#The series I've discovered and the amount of times I have a knowledge in a certain series bec I've seen them in your reblogs/posts before | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

strawberrycola · 6 months

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hello. i made a very long, very indulgent addition to the sam and max subreddit post earlier, and decided to make it its own post because i had way too many thoughts for a reblog. and the idea of clogging notes was eating away at my brain like mice eat a cheese. this is mostly just train of thought, so i apologise if it's complete nonsense. i've just thought a lot about sam and max's relationship, and the connection lgbt (and neurodivergent, for that matter) fans have had to the series, from my perspective since i was like 8. obviously that's gonna be tinted thru a tumblr lens, because ftmp that's where i see The Good Stuff. and i'm gay as hell, so there's bias. ok read more time kiss kiss.

anyhoozles, coincidentally i've been back on my sam and max bullshit recently, as i finally got a chance to play "this time it's virtual". and discovered vr is not my thing.

so to start, listen...i don't think sam and max's relationship is quite as cut and dry as i believe myself and perhaps many others would imagine/hope. i'm eyeing the "susan" gag from the aformentioned ttiv, in particular. but as your resident specialist in "complex and obscure knowledge of three series total or so", the question of sam and max's relationship has been here since the very beginning of the official comics. like. this has been a thing. pretending it's new is foolhardy. and wrong. obviously there's "like butch and sundance", the wedding toppers, hell, the devs of the telltale game trilogy lampshade their relationship a very decent amount, both in the game itself and in the commentary. at the end of 209, "chariot of the dogs", they directly bring it up during the final cutscene tie straightening maneuver max does. one of the devs literally gets excited about it, iirc. and one of my personal favourite examples is "do you find my warmth...alarming, sam?" from 305, "the city that dares not sleep."

that, in particular, is one of several lines directly from MR. PURCELL HIMSELF, that he gave to the devs each game as lines that must be in the game.

and speaking of season 3, i'd like to mention 305, "they stole max's brain".

(i am now holding "noir sam" so close to my chest, jsyk. that trope means the world to me. it has influenced SO much of my work, and i still use napalm's playthrough on youtube as a sleep aid. REMASTER WHEN.)

of course i and many others latched onto that shit, are you kidding me???? that whole episode was RIPE for hurt/comfort. minor spoiler warning for those that would mind, it's a roaring rampage of revenge plot. at least for the first 30 minutes or so. it's part of a long history between the two of freaking the hell out the second they're separated from each other in a way that doesn't end in like, five minutes. (305. if you know, you know. fkin brutal, man.) sam, in the second act of the game, has been affected by an alternate reality plot, and fully believes he has carried max's brain in a jar his whole LIFE and seemingly has no plans to stop doing so!! it's part of a season where the WHOLE PLOT revolves around the nature of their relationship and how it could change. you don't have to be a shipper yourself to understand how that could be incredibly compelling to the people that fancy them as a couple.

and it's a fandom that i give a lot of credit to lgbt people for revitalising in the mid 2010s~ (i was already a fan by then, and i'm still really curious as to why it blew up so much, but hey, who's complaining?), as well as in 2021~ in response to skunkape's remaster of telltale's season one "save the world" installment, and the release of ttiv. (obviously the actual demographic spread across platform to platform is a varied thing, etc. etc. i'd like to stay firmly in my lane, and i don't wanna overstate any particular demos in my discussion here, or hyperbolise too much.)

Obviously, you don't have. to be a shipper. completely fine. pretty common. Who Give A Care. and we're not even gonna get into the "not suitable" content. i can't fault anyone for not being cool with the actual sexualisation of childhood stuff they like. that's something i'm pretty "ambivalent with a leaning towards discomfort" about for quite a few things myself. and it turns out there wasn't even any "unmentionable graphic imagery" to begin with. shocking. HOWEVER. i'm fascinated but not completely surprised by the blatant homophobia and disgust towards the fanart of the ship.

like, to be nuanced about things, and it's not like the admin is extending the same courtesy here, this is clearly an older fan. like i think from around the same timeframe i was first introduced to it, give or take. maybe they missed a lot of the tumblr mid-2010s activity, or maybe that's going in to their Burning Disgust towards Yaoi Sam and Max Kissing Not Clickbait. i know the fanart had some level of cross-posting, at least on youtube as dubs iirc. OR maybe i'm a fool who is actively tricking you with my words and none of the above is true at all. however...pal. again, in my opinion, we owe those lgbt and neurodivergent kids and adults our whole rights as a fan community. you don't have to like it, but you do have to be respectful, jerkbag.

i can't be the only one who was devastated by the drought of content post "the devil's playhouse". we had a [1] singular whole webcomic to tide us over, with the occasional sketch on purcell's social medias. of course, there was a small community of fans, and some incredible stuff they made, looking at you Sam Dies At The End. i weeped. but it was slow and steady. and then, out of seemingly nowhere, people en masse suddenly REALLY CARED ABOUT THE THING THAT BROUGHT ME SO MUCH JOY AS A LITTLE GUY. like, fuck man...i first found out what autism was when i was real young because max's character description on wikipedia contained speculation as to whether or not he has it. (jury's still out, ...but we all have our little comforts. okay? also speaking of, "is max gay?" is like. one of the longest ongoing bits. like cmon dude.) now granted, by 2021 i was a little old for the new wave of shipping that sprouted up. tiktok edits are Not Always My Thing. but that's okay!!!! it doesn't need to be my thing. i'm really glad they're having fun. :] and i don't want to come across as like. infantilising in my discussion of the younger fanbase, so i apologise if my tone has come across that way. it really is simply the comforting thought that kids like me can experience what i had.

i remember how much fun my friends and i used to have when we were 16! (hi xavier, if ur reading this. miss you, buddy. :]) we got silly with it! we got angsty about season 3!! we wrote fanfiction, hell, an amazing fic my friend wrote that i beta'd is still the most kudos'd shipping fic on ao3!! the fanartists i liked had such an INCREDIBLE grasp on how to write sam and max's banter. it was a good time! and knowing these characters are giving joy to a new generation makes me giddy, dude. hell yeah! get "feral" or whatever the hell it is these days. find comfort in characters that don't really care about anyone's opinion except each other's, who get to be as weird and annoying and gross as they want all the time. that tend to punch up. that show love differently than what's seen as conventional. that end up saving the day, not even because they have to, so much as they genuinely enjoy each adventure together. max was my personal opportunity to feel comfort in all my weird freaky mannerisms i kept safe behind the polished exterior i had to wear as a kid. i found solace in the thought that those two were practically made for each other, as i stumbled through my own gender and sexuality crises. i loved how dry and dark sam was allowed to be. the banjo bits, the phone jokes, the repartee. so much of this series has influenced me, and helped me become who i am, as a creator and as a functional guy who Does Things.

so that's a small bit of why i think sam and max had, and still has, a lot of appeal to people that grew up like me. there's a lot of rough stuff i went through that made the idea of a couple of anarchist detectives completely devoted to one another that go around the seedy underbelly of america saving the day ("almost on purpose!") really, really interesting. steve purcell is unapologetic about how gross america can be, especially in the comics. at the heart of it, sam and max do what they do both because they enjoy it, and they enjoy each other. and i think, to overlook that, is to miss some of the whole point of the franchise. oh, i'm sorry, giant cockroaches literally everywhere is fine, streets crusted in various goos, totally chill, but gay kissing is the thing that Absolutely Nauseates you? plugging your ears and screaming gross seems like...kind of a weak move here, ngl. a work that doesn't shy away from how confusing and wild life can be has a decent chance to be compelling to marginalised groups, who often have to put up with the more disgusting aspects of reality anyways. at least these two odd guys are having fun with it. sam and max understand each other, each of their strengths and flaws, and choose to be with each other every day because of and in spite of them. they choose to love where they are, because of and in spite of its many, many, many flaws. they choose to be who they are because they love what they do. there's something touching there, if you like to think about such things. there are some occasions i find myself wishing sam and max's relationship was more...concrete. i wish we had an answer to Does Sam And Max Is Gay? but at the same time, being vague and obtuse is like. their whole shtick. so maybe it's just right how it is. and uh. obviously this is a fictional series. in the end, it's all how we enjoy it that matters, and it's not the end of the world. and as a final cherry on top, nothing beats turning to my husband and asking, "is sam and max queerbait", before delighting in the 3 hr conversation that follows.

and to get to the point. as the old adage unfortunately goes, it's...okay. to not like...ships. and i can even somewhat understand being frustrated by a subreddit you created being "flooded" by a thing you're not into. only somewhat, because a: we've always been here, and b: because you can. just not look at it? idk if reddit has a filtering system, but. the scroll wheel is free. to throw a tantrum and ban topics because you're personally offended people think they're gay? you might be missing out on some of the most fun you can have outside the series, and you're spitting in the face of the people who held this fandom up on their shoulders like atlas.

and you're being a dick about it.

TO CONCLUDE:

wah wah they're gay gay homosexual gay and they don't pay taxes. deal or die, fake fan.

#bee bumbles #thanks for listening to my ted talk.#at the end of it all. mod's a coward. watch the new shipping subreddit become the active one #like the jojos subreddit all over again #also so many subreddits have issues with questions popping up over and over again. get over it pal. hand over admin to someone else #if you're not having fun anymore #like i get it would prolly suck to hand over something you created. but you know what else sucks #vitriolic homophobia and censorship because you saw fanart of sam and max cuddling as they sleep one too many times #jesus #i thought we got over the idea that shipping exists in fandom in like. 2012.#freelance husbands #hey. just in case you're interested.#update: lol mod's getting clowned on rip

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broke-on-books · 1 year

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☕️ + the Scooby Doo fandom in general

Hmm okay so this is a very broad question to me and that really means it's going to recieve a broad answer, especially to me as "Scooby fandom" really has differing levels in my heart etc.

For example with my friends and the smallish community of fellow Scooby fans I've found here on tumblr (the Scooby Dootuals!!!) I really love and like! Everybody is so nice and it's cool that people have various levels of knowledge about different series and iterations. Like I really enjoy that on here Scooby fans (as in, like my friends and people who regularly post scooby) have such differing levels of experience with this huge huge franchise as it makes it so much more interesting. Like we have people out there who have seen almost every episode (or feels like it) and can seemingly remember the smallest of things from them, and then we have people who weren't into Scooby as a child but are exploring it now, and then we've got people (like me) who did like it as a child and kind of know a bit of everything, with huge areas of weakness in Scooby they haven't seen, (for me APNSD, anything more than the premise of 13 Ghosts, the 80s trio minus Boo Brothers, anything past s1 of bcsd, much of the 70s era movies, SD & SD, Guess Who, SDMI details, like the list goes on, people!!! I've only seen a Scooby series in order in its entirety one time in my life and that was SDMI age like 12) while also having a few areas with greater knowledge or familiarity and a few spots where they just know a ton/are constantly rewatching. (Me with Goes Hollywood for sure) anyways I don't really remember where I was going with this but uhhh I like that my buddies and whatnot all know different amounts with many being chill or knowing a little bit of everything so we can still like each others posts and talk about Scooby with there still always being so much more to discover <3. So like basically thoughts on the besties are that besties are cool

However I know anon that by sending this you likely mean "Scooby fandom" as in people outside of this insular little bubble so let's talk about that. I think I'm reluctant to really label this group "Scooby fandom" as for ME PERSONALLY fandom really means a kind of engagement with the work beyond what most general Scooby fans do. Like what I'm trying to say is that this group of "wider Scooby fandom" liked Scooby and watched it as a child and consider themselves a fan of Scooby but they aren't rotating Scooby characters like blorbos in their mind too much. Or if they are, it's generally in the creation of like dark!Scooby aus or the live action Scooby show pitches that blow up on here every time Scooby is a topic of general coversation. I guess for me personally the line between this "Scooby fandom" and my own little bubble of people I'm chill with gets drawn based on what fans want out of Scooby. Like do they love Scooby as it is, or do they want to change the audience to create a new Scooby for themselves. Hm, I'm not really phrasing this right. What I mean is like we're all Scooby fans. If you've ever liked Scooby, at any age, however long ago, you're a Scooby fan, I'm not trying to like, gatekeep Scooby fandom or whatever. I just think that differing groups of fans have different pictures in their head of both what Scooby Doo IS and what they want from it based on their familiarity with it and how long it's been since said fan has watched Scooby.

And that's kind of wherein my frustration with "wider scooby fandom" lies. It's really in the fact that there's thousands upon thousands of these "sleeper fans" (which in my mind is really a better term for it) who awake when I or the popular culture mention Scooby, to share their opinions. And these opinions just frankly drive me up the wall. This is because when confronted with a real life Scooby fan (me) there's generally 3 things they want to talk about: 1) SDMI and how it's the greatest thing since sliced bread 2) Doesn't HBO Velma suck 3) (once they learn I like Scrappy) Scrappy hatred and copious references to his portrayal in the Gunn Movies. Plus MAYBE a bonus 4 of other miscellaneous takes that get on my nerves (stuff like Shaggy always smoking weed, Fred and Daphne splitting up together to have sex, just all sorts of things I do not for the life of me want to talk about).

So I guess my take on the wider scooby fandom is as follows: there are positives like some genuinely funny SD posts once a blue moon, or people to share things like concept art and leaks to much of the content canceled by HBO Max, but the vast vast majority of the time it kind of gets on my nerves because people always want to talk about the same few things (which I feel have been talked to death already or I highly disagree with OR BOTH) and it's just really tiring to deal with. Idk I don't think I'm going to go into it to much more here because this post isn't too coherent to begin with (I'm blaming it on like 70% of this being written before work this morning) but there's so many people out there who think so similarly about Scooby (and SO differently from how I think about it) that it feels like I'm getting talked over constantly whenever I have a discussion about Scooby with someone from this group. And that's just like not fun for me? It's just like for me, Scooby Doo is my number one thing. Like I'll be in different fandoms concurrently or whatever and I don't really read fic for scooby but I will for other stuff etc. But like scooby is always there for me like MY MAIN turned into a scooby doo blog like honestly while that's just not the case for some other people. It's very much a difference in the value and time put into the franchise, (which like you can just like things casually that's not a bad thing) it's just that it's frustrating for me talking to sleeper fans about Scooby because I get trapped (literally, like irl) in the exact same conversation that I don't even want to be having(!!!!!) pretty much all the time.

#this is very disjointed and not cohesive AT ALL but thats fine #basically my brutally honest opinion: talking to the typical scooby fan gets on my nerves bc they only want to talk about the same 3 things #and i disagree with them on all of them #blah #scooby doo #answered #anonymous #actually this is kind of negative so i should probably tag that #vent #negativity #also feel free to keep sending me these asks like youve been doing (and also the ship ones too with scooby stuff bc ill talk about that as #well) i just may or may not answer some of the more negative prompts because im a very optimistic happy person and ive already met my quota #of negativity for the day and am tired now but like if you really wanna know anyways ask and i may get to it

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in-dire-read · 4 months

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Legendborn (Book Review)

Tracy Deonn

5 stars ⭐️

Information

# of Pages: 490

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Series: Legendborn #1

Summary

Sixteen-year-old Bree Matthews, a college student at the University of North Carolina, infiltrates a secretive, historically white magical society after suspecting its members' involvement in her mother's death. During her quest, she discovers the Legendborn, descendants of King Arthur's knights, and their mages, the Merlins. Bree uncovers the society's secrets, including the cost of their power and the mages' demonic nature. With her growing knowledge of both the Legendborn and an alternate form of magic called Root, Bree navigates complex relationships and uncovers the truth about her mother's death.

Thoughts

Not only is Bree a feisty heroine, but the girl has a tremendous amount of emotional depth. Her silent anger erupts over time due to the loss of her mother and generational trauma. As a biracial woman, I've never been able to relate so much to a character before. As much as I loved to see her budding romance with Nick blossom, a part of me wants her and Selwyn to end up together. The two former enemies turned to each other for support, a heartwarming outcome. There's something special when people can put their differences aside for a common goal. Besides, the two have more in common than they care to admit. Lastly, the history and context leading to the Round Table of Arthur and his knights was fascinating. Tracy Deonn does a fantastic job of intertwining her fantasy world with some historical facts and myths about magic. I highly recommend this book if you love an action-packed book with a subtle romance side story!

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fangirlmedstudentblog · 2 years

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Ann's 2022 Wrapped pt 2(A)

So, here's part 2 with my yearly recap in fandom that I'm guessing you all will like more, the FANFICTION RECOMMENDATIONS!!

Top fics of this year

According the ao3 wrapped, I've managed to read as many as 3.5k fanfics this year, which roughly amounts to 10 fics a day 😱 and a total of 115 MILLION word over the span of a year, which is amazing, considering all the time I've spent working in the hospital (because yes I was an intern), studying AND playing Genshin.

Since I'm tasking myself to rec fics from as many of the fandoms i read fics for (of which there are many), I'll limit myself, and it proved to be as hard I had thought it would be.

My list is in no way even close to an exhaustive fic rec list for the pairing. It has some gems to get you started if you're new to the ship, or some fics to re-read, if you've already read these. If there is a podfic of the fic, I'll include that too! Podfics deserve more love and are a boon, allowing us to listen to our favourite stories while doing other work or playing games! They're one of the top reasons I've not fallen asleep while completing exploration in Genshin Impact lol.

In the m/m fics, i don't write the ship name with the top/bottom fixed in mind as i always headcanon them as versatile. (I know some people like to read fixed dynamics for certain ships, so this is just a fyi for them.)

Do check the tags of the fics before reading and check the author's pages for further fics to read!

All fics are complete unless mentioned otherwise.

Fandoms/Ships covered:

1. Draco/Hermione from Harry Potter

2. Merlin/Arthur from BBC Merlin

3. Peter Parker/Johnny Storm from Spiderman and The Fantastic Four comics

4. Stiles Stilinski/Derek Hale from Teen Wolf

5. Namjoon centric BTS fics

6. Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto

7. James Bond/Q from James Bond (Craig) movies

Covered in part 2(B) because too many links lol

8. Frank Hardy/Nancy Drew from Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys series

9. Prapai/Sky from Love in the Air

10. Batman / Red Robin comics

11. Miscellaneous fic recs

Pairing: Draco/Hermione aka Dramione from Harry Potter

Fuck JKR and any and all transphobes. Her world of HP was the first serious series that i read and grew up with, so the emotional attachment i have with this series is a lot. So while i don't support her in any way or form, fanfics are fair game for me.

I discovered Dramione when i started reading fanfiction and came across this rather lovely dramione fanfiction called Simply Irresistible that opened my eyes to the pairing. I'd always liked Draco as a character with unrealised potential. And Hermione is and always has been my favourite character from HP. The sweet sweet potential of Dramione combined with the excellent fanfics on ffnet dragged me in and hasn't let me go even now, to be honest. This pairing has so many EXCELLENT fics i simply can't even think of picking my top fics. So I'm just listing the top 6 dramione fics i re-read every year.

1. Rewritten in Time series by ScotlandEvander Rated T

Scared and tired, Draco Malfoy decides to take matters into his own hands. Using a potion, he travels back in time, finds himself in his eleven year old body with all his memories from the past seventeen years. Using this knowledge, he sets out change time. His first mission: befriend Harry Potter. His second: Keep Harry from doing death defying acts. (Turns out harder than Draco had envisioned.)

A Draco centric Harry potter time travel fix-it! It's one of my favourite Harry potter fic to read, and offers the full experience from first to seventh year. Features an OC who is important to the story but not part of the main pairing. It's a fun series that is a slow burn with the dramione as they don't get together till a lot later.

The fix-it version of Harry is hilarious, especially as the years progress. Features lots of friendship moments between the characters and the romance is slow and subtle with hints throughout the series. I try to re-read this whole series atleast once a year.

2. Rewriting Destiny by WaitForTheSnitch Rated General Audiences

They all thought after Voldemort's fall that the world would get better. But they were wrong. The Death Eaters used politics to accomplish what Voldemort never could. And with the dwindling Wizarding population and no one left to fight, there's only one solution: to go back in time to before Voldemort rose to power, and fix what broke the first time around. Time Travel AU

Features Draco and Hermione as time travellers that go back in time to make sure Voldemort never rises to power. I love how the author writes the characters, and their interactions with each other. I'm a goner for good world building and this fic delivers in SPADES.

3. Measure of a Man by inadaze22 Rated E

To truly know someone is to differentiate between who they once were, who they are now, and who they're capable of being. Hermione realises the duality of one man as she rectifies what she knows of the past and begins to understand the pieces of who Draco Malfoy is now: a father, a son, and a man.

It is a post-hogwarts dramione EWE (epilogue what epilogue for those unaware of the term) fic with Hermione being tasked to take care of a rather unique case, and during the process, she learns and grows.

It is NOT a short fic at all, clocking in at almost 600k, and it is SLOW burn, that sometimes is a long low simmering roast. Narcissa in this fic is amazing. I personally wouldn't recommend this to be read in one sitting, and with having some fluff fics on standby for the in between breaks because it is heavy in places.

*Funnily enough all the fics I'm recommending above are LONG as fuck fics clocking in atleast 100k words or more. I really love reading long fics*

4. The Eagle's Nest by HeartOfAspen Rated E

Hermione's eighth year at Hogwarts is already going to be difficult in the aftermath of the war, but is further thrown into upheaval when Headmistress McGonagall orders a re-sorting of all students to promote inter-house unity. But when the Sorting Hat sends Hermione to Ravenclaw with Draco - and without Harry or Ron - how will she cope? [Epilogue? What epilogue?] Prevalent alchemy.

I love eighth year dramione fics! They have so many possibilities, with most commonly having Hermione coming back alone to Hogwarts without Harry or Ron.

In this fic, both Draco and Hermione discover the hidden depths in the other, especially Hermione, coming to know more about Draco as they progress through their eighth year at Hogwarts.

5. The Gloriana Set by ThebeMoon Rated E

The War is won, and Hermione Granger is back at Hogwarts as an “Eighth Year”, feeling reckless and determined to shed her prim bookworm persona. She will do as she pleases, and anyone who doesn’t like it will see the business end of her wand. Also returning is Draco Malfoy, universally hated but determined to restore his family’s name. Hermione’s hopes for a quiet school year are quickly dashed as she contends with mischievous First Years, killer plants, enchanted hair accessories, a totally inappropriate Moaning Myrtle, renegade Death Eaters, a nice vampire, a poorly named study group, a depraved party, and mysterious, threatening blood messages on the castle walls. We have redemption, partial redemption and (sadly or hilariously) no redemption at all. Throw in a snarky, disturbingly attractive Draco with his own secret agenda, and we have a very slow-burn Dramione with a side of who-dun-it.

This is one of my favourite eighth year dramione fics that keeps you engrossed throughout the fic and it also has a in progress podfic that can be found here.

6. Chronos Historia by In_Dreams

Hermione and Draco stumble upon a mysterious portal and find themselves hurtled back through time a thousand years. Forced to team up to find a way home, they quickly realize that much of the history they believed to be fact, wasn't true after all. A founders era, time travel Dramione.

As it says on the tin, with such an interesting take on the founders, i was intrigued. It was also my first founders era fic.

While this next fic isn't strictly a dramione but a Draco/Hermione/Theo fic so i couldn't resist but add this in, it's a personal favourite. It's spicy and a very well written throuple polyamourous fic, with the characters playing nicely off each other and another eighth year fic as well!

7. Sugar and Spice by InLoveWithForever

Contrary to what she claimed, it wasn’t grass and new parchment and spearmint toothpaste she smelled.

A mind-boggling amalgamation of confusion followed by a peripheral realization, and then instantaneous fear made her flush so severely that the room went fuzzy around the edges of her vision as she choked out the lie.

It was old parchment housed in the restricted section, tart green apples, and something spicy—not cinnamon, cloves?—that lingered inside her nostrils. She was woozy, her lids drooping heavily, even as a small part of her brain screamed at how wrong this was. A larger, louder part of her shoved the shame down in favor of baser instincts. Those instincts dampened and dissipated and the shame crowded in the further removed she was from the delicate, unmistakable scent wafting from the cauldron.

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Pairing: Merlin/Arthur Pendragon aka Merthur from BBC Merlin

Despite knowing about this show since 2014 (blame this hellsite) i only got the chance to watch this show in 2016 and boy did i fall headlong in love with this show and it's characters. I love that the fandom still remains active to this day, even a decade after this show ended.

And we all cry hysterically every Christmas Eve because that ENDING 😭 or maybe that's just me lol and the i reread that one post canon fic because i want to feel. And that leads to my first rec,

1. And like the cycle of the year, we begin again by katherynefromphilly Rated E

Set after the Merlin Series 5 Finale "Diamond of the Day".

For many long years Merlin waited.

For the other part of his soul, for the other half of his life. He was born to serve Arthur. So that meant he was also born to wait. Even if it took a thousand years. Even if the wait seemed never to end.

Until one day, suddenly, it did.

When Arthur stumbles from the Lake of Avalon 1,500 years after his death, he finds a world unlike the one he knew. Faced with the loss of everyone he loved, and the threat of impending prophecy, Arthur must learn what it means to be not just a king, but the Once and Future King. Merlin does all he can to guide him, even as he struggles to hide his love for his king, and his fear of losing him again.

Story includes sass, banter, horseplay, & True Love

It is part of a lovely series, We Begin Again which i read every year atleast once, it's a classic masterpiece that fulfils my S6 dreams.

2. Evil Overlord, Inc. by Footloose, mushroomtale Rated E

Merlin is a recent graduate with a double doctorate in metaphysics and physics. Arthur is a low-level paper pusher with a desk in the sub-basement of MI5. They live in a world with ridiculous laws and restrictions against anyone who might be supernatural in any way, shape, or design.

Merlin has huge debts looming over this head, a few quid left in his bank account, and no job prospects. Arthur is pushing thirty, in a dead-end job with no chances of promotion to fieldwork agent, and is thoroughly bored with his life.

One ill-advised Craigslist advert, five pushy mates, one nosy all-knowing sister, and a hacked email account later, Merlin and Arthur take the world by storm.

(Or, more precisely, they take over the world.)

It is one of my most favourite Merlin fics coming from the minds of the godly duo of Footloose and mushroomtale with excellent story, GORGEOUS art and bamf!Merlin and bamf!Arthur.

I'm honestly down bad for the art in this fic, especially spectacled Arthur and the art makes me feel things. If you ever find any Merthur fic, with either of the two author's involved in it's creation, it's a must read.

3. Shadow lord and Pirate King by Footloose, mushroomtale Rated E

A fast ship, a good crew, a treasure, a Clan to lead -- that's all Arthur Pendragon has ever wanted. He sits on the Council, he supports his father's kingship, and he keeps an eye on the Imperial Conglomerate when they come too close to Pirate space.

One day the Conglomerate infiltrates the Clans and poisons the King. Arthur must search for a cure to keep his father alive and the Clans from civil war.

An escape route, a sharp knife, a target, the shadows at his command -- that's all Merlin has ever needed. He fulfills his assignments, he uses the Sterling to sustain his once-royal House in their exile, and wages a private war against the Imperial Conglomerate.

When he learns of an elaborate plot to assassinate him, Merlin does the opposite of what's expected. He flees onto a Pirate ship.

There's a saying among the Pirates: that one's fate is written in the stars. Destiny will always set to rights what has been made wrong.

Arthur and Merlin know that they were meant for the other from the moment they meet. They can feel it from across the galaxies separating them. Nothing can stop them from being together or from fulfilling an ancient prophecy.

Another beautiful fic with gorgeous art, featuring space pirate!Arthur, ninja assassin!Merlin, secrets, plots for revolution and so much more packed in a nice long story with sizzling chemistry and GORGEOUS art.

The art for this fic graced my phone as wallpaper for a long while and if shipping wasn't like sky high i would have bought merch for the fic art, I'm serious.

4. Loaded March series by Footloose Rated E

Captain Arthur Pendragon has put together the best team of specialists that the SAS has ever seen, but when his superiors assign Lieutenant Merlin Emrys as his communications officer, Arthur does everything to make him feel unwelcome. Arthur's job is to protect and guide his team through dangerous missions, and he worries that he can't do that when the newest member has a mysterious background and acts suspicious when he thinks no one is looking.

As their assignments become more dangerous, Merlin can't help but to use his magic to keep his team -- even his prat of a Captain -- safe from threats they couldn't possibly understand. But when they are sent on a undercover operation against a group of zealots intent on a magical apocalypse, Merlin needs to confront his fear of discovery and derision, and to finally trust his team with his secret.

Arthur and Merlin rely on each other for more than the sake of their mission. The entire world is at stake. When they learn -- from dragons, no less -- that they are prophesied to restore the balance of magic to the world, they fight on regardless of the outcome, because duty, honour and loyalty is a far stronger driving force than destiny.

A completed series featuring Arthur, Merlin and the other knights as part of an elite SAS unit with the varying adventures they face that clocks in at almost 1.3 million words, it's a good, LONG read that'll absorb you thoroughly if you aren't careful and you'll emerge as a changed person.

It also has a in progress podfic, which has the first 5 stories in podfic form, which you can listen to here.

Actually do yourself a favor and go to both of these author's ao3 pages and read ALL of their Merlin fic and also fics they've written for other fandoms if they interest you, because otherwise I'll just keep on listing their fics throughout lmao.

5. Gadarene by unpossible Rated E

“You’re the Prince?” Merlin says, eyeing him. He hesitates, then adds, defiant, “The Mad Prince of Camelot.”

Arthur doesn’t move. There’s quiet for a long time, then he says it. “I am.”

“You don’t seem mad,” he says.

The smile wells up from somewhere deep, and very sad. “Well, Merlin,” he says, “give me time.”

This is also a very unique Merlin fic, that deals with reluctant slave master Arthur and slave Merlin working together to take down the villian, with lots of intrigue, lot of sexy times and a little coup, for added flavour.

Also has a lovely podfic !

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Pairing: Peter Parker/Johnny Storm aka Spideytorch from The Amazing Spiderman and The Fantastic Four comics

I've read the Spiderman comics as a teen and was introduced to the fantastic four via those. Peter's friendship with Johnny, especially their bantering is top class. Definitely see the spideytorch queen @traincat blog with their posts on Spiderman, fantastic four and Spideytorch, with this and this (being posts on why Spideytorch? and the second one has a brief comic book timeline of Spideytorch. I personally prefer comic book Peter Parker, fyi but i don't hate mcu!Peter. Also traincat has written many of the gems in this pairing so do check out their ao3 as well!!

1. Tales From The Back Pages by Traincat Rated T

Peter Parker was born with his words. Johnny Storm's been sure his will be said sarcastically since he was a child. Everything else more or less happens according to plan.

A first words soulmate AU.

This is a pretty good fic for those new to Spideytorch in general and is a rather lovely fic. It is basically Marvel 616 Spiderman and the Human Torch but with soulmates. I personally have read it soo many times i can recite parts of this fic from memory.

2. Work Song by Traincat Rated E

Peter Parker has his company, more money than he knows what to do with, and the echoes of a ghost in his head. Johnny Storm's lost his family, his home, and is clinging to the remnants of his old life.

"I’m here with you. That’s not nothing, right?”

“No,” Peter agreed. It definitely felt like something, all the way up here with Johnny so close they were almost touching.

Peter looked at him, at the full lips set in a slight frown, the sharp curve of his jaw, the way his hair fell across his forehead. He fit all the dazzling lights around them, warm like sunshine even in the middle of the night.

“Beautiful,” Peter said before he could stop himself.

This fic requires you to be a bit more familiar with the comic timeline, but in essence, (comic book spoilers ahead) in one of the comic book runs of Spiderman, there's a time when all of the fantastic four except Johnny Storm have vanished and Peter buys up the Baxter building (the F4's home) and he's pretty rich in this because a while before this he had discovered that doctor octavius had taken over Peter's actions via *science ish mind control' with him making a major company and everything.

It kinda has glucose guardian Peter vibes as well and some references to non con as well (not between the main characters). It is one of my favourite fics by Traincat and honestly if you're even somewhat familiar with the spideytorch comic book timeline, i can't rec this fic enough!

3. Always Glad You Came by aloneintherain Rated T

Spider-Man is a relatively new, controversial vigilante, and Johnny has a crush the size of the Empire Building. The Four - operating under the assumption that Spidey is an adult - do not approve.

“I just happen to think Spider-Man's cool,” Johnny says, matter-of-factly. “A hero can think another hero is cool without making it weird. I admire his aloofness. And his badass-ness.”

“His aloofness,” Ben repeats, chuckling into his mug of beer. It’s roughly the size of Johnny’s head. “Yeah, sure, I bet that’s all your admire, right?"

While i usually prefer comic book Spidey, this one is mcu Spideytorch, with teen!Peter and teen!Johnny that is one of my favourite mcu Peter fics.

4. Spideytorch series by mizzy

A series of unrelated fics about my OTP, Peter Parker/Johnny Storm.

This series has some of my favourite Spideytorch fics not written by Traincat and of all of the fics in the series, my personal favourite has to be without a hitch.

This series is based on comic book canon, rather than mcu so do keep that in mind! It's a must read collection of Spideytorch fics!!

5. Better in Picture by weekend_conspiracy_theorist Rated Teen and Up

In which Peter Parker has no interest in sleeping with Matt Murdock, no matter what anyone seems to think.

Despite what it seems, it really is a Spideytorch fic! It has representation of one of the most underrated friendships of Peter and that is his friendship with Matt Murdock aka Daredevil.

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Pairing: Stiles Stilinski/Derek Hale aka Sterek from Teen Wolf

I've read fics for this pairing for a year of two before even actually watching the show a year or so back lol. Reading up on the history of the pairing, thankfully i wasn't the only one who saw this ship as possible in the show (before the makers betrayed us fans). But yeah, I've always been down for bad boys in leather jackets with a heart of gold and Derek was a perfect fit. Plus Stiles stole my heart in the first episode. Scott, while a fine character, was written with a bit too much of the protagonist's halo effect for my tastes, if that makes sense, but that's just my opinion.

1. Play It Again by metisket Rated T

In which Stiles goes along with one of Derek’s plans and ends up in an alternate universe as a result. He should’ve known better. He did know better, actually, and that means he has no one to blame but himself.

“Laura wants to lure the kid in with food and kindness and make a pet of him, like a feral cat. Derek wants to have him arrested for stalking. They’re at an impasse. (And the rest of the family is staying emphatically out of it in a way that suggests bets have been placed.)”

It's a time and dimension travel fix-it fic, featuring soft!Derek, kick-ass!laura and lot of realisations on Stiles' part.

Comes with a Podfic

2. Gravity's Got Nothing on You by zosofi Rated E

“Three weeks,” Derek says.

“Still don’t want to,” Stiles says.

“I’ll pay you,” Derek says, and that… that has Stiles interested. Alf’s Antique’s may be a great job, but it’s not a high-paying job, and half of Stiles’s tuition is coming from financial aid, so…

“How much,” Stiles asks, “are we talking here? Because I know your family, dude. And it’ll be kind of awkward after.“

“My family thinks you’re some sort of fucking gift to the world,” Derek seethes, like he’s jealous, “they’ll probably be pissed at me when we break it off, so don’t worry about that. Five hundred bucks.”

“A thousand,” Stiles says, because screw ethics. Also, the Hale family is loaded. Derek can deal.

Or, the one where the Hale fire never happened, Laura is a nosy sister, Derek is desperate, and Stiles is the only one that can help. It's a fake dating au that is a comfort read of mine.

Also as a Podfic

3. Stop Crossing Oceans by greenleaf Rated M

“There are no absolutes, Scott! No hard rights or hard wrongs! The world doesn’t fucking work that way and we can’t afford to think like that, because people are going to die! We signed up for that the moment we got involved with all this!”

“We? We?” Scott hisses. “Don’t you think you? Don’t forget that you’re the one who dragged us into that forest the night it all started, Stiles. So if it’s anyone’s fault, it’s yours.”

Something inside Stiles cracks, so strong and so deep that he practically hears it.

A look into a what-if Stiles and Scott's ideological differences are so much that it fractures the friendship between Stiles and Scott and Stiles chooses Derek over Scott.

4. Stuck in Reverse by crazyassmurdererwall (smartalli) Rated E

Look, Derek is the worst. Everyone knows that. Their fearless leader is a total and complete failwolf.

Which means the rest of them? Are kind of the worst too. They’re a ramshackle, slap dashed, sorry excuse for a pack that’s about a half second away from getting one of them killed. And this is a problem, because Stiles would really like to survive high school. Thanks.

Still, nobody deserves what Derek has gone through. Nobody.

And it’s about time somebody told him that.

Stiles decides enough is enough and somewhat ought to appreciate Derek and make sure someone cares for him, and in the process, makes friends with Jackson and unites the pack into a much more cohesive team.

5. Will to Follow Through by owlpostagain Rated E

“It depends entirely on how you look at it, I guess,” Stiles shrugs. “On the one hand, instant healing and the apparently inherited ability to pull off leather at all times. On the other, serious attitude problems and a suspicious disappearance of eyebrows.”

“Even Derek’s?” Danny snorts, “that’s a lot of eyebrow to lose.”

“I know,” Stiles agrees. “You should see, it’s so weird. Every time I want to ask him where they go, except he’d totally eat my face off.”

“There are worse ways to die.”

Deals with the in-transition state of Stiles' crush on Lydia to his crush on Derek, featuring a solid friendship trio of Stiles, Lydia and Danny.

Also has a Podfic (locked, so requires an ao3 account to access).

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Pairing: BTS featuring Namjoon centric fics only

I'll admit that I haven't read much of new BTS fics since 2020, so this might be a bit dated, but all of these are solid gold. There'll be only 1 per Namjoon ship and 1 OT7 fic, which was a MASSIVE STRUGGLE I tell you, because there are SO MANY good ones, except for the OT7 fic, that one I knew instantly.

1. Kim Namjoon|RM/Kim Seokjin|Jin aka Namjin :

I cheated. I chose 2 by the same author metastacia BECAUSE I COULDN'T CHOOSE, both of these are SO SO GOOD. Both have excellent plot, world-building, pacing and will suck you in till you finish it all. I have followed both fics from their first chapter to their last and let me tell you each chapter update was an EVENT on my tl, with discussions, theories, everything. So many of us laughed and cried to these chapters and i personally remember the eager anticipation of reading it!

The Shaman and The Exorcist Rated M

Seokjin doesn't believe in ghosts. Which would cause a huge uproar if everyone knew since he's kind of a big deal at his university; he's a shaman who protects people from evil spirits. He doesn't remember where he got the idea to do this from, all he knows is that superstitious people pay good money.

Namjoon does believe in ghosts. Better yet, he can see them and he can expel them. But there's a certain phoney shaman at his university who's stealing all his clients in his exorcism business, and he's not happy about it because haunted people pay good money.

So, what do they do? Figure out whose closet is holding all the skeletons, of course.

KAIROTIC Rated M

The Grim Reaper, they called him. He was the weird kid in school who knew exactly when someone’s mother was about to die. They didn’t believe him when he’d said it, and they didn’t believe him when he said he wasn’t a psychic, and they didn’t believe him when he said he didn’t cause her death.

The Grim Reaper, they still sometimes call him. Legendary trial lawyer who became known for weeding out the bad guy no one else suspected and putting them in prison. It was almost like he had a sixth sense for it. Like no one was safe from him. Like the black cloud of death still follows him around and no matter how much he tries to shake it off, it doesn’t let go.

Seokjin wonders at what point death had stopped following him around, and at what point he’d started to become death itself.

in which Seokjin can see everyone's lifespan floating above their heads, numbers steadily counting down to their deaths. the numbers never change, or so he thought.

2. Kim Namjoon|RM/ Min Yoongi|Suga aka Namgi:

What rhymes with pug me by sequoiasem Rated T

namjoon and yoongi share a sweater (and also some feelings)

This fic is like a warm hug when you're feeling meh or like sitting by the fireplace wrapped in your cozy blanket with a cup of hot cocoa on a winter night.

THE FEELS

3. Kim Namjoon|RM/Jung Hoseok|J-Hope aka Namseok

The Universe Needs More You by AttilaTheHun Rated M

Kim Namjoon is in love, and Jung Hoseok is always dating someone else. This is perfectly fine, even preferable, because the universe likes to tell jokes and Namjoon knows it's best just to laugh along. He's certainly got nothing to complain about when it comes to the building blocks of his life, and dating is a lot of effort. Too much effort, really. So it's obviously fine.

But the universe's latest attempt at a comedy sketch, where Hoseok moves in with him, bringing the sun and a lot of tiny shorts, might actually make him insane.

We all need a little slow burn lovely namseok in our lives.

4. Kim Namjoon|RM/Park Jimin|Jimin aka Minjoon

things we turn away from by themarmalade Rated M

Jimin, beloved by thousands and starved for affection, finds what he craves so deeply in his massage therapist's hands and very intriguing side job.

This will feel like a long long hug, especially if you're feeling touch starved.

5. Kim Namjoon|RM/Kim Taehyung|V aka Taejoon

Hurt Locker by MmeIrene Rated E

Kim Namjoon, college student and outspoken omega, decides that he doesn't want an alpha to help him through his next heat.

Kim Seokjin, best friend, decides that is a Very Bad Idea.

This is my favourite Taejoon fic EVER, with soft and sexy times in equal quantities.

6. Kim Namjoon|RM/Jeon Jungkook aka Namkook

come take it (if you want a piece of me) by babyblue(rhnull)

Jimin forces Jungkook to make a Tinder, and there's no way that profile of Kim Namjoon is real.

Self indulgent, Namkook fluff with pining makes for a lovely read.

7. Kim Namjoon/Everyone aka OT7

What I Did On My Summer Vacation, by Kim Namjoon, Age 18 ½ by Runchrandom(infraredphaeton)

On his gap year, Kim Namjoon accidentally joins a gang, takes over that gang, becomes the leader of the South Korean Underworld, publishes his first mix tape and gets six criminal boyfriends. It's a busy twelve months.

"Hey, you're Rap Monster, right?"

"...Yeah."

"You're really cool, man! I've been listening to you for ages!" the guy practically bounces over the body, slinging an arm around Namjoon's shoulders. "You got a crew?"

Namjoon shakes his head slowly.

"Well, we can fix that."

My absolute favourite BTS fic of ALL time, that I re-read ATLEAST once a year. This author has written many excellent Namjoon centric fics, so rest assured you're in for a treat.

Features smart as hell Namjoon who somehow finds himself as the head of the Seoul underground and six boyfriends, and it all started with sucker punching someone in the face. Interested? Read on!

Pairing: Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto aka Sasunaru from Naruto

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A classic pairing, which for many, as well as me, was their first anime m/m ship, if not their m/m ship ever. There's something hilarious that kishimoto, who wrote the women in Naruto so inconsistently and despite never wanting to, created a friendship that was so deep and with such homoerotic undertones, it surpasses the bond that the 'canon' heterosexual pairings have 😂

1. Kizuna Hikari by YoungAndOverIntelligent Rated M

The only reason Sasuke keeps coming back to Konoha is because of that mattress. The bed is his only respite. And perhaps the dumbass who owns said bed might be worth it, too.

Or, another canon divergence 699 that showers Sasuke with too much (deserved) love and attention that we all need for these unprecedented times.

Title means "Bonded Light". It'll make sense when you're about 100K in.

Remember the trope, "there was only one bed" ? This author took the trope and fit in 204k words of healing and feelings and character growth along with it that just moves you.

Sequel has POVs from the other characters as this one is from Sasuke's POV.

2. backslide by blackkat Rated M

Naruto’s friends are gone, his lover is dying, Konoha is destroyed, and Madara’s second return has pushed the entire world to the brink. Hunted and harried, Naruto is sent back in time to upend Madara’s plan before it even starts, and sets about changing everything. Butterfly effect nothing: the world is at stake, and Naruto is hardly about to let it fall to ruin once more. Not while he’s still breathing.

It's a time-travel fix it fic that has a not exactly unique concept, but the author portrays the characters so vividly they will stick in your mind forever.

It also has a Podfic by the awesome Opalsong (who is a prolific podficcer, check them out as well!) that is one of my favourite podfics to listen to, especially while traveling.

3. An Invincible Summer by ShanaStoryteller Rated T

When Naruto is five, he's gutted by a drunken civilian and presumed dead.

Six months later a girl with ash pale hair and dark blue eyes enters the Academy.

As you can see by now, I love my canon fix-its and this is that as well, but involving the Sexy no jutsu in a way I didn't imagine before reading this fic.

Naruto (or as she's known in this fic, Natsu Nami) is a bamf whose bonds with genin team and kakashi are a highlight of this fic.

Also has a Podfic

4. Forces of Gravity by Anxiety_Pickle Not Rated

The Rinnegan is hardly well understood; at the end of the world, Sasuke Uchiha takes a gamble.

In one world, Madara Uchiha wins. Sasuke escapes by the skin of his teeth and flees to the nearest dimension. Unfortunately, he has quite a few unintended passengers. Stranded five years in the past with the Akatsuki and the all too real threat of global extinction at his back, he decides that he'll be the one to stop the apocalypse - even if that means taking on the Akatsuki himself.

A time travel-dimension travel-canon divergence Uchiha Sasuke centric fix-it fic that has pretty good world-building. My favourite part of this fic are Sasuke's hawk summons! They're so interesting and lovely to read.

5. Corporate Secrets by Kizukatana Rated E

Everyone knew that Uzumaki Naruto was a businessman you didn't mess with. He was charismatic and able to win deals that left others wondering how they'd been talked into what they'd just signed. He was held up as an example of everything an alpha should be: strong, charismatic, and commanding. What they could never have expected was that Naruto was not, in fact, an alpha. In a society run by alphas, it was a secret that he kept closely guarded. As long as he never encountered his True Mate, he could keep his identity concealed behind scent blockers and suppressants. And with billions of people in the world, he didn't really have to worry about finding his True Mate. Right? Even if he did, Naruto was sure he would just kick the guy's ass and move on. He'd never met an alpha he was attracted to, or one that could match him. He wasn't worried at all.

Requires an AO3 account to access, but TOTALLY worth it.

One of my favourite A/B/O fics ever that has a pretty good world-building with respect to the trope and the characterization.

But then again, it is by KizuKatana, who along with blackkat (author of fic 2 in the Sasunaru rec list) are some of the most prolific authors in the Sasunaru fic-dom, who have written awesome as hell fics, so do check out their profiles!

Pairing: James Bond/Q aka 00Q from the Craig James Bond movies

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I love me some hardened spy and some bespectacled boffin being a pair of bamfs together. I'm still not clear why exactly why I started shipping this, oh wait, i know, that ENTIRE scene in Q's office where he calmly takes that gun from James.

1. Ordinary Numbers by BootsnBlossoms, Kryptaria Rated T

More than anything, Mike Taylor wanted to be ordinary. Being a genius, he learned early in life, meant people expected too much. A career at the MI6 Help Desk seemed the perfect way to guarantee a lifetime of obscurity, until he got a very unusual tech support call.

Requires ao3 account to read

🤌🏻 chef's kiss of a fic🤌🏻

Also has a lovely podfic which i love to listen to often.

2. Important Dates by AtoTheBean Rated E

After a brief attempt at retirement, James is back at MI6 and working hard to rebuild working relationships with his colleagues and friends. And he's making great strides.

Only Q continues to hold him at arm's length, maintaining a stubborn professionalism in their interactions that James remains unable to pierce.

But James doesn't want Q at arm's length, and so he takes a risk. But even a spy's instincts can run amok, and now James wonders just how long he'll be reaping what he's sown, and how many holidays it will take to win Q over.

A post Spectre fic, with Bond seeking to make amends with Q, but only to be met with resistance. A fic set in important holidays in Bond and Q's life, has groveling bond, something i enjoy reading any time.

3. Quriosity by dr_girlfriend Rated E

Bond finds himself increasingly curious about his enigmatic Quartermaster.

Excerpt:

"Your prior hotel is no longer secure, I will direct you to a new location. Your luggage has already been transferred. A field agent and medic from the Diréction Générale de la Sécurité d'État will be waiting at the side entrance. I have cleared them both personally." In contrast to his crisp dry English, Q's pronunciation of the French words was fluid and flawless, the throaty tone of the fricatives sending a surprising jolt of awareness straight to Bond's cock — all the more remarkable given his degree of blood loss.

"You're wasted on Q-branch, you have the voice for a phone-sex call-in line." The words slipped out of Bond's mouth without forethought, although he had plenty of time to think in the sudden pause that came afterward and stretched on for endless moments. Bond hadn't realized until now how Q was always there, with an immediate reply. In all their banter Q had never before been at a loss for words. Ever.

4. Redamancy by opalescentgold Rated M

If you write something on your skin, then it will show up on your soulmate's skin as well.

James doesn't quite fall in love over physics discussions and cheeky book quotes scrawled over his heart, coding and riddles inked onto his skin, but he comes close. He does.

And then he actually meets Q.

This is a soulmate AU with Holmes!Q that starts pre-Spectre and is a spectre fix-it that fits so many feelings in it, it's no wonder it's so long.

5. Red Queen to Overwatch by BootsnBlossoms, Kryptaria Rated M

After returning from the dead, James Bond moves into a new secure flat, only to find that his new neighbour is either: a scruffy teenager, a brilliant computer geek, a mad scientist, or the sexiest genius he's ever met. Two of these things turn out to be true.

Well, three, once the Red Queen gets involved.

Another beautiful, beautiful fic featuring Holmes!Q, that was one of my first 00Q fics and still remain in my top fics for this pairing.

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Part 2(B) continued here

37 notes · View notes

demonfox38 · 5 months

Text

Completed: Ys I: Ancient Ys Vanished

Place your bets on how many times I mention the words "Zelda" and "salmon" in this evaluation.

One term may be self-explanatory. The other…you'll find out.

I think I've been exposed to a fair amount of video games. If I've beaten hundreds of games, it's only because I've played thousands. What's limited my ability to fully experience as many video games as possible? Well, time and money are obvious restrictions. I'd put my nationality as a strong third contender. Which, yes, you're allowed to call bullshit on that, what with my nationality being American and all. I didn't have to go through half of the shit that someone from Brazil, Poland, or Russia had to just to play a damn video game. But, my tastes are Japanese, tainted Nintendo-red from the recovery of the home console market in the 1980s. Even with as much cultural and fiscal exchange that goes on between Japan and the United States, there are still going to be keystones and touchpoints that I am going to miss. Influences, spectral as they are, that I want to discover.

The "Ys" series is one such case.

I don't have sales figures for "Ys I: Ancient Ys Vanished." I can't definitively say that this series has influenced dozens of video games that I have enjoyed. What I can do is point at certain scenes within the game and go, "Shit, Nintendo ripped this part off in "The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past."" The amounts of ports this title has received over the years may also be a good indicator that "Ys I" was a darling of the 1980s Japanese home computer market. The PC-88 seemed like a good home for the title, but it damn well didn't stay there. Hopping to the MSX2, MS-DOS, X68000, TurboGrafix-16, Sega Master System, Nintendo Famicom, PlayStation Portable, and the gosh darn Steam market is testament to just how far this game has gone over the years. Hell, that's not even half of the consoles and computers this game has turned up on. It's a Blanche Devereaux of video games—old, present in more places you think, and enjoyed by a surprising amount of people.

"Ys I" (and the series at large) stars Adol Christin, a man driven by a salmon-like instinct to dive face-first into danger the first chance he gets. Such reckless behavior leaves him shipwrecked on an island after managing to plow through a wall of storms that has killed everyone else that has dared to cross it. (You are free to check off "Link's Awakening" from your "Potential Zelda Games Ys Influenced" bingo card.) After recovering from his little escapade, Adol plunges head-first again into the troubles of the island, seeking the goddesses that seemingly have left the island abandoned, as well as six tomes containing the great knowledge and destruction of the mighty civilization Ys that fell long ago. Who else seeks these tomes? Where are all of these demons coming from? Why does this island have so many blue-haired chicks, and why does Steam want to give me three achievements for harassing one of them?

Look, I don't think the original game was designed by delinquent perverts. Whoever made the achievement list might have been, though.

As you may suspect, a lot of how I understand "Ys I"'s design is through my understanding of "The Legend of Zelda" and its subsequent games. Is that a fair comparison to make? Well, they are roughly the same age, one being published in 1986 and the other in 1987. Different systems, sure. Same environment. It's not like "The Legend of Zelda" is the be-all, end-all of top-down fantasy action games. But, more games of this build are likely to emulate "Zelda" than "Ys," even when I talk about "Ys" being an influential younger sibling plot-wise to the former's later titles. If we want to be a bit more diverse, we can throw "Hydlide" into the mix. But, there's always a danger with having an American talk about "Hydlide." Especially, if they don't put that game's age into context!

Look, it's way fairer to compare games from 1986 and 1987 than games from 1984 and 1987. Three years of difference then is like decades of difference now. People and technology evolved that fast. The Japanese economy and Moore's law were amazing like that.

Because I am familiar with the "Zelda" game style, "Ys I" was initially difficult for me. (Okay, it was extremely difficult at two specific points later in the game, but let's just start with the initial play style.) See, one important design detail about "The Legend of Zelda" is that its main hero is left-handed. This helps a player center their shots, often putting them square with their foes. Adol, as you may have guessed, is not Link. Adol is a "Dungeons and Dragons" rogue in a weapon and armor set that should be way too heavy for him. His modus operandi is to crash into an enemy's back or sides, slamming in that flanking bonus for all its worth. He is not a salmon jumping into a bear's mouth (although, I suppose he is that narratively.) He is a salmon plinking off the side of a bear until it inexplicably explodes.

This style of fighting can feel messy to a "Zelda" veteran. It's not something that can't be overcome, but it does require some study. However, it does feel more natural than the "hold A to go offensive / release A to defend yourself" situation that "Hydlide" had going on. At least, a person is way more likely to figure out "Ys I" naturally than they would "Hydlide." I guess playing "Ys I" after "The Legend of Zelda" is a bit like learning how to drive a car with a manual stick, then being given an automatic car. Like, sure, the automatic is simpler. But, if you're used to taking control, you'll feel uncomfortable having that control removed from you. At least, a bit on ice.

I don't know how "Hydlide" fits into that analogy. Maybe it's like going from a manual car to a car that operates on "Red Light Green Light" rules, but you don't figure that out before crashing it into an electrical pole.

Don't expect much in terms of combat evolution with "Ys I." The tools that Adol gets are meant more for hocking or trespassing than any changes in how you attack. There's no bow or boomerang to give him some range. If you get a weapon, it's just another sword with more power. Nothing much outside of a little numerical boost. (Okay, a power bonus, and actually allowing damage on two bosses, but we'll…we'll get to those damn bosses.)

Everything comes down to you hauling ass into combat, then tearing Adol's ass back out. The poor boy has almost no invincibility frames to speak of, so it's very easy to make silver sashimi out of him if you aren't careful. While he does have some automatic health recovery, it requires him to be still and either in an open area or using a particular ring that you get later in the game. Sure, you can pop a healing potion from time to time. Just maybe not when you'd need it, like in a damn boss fight!

Seriously, man. What's up with that? Do you need to set out the fine china before you can take a sippy, Adol? That's very un-salmon-like behavior of you.

Because so much of the combat revolves around this hit-and-run style of swordplay, a lot of the boss design and tactics will devolve into "run at that guy the first chance you get" and "run in circles until you can stab that guy." About the only major curveball the game throws at you with this is requiring silver equipment for precisely two bosses. These bosses are also infuriating in the "Ys I" variant I played. Like, I easily spent 20-30 minutes killing a boss that only takes a minute to kill when done correctly. It's never a good sign when you open up an FAQ only for it to go "LOL, good luck." It got to the point where I had to mute the game just so that I would stop getting distracted by the awesome music. That's what these bosses did to me. They drove me into committing audio felonies.

Now, this boss issue is something I lay at the feet of the designers for the "Ys I" variant I played (the Chronicles+ Steam port.) See, when I look at PC-88 footage for these bosses, I don't see the particle hell that I had to endure. Even other ports aren't as aggressive as the Chronicles+ version. I don't know if someone had bullet hell brain rot or wanted to throw as many projectiles on screen as possible just for a computational flex, but man, was it aggravating.

If everything about "Ys I" was as frustrating and repulsive as those bosses, the game wouldn't have survived past its inaugural entry. Lucky for it, the game has a lot of things going for it aesthetically. The game puts a great deal of effort into its character portraits and sprite work, blending top-down action with full portraits like something out of a visual novel. It can be a remarkably peaceful game to look at. Like, I did end up taking breaks while digging through an abandoned mine or a massive tower's annex just to admire what little sunlight came down upon gently swaying bridges. The Chronicles+ version is at least pretty. I'll give it that! Even the original release has its charms with its sprite work. Frankly, I think the main screen and final boss portraits look better in the PC-88 version, if for nothing else than for the feelings of imaginary nostalgia and subtle chills I get looking at them.

While "Ys I" doesn't have the most complex plot in the world, it was certainly leaps and bounds ahead of most games from the 1980s. The game puts a great amount of effort into its NPCs, giving several their own portrait artwork and side quests. Hell, in the Chronicles+ version, you even get an achievement for talking to everybody. While never being fully conclusive on the exact nitty-gritty of Ys' fall, it's clear to understand what has happened to this place, as well as its goddesses. There are a lot of games that run Shintoism through European trappings, sure. Multitudes of goddesses, talking to sacred trees, sometimes getting swords out of them—I can think of at least two "Zelda"s and two "Tales" RPGs that work with the same tropes. However, this was one of the first games to do this, and it did it very well. There were at least two twists that I didn't see coming, one of which was quite shocking. Half of it was me not assuming that all brunets are related, sure. The other half? Well, let's just say I got more of a response out of it than when a certain "Final Fantasy" character got notoriously shafted.

The best quality of "Ys I", by far, is its soundtrack. I'm not kidding when I say this is how I was originally exposed to the game. A lot of what I listen to while working is video game soundtracks from the 1980s and 1990s. When this came up in my recommendations, I definitely took note of it. When it's not being eerie and mystical, it's driving with that sort of intensity rarely seen outside of late 80s/early 90s Japanese rock. If you are a synth fan, you owe it to yourself to listen to it. At least, give it three and a half minutes.

Hell, if you need a professional recommendation: former Capcom sound designer and current music professor / bird aficionado Hideaki Utsumi owns at least two variants of this game. I would imagine he would be much better at articulating how awesome this soundtrack and its programming is than I would.

As an additional note—one of the original composers for this game (Yuzo Koshiro) went on to make his own audio company, as well as contributed to a crapton of additional video games. (Not that Mieko Ishikawa is a slouch! She's holding the "Ys" series and other Nihon Falcom titles down just fine.) The particular interest I have with Mr. Koshiro is his contributions to "Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin." Like, yeah, the "Kid Icarus Uprising" stuff is mildly interesting, and anyone who is anyone in the Japanese video game music industry has ended up in a "Super Smash Bros." soundtrack at some point. But, ya know. I might like "Castlevania" a little bit. I could easily see his work slotting right into that series. (Or, hear, I guess.) Frankly, I'm surprised he wasn't called in to do more.

And, hey—if you're looking for more soundtracks that the pair worked on, check out "Sorcerian." Really confuse your YouTube recommendations. (Unless you're already on whatever pulse wave I'm already surfing, I guess! Then, I'm certain it's easy for us to shoot soundtracks we've both already heard to each other.)

I am curious about the limited amount of animation used by the Chronicles+ version of "Ys I." Originally, the animated intro was what made me think this game was based on a re-release set on the first PlayStation console. (I suppose it could have been a PlayStation 2 re-release as well.) It's a lovely intro! I dig it. I just don't know why the ending didn't have that quality to match it. I mean, I guess a still image was all the original "Ys I" had as well. It just feels weird to not have that same effort extended to the ending—especially, after all the effort I put into getting to it.

Maybe the "Ys II" ending has a bit more going on with it.

I may have one or two ways to find that out…

I'm left in a weird place with "Ys I." It was mostly a good experience, but when it was bad, it was godawful. I can't imagine most modern gamers would have the patience or undead ego it requires to beat either of the bastard bosses I mentioned before. It's only 9 hours if you're going in raw, but man, will you come out raw in at least one of those hours. If you need a test of your ability to overcome absolute bullshit, then I guess you can give the Steam version a try. Honestly? I'm more prone to recommend an older version, even without my having played the older versions. The PC-88 version at least looks like something an average human could have beaten. At least, something that would have become a mind worm to the general development of games that followed in its wake. The Chronicles+ version…man, I don't know. At least don't pay full price for that. Especially not when my recommended solution would be…let's just say, not using any silver. Running black flags to ruin magical black capes.

Honestly, Adol should have just jacked that cape like Dorothy Gale and the Ruby and/or Silver Slippers. Clearly, its previous owner isn't getting any more use out of it. Might have been a pain in the ass to wash out and mend after the stupid sword fight, though.

#post game evaluation #ys 1

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highkey-lowkey-as-hell · 2 years

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I’d love to know more about the httyd watt au if you don’t mind! I haven’t watched everything in the whole franchise, but this au sounds really cool

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

OH HELL YES

okay so this au is based mostly off of race to the edge, which is a tv show on netflix that takes place right before httyd 2, because that's my favorite part of the franchise. if you don't know what that one is, it's six seasons, and it covers the last year or so before httyd 2, and most of it revolves around one artifact called the dragon eye, which the dragon riders discover hidden in an abandoned ship, and which contains an unbelievable amount of secret dragon knowledge. it also has a map that extends far past the archipelago, so the riders decide to explore it, and they establish a base called dragon's edge, which is in the name, and it's where they live for the entire series before eventually going back home to berk. so, in the au:

eva - hiccup

kate - astrid

clark - fishlegs

farrah - snotlout

annleigh - heather

cairo - dagur

chess - mala

mattie - gustav

riley - trader johann

reese - atali

eva, kate, clark, and farrah are all probably pretty obvious, because they're also from the movie franchise (i tried to figure out a ruff and tuff but there's honestly no replacing those two), but: cairo is the chief of the berserkers, a neighboring viking tribe, and she's an antagonist for the first two seasons before switching sides and allying herself with the dragon riders, even gaining two dragons of her own: a gronckle named shattermaster, but after shattermaster is injured in a fight, she starts riding a triple stryke named sleuther. annleigh is her half sister, who is... a complicated character, who has a love-hate relationship with the dragon riders for a while but eventually becomes an ally, and she and kate are besties - her dragon is a razorwhip named windshear, who she rescued as a baby. chess is the queen of a different nearby tribe, the defenders of the wing, and she and cairo meet at a peace summit and initially hate each other, but then they fall in love and get married in the finale!! and chess doesn't have her own dragon, but she always rides behind cairo on sleuther. mattie is a teenager from berk a few years younger than the dragon riders, and she rides a monstrous nightmare named fanghook and wears some of the riders' gear from the first movie, obviously trying to be like them, but she tends to accidentally cause chaos so they won't let her join the riders, but eventually, kate trains an auxiliary riders team to defend berk, and mattie is their leader. reese was... honestly kinda hard to find someone for, because i just ran out of side characters, but atali is the leader of the wingmaidens, a tribe of women that protect baby razorwhips and are important allies of the dragon riders, so i thought she could work for that!!! and riley....... well, riley is top 10 anime plot twists of all time, she pretends to be the dragon riders' ally for five seasons (and another show before rtte!!!!) before finally revealing herself to be the Ultimate Bad Guy who's been behind everything!!!!!!!!

anyways, now that i've explained it: kateva is my Utmost Beloved (i have so many aus with them haha) and i am in LOVE with the hiccstrid!kateva dynamic!!!!!!!! i love kate being suspicious of eva's sudden success in dragon training in the first movie, love them going on that romantic flight together, love kate giving eva that "so what are you going to do about it?" pep talk after stoick captures toothless, love the "that's for scaring me" *punch* "what, is-is it always going to be this way with you?! because-" *kiss* "... i could get used to it" at the end of the first movie. i love that scene in the beginning of httyd 2 at the itchy armpit, eva telling kate about her conversation with her father and kate mocking her, and then seeing smoke in the distance and they go check it out and stormfly gets knocked out of the sky and eva and toothless catch kate before she hits the water, i love eva deciding to go after drago after stoick orders all dragons grounded and kate goes after her, i love kate shouting "TAKE HIM DOWN, BABE!" when eva and toothless are fighting drago and the bewilderbeast, love the "oh, we're still doing that one, huh? that's hilarious. c'mere, you" kiss at the end. httyd 3 is.......... not my favorite of the trilogy, but i love the "maybe we should take gobber's advice and tie the knot. that should fix everything! but hey, if you're having doubts about yours truly, i'm pretty sure farrah's available" "she only has eyes for your mom" "ohhhh, playing dirty now, huh?" "you asked for it! looks like there might be a wedding after all" "oh, how dare you! that is a low blow- no, no, you are not getting away! OWW, okay, okay, you win, you always win!" "you knew what you were getting into" "uh huh, sure" scene, kate finding eva working on toothless's new tail and saying "look at you, embracing change! i am proud of you", i love kate taking eva to find toothless in the hidden world, i love kate and eva taking out bad guys to save each other and then causing an explosion while smiling at each other with romantic flight playing in the background, i love kate helping eva stand after she lets her fake leg fall into the sea with grimmel, and then them getting married??????? and having zephyr and nuffink????? AND TAKING ZEPHYR AND NUFFINK FLYING TEN YEARS LATER????????????????????????????????

speaking of flying, i just have to say: eva and toothless, kate and stormfly, clark and meatlug, and farrah and hookfang.

also, astrid!kate is my favorite fucking thing, like c'mon???? maybe it's just because i'm kind of in love with both of them but like,,,,,,, c'mon, kate and stormfly and the "stormfly, drop it. good girl! stormfly, fetch. works every time" scene in httyd 2??????????? kate and "never take a toy from a dragon"??????? kate doing the speech about eva that goes "she's only the daughter of stoick the vast, his heir to the throne of berk, and the greatest dragon master this world has ever seen! and unless you let us go, right now, she is going to blast through here on her night fury and blow your entire fleet of ships to splinters"???????????

this has been an incoherent ramble which i will conclude with: hiccstrid!kateva and astrid!kate thank you for your time

#we are the tigers #httyd au #the httyd au is one of my top aus ever #(closely followed by gearbreakers au)#especially the kateva in it is so >>>>>#but i didn't even get to kateva in rtte!!!!!#buffalord soldier and blindsided and mi amor wing #ahdghfasdgfkagsdufgaksugdfjkasgjhkdsghjasghjdfshagj #them >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>#kateva

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waspsinyouryard · 9 months

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I’m curious how everyone’s year was so please tell me what you favourite ----- from this year was! Answer as many or as few as you want! (Feel free to send this to other people and change it if you want)

Favourite Movie/Show you watched:

Favourite Album you listened to:

Favourite thing you learned:

Favourite book/comic:

Favourite project you completed:

Best impulse purchase?

Funniest joke you heard?

Strangest building you went in?

New food you discovered?

Most memorable conversation?

Prettiest sunset?

Favourite new outfit?

What are you proud of this year?

Favourite Memory from this year:

Anything you would change?

Anything you’re looking forwards to in the new year?

~Gumi

I'm going to try and answer all of these but I can already tell that some of these are going to be difficult:

1. Favorite movie/show

I don't really watch movies out of my own volition and I'm like the one Tumblr user who doesn't watch TV shows (and my memory is bad, so I could also be forgetting something) so my options are very limited:

The FNAF movie (which was laughably terrible)

Stranger than Fiction (a 2006 movie that was just. not good. I didn't like it.)

Rio 2 (a kid sitting next to me for a substantial amount of time was watching it and I could hear the audio)

Out of those options I'd probably have to say the FNAF movie was my favorite because it was bad in a funny way and also recency bias.

2. Favorite Album

My music consumption is almost exclusively video game soundtracks and I haven't really found any games to love the soundtrack of recently anyways so

3. Favorite thing I've learned

I can't think of any one piece of knowledge that stands out as my favorite. I'm just happy to know things tbh

4. Favorite Book/Comic

I read quite a few books (mostly the Warriors series, near the beginning of the year) but my favorite probably still has to be Love and Limerence by Dorothy Tennov. I reread it this year so it counts.

5. Favorite project I completed

Probably this ridiculous 14k word Wings of Fire fanfiction where the world ends tbh. It's kinda very rough, but I had a blast making it.

6. Best impulse purchase

A greenish-blue Hawaiian shirt

7. Funniest joke

Unironically this

youtube

Leave the poor woman alone :(

8. Strangest building

Probably the church I took those photos in tbh. I get that it's not that strange overall but it was for me

9. Best new food

I can't think of any new food, but I did discover that French fries and (to an admittedly lesser degree) saltine crackers make surprisingly good additions to toppings and/or fillings.

10. Most memorable conversation

This one's memorable in a bad way.

Essentially, it was a conversation between myself and a friend about a Minecraft server we were on where said friend told me that I managed to piss off every single other member of the server. Of course I was a bit distraught about this, and I decided that I just wouldn't play on it anymore. Before that I was basically the most active member by far.

The reason I remember it so well is because I'm still so baffled about why what I did (kill the Ender Dragon on the first day of a new world (after rules regarding doing so were specifically abolished) and kill the Wither like a week later) enraged these people so much that they called for my friend to ban me (he didn't, btw).

11. Prettiest sunset

All of them. Unless I'm trying to go west and the sun is shining in my eyes.

12. Favorite new outfit

The Hawaiian shirt I mentioned previously.

13. Things I'm proud of

Here's a list, not in any sort of order:

Writing that fanfic I mentioned earlier

Figuring out Tumblr API stuff so I could improve @postsofbabel. And I guess it in general.

My progress on a new fanfic set in the Warriors world, where being sold to 1D is a major plot point.

Surviving, tbh

14. Favorite memory

15. Anything I would change

I would change a lot about 2023, but I simply do not think I would have the ability enact a lot of these changes if I could go back through this year again.

16. Anything I'm looking forward to

World of Goo 2. Probably more that I can't think of at the moment but World of Goo is excellent

#ask

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murroughod · 1 year

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In praise of trees: a look at arboreal art

https://artuk.org/discover/stories/in-praise-of-trees-a-look-at-arboreal-art

I've long loved trees and walking among them. Each day I make sure to spend at least some time appreciating the beauty of trees; after all, it is trees that sustain our existence – without plants which turn sunlight into oxygen, we would not exist. Artists too have had a long love affair with trees and delving into the abundance of arboreal art is fascinating.

Trees stretch their branches throughout many paintings, from street trees to copses to parks to forests and rainforests, and trees are depicted in all stages of their growth, all around the world, and in their many varieties. We see their branches reaching high into the sky and their roots stretching deep into the earth.

Trees have long been potent symbols in mythology, folklore and culture – the Tree of Life, the Sacred Tree, the Tree of Knowledge – forms of 'the world tree' also called the cosmic tree, thought to be the source of life at the centre of the world.

The Tree of Life symbolises the connection of all forms of creation (famous depictions include that of the Austrian artist Gustav Klimt in his painting The Tree of Life) while the Tree of Knowledge connects heaven and the underworld.

Depictions of 'sacred trees' include Foliage, Flowers and Fruit of a Tree Sacred to Krishna by Marianne North (1830–1890), as well as Foliage and Fruit of Fig Tree held Sacred by the Hindoos by the same artist.

On a beautiful winter's day a few months ago, I strolled past London plane trees lining the city, reaching their branches up into a clear blue sky, on the way to Tate Britain where I saw an exhibition of the work of Victorian artist Edward Burne-Jones (1833–1898). He led the Pre-Raphaelite movement into new symbolist directions and his work interestingly draws on myths and legends. Art UK features his painting The Tree of Forgiveness, at the heart of which is an almond tree, and which is a dramatic reworking, in oil paint on canvas, of Phyllis and Demophoön in a style inspired by Michelangelo. In the myth, we see depicted Phyllis as she bursts out of the almond tree and embraces the lover who had abandoned her – a particularly powerful part of the painting is seeing her legs still inside the tree trunk.

John Woodward Lines (b.1938) Rugby Art Gallery and Museum Art Collections

On days when it has been raining too ferociously to step outside, I have instead been gazing at arboreal art on Art UK. Paintings capture trees in all stages of their growth cycle, from lush foliage such as in Study of Trees by Bernard Meninsky (1891–1950) and Trees by Charles Napier Hemy (1841–1917) to the inky silhouettes of Winter Trees by John Woodward Lines (b.1938).

Maurice de Vlaminck (1876–1958) Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales

These stages of growth are also captured in abstract arboreal art, all titled Trees, from the wonderful juxtaposition of green and browns by Eardley Knollys (1902–1991) to the bony bare branches by Madeleine Enright (1920–2013) and the eerie painting by Benjamin Haughton (1865–1924). I also love the abstraction of blues and greens in a work by Maurice de Vlaminck (1876–1958).

Looking at the copious amounts of copses in the archives I can imagine strolling through them, including Gifford's Copse and Cherry Copse at Stock Close, near Aldbourne by Lawrence Gowing (1918–1991).

Talbot Woods by Calvin W. Fryer (1871–1942) is awash with golden light and Woodland Scene by John Lally (1914–1994) is an abstract work excellently drawing out the shapes and patterns of trees.

Looking at the details in the rainforest depicted in ‘Dreams of Australia' Series, Rainforest Wildlife by Antonia Phillips, I am reminded of the vast diversity of life that trees sustain: beautiful birds and butterflies in this painting. Indeed, a single tree in a tropical rainforest can sustain up to 2,000 different species.

Whilst many artists have chosen to title their paintings, simply Trees, others have chosen more particularization and there are a wide variety of trees forking throughout the collection including Study of Birch Trees by Joséphine Bowes (1825–1874), Silver Birch Trees by Walter Duncan (1848–1932), Olive Trees, Les Baux by Frederick John Pym Gore (1913–2009), Oak Trees by R. Ellison, and Beech Trees by Bernard Meninsky.

Trees are depicted in all their full glory in landscapes as in the many paintings entitled Landscape with Trees, while other painters have chosen to focus on specific parts of trees such as the powerful painting Patterned Canopy Shadows by Lynsey Ewan. Paintings depict both the height and depth of trees: one of my favourite paintings is Understorey, also by Lynsey Ewan – the 'understorey' being the word for the layer of vegetation beneath the main canopy of a forest.

How do trees make us feel? Some painters have ascribed moods to their artworks depicting trees in paintings including Solitude by James Tyndall Midgley (b.1872) and Peace by Thomas Edwin Mostyn (1864–1930) with its wonderful colour palette of blues, golds and greens.

I'm reminded by such paintings of the increasingly popular practice of 'forest bathing', spending time in a forest to reduce stress and promote a sense of wellbeing. The Japanese term is 'Shinrin-yoku' which means 'bathing in the forest atmosphere', and was developed in the 1980s. These paintings go far in conjuring through colours and craft such an atmosphere – and looking at them did indeed have a soothing effect on my mood.

Looking at these paintings, I'm powerfully reminded of the 'deep time' collected within trees: the fact that they exist for hundreds of years, that many of them will be here long after we are gone. Many of these paintings immortalising trees will outlast the trees themselves, showing just what a potent combination is that of trees and art. Above all, in our Anthropocene age of biodiversity loss, appreciating arboreal art is a great reminder of the importance of valuing and protecting trees themselves – the 'lungs' of our world – which in turn protect and sustain us.

Anita Sethi, journalist, writer and critic

#research #artist research #articles/books #trees

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urupotter · 3 years

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So while I've said before that I don't like the HP subreddit, I still frequent it because occasionally I read something insightful. This is one such case, where I read a reading of Lupin that I'd never seen before in response to a comment of mine analyzing the shrieking shack confrontation between Snape, Remus, Sirius and the golden trio, where I mentioned that Lupin was a gaslighter so I wanted to share. It was created by reddit user u/UsuallySiSometimesNo and is posted here with his permission. We had a little conversation in the comments. Read it under the cut

UsuallySiSometimesNo: That struck a cord with me, too. I didn't think about that on a conscious level before, but when I read it, it felt instantly true.

Honestly, I think the strongest examples of Lupin gaslighting are actually done to himself. The biggest, character-defining example, I think, is that after finding friendship with James, Sirius, and Peter, he becomes so desperate not to be ostracized from them (due to his issues of self-worth and his personal brand of impostor syndrome) that he deliberately and routinely feeds himself false narratives about their behavior until he can no longer tell fact from fiction, even as he's experiencing it.

Their relentless bullying of Snape? A childhood rivalry.

Their casual bullying of other students? Kids being young and stupid.

Their clear disinterest verging on contempt for Peter, someone less fortunate and vulnerable with whom they're supposed to be good friends? Just mates being mates.

Even actions taken against Lupin, himself, are revised in his memory to be 'no big deal', because he desperately needs that to be true. Let's pretend for a moment that Snape indisputably deserved to be slaughtered by a werewolf the night Sirius told him how to get past the Whomping Willow. Sirius did not send Snape to be killed by any old werewolf. What happened that night was that Sirius - one of Remus' best friends, if not his actual best friend - attempted to use Remus' curse/illness against someone (which is a big enough betrayal on it's own) without ever telling Remus that when he woke up in the morning (covered in blood and in the presence of a shredded corpse) it would be to find that he had committed the act he was most petrified he might one day commit. In setting Snape up to be killed by Lupin, Sirius, at the very least, risked Lupin's sanity, and, at the very most, risked Lupin being sentenced to death.

Now, I understand that Sirius wasn't thinking about all of that when he did what he did, and I, as a someone removed from the situation (and armed with the additional character/situational knowledge granted to a reader) can even understand why Sirius' own trauma led him to grant such a blind death sentence to Snape (which I think is related to a point you made elsewhere, u/Adventure_Time_Snail, about Sirius' "violence towards those who trigger his fundamental fear of wizard fascists" because of his abusive upbringing). But Lupin's perspective is not one of an unbiased observer. And once James found out what was happening and pulled Snape back before it was too late (which, I would think, was more to save Lupin than to save Snape) and once Remus awoke the next to day to discover everything that transpired the night before, I find it hard to believe there wasn't at least some conversation about the true gravity of the situation. And yet, even all these years later, Lupin doesn't bat an eye when Sirius not only doesn't display shame when the event is mentioned in POA, but offers something akin to regret, NOT at the fact that his actions could have gotten Lupin killed, but that that they DIDN'T get Snape killed: "It served him right...", he sneered. etc. etc.

I think the obvious question here, is 'Even disregarding what Sirius did to Snape - how can Lupin be okay with the knowledge that Sirius has no regret, at all, for what he did to him, even now that they're adults?' Well, we're not in Lupin's point of view in the books, which means we can't hear his internal monologue, but I think a satisfactory answer to the question is that he's done a substantial amount of internal gymnastics in order to get to a point where he doesn't see this as a big deal, or even as something that he has a right to be upset about.... just like a gaslighter does to their victim.

Again, because we're not in Lupin's POV, we can't point to the exact instances that such internal gaslighting took place, but, based on what we do observe from Harry's POV (and based on external knowledge of gaslighting as a true-to-life concept) I wouldn't be surprised if Lupin so desperately needs everything to be okay that he derides himself for feeling bad or betrayed, that he calls himself stupid for thinking terrible things that have happened to him are a big deal, that he wars with himself about how people who are his friends and who are so good to him and who are better friends than he thinks he deserves could possibly do something to harm him/others, and that he beats down whatever emotions and senses and gut feelings he has that tells him something his friends have done might be very wrong. What we see in the books is a man who makes excuses for his friends and harbors a warped perception of reality in much the same way victims of gaslighting do, and he seems to exploit his own insecurities in order to instill doubt in his own experiences in much the same way perpetrators of gaslighting do.

I can't help but think that, by the time Lupin tells Harry that Snape harbors a particularly strong hatred for James because James was a better Quidditch player, Lupin has become so adept at gaslighting himself that he actually believes it.

tl;dr: One of Lupin's defining characteristics is that he gaslights himself out of a desperate need to be liked by others, since he has a difficult time liking himself and seems to believe all of his relationships are incredibly fragile.

Urupotter:

This is a fascinating reading on Lupin that I've never seen. I don't read him the same way, in that I think Lupin actually does know that what he's doing is wrong, he just doesn't have the moral courage to act on his conscience. (I view him as the anti Snape, great conscience, but abysmal moral courage, while Snape had unbelievable moral courage but a shitty conscience. Their arcs are about growing their moral courage and their conscience respectively) Realizing that his negligence almost got Harry killed is what triggers his arc, concluding when he goes back to Tonks and Teddy after running away, taking responsibility for his actions for the first time.

But this reading is so interesting that I'll have to reflect on it. Do you mind if I post it on my Harry Potter tumblr blog? I'll credit you of course, I would just like to discuss it with my followers. Of course if you don't want to I won't.

UsuallySiSometimesNo:

Honestly, I think the lack of in-depth conversation about Remus Lupin (at least compared to fan favorites Sirius Black and Severus Snape) is a missed opportunity and a shame. Don't get me wrong, I can discuss Sirius and Snape until blue in the face, but Lupin's arc is just as powerful in an understated (and often underestimated) way. The muddy, oversimplified truth is, without the fatal-flaw decision making of all four Marauders throughout their lives, the series of events proceeding the first chapter of the first book don't happen, and the story we all know and love never comes to be.

And speaking of sparking a discussion about Lupin...

I think Lupin actually does know that what he's doing is wrong, he just doesn't have the moral courage to act on his conscience.

You know what? I agree. And that's what makes him so interesting, I think. He is constantly and dependably full to bursting with internal conflict. When his friends are wrong/do something wrong/say something wrong, he can and does immediately identify the situation as wrong. When he does something wrong, or when he does nothing in the face of something wrong, in that moment I believe he knows the full weight of the situation. Like you said, he has a strong conscience, as well as a deeper, perhaps more nuanced understanding of right and wrong than do, for example, James and Sirius. Now, Lupin needs his friends. They're not just people to hang out with, they're a lifeline for him. He's not going to engage in conflict with them if there is even the slightest chance that he might lose them (for a variety of reasons, he lacks, as you said, the moral courage to do so). But he's also a generally decent human being, and with a strong conscience comes the capacity for sincere guilt and remorse. So, not only will he not confront his friends, he needs it to be okay that he doesn't confront them. And it's at that point that I think the self gaslighting is triggered.

But Lupin is intelligent and nobody's fool, so the gaslighting creates only a thin layer of ice over the problem. Just enough of a cover that he can live with the things he would otherwise deeply regret. I do think he believes the alternative reality he makes for himself to be accurate as long as it isn't really challenged. Crack the ice, though, and we see him express remorse and reveal an underlying awareness of past and present truths. But then the moment is over, and the war between the uncomfortably and full weight of the truth and his need for the companionship of his friends returns, and then the gaslighting begins again, allowing him an easier return to his closest friends (and eventually his closest friend, singular, after the others have been taken from him as was his fear all along) without conflict and with minimal strain on his conscience.

Once Sirius, the last of his original chosen family is gone - truly gone, as opposed to 'located elsewhere' as he was when in prison - following OOtP, suddenly Lupin's arc takes off at a greater speed than at any point prior. He's now literally lost all of the people he'd been terrified of figuratively losing. Although there are still people and things he cares about, he isn't as dependent on any of them as he was on those foundational friendships, and the finality of their absence allows him to finally grow beyond his stifling cycle of reality shifting, confront the truths of his reality and his circumstances, and, as you said, finally take responsibility by returning to Tonks and Teddy - a decision that, ultimately, triggers his death (I don't mean to imply that it was a bad decision or that it's the sole cause of his death, but Rowling has said that being 'out of practice' contributed to his loss at the Battle of Hogwarts, which makes for a fantastic tragedy).

I don't mean to overstate the importance of this theory or imply that it's always present when he's on-stage, and, as with anyone, many other elements, of course, factor into his actions/words/motives. But I think it's a fascinating potential component of his character all the same. If you have more thoughts on this, I love to hear them - and I look forward to reading the discussion on your blog!

So what do you think? Is this a valid reading of Lupin? I'd say it is, but I'm interested in reading my followers thoughts!

#remus lupin #lupin #severus snape #sirius black #moony #padfoot #the marauders #marauders #harry potter #hp #mwpp

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not-poignant · 3 years

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Lord the update about there being 3~ left to write in TIP kinda threw me a little. I've been following Gwyn since 2013 with ISWF and it seems so strange that we'll finally be moving away from him and (cannon) FT and the crew. In some ways I'm a little sad about it ending, but I'm also so grateful and happy to have been along for the ride. Being able to dive into your worlds has always been a privilege and a joy, and I'm excited for whatever comes next <3 Thank you Pia, so much, for everything.

It's a pretty huge feeling on this end, I have to say! I finished chapter 37 today (it still needs editing but I'm ignoring that part) and it's like...very nervewracking but also really exciting to be at this stage!

It's weird, I've had sadness - and I'm sure I will again - over it ending for like a year or two now, because I really felt it when I started The Ice Plague #3, which was a while ago now (especially since I started writing it a fair bit before I started posting it). So I've had time to process what others are only just going to start processing, or may not even process until it ends. It's hard too! I mean for those that aren't super invested it won't be, but for those of us who have been kind of in it, I think it is kind of like...something pretty epic?

(Is that just me? That doesn't feel like it's just me).

I really hope whatever I do next, y'all enjoy it. I mean my ideal hope is that I can take all the things I've learned - the mistakes I've made, the strengths I've learned I've had, the new character types I've discovered - and turn that into something even better or at the very least not worse.

The world has changed a lot as well since Game Theory. It's far more puritanical and focused on censorship, the rise of antis was a thing we saw happen, not just in fandom, but in every space of the media (yes, as a media analyst I know 'antis' have always existed, but it takes a serious amount of myopia to not see how much worse it's gotten for indie creators recently in particular). It's kind of weird to be thinking about launching a new series into that world!

I think, potentially, I'll have The Ice Plague #3 finished on my end, in February of this year. And then I start worldbuilding Mallory & Mount in earnest (I thought about writing the next Perth Shifters book, but novels are such poor earners for me compared to serials, that I'm super on the fence about it). That's nervewracking too. It's nice to have Fae Tales sort of fleshed out, to know where I'm turning. But there was a time during Game Theory where I had to make it up as I went, and had no answers to basic worldbuilding questions. So much of the Fae Tales universe was figured out on the back of getting anon asks and my own armchair knowledge of biology etc.

But I am excited, and I hope as we get closer, I'll have more tidbits and so on to share, so others can feel excited too. I want this to be as multi-shippy and ridiculous as Fae Tales has been, for people to feel empowered to take these characters and do whatever they like with them, for fun, for exploration etc.

But we'll see. I hate kind of not knowing how it will go. But 8 years of this has told me it's more likely to go well than not. <333

In the meantime, Fae Tales is lucky to have you, anon. :D

#asks and answers #fae tales #fae tales verse #mallory & mount #mandm #i'm taking a break from writing for the rest of the day #but i think it's realistic that i *might* get close to finishing chapter 38 this month as well #god almighty #hooooooooly fucking shit batman #anyway i'm going to write more falling falling stars tonight probably #the reason there's been such a big delay on the next FFS chapter #is that i've been smashing out TIP in the background dsalkjfas

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liongoatsnake · 3 years

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I found therianthropy back in 2009 and i was wondering if my experience was the common one back then or if it was a outlier. I found community through a bunch of individual "packs", often on webs/freewebs. I was around 13 at the time and my English wasn't the best so i mainly lurked, but at least one of the sites (i think it was called Dreamweavers?) turned kinda culty after a while. Something something and the founder said she was being hunted by "werewolf hunters", there was some beef with local vampires (?), and of course, p shifting. I didn't think anything of it back then but now I've realized that it was maaaybe not the common experience and just wanted to check to see how the community worked back then. Wild times haha

Your experience certainly seems like it was the most common one for people who stumbled across the webs/freewebs packs of the late 2000s/early 2010. There were dozens and dozens of mini-forums on those types of free to use website creators. At least some of the more infamous once became infamous for the things you listed: having group structures where a leader's word was taken as Truth, belief in physical shifting being possible (or even having secret knowledge of how to it), belief in the conspiracy theories of "werewolf/therian hunters" or "AWTOK," and so on. Such online packs also skewed very young it seemed and so a lot of people therians discovering the therian community seemed to end up finding their way onto any number of pack websites. I'm sure there were some that were nice, didn't spread misinformation, etc but the ones that seem to be the best remembered were the ones like you came across.

---

Some background on some of the trends:

About the Therian Hunters and AWTOK:

A fake organization / conspiracy theory called "Therian Hunters" is a conspiracy theory that held there were people who actively hunted down therians. Sometimes they were claimed to be a non-governmental organization and sometimes were claimed to be merely rogue individuals. Therian hunters were often claimed to view therians like dangerous game animals that they sought to hunt down and shoot. The conspiracy theory also sometimes made claims referencing physical shifters. Trolls and anti-kin claiming to be “hunters” occasionally has occurred and there have been any number of "fake" websites meant to be information websites for "therian hunters."

A fake organization / conspiracy theory called "AWTOK" (standing for "Always Watching The Other Kind/Otherkin Kind” ) holds that organization that is part of "the government" (no specific country government is ever named) keeps surveillance ("watches") on known otherkin, occasionally kidnap otherkin, and so on. Threats of AWTOK has been used by anti-kin and trolls against otherkin and similar to the therian hunters, fake websites have been made trying to spread this idea such an organization actually exists.

The 2007-2010-ish time frame seems to have been when the belief in these conspiracy theories peeked(?)

The vampires vs werewolves stuff:

The 2000s were a huge time for the fandom of vampires and werewolves in pop culture and it was especially popular in pop culture to butt these two monsters against each other. It far was the first time done in pop culture but the gimmick certainly had a strong resurgence in the 2000s. The Underworld movie franchise had been notable movies during the decade, The Twilight books and movies were popular, and so on. This seems to have influenced how people finding the actual vampire and therian communities assumed things were done. So yeah there was this weird fake tension between the therian and vampire community in the 2000s.

(Heck, the television series CSI even had an episode air in 2010 that focused on a murder that involved two rival "clans" - one claiming to be vampires and one claiming to werewolves. The authors almost certainly pulled inspiration from both LARPers and lifestylers but I wouldn’t be surprised if they pulled some amount of inspiration from the actual vampire and therian community too given the characters actually believed they were vampires and werewolves.)

---

At least all of that is how we perceived and came across everything during that time.

- Cavern-Risen (she/her/hers, wolf/werewolf/garou), Earth Listener (she/her/hers, aelurodon)

#hoc answers asks #ahh therian hunters so glad that conspiracy theory is mostly dead now #we should probably hunt down a copy of that csi episode for our archive but we kind of also don't want to watch it ever again

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starfallskitter · 3 years

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The Guardian Alya Theory

Hi! Didn't expect to be writing Miraculous theory again so quickly, but I have an idea in my head that I needed to get out there. So hear me out.

Warning: major spoilers for Season 4 all throughout this theory. Specifically Gang of Secrets, Optigami, Truth, Furious Fu, Mr Pigeon 72... just, most of them.

In short, the theory is this: Marinette will discover that she can't be both Ladybug and the Guardian at the same time, and will make Alya the Guardian. Marinette's memory will be wiped and she will spend a few episodes re-learning how to be Ladybug, and re-learning Chat Noir, which will obviously change their relationship.

This means Alya will know who Chat Noir is. And I think, for a brief time before her memory is wiped, Marinette will know as well. Meaning: temporary one-sided reveal!

Now, here's all the evidence, below the cut.

There's a fundamental problem with Ladybug and the Guardian being the same person. There's the stress it places on Marinette, sure, and the Guardian certainly can have a Miraculous and use it, but the problem is right here:

Someone has to be the link between civilian identities, and right now Plagg and Tikki are the only ones who know- and that's useless when both heros are transformed. The Guardian needs to know the identity of both Ladybug and Chat Noir. And if there's one thing that the show has absolutely beaten into us by now...

It's that they can't know each others.

So, there's a fundamental tension here. Marinette is currently putting all of her focus on being the Guardian, on working with the kwamis and figuring things out about the Miracle Box; and as her plans increasingly involve her role as Guardian, using kwamis or the fact that Alya knows her civilian identity, she's not quite being Ladybug properly. She's not doing right by Chat Noir, because now, as her plans are increasingly involving things she as Marinette and/or she as the Guardian have access to, and Chat Noir is not knowingly included in either of those, he is being ousted. It turns out she still needs him (or Plagg, in Mr Pigeon 72) for her plans, but her relationship with him is suffering.

He says in Truth that he doesn't mind her being the Guardian as long as it doesn't change things between them:

Except it is changing, and it has been bothering him. Just look at his face when he realises (or more accurately, assumes) the akuma has been defeated without him in Optigami:

He is not happy.

I'm sure I don't need to tell anyone at this point that Ladybug is ousting Chat Noir and he's upset by it. At this point in the series he's doing okay about it, still managing to keep up a front and hoping this is temporary. Which, according to this theory, it is. Honestly, no matter how this goes, it's not going to make Chat happy, because in this theory, the ending won't please him. We'll get to that.

So Marinette can't be Guardian and Ladybug at the same time. So, she has to give one up.

She may try to give up being Ladybug, but I'm not convinced this will happen. She may try to give over guardianship to Su Han, but I'm also not convinced by this- it's not narratively interesting and seems to contradict the conclusion of Furious Fu. So, what might she do?

Well, there's a clear answer. Someone who's already helping figure out important features of the Miraculouses, who was able to figure out a whole new power of the Ladybug Miraculous:

And who has good investigative powers to reveal more secrets? Who is already heavily invested in the superheros? Who already knows that Marinette is Ladybug and is already helping her?

And who has Marinette possibly already said she's training up to be Guardian?

Now, whether she's reffering to being Ladybug or being the Guardian here is unclear. I've seen most interpretations suggesting she means Ladybug, and from the wording in this case it honestly seems like both; but it could definitely be either. And in the context of this theory, if we assume she means Guardian, then it's clear that Marinette is already noticing that Alya would make a good Guardian.

So, let's put the pieces together.

Premise: Ladybug and Chat Noir cannot know each other's identity until this Hawkmoth is defeated. Premise: The Guardian must know both Ladybug and Chat Noir's identity. Conclusion: Ladybug and the Guardian cannot be the same person at this point in time. (Chat Noir can't be either).

Premise: Ladybug and the Guardian cannot be the same person at this point in time. Premise: Alya would be a good Guardian. Premise: Marinette either will not, or should not, give up being Ladybug. Conclusion: Marinette will make Alya the Guardian.

There are two complications with this plan. One is in Alya being the Guardian, and one is in Marinette giving it up.

The complication with Alya being the guardian is that Hawkmoth knows her identity. He knows she's Rena Rouge, and as of Optigami knows that Rena Rouge is special as opposed to the other holders. This appears to not be stopping Marinette giving her the Miraculous, but obviously, based on the events of late season 3, it's more of a complication in her being the Guardian. She has, like, parents, and can't hide like Master Fu could.

A possible solution is some kind of trickery, in which they make it look like Alya has lost her miraculous, and make it seem like Ladybug's still the Guardian. I mean, Alya's miraculous is illusion-based, and this could be interesting if it's post one-sided reveal discussed below. I'm sure there are other solutions as well, but off the top of my head I'd assume that would be the plan. Perhaps the Box is camoflaged such that finding out what of Alya's is the Miracle Box at all would be a challenge. There's a lot of possibility.

The other complication: Marinette would lose all memory of the Miraculouses.

Now, it's presumed here that the way the memory loss works is that it happens every time (and it's not like the appearance of the box, or kwamis being in/out of it, in that it's a factor of what the owner believes), and that the memory loss only applies to the Miraculouses and the kwamis and all of that, and doesn't affect other memories- which seems to be Fu's experience of it, after all. He doesn't remember Marinette because he only ever knew her as Ladybug, but he seemed to remember the unrelated Marianne fine.

This means that if Marinette loses guardianship, she'll remember Alya, Adrien, her family, etc... but nothing about Ladybug, Chat Noir, Hawkmoth, Tikki, any of that.

Which means:

-She'll have to spend some amount of time re-learning how to be Ladybug, who Chat Noir is, etc. all of that. Chat Noir will probably be able to fill her in on all of this, and so will Alya and Tikki, so it won't take so long.

-She gets a total reset on her relationship with Chat Noir. Which I highly doubt he'll be happy with- but it might change her view of him. I say it might change her view of him because mainly, while their relationship has been pretty consistent, she definitely is starting to like him more in this season, seeing him differently- and I largely think that that's due to a change in circumstance, as Marinette can only trust so many people in her life:

But I think an important part of Adrien's character recently is that we've seen less dichotomy between Adrien and Chat Noir. His true personality is a little of both, but he puts both on to play various roles; but honestly, I've noticed some more of Adrien in Chat Noir, and some more of Chat Noir in Adrien. He's being more honest with himself around some people, the self we only really see him being with Plagg, which he was trying to be with Kagami and is increasingly being with Marinette. It's hard to provide specific examples, though.

But if Marinette's first impressions of Chat Noir are just a touch more Adrien-like than they were, perhaps her feelings towards him will change- without losing that aspect of trust. I know I'm being very vague here, but there's a lot of potential and it'll take a lot more episodes of this season than we've seen to predict how this might go.

It's also possible that Marinette will remember Chat Noir when she met him as Marinette. Then we might get some great Marichat, or her only having knowledge of him as that boy who came to her ledge or she fake-dated. Which would be interesting. It's not totally clear how this will work if it occurs, so it's up to the writers really.

So that situation provides a lot of angst: Ladybug forgetting Chat Noir. But what comes before her forgetting Chat Noir could be something really interesting. After all, if the Guardian must know Chat Noir's identity, perhaps Marinette will try that first. Adrien will, of course, trust her completely.

Cue at least one episode where Marinette knows that Chat Noir and Adrien are the same person (while Adrien not knowing the reverse). Cue Ladrien. And, right after that, an episode that revolves around Ladybug erasing those memories. While Alya knows everything that just happened. And that Chat Noir is Adrien. And she can't tell Marinette this as she has to re-teach her how to be Ladybug. Honestly, if any character knows what we as the audience know about the Love Square, it makes perfect sense that it's Alya.

In conclusion: angsty season finale that ends with Alya knowing everything, Chat Noir Very Upset, Ladybug getting a memory reset, and just generally everything changing? It's more likely than you think.

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous ladybug theory #miraculous ladybug analysis #miraculous ladybug spoilers #ml #ml spoilers #ml theory #ml analysis #alya cesaire #marinette dupain-cheng #ladybug #chat noir #adrien agreste #rena rogue #miraculous

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