#Zhao the Dragon Slayer

[aravenlovesfanfiction]

[cyren-myadd]

Have you watched Avatar The Last Airbender? If so, I'm curious what kind of bending you think the characters from Avatar (Blue one) would have in this universe!

omg I LOVE thinking about an avatar avatar AU (avatar squared lol) I'm so glad I got this question!

So I know some people like to base the elements off of personality when making an ATLA AU, but I want to go by tribe so-

Sky People/Avatars/Recoms= fire nation

Omaticaya= Air Nomads, except they bond with wind dragons instead of sky bison and they aren't pacifists

Metkayina= Water tribe, but tropical instead of arctic

so Jake was a firebender soldier for the Fire Nation tasked with removing a group of Air Nomads from their ancestral home so the Fire Nation could build a mine. One day, he gets separated from his squad and lost in the forest where he's attacked by a sabertooth moose lion. The moose lion is about to kill him when all of a sudden Jake earthbends and escapes the moose lion. Jake is confused by his newfound ability to earthbend and little does he know he was being watched by an airbending huntress, Neytiri, the entire time. Neytiri brings Jake to the giant tree where her people live and announces she's found the Avatar (cue theme music). The Omaticaya are wary of Jake, but Mo'at checks him out and realizes he is in fact the Avatar and announces it is their duty to teach Jake how to airbend, fire nation soldier or not, and appoints Neytiri as his teacher. Jake goes along with the teaching, because, hey, new element, but he still feels loyal to the Fire Nation.

The story progresses just like A1, with Jake going back and forth on what to do until the Colonel Quaritch, leads a group of firebending soldiers in airships in a devastating attack on the Airbenders. This pushes Jake to turn against the Fire Nation and embrace his role as the Avatar. He's joined by a few nonbender Fire Nation citizens who are sympathetic to the cause, like Grace, Norm, Max, and Trudy. While defecting, Quaritch fatally wounds Grace and the airbenders ask the spirits to save her. Grace falls into a coma, and later they discover she is pregnant. Colonel Quaritch targets a sacred tree which acts as a portal to the spirit world with the intention of doing some Zhao-The-Moon-Slayer nonsense that he believes will help the Fire Nation. Jake, with a mighty red wind dragon, leads the Airbenders in a counterattack and successfully defeats the Fire Nation and Colonel Quaritch gets dragged into the portal by a vengeful nature spirit.

Years pass, and together, Jake and Neytiri raise their family. The oldest, Neteyam, is their pride and joy, an airbending prodigy who became the youngest person to ever earn his airbending tattoos. He is also very skilled with the bow, like his mother. Jake and Neytiri also adopted Kiri, the baby born from Grace (who passed away shortly after she was born) whose father is unknown. Despite Grace being a nonbending Fire Nation woman, Kiri is an airbender. She's not the most talented bender, but she has a very strong connection to the spirit world (like Jinora). Their second son, Lo'ak, is a firebender like Jake, and he secretly wishes he was an airbender like the rest of his family. Because of his upbringing, Lo'ak has a very unique firebending technique that is heavily influenced by airbending: it's very acrobatic and involves using fire jets to let him jump around. Their youngest is Tuk, a bubbly, energetic little airbender. She loves to ride around on air scooters and befriend wild animals. And of course, there's also Spider, a nonbender war orphan of unclear parentage who became best friends with their children. Though Spider isn't a bender, he's heavily influenced by being surrounded by airbenders just like Lo'ak, and he can run and jump around so agilely he almost looks like he's airbending.

As the years pass, Mo'at encourages Jake to continue on his journey to become a fully realized Avatar, especially since she fears the Fire Nation will strike back some day. Jake, who has only mastered fire and air at this point, keeps brushing it off until it's too late.

Quaritch somehow returns from the spirit world, younger, healthier, and angrier than every before. He also now has blue fire! When he miraculously returns to the Fire Nation, he wants his wealth and status back, but General Ardmore tells him he needs to capture the Avatar to restore his honor, so Quaritch gladly assembles a team of elite nonbending soldiers to hunt him down.

Quaritch manages to capture Spider, prompting Jake and his family to flee to the tropical Water Tribe so Jake can finally start learning waterbending. The water tribe are wary of Kiri, who looks very Fire Nation despite being an airbender, and Lo'ak, who looks more like his mother but actually is a firebender, but Jake reminds them that he's Fire Nation himself, and as the Avatar, they have a responsibility to teach him. Tonowari agrees to become Jake's waterbending master and allow his family to stay with him.

Then ensues the teenage bullying and shenanigans, and Lo'ak befriends a Unagi named Payakan. He also falls for Tsireya:

"I'm a Firebender! That's all they see 😡😡😡"

"I see you 🥺🥺🥺"

Meanwhile, Quaritch realizes that Spider is the son of one of his old concubines, making him his heir and the only family he has left, which gives him very conflicting feelings about Ardmore torturing him for information on the Avatar. Almost dying and getting lost in the Spirit World made him realize he doesn't have a legacy to leave behind. Quaritch frees Spider and then Spider challenges Quaritch to an Agni Kai, demanding that if he wins he'll be set free but if he loses he'll cooperate with Quaritch. Quaritch points out that Spider isn't a bender, but Spider grabs the equivalent of a flame thrower from one of his soldiers and yells "I said, Agni Kai, bitch!"

The battle results in half the arena being burnt down, but Quaritch wins in the end and Spider reluctantly agrees to be his translator (the nations speak different languages in this AU and spider knows air language and water language).

and then yadda yadda yadda, Jake masters waterbending, Quaritch somehow figures out where Jake is, grabs his kids, they have a big epic battle on a Fire Nation ship, Neteyam dies, Quaritch nearly drowns but is rescued by Spider, and then everyone goes home the end.

[mlmshipbracket]

Fourth MLM Ship Bracket Propaganda Submissions

Below you will find all of the submitted and approved ships for the Fourth MLM Ship Bracket Tournament along with the form to submit further propaganda at the bottom

This is another opportunity to submit propaganda for your favorite ships. Wether you were unable to submit propaganda for them in the initial form or you spot your favorite ship who has no propaganda submitted. Ships with a strikethrough have propaganda submitted, I will continue to update this post as propaganda is submitted. I will accept further propaganda for ships with already submitted propaganda but please prioritize those with out.

The goal is to have propaganda for all ships but I understand that may not be possible. Therefore I will be leaving the form open for a few weeks to see if we receive propaganda for at least half the ships.

Note: Please reach out to me if you spot any mistakes in character or fandom names, even if it is only formatting or spelling issues.

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Oliver Marks/James Farrow (If We Were Villains)

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Jean Luc Picard/Q (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

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Eustass Kid/Killer (One Piece)

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Frodo Baggins/Samwise Gamgee (Lord of the Rings)

Edgin Darvis/Xenk Yendar (Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves)

[ryin-silverfish]

Into the Erlang-verse: Li, Zhao, Yang

-This is something I wrote for fun and reference purposes, back when I was starting to seriously get into Chinese mythology. As such, there is no citations, and is meant to be more of a general introduction to Erlang Shen in pre-modern writings.

(Emphasis on "pre-modern", because, as much as I love the Lotus Lantern + Prequel TV series, it's just a little frustrating to see people taking the shows' version as the end-all-be-all of such a complicated deity, y'know?)

-Anyways, much like Nezha, his Archery Accident Bro, Erlang has what I'd refer to as his "Pop Culture Form": Handsome three-eyed warrior god wielding a three-pronged spear, accompanied by his doggo Xiaotian Quan(Literally "Skyhowler"), going by the surname "Yang", jade emperor's nephew, etc.

-However, The Second Lad is an even messier amalgamation of deities worshiped in different parts of China, even in his supposed "home domain", Sichuan. Here, I'm only gonna talk about the most well-known and significant Erlangs.

(Not even gonna go into the possible Zoroastrian influences and the Dujian thing...)

1. Lord of Sichuan, "Li Erlang"

Key words: Hydraulic engineer, based on a historical official and his son, fierce competitor with Zhao Erlang for the Lord of Sichuan title

Weapons: Knowledge

Power: Can turn into a bull/dragon 

Pets: N/A

"Who's Yang Jian? I've been watching over Sichuan since the Qin dynasty."

Li Bing was a pretty typical case of famous historical figure being worshiped as gods posthumously; born in the Warring States era, this official was put in charge of the Shu Prefecture (modern Chengdu) by King Zhao of Qin, and he was known as the creator of Dujiang Yan, an ancient irrigation + flood control project.

Later Tang legends deified him with a bunch of traditional "Flood-control hero" tropes taken from Yu the Great (heads up JTTW readers, SWK's staff is originally his extendable ruler), mostly the "hero turn into a giant animal" and "fight and subdue local water demons" aspect.

Though he wasn't yet known as an Erlang, or gained a son called Erlang as later folklore would have it, Li Bing's worship began in the Eastern Han dynasty, and he had a long tradition as Sichuan's guardian deity.

Even as later versions of Erlang began to populate, in the Qing dynasty, people of the province were still like "Our Lord of Sichuan is Li Bing/Li Erlang, not Yang Jian, as the novels would have you believe!"  

What made Li Bing and his likely nonexistent son into "Li Erlang" could be traced to the two "warlord states" that occupied Sichuan after the fall of Tang dynasty: both states tried to use the Lord of Sichuan worship to strengthen their own legitimacy, and passed decrees that 1) said Erlang was Li Bing's son and 2) granted both father and son honorable titles, as mentioned in Song dynasty records. 

However, due to the association of Erlang with previous warlord states, the first emperor of Song had reassigned Li Bing a lesser title and taken away his son's title altogether, reducing him to just "God of Guankou", and worshippers were quite disgruntled by the change; there was even a rebellion using the Guankou worship rituals to legitimize itself, a decade after said emperor's death.

Fun fact: when I went to the Two Lord’s Temple (of Li Bing and Li Erlang) in Dujiangyan, even though the god worshipped in the main hall was supposed to be Li Erlang, the plaque next to it still said something like "Li Erlang, also known as Yang Jian"...

Which really shows just how influential FSYY is on popular worship, to the point of overshadowing older incarnations of certain deities.

2. Immortal Master of Illustrious Sagacity, "Zhao Erlang"

Key words: Chief of Jiazhou Prefecture, dragon slayer, No.2 violator of archery safety (first place goes to Nezha)

Weapons: A scribing tablet, slingshot, sword, bow and arrows

Power: Supernatural strength, monstrous giant form

Pets: unnamed white horse, hunting hawks and hounds

"C'mon, my aim isn't that bad! What happened in the Zaju was a one-time thing!"

The prototypical Taoist Erlang, his name, "Zhao Yu"(赵昱) first appeared in a Song dynasty source. At this point, the story of Erlang was mainly defined by two traits: 1) was, or was related to an official in charge of Sichuan in bygone times and 2) Did heroic flood control stuff, probably through dragon-slaying. 

One notable strand of local worship was the "God of Guankou"; historical records mentioned that people sacrificed hundreds and hundreds of goats to him, as well as a regional festival in Sichuan where people played out his confrontation with dragons. It coexisted and entwined with the "Lord of Sichuan" worship, until the Song dynasty.

In typical Song dynasty fashion, the officials decided to give their own official title to this...Erlang/Lord of Sichuan/God of Guankou guy, bringing our titular "Zhao Erlang" into existence.

Also a deified official from the Tang dynasty, his image was more heavily influenced by Taoism (historically popular in Sichuan) and centered around one of its holy places, Mt. Qingcheng, which just happened to be quite close to Dujiang Yan.

Though in the Northern Song dynasty, the state-recognized Erlang was still "Li Erlang", the Taoist Zhao Erlang had proven himself to be a strong competitor by the Southern Song and Yuan dynasty, thanks to a massive amount of opera plays.

First we have SJSSDQ (三教搜神大全, Yuan Dynasty), an encyclopedia of Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian gods, where his traditional backstory as an ascended mortal official was combined with the dragon-slaying feat to nudge Erlang toward a more warrior-esque image, a hunting god who appeared on a white horse with his entourage of hunters.

-We also got the first mention of what would become his six/seven sworn brothers; the "Seven Sages" who jumped into the water to assist him in the dragon fight.

Then we have two Yuan-Ming Zaju plays, "Erlang of Guankou Slays the Jian-jiao"(灌口二郎斩健蛟) and "Erlang Drunkenly Shot the Demon-locking Mirror" (二郎神醉射锁魔镜), in which many traits associated with JTTW's Yang Erlang could already be seen: first, his three-pronged weapon, seven brothers and bow/arrows, second, the naming of his brothers as the "Seven Sages of Mt. Mei" and his ability to shift into a "true form", aka the monstrous giant form he used in JTTW.

(The plot of the second Zaju is exactly like it sounds: Erlang and Nezha had a drunken archery competition, accidentally broke the Demon-locking Mirror and released the Bull Demon King + Hundred-Eyed Demon, and spent the rest of the play doing damage control.)

3. The Little Sage, "Yang Erlang" (JTTW)

Key words: Jade Emperor's nephew, cleaver of Peach Mountain, SWK's true equal in battle

Weapons: Three-pronged, Double-bladed Spear, slingshot, bow and arrows, axe

Power: transformations, Cosmic Body, divine sight/Phoenix Eye(?)

Pets: a celestial Xiquan, literally "Thin Dog"

"First time we met, and that monkey made fun of my origins as a conversation opener. Could you believe it."

The Man, The Myth, The Legend! As I said before, a lot of his traits were inherited from "Zhao Erlang", including his Taoist title, his temple at Guankou, etc.

However, Erlang being Jade Emperor's nephew seemed to be mostly popularized by JTTW: the only other work that might have given Erlang this backstory was The Precious Scroll of Erlang, previously dated to the 1560s, though a Chinese paper published in 2018 proposed a later creation date (1620s).

Much like JTTW Nezha, his backstory was somewhat barebones: we knew from SWK's taunt that his mother was the Jade Emperor's sister, who got chummy with Yang the mortal, gave birth to him, and was presumably locked under the Peach Mountain for that, bc Erlang then rescued her by cleaving it in half with an ax.

(Sounds familiar? The same backstory would later be copied over to Erlang's nephew, in the Lotus Lantern legends)

His other notable feats include falling 2 phoenix with his slingshot, as well as slaying the "Seven Demons of Mt. Mei ''. Out of pride, he chose to remain in Guankou instead of associating with his heavenly relatives, and did not answer to general summons to court from the Jade Emperor, only taking special assignments (听调不听宣).

Apart from his famous fight with SWK, Erlang also appeared in JTTW chapter 63, where, together with his sworn brothers, he helped the pilgrims fight the Nine-Headed Wyrm, son-in-law of Bibo Lake's dragon king. His dog continues to be the MVP in this fight, biting off one of the demon's heads, leaving it wounded and fleeing toward the north sea.

Though the description of his battle with SWK implied that he did have some sort of supernatural sight, at this point in time (Ming dynasty), Erlang wasn't yet depicted with a third eye in artworks and literature.

There are a small amount of evidence that suggest the third eye thing might have shown up in statues of this period, though.

4. Master of the Ninefold Mystic Way, "Yang Jian" (FSYY)

Key words: Disciple of the Taoist sage Yuding, veteran of the Investiture War, Nezha's comrade-in-arms

Weapons: Three-pronged Spear, slingshot

Power: Ninefold Mystic Way, 72 transformations, invulnerable to physical attacks, Samadhi Fire (in FSYY it's on the same level as a D&D wizard's Fireball spell)

Pets: Howling Celestial Dog, unnamed white horse

"I fought a transforming monkey demon too!"

Fun fact: the guy whose name was most often taken as Erlang's "real name" by pop culture was never actually referred to as "Erlang" in his debut novel. Could ya believe it.

Quick, dirty summary of FSYY: kinda like the Chinese Iliad, about the overthrowing of Shang dynasty and its tyrannical King Zhou by King Wu of Zhou, with a dash of Taoist infightings, and almost everyone who died in the fight got revived as gods and became part of the celestial bureaucracy, thus "Investiture of the Gods".

Under the order of his master, the Taoist sage Yuding (literally "jade tripod"), Yang Jian makes his first cameo in chapter 40 to assist his senior, Jiang Ziya, in the fight against the Four Generals of Clan Mo.

A master in the arts of the Ninefold Mystic Way and 72 transformations, he has the same divine title as Zhao Erlang and is considered "A Sage in Flesh" after the end of FSYY.

As such, he's able to survive getting eaten by a monstrous weasel, a metal whip in the forehead, graphic disembowelment, etc. and used his transformation skills for some SWK-style "beating people up from inside their stomachs".

On one very notable occasion, he transformed into a beautiful palace consort to dupe Tu Xingsun ("Earth-traveling Son") and capture him.

Oh, and also, on his way to get Tu Xingsun's master, he ran into this random demon in a lake, who led him into a cave. After he got inside, the demon just disappeared, leaving him with the Three-pronged Two-bladed Spear, as well as some nice bling.

Then two kids burst in, accused him of stealing the bling, and...instantly became his students after learning his name? Yeah that was a weird sidequest.

However, Yang Jian's most iconic battle is probably his fight with Yuan Hong, the White Ape of Plum Mountain...who also practiced the Ninefold Mystics, used an iron cudgel, and were sworn brothers with six/seven demon kings.

Only with the help of Nvwa's magical painting, the Shanhe Sheji Scroll, was Yang Jian able to capture the ape, and subsequently, let Jiang Ziya decapitate him with Sage Luya's Immortal Slaying Flying Knife.

When the Three Demonesses were caught and executed at the end of the book, he was the one responsible for slaying the Nine-headed Pheasant Demoness, which is a neat parallel with JTTW.

His Howling Celestial Dog appears in chapter 47, and is even more of an MVP in fights: 12 immortals and demons have been bitten by this dog, which was "as large as a white elephant and as swift as an owl".

Funnily enough, every time Yang Jian summoned his hound, it is described in the same way as, say, other immortals may summon a flying sword, and my mental image is just him yeeting his giant monster dog at the enemy like you'd throw a Pokeball.

(A list of everyone Xiaotian had bitten in FSYY: Zhao Gongming, his sister Bixiao, Xinhuan, Deng Chanyu, Zhou Xin, Hua Huan, the Winged Immortal, Yuyan, Lv Yue, Yu Hualong, Dai Li the dog demon, the Nine-headed Pheasant Demon.)

Conclusion:

-The way I see it: Li is the Erlang of regional worship, Zhao is the Erlang of Zaju plays, and Yang is the Erlang of vernacular novels, who becomes super popular and overshadows his two predecessors.

-And Erlang's depiction in premodern Lotus Lantern tales is what we in the business call "a whole new can of worms". But that's a series for another day.

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Wednesday, October 2

Happy Buffy Resurrection Day to all who celebrate!

Cut to Buffy's grave. Zoom in on the ground, which is already churned up from the motorcycles riding over it. Suddenly a hand bursts out from below, then another hand, then Buffy's head and shoulders. She gasps for air, pulls herself up onto the grass, lies there panting. She looks around at the dark forest, very fearfully. Buffy slowly gets to her feet, turns and stares at the headstone with her name on it. She frowns in confusion, then her eyes widen in shock as she gets it.

~~The Bargaining~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

BtVS Triple Drabble: Angry And Hurt by badly_knitted (Willow, Buffy, PG)

Chaperones by apachefirecat (Buffy/Spike, PG)

Crouching on the Knife Handle by vampbrat (Darla/The Master, E)

You’re the Beach, I’m the Wave by Hecate (Buffy/Faith, G)

it's chemistry (but not ours) by ripslayer (Willow, Root, Person of Interest xover, T)

the perils of locker room showers by TechnicolorRevel (Willow/Faith, E)

(not) good enough by howtowords (Darla/Drusilla, G)

They'd done well, all things considered. Joan had managed to stay upright and stern-looking ... by hiddenbysuccubi (Buffy/Spike, unrated)

Chaperones by Apache Firecat (Buffy/Spike, PG)

[Chaptered Fiction]

Green Shards Underfoot - ch. 1-5 by acs (Dawn, multi xover, T)

After Midnight - ch. 1 by JennaRiley (Angel, Cordelia, Gunn, others, T)

Painting Flowers - ch. 1 by crowncitydreams (Buffy/Angel, Willow/Oz, T)

Unholy Matrimony - ch. 9 by CheekyKitten (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

The Degradation of Duality [Series Part 2] - ch. 54 by Ragini (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

As the World Falls Down - ch. 1-39 by lovetvfan (Buffy, Highlander xover, FR21) COMPLETE!

Breaking the Code - ch. 4 by Buffyworldbuilder (Dawn, Buffy, Illyria, FR7)

Exorcise - ch. 1 by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, PG)

A Sword in the Man - ch. 8 by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Dear Journal - ch. 9 by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, R) COMPLETE!

[Images, Audio & Video]

Icons: 🎨 Icon Pack #13 - Sunstroke (9 icons) by veronyxk84 (Buffy, worksafe)

Artwork: more cangel memes bc i enjoy the power being able to draw gives me by artsying-ifer (Angel, Cordelia, worksafe)

Artwork: Cringetober day 2: tsundere by nivvledoodles (Spike, worksafe)

Artwork and fic rec: “Four hundred and seventy-six days.” Buffy said quietly. by flyora (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Artwork and fic rec: "You got a little fight in you, watcher," she purred. by flyora (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Moodboard: A dragon!Giles/Buffy moodboard for one of my Kinktober fics. by unendingwanderlust (worksafe)

Moodboard: “I’m the thing that monsters have nightmares about.”  Buffy Summers by ourworldofwonders (worksafe)

Moodboard: bi they/them nb trans girl buffy summers by courtillyy (worksafe)

Moodboard: bi demisexual buffy summers by courtillyy (worksafe)

Edit: [For a while, it was love, wasn't it?] —sue zhao by dogmetaphors (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Gifset: btvs 3x20 / ats 1x08 by ptieuca (Buffy/Angel, worksafe)

Gifset: ATS 1.22 | BTVS 3.18 by coffygifs (Cordelia, Buffy, worksafe)

Gifset: BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (1997 - 2003) ⏤ 1.01, 2.09, 2.14, 3.08 by andremichaux (Buffy, Cordelia, Oz, Jenny, Spike, worksafe)

Fanvid: spike’s inner monologue be like by slugessence (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Fanvid: Spike and Buffy || Hunter by Angel (Buffy/Spike)

[Reviews & Recaps]

Season 6 hits too close to home by enrichyournerdpower

Update on this post [first time watcher] by Specialist-Orchid-80

season 7 of buffy is so perfectly set up to investigate the true nature of evil by pinesorneedles

angel the series is the funniest tv show on earth actually. i'm only on episode 7... by notdamien

PODCAST: Episode 76: Expecting (w/ Katie Kaisershot) by Gym Was Cancelled: A Buffy Podcast

[Recs & In Search Of]

[Bangel gifset] iwry2023 most fluffy fic: blush by aboutafox recced by iwillrememberyoumarathon

[Community Announcements]

Big congratulations to MamaBewear on getting BINGO!! by Fanged Four Family Bingo 2024

Updated commission info! [Spuffy] by lilibethdrawsreylo

[Fandom Discussions]

I was always frustrated by how Willow's relationship with magic was addressed in seasons 6 and 7. [commentary in the tags] by thequeenofsastiel

btvs characters and whether or not they ... [NSFW topic] by lesbianmarrow

I cannot believe Buffy was going to kill Faith to feed her to Angel. by lajeunefilleenfeu

I've been doing a year of refusing to chalk anything in BTVS as bad writing or fan service. [Xander, Riley, and Faith thoughts] by desicat-writer

[parallels with Agatha All Along and Tara in the Family episode] by a-couple-of-notes

Meme: [btvs characters plus things i found on my internet travels] by hal-1500

POLL: Best BTVS Season 1 Episode? by gh-0-stcup

POLL: Have you seen Faith's six episodes on Angel the series (aka ATS)? by elizadushkudaily

POLL: AO3 Femslash Top 100: Semi-Finals [Buffy/Faith vs Harley Quinn couple] by ao3femslashtop100-tournament

What If: Olivia wasn't around? by nightshade and many others

Free streaming (for Aussies) [and in USA] by November and famicommander

Discussion of 4.04 "Fear, Itself" updated by November

Discussion of 4.03 "The Harsh Light of Day" updated by November

Discussion of 4.01 "The Freshman" updated by November

First watch - some thoughts by Unlucky-Morning5474

If they did a revival, would they change anything? by NobodySpecialSCL

How would you portray Xander? [in a reboot] by Personal_Reward_60

I just realised something about Xander by BasementCatBill

Sarah and Joss [writing and acting and talent and professionalism] by Moon_Logic

How do you explain Angel's personality in season 1? by spectacleskeptic

How would Angel (Buffy/Angel) react to meeting Booth (Bones)? by Edkm90p

Gingerbread is scary to me by kai-enby

Unpopular opinion? [Fred on ATS] by BloatMyG0at

Do you think Eve was human? by DevilManRay

Fred feels like an Angel version of Willow from Buffy... by BabyBlueN7

Vampires degrees of bad by debujandobirds

Volviendo a ver la serie. 7° temporada. [Spike] by OneTap4588

[Articles, Interviews, and Other News]

VIDEO: movies should be scary, skincare shouldn't be. [skincare video with SMG] by Philosophy

PODCAST: Bonus Episode - Buffy Cast's Ultimate Survivor Island Showdown! by The Sunnydale Diaries

PUBLICATION: 8 Things I Learned Watching Buffy The Vampire Slayer For The First Time In 2024 by ScreenRant

PUBLICATION: Where Is Eliza Dushku Now? On a Bold Journey into Psychedelics by Boston Magazine

INSTAGRAM: [message to fans re psychedelic-assisted therapy article] by Eliza Dushku

Submit a link to be included in the newsletter!

Join the editor team :)

[league-of-starlight]

Shyvana voice update concept:

First Move:

“A dragon awakens.”

“For Jarvan, and for Demacia!”

“My wings are ready to be spread.”

Long move:

“When I was young, my father would often fret over my outbursts. I wonder how he’d see me now…”

“When my mother found me, she spoke all sorts of things to me. Some of those names linger.”

“Though many look at me with disdain and suspicion, there are some who trust me.”

“Jarvan’s decree about the mageseekers was a wise decision. But I remain cautious about the future.”

“Anger is always in my core, I must simply aim it correctly.”

First encounter:

“In the name of Demacia, you shall perish.”

“Show me your might.”

“Do not tremble, fight!”

(Encountering drakes:)

“Let’s see whose roar is stronger!”

Joke:

“What do you get when a dragon-ACHOO!” *sneezes out some fire* “Apologies.”

Joke response:

“Don’t waste my time.”

Taunt response:

“Will you be so brave with my teeth on your throat?”

Killing:

(General):

“Scorched away!”

*Growling exhale.*

“Whelp.”

Dragon form:

*Roar*

Recall:

“My strength must be restored.”

*Growl* “This isn’t done…”

Death:

“No…”

*Death rattles.*

*Strangled roar.*

Respawn:

“My heart is not easily extinguished.”

Character specific dialogue:

First encounter:

Galio: “We are both born of magic. That makes us very powerful.”

Garen: “Jarvan trusts you, but I require more than words.”

Jarvan: “Do we fight on the same side?”

“Shall we?”

Crystal Rose Jarvan: *sheepish tone* “Jarvan, you know I can’t dance.”

Kayle: “Does the protector accept something like me?”

Lux: *Vaguely flustered* “No, Jarvan has not ridden me into battle.”

“Will Terbisia accept someone like me?”

Quinn: “Your bird shouldn’t fly so high in the air. I get hungry…”

Ruined Shyvana: “You are an illusion, nothing more!”

Smolder: “You call that a roar? Hm, let me show you.”

Sylas: “I remember our fight, Sylas. And I want a second chance.”

Vayne: “Do you still think me a monster, Vayne?”

Viego: “You are no king. Simply a spoiled wretch with a false crown.”

Xin Zhao: “You trained Jarvan? An honour to meet.”

Taunt:

Aurelion Sol: “What dragon has no wings?”

Dragon slayer skins: “This dragon is more than you can imagine.”

Dragon trainer skins: “I am not one to be tamed.”

Lee sin: “This dragon is not something you can control.”

Swain: “Secrets hold no sway over me, fool.”

Vayne: “It takes more than silver bolts to slay a dragon.”

Taunt Response:

Vladimir: “My blood alone would boil you alive, wretch.”

Kill:

Lux: “There is a difference between rainbows and dragon-fire, Crownguard.”

Noxians: “Jarvan will be pleased.”

Smolder: “You have much to learn, hatchling.”

Sona: “Music will not soothe this beast.”

Vayne: “What’s wrong? I thought you specialised in killing monsters.”

Xin Zhao: “How do I tell Jarvan…?”

Moving near Jarvan:

Shyvana: I remember when you were simply Prince Jarvan.

Jarvan: Have I changed much since then?

Shyvana: Mmm, slightly taller.

Joking near Jarvan:

Jarvan: “Bless you.”

Shyvana: *Awkwardly* “Appreciated.”

Bonus:

RUINED SHYVANA:

Jarvan: “Shyvana, this is not you!”

Ruined Shyvana: “How could you understand?!”

Ruined Shyvana: “Your people execute me at the slightest opportunity!”

Jarvan: “They would never get the chance, Shyvana, I swear.”

[elcias-diary]

I find myself thinking a lot about Iroh.

Just casual stuff... Like ... The fact Iroh is a lier.

A Grade A+ lier.

Like, you know, the fact Iroh had been lying about stuff to everyone's face since well before Zuko was even born!

Lying about a lot of "traitorous" stuff... To a whole court and country's worth of people.

Including but not limited to killing the last dragon... Or rather NOT killing the last dragons. Like, straight up lying to his father's face about killing the last of the dragons like grandpa sozin wanted? Like maybe even Azulon himself wanted? We don't actually know how that went. And doing so since before Zuko was born.

Oh and being in a super secret club for people who want to maintain harmony and balance and the beauty thereof... probably sneaking out to have long philosophical chats with these likeminded, none war mongering, hateful, spoils of war/gold digging, ladder climbing, Royal Family bum kissers (*cough* Zhao the Moon Slayer *cough* Ozai's Ass Kisser). And worse than just that! He wasn't just hanging out with the wrong crowd (in Ozai's opinion, presumably Azulon's too, but the man was dead before we can get an honest read on him), he was chatting it up with those "lesser foreign folks"! The horror!!! Can you imagine what gramps sozin would have thought? Agni bless his soul!!!

Like Azula wishes her lie game was even close to Uncle Iroh's heavy weight championship lie game.

Azula always lies, duh. But then there's Iroh over there and we can't be sure he's actually lost his Pai Sho tile or if he just needed to nip over to the nearest White Lotus post office to send a proverb coded letter!

Which is it old man? Are you a dork who poisons himself in pursuit of fine tea or the AtlA version of James Bond? Which is it?.... Both... Apparently...

Makes you wonder about everything we never got to see about the man's backstory. Who was his wife? Why's he so short? Where did he meet the White Lotus? How'd he hear about the Sun Warrior dragons? What was it that brought him to heel to Sozin's mission statement as General Iroh, besieger of Ba Sing Se? Exactly how long had he been openly lying about his "traitorous" motives? When did Ozai notice? Why didn't Iroh notice his little brother was so deeply steeped in the poison that he was plotting to usurp the throne? Why was he so very different from his brother, from his grandfather, presumably from his father?

[tamaruaart]

What does Zhao think of these jttw characters(inspired by those demon slayer charts called "what do the pillars think of each other":

Jttw:Sun Wukong (monkey king)

Zhao: He's a bit obnoxious and can be a bit overbearing at times but in a way I owe my life to him, if I haven't had his company during tough times of my life I...i don't know were I would be now...So in short he's a dear friend but still would be nice if he could calm down a little bit.

Jttw:Zhu Baije/Pigsy

Zhao:He um....has an interesting character? I don't know how I feel about his "obsession" with me because I'm female but overall he's not terrible.

Jttw: Sha Wujing/Sandy

Zhao:I really enjoy his company! His character is very calm and reliable. Plus his strength is truly admirable when put into action!

Jttw:Tang Sanzang/Tripitaka

Zhao:Love his company!We are quite similar in our quiet demeanor,tho I do think he is a bit harsh on Sun..

Jttw:Ao lie/White dragon horse

Zhao:At first I was a bit upset he wasn't using his dragon abilities but I soon got a bit closer to him and really got to know him better!he is really sweet.

I will do an lmk version in a fy hours so stay tuned for that if it excites u^^

[weatherman667]

*deep breath*

Alright, I know.

Zuko beat Zhao with breathing.

Basic doesn't mean simple, it means foundational. Anything dealing with Chi, effectively has breathing be the foundation of super powers.

Even all the way back to Dragon Ball, (not Dragon Ball Z), Goku uses his opponent's breathing to anticipate his movements.

Demon Slayer is one of the MegaShonens that I've avoided like the plague, but it seems like it's using Breathing as a simple way to describe harnessing and channeling chi.

Ren likely learns Breathing Powers through focus and meditation.

Nora likely learns it through insanity. Which, not joking, and not saying she's insane. I'm saying she cannot see her own limitations, and that allows her to surpass the physical limits of her body. Like a berserker, but with more breathing and lightning.

Jaune literally picks up his ancestral sword, and so likely an ancestor would teach him. Maybe trapped in the sword.

Maybe voluntarily. Maybe otherwise. Maybe through attachment. Maybe hanging over the abyss, threatening to take whomever wields him with ihim.

Maybe his, to use the parlance you've chosen, Breath - remains on the sword. Making it akin to Fraggle Rock Fragarach (answerer).

RWBY all have family members that can teach them their own techniques.

Ironwood learned it through military discipline.

---

If you are going to break up powers into traditions, then it would make sense for the Arc tradition to be, actually let's rename it Aurora. Basically Aura, but shinier.

i'm sick and bored!

so here's another celestial dojo jaune build but this time I gave myself 1000 character points to work with and one free random roll. there will be no further rolls on the celestial dojo all improvements will come from in universe abilities. AU the grimm do not exist, instead it is the darkness in the hearts of men that hunters must strive against, the world of remnant is a post great war world where the color revolution and faunas wars happened at the same time leading to the utter collapse of civilization. five kingdoms remain,

Vale: the last monarchy, a place where knighthood and chivalry still finds a home. the king is elected from one of the noble families every ten years, knights are trained warriors who preside over a single settlement, while new colonies are popping up banditry and harsh weather or bad harvests can and will wipe them out leading to only a few knightly houses remaining. still any who wish may take on huntsmen training and take up the noble calling of a knight after graduation.

Atlas: the industrial powerhouse of the world, it is a city state with mandatory military service for all people, it is in a constant guerrilla war with menagery. it's tech is quite literally a century ahead of everwhere else though. minstral: the land of mercenaries. the entire state is essentially made up of mercenary companies who fight against or for cartels sometimes at the same time. minstral itself is a neutral territory where discussions of business can happen without risk of death for the negotiators. as a result the city effectively controls the continent but has very little power. vaccuo: vale's southern neighbor is in an interregnum lacking a royal to sit on the throne constant wars between the nomadic tribes of the desert and the Shieks over water keep them from uniting as no one has the spare men to expand their influence. menagerie: recognized as a kingdom in it's own right the island nation does have to deal with terrible PR as pirates and the White fang a faunas supremacy group are pretty much all they're known for now. making international trade and alliance all but impossible. now the royal belladonas seek to remove the white fang and pirates seeing them as a relic of the past. this of course is not going down well. you'd think in a world with no grimm things would be safer but no, with aura still a thing all it takes is some random jerk with a strong semblance and everyone's trying to take over the world. bandits are common outside the city walls and only other aura users can stop them. in this world of bloody evolution can the flower of chivalry bloom? or has the world fallen too far?

jaune's traits:

Breathing Style (400 CP) "The bread and butter of a demon slayer, the breathing techniques. You may choose any breathing style you like for any level or you can create your own on the same level as described, they don’t need to be for swords either, and note that all the higher levels can be reached by training. Post-jump you don’t need to breathe in order to use them if you do not require air to survive.

Hashira: The highest position of a demon slayer, usually gained by killing at least 50 demons or killing one of the 12 moons as a kinoe(the highest normal rank of demon slayers). You have reached the pinnacle of what a normal human is capable of with your breathing style, able to easily cut through scores of demons easily and take out the lower ranked moons without much effort. Your body is much stronger than the previous option, so much so you could be faster than the eye could see, and you may have even developed techniques of your own that no one else knows, but the most notable change is in your stamina, being able to go through extremely harsh training for weeks or even months straight. " Hanma (300 cp) "A lineage genetically predisposed to excel in all matters of violence, growing stronger with each battle. The quintessential Hanma bears the title of “World’s Strongest Lifeform”. Monstrous beasts, modern armies, and even natural disasters kneel before his physical might.

Those of the Hanma blood tend to develop demonic imagery throughout their body, such as the skull, back muscles, and even the brain.

For 300cp, you are a true heir to the Hanma name. So long as you continue to challenge yourself, you may catch up to masters with decades of experience in a few years, and the Ogre’s power may very well be within reach."

Steel Trap Clarity (300 cp) "It's a sad fact, but traitors and spies are lurking everywhere. Their hands forced by blackmail, willingly becoming a double agent from bribery or falling to good old fashioned brain washing. Not you though, absolutely not. Upon purchase, you become excessively resistant to traditional forms of corruption, mystical forms of brainwashing and everything in between. Something with mind-boggling power may still be able to put you under its control. Most of the threats to your morals or sanity in this world are just out of luck. Additionally, you will always be able to keep a clear idea of your personal principles, meaning you won't stray off of your path on accident."

(Free roll) Blessed by the Sun God (600cp) You did not awaken with the Demon Slayer Mark, you were born with it. Ever since you were young you have been stronger than most, and you only grew stronger over time. Because the mark is so deeply engraved into your body, it has undergone a change from the normal version, making you even stronger than it would make others along with a great increase in talent. Your Transparent World has gotten to the point where you can see individual blood vessels and sickness in people while also slowing the world down even more along with your thought processing being even faster. Most importantly, your Red Blade is much more potent, not only causing wounds to heal at a snail's pace for those with extremely fast regeneration and taking even more energy, but the wounds will continue to burn long after they have been healed, which will always leave nasty scars. Finally, those you train with will slowly be able to awaken their own marks, though only the first version.

how would you write this version of jaune? here's my idea down below

jaune's family in this universe have an instinctive grasp of violence, one they bury under the laws of chivalry to be able to function in this world. while most simply use aura the arcs developed this bodies first only unlocking the aura of their children after they've mastered the breathing forms. the increase in strength and speed is about what you would get from unlocking your aura and their natural physicality makes them stronger than most low level huntsmen anyways. jaune was unique born with the sign of the rainbow on his back he's always gotten combat and an instinctive grasp of how the human body works. but as a result has been isolated from the common sense of this world, lacking any idea of what aura is or how it works. not knowing what a huntsman is in relation to a knight. (knights are assigned a territory to watch over huntsmen travel around) and not knowing about modern tech and who the players are in the world. (doesn't know about weiss or pyrrha) people tend to view him as a blunt instrument. in reality his mind is far sharper than any would give him credit for. he's just a purpose built item, a sword among axes and hammers. he asked to be sent to beacon not to learn to fight but to actually learn to be human outside the shadow of his family. but can he hold back the instinctive call for violence that runs through his veins?

how would you write this world? how would you write this version of jaune ignoring my idea for it just above. also any thoughts on how things like the silver eyes would adapt to having to handle human enemies? my thought was it visualizes aura helping the silver eyed warriors not only empathetically predict their enemies abilities and next attacks but also what their semblance is. as well as giving a strong boost to their aura when feeling strong positive emotions.

@howlingday @weatherman667 @heliosthegriffin just something i'm doing while i'm too sick to actually do anything. lemme know what you would do

[ohnoitstbskyen]

Xin Zhao's Best Skin: Marauder is the only Xin Zhao skin that feels complete

Does Xin Zhao have good skins? I'll be honest I kinda don't think so. Warring Kingdoms has the Zhao Yun ("jaou yun") reference which is kinda cool, Secret Agent is kinda funny I guess, and Cosmic Defender is sleek I suppose, but I just can't get excited for the ideas behind any of them.

Viscero Xin Zhao has the cool feature of being a lore-canon skin, but I landed on Marauder Xin Zhao for the sole reason that out of all of his skins, this is the one that to me feels most "complete" in itself. And this is something that's difficult to articulate with a coherent argument, but most other Xin Zhao skins feel to me like they have a vibe of "oh shit we have to fit this aesthetic on top of Xin Zhao's clunky model somehow, fuck" and so either they end up weirdly restrained like Dragon Slayer and Cosmic Defender, or they become catastrophically cartoony like... what we'll talk about in the next video.

Marauder feels believeable, it has that je ne sais quois, and while it’s not spectacular, it does look badass, which might be enough.

[sasamelons]

the worlds of sasa

AO3 | twitter

currently writing: guardian(zhenhun), mdzs/cql, other danmei (maybe?)

I’ve also started making podfics!

guardian fics

written (dramaverse) - time travelling / young shen wei feels

my heart is a kaleidoscope (drama/novel) - Sailor Moon AU

团圆, or, the making of a whole (dramaverse) - zhao yunlan, zhao xinci and shen wei on the reunion festival

taking care (dramaverse) - episode 4 missing scene, YOHE memories and overprotectiveness

disappear (dramaverse) - fix-it, if the drama ended the way the novel did

the minor gods (drama/novel) - tiny dragon shen wei and his tiny dragon powers!

hearth and home (novelverse) - post-canon weilan sending off the Kitchen God (CNY fic)

waiting for spring (novelverse) - pre-canon zhao yunlan and ghost slayer

the last cup of tea (novelverse) - post-shen san, in the underworld

top of the food chain (drama/novel) - reluctant tiger!da qing

mdzs/cql fics

homeward - modern cultivation road trip fic

lie down in the not knowing - modern diaspora au

the place hidden amidst clouds - modern wangxian ghost story

the river and the sea - wangxian soulmates + arranged marriage au

the heart of a bear - wangxian time travel + accidental marriage (modern cultivation)

眼前的星星 | the stars we see - soft wangxian space teens (podfic version)

amongst the living - jin ling, ghosts and grief

guiding lights - wei wuxian makes a wish, post-canon

other danmei

the sour and the sweet (cancipin) - lulin, tangerines and memories

other fandoms

sherlock, x-men: first class, inception, psycho-pass - see ao3

[muffinlance]

Random note: so in Little Zuko, "more Yue" was the answer.

Currently wrestling with the Scaled Over outline rewrite, and I have come to the fundamentally disturbing conclusion that "more Zhao" is the answer.

Because you all really, really wanted more screen time for Dragon Slayer Zhao.

[seyaryminamoto]

Anon-Nemesis - Right, I’ve got some free time, so I’ll have to make this a quickie, but I thought about my answers while at a boring family lunch thing.

Favorite Character: Ozai (The way you write him anyway, he’s pretty meh in canon))

Least Favorite Character (one who’s constantly there): I do have a few less than liked minor characters, but none of them are “Constantly There” So I have no good answer for this.

Favorite “Antagonist”: Ozai & Ol’ Spooky (Seethus) Lets face it, Ozai is the big papa of baddies, quite literally, and Ol’ Spooky spooked me good in his arc, at least till Azula and Xin handed him his own ass on a golden platter. I’m listing them together because you sort of portray them as a team where Seethus is just an extension of Ozai’s will personified (I might’ve picked Zhao too, but he hasn’t actively opposed our main duo too much so far, so instead I will pick)

Favorite OC: Rui Shi, duh. The guy has been there nearly from the start and has had Azula back even back in the early days when she was quite a jerk and hadn’t been, uh, tamed by Sokka (lol, not my best choice of words but I’m sticking to it, Azula might find the idea privately amusing these days but would kill me for sure for saying it like that) I feel like Goro would be high on this list, as would Ol’ Spooky, but we seen too little interaction with either for me to list them.

Favorite Gladiator: Aside from Sokka and Toph; My fav is The Millennium Dragon. Runners up The Alchemist (Well his sponsor is more interesting than him) Special Shout Out to the Dart Slayer, he jobbed so hard he got Sokka recruited (Was it Dart Slayer? Shit, it was so long ago) and a last conflicted entry, Rhone, I like what he represents (Basically Evil Sokka) but I don’t like him as a person, the dude is a straight asshole who needs a good thrashing.

Favorite Suitor or a Suitor I wished would make moves on Azula: Toph, I don’t mean in a shipping sense, but just Toph could mess with Azula and offer to marry her as a joke or something. Azula’s reaction would be priceless. A more serious answer, Zhao, He may be a douche, but I kind of like the guy in Gladiator, he’s not quite morally grey, but he does seem to only want the best for Azula, or his idea of the best, which ain’t actually the best for her.

Most Relatable Character: The young dude who works the desk at the Royal Dome, Shouji I think its spelled, such a timid little fellow, yet so composed since he’s always coming face to face with some of humanities mightiest people, the Gladiators, and scummiest people, sponsors. Plus he knows his business and does his job effectively. Supporting Sokka’s career is also nice. Also, special shout out to Keno. Wait, who was he again? Ah nevermind, probably nobody important. Anyway, where was I? …

Character I’d like to see more: Ol’ Spooky, mainly, that creeper really fascinates me, Its funny how he and Azula are frightened of eachother even though Azula would effortlessly waste his ass. I want to know how Ozai keeps the loyalty of someone that dangerous. Is he even human? Or some ancient fire spirit? He’s one of the biggest mysteries you’ve got going. Goro is one I really hope you develop, He’s got a nice fatherly, or grandfatherly vibe that could be a much needed point of stability for Azula in part 3.

 Favorite Canon (Gladiator canon)Pairing: Main Duo aside, Rui and Song were my number 1, but lately Ozai/Ursa has stolen it (Even though Ursa is gone.

Favorite Non-Canon Pairing: I can only come up with joke pairings I’m afraid, but. One sided Ty Lee X Ozai (The mental image of Mr. propper n serious, but buff, handsome Firelord with that bubbly bundle of joy hanging off his arm, bugging him to take her somewhere fun. I can’t stop laughing, he just wants her to get lost, and Azula is deeply worried about her friend’s sanity) Azula X O'l Spooky, or Azula X Sparky Sparky Boom Man (No matter which way you slice it, its one big, powerful and passionate fire storm, loud and explosive, silent and deadly, and each hella destructive) Okay fine, I’m only thinking of their bending, not the characters themselves. Sokka X Boomerang/Sword/Club (Wholesome until you realize he’s having a foursome with his own armory. Hell, let’s throw Azula into the mix, she can bring her own sword. Man, that’d be a dangerous bed, so many sharp and pointy accidents waiting to happen. But maybe Space Sword X Wolf’s Bane, they fight together, and snuggle together, just like their owners.

Favorite Arc: Tough call. Its a rivalry between Giving In arc, Slave Riot arc, Fire Lord’s Shadow and Air Temple arc for 2nd place. But 1st Place goes to combined Whaletail Island/Shu Jing arcs with how well they flow together, you outdid yourself with them, fluffy as half of them were

Favorite Place/Location:

 Part 1 or Part 2?:

I wished to see Sokkla more in/like … :

Guessing Game: Guess how good/bad I am at guessing games.

Finish the following sentences: “They don’t? I guess they were probably too busy looking at your… a-at… y-your ? ? ?” (Yeah, spot that one motherF-ers, I dare you.)

I think Azula & Sokka’s relationship will be revealed when/like/because of … Their own inability to exert willpower over their horny impulses. In other words their own reckless stupidity.

I believe at the end of Part 3 … Ozai gonna die, that’s about all I’m certain of. The invasion happens, lots of death and destruction. Since Aang ain’t a killer, my money is on Aang defeating Ozai but its Katara or The White Lotus who kill him. I don’t think Azula could do it though no matter how much she comes to hate her dad. Sokka won’t either since Azula still cares about Ozai, he’s still her papa. Besides, Azula may be too busy having a violent ass knockdown drag out deathmatch with Ol’ Spooky to keep him off the heroes backs, she wins and Ozai loses his two greatest assets. Ozai fights to the bitter end, ignoring Azula’s pleas for him to surrender, he’s too far gone in his hubris, his ego and his rage at Azula’s betrayal by then. Afterward, happy-ish ending, bittersweet, but Azula becomes Fire Lord, Sokka becomes Fire Lady, and has lots of kids and rule happily everafter, of 5 minutes ever after since those two can’t stop attracting trouble.

I’m glad you had a chance to join in! :D thank you for that submission, my friend!

[ryin-silverfish]

I feel most modern adaptations don't capture Erlang Shen's wild side. In a way that's fair. He's been a very mainstream and high-ranked god for so long that to use modern lingo, he can be comfortably labeled as an "establishment sell-out". So many people have an image of him as a pure law-and-order guy, for better and for worse. I'm not going to talk about the "official" Daoist identities for him because they do their best to make him seem respectable by linking him with official sponsored waterworks projects or other forms of government-condoned activity -- I just want to talk about the folk perception, because that's the guy everyone except Daoist fundamentalists are worshiping. In early myths and myth-derived entertainment, especially stories about his youth, Erlang is very wild and rebellious. He spends all day hunting with his hound and hawk and laughs away the idea of taking orders from Heaven. He was fostered or at least aided by his aunt, Queen Mother of the West, giving him essentially a protector as he ran roughshod around China, splitting mountains to save his mother and sealing suns under mountains he carried over his shoulders. His retinue consisted of "exotic" foreigners -- golden-headed slaves Guo Yaji and Sayikun who held his blade and cared for his hound. His foot soldiers were 草头神/Wild Gods. He led the Chinese equivalent of the Wild Hunt, flushing demons out of mountains. His name was mentioned alongside the God of Death 阎罗 and the Lord of Ages 太岁 in Water Margin as a fierce god suitable for an outlaw to imitate. All in all, he reads like an upper class delinquent, someone both inside and outside of the established social order. Most modern portrayals of Erlang don't have this ambiguity.

Ohhh, I happened to read a Chinese paper that talked about the exact thing...well, maybe not the exact thing, but it is about the remaking of Erlang's image in Yuan-Ming era operas and vernacular novels!

Erlang in Pre-Song era sources, when he was not yet Li Bing's son and just an ambiguous mix of Li Bing, Lord of Sichuan + God of Guankou, was not very humanized. Like, sure, he was a regional guardian and a slayer of dragon, but there were pretty much no description of his looks or personality.

When Zhao Erlang first appeared, his image shifted into that of a martial general, but everyone's favorite "Handsome Second Lad" was mostly a creation of Yuan-Ming Zaju plays and novels.

And the paper compared and contrast the Erlang of Zaju plays and novels: in the former ones, exemplified by plays like "Erlang Drunkenly Shot the Demon-locking Mirror", he was kind of a hothead, and prone to impulsive decisions.

In JTTW and FSYY, however, he was a lot more calm, humble, and cunning, though JTTW paid homage to his pride and "rebellious hermit god" status more than FSYY, in which Yang Jian is a lot more quiet, polite and strategically-minded.

The paper argues that the Yuan-Ming plays and novels signified the shift of Erlang's image from a purely martial general to the "Confucian General" (儒将) archetype, someone who possessed both scholarly and martial virtues.

Similarly, this shift also made him a lot more closely connected with the imperial court, both celestial and mortal, and played up his loyalty + filial piety.

Now that I finished info-dumping about this really neat paper: yep, I'm not the biggest fan of "Erlang as the upholder of Celestial Justice" either, even though his more "lawful" portrayals had some basis in Qing novels like 八仙得道传 as well as Liaozhai (the short story, Xi Fangping, has him acting as a Baogong-like figure to this guy who had been wronged by corrupt Underworld officials.)

What I feel like modern adaptations + perceptions tend to overlook, however, is his "Regional Guardian" status. Someone intimately connected to the land and people of Sichuan, whether it is the wilderness of its mountains, or the irrigation projects that tamed the rivers, or the opera plays and fine wines of the Country of Heaven——天府之国.

Like, in JTTW, when SWK impersonated him and sat inside his temples, he received your average prayers for blessings and fortunes, but also requests as mundane as asking for a son or a cure to their sickness.

(While I was watching JTTW '86 adaptation of that scene on Bilibili——which was amazing and hilarious, people were like "This is what Erlang does all day?" and jokingly calling him "Erlang Community Clinic" in the scrolling comments.)

To me, he is a guy who may be too prideful for the heavens, but never considers himself too good for mortals. A true son of Shu who'd find the choice laughably easy, if he was ever asked to pick between "Upholder of Heavenly Laws" and "Lord of Sichuan".

Which is why portrayals of him as this Blood Knight-esque "Hound of Heaven" irk me, a lot.

[zwitter-iconic]

Rewatched the Ember Island Players and the fire nation really retconned it so that the mistake of letting the Blue Spirit take Aang was Zuko’s rather than Zhao’s huh? I mean all of ‘The Boy in the Iceberg’ is the Fire Nation poking fun at the heroes of the other nations but they really lean into demonizing their own villains. Iroh? Dragon of the West? Formerly known as the greatest general of the Fire Nation? A fat, old slob. Zuko? Their crown prince and at one point considered the slayer of the Avatar? The guy whose incompetence set him free.

[alexandriasbadauideas]

Season 1 Zuko finds a dragon egg and inadvertantly hatches it.

I’m a glutton for telepathic dragons and would greatly enjoy everyone freaking out when Zuko goes batshit over this spirit thing of unknown origins, but that’s secondary to unprepared! devoted! teen parent Zuko. But also: Zuko hiding in the vents because the crew tried to take the egg from him after he telepathicaly bonded to it.

Just the sheer, unadulturated angst potential: “OH SHIT THAT’S A DRAGON. UNCLE IS A DRAGON SLAYER WHAT DO I DO?!” “Yes there’s the whole dragon slayers thing, but Druk is obviously Perfect and if I regain my honor the Fire Lord will immediately see that and ban it for their sake.” And big oof, suddenly everbody realizes that all Zuko’s issues are, in fact, severe childhood trauma. “Well, what did your father do for you?” Is now ALWAYS followed by “Then do the opposite.”

Zuko tries to leave the bb dragon with Uncle at the North, but bb dragon escapes and interrupts the Katara/ Zuko showdown. Katara takes it hostage- move is highly effective. Then Zhao shows up and Zuko straight up tries to murder him when he boasts about being both the Moon AND a dragon slayer. Yue rescues the Moon koi during the scuffle, Aang wakes up... things get really awkward because the Northern Water Tribe show up and take Zhao, Zuko, and Iroh prisoner.

Jerk Lord Ozai declares them traitors rather than ransom for them. Zuko has a nervous breakdown over that, and we find out if “Northern Water Tribe’s A+ mental healthcare” is sarcastic or not. Iroh arranges to teach Aang firebending in exchange for his and Zuko’s freedom.

Zuko is not happy, but he can’t exactly run off in the Earth Kingdom or the Fire Nation with a DRAGON. He would have had his regular Season 2 character arc just with the Gaang, but Azula gets a little farther in the combination equivalent of Episode 1 “No, Father wants you home” and Ba Sing Se and reveals that Ozai wants his dragon baby dead. So Zuko emotionally nopes it out of there entirely. He’s done with Ozai, let’s get this coup on the road.