherbalwitch]

one thing I love about wesper (besides being uhaul gays in both book & show) is that they have a healthy, beautiful relationship with communication & support in times of conflict (perhaps the healthiest in this damn universe) while also being questionable/morally grey people who are literally part of a gang bc often in media queer relationships are either tragic, one of them is toxic OR they're perfect benevolent people with 0 flaws and yeah sure those are required ofc but I like the idea of queer characters getting to be a lil bad, be gay do crime, and deserve a good & happy love life all the same especially since Jesper is bi and I can count on one hand how many bisexual characters got to be in a nice stable relationship peacefully

[miyakuli]

I just love how "Mastermind" song is as much a great villain song as it's a great love song