#She enables his awful behavior and I love it

[feathers-second-face]

Their dynamic in two sentences.

I'm so normal about them, they're my favorites.

Do not tag as ship.

[perenlop]

ok sorry for grace ranting again but like. no really did infinity train fans and i watch the same season because literally so much shit ppl claim about her is not true

[titaniaqueenoffairie]

the Inner Circle’s Treatment of Nesta: Hypocrisy and Double Standards

I can never understand how readers still worship the Inner Circle after ACOSF (I’ve never really gotten it throughout the whole series, but let’s leave that aside for now). Before I got into the ACOTAR series, I always heard how the IC was hailed as the pinnacle of love, friendship, and understanding. But after reading it, especially in ACOSF, I couldn’t stand them and their behavior toward Nesta. I mean, their actions toward Nesta tell a much darker story—one of hypocrisy, double standards, and selective compassion. These are just a few points I can write about.

Nesta vs. Rhysand’s Trauma Rhysand went through unimaginable horrors Under the Mountain, and rightly so, the IC (and the fandom) shower him with empathy. But when it comes to Nesta? Suddenly, compassion has a limit. Nesta endured severe trauma during the war, was forced into a transformation against her will, and carried the guilt of her father’s death on her shoulders. Instead of receiving support, she was ostracized, judged, and treated as a burden. Why does Rhys get to grieve on his terms while Nesta is vilified for doing the same?

Weaponizing Morality The IC consistently acted like Nesta’s choices were morally reprehensible. Yes, she coped in unhealthy ways—drinking and isolating herself—but let’s not forget Feyre and Rhys’s questionable behavior (cough hiding Feyre’s pregnancy risks cough). The IC’s constant moral superiority over Nesta is exhausting when they’ve made their own fair share of dubious choices.

Cassian’s Enabling Behavior Cassian claimed to love Nesta but often enabled the IC’s mistreatment of her. He watched as Rhys exiled her to the House of Wind and stripped her of autonomy. If he truly cared, why didn’t he stand up for her? Love isn’t just about attraction—it’s about advocacy, and Cassian repeatedly failed to advocate for Nesta when she needed it most. (that, and won't talk about his behavior in CC3 because i didn't read it yet but i heard a lot of awful things)

“Tough Love” or Just Cruelty? Rhysand and Feyre framing their treatment of Nesta as “tough love” is laughable. Exiling her to a location where she had no escape and forcing her into training wasn’t love—it was control. The IC claimed to want Nesta to heal, but healing doesn’t come from stripping someone of agency. It comes from offering support, compassion, and the choice to heal at their own pace.

The Double Standards Around Amren Amren....... aaaaah Amren who’s often just as cold and abrasive as Nesta. But unlike Nesta, Amren is respected for her attitude. She’s seen as a “badass” who doesn’t take nonsense, while Nesta is labeled as cruel and ungrateful. Why is Amren allowed to be harsh without judgment, but Nesta is demonized for the same behavior?

[wings-of-fire-confessions]

“Riptide is so plain and/or boring!”

You know what? I genuinely don’t give a f***.

He’s a caring and nice character, that I like and even enjoy, and I think it’s quite neat that Tsunami had someone else she could rely on when she was having troubles within the SeaWing palace while living with freaking Queen Coral and - three moons - Whirlpool.

Plus, Riptide is NOT as plain as some people view him - or at least, he has the potential to be (seen as) a interesting character, but unfortunately wasn’t as explored and/or developed upon unlike some other characters within the series.

Riptide had a rather bad and traumatic past. Webs left him when he was 2 years old - about the current age of Anemone and MINK - in order to take Tsunami’s egg to the the Talons of Peace so he can raise her to be within the prophecy. His mother was indirectly KILLED by Coral by her purposefully putting his mom in the front lines of the war, due to her helping Webs take Tsunami’s egg. 

Due to this, Riptide probably became a literal ORPHAN as a very young dragonet, while living under a violent Queen who HATES his guts.

And due to Webs taking Tsunami’s egg, Coral unrightfully viewed Riptide to be an awful dragon, due to him being related to Webs. Because of this, Riptide is hated and discriminated by Queen Coral and her relatives, and he has a bad and low reputation within his Kingdom based off of crimes he DIDN’T EVEN COMMIT. With this reputation being something that he lived with through the MAJORITY of his life. Which includes him being given the lowest ranking job and duty within the SeaWing kingdom.

Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised that the reason why Riptide seems so ‘plain’ and/or ‘boring’ because he literally HAD to act that way around others - with him placing that part within himself and ingrained it within his personality and/or behavior - in order to NOT stand out and grab the attention of others who actively hate him, and would harm & even KILL him. Especially from how much he’s canonically hated by Coral.

Because if Riptide was noticed to be against Coral’s actions or beliefs, and/or was seen doing something that (majorly) upsets Coral, there’s a good chance - heck, a HIGH chance - that Coral would instantly brutally harm and/or kill him on the spot.

Riptide is one of the characters within the series that, despite the awful treatment and trauma he experienced throughout his life, is STILL a kind, caring, and/or empathetic dragon, who does his best to helps others that he cares about - including Tsunami.

He’s a dragon who cares about his tribe to the point he fought the SkyWings for them instead of fleeing away from the Summer Palace with Webs and Tsunami (and Tsunami’s friends), despite the awful treatment Riptide experienced for the majority of his life under his tribe’s royalty.

Who’s also a dragon who still wanted to form a connection with his father, who left him and hasn’t seen Riptide for a long time. One who is the only potential dragon who would love and/or care for Riptide for who he is.

A father that Riptide then learned later with TLH that Webs was a enabler of the abuse that Tsunami and her friends experienced from Kestrels and Dune, due to Webs not stopping them from being harmed until Queen Scarlet tried to imprison them in her arena.

Plus, when knowing about Riptide’s trauma and how much he experienced prejudice from others, his relationship and interactions with Tsunami honestly are more interesting than they seem to be.

How Riptide INSTANTLY rushed towards Tsunami in order to embrace her after she unintentionally flirted with him.

How Tsunami is probably the first dragon he’s known in a long while who respects, appreciates, and even enjoys his presence and existence.

That Riptide followed and watched over Tsunami while she was at the SeaWing Kingdom, probably due to him being worried about her being with Coral.

That Riptide selflessly helped and hanged out with Tsunami despite Coral potentially punishing and/or harming him for doing so.

How Riptide hid the fact that he was related to Webs, and that he’s a member of the Talons of Peace, probably in fear that Tsunami - the only dragon he has a positive bond with in TLH - would be angry at him, & dislike and/or hate him, possibly similarly how other dragons (including her relatives) hate him.

But despite this, he cared about being honest with Tsunami that he had the mental maturity and/or mental strength to tell Tsunami that he joined the Talons of Peace in order to know more about his father.

So yeah - Riptide is quite a nice character, who’s even pretty interesting, or at least is when you really think about him.

But he unfortunately isn’t viewed that way and/or isn’t even appreciated by multiple parts of the WoF fandom, due to him not having an prominent and/or strong personality compared to other love interests within the series.

.

[jai-graphics]

Rant: Jinx and her ability to love so unconditionally

I feel like it isn't so talked about how Powder and Jinx are both in the same with their unconditional love especially to characters like Vi, Silco, Isha and Ekko... (SPOILERS FOR ARCANE ACT 3)

Most of the times, people talks about how different Powder and Jinx are but forget they're technically the same person and acts the same especially with loving someone...

- Vi, I have no hate for her but she is very much so focused on trying to fuck up enforcers (figuratively and literally *winks*) and fight to get back at Piltover. While I don't blame Vi with her priorities and that Vi should let go of the guilt about Jinx, Vi is more focused on being a warrior, being strong, preparing to fight.

Here comes Powder where this focus of Vi also causes Powder to wish to be better, build bombs (Where I did wish Vi decided to stop and look and encouraged her to build other things, but ig that's where Ekko comes in), tools to aid said fights, she also follows along on wanting to fight with Vi. Where Powder had underlying wishes to simply play and bond with Vi as implied with Jinx and Isha, she didn't think about that but then Powder is very insistent to join in which sadly causes mayhem or 'Jinx'es.

-Silco. As much as I love this Father-Daughter pair, Silco is a real bad influence for her. Silco saw the broken down girl like he's looking into a mirror and turns her into a child soldier/terrorist. While Silco did love Jinx and cared for her and they had their moments, it is still so twisted because he still enabled Jinx's destructive behavior because it does him good ("I thought you (Vi) were the price of your second-hand family, but Jinx, She's more than I ever imagined..."), he tries to drill into Jinx that there's no other family besides him... It's true that Silco would rather let his dream die than give away Jinx, but it is also true that when it comes to manipulating and making sure Jinx is still under his thumb, nothing stops him from that.

Jinx, back when she is young and first met Silco, She is so so quick to cling to Silco at the bit of small, very tiny affection he showed her and she decided to follow him like a loss puppy. It never occured to her that maybe this person is a bad person or out to hurt her, Nah, that's all just brushed away. Jinx is very similar with Vi and with Silco with her way to love is to mold herself based on the person she clings to. Powder trying to invent bombs and Jinx being Jinx. It's more shown with Silco that Jinx will never stop and look if her actions to please the person, is atrocious and awful, all that matters to her is the person she tried to please, she also never thinks about what she wants because all she wants in life of to please said person and Silco dropdead weaponized that...

-Isha is a breath of fresh air for her. Jinx didn't feel commanded or pressured into a job or role like with Vi and Silco. Jinx was able to just live, play, enjoy life, do things that she wishes with Vi (If Vi isn't more into 'hitting stuff') with Isha, she didn't have to be Powder or Jinx to live. Jinx let go of the baggage as Jinx and aims to be a good role model for Isha, Jinx looks into how she felt with Vi like feeling useless by being stood back in a job and with Silco being commanded to do things, she uses those to make better memories for Isha.

Though, Isha does want her to be a simbol, a hero, wants 'to be Jinx' which Jinx didn't want at first, but Isha didn't force her into it like Silco drills her as Jinx or Vi drills her as nine year old Powder. Isha accepts Jinx's choice and goes along with it and just ends up hoping and waiting for Jinx to do it in her own will... And Jinx did, despite her reservations, Jinx decided to be Jinx to save Isha.

Arcane season 2 had pacing problems but this isn't one of the reasons...

Which is why I didn't get that some people say Isha is a pointless character, She is, this is why and it's why losing her is the biggest blow after Silco's death...

Arcane Act 3 Spoilers

-Powder and Jinx are very similar, So I think why Ekko's view of Jinx changed when he met Powder in the alternative universe. Before meeting Alternative Powder, Ekko knew that whatever atrocities Jinx did is because she wants to, that's true, Jinx does want to do it to please Silco and Ekko hates her for it and believes Powder and Jinx being two separate beings like Vi.

But I believe being in this Alternative universe, Ekko found out and felt being the receiving end Powder/Jinx's unwavering love and support. Ekko realized that even if Powder isn't Jinx here, Jinx and Powder is one and the same. (i.e. using monkeys for the timeloop and wacky doodles during their episode nine fight)

Episode seven hammered down why Jinx X Ekko makes sense... Ekko had great ideas and his go-to person for help to do said idea is Powder. This opens up the possibilities for Powder to embrace her intelligence and hope to live more (as shown that Powder loving her life as compared to the carelessness of Jinx). This is where Powder and Jinx are very similar: it was shown Powder is contented in the bar to standing back and watch and support in the sidelines while Ekko thrives, taking every bit of opportunity because that's what makes her happy. Like Jinx with Isha, Silco and Vi.

Though, I did notice the difference of Ekko between the four, Powder's self confidence is at the fullest with Ekko, which honestly, causes her to be mature. All the positives of her relationship with Isha, Silco and Vi all appears with Ekko. With Ekko, Powder is so comfortable with her own skin and abilities, Powder allows herself to feel angry and bitter towards Ekko without being destructive (i.e. asking for space), and Powder does recognize that Ekko needs her for projects but Ekko (albeit being an alternative universe version) very much aims to know Powder for who she was and see her and doesn't want her to change at all...

And that's why when he came back, even Jinx being her destructive self, He doesn't just run away from the bomb but chose to save Jinx repeatedly...

She's not dead shut up

[digital-roots]

The Svensson Family

Apologize for the wait but it's here!!! Sven and Earrings won the poll, so I get to show y'all these awful bastards now!!!

The Svensson family is a notoriously infamous criminal syndicate in Sweden. They're very wealthy and very powerful, being around for many generations. The family prides themselves on having a large control of illegal wares, underground economies and various other shady businesses.

This is gonna be the first part where I introduce each and every one of them. I'll explain more about them and Sven and Earrings relationships toward them later.

Bios for each family member under the cut

(also pleaseee please reblog i spent a lot of time on it and it mean a lot if you read :3)

Sven Svensson Sr.

The head of the family, he is one of the most feared crime bosses in the country. He's an extremely stoic individual who never shows any sort of emotion. The one exception is when he gets angry, and even then it takes a lot to get him to shout.

That doesn't mean he's not a violent man, however, quite the opposite. While usually leaving his goons to do the acts for him, he is not hesitant to pummel the people that cross him into a bloody pulp. He often even does so around other people, to make an example of what happens to those that fail their tasks or try to usurp him.

His wife Margareta (maiden name Fahlén) is a lot more warmer than him, at least on the surface. She comes from a similar criminal but high profile background and married Sven Sr for power. She's very gentle and soft-spoken. With how nicer she is than the rest of the family, you'd be mistaken into thinking that she's actually a good person. She is not.

She's a natural in social situations and is great in manipulation. She's a very confident in her skills and is used to getting what she wants out of people. That's how she managed to become powerful in the first place. That's how she married into the Svensson family. That's how she had her own children become as great as they are.

The two of them had four kids together: Earrings, Sven, Auguste, and Emelie. For now we'll skip the first two.

Auguste Sven Svensson is the third child of the Sven Sr and Margareta and the one that looks most like their mother. He inherited his father's stoicism and his mother's people skills. He used to actually be a very shy child, often hiding at the back of his older siblings. But as time went on his parents started to take notice at how much more,,,,adept he was than his other siblings. Sven Sr could see the potential in him that his second son never had. He needed to make sure this boy would become as great as he was.

His parents molded him into becoming the perfect heir to the Svensson name. Any weaknesses or outside interests were beaten out of him. Auguste is resigned to the role that he plays and sees it as they ways things are meant to be. Even if he never wanted it in the first place, he convinces himself that he just needs to be what everyone wants him to be.

Emelie Svensson

Is the youngest member of the family and is certainly the brattiest. With her siblings getting all of their parent's attention (whether in a good or bad way), that left little care for the girl who just didn't seem to stand out. Of course, it made little ol' Emelie really upset that no one in her family paid attention to her and she took out her anger onto others. Servants, stray animals, even her own siblings weren't exempt from her wrath. Her parents only enabled this behavior, finally giving her some sort of praise from them.

Presently she's about as haughty and cruel as ever, soaking up all the privileges she has as a young woman hailing from a wealthy crime family. Despite her love of bloodshed, she gets very distraught if any blood gets onto her and her million dollar worth dresses.

Ines Svensson is the sister of Sven Sr and is somehow even more colder and stoic than him. She is very sharp, calculating, and Highly formal. She treats her family more like people that work for her. There is no one who she shows any hint of warmth towards.

...Save for maybe her husband, Stellan Cronholm. A loud and brutish man, he is the ringleader of a large animal smuggling ring that mostly deals with rare, sought out species. He has a personal preference for (endangered and highly expensive) snakes, his favorites being pythons. He loves them more than his own kids (which he holds no affection for).

Whenever he finds anyone (working for him or not) that he suspects is trying to expose it, he sends them to his personal snake pit. It is exactly what it sounds like.

Ines and Stellan had twins together, Maja and Magnus.

The two were raised mainly by their mother-sorry, boss. The two are both highly efficient and ruthless mercenaries. They were also discouraged from showing any 'softness' to each other as siblings. These sort of stuff had it so the two didn't really mingle with their cousins until they were older.

Both of them were very much affected by their training but Maja was the only one that showed it. Magnus learns to get over it quicker and so does his sister.

Maja is honestly pretty civil when not doing any mercenary work. She doesnt like being around anyone just herself. She likes origami and keeps some in her room.

Magnus learned to get over it by learning to enjoy hurting people, kinda like Emelie. So when hes not going around being a human weapon, hes pulling 'harmless' pranks on others. His all time favorite prank victim is Maja due to always getting a rise out of her. Sometimes even breaking into her room and destroying her stuff. She often tries killing him for this but always fails to do so.

Finally, we come back to these two. Perle (now known by her toppat nickname 'Earrings') and Sven Jr.

Perle was the oldest one and was the former golden child of Sven Sr's kids, at least until Auguste grew up. Constantly being praised immenseness for her ingenuity, wit, and social skills helped her bloom into the person who she is today. Although, the extremely suffocating pressure she had as the former chosen successor of her family's line of work caused her to stray away when she got older.

She's a very resourceful person with a knack for inventing. Her favorite one she's created are her beloved stun earrings.

In contrast to his darling sister, Sven was the black sheep of the family. He was a....fine enough boy, but he could never reach the insanely high expectations placed upon him. He was constantly belittled and bullied by his own family for being weak willed and generally failing at the things they order him to do.

One too many incidents later, he was exiled from his family by his own father. He joined the Toppat Clan as a way to repent. To finally prove his worth and be seen as the man his family (and himself) always wanted him to be. So far that has not happened.

[fizzbot]

APOLOGY TOUR SPOILERS / HELLUVA BOSS CRITICAL POST

(please just dont read if youre a fan/are gonna be annoying in my tags/replies)

i LOVE verosika. i was super excited to see an episode all about her. she has EVERY right to be mad at blitz, and i do enjoy seeing things from the perspective of his victims. BUT.....i was really disappointed in her portrayal in apology tour. MOSTLY just because i was dissapointed in stolas portrayal in apology tour, and think this ep wouldve been better if it was more about BLITZ instead. rant under the cut

im not gonna give the whole rant about how annoying it is that stolas is constantly woobified, because 100 critical blogs have done it much more gracefully than i ever could. but it is just SO dissapointing to watch a man that couldve been SUCH a compelling villain be the ONLY one who is EVER sympathized with in the show. we are supposed to feel bad for him and believe that both sides are wrong in the stolitz situation, when stolas' crimes are SO MUCH WORSE than all of blitzs bad deeds combined. he co-erced blitz into a sex contract as the only means of doing his job, and then made HIM feel guilty for not falling n love with him during it. the 'both sides are in the wrong' comment gets particularly frustrating when the show has, tme and time again, only let stolas be the one with support. blitz is made to look unreasonable, no matter how right he is. and, in this instance, stolas is the one getting invited to this party to celebrate being ""wronged"" by blitz.

back to verosika. especially now that the episode is out, i am even more firmly on her side. the fact that blitz broke up with HER because things were getting too serious is interesting (albiet not as interesting as i think it couldve been but thats a rant for another post). im not saying she should forgive blitz, but i do struggle to fully agree with her because of how she treated stolas in the episode. she is the first to comfort him, the first to try and encourage him to shit-talk blitz, etc etc and i just dont understand.....why?

ive already had problems with her character since the sexual assault ""joke"" from spring broken, but this also really left a bad taste in my mouth. i totally understand her desire to party and sympathize with other people who were harmed by blitz, but its frustrating that stolas was invited to be among them. stolas, the man who is very much NOT THE VICTIM in his relationship with blitz. this is more the fault of the writers than verosika herself, but it is SO FRUSTRATING that she gave him the spotlight and is trying to help him heal from a situation that is ENTIRELY HIS FAULT. stolas didnt just hurt blitzs feelings, he sexually coerced and abused him. of all people, shouldnt verosika understand how terrible that can be? the kind of hurt that can do to a person? im not saying that this terrible relationship FORGIVES blitz's wrongdoings, but you shouldnt be giving his fucking abuser a stage and a microphone to talk shit about his victim. this becomes so much more insidious to me with the conversation she has with blitz on the balcony, later. this was actually a pretty good scene imo but it could certainly be better.

this is much more opinionated and i wouldnt be surprised if even the critical community isnt with me on this one, but i long for an alternate verson of this episode thats focused on verosika being on blitz's side, instead. its been over 5 years since they dated, and even though she is still allowed to be mad, it would be nice to see that shes moved on. maybe give her a new partner like barbie wire and let her throw these parties just so she can look back and laugh and help blitz's other victims heal in the same way that she has. not to bring up an also not-great show, but in rick and morty, we see a relationship between rick and one of his ex-partners named unity. they were really terrible for each other, enabling bad/unhealthy behaviors, generally being awful. their break-up was messy, but in recent seasons, we see unity coming back, upon hearing that rick was doing something self-destructive. they worried about him, because a part of them still cared, as much as they were hurt by his actions. i would have LOVED to see a similar thing with blitz and verosika, where verosika finds out about the relationship blitz is trapped in/just got out of. i think it would be SO MUCH MORE naratively interesting, for her to be supportive of his little apology tour, and maybe even inviting HIM to the "blitzo sucks" party. not everyone (or anyone) needs to forgive him; in fact, i think coming to this party would give him perspective. his relationship with stolas has hurt him so badly, he can finally step back and understand the harm that he did to all these people. the apologies that he gave, as he admits in the episode, were shallow. but i think framing stolas as the toxic one would be better in helping him realize that he has done wrong more than what the show is currently doing. and maybe some people at the party WILL forgive him. maybe he can apologize on the stage, and some people will empathize with his situation and believe that the apology is genuine, because hes finally had to be on the other end of his own hurt. and maybe THAT would be the first step in helping blitz realize that maybe he isnt completely unlovable, because there are people who cared about him enough to be THIS DEVASTATED upon getting their heart broken by him. a conversation with verosika about what he did to her would hit so much harder after this, imo

anyway. im sorry if this is completely incoherent/a bad point. i was just thinking about it and i am so sick of everyone being a stolas apologist </3

[wickmitz]

Do u actually ship rocky and mitzi?

to try and be as simple as possible, i suppose i do ship them ; i’m particularly drawn by their dynamic and have long since grown enamored with it … so, naturally, i enjoy turning them over in my head and shoving them together, seeing all the possible ways they fit and how they function when glued together. rocky’s feelings for mitzi are so intense and metaphorical that there’s a lot of ground to run with, honestly. it’s not a black and white relationship where they fit neatly under one label or another either, hence my constant use of the term ‘a secret third thing’ for them overall. there’s romance, obsession, desperation, platonic associations, and a thousand other factors embedded into what they have. rocky simply ‘seeing mitzi as a mother figure’ or ‘being totally in love with her in a traditional sense’ just doesn’t capture them with the justice they deserve. it’s more … muddled than that. rocky, at this point in time, is completely incapable of maintaining love anyway, and mitzi certainly isn’t any better either. in a context where i envision them together, that aspect is a big part of things : where they click together due to their inability to sustain a healthy and stereotypical romantic bond, and thus accidentally fuel each other’s unhappy paths. it’s easy to see how mitzi does this to rocky! but rocky is capable of doing it to her as well, what with his all-consuming need to be who she relies on and to restore the lackadaisy to it’s previous glory for himself and her. he enables her and she enables him, even if it’s subconscious and accidental. while there is undeniable fondness and care there, they are also walking down this path hand-in-hand, tugging each other along when one of then falters or pauses. so, to me, it’s not hard imagining things becoming closer and more intimate … who doesn’t want to be smashed together against someone who gives you all the validation you crave and never shuns you, twisting all your awful deeds into something good and believing you righteous at all times. it’s addicting! and natural. while rocky obviously would enjoy such a relationship, so would mitzi at this point in her life. where she’s exhausted and feels particularly ugly within, and is currently all alone.

they also would click in ways that wouldn’t force them to abandon how they currently go about romance. mitzi needs to spend a good portion of her day thinking about her dead husband and nobody else, meanwhile rocky is very enamored with being a knight in shining armor so to speak, only able to express himself through extreme devotion, a thing that ( as said by crew members on stream ) can’t singlehandedly keep a relationship afloat … normally. but mitzi can deal with rocky’s rather eccentric and destructive behavior, can take the only thing he can offer and accept it wholeheartedly, because she couldn’t handle anything more normal or mature right now. and rocky, despite his occasional displays of territorial behavior, never bats an eye at or feels inferior to mitzi’s atlas obsession. this wouldn’t be the case in other relationships, where both of them would have to change or grow in some way in order to keep the love stable and secure. there would be things they’d have to give up, or be vulnerable about, and both of them are too stubborn for that at this point. a random lover would always be a second thought compared to the lackadaisy.

( now, of course, i ship mitzi and rocky with other people! and i’m very interested in these bonds forming during canon’s events. but it’d either be an unhealthy relationship, due to everything i said above, or a happier sort of take on things : where mitzi and rocky are pulled from their minds’ unraveling edges and are both given the care, patience, and understanding they both need. one where they can set aside the lackadaisy for a moment or two, and can find genuine happiness somewhere else. i never see them as fully moving on from it, nor do i see mitzi fully giving up atlas or rocky fully giving up mitzi, but things can be softened and less insane. sometimes! )

now, is this healthy? no. but is this me saying they should be surgically removed from one another because they make each other ‘worse’? also no! i adore them in every sense of the word and acting like there aren’t positives attached to their dynamic would, frankly, be stupid of me. they are there for each other in their worse moments and approach each other with kindness, something they don’t really get from others anymore. they are genuinely happy to be in each other’s presence and have a habit of lifting each other up, or providing each other some much needed warmth on a bad day. you see it many times in the comic, situations where mitzi is devestated, and rocky rushes in to comfort her ; and he always succeeds in some way, wiggling that severe expression off her face and getting her to smile, even if it’s small and weak. and rocky loves that! it makes him happy to be able to ease her heartache and worries so. it makes him feel useful and needed, and she’s one of the only people in his life to give him even a sliver of praise here or there. here are some examples i can remember off the top of my head :

and while there isn’t many examples of mitzi praising rocky, she is also still one of the few people who shows concern over him and asks after him. there are also two scenes, in the pilot and in the comic, where rocky messes up big time, and mitzi has every right to be frustrated with him. she could yell, she could get mean, like rocky is so used to, but instead … she sucks it in and simply lets it go. this happens with the pig farmers, but also in the pilot most notably! where the second she realizes how hard rocky is taking her words, her reasonable and sympathetic irritation at things not working out, she backtracks. she forces those emotions away and simply says this, earnestly and kindly, and wipes the devestation off rocky’s face :

as much of an accidental negative influence they can have on each other, there’s also a more purposeful positive influence that is inherent in their dynamic. i wouldn’t ever want to dismiss that, nor do i enjoy when other people rush to do so themselves, claiming they’re simply no good for each other. well, they claim mitzi is a manipulative person who only sees rocky as a pawn, but i’ll pretend fans are critical of rocky’s many faults as well. the point is : they’re good for each other and to each other! they just happen to have a great capacity to cling and stay where they are rather than doing anything more beneficial or productive. any dynamic in lackadaisy can become toxic in a sense, given the fact that a majority of the characters are prone to indulging in their flaws and chasing what’s familar, what’s most comfortable, with little regard to anyone else. but i find that aspect interesting, and i love rocky/mitzi all the more for their accidental enabling and vastly obscured views.

the more romantic aspects aren’t really something i care too much about, overall. i play around with it and find scenarios where things can bloom in such a way, but them calling each other ‘boyfriend’ or ‘girlfriend’ isn’t something i care for. i do not think mitzi would ever be attracted to rocky in a sappy lovesick way -- she’s above fawning as it is, and is rather methodical about things like passion or adoration nowadays anyway. her eyes can’t exactly sparkle upon seeing rocky spilling syrup all over himself nor can she sigh dreamily at his nonsensical, improv poetry spiels that just burst out of him like water through a broken dam. but they could soften at the corners and she could convince herself of something romantic if it held her the right way. if she felt battered enough to give into it, or was lonely enough to indulge herself in a place she knows she’s wanted. rocky, on the other hand, is a bit easier to imagine here! he would never say no to miss m. and actively wants to ‘keep’ her already … if they were to become an item, an obscure, happenstance item, than he’d embrace it full heartedly! it’s been well established rocky isn’t one to turn down love or affection, so to get it from mitzi of all people? it’d be extremely ooc to even pretend he’d regret it or shy away. he loves her, of course he does, his beautiful dionysus : who unlocks her doors for him to enter, who smiles upon him with her wine soaked lips, who brushes a dainty paw across his shoulder and sings him praises like it doesn’t pain her to say them. she is warm and comforting and soft, and rocky is possessed by a maddening desire to wrap every spaghetti limb he has around her, and never let her go. again, his love is nothing short of all-consuming and obsessive where mitzi is concerned. her devoted acolyte! it would be simple to see how he’d get here in comparison to mitzi’s more wounded and guarded heart. i don’t think rocky fully loves her in only a romantic sense, however! i’m a firm believer that it is a mix of romantic and platonic feelings, an awkward and intensive blend of the two, this sort of combination that isn’t easy to sort through. he does take comfort in the fact she reminds him of a motherly figure, just as much as he genuinely finds her attractive and appealing in a puppy love kind of way. there’s also the fact that rocky is keen on lying to mitzi and wearing masks around her in the name of seeming more amazing in her eyes -- the fact his love for her is metaphorical and personal in equal measure, and the fact mitzi hides herself away from everyone around her. there would be a lot of untangling! a lot of pretending. this is a ship that will always have a multitude of layers and caveats attached to it, so to speak.

but that excites me! i like it! i love a dynamic that i could write endlessly about no matter the context it’s being framed in! how utterly unsurprising it is that the first lackadaisy fic i thought of was one that would focus heavily on these two and what’s happening between them, what could happen. mitzi wallowing in her self-inflicted misery while rocky prowls around her, begging to be useful to her while simultaneously chasing off a suitor of hers that he cannot stand to let near, is quite the image in my mind, and is one i always have looping around in the back of my head. the parallels to atlas/mordecai are an added bonus to this! if rocky is doomed by the narrative then mitzi is the narrative to which he’s bleeding himself upon, you know? that, as well as his own insecure delusions. mitzi, similarly, would easily waste away to nothing or get herself killed while trying to pursue her nostalgic ambitions if it weren’t for rocky being so willing to do the dangerous stuff for her. i think about how mitzi almost got herself killed in skedaddle and how rocky rushed to save her. while zib and ivy care for mitzi, and viktor is obligated to protect her, they are not as quick as rocky is -- nor as recklessly devoted to the point of readily given sacrifice.

anyway! i’m very fond of them, and there are so many scenes and other aspects of their characters that i could spend ages pouring over. this is, genuinely, merely a fraction of my thoughts on them. although i do hope i answered your question, anon! i got a bit carried away and i’m sure a lot of this is hard to parse through by default, but oh well!

[doodler16]

This might be a long one so heads up.

So one of things about the last episode of HB that I wish they would do better with is Milly and blitz relationship is showing the down fall or toxicity of that relationship.  mainly, how does relationship affects Millie split and shit before husband? 

Remember, the Pilot when Millie said “moxie That’s are boss” oh, some of the head cannons that maybe Millie knows how sad and lonely blitz is and feel sorry for him, so she kind of allowed him to be part of their lives. Without thinking twice how much this is also, affecting Moxie. I would love it if Moxie and Millie’s First fight would be about Blitz and how he continue to stalk and harass them well millie just laugh it off and just said “oh it just Blitz being Blitz.” Moxie have enough and tells Millie to stop enabling Blitz.

Now I want Both the M&M to be in the right but also in the wrong.

Millie; She wants everyone to get along with each other because she view IMP as a family much like her own family. She want them to stay together and get along, so she always play peacemaker, but doing that allow people to walk all over her husband, well, she does nothing, and just stand in the background supporting him, but not standing up for him.

Moxie; he does need to stop being overly sensitive all the time . Let’s his boss do what he wants sometimes but that doesn’t mean he have every right to sent boundaries and stand up to himself whenever he needs to.

 I want Moxie and Millie discussion about Blitz behavior or at least give us some hints about then talk about blitz behavior, watch season one leading to the event of Ozzie and the aftermath. Where Moxie right fully so finally snaps and yells at Blitz. Now as we all know Blitz is dealing with own problems after the event of Ozzie. So now not the best time for Moxie to get mad at Blitz.

This is how the argument, Will go

Mox; “I can’t believe you stocks use Again. During me and Millie Anniversary sir.”

B; oh, please you should be thanking me for saving your puny sorry ass that I even came. It wasn’t me coming. You would have been getting tomatoes and dildos all over you by now but you’re awful singing. 

Mil; he does have a good point Mox he did help us.

Mox; Stop, Standing up for him why do you always choose his side?

Mil; i’m not on his side and I’m on both of you guys side and I think you are being a bit too harsh on him moxie He’s is are bo-

Mox; do not end it with he’s are boss. He also your best friend And ask your friend you should send boundaries towards him.

Mil; Well he doesn’t have a lot of family or friends, Moxie also kind of funny how he always pop out of nowhere if you think about it. Like the time went when you were in the shower and he pop out of nowhere we with the camera saying wow it’s must be your birthday moxie. Haha.

B; Yeah, Moxie in a my fault that you have a different sense of humor over your wife great Taste And and that you your taste is as small dumb and puny ass, you dick and brain.

Moxie finally have enough storms out of the room had to The door where Luna is on the front of the desk doing nothing be eating a whole bag of chips and watching something on her phone , Give Moxie , another fat joke about how fat he is. Moxie then heads straight to Luna grab the chips and rip it in front of her telling her she needs to lay of the chip and watch her hips for now on. He then went to back to the door and yelled “F@ck you all the quit.”

This will lead to an all night fight with the M&M the company now having a bit of a crisis since Moxee was the only one who knows how to do paperwork and taxes. Leading to Luna to most of the work and because Luna is a spoiled brat, she will get mad at blitz to making her to do paperwork and causing Moxxie to quit even though she was no better to.  this will also leave to Blitz superior complex to go even higher, thinking he did nothing wrong, and Moxie is just being a baby about it. as for Millie, it will lead to her now doing double the work of being a assassin. Which will take a turn for her And blitz Relationship. 

 This will be an actual way to show Blitz that his actions does have affect on others Instead Of the show just telling us. Oh, Blitz your heart everyone to love you. anyway that all I needed to say thank you and good bye.

I wish Vivziepop and the writers went in more depth with Blitz and Millie’s dynamic like they do with Blitz and Moxxie. All we know is that Millie is used too and sometimes enables Blitz’s shenanigans. The only conclusion I think of why she doesn’t mind Blitz being a weirdo probably because it reminds of her family and how it’s a big household, so there’s no opportunity for anyone to get alone time or space.

Classice, I am glad you mentioned Moxxie, Millie, Blitz’s argument because I imagined something similar to that. Moxxie would call out Blitz, Millie, and Loona’s behaviors and treatment over previous episodes and the double standards then officially quit but it’s not like a joking “I quit” then comes back immediately.

It’s more somewhat permanent but there would be consequences on both sides. Moxxie realize that he can’t do everything himself, tries to run his own business is way harder, and gets stressed because he doesn’t have the charisma that Blitz has. Blitz, Millie, and Loona (mainly Loona and Blitz) slowly realize that they need Moxxie because he unironically makes things interesting and they all suck with paper work and end up being behind or just avoiding it. Meanwhile, Millie tries to appeases to both sides but fails and Loona, Moxxie, and Blitz gets upset at her.

Despite the team being separated, they both get the same client and are forced to fight each other to get to the main target. This would demonstrate that Moxxie has improved his fighting skills and can be cold-hearted to his teammates, fighting dirty and not taking any chances to go soft. Millie doesn’t want to hurt Moxxie and purposely go into the way of Moxxie, Blitz, and Loona’s fighting.

Loona and Blitz still fighting Moxxie but noticed Moxxie’s improvement, etc. They all sooner or later make up and apologize to Moxxie because of Millie (apparently she’s the heart of the team, Vivziepop’s words not mine 😂). All these characters promise to be better and stick to it. Because of this instance they grow stronger and more open.

Regardless, I hope they do this and it has so much potential but at the same time it’s too kind of too late. Should’ve been at least a 3 part season 1 finale or early season 2 conflict. It gives the show stakes and forces the audience to care of what happens to the future of IMP along with addressing every character’s flaws especially Blitz’s. Anyway, I loved reading this and the dialogue you created: it fits the characters perfectly and truly shows how much potential the IMP squad has but was wasted it on telling us instead of showing.

[mintaikk]

I was reading fanfiction and looking at fanart again, and while I find grumpy lover Blitzø funny, I don't think he's a grumpy lover. Have you seen the way he treats people he cares about?

My guy is literally ALWAYS doting on Loona. Constantly giving her affection, constantly giving her gifts, stopping whatever he's doing to go and help her, constantly protecting her, need I go on? Shes literally the only one he actually isn't a jackass to. Like, she can be completely awful, and here he is, defending her no matter what.

With Barbie Wire, while he did sabotage her job, he never once went out of his way to be mean to her, just insulting the people she works with and only getting mad at her because she didn't tell him he was out of rehab. And from what we can see, his is very clingy to her, to the point where it was annoying.

He was a dick to Fizzarolli, but that was before they knew what was going on and when they made up, he's affectionately mean to him and is determined FLABBERGASTED at the way Mammon spoke to Fizz. Like, bro had to take off his glasses to hear that shit.

Honestly, he's a dick to Moxxie, but paying closer attention stuff you can also see that he's still incredibly clingy to him and cares about him a lot, even if he finds him annoying (but also wants to sleep with him and Millie, and literally stalking.???? Yeah, ik it's cuz he wants what they have, but hope the show addresses that instead of it just being used as a joke). I think Moxxie is one of the reasons the fandom believes that he'd be a grumpy lover, but I think it's more about their personality clashes. Blitzø is a Chaotic shit-talking jackass who has crazy ideas for shit, while Moxxie is more reasonable, nervous, and down to earth, which Blitzø believes to be annoying.

For Millie, well, we don't see them have one-on-one interactions much (plz give Millie more attention she's literally so wonderful) but from what we can see, he thinks very positively of Milie and their on great terms, with both of them giving each other nicknames and them enabling each others chaotic behavior. The only downsides that I can see their friendship having is the fact that Blitzø literally stocks her and Moxxie and sexually fantasizes about her, despite Moxxie and Millie being married. Also, Millie referring to Loona as "her bosses hellhound" and treating Loona like a dog, but in the show, Blitzø has only seen her do that once and corrected her once, so I don't think he knows much about that.

This has turned into me analyzing Blitzø's close friendships, and sorry for getting off topic, but talking about how Blitzø would be annoyingly affectionate with Stolas again! From all this, I imagine that if Blitzø and Stolas ever did get into a relationship and get past all their bullshit and trauma, Blitzø would literally just be like, "Oh my Satan, haiiiii😍😍😍😍😍😍😊😊😊😊😊😊❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ how's my favorite prince doing 😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚😚I got you flowers and mice because ily so much❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️. Remeber to take care of yourself and take your meds 🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺🥺I love you🥰🥰🥰🥰☺️☺️☺️😘😘😘❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️"

[windstir]

rosemarine is as much of a victim as gilbert is, a more outright one i'd say. the way auguste threatens gilbert (a kid who has been targeted by him and groomed for his entire life) is VERY different to the way he threatens rosemarine (an adult, 18 at the beginning, i'd say around 21 AT MOST by the time kazeki ends. auguste got a proper hold of him at 15, before that he was only odd towards rose)

auguste establishes the power dynamics between those two in very different ways, for instance he uses his "love" towards gilbert as a double edged sword. if he's not "loving" him gilbert perishes and is kept trapped because it makes him crave the toxicity even more. that's why serge's presence was so dangerous, because teaching gilbert safety meant he's properly going to realize "this is wrong, this needs to stop" ... which he already knew, he said it himself ("do you think i let you fuck me because i wanted to? i did it because i didn't have other options") but he doesn't know how to stop it, so he lets it happen and romanticizes the situation, he knows and he knew from day 1 that auguste was a dangerous man, but he clung onto him because he was all he had.

meanwhile, rosemarine gets a more threatening version of this treatment. auguste speaks to him as an equal (almost) when he's not mad, but when he is he yells and lashes out, and threatens to get close, which he knows rosemarine hates (unlike gilbert who is the complete opposite) and uses it against him.

Auguste isn't smart (HELL a lot of people knew about his awful treatment towards gilbert when gilbert was a CHILD, but they never did anything to stop it), he literally just goes through life doing whatever the hell he wants and hurting whoever prevents him from reaching whatever goal he has, he doesn't hide it, he doesn't pretend to be a good person, he doesn't do shit he just goes up to the principal and goes "yeah let gilbert do whatever i'll pay you man", he goes up to rose and goes "don't intervene in the gilbert issue, just make sure he doesn't die or something idk", he kisses gilbert on school grounds, he offers himself as a future husband for angeline (11 by the time she appears again, serge is 14-15)

he does WHATEVER he wants WHEREVER he wants, he doesn't gaf, he's not smart, he isolates gilbert and keeps him in an environment that equally validates his own treatment. usually in stories about child abuse someone (an adult) knows and tries to stop it, sometimes they succeed, sometimes they don't, but in kazeki EVERYONE LETS THINGS HAPPEN. and the cycle continues.

abuse culture thrives in silence (auguste's peers), bystander effect (everyone in laconblade), enablers (rosemarine, the principal) and refusing to break the cycle despite being scared (auguste abuses rose → rose enables gilbert's abuse rather than speaking up against auguste → gilbert assaults carl ... carl doesn't continue this cycle, but indirectly contributes to everything by being a bystandar ... HOWEVER he cannot be 100% blamed since he's a child. he's scared, he blames himself, he doesn't want to tell anyone because of His Own Can Of Worms -which someone else with a more religious background could probably explain better-)

gilbert is at the bottom of the chain, and he has normalized this abusive behavior SO much that he doesn't really see it as something inherently bad. to him, this is another thing people do, he has never known normalcy, so when he assaults carl to "assert dominance" over him and taunts him, he's just repeating the things people did/do to him.

it's kinda like when children exposed to violence in the home (ANY sort of violence, whether it's directed to them -csa, physical abuse, emotional abuse- or indirect -seeing a parent get abused-) play with toys violently and reenact their trauma through play (there's a proper term for this, i currently can't remember, but it's used in play therapy to try and decipher what's up with a child too young to voice their worries and woes!)

anyway uhm

this is just word vomit, sorry.

[enemyoflactose]

I finished Battle City

So for my redemption arc, I have finished both Duelist Kingdom and Battle City.

I think I may have gotten worse.

I'll start by talking about voice acting and which one I prefer:

Bakurae: I like both Ted Lewis and Rica Matsumoto's performances. They both did amazing and I am so bi for their voices.

Marik: His goofy ass skeletor voice is not it. It's funny as hell, but he just sounds better in the sub.

Odion: I like both

Ishizu: I like both

Everyone else: could go either way

Characters:

Yugi didn't really do a lot at the start, and everything I want to say about him happens in his duel with Joey. Honestly, I don't like how in the anime he doesn't play much of a role.

Yami Yugi: this man... This man.

Téa: I love her. Honestly. She gave like zero friendship speeches this season and didn't really do much except help Yami find Ishizu.

Joey: I LOVE JOEY WHEELER.

Tristan: he's there. I don't like how he treats Serenity.

Serenity: I actually really like her. She's not the most realistic sister character, but I still like her.

Duke: my guy, leave the girl alone.

Marik: I can't take him seriously. I just can't. He sounds like Skeletor, his plans are stupid, he can barely duel, he's a coward, he dresses ugly, mother fucker uses Revival Jam, this happened

How am I supposed to take him seriously?! Also, his backstory didn't do anything for me. Like, yeah what he went through was awful, but it just feels like an excuse. It felt like Ishizu and Odion were trying to justify Marik's behavior and say he did nothing wrong and should be forgiven. (Also, I saw a post about how Joey should have showed Marik sympathy. They blocked me when I said that was stupid)

Ishizu: she's such a great character. Her love for her siblings feels real, she's a snarky dork, her duel with Kaiba is fantastic, and she's pretty.

Odion: Am I supposed to feel bad for him? Not because he was horrifically abused I do feel bad about that, but with the way he was treating Marik... My guy was an enabler. Of course Marik is still evil under your care, you haven't done anything to help him be good. He just rolls over and lets Marik do what he wants because he doesn't want to betray his oath or something.

Mai: literally so cool. I'll actually get to talking about her in a bit.

Kaiba: iconic.

Mokuba: he takes his duel commissioner job so seriously it's adorable. He just pops up out of nowhere to catch people cheating and then Kaiba comes along to scare the cheater when they don't listen to Mokuba.

Regular Bakura: B-baby boy???

Yami Bakura: I'd literally bend over for him. He can have all of my possessions. Anyway I feel like he went through some character assassination this season. He just doesn't seem like a threat, but I guess that's how abusers get ya because he stabs Regular Bakura.

Arkana: I've said it once and I'll say it again, I am a sap. I felt so bad for this guy. First his magic show goes wrong, then his face gets mangled, then his wife leaves him, then he gets indoctrinated into Marik's cult, then he almost dies by saw blade, then he actually dies.

Lumis and Umbra: these two are gay and dating.

Strings: there is nothing there.

Mako and Weevil are pretty much the same.

Espa Roba: he's a cheater.

Duels:

Bandit Keith vs Yugi Moto (Duel 1)

The first duel of the season introduces us to Marik. We learn that he wants the puzzle and has a magic rod that can mind control people.

This duel shows off that Yugi is not yet as good a duelist as Yami because this loser gets fucking cooked.

Yami Bakura shows up and breaks Keith free. This makes Marik a little annoyed.

Marik makes Keith break the puzzle.

Bakura comes in and helps Yugi fix it, but he puts a little piece of his soul in the puzzle because of reasons that are never explained.

Bakura leaves and Keith burns the building down.

Joey and Tristan save Keith and Yugi.

Yami Yugi vs Jonny Steps (Duel 2)

I am not talking about the duel you suckers. I'm talking about what happened before the duel!

Yami and Téa go on a date. During this date they go on wacky high jinks and Yami gets Light Force Sword.

After dueling Jonny Steps, they go to the museum and meet Ishizu. She tells them that Yami is actually an ancient Egyptian pharaoh and he needs to save the world by joining Kaiba's tournament and winning it. Also he needs three Egyptian God Cards.

Joey vs That one guy (duel 3)

Joey gets Exodiad and feels so bad that he doesn't go and visit his sister in the hospital.

He also lost his Red Eyes Black Dragon.

Tristan finds him on the beach and shows Yugi and Téa who he found (fuck you 4kids)

Kaiba vs the machine (duel 4)

OBELISK, FIST OF FATE!!!!!

Yami vs the one guy(duel 5)

Yami beats Exodia and wins back Joey's Red Eyes.

Joey declined it.

Joey vs Espa Roba (duel 6)

In this duel Joey faces an alleged psychic who had already defeated Rex Raptor.

Rex tries to help Joey for a little bit, but stops like half way through the duel.

During this duel, Espa is talking about the universe and how he can't lose and shit like that and Joey's just clowning on him.

Espa Roba has his brothers up on a building helping him win duels.

Joey figures this out.

Joey wins the duel.

Some guy in the audience says "Espa couldn't predict he'd be a loser", and I think that's funny.

Joey got a Jinzo!! The only good card he'll get this whole tournament.

Yami vs Arkana (duel 7)

Yami faces a magician who's all like "Aren't you SO sad that your precious Dark Magician is in the deck of another duelist???!"

Some bullshit happens, Dark Magician is sentient and saves Yami, Dark Magician Girl is summoned by Dark Magic Curtain, there's shadow blades, guillotine-chan is here, apparently there's no service in the tent.

Yami wins.

Arkana dies or something it was really unclear.

Joey vs Weevil Underwood (duel 8)

Joey got his deck and Duel Disk stolen by some mustache and had a card put In it.

Joey and Weevil duel ata fountain.

During this duel Weevil calls out to the Parasite Paracide card in Joey's deck and turns all of Joey's monsters into insect cards.

Weevil brings out Perfectly Ultimate Great Moth. Joey destroys it.

Weevil brings out his Insect Queen and talks about how much he wants to fuck it. Joey destroys the Insect Queen and wins it.

Joey gained the worst card of the season.

Yami and Kaiba vs some guys (duel 10)

Kaiba uses Lord of D and two Flute of Summoning Dragon to summon three dragons and then he summons Obelisk and then he wins the duel and takes some locator cards.

Joey Wheeler vs Mako (duel 11) ft. Marik falling for the Bakura sham.

Joey and Mako duel.

Joey is putting on the world's greatest show, and is told to stop because it's "embarrassing and taking to long"

Joey tries to use Parasite Paracide, but flip monsters haven't been invented yet.

MEANWHILE

Marik almost runs over Bakura.

BACK TO THE DUEL

Mako is telling a son story about his dad and how Legendary Fisherman is his dad and he loves his dad so he has to win the duel for his dad because he loves him ever so much.

MEANWHILE

Yami Bakura is talking mad shit and Marik's all like "This idiot has NO idea that to open the door to darkness he needs the Egyptian God Cards."

What if my guy was talking 'bout Kingdom Hearts?

BACK TO THE DUEL

Mako used a ritual card 🤮

Now Joey has to find the fisherman and attack.

Joey finds the fisherman and attacks. Mako gets sad. Loser deserved it tho for using rituals.

Joey uses some gambling cards and oh no

MEANWHILE

Bakura puts his scam into action and says he's a strong duelist (He's aight.)

Marik doesn't even fact check this and makes a deal with him.

The rod for a god card.

BACK TO THE DUEL

Joey uses Panther Warrior to wipe out the ritual card 🤮, and wins the duel.

Joey has gained Legendary Fisherman! Not as bad as the last card, but Joey you have a shitty deck how do you keep winning???

Seto and Yami vs Lumis and Umbra (duel 12)

THERE'S ANOTHER FUCKING RITUAL CARD!!!! AND IT'S NOT EVEN A GOOD ONE!

It's awful, it sucks, it's worthless, they should have just used level cards

This duel is not worth my time.

Yami and Seto win.

We interrupt this essay to talk about important stuff that happened out of duels:

Bakura got stabbed

Mokuba, Téa, and Joey got kidnapped

Tristan ran for an hour with a teenage girl on his back

Duke hit some guy with dice

Mai met Serenity

Joey got mind controlled

Téa girl mind controlled

Joey vs Yugi/Yami (duel 13)

I cried during this duel

Joey got mind controlled by Marik and is evil and dueling Yugi for the puzzle and they're also strapped to this anchor that's gonna drag them to the bottom of the ocean in an hour and oh my God this duel

Téa's life is also being threatened but she's a badass who doesn't care.

Kaiba can't help because then Téa will die.

Joey was given all these rare cards and is using them against Yugi.

Yugi is so scared to attack because he doesn't wanna hurt Joey.

Yugi is so fucking sweet I love him so much.

Yami is just in the corner like "you good Yugi?" And "Oh no!!! Joey!!" I love them so much

Yugi ends up giving the puzzle to Joey so he can fight Marik better, he summons R d eyes black dragon to get through to him, this shit is just barely working I HATE THIS DUEL

Marik is being a whiny little bitch ass loser because his mind control is failing

Joey breaks free after attacking Yugi then he uses the effect of some mirror card to attack himsefl

Joey and Yugi both plummet to the ocean, Yugi is saved by Joey and Joey is saved by serenity.

I LOVE JOEY WHEELER

Meanwhile at the hospital

Yami Bakura vs Bonz (duel 14)

This episode is so fucking good. The animation, the duel, BONZ IS HERE

This duel starts off with Yami Bakura already being kinda annoyed. He just got jumped so it makes sense.

He summons a headless knight and it gets destroyed.

He destroys Bonz's cards.

Bonz fuses Medusa and crawling dragon to get... An elephant?

Then Bonz activates that one card that makes you lose life points for every card sent to the graveyard. Yami Bakura responded by fucking cheating and just tossing his hand to the graveyard.

Then he summons Earl of Demise and Bonz puts him in a cage.

Then Yami Bakura uses ectoplasmer and wipes out Bonz's life points and sends him to hell the Shadow Realm.

Mai vs Jean Clawed Magnum (duel 19)

I am not talking about this duel other than

Joey x Mai supremacy

We love polarshipping

Stuff that happens before the finals

The gang is shocked at the idea of Regular Bakura dueling (rude)

Tristan can't flirt

The gang raid Joey's pantry

A bingo machine

Yami Bakura pretends to be Regular Bakura and messes with Joey by saying shit like "Cheerio" and "fellows"

Marik does stuff

Odion gets threatened a few times

Ishizu shows up late

Mai drinks censored wine

Yami Bakura vs Yami (duel 15)

This shit is so hype

It starts off with Yami Bakura being dog shit and summoning weak cards (it's for a plan), and Yami and the gang just ragging on him and insulting him.

Then Bakura summons Dark Necrofear, but he doesn't attack because he's scared that Yami's face down card is a trap (reasonable)

Dark Necrofear gets destroyed by a buffed Dark Magician Girl, but this was all part of the an because now Yami Bakura can use not only his Destiny Board (worst win strat ever), but he can also use Dark Sanctuary.

At this point in the duel, Yami Bakura is cooking. He is dominating.

He got out his Dark door, Yami can't attack more than once. He got his spirit redirecting attacks at Yami. He's cooking something delicious.

Then Yami special summons Dark Necrofear and now Yami Bakura can't use his strategy.

Unless he summons Jougen the Spiritualist!

Now the sanctuary is back and he can keep up with his shitty win strat.

Then Yami summons Slifer and he contemplates death.

Marik makes Odion walk over and go "I release Bakura from the spirit" and Bakura starts dying and at this point my shipping senses start going nuts.

This duel has become a love triangle between Regular Bakura, Yami Bakura, And Yami Yugi.

But that's not important.

Bakura doesn't like this strategy because it's for cowards and he's worried Yami will attack his host. (Reasonable. The Yami he knows probably would've)

Yami meanwhile doesn't wanna attack Regular Bakura because that's his friend.

No one has told this boy to just surrender.

Yami Bakura takes control of Regular Bakura again and tells Yami to attack him

Then Yugi tells Yami that he did that because he needs Bakura, not because he liked him. (This is untrue if I believe hard enough)

Regular Bakura is knocked out and the ring is gone.

Joey vs Odion (duel 16)

Joey is talking shit.

Odion keeps setting and passing

And oh what's this?? FLASHBACK

Odion was abandoned on the door step of Marik's and Ishizu's parents. He was raised by them but never truly accepted.

He wanted the tomb keeper initiation to become accepted, but he was adopted. So that didn't happen.

DUEL

Joey's losing

FLASHBACKS

Odion was Marik's best friend and watched their mother die immediately after Marik was born.

He vowed to protect Marik.

DUEL

Odion has trap monsters and Joey is surprised by this.

A massive scorpion monster thing is summoned and Joey says

"Are you really Marik?"

Then Marik has a temper tantrum and tells Odion to summon Ra. Odion summons Ra and fucking dies.

Then Joey dies.

FLASHBACK

Odion watched as Marik got his tomb keeper initiation and afterwards he did his own initiation.

DUEL

Odion tries to get up, but he doesn't.

MEANWHILE IN JOEY DREAMLAND

Joey is having a dream about his friends helping him get ready for a tournament and he can't get up.

DUEL

Joey gets up and wins the duel.

Marik is having a migraine and then becomes Yami Marik.

Mai vs Marik (duel whatever I don't wanna check)

Marik got a fashion upgrade and looks better!!

During this duel Kaiba is edging himself waiting for Ra to be summoned.

Marik makes the duel a shadow duel and starts to erase Mai's mind.

Mai loses one memory and almost gives up immediately.

Marik continues his mind games while Joey and the gang try to help Mai out.

Mai is having non of this.

Mai steals Ra

Marik is cooking

Mai summons Ra, but Marik broke a rule because Ra is written in a foreign language without a translation.

Mai loses because she can't summon Ra and Marik attacked her, Joey, and Yami.

Final duel, Kaiba vs Ishizu

Ishizu should have won

Kaiba and Ishizu keep milling each other's deck.

Ishizu has a plan though. She saw it in her visions

Kaiba defys those visions tho and instead of summoning Obelisk, he summons the Blue Eyes White Dragon and wipes out Ishizu.

I forgot to talk about the Yami vs Strings duel

Marik is a pussy so he uses some murderer to duel

During this duel Marik is using cards like Revival Jam and Jam Breeding Machine.

He uses them to summon Slifer.

Yami is trapped in a cage.

Yami uses Revival Jam against Marik and uses it to cause Marik to lose by DECK OUT.

DECK OUT

That's embarrassing.

So yeah, I think this journey of redemption is becoming a journey of derailment instead. Wish me luck and health.

[icycoldninja]

Can you write the DMC men with a reader who’s usually be seen as selfish and spoiled and narcissistic

As in if you dare put your dirty dishes in the sink while she’s washing and then expected her to wash it for them, she would say nothing, only massive side eyes but moments later, their dishes can still be found laying inside the sink and her dishes are already cleaned and stacked on the shelf

Or spoiling herself (99% the time) as in shopping, bowling, etc… and hardly ever spend on other people

Because of this trait, a lot of people usually see her as a narcissistic and selfish person, always prioritizing herself and her needs above others

But the truth is she was tired of trying to appease other people and accommodate to other’s need, like a literal people pleaser (she felt guilty when they’re upset when she have the right to decline) so therefore, she’s just:

“fuck all of ya’ll, my needs will always come first”

But because of enabling her over-prioritization of needs, she became quite a narcissistic:

“i mean it’s bad…but…they did me dirty first…and it’s my right to turn down other’s need for help”

So the boys just kind of give her a reality check and help her know how to establish boundaries healthily while not letting her not caring about those around her in need

Absolutely, here you go.

Sparda boys + V x Narcissistic!Reader headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-Dante is a lazy man, as we can tell by the state of his living quarters. He doesn't mind that you refuse to do the dishes and all that--he's perfectly fine with splitting the chores.

-But the fact that you're such a jerk to everyone around you, blowing insane amounts of cash on yourself and pretending to be broke when others need your help seriously pisses him off.

-He hates people with these traits, and would sooner die than let his girlfriend stay like this.

-He understands that you're this way because you used to be a serious people pleaser who finally grew a backbone and stood up for yourself, but this is the wrong way to go about it.

-He will firmly, but not insensitively explain to you that you're a narcissist and that your behavior is awful and detrimental. You're heading down a short road to debt and poverty--he knows, because he's been there.

-He will work with you to correct your behavior, don't worry, and does occasionally buy you gifts every now and then.

■ Vergil ■

-Vergil puts his foot down the moment you start acting up, akin to the way an experienced, no-nonsense mother would handle her disobedient child.

-If you refuse to do the dishes or start spending extravagant amounts of money on only yourself and no one else, only to give him serious sass when he talked to you about it, you're getting it.

-He chastised you, quite angrily so, and told you that what you're doing is foolish, self-destructive, and will only result in your downfall. You'd better listen to him or he'll whip out the Yamato--but instead of stabbng himself to summon V, he'll smack you with the hilt.

-He knows you only act this way due to a past full of trying to please people who didn't care about you, and that your narcissism is a result of you "breaking free" from that, but refuses to tolerate such inconsiderate behavior.

-You are special, yes, but not the center of the universe, and Vergil will drill this fact into your head until you understand. You will be disciplined under his hand.

-Thanks to this extremely MOTIVATED man, your behavior is corrected in under a month. No one can believe how quickly and drastically you changed, but they love it, and you love it too, because now you see that with Vergil around, you'll never be used or manipulated again.

□ Nero □

-Nero can't stand narcissistic behavior, no matter who the narcissist might be.

-He really does love you and wants only the best for you, but your attitude is despicable. He's not gonna enable you because he knows if he does, you'll only get worse.

-He tried talking to you kindly about your behavior, but narcissists will be narcissists and refuse to listen to anyone, citing that those who are trying to help them are in the wrong, and that they are right.

-Nero eventually gave up and switched to a firmer approach--that is, holding you hostage in your own house until you listen to reason.

-He doesn't want to have to do it this way, but it's the only method he can think of that will actually work. He's gonna have to terrify you into submission and make you see the light. You will be corrected.

-Nero unleashes his inner Vergil, the terrifying power that he'd inherited from his dad, and uses this power to force you into doing chores and other things that you normally wouldn't do. While this sounds abusive, he rewards you whenever you do your chores without complaining, usually with a kiss, a present, or something of that sort.

-Your behavior improves drastically as a result, but even so, Nero still feels guilty for what he had to do and still spoils you with gifts and affection to make up for it.

● V ●

-V didn't like how you refused to do anything except for yourself.

-He wasn't all that concerned about the dishes since he was perfectly capable of washing them himself, but the fact that you were out late at night going bowling and shopping and doing God knows what made him quite upset.

-He wanted to talk with you about it, but he knew people like you wouldn't listen, so he decided upon an unethical way to get you to listen to him.

-He understood your situation and wished he didn't have to do it this way, but V was not a strong giant like the other boys. He didn't have the heart nor the strength to hold you hostage or discipline you even if he tried.

-He used his tears, which were not all forced, to convince you that your behavior was making him feel bad, and since V crying has the same effect on you as a baby crying for his mother, you actually gave in and promised to change.

-V feels very guilty for manipulating you like that, but...was it really manipulation if he truly was sad about the thoughtless way you acted?

[uponfieldsofglass]

Here's a theory: Abuse us a running theme in Murder Drones. In this essay, Imma rant about this, so, uh Spoilers.

Still here? Great! I've already glued your hands to your phone, so get comfy.

Almost everyone is a victim of since sort of abuse, Uzi is neglected by Khan, J's treatment of N, everything that Tessa's parents do...

The first point of this theory is that the crazyass violence is an allegory for abuse, or at least. That's just about it, the Deconstructors were made into Deconstructors and sent to kill everyone in Copper-9. Their abusers actively tried to turn then into abusers. Uzi abd Doll's infection represents the abusive behaviors they've learned bubbling up.

The reason the main three kill people a lot less is because they have each other to act as a support network. Episode 5 is basically Uzi giving N abd V robotherapy. (They literally went back to their childhood! I'm not reaching, YOU'RE REACHING!)

Second, the main cast have abuse coping mechanisms as a large part of their personality. There are several recognized forms of abuse and Murder Drones has explotlred four of them as of episode six, which was the best when I wrote this. Interestingly, each member if the main cast is also an example of one

Uzi represents Escapism, the act of pretending one's circumstances are different than their awful reality. This is usually depicted as indulging in delusion or substance abuse, but Uzi's escape is a more healthy variety. When we first see her, she's talking about how she's going to kill the Deconstructors and free the Workers. She's escaping to a reality where she's a hero who has saved everyone from the threat that has defined their entire existence. Where her ostracization has ended, everyone loves her, and Khan's doors have become pointless.

N is obsessive people-pleasing, wherein one tries to satisfy everyone, since they've internalized the idea that their abusers act the way they do because the victim has displeased them in some way, and thus us best to simply please everyone and ignore their own wants, needs, and desires. The pilot had plenty of examples: He started killing because the humans tools him to. He almost betrayed and killed Uzi because J tells him to. He would have let himself get killed by J because she wanted to, had Uzi nor intervened. Throughout the series he still lets others walk all over him. It took until episode 4 for him to offer any resistance and in both episodes 5 and 6, he was nothing but friendly and helpful to people that wanted to vivisect him

V is apathy. Push everyone away and never care. She cared about N but never showed it. She never stood up for him in episode 1, dismissed his depression at the end of episode 2, and whenever she actually did act in his best interests, she refused to actually tell him, just like how she knew their past. But she always witheld why, because disappointing N was easier having thlse uncomfortable conversations

Doll represents continuing the cycle of abuse. She's defined herself off of V killing her family, and now all she cares about is revenge. Now, she's infected by the Solver, just like V. She has to eat people, just like V. She's completely lost all sympathy for others and all qualms about killing. Just. Like. V. She literally has all the afforestsif her abuser that caused Doll to hate her in the first place

All antagonistic characters are abusive.

JCJenson refused the Worker Drones to live without it. (Maybe. Maybe the real reason it sent in the murderhobos was to prevent the Absolute Solver from manifesting)

Deconstructors? This theory depends on three idea that the murder and mayhem that they were made for is alleglrical abuse

J was an enabler. She enabled JCJenson's practice of robocide by practicing robocude for them. Even if the real reason she was there was to stop the Absolute Solver, she was acting on the assumption that she was carrying out the will of a jilted magacorporation

Khan? Emotionally neglects Uzi in favor of his replacement family: Doors and walls

Doll? See above

Tessa's parents? A microcosm of their issues is that they wouldn't let her talk to anyone that they couldn't legally murder

Alice and Beau. I mean, they torture people to death with the intention of using them as food, limbs, and antlers because JCJension sicced a bunch of velocirapters on them. I just don't feel like they fit into this theme. Maybe that's why I felt like they weren't very compelling villains

The sentinels? Same as Antlers and the baby. Just not very compelling

Cyn/Absolute Solver? Okay hear me out!

A separate theory I have is that the reason Cyn/AS smacktalked Tessa's mom was to get her "grounded" keeping her separated from everyone else in the house, do she wouldn't get caught in the crossfire when it killed them all, because Tessa bothered taking it in and not immediately redestroying it, even after it became clear that it was NOT right!

Now its master plan is to eliminate humanity, because humans have always gotten in the way of its "family."

The abusive part comes in because it's a narcissist with a textbook "I'm doing this for you" complex. It didn't care that Tessa didn't want mass murder to be done in her name, it knew better! Anytime N finds out what's in the basement, just get rid if him and get a new one. Tessa won't be able to tell the difference! The billions of unrelated lives lost whenever it destroys a word are an acceptable side effect of getting rid if anything that would try to get between them.

And when J died? I think it was trying to rebuild her in some capacity? If that's right, then tell me who's worth more alive: Tessa's favorite toy, or a bunch a faceless nobodies that she didn't even know are alive, and probably won't ever find out about.

Alright, I think that's everything.

Let me know if I'm wrong, you have any additional observations, or if my formatting sucks

Or if I glorified a harmful practice

[opinated-user]

Lily dismissing rape allegations because the victim is someone she hates is … fucking gross

like for example I fucking hate Nekoshadows I think she’s a lying coward after she was exposed for keeping quite about someone being in contact with a known child predator…. But even with all that I still felt bad for her when it came to light how fucking terribly her boyfriend treated her especially when he admitted he never actually loved her

like I think Neko’s isn’t a good person but I still think what she went through was awful and she didn’t deserve it

so if I can believe that someone is a victim despite also believing them to be a scumbag that kept quiet about a predator… where the fuck does Lily get off not believing a victim of rape simply because she doesn’t like them like what the fuck

hell another example: I do not like Omnia and think she’s a pretty bad person … but I also believe her claims that her Ex partner Xzae abused her

you can dislike someone or hate someone .. and still believe that they’ve been abused or raped

it isn’t mutually exclusive you don’t have to like a victim personally to believe they are a victim

like this is the same shit that fucking coyote lovely got on blast for when he pretty much admitted to stopping helping a victim because he hated her like this is the exact same fucking thing

between Courtney and Sunny, LO really just told to every survivor ever "if you ever said anything against me, then your abuse deserves to be erased and i'll defend your abuser, just to spite you", which isn't just gross... that's just straight up evil.

just to make a comparison, Courtney has no reason at all to give LO any grace or compassion. yet he fully believes and understand that LO's claims of have suffered CSA are valid, only after looking at her past behavior and consider it with the knowledge of a fully grown adult. even after everything LO has lie about him and try to pin down on his name, Courtney still hasn't even attempted to say that LO never suffered any abuse in the past. that's all LO. LO is the one who wants to claim that Courtney never went through anything, at anyone's hand, ever, at no point of his entire life. according to LO, Courtney ran away from home simply "chasing a guy", no because the house was abusive and suffocating for him in part because of her presence there. Courtney had a CSA trauma response by replicating it on another kid, no because he suffered CSA at anyone's hand, but because he is just that evil. nothing that Courtney ever does or did is ever a response to trauma because he never suffered any. that's the narrative that LO wants her audience to believe in. even the abuse that had nothing to do with LO and it was cameron's fault, that doesn't get to be called out either. Sunny right now doesn't deserved to be believe in. his abuser doesn't deserved to be called out for, not even warned about. in fact, the abuser will get treated as a mere victim who is injustly mistreated by the evil community who evilly harassed the not evil "native" trans woman (who never talked with anyone from the Nation outside of one funeral and never again). all because they stopped being the yes man of LO. i'm not being hyperbolic at all when i say that this is inhumane. i know that LO doesn't have any moral, principles and she'll always, always, prefer to look for herself alone before anything else. but it can't be forgotten that LO is just a terrible person, a dangerous person, who not only perpetrates harm herself against vulnerable people, but will enable other predators to do the same. the only people i feel sorry to are the vulnerable people on her audience that still don't know there's a target on their back.

[gralunaisland]

being a Graylu shipper am i the only one that doesn't like the idea of Lucy or anyone else being a Gruvia Shipper?

About Fairy Tail members being either complicit or enablers of juvia abusing Gray

You're definitely not alone, my friend! I personally am a Gralu shipper, but I don't necessarily agree just because of that.

I've said it in a post before, but I became an Anti gr///vian first and a Gralu shipper second. I totally understand people who don't like a certain ship just because they ship those individuals with other people, and I think that's a perfectly valid reason to hate a ship, as we can hate ships for mostly any reason. So, yes, being a Gralu shipper gives me another reason to not like it if Lucy were to ship gr///via because that basically just reconfirms that they don't like each other.

However, for me personally, I hate it whenever Lucy (whom I don't remember supporting gr///via very much if at all, but she definitely didn't actively oppose it to the best of my knowledge), Erza, or anyone in Fairy Tail/the FT universe supports gr///via mostly because that makes them, at best, complicit in juvia's abuse of Gray, and, at worst, enablers of this abuse.

I refuse to believe that manipulative and toxic affection was the true moral of Mashima's Fairy Tail, even if his characters actively advocate for it. I think he lost sight somewhere along the line of what it truly means to be a Fairy Tail member, and that means to be a loyal, compassionate, brave friend who always looks out for each other and love one another. juvia is none of those things, not even loyal to Gray, because what she does is a detriment to him, and she's really just loyal to herself and her "love" for him. Yet, Mashima promotes her behavior by giving her what she so desperately coveted in the end and by forcing his characters to be completely OOC and back up juvia, the slobbering, nasty, selfish pig, and not their loving, stalwart brother-in-arms and victim here, Gray.

That is despicable.

What's more, beyond how awful it is that FT people would rather back juvia than Gray, it's just bad, lazy writing. In no world would juvia be able to abuse other people and manipulate them and bully women and yet also be praised and protected and loved by those same people. Erza should have never sided with juvia over the 413 days matter or berated Gray for "not being clear enough" when he's been plenty clear. The other FT members shouldn't have ever blasted Gray for "leading juvia on". No one should even like juvia or want to be her friend because of what a b*tch she is.

Yet of course, everyone loves her for NO REASON. There are so many reasons to hate her (and honestly not one good reason to love her in my opinion), but does Mashima care? Absolutely not. juvia is his self-proclaimed self-insert's waifu, after all.

Anyway, true FT fans should be enraged that juvia lockser is one of the main people we are encouraged to be like in this show. They should be indignant that juvia has been made a poster child for this anime, when she embodies none of its values. They should refuse to accept this as healthy and desirable. They should balk at the fact that their beloved characters endorse juvia's actions and life choices, which are wholly unacceptable and unhealthy not only to herself but most importantly to others.

But lots of fans delude themselves, and the fans drive Mashima, so unfortunately, here we are, with a whole cast of characters who promote and affirm juvia, the least deserving of the Fairy Tail members.

For the record, I am not really talking about the fans who acknowledge juvia's toxicity but still like her and the ship because of a sort of suspension of disbelief. Honestly, there are many problematic or evil characters that many people like, and I usually see no problem with it if you are able to separate your fictional fantasies with reality. (Some deeply problematic things I do not excuse though). For example, I like Sukuna from JJK. Do I think he's a good person? Aaaaabsolutely not. He's a completely awful person. But still, I think he's cool and his power is sick, so I like him.

My issue lies within the area of the FT community who refuse to accept that juvia's behavior is deplorable and who attack anyone who tells them otherwise. These are the rabid fans who'd go for Mashima's throat if he dared to not make gr///via canon. I don't believe the fans who know juvia is a bad person but still ship gr///via would be so up in arms about it because this sort of self-awareness indicates maturity to me.

[Sidenote, the really aggravating and only thing that sets juvia apart from the characters who are literal villains and douches is that juvia isn't treated like a bad guy within the story. Sans some uncomfortable stares and sweat drops, she is largely treated like family, and everyone loves her. When even the canon material itself won't acknowledge a character's toxicity and awfulness to itself, of course there'll be people who don't think she's toxic. I hate that Fairy Tail lies to itself in this way. It just helps to turn the deluded fans against well-meaning Antis who speak literal objective truth, that the way juvia acts is not okay in real life.]

Anyway, those are my two cents, thank you for your patience and ask!