#SUPERGIANT I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND

[the-travelling-witch]

more hcs of this bnha x hades au

Perhaps you're a young Olympian Deity, watching the prince of the Underworld slash his way towards the surface, stumbling and falling along the way but still never giving up. You'd never heard of Shouto before, never knew the Lord of the Underworld had children at all. Actually, that he had siblings would have been unknown to you too if Keigo hadn't let a tiny piece of information slip and you hadn't prodded him further on it.

Ever since then you couldn't help but watch the prince's escape attempts. Sure, you weren't the only one, well aware the older Gods and Goddesses, as well as younger ones like Izuku and Katsuki, were keeping an eye on him as well, all for their own reasons. To be honest, you weren't quite sure what Shouto's reasons for leaving the Underworld were in the first place, but you still felt for him, seeing how desperately he struggled against his father.

That was it, you thought. The reason you quietly sent your blessings, however small they may be, to the depths of the Underworld was because you felt empathetic. Yet, your immortal heart couldn't help but skip a beat when you imagined your messages being accepted.

Perhaps you are a Chthonic Deity serving the House, who's consequently spent a lot of time with and/or around Shouto. You had brushed past each other pretty much every day for centuries as you went about your bureaucratic duties and Shouto pretended to do the same. Of course you were aware he wasn't happy here, he never really tried to hide it after all.

Therefore, it didn't really come as a surprise to you when Shouto first ventured beyond the House and into Tartarus, it was more of a confirmation. Still, when you were talking to your brother Shinsou, who oversaw the Pool of Styx, you couldn't help but feel a twinge of concern for the bloody prince trudging by, leaving footprints all over the hall. Not because you were worried he'd fail, but because you knew he wouldn't give up trying until he succeeded, no matter how long it took or what it cost.

Shinsou made a comment as he passed, something snarky about what had gotten him back into the House so soon, but you'd be lying if you said you paid it much attention. Your focus was still on Shouto, who had paused and tilted his head, little drops of blood nearly imperceptible on the left side of his head but all the more obvious on his right, creating the impression his laurels were melting off his head. No matter the twinge in your heart, you knew you wouldn't try to stop him. No, you'd help him, even if it meant letting him go where you wouldn't be able to follow, as long as it meant he'd be happier.

Or perhaps you were mortal once, whether you were someone or no one in life of not much importance now that you dwelled in the Underworld. Death frankly wasn't as bad as people had always made it out to be, if anything the worst part was the monotony of it all. Day in and day out the same halls to wander, night in and night out the same regrets hanging over your fellow shades. Even new arrivals lost their novelty quickly in a place like this, especially when you were facing an eternity of it.

Unlike most mortals, however, you had been allowed to keep your physical form after death for reasons only the Gods could know. Not that it had changed much for you until now, but you made what you could of it, building something akin to a home for yourself.

It was hard to tell how long you had resided this way, the very nature of the Underworld rendering your perception of time quite useless. Until one day someone disturbed the monotony of your death like ripples on water. He was bloody, bruised and generally in a bad shape when he stumbled towards your home and, with nothing better to do, you took him in so he could rest. You knew he had looked familiar to you, that there was great power rolling off of him, but never would you have guessed it was the prince of the Underworld currently occupying one of your chairs.

That first time Shouto bid you goodbye fairly quickly, but grateful for your help nonetheless. With each appearance, however, he started staying longer and slowly opening up to you more. You couldn't recall what your previous thoughts on the Underworld royalty had been, but you liked talking to the prince a fair deal and you caught yourself looking forward to seeing him again, despite knowing you were probably just a passing acquaintance on his way to where he really wanted to be. You could understand the desire to be reunited with someone you had lost long ago, of course. And yet, every time you saw Shouto off, you couldn't help but hope he would pass by your home again, just one more time.

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[lostbizkits]

why is everyone on twitter so fucking racist holy shit

[momonica05]

I got out i fot out i got out I'm crying

[codenamethebird]

God I have so much to say about Melinoe's characterization, and the fasinating implications about her future arc/the overarching plot of hades 2. I want to make a larger think piece with pictures but for the moment I'm just going to focus on this one specific thread.

In the wake of the Prometheus reveal, she has a slew of convos about his motivations for siding with Chronos, and the gods basically all go: this is his vengeance for us punishing him a tad cruelly. And Nemesis is like, yeah the gods 100% deserve it. But Meli's responds that he must have more motivation than just vengeance, it can't just be that. But when Prometheus explicitly goes, 'I'm doing this because the gods are horrible to humanity and I love humans,' she basically goes, no he must be lying. That motivation is both too pure, but also humans kind of suck why would you care about them?

Mel's humanity hot takes deserve it's own essay (Ms I think Humans should have never gotten fire and are better when they are dead), and I just want to focus on the former for now. She can not comprehend that Prometheus is fighting the gods for noble reasons. It just does not make sense to her. Mel's world is so black and white. She doesn't understand the nuance of the situation, and the thought that the gods might be actually in the wrong doesn't even get close to crossing her mind.

It's a fascinating (and horrifying) result of her upbringing. Of the constant state of war and the very convenient big bad that is Chronos, the evil monster who stole her family. If she accepts that his side isn't completely evil, that they might even be right in some (even many) respects, she would have to grapple with her whole life. Everything she believes would be thrown into question, the literal thing she was training her whole life for.

She can't have Prometheus fighting for a noble cause, because he fights for Chronos whose the Bad Guy tm. But he also can't be fighting for something as simple as vengeance, because that would also mean she would need to really think about what he's angry about. If the punishment was truly so unnecessary cruel.

When talking to Odysseus about Prometheus, when Ody's saying how much he respected him for stealing the fire despite knowing the consequences, Mel says that it was the price to be paid for breaking Olympus's decree. To her, Olympus's rules are sacred and ultimately good. Unquestionably. Prometheus broke the rules with intent, so to her, why would he be so angry at the consequences? Especially if he knew because of his power they were going to happen.

So he must have another reason, some secret machiavellian plan that drives him. Except as I already said, it brings her right back to him doing it for humanity, which she also can't accept. Because that would be admiting that the gods did something wrong to humans. She twists herself into knots to justify her worldview, and it's fascinating! She's so messy I adore her.

Please Supergiant please the final surface boss has to be a human pleeeaaasse (preferably a living one). Or at least have one (or more) show up in some other capacity. Mel needs to come face to face with the other side and have it utterly destroy her worldview.

And/or have (Pan)Dora betray her for Prometheus, that would also be very fun haha.

[xxcrystalinerose]

Supergiant is absolutely COOKING with their characterizations of Nemesis and Moros.

It's deliciously ironic how the embodiment of divine retribution, meter of justice and avenger of evil, is in possession of grade-school-rivalry level of pettiness against Melinoë. Unfairly taking out her frustrations on Mel (about something that can't be helped wrt. Mel's birthright too!). Regularly steals her lunch money so she can buy more stuff from Big Bro Charon. Forced into the passive position of standing guard at the Crossroads, preventing her from doing what she does best: actively punishing evil. Not to mention the hilarious occasional "I punch you once and I give you stuff. This is definitely a fair exchange" encounters.

On the other hand, the official Bearer of Bad News™, who sometimes engineered horrifying deaths because he and Sisters Dearest get bored on the job, feared and hated by all mortals, is an unfailingly polite, nice guy who doesn't know how to deal with niceties because barely anyone has ever been nice to him (even the Fates bully him sometimes). Receives one (1) gift and instantly suffers critical damage, afflicted with "Down Atrocious" status effect. Sometimes weirdly optimistic and willing to make the best of his time in the Crossroads, to the point of asking Hecate herself to teach him witch stuff.

TL;DR I love Nem and Moros very much and they have ruined my life. Good fucking food, Supergiant writers.

[halfling-myth-lady]

Okay,so hades two has just released and I want to talk about some things:

On one hand,no narrator Zagreus which was something I hoped would happen so :(

But on the other hand,NARRATOR HOMER CONFIRMED!

I already like Apollo.he’s fun.

Dora is so cute.

In the trailer I got “strict teacher vibes” from Hecate but it’s a pleasant surprise to see how soft she is with baby Mel.

Also the portrait with zag,hades,and Persephone…

(They better not be dead supergiants-)

HYPNOS WHO DID THIS TO YOU

But on the topic,I think it’ll be an Orpheus situation where the second(or even third) boss gives us an item like a divine water bucket or something that we can use to wake him up.

Oh look a reason to use the cast.

HERMES IS MISSING?SUPERGIANTS WTF DONT TELL ME THAN IS NEXT-

Okay,but I also think this could be something like in hades early access were they aluded to things that’ll be added later.

This adds up with the fact that in hades 1 Hermes was the penultimate god added and you can’t get him till asphodel(i think)

Either way he better be okay.

The character portraits range from “pretty good”to “yep this is gonna get touched up” but not in a bad way.just that the shading look kind of off

Also I already love Hephaestus and hestia.

They are hyping up hestia as a nice grandma that can go unhinged if needed and I am all for it.

As soon as I saw Odysseus I already knew It’d be hilarious if Poseidon was there and what do you know?

Speaking of,I wonder if all gods from hades 1 are gonna come back or a few are gonna get switched around.

If so then ares is probably getting shafted which makes me sad.

On that topic,Aphrodite wearing ares’ war makeup is great.

Seeing Selene made me wonder if Helios is gonna appear,but then I remembered Apollo.

But even then i still want other titans to be added like the air guys just so that we can have an Apollo/zephyr interaction if possible.(if you know you know.

If Hermes does appear in this game I wish he has duo’s with other gods.(and his own curse)

I also wish that since we see Artemis outside of the boon bubble we can have profesional associates interactions.

[fayharley]

Possible Hades II Romances

Sorted by how likely I think they are to make it into the game. Based on initial Early Access release.

Icarus 100% going to be a romance. No question.

Eris Eris is obsessed with Melinoë. Following her around, the nicknames, the codex entry, the later lines where she actually shows vulnerability. Getting through to her and understanding her issues is going to be a central story arc and I'm almost positive there will be a romance option at the end of it. Also Zag/Meg has established "fighting to the death" as a love language.

Arachne This is going to be a romance but it might not be an endgame romance. We already have the "heart wants what it wants" scenes, but I think her arc is going to be about curing her curse and after that it's 50/50 if Melinoë can kiss her or they're going to pull a "I've been through a big change and I'm not ready for a romance right now" card on us.

Moros and Nemesis They are such bait. I think it comes down to if this game lets you go poly and date everyone or if specific romances will lock you out of others. Supergiant is real squeamish about incest for a studio that chose to use Greek mythology and I don't think you will be able to kiss multiple Nyx kids at once.

Dora She's the funny character like Hypnos last game and so many people wanted to romance Hypnos. Maybe they will throw us a bone.

Hypnos Or just give the people what they want. Hampered by my suspicion waking him isn't going to happen until endgame.

Odysseus Sorry man but 0% chance. They had Mel uncle-zone him. He is for the player's viewing pleasure only.

Artemis Also zero. Cousin who calls you "sister," see above about the incest squeamishness. I'd fold all the other Olympic gods in here as well.

Everyone else is an extreme longshot. If the game follows the first one's pattern and you can end up with one boy and one girl I'm thinking it's Icarus and Eris. Melinoë has a thing for the winged ones. Also one mortal and one god would be thematic. But I'm expecting they will do something different and committing to a romance will cancel out the competing ones. There's just too many siblings floating around.

Eager to know how everyone else is feeling so far.

[amica-aenigmata-naboo]

Blood Sport

Feyd Rautha x Y/N - drabble part 1 - 1K WC

Part 1 (you are here!)

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6 NSFW 18+

Masterlist

Warnings: royalty y/n, space vampires (kinda?), if you speak Latin you might know some of these words, feyd being feyd, feyd realizing you are a bad bitch, probably some other shit I should mention but honestly this one is setting the stage, its the following fics that'll need warnings lol

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Your eyes were black. It was the first thing about you that Feyd noticed. Pitch black scleras with blood red irises that seemed to glow softly. You were draped in black with different shades of red peaking throughout your dress. Yet your eyes are what captured Feyd the most. Not the long, sharp nails. Not the jars of blood your maids were taking to your quarters. Not the fact that almost everything you were wearing could become an improvised weapon. No, your sharp eyes that were unreadable to him are what drew him closer to you. You kept your head high, unyielding to his imposing presence. Neither of you did anything but stare at one another, trying to analyze what you could from one another. 

“The only child of House Cruor, Princess Y/N.” said the Baron from the throne in the Great Hall.

You and Feyd kept watching each other, poised like snakes ready to strike. 

-------------------------------

“And why should I wed some priss of a princess?” Fedy spat as he looked on at the Baron, submerged in his black sludge bath.

“You are of age and Geidi Prime needs an heir. You are the only one who can give us an heir.” he answered as he smoked out of his pipe.

“What about Rabban?” Feyd said, gesturing to his brother.

“Because I’m going to make you Emperor. And the future Emperor needs an heir.” the Baron said, dismissing his eldest nephew. “He embarrassed this house. You need to restore House Harkonnen to its full glory. Full fear. So you will marry and you will do so without quarrel.” the Baron said without room for further question.

Feyd sighed. He shouldn’t be complaining, he really shouldn’t. Emperor - he could be the most powerful man in the Emperium. And whoever he would be married to would be Empress and would fill their days with something or the other. He would never have to see you if he were the Emperor. “Fine… find me a wife worthy of being my Empress.” Feyd said to him before walking away. 

And oh did he. The Baron only sought out the most savage houses. Honorable but bloodthirsty just like the Harkonnens. He has to find someone Feyd couldn’t break. And so, he found you. The sole heir to House Cruor. A planet shrouded in darkness with only a red supergiant star bathing their planet in ominous red light. House Cruor was brutal. Their battle strategies, their fearlessness, their desire for power. It was a match made in hell. Even better, House Cruor were the last of the Sanguines; a powerful race that had once practiced blood magic. Their ways were unknown to the universe, similar to the Bene Gesserit, but they were incredibly strong, incredibly alluring, and incredibly ruthless. The Baron chose well.

--------------------------------

Feyd’s hand twitched, going to move some hair from your face. You instantly had the ruffles of your long sleeve drawn together and pointed at his throat, your fingernails coming up to defend yourself further. The sharp ends of each ruffle coming together made for several tiny daggers pointed at him, and your nails were more like claws. He retracted his hand slowly, once it was back at his side you retracted your dress and nails as well. 

“This is who you picked for me?” Feyd asked, looking at the Baron and the Reverend Mother, “She can’t even talk.” He said looking at you, unimpressed. 

“SPEAK.” Reverend Mother ordered you, using the Voice.

You smiled coldly at her after a moment of deafening silence. Feyd’s breath caught in his throat, he had never seen someone be unaffected by the Voice. 

“She’s some kind of monster…” you heard one of the maids whisper from the corner of the room.

Your hand shot out moving in strange, hypnotic ways. The maid had no control over herself, she walked to stand in front of you before you forced her to her knees. The blood magic Feyd had read up on briefly before you arrived, could this be it? You kept your hand down, your powers gripped every molecule of her blood, bending her to your will. 

“A monster? If I am a monster I would speak more softly. Monsters are dangerous. Ill tempered.” you said before raising her up so her feet hovered just above the cold stone floor. 

The maids eyes held fear, tears streaming down her face as she waited for you to do something. For the first time, Feyd saw a brief smile grace your lips. Two fangs; a much desired Sanguine feature that had faded from the genetic line slowly. Yet you were graciously bestowed with them. Your smile faded before you tossed the girl to the side dismissively. You turned your attention back to Feyd who was looking at you with a heated gaze. A hungry one. 

“She can talk. When she wants to.” you said to him with venom in your tone. 

All Feyd did was smirk. You weren’t weak like he expected. He was going to have so much fun figuring out how you worked. You bowed your head to the Baron and a still stunned Reverend Mother. You were already proving difficult to control. They both needed you on their side, yet Feyd wanted you on his. You moved to leave the Great Hall, all the sharp metal bits of your gown dragged along the stone floor. Your maids followed behind you swiftly.

“Already holding knives to you… this will be a prosperous marriage indeed.” chuckled the Baron as he looked at Feyd.

Feyd’s eyes remained on the corridor, watching your frame get smaller and smaller as you walked away. 

-------------------------

Naboo's Note:

Did someone say cliffhanger to a possible series? No? Just me... well here it is guys and gals and nonbinary pals - SPACE VAMPIRES because the only thing sexier than aliens is vampires. That's a hill i'm willing to die on. Vampires are just unmatched. ANYWAYS - I love how this started so I will try to keep up with this but this will def be continued so look out for it! XOXOXOXOXOXOXOXO thank you for all the support!!!

[babyrdie]

ALERT OF HADES II SPOILER

Okaaaayyy....seeing a considerable number of people act shocked at how Odysseus is in Hades II and think it's something against Odysseus, and now I'm wondering if they actually paid attention in the first game…I know everyone talks a lot about Hades' art, but I didn't think that was because it was the only thing you guys were really paying attention to.

It makes sense to be disappointed that the characters weren't treated the way a fan would have liked (for example, I'm not a fan of Hades, but I don't really like the idea of him in the game although I understand why he's the way he is), but I think it's weird to be that surprised by it or treat it like it's personal. Hades never fully followed the myths. They didn't do this because they haven't read Homer or because they don't like Penelope or hate Odysseus…it's simply because they don't follow the myths authentically. They don't specifically have anything against Odysseus or Penelope, it's just the way they do things. If this were the first game, I would understand this being unexpected… but it's the second game, we already know that they won't faithfully follow the myths because they didn't do that in Hades I.

I'll admit that I also didn't expect what was done with Penelope and Odysseus, but it's not really such a "wow! I could never imagine!" when it comes to Supergiant (I'm playing the technical test, for context). And I hoped they would already be together without relationship conflicts, because I really wasn't looking forward to a repeat of Nyx and Chaos, Patroclus and Achilles, Orpheus and Eurydice. I know most people wanted this, but I think it would be lazy to repeat this and I'm still hoping to not have this quest, whether with Odypen or other characters. And yet, even if I didn't expect it, I don't think it's as unexpected for Supergiant as some are making it seem.

Examples:

Melinoe and Zagreus are children of Persephone and Hades, and in mythology they aren't children of Hades.

Zagreus and Dionysus aren't the same person. The game makes humans believe that they're because the two played a prank on Orpheus, which made him invent a song with that story. Clearly a joke on the Orphic hymns.

Theseus is proud to be a demigod, but Poseidon denies that he's his father. Clearly a joke with the different versions of Theseus' birth, in which some he is Poseidon's demigod and others he's mortal.

Persephone is the daughter of Demeter and a mortal, not Zeus. For that reason, she and her children bleed red rather than gold.

Persephone isn't actually kidnapped by Hades. The kidnapping was an act that went wrong. Yeah, Odysseus wasn't the first character to have his non-con and dub-con aspect erased.

Achilles has a different personality than in myths. The game explains this as him maturing in the afterlife.

Patroclus is distant instead of communicative as in the myths, also explained by post-death events.

Asterius (Minotaur) is much more humanized than in the myths and he and Theseus are best friends.

There is a character heavily implied to be Medusa (Dusa) and she definitely doesn't behave like a monster.

Sisyphus is a kind and helpful guy, which is explained in the game with him having regretted his actions after his years of punishment.

Artemis and Callisto are on good terms even though they ended tragically in mythology.

Hades has a much more difficult personality to deal with than in mythology.

Thanatos, Megaera (one of the furies) and Zagreus are in a romantic relationship, which definitely doesn't exist in the myths.

The last aspects of the weapons to be unlocked do not even make reference to Greece, but to other figures. For example, the Twin Fists have the "aspect of Gilgamesh", a figure who is definitely not Greek.

Aphrodite says "You do know that I'm married, don't you love? I forgive you if you didn't. For my husband, he's always... busy with his work. I'm grateful that you are there for me to talk to" about Hephaesthus...her husband, she says. Hephaestus and Aphrodite are often divorced in mythology, including in Homer. And it's not because it wasn't yet at the time they got divorced, after all the Trojan War had already happened and they were already divorced at that time.

Also, they clearly don't use Homer as their only guide, so I don't know why you guys are saying "but Homer!" Patrochilles is there and not really canon in the Homeric tradition, but in Classical Greece they were considered a couple in certain sources (Aeschylus mainly). They use the name Asterius for the Minotaur (something Pausanias mentions, for example) although it wasn't the most common, they play with the various versions of Theseus' lineage, they reference Orphic hymns, etc. Like…it's really VERY obvious they took inspiration of more than one source.

On the Supergiant website, part of the Hades presentation is "Greek myth comes from stories of ancient gods and heroes filtered through new points of view; we’re excited to share ours." This already makes it more than evident that certain aspects were purposefully changed. It wasn't a surprise even before Hades I was released, for anyone who bothered to read it.

On Twitter, Kasavin (Creative Director) has already said that "it is a concerted effort over time, although Hesiod and Homer were very significant among the many authors we explored", which makes it clear that they don't focus on a specific source, although he recognizes that Homer and Hesiod are very influential.

In an interview available at Rock Paper Shotgun, he even said that he read more than one translation of the Odyssey and cites other sources like Diodorus Siculus.

Also, Odysseus cheating Penelope isn't even a modern invention, there were already versions of this in the Bibliotheca of Pseudo-Apollodorus (I'm talking about Callidice). And giving an unpopular opinion here: while I agree that Calypso in The Odyssey is undeniably an SA situation, Circe is more debatable than you guys like to make it out to be, it isn't undeniably. Both the interpretation that there was SA and the interpretation that there was no SA are valid, because the text itself doesn't make it explicit as it does with Calypso. In Circe's case, not necessarily not making it a relationship with SA makes it something that deviant from the myths.

Again because I don't want to be misinterpreted: what I'm taking issue with here isn't the disappointment in how Odysseus was portrayed. This is valid! I'm questioning the idea that this was done because they don't know about the myths or that it was something specific to Odysseus and Penelope. They know the myths, they just purposefully choose not to be completely authentic. They have nothing specific to Odysseus and Penelope, which is precisely why they aren't exempt from the changes they also made to other characters. They are no more special than Persephone, Hades, Zagreus, Melinoe (to name a few who had changes), that's why they receive the same treatment (that is, being changed).

I would never recommend Hades to someone who wanted complete authenticity to the myths. I wouldn't do that because I KNOW that's not the game's purpose. I thought everyone else knew too. You don't go to a vegetarian restaurant that you knew was vegetarian because you had eaten there before and be surprised because they don't have real meat dishes, be serious.

Edit (01/05): guys, you're talking about Epic, but I admit that I've never even heard that musical and I'm not part of the fandom. So I don't really know if Epic has an influence on that mindset 🤔and also my reblog develops a little more what I think based on Hades I if anyone is interested in theories for the narrative.

[reddest-flower]

Socialism, as we know, presupposes public ownership of the means of production. Under socialism, the exploitation of man by man is abolished. Of course, the Nazis have nothing of the kind. The coming of the Nazis to power and their domination for 8 years in Germany showed the whole world that these “socialists,” like no one before them, ensured the growth of profits for Krupp and Borsig. Suffice it to point out that during the years of fascist domination in Germany, the largest joint-stock companies grew unusually quickly. So, for example, in 1937 in Germany there were 6 supergiant concerns with a capital of over 100 million marks, in 1939 there were already 9 such concerns. Some joint-stock companies (Harpener Bergbau, Siemens-Halske, etc.) doubled and tripled their capital during the years of the domination of the fascists. Only in 1939, the profits of the joint-stock mining company Hibernia AG increased by a fabulous figure – 100 million marks. The German Chemical Trust (IG Farbenindustrie) made a net profit in 1939 of about 60 million marks. This is what Hitler’s “socialism” is! This is the “socialism” of the monopoly tycoons, the largest capitalists in the world.

The fascist leaders themselves stole huge sums of money. It is widely known that the Hermann Goering company has a capital of 800 million marks. This is quite eloquent evidence of the monstrous, predatory fever of enrichment that the “socialists” Hitler, Goering, Goebbels and Co. are gripping. This is what Hitler’s “socialism” looks like in industry. The same kind of “socialism” is carried out by the fascists in agriculture. After the fascists came to power, the old landowners’ farms began to gain strength and new landowners’ estates began to emerge. A former associate of Hitler, Hermann Rauschning, who fled from Hitler, says that he once asked Hitler: “But what about those points of the program that relate to agrarian reform, the destruction of wage labor and the nationalization of banks?” Hitler replied: “Do I really have to explain to you the meaning of this program? Are you so primitive that you take it literally and do not see that this is only a decoration for our performance? In this program, established for the masses, I will never change anything ... To nourish the hopes of the masses, it is necessary to establish some visible stages.” Thus, Hitler once again declared that the program and all sorts of talk about socialism are all the decoration of a spectacle played out by the imperialists in order to deceive the masses. Hitler’s Minister of Agriculture Darre in the first days after the Nazis came to power said: “I will not touch a single estate, no matter how large it may be (and I know that I say this in full agreement with the Reich Chancellor’s opinion) ... I also will not allow the violation of the property rights of the pledged large land holdings.” Indeed, the Nazis kept their promise. Not only did they not touch a single estate, but the number of landowners was increased: the leaders of fascism themselves became large landowners.

Who are the National Socialists? Pavel Yudin, 1942

[silverbirching]

So as some of you may know, I am... let's say an armchair-level amateur scholar of classical studies. @qqueenofhades can tell you how often she has to talk me down off the ledge of enrolling in an MFA program.

Like some of you, I was an insufferable twelve-year-old when Disney's Hercules came out, and all of my critiques of that film were down to "it doesn't do the mythology right".

Well, I've reached the point where I don't care about that shit anymore. Go nuts. Have fun with it. There are, however, some... History Tik-tok tumblr Bad Takes about Greek mythology that I have very little patience for. #Girlboss Persephone, for instance, or basically anything that insists on treating the Greek gods like people, whose behavior can be judged as more or less Problematic, rather than... symbols, archetypes, divinities.

I am happy to say that Kaos, while it obviously plays fast and loose with basically every element, captures the vibes of Olympus. The feels. Jeff Goldblum's intense, eccentric and fucking terrifying performance as Zeus, the flawless Janet McTeer as Hera, Cliff Curtis as Middle-Aged Jaded Slutty Maori Fuckboy Poseidon, David Thewlis' exhausted, depressive turn as Hades... all of it is GOLD. It has instantly become one of my new favorite adaptations. Like all good adaptations, it captures the flavor, the vibes, the FEEL of the original works.

Here's some of my other faves!

Gods Behaving Badly, by Marie Phillips - a goofy, fun little romp about the past-it and aging Gods of Olympus living together in a shitty house in London. A comedy, but it very accurately captures the essence of the vain, fickle, and usually stupid Greek Gods.

Circe, by Madeline Miller - I mean, I hope to God everyone has already read this one, Jesus Christ. Told from the first-person perspective of the Goddess-witch Circe, this book is an amazing re-imagining of one of the most maligned and studied characters in the Odyssey.

Hades 1 & 2. by Supergiant Games - I could write several thousand words about how much I love these games, which both revolve around the challenges of an immortal family that you literally cannot get away from -- and the way cycles of violence perpetuate themselves, even if the people involved CAN'T DIE. The depths of the scholarship on display there are frankly staggering, and they go DEEP into the esoterica -- Zagreus teasing Orpheus that he and Dionysus are the same person (which they almost certainly are, don't get me started on Orphism) springs to mind. Hell, the second game's protagonist is literally Melinoe. Also, Scylla is a boss fight and is the lead singer of a bratty girl group and sings a diss track about how your hair is a disaster. What's not to love.

... I do wish they hadn't made Kronos the God of Time. That shit drives me nuts. The words are cognate but not--he was an agricultural--ANYWAY.

Kaos is intense as hell, but it's fucking GREAT. And literally every frame is filled with Gays and people with different bodies and body types and various flavors of gender fuckery. It's great. Watch it.

[hermesmoly]

What's your opinion on Hermes in adaptations ? I personally think that, like with other gods, a lot of nuance is often lost.

He's usually just a fun speedy guy in modern vision and we don't really see his status as god of merchants, travels, rhetoric, theft or his role as a psychopomp. It's really a shame, honestly.

He's portrayed as a bit witty, but I'd love to see him more as a trickster god (like in Argos' story), a persuasive talker, a traveler who explores the world and his relationships to mortals and various gods alike.

(like his relationship to youthfulness, being the second youngest Olympian, at odds with Apollo before reaching an agreement, taking care of Pan then Dionysus, some interactions with his mom Maia or his chthonic coworkers, etc...)

Idk I wanted to talk about him a bit instead of complaining about Dionysus for the 100th time this week 🤣. Since Hermes is your favorite god, I thought it'd interest you 😉.

@superkooku thank you for this ask aaaahhhh!!!

Honestly, Hermes as a deity has so many layers of potential when it comes to story writing, and while he is a Certified Happy Go Lucky Extrovert^TM, there are so many aspects of him that aren't just the comedic messenger!!

I could make a list of all the aspects of Hermes I'd personally love to see more in modern media, so here we go:

Hermes' role as the god of thieves and trickery (his darker self, his suave nature, how he killed one of Hera's favorite servants so effortlessly and still remains in her good graces? His caduceus has two snakes- in a dual way representing his slyness along with his role as a protector)

Hermes' role as the god of trade and merchants (you telling me my boy won't be good at haggling prices and owning the market? I need some version of him where he owns the black market or some crazy stuff)

Hermes' role as a psychopomp (and by extension his relationship with his Uncle Hades. What is his relationship with the other chthonic gods? I love what Hades Supergiant did with Hermes/Charon but I long for more! Especially when he's very much there as Persephone's personal escort to and fro the Underworld. Thanatos should not get all the credit for reaping souls and guiding them home. )

Hermes and Maia (extroverted son, introverted mom, so many things we can explore here! How he felt growing up in that cave, his relationship with Arcas who his mother adopted!)

Hermes and Zeus (his aspect of being the god of hospitality!!) (Modern Media might never give us the Zeus-Hermes-Baucis-Philemon adventures but I am still for it always)

Hermes' mental health and depression (+ the bad side of his relationship with his mother and father) (more specifically Lucian Dialogues of the Gods 4, where Hermes states he is the most miserable god in all heaven, working every day and waiting upon Zeus' grander sons from mortal women. Now in my interpretation, Zeus wouldn't be that harsh to Hermes to make him almost like an indentured servant, but reading this dialogue you can really feel his exhaustion from the God of Trade and many other things. We can all relate to the feeling of being brushed off when you're feeling down, and I think this is the least likely aspect of Hermes to be explored since we will be putting him out of the "lucky, carefree" god persona that most put him in)

Hermes and Atlas (going back to Dialogue 4, Hermes mentions being the grandson of Atlas. I find it fascinating bc how does Hermes feel looking at his grandfather? Does he hate his grandfather for siding with Kronos? Does he resent his dad for creating this void for them to not have a relationship? Does he fear that if he steps out of line Zeus could do the same to him? Does he talk to Atlas forced to hold up the sky? Very compelling stuff)

Hermes and Hera (*holds them very tightly* they are the stepmother and stepson duo. Hera can be a certified Apollo-Artemis-Dionysus hater but has almost no hate for Hermes from what I know. There is no retaliation for Argos' death, and we all know Hera can hold a grudge! She milked him once in an obscure myth and that makes him her honorary son alongside Heracles, even appearing to bind Ixion alongside Ares, Hera's biological son. Hermes even makes an effort to deliver all of the invitations to her wedding to Zeus. Sure all of these can be explained by his messenger/servant role, but they seem to have an amicable and fun relationship that most media just writes them down as "Hera hates him" looking at you Blood of Zeus **EDIT: all of these are mostly headcanon-territory, so apologies for that!)

Hermes and Perseus and his role as helper of heroes (his canon bf... people out there shipping Perseus and Medusa when HERMES IS RIGHT. THERE! Perseus is called a beloved of Hermes and I'm sad that people are erasing that in their Perseus retellings. Gifts seem to be a love language for Hermes since he gives him his sandals, sword AND invisibility helm free of charge)

Hermes and Ares / Mercury and Mars (sorry I'm biased the Ares stan in me is coming out forgive me I think Hermes and Ares as a symbiotic relationship is something that can be explored more. The Jar Myth where Hermes saves Ares lets into some of the vulnerabilities Ares has, Lucian Dialogue #1 and the differences with how they view Zeus, war vs diplomacy, both being athletic gods, both being lovers of dogs, and many other things I can pitch for the secret Ares/Hermes fans out there)

Hermes and Dionysus (more modern media of Hermes taking care of his little bro-bro!! To be best buds in the future, that's just so endearing and sweet and we need more interactions between them. Their duality is similar to Ares/Hermes, with the additional madness factor. How would Hermes react to Dionysus' darkest side as his guardian and brother? Also, Hermes would definitely shake up Dionysus' parties. Would they murder together? Maybe. Definitely.)

[iamchickenhearmesquawk]

I think Zagreus as a final boss in Hades 2 would be underwhelming and not as cool as everyone thinks it would be 🧍‍♀️.

Half-coherent rambling under the cut cause of that theory is your baby or something like, more power to you I guess

I’ve seen people talk about how it would be so cool and hard hitting, and sure it would for the player, but I don’t think it would for Mel past a certain point. We all adore him because we know him, she doesn’t know him.

Like she has a loyalty to her family she doesn’t even know yes, but she’s also quite guarded, and she doesn’t know him personally. Emotionally she’d be more impacted by Hecate betraying her or something, in comparison to Zagreus.

And even then she is the type to do her very best to repress her emotions, it is her very strong sense of duty and justice that is her strength and downfall. (And when I say justice I don’t necessarily mean she’s right, but that she has a very strong sense of duty to what she perceives is justice and it takes a LOT for that ship to change course) I don’t know if that sort of thing would be the thing to break her. I think her business brain would take over.

Zag as a boss would either be him purposely challenging her so there is a better outcome overall, but Prometheus is kind of doing that already.

The other option is him like brainwashed or “dark” zagreus somehow, which is even assuming that’s somehow something chronos can do, (along with bypassing the surface curse) I still don’t think it would have impact for melinoe like it would for the player, and I’d rather see something else.

I’d rather see zag as a Persephone type npc (I mean we go into where his chambers were after fighting chronos…) or if he becomes an npc outside of that, having encounters like nemesis or Heracles type of thing. Or idk have him run around and give you nectar kind of like how Eris did a couple times.

Zagreus is also a feelings man and I don’t know if he’d actually be like, an intimidating match for Mel, it would be more of an even fight if anything. Mel also isn’t super open to listening to ANYTHING anyone has to say before a fight, Zags strength of convincing her of any new ideas probably wouldn’t be on the battlefield, but I’m not the supergiant writers so hey. He’s persuasive but even he never convinced Theseus he wasn’t a demon.

Also soooo many fans have suggested this idea I feel like it’d slightly lose the shock value of it all, which isn’t necessarily a problem but the shock value is the best part this theory has going for it. I’m open to being proven wrong if somehow this is what supergiant does.

[mayakern]

as a long time fan of supergiant games and as someone who was obsessed with greek mythology as a child, i am EXTREMELY pumped about hades II. but also very curious about the new main character’s design. i feel like sgg (really, jen zee specifically) usually does a really good job of telegraphing their designs so that if you know the most basic things about a god, you can recognize them on site based on their design.

from the shape language to the posing to specific visual elements, they make sure that even at a quick glance the characters are not only distinct from one another, but have enough references to their domain and mythology that they are very recognizable.

i think demeter is one of my favorite indicators of this and one of my favorite hades designs over all. she’s not interpreted in the way a classic demeter is, and that’s part of what’s perfect. she’s been built at with little hints and references in other characters’ dialogue that paint her as critical, overbearing and not exactly trustworthy. and when you see her you’re like, “what, this is the goddess of the harvest?” with the absence of persephone and her casting the earth into famine, it makes sense that she doesn’t look bountiful, that her cornucopia (still the classic visual reference to demeter) is empty, her wheat frozen.

but melinoë is different. melinoë is a bringer of nightmares, a goddess of ghosts. her mingled heavenly and infernal heritage manifests in her primary physical trait: a body that is split down the middle, half white and half black. this is basically her most defining physical characteristic (the other being that she wears saffron, which is bougie as hell but not the point), but here is her design from the hades II trailer:

i see the saffron, see reference to her ghostly/undead connections, and there is an element of her half-and-half complexion with those black moon armor (maybe?) coverings on her right arm and leg. but when i first saw this design i thought she was an original creation (like zagreus*), not an existing god. i’m interested to see if this means they’ll be changing core parts of her mythology (and to see if that’s reflected in her design) and to see what direction she’s headed in but really this whole long post has just been building up to me saying

WHY DIDN’T THEY GIVE HER SPLIT DYE HAIR

PLEASE IT WOULD HAVE BEEN SO PERFECT

almost every visual interpretation of melinoë, even if they don’t split her body into white and black halves like a white and black cookie, gives her a split dye. and maybe they wanted to avoid what everyone else was doing, but i feel like melinoë is unknown enough that that isn’t really a big deal. idk. i just think it would be neat. that’s all.

(*yes i know there is a zagreus in greek canon that is the first iteration of dionysus and is the son of persephone and zeus but i feel like game zagreus resembles his mythological counterpart so little that he’s basically an original creation, and maybe they’re doing the same with melinoe! since she is also technically the child of zeus and persephone**)

(**depending on the canon it’s either zeus disguised as hades or zeus and hades are two aspects of the same being)

[seyaryminamoto]

COMMISSIONS ARE NOW OPEN!

Hello, everyone! My circumstances are getting a little bit more complicated and it's been fairly tricky to find a job over the past year (aaand it's only going to get worse...), so it's time for me to fully, officially, reopen commissions. Some prices have increased since the last time I did this, mainly in the hopes that this reflects my improving skills a little better. Some options are quite costly (particularly the animations and comics) because they demand a ton more work than one might expect. Terms are also more strict than they used to be in order to ensure a more professional dynamic between myself and anyone who commissions me.

Send me a DM if you have a commission in mind, but first, make sure to read through the Read More. I want to expand on what's stated in the final picture to ensure better clarity on the terms of my services:

I'm open to working with any fandom or OC, be it one I'm familiar with or not. I'm also open to working with crossovers, as well as making book/fic/album covers, and even drawing real people as characters of a fandom of the commissioner's choice.

I am open to drawing ship/romance content but, tied directly to the next point...

I reserve the right to refuse any commissions that make me uncomfortable in any given way. This does not mean that everything besides my OTPs and the headcanons I support is guaranteed to be rejected, but it does mean that, if the behavior of the commissioner or the specific subject of the commission does not sit well with me, for any given reason, I will decline the commission. I won't work on something that squicks me, nor with someone who displeases me. No artist should.

Animals, mythological creatures, gore and +18 requests are fundamentally valid but must be discussed thoroughly first. None of these areas are my forte as an artist, as much as I've dabbled in them here and there, so, in order to get it right, I may need extra time and I will most likely modify the base price for any requests that includes these elements.

Payments will be done through PayPal or Wise. The final, full-resolution piece will not be delivered until full payment is completed. Half payment is expected at the start of the process, the second half at the end. The client is entitled to two revisions of the art process to ensure expectations are met. If a piece does not match your expectations after the revisions, the commission will be considered cancelled and you won't need to pay the second half of the expense. Any commissioner who wishes to pay upfront from the get-go does so at their own risk. Revisions are always included, but there will be no refunds if the final piece is not up to the commissioner's standards.

The commissioner is allowed to publish and share the commissioned work across social media, provided it follows the rules of each site (as in, don't post any +18 artworks on sites that do not allow it, pretty much). I can offer basic Glaze and Nightshade in order to protect the artwork from AI theft, to no added expense. Credit MUST be given to me as the artist whenever commissioned pieces are posted elsewhere.

For anyone who wants a list of fandoms I'm better acquainted with:

Avatar: the Last Airbender

Legend of Korra

Bleach

Digimon

Code Geass

Inuyasha

Dragon Ball

The Mentalist

The Dragon Prince

Disney

My Hero Academia

Dragon Age

Hades (Supergiant)

Cowboy Bebop

Hollow Knight

Star Wars

Ghibli Films

Overwatch

Full Metal Panic

Artemis Fowl

LOTR

Farscape

Haikyuu

Fullmetal Alchemist

Naruto

Stranger Things

Spy X Family

Kaguya-sama

Chronicles of Ancient Darkness

Eragon

Thor

Harry Potter

Free!

ASOIAF

Shaman King

K-ON

Critical Role/Legend of Vox Machina

Dungeons and Dragons

Blue Eye Samurai

Arcane

Castlevania

Again, any fandom, character or OC is valid, but I'm far more likely to know what I'm doing and to have my own opinions, for better or for worse, when it comes to anything on this list.

If there are any further questions, feel free to DM me and we'll sort them out!

Thanks for reading so far, and I look forward to working with you!

[encrucijada]

so like. I'm interested in Greek mythology retellings but not interested in the way authors like Madeline Miller or Rachel Smythe handle them. Do you possibly have any recommendations?

this is going to be an extremely bare bones list because i don't really go out looking for myth retellings, i am too jaded now and don't think i'm gonna like any of them lmao. if you want recommendations from a reputable source i would suggest checking out @wordsmithic, as they are not only greek but also a writer so i think they can guide you in the right direction

but here's my meager list. i am including more than just books because else this would have like 2 bullet points

la casa de asterión by jorge luis borges (short story). translated this means "the house of asterion", it is only 2 pages long and it changed my life. retelling of the myth of the labyrinth of crete if it wasn't obvious by the title.

el laberinto del minotauro by bernardo sauvirón (novella). i feel you know what this says without me translating it. i bought this on a whim and i really liked it, have a few gripes but overall very interesting take.

hadestown by anaïs mitchell (musical). this is my favourite musical so i won't even pretend to be unbiased. this retelling is set in a post-apocalyptic 1920s and deals with not only the myth of hades and persephone but also with orpheus and eurydice.

iphigenia in dreaming by cassandra marcus davey (play). i have not read this yet as i want to dedicate time to enjoy it but i have read the author's poems on the house of atreus and they are so good.

winter harvest by ioanna papadopoulou (book). i also haven't read this one yet but the author is greek so my hope is that it will delete everything i have learned about lore olympus, finally setting me free. it's a retelling of the hymn of demeter, from demeter's perspective.

hades by supergiant games (videogame). i have not personally played this but my sibling has and i watch them when they do. it is definitely the most stylised point on this list but seeing as it is a videogame being fun to play takes priority. it's a roguelike where you play as zagreus and you are trying to make your way out of the underworld.