#adults can't either but I digress

[hollowflight-propaganda]

Me: has my sixth sudden crying spell of the week

Also me: "yeah but I'm probably not ACTUALLY depressed"

[littledead-ridinghood]

sorry if this is a weird question to drop on you you were just the first person I thought of who might know but do you know if it's canon/canonically-based evidence that jason is physically stronger than other bats because I always see people say jason is the one with "brute strength" and I can't remember if that's based on anything besides people saying that as a nicer way to call him a brute(maybe it was on lobdells stuff? but I wiped most of those out of my memory)

You thought of me first? <333333 I'm blushing. And it's not weird at all! Even if it was, I love answering weird shit.

Anyway:

So part of Jason being considered "the muscle" of the bats comes from the fact that Jason's currently the biggest of the robins. (Adult!Damian is usually drawn as the tallest of the kids when all is said n' done (that's vague for "age")).

Well, how big then?

I always go with this chart which was released while UtRH was being released:

(I Love this! I wish DC still did little info things like this within their comics. Or maybe they do and I'm just blind. But Look! Canonical Information!)

So canonically speaking, at least when running around pre-crisis, Jason is 6 feet tall and 180 pounds. (Also note criminal mastermind and put a pin in it)

But you've probably heard 200 & 220 thrown around a lot. Those numbers are specifically pulled from two different DC character encyclopedia books which I don't trust at all because there notoriously filled with false information and are dubbed as not canon all the time.

Personally, I use the 6', 180-195 pound range which estimates for fluctuating weight, the passage of time, muscle mass, and minimum bulk & cutting (which I assume is part of most superheroes' training to stay in fighting form, but please recognize that vigilantes are more athlete than bodybuilder) because it's from a canon source (Canon is "king" and all that). No shame to people who use the other numbers or even headcanon something completely different, but again, vigilantes are predominantly running all over cities day after day, not stagnant weight lifters. Cardio vs weights body compositions are quite different even if both are healthy. (And it's not all "swimmer's body illusion" either (they have that body because they swim? No, they swim because they have that body.)

How much muscle mass a person can maximally obtain is up to your genetics. But that max only comes with constant maintainment. It's not feasible for Jason to be doing all that cardio and also have that much muscle mass and fat. Cardio burns "fat" (calories), weights build muscle. We constantly see the former and former-adjacent workouts more than the latter with him. Jason is running across rooftops, flipping off them before falling into a shoulder roll onto the next roof over chasing after bad guys every night. The number of calories he'd have to eat and time put into lifting weights (too many reps a week lead to damage, not growth) to maintain his max (max being what a lot of weights category athletes try to achieve which Jason just hasn't been shown to be (except in his jailbird phase where he could literally only lift weights, read, and avoid being killed to pass the time)) isn't possible.

Using comic art to "prove" how much he weighs doesn't work either. Firstly, because everyone wears weight differently. Two people can be the same height, weight, and sex and look completely different. This is due to different body types, composition, genetics, diet, (what kind of) exercise, and many other factors. Assuming someone thinner is automatically "super light" doesn't factor in different body compositions (fat, muscle, bone percentages). (yes, I know it's stupid to apply science to comics. There's my digression. let me live). Secondly, Jason (just like everything else about him) isn't drawn consistently at all. Sometimes he's pretty damn massive, but we also have Twink and Twunk Jason (DC can't even decide on hair color? Do you think they're gonna decide on his body?).

So, comic book art isn't super reliable as evidence unless we want to theorize if, how, and why he seems to fluctuate between weights all the time (<- Which I have a whole headcanon about if anyone's curious), especially in comparison to the others because, seriously, it's totally a Jason thing. Most characters are pretty consistent in body type. Anyway, someone could argue "See! he is 210!" but it's also not for a long enough period to stick around :/ Again, hard to consistently maintain that much weight as a 6-foot-tall, cardio-based athlete.

Also note: DC is horrible when it comes to weight-to-height lineups. A woman hero can be ~5'7'' and then we're told she's 110 lbs which Fact 1. is considered underweight for this kind of height-to-sex ratio, Fact 2. probably isn't factoring in the fact that muscle is heavier than fat, she just "looks thin", and 3. Usually, totally, absolutely is just blatant sexism.

Really, the numbers don't seriously mean anything of actual substance because their comics, are unreliable, and also usually just...scientifically wrong. But Jason's perception on page, as well as the information we've been told, is one reason he's considered "brute strength first and foremost."

Furthermore, Jason has been shown repeatedly to be on par with Bruce (even when Jason, most of the time, plays defense in their physical fights) but many people chalk this up to him and Bruce having similar physiques making it "easier". Again, counter-productive argument because Bruce and Jason have been drawn very similarly before in stories as well as completely different from each other in others. Also, this purposefully, blatantly ignores Jason's actual skills. No one chalks Dick Grayson or Cassandra Cain beating Bruce up to their body types. Moreover, when Bruce and Jason are drawn similarly in body, no one refers to Bruce as "Brute Strength" either. Bruce gets to be tactical, strategic, clever. (Also Also: In Pre-Crisis, Bruce, Dick, and Jason are deliberately drawn to look similar (height, mass, looks, etc.) to get that Brothers in Blood effect. Still, No one chalks the formers up to all strength. Just Jason)

And that brings us to your question, Anon: Is there canonical evidence for Jason being stronger than the other Bats?

Remember how I told you to put a pin in that "Occupation: Criminal Mastermind" note? Well, first off, Jason creating jobs for his community. Go off, king. Second off, and more importantly so, "Mastermind": a person who supplies the directing or creative intelligence for a project (Merriam-Webster).

When Jason was first re-introduced, what made Jason dangerous was that he was highly skilled and smart. He was playing with both Black Mask and Batman like a cat batting a toy mouse. He orchestrated an entire "slow-growing" takeover of Gotham's underworld (he was actually very quick about it). Jason controlled the situation and planned so well that he had the villains and heroes who were both after him fighting each other so he could slip away and do what he actually needed to do.

Throughout Jason's history, he's always had tools with him when he fights. To the point that Bruce says to Jaybin "You won't always have this" cutting his utility belt, insinuating he relies too much on it, which Jason returns the favor to on his return and fights B hand to hand <3 Love a cocky callback. Furthering this, he knows many, many different fighting styles and techniques both from life experience and from extensive training. Jason's a quick learner by nature and is incredibly adaptive. Guns; knives; swords; pens; sets bombs to specifically implode, not explode; makeshift gadgets; a baseball bat just laying around; a tire jack that one time; brains. I could go on. Jason doesn't just hit things. He uses what he has as a means to an end. He's canonically known as one of the best strategists in-universe and is incredibly creative with his surroundings. Jason isn't just great at extensive, long-term planning either. Bruce himself has remarked on the fact that Jason thinks incredibly quickly on his feet, he's really good at improvisation. Concisely, he has plans A-G and if all those fail, he can pull something out of nothing. Contrast this with Bruce who needs to have a plan for everything. Even if it doesn't look like he's following a plan, Bruce is. Opposed to Jason who can go with the flow and figure it out along the way.

Jason even said this in present-era in TFZ:

And that's the whole point, isn't it? Jason is strong. Incredibly so. He's big and tall and has gorgeous thighs. Not to mention, has a mean right hook. But just because Jason's strong doesn't mean he isn't a bat first and foremost who relies on his brain before anything else. He died 4'6 (on his death certificate, his height varies depending on what source you pull) and famously had to defend himself his entire life ever before being Robin. Being young and small and forced to survive shaped Jason into a quick thinker who could either get away or take enemies 10x his size down. Nowadays, he just has a longer reach.

In Event Levithan when Damian says: "Jason Todd is one of the Great Master fighters of all time" He doesn't say strongest because Damian doesn't mean strongest. Damian means adaptable, smart, capable, and well-rounded in skill.

While I don't doubt that Jason is most definitely one of the strongest Bats due to his size, what makes Jason dangerous is not his body, but the fact that he knows how to use it. It's not "Brute Strength" as many people like to say, it's Strategic Strength. He knows just because he's stronger than someone doesn't mean he'll always win. A la see panels above. Jason knows throwing his body around won't do anything of real, long-term substance. That it's just blindsided and stupid.

I'm sure if I looked I could pull panels where other bats and/or vigilantes refer to Jason as the muscle, brute (strength), all brawn (no brain), other such implications, etc, but whenever people do, it's always to undermine Jason's skill. Because it's not actually about his strength. Jason, with his taller, more built form, makes walking quiet seem easy. And it looks easy because he's good. Jason himself knows his skill set, it's everyone else that undermines him time and time and time again. (Again, Event Levithan, Bruce doesn't agree with Damian's statement even though Jason just outsmarted the six or so people who all just tried to take him down (for something Jason didn't even do, mind you))

But, again from Damian, Jason's not known as "the muscle," he's "the emotional one" also usually used to...degrade Ja--We can't have anything nice apparently is what I'm saying. But yes, when people refer to Jason as "Brute Strength" it's usually them trying to find a nicer way of saying Brute or "thinks with his fists" or "Jason hits first, asks questions later." It's in the same vein as when people say "Jason likes books" as short-hand for "see, he's smart at something" rather than acknowledging that Jason achieved a degree's worth of knowledge in comp-sci by age 13.

Anyway Smart and Strong Jason, my beloved. I wish DC & others loved you as much as Rosenburg and the teams of artists he's been working with do.

[kryptonbabe]

This version of Mr. Mxyzptlk finally made me realize how cool the concept of the character really is

I've been a fan of Superman for a while now, almost ten years, oh time really flies, but I was never able to truly connect to Mxyzptlk the same way I do to Brainiac, Lex Luthor or Parasite. The chaotic nature of the character was never appealing to me. I started reading Superman and following comic book adaptations as an adult, which made me wonder if that's not the reason why I can't bring myself to enjoy the playfulness of some characters. For instance I don't really like Bizarro stories either (although I think he's cute and sympathetic, I've never read / watched something with him that I didn't find more annoying than anything... for now at least, I did not give up).

However, as I was finally watching MAWS 1st season last night, something about the Mxyzptlk episode just clicked, I fell in love with the character and the show (I mean... the League of Lois Lanes?? Amazing), his looks, personality and chaotic cheerfulness, the neutral nature of his moral inclinations, his defiant attitude towards Superman, an all powerful being that can actually challenge Clark's abilities. Lovely, unique, fun.

And as I looked for images of MAWS Mxy to send to my friends and tell them "I wish I was exactly like him", I found several excerpts of old comics with Mr. Mxyzptlk, and suddenly, that big headed imp with a tiny hat became an endearing figure with funny dialogues, I felt the urge to know more, read his origins, his famous stories and all I can find about the purple and orange clad creature.

I'm a fan of silver age Superman family comics and all this time I was foolishly avoiding Mxy stories, now I know I have so much to learn and laugh about, I can't wait. And all of that unleashed by this modern adaptation, I was really not expecting it.

I love comics for this, there's no wrong way to approach them. When we are beginners there's all this insecurity of not reading the classics, or not reading in order, not understanding the complexity and ramifications of events, the plethora of references. It's fun to find out about all that, but it's ok to take your time and just enjoy the stories, good or bad, classics or forgotten stuff you found at a garage's sale. Keeping the mind open.

In my journey in comics I met with a lot of gatekeepers and this weird mentality that you must read / watch certain things in their proper order and love certain classic stories and dislike the bad ones. Now as I get older, wiser and more powerful everyday, I see there's no reason for any of that. I still respect comic books history, but I have my own personal tastes and processes too, and it's cool to be cool about that, making my own way through this rich history, right? But I digress, this is a post about Mr. Mxyzptlk! I am finally aware of his greatness, I was not ready for it before, I forgive myself, for something changed last night, I now feel the chaos running through my veins, the imp influence changing me. And I'm glad for it!

[skyepixels]

Welcome Home Doesn't Feel Very Welcoming Anymore

To me, it feels voliate and chaotic and especially toxic, and that saddens me so much. But it's also something I expect too as WH becomes more and more popular by the day.

So, why do I? Here's a few reasons I can think of off the top of my head:

Any decision Clown makes regarding their community is often met with either an invalidating concern for their wellbeing to the point of being extremely disrespectful to them as a person or is met with complete disregard alltogether. Not everyone does this, but it's a conversation that's been circling for a bit now.

People within the community are creating opposing sides regarding how they want to engage with WH, resulting in conflicts with one another to the point of name-calling, hate-speech, and even death threats (or so I've heard).

If this community is going to be a place of acceptance and understanding, then that means respecting the boundaries and wishes of each and every person in it without shaming them for who they are. And that includes the sexual stuff. #Playfellowxxx was made for a reason. It was made to keep adult content and minor content seperate. It's the best solution for a community so large and expansive. Trying to coerce an entire internet of fans to be SFW for the sake those uncomfortable with it is asking for the impossible!

My solution? Cater your experience to what WH feels like to you. Do not try to control what other people do, because you can't - that takes away from other people's experiences too, and I don't think this is what anyone wants. Everyone expresses their love for these characters differently (sexually, romantically, platonic, etc), and I don't think there's one unifying vision that we can all reach that would change that. Making room for both SFW and NSFW content is the right move, because it includes everyone. Personally, I support both SFW and NSFW sides of things! Any expression of love, desire, or adoration for characters should be cherished as long as it's done in a healthy way, but I digress.

As for those who believe that Clown was coerced to make the tag? You cannot infer anymore from Clown until they decide to comment on it (if they ever decide to comment on it). Guessing the reasons behind their choices is pointless and futile... and again, leads back into that source of disrespect for them. So, stop playing guessing games with Clown's words and trust them. They know what they're doing, they've generated so much success these past few months, and I'm proud of them for how far they've come as a creator.

Besides, from what I've interpreted, they saw all of this as hilarious, so... laugh! Have fun with it! Enjoy the silliness that is this fandom and stop taking everything so seriously! Go back to loving the characters you love and make the most of it! <3

[thottybrucewayne]

Hi, new follower who asked about Talia a few days ago here. I don't know if you want to talk about dc, so feel free to ignore this. But can I say just how blatantly racist it is that Damian being trained at all, even in the runs where he isn't abused/tortured, is so bad from the Al Ghul's, but Batman does the same shit.

Bruce took in a traumatized child and taught him how to fight, then had him fighting grown ass adults and murderers and the literal Joker. They're regularly shot at as Robins by people who fully intend to kill them, but the Al Ghuls are the ones going too far.

I definitely think you're onto something here. Like, Damian being trained at such a young age is out of character for Talia IMO. The Talia who lied to Bruce about miscarrying to stop him from putting his life on the line to protect her and the baby, then sent that baby to a safe place to protect him is not the same Talia who had Damian trained to fight at like 6. (racist ass character assassination and its consequences) and him being trained to fight at such a young age is meant to show us the "brutality of the Al Ghuls" in contrast to Robin training which is "safer" because...reasons, there a lot to unpack there that I feel like certain writers and editors would rather not address... Like on the very surface level we know the answer is "These are Batman books, Robin is a popular Batman character, we're meant to suspend our disbelief because it's comics and kid superheroes are fun for kids to read." But on a "These comics are written, drawn, colored, and edited by very real people with clear racist/xenophobic tendencies" level, I feel like there was an unconscious push to write these very...white man's burden-esque comparisons between the Al Ghuls and Bruce to show Bruce in a better light because, in any other context, Bruce would be the bad guy. Just thinking of the way earlier comics paint Damian's behavior as "feral" and "bloodthirsty" even when he and Tim were shown to be pretty much going back and forth with bullying each other in a way I would describe as an extreme depiction of sibling rivalry, there was always this unspoken feeling of "Damian is a wild child because he was raised by his backward, wrongminded mother and grandfather" which we don't get with Tim. After all, Tim is white so none of his behavior carries the same weight (which is why I think the fandom defaulted to painting Tim as some sort of poor wilting flower who can't defend himself against a 10-year-old even though we literally saw him going tit for tat with said 10 year old, just petty as he wanna be but I digress) TLDL; While I personally love Robin as a concept and like Damian as a character, until the very weird and racist double standard that exists in how his time with his mother is depicted and the time with his father is depicted is addressed (I don't mean in that weak ass Damian tells his parents they're equally fucked up way either because to me that feels like a cop-out that doesn't fully address why people have an issue with Damian's upbringing and how it paints Talia), Damian's time as Robin will always make me feel some type of way. Idk if any of that made sense, I'm still really tired. Thanks for the question tho <3

[therandomfandomme]

Biking is accessible movement

Biking is a very accessible mode of transportation and way to exercise, however I think a lot of people don't know that, since there are a lot of countries, who don't have the right infrastructure (which is sad). So, this post is me showing y'all how biking is very accessible.

I am writing this from the perspective of someone with mild chronic pain, so I don't know the ins and outs, I have just seen all these bikes around on the streets, because here in the Netherlands they are very prevelant. I do want to say that biking is far easier on my joints than walking, except the knees, even with my unmodified bike.

An accessability feature that is not the bike itself, but often seen in traffic are the signs for hard of hearing people, which can be attached to the back of the bike to let others know that the person won't respond to audible traffic cues and to be careful.

1. Not having the muscle mass or lung capacity for intense exercise

Electrical bikes used to be mostly associated with senior citizens, however in recent years it has become more popular with high schoolers, who have to bike long distances to school or adults, who don't want to arrive sweaty at work. They can either assist you or do the biking for you. Normal electric bikes can go up to 30 km/h, but the recently popular fatbike can go up to 60 km/h (which is a hazard and should be regulated, but I digress). Every bike type that follows after can be an eletric bike.

2. Needing back support

Of course not everyone can sit on a bike, whose seating gives no support and for those there are lying bikes. Though being able to get up and down from a pretty low seat, which is less.

3. Not having the balance for biking

One big thing with bikes is balancing, which is something I struggle with (shout out to physical therapy for helping with that). Once I'm on the bike it is easier for me, but I struggled a lot with getting on and off the bike for a while as well as balancing in general, so I had training wheels for a lot longer than most of my peers.

Luckily, there are a lot of options for people who have bad balance or for whom getting on and off a bike would be more of a struggle. A fatbike already makes for easier balance, however for more aid you have tricycles for adults, which are pretty common. And an extra wheel can also be put on a lying bike.

4. Mental disabilities that limit safe independence in traffic

Not everyone can be in traffic unsupervised due to mental disabilities or brain damage, so not everyone can bike on their own. However, there are many ways to bike while having someone there for safety.

A tandem might seem like a gimmick to some, but it can allow someone to bike without needing to take into account all the moving traffic. And the dubble bike, which is more often used as a fun thing for tourist to explore a city while being able to chat, can provide the same for those with bad balance. If the person in question is smaller than the person supervising, such as a child or little person, than there is also a bike attachment for any bike with a luggage carrier.

5. Using a mobility aid

A lot of people think that you can't bike when using a mobility aid, however biking is not the same as walking, so should your body allow it, biking is possible.

If a person uses a cane or crutches there are ways to hold them in place. A walker can also be attached to the back if it is foldable. If a person is in a wheelchair (depending on what kind) then a hand bike is an option, which allows for higher speeds than moving regularly, while not taking more energy. A person with a wheelchair can also be transported with a bike, if they are not able to move through traffic independently (i have been informed that this is for kids, so thank you for that addition).

6. Lifestyle makes it more difficult to bike

Some people can ride a bike, but aren't able of biking, because they have kids, pets or need to move more stuff. However, there are ways to still use a bike in those circumstances. Popular among people in busy cities with more than one kid is a cargo bike. A cargo bike is also avaible with three wheels for extra balance and both can be electric. For pet owners the trailer is more popular, since a pet cannot jump out of it, though I've also seen plenty of babies and toddlers in them. Both these options can naturally also hold stuff.

Of course I totally understand that not everyone is able to bike and that not everywhere there is the infrastructure necessary. I am just passionate about it and I think that a lot of people might not realize that biking can be more accessible than it is often portrayed. I might have missed something, so feel free to add if you find anything and I would love to hear thoughts or just reactions :D

[battry-acid]

CONTINUED FROM THIS POST.

same warnings apply.

and now piotr is no longer reciprocating those affections. whether kitty is crying over leaving the x-men as a whole or piotr's lack of reciprocation is purposefully unclear.

kitty and piotr separate on a sad note. they separate not fully on the same page about their relationship. and that's the thing about a relationship, it has to be mutual, everyone has to be on the same page about how they feel about one another. it's the beginning of the end.

and then the secret wars happen.

if you don't know about the secret wars, it's fully up to your digression if you read them or not, i don't personally find it super important to the plots of any of the marvel characters' respective comics. but there is stuff that happens in it that's important, like piotr falling in love with someone else.

it's important to note with zsaji that her powers emotionally manipulate those that she heals into falling in love with her. eeeeverybody is in love with her.

piotr's just too sweet and innocent and gullible and takes those feelings to be entirely genuine. even after returning to his world, he's still hung up about zsaji. she died on the beyonder's world. it's unclear if it's because her powers still have an affect on him or not, but that's how i interpret it.

in issue #183 of uncanny x-men, piotr and kitty are reunited, and they officially break up.

storm wishes that piotr had died instead of break kitty's heart since she's so protective of her. awesome. and it's not that piotr isn't completely apathetic towards this, he knows how much hes hurting her, and hes hurting too.

then logan takes piotr on a bender with kurt in tow. these are my three favourite characters and yet this issue is one of my least favourite in the entire comic's run due to how piotr and logan talk to each other. again, piotr has no choice, because logan won't take no for an answer either.

a remark about how piotr is nearly 20 years old after having just broken up with a 14 year old. followed by logan and kurt arguing like a married couple about how to discipline their son, because the comic doesn't know whether to treat piotr like an adult or like a child.

then logan proceeds to allow juggernaut to kick piotr's ass and destroy the entire bar. top ten wolverine moments i hate

and once the battle is over and piotr is defeated, logan makes the only valid criticism of his actions he's made all night, pointing out how young kitty is and how much she sacrificed to save piotr's life. he should've said thank you.

but that doesn't mean he should've continued to be in a relationship he was not fully committed to. just because other characters want them to be together doesn't mean that's what piotr wants, or what's right for him. like i said, a relationship has to be mutual, if you aren't fully confident in your passion or ability to provide for your partner then you should not be together. you have to be in it together, there must be an equal amount of effort put in on all sides.

and one more thing about kitty almost being married off to caliban. what the fuck? it's all just so fucked up. why couldn't they make some other arrangement? why the fuck were the x-men just going to let caliban waltz away with kitty? it's a damn good thing caliban has a good heart and recognized that kitty wasn't in love with him, and it was best to let her go. that's good relationship skills right there. and i know that the x-men have respect for the way the morlocks and their culture function, but....jesus christ, why are they excusing child marriage and pedophilia??? they can't let calypso have warren for a prize but they can let caliban marry kitty. okay, guys. thanks, guys.

back on topic, though. piotr and kitty have well-needed space between the two of them, and we don't see them interact again until issue #210.

piotr never stopped caring about kitty. he just isn't in love with her. their conversation about second chances and rolling with the punches gets cut off by action, but the point is still there. they're both ready to move on.

and then they're friends again. they never stopped caring about each other, they work really well as soon as they're on a team together, but they did need that space. kitty needed time to mature more. i still don't think a 14-15 year old should be on the x-men team but i've honestly given up with that argument

CONCLUSION.

i don't like piotr and kitty together. their age difference has always disturbed me and i think there are better people for both of them to be in relationships with. when i think of piotr and kitty, i think of how messy their relationship was in these comics. they may be able to work in other iterations of the x-men where they're both consenting adults, but in what i consider the heart of canon, i don't think they should be together.

i'm definitely pissed off at how the writers, artists, and comic book heads at marvel handled their relationship and the fact that it was pursued at all. but just because i'm pissed off about that doesn't mean i hate them, and i'm not accusing any of them of being pedos or pedo apologists. they still created my favourite thing literally of all time. the comics have issues, but this IP has been my special interest since i was itty bitty. it's impossible for me to hate anything x-men related. i may critique it, but that doesn't mean i hate it. media literacy ISN'T dead!

this also isn't to say i assume anyone that ships piotr with kitty is a pedo apologist. not every x-men fan has read these issues (or any of the issues) and not everyone knows the characters' history with one another. not everyone knows of just how big that age gap was between them. i sincerely hope that this entire rant hasn't come off as me bashing people who like the pairing, because that isn't my intention at all. people can ship whatever they want, it just ain't my cup of tea.

anyway, hope you enjoyed my anti piotr x kitty propaganda! i'm gonna go lay on the floor and think about the fastball triple now

[sessakag]

What I really like about Butterfly is the complexity of the teenagers you write about. I feel like teens get a bad rep about being dramatic or "edge lords" or "emo" terms I can't stand because its easy to label a person than it is to understand them but you really show that there are a lot of teenagers that struggle with "adult" problems. I think this is a perfect high school AU. You really do everything right and i have never read a chapter that fell short or wasn't as great as the last or wasn't giving 150% effort and its really incredible. Youre really inspiring!

I'm not a fan of those terms either to be honest. I really started to get annoyed with them when I joined the fandom and they were applied to Sasuke😓like this boy didn't go through horrific trauma that many couldn't even begin to fathom, let alone process🤦🏽‍♀️ Makes no sense to me, but, I digress. Yeah, I get what you mean about flat teen characters, I think that's why high school AUs were more miss with me🤔they play a bit too heavily into stereotypes or have very little development for my own personal liking, though there are some that are very well written even though there are stereotypes, so it can be done I suppose🤭I'm glad you've enjoyed every chapter, makes me happy to hear💕

[deadendtracks]

final response to this post by @divinekangaroo!

“some of these might be considered trauma responses but my preference is to think he is/was always going to be this way *somewhat*#because he is this way.the particular traumas he went through were able to be framed in ways that allowed him to continue…for a while Also curious about this -- what do you think are the characteristics he has that were "always going to be this way" The key ones:  - That he struggles with actually connecting deeply with people, reading sexual cues/flirtation, because he actually connects too deeply – he holds back to avoid embarrassment if he’s misread something. Some of this leads to an inclination to prefer sex that is openly a transaction (prostitutes) because it relieves any dialogue around intimacy or connection. He can treat sex as a physical need without having to think about the other.

I can see him possibly struggling to read sexual cues/flirtation as a young man though I don't actually think he has that problem at all as an adult, post-war. I think he's just very blunt about bringing things out in the open -- and can be awkward about it in his bluntness (or doesn't care if he's being awkward/borderline rude). His reasons for doing so (with May, for example) are interesting to dig into. He does not misread the cues that Mosley is giving him; but in this case he does *not* bring it into the open bluntly.

In May's case he absolutely knows she wants to fuck him, it's not in question. He's more about putting it out there on the table as something he doesn't want to dance around (since they're alone and there's no worry about propriety). There's a lot of class stuff going on there, I think; all the talk about working class cock from his brothers and from Ada. What he isn't sure about is *why* she wants to fuck him and what she wants to get out of it. Which is why he asks if he represents something to her.

I'm not sure about him struggling to deeply connect with other people as a young person pre-war. One of the ongoing themes of the series (especially in s1) is how drastically he's changed by the war, how unrecognizable he is to his family and the people who knew him before -- it suggests this inability to connect is a result of the war and not something that was present before. At the same time I can see him being more shy around people outside his family and friend circle as a kid/young man, so I don't fully disagree I guess! Maybe it's that whatever struggle he had before the war it became terribly compounded after when he couldn't really feel anything period, which puts up a barrier when trying to connect to people. The idea Knight and CM talk about Tommy "thawing" throughout the series comes to mind. He's so emotionally frozen (and the strength of this isn't consistent; he thaws a bit and refreezes in reaction to circumstances).

Part of his aversion to connecting to people this way has to do with this 'traumatic freezing' I think -- by s5-6 when he seems unable to prevent himself from thawing, the result is increasing instability, anxiety he can't control, moral injury he can't ignore, and spiralling mental illness. So the 'freezing' of the earlier seasons served as protection even as it kept him more isolated from connecting to people. He's not really able to connect well even after he starts 'thawing' because by then he's feeling totally out of control.

Sorry that was a digression, I think.

Either way I don't think he holds back out of fear of misreading something; I think he's quite good at reading people and situations and that doesn't seem like something that wouldn't have been present pre-war.

I do think the way he treats sex as a transaction was most likely not the case before the war.

- Deep connection is unrelated to sex, and that he’ll always look for deep connection with someone over the sex. If both, ok wonderful, but if the sex makes the connection complicated he’ll ditch the sex and find that elsewhere. (I really think of Alfie in this space.)

Yeah I think this could work both pre- and post- war.

- Connection comes before physical/sexual attraction. People are physically neutral to him until he feels something for them first. For example, he couldn’t be seduced by a hot woman into a vulnerability in the way, say, Arthur or John probably could?

Yeah, absolutely.

I think of both Grace and Tatiana here. With Tatiana and no or limited connection, he pretty much flips her attempted seduction on its head and notwithstanding the essentially of them having ‘sex for the cause’, his sexual participation instead forges that double (is it triple by this point?) cross with her instead for their mutual benefit, rather than her sexual seduction exposing vulnerabilities in him for her people to exploit. With Grace, the connection comes well before the sex and it’s connection which exposes him/makes him vulnerable, not the sex.

Yeah. Any potential subtext about sexual trauma aside, I do think it can be difficult to untangle how he may have been prior to the war from how he was after -- it's such a profound impact on him, including on his sexuality and his ability to connect to people.

[bonefall]

do you have any toxic families who “get better” even if they aren’t perfect? sometimes parents do get better but for me it wasn’t until i was an adult so it. feels complicated.

I do! But I am aiming for there to be more examples of families that don't, or are broken in a way that they can never be what they always imagined. It's my little way of rejecting the more common depictions of toxic families, which is, "Oh they're still your parents. You only get one. They tried their best. Forgiveness is always good and always necessary."

Imo the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb, so, jot that down

Digressing, here's the families with some toxic dynamics I'm planning;

Sparkpelt and Nightheart: Reconcile, I don't rewrite arcs until they are done but I am dead set on fixing the buildup of miscommunication between the two of them.

Tallstar and Palebird: Reconcile, expanding on Pale having severe postpartum depression when he was born

Bramblestar's Thorns: Spark and Alder reconcile along with Jessy, Bramble is always on thin ice with them.

Lionblaze and Dove/Ivy: Lion and Ivy are able to mend, Dove hasn't forgiven either of them.

Thunder Storm and Co: Gray Wing has some things to unlearn that he picked up from Clear Sky, but is strongly considered Thunder's dad here and comes out wiser from this. Clear Sky is Not forgiven.

Owlclaw and Whitewater: I haven't had the chance to really talk about these two yet, but the fact that White is scared of her child is influential to him as a little bully.

Tangleburr and Deerfoot: Deerfoot died to TigerClan and Tangleburr supported it until it was too late. This is something that haunts her, that they weren't able to fully reconcile.

Blackstar: Instead of Blizzardwing being Featherstorm's second mate, he was unhappily cat married to Hollyflower and they were CONSTANTLY fighting. Black was very close with his siblings as a result of this.

Crookedstar and Rainflower: Staying largely unaltered, however, she is not allowed to abusively rename her child. sincerely what the fuck. why did Hailbert "The Word Of The Leader Is The Warrior Code" McStar allow this. Why Can You Not Say No. Crookedjaw is an honor title in BB.

Sedgecreek: Actually ends up cat divorcing her wife Greenflower when she's xenophobic towards their daughter Swallowtail and their grandchildren. Also she gets to become deputy.

Aaaaand under the cut is Graystripe's family thing because it's so large it couldn't fit in a bullet point summary

Graystripe and Co

He has never really moved on from Silverstream, or the death of Feathertail. He loves his Three Bs, but it's always obvious to them that his heart is somewhere else. They're compared to Storm and Feather a lot, and Gray doesn't realize how much it hurts to be second best to siblings you never met.

But worse is that he can't stand up to Millie, when she smothers Briarlight after she's paralyzed. He can't lose another mate, so he doesn't defend his daughter, and he's not there for the other two when Briar ends up being the only cat Millie focuses on.

And Millie... after over a year of mistreating Briarlight and making it all about her, she gets cut off completely. Jessy upgrades Briar's mobility device, giving her more freedom than she's had since the accident, and Millie's response is, "Don't give her false hope! Shame on you, she'll ALWAYS need me with her!"

Briar says, "No! That's enough! I don't want to hear from you until you learn some respect!"

Millie is cut off for several months. Graystripe is forced to stay on her side of the line. Blossomfall and Bumblestripe are working through their resentment. Blossom's kittens come and grow, the impostor happens, Stemleaf and Briarlight are both victims of his regime.

Shellfur and Bumblestripe both have long reckonings with how they supported him. Shellfur is nearly cut off by Spotfur and threatened with not being involved with his nespring's lives, Bumblestripe goes on a long journey with Ferncloud and Cloudtail, replacing Graystripe's Vow with Ferncloud's Parting.

There's a lot here. I intend for some things to get better, some things to get worse.

[meadowmines]

Some headcanon-leaning Majima meta/rambling/bullshit

I threatened to write this up over on a Discord and I'm now like a week ahead on Day Job Shit and I have time and it's fresh in my head so brace for hc/meta dump about Majima and Catching Feelings.

There is a whole sequence of Majima's Shoulder Devil Nishitani-voiced internal monologue I ended up cutting from The Bit, and while I did manage to keep that general thread in there, I wish I could have worked in this whole scene because it really spelled out a whole lot of Majima's bullshit. Specifically, how Majima believes he can't trust his own heart because he only ever loves people who are bad for him or who he's bad for.

It's not like he just pulled this out of his ass, either. Everyone he's shown as getting even the least little bit emotionally close to either has something awful happen to them, or does something awful to him. Saejima? Makoto?

And... Sagawa. Oof.

This is definitely my headcanon but tell me Majima, fresh out of a year in the hole, wouldn't just latch right onto the first person to show him even a little bit of kindness. Tell me Sagawa wasn't the exact kind of Bastard who would take advantage of that. There is a line Shoulder Devil Nishitani drops in that deleted scene, something to the effect of:

"He knew exactly what he was doin' to ya. Easier to put a collar on a dog that loves ya, right?"

And sure, he showed his true colors eventually and sure, Majima figured him out (or hell, he's enough of a Bastard that he might have even just come right out and said "sure I've been playing your heart like a cheap kazoo but you liked it so who's really at fault here? :)" ugh god I still wish we could have thrown him off a fucking pier but I digress). But the damage was already done.

As for the actual Nishitani: I think he was a little of both! He was also a Bastard, but the kind of Bastard that's exactly what it says on the tin and doesn't pretend to be anything but, and Majima was definitely skeeved out by getting hit on by this horny weirdo but also... kind of relieved, maybe? That this one was at least honest about his bullshit right up front? It sure would have been a refreshing change of pace after three years of Sagawa's mind game bullshit.

...and then of course he watched said weird horny bastard take like five bullets in center mass for him which, I would imagine, did little to dispel the "they're bad for me /I'm bad for them" dichotomy he'd built up. So that's always in the back of his head, that he can't trust his gut or his heart or his feelings, because every time he does someone gets hurt.

Then along comes Kiryu, who is both the first Secret Third Thing he's ever encountered, and somehow also both of the other two things at the same time and Majima does not know how to handle this. He's trying to push Kiryu away and drag him in closer at the same time. It's messy and ugly and he hates it but he has 0 idea how to be an adult human person in a healthy relationship of ANY kind with another adult human person and, let's be real here, neither does Kiryu.

Kiryu has NO idea what he does to Majima when he takes that bullet at the end of The Bit.

He thinks he had one chance to keep Majima from getting his head blown off and taking that bullet in his shoulder was the best thing he could do in that situation. And he wasn't wrong! He had to spend a night or two in the hospital about it, but he was fine! Majima was fine and went on to beat the shit out of the bad guys so Kuroshi and Kei-chan could deliver them to the Third Chairman in a gift bag with a shiny purple bow on top! Solid net positive outcome, right?

Does Majima see it that way? HE ABSOFUCKINGLUTELY DOES NOT! All he sees is one more person he's fallen in love with getting himself hurt, almost getting himself killed, and he knows he can never let it happen again but "never letting it happen again" means "cutting Kiryu out of his life" and at this point he might as well cut out his own literal heart.

And hoo boy does that shit ever compel me. I love reading and looking at other folks' soft fic and art, don't get me wrong, I love seeing these two happy, but I also love putting two dudes in the Feelings Smashing Machine and cranking that shit up to 11 and these two have a lot of delicious Feelings to smash, especially Majima.

[monstrousproductions]

[warning: transphobia, specifically from parents. seriously. take care of yourself i mean it.]

hiya dad, it was my 17th birthday today (technically yesterday, since it's past midnight, but i digress). i'm writing in cause it kinda sucked and most of the other adults who i'm out to (and are supportive) are my teachers and i don't really want to bare my heart over school email. i came out as trans (ftm) to my family a skosh over 2 years ago, and my parents still haven't accepted it. they're the sort that think that trans people exist, but *you* (that is, i) can't possibly be one of them. my mom's been trying to use fully neutral language and avoid using any names, which is... technically better than misgendering me, i suppose. my dad told me i was "full of shit" when i came out and has no hesitation about deadnaming me since them. there's lots of very sad specific anecdotes about the various responses they've had to me trying to assert that i'm a guy, but this is gonna be pretty long as is, so just take my word for it. i also came out to my older brother at the same time, and he's been hesitant, but willing to try about it.

all of us were busy during the day today, but we were going to open presents tonight, and my mom made a birthday cake for us to have afterwards. the first half of that went okay, though my dad was fully sullen--this isn't unusual; there's a whole lot else going on with my dad but getting into it would require a laundry list of warnings. anyway, after the presents my mom said that she wanted to consult me about decorating tomorrow's cake (i'm hanging out with some friends and will be having a larger cake due to the number of people). however, this was apparently a subtle way to get me out of earshot of my dad, since my mom wanted to know what i wanted to do about singing "happy birthday," since singing it with my actual name would send my dad "over the edge" (to be clear, this was almost certainly an accurate assessment). the options were to either a) sing happy birthday with 1. my actual name (horrible social repercussions for days if not weeks) 2. my dead name (i don't like being a doormat) or 3. a childhood nickname (which, while theoretically better than option 2, still implies that there's something wrong with my actual name), or to b) skip having cake as a family and not sing.

i chose b, for reasons obvious--my brother was also the only one who was hungry for cake, so it hopefully didn't seem weird. my mom said that it was my choice, but she wanted to sing me happy birthday and would use whichever name i picked, even if she didn't do it with the rest of the family. i agreed to this, and my mom said that she'd tell my older brother where i was (my brother and i are fairly close, and he's in college and usually living on-campus, so i was supportive of this). our conversation had gone on for long enough at that point that my dad and brother were having a full conversation, so i went up to my room to do homework that's due tonight. my brother came up a little later with cake (he says that cutting into a fresh birthday cake that wasn't his felt like thieving, which was sweet--all puns intended--of him), and we had cake before he needed to head back to campus. i started on my assignments, and after a bit my mom came in. i asked if she wanted to sing happy birthday then, and she said that she didn't think she'd be able to get the words out bc she'd be crying too much. rn i think she's on a walk or something.

that's pretty much the whole saga. as i said, i'm hanging out with some of my friends tomorrow, and i'm out to them (and tbh most of them are queer and/or trans) so that should be good, and my mom said that she'll sing the version with my actual name (though she didn't phrase it like that) with them, which will be a first. i'm not physically unsafe, and my parents would be fine if i weren't trans (like, in most regards they're good parents, they're just bad at not being transphobic). but i've also had a really shitty birthday and i didn't even get to be sung happy birthday with my actual name, and i'm really tired of getting hurt.

i'm not exactly sure if i have a question or not. i think most of the decisions i'll really want a second opinion on are gonna start being made when i turn 18 and can medically and legally transition, and right now i'm mostly waiting and trying to take care of myself as best as i can. still, if you have any sage advice i'll certainly take it. anyway, my name's Julian and if you could wish me a happy, albeit belated, birthday i'd really appreciate it.

Oh, kiddo! This sounds really, really tough xxxx

First of all, thank you for having the consideration to add a content warning - I appreciate, it not just for myself but for everyone else on the blog.

I wouldn't usually weigh in on people's personal problems (at least, the ones that aren't about ghosts and ghouls...) because it can be hard to maintain healthy boundaries around this stuff - at the end of the day, I am still a stranger on the internet!

As such, my first piece of dadly advice for you is to talk about this with people who know you and love you and who can support you in a more direct, ongoing way.

That said, of course I can wish you a very, very happy birthday, lovely Julian! I'm sorry the day itself was a bit shit, and I hope your friends can help you celebrate the way you'd like to. I had a pretty remarkably shitty 16th birthday, and can certainly sympathise.

Obviously I can't weigh in on any of the big decisions in your future (taps the 'stranger on the internet' sign again 😅) but I hope it's some reassurance to know that adulthood is on the horizon. As you get older, you'll be better placed to advocate for your own autonomy and to set and maintain the boundaries that make sense to you.

Until then, taking care of yourself is the best thing you can do. It's hard, and it sucks, but you're worth every ounce of love and care you can give yourself. Stick with it, sweet Julian, and here's to a happier year ahead! 💕

[olderthannetfic]

Hey writer, take the write what you want to read further. Use it in original works too, you will feel so free.

Also, like read what you want to write and read a lot of it. My biggest struggle with both writing and reading has always been that I just really don't like the tropes that are used by native English romance writers. Now I love a good trashy romance, but English romance isn't even good. It's just the writing equivalent of a daytime soap. Like English publishing just feels like they don't treat romance very seriously since it's main demographic is women or queer folks. (Which I feel is why those are the groups who mainly flock to fanfic).

Korean and Japanese light novels and comics have been an absolute boon for me. (Chinese ones still come off as a bit too daytime soap for my personal enjoyment).

As a kid I went from tearing through anything I could get my hands on to reading as much fic I could as a teen to practically not reading at all for a good portion of 4-5 years because nothing could really grab me. All the romance for adults either had no plot or acted like sex was practically nonexistent and sometimes both. And if you like that, it's great but, it started to make me hate reading. Then I stumbled across the way that demographics work in japan and got curious enough to try again but with manga to see if I could get interested in what writers had to offer again. I was blown away honestly, I started tearing through comics (both Japanese and Korean) so quickly I was finishing and catching up with comics that had sometimes over 200 chapters in days. I started running out of things (because I have very specific taste but still my comic library is 3000+) so I started looking into light novels (god bless novelupdates)

A big part of my personal draw towards Japanese and Korean publishing is probably that even shoujo/teen girl demographics don't outright ignore sex, it's talked about and even happens in comics ment for teen girls. Like very fee that I've read ignore it. Also just in general the plots don't frustrate me as much much of English pub thrives off of avoidable misunderstandings that frankly give me second hand embarrassment (most English romance lit give me second hand embarrassment anyway cause the characters just suck but I digress) where as Japanese and Korean pub feels more like understandable misunderstandings? (English lit being mainly jealous/assumptions/cheating vs jap/Korean lit being hearing things out of context/rivals making misunderstandings/mistaken\double identies) summing up many English romances thrive of stupidity keeping the leads apart where as many jap/kor romances keep them apart via external forces. But I tangented oops.

Point being, it has finally given me direction in my own writing. I want to write in a way that emulates Japanese and Korean writing styles, I want to use the tropes that they more commonly use and a similar basic outline and story progression.

I can write and read again and it gives me genuine joy that I thought I had lost, that fanfiction simply can't fill for me anymore (the fandoms I'm in are starting to slow down due to age and most of the things that have active fandoms I'm just not interested in the source materials) anyway main point being sometimes you just need to branch out and look at less common places. Reading outside of English works finally ended my writers block and has given me a few small fandoms to interact with and while most of what I read has no English fandom I have such a treasure trove of orginal content that I very rarely need fic.

Thanks for letting me use the ask box as a little stage. I think you're wonderful for allowing your blog to be that kind of space!

-@botanicbones

--

[heavysighing-dreamyeyes]

Hello Rae! First of all, spoilers for the "Three Jokers" comic, but I just finished reading it, and I'm so confused about the whole Jason and Barbara thing😭 How did DC sweep under the rug Jason's (love?) letter to Barbara at the end?? I think I might misremember things, but I don't recall their relationship being mentioned ever again. In a way, it does make sense, as their relationship can be built on their shared traumas and the whole 'making each other a better person' so I'm a bit dumbfounded that DC? didn't? At the very least, give them a chance? What are your thoughts on this if you've read the comics and would you change it?

Hi, nonnie! Ah, I'm so glad you asked! Jason's love letter literally got swept under the rug. Like actually, after he went and taped it to the door, it fell off. A panel later, we see a janitor come by with a broom and sweep it away with a bunch of trash and dust.

It never gets brought up again because in the letter, Jason says something along the lines of 'if you ignore this, I'll know how you feel and we never have to talk about it. I'll understand and pretend this didn't happen' and something self-deprecating. (From what I remember I read it a few years ago)

Now, my thoughts on Jason and Barbara being together, I don't love it. It's nothing against Barbara, and it's nothing against Jason. I'll elaborate under the cut.

I absolutely see them bonding over their shared trauma, but I've always seen it as a friend way or even as family. (I also don't think trauma is a great thing to build a romantic relationship from, but that's neither here nor there)

Anyway, Barbara was already a teenage/adult (depending on the universe) by the time Jason came around as Robin. So I definitely see him having a childhood crush on her. She's badass and awesome and extremely intelligent.

But when it comes to them actually dating, it's not for me. I really prefer when they have their own cast of characters. (i.e., Jason dating Artemis or Rose Wilson or Isabel)

It's also the fact that Barbara has dated/married Dick Grayson in so many lifetimes. When you think of Dick Grayson and a romantic interest, you either think Starfire or Batgirl, and that's something that won't change. To have her date Jason feels like a disservice to both of their characters.

Once again, Jason is getting Dick's 'leftover support cast'. (Babs is a main character in her own right but I digress) and Babs is once again being used as some kind of 'Fridge Wife'.

Maybe if I saw it written well, it would change my mind, but I really can't see them together, especially for the long term. Especially if Jason is running with The Oulaws and Barbara is running the Birds of Prey (a comic run I actually adored, they were so cool)

Please feel free to convince me otherwise, but that is a ship I don't really see happening, as a fan, and if I try thinking from a creators perspective.

[pyropsychiccollector]

Do you have any interest in Pokemon? Not because I want to nerd out about it specifically, but because... let's just say, I've been rather inspired after reading your Raincode stuff, and watching some Pokemon animations online. (人◕ω◕)

Still have to determine if this is merely a temporary spark, or a true desire to write out what I have in mind, however~ (人◕ω◕)

You know, it's strange. For all I talk about Sayaka being the "source" of so many muses and subsequent harem ships these days... My true, honest beginnings - my first forays into discovering and reading fanfiction in general lies in...

Ash x Misty. n___n I must've discovered fanfiction.net myself back in, ooh... 2004? That feels so long ago. I'm old. XD Had no interest in writing back then, I was just thirsty for a ship that canon kept mercilessly teasing me with. No other anime I liked had me so invested in a ship. I suppose Digimon eventually hit me with Takato x Rika, and Takuya x Zoe, but Ash x Misty was definitely my origin point for anything fanfiction. That was the first time I ever Googled "Ash x Misty stories" or anything of that ilk. Seeing so many stories on ffnet made me proud to be a shipper for them. lol

Granted, I was a kid. And the quality of fanfics was as varied as it is these days. But back then I didn't care so much if some stories were cheesy. I remember coming across aged up Ash and Misty scenarios, a more adult and nefarious Team Rocket terrorizing them, Ash as the Kanto Champion and TR trying to get to him by assaulting/kidnapping Misty.... That was one of the better written fanfics I read back in the day.

That all said, am I still a Pokeshipper these days? Ash x Misty, sure. And shinobisage09 made a Ash harem card a while back...

In terms of my tastes? Ash x Misty is my highest priority. Ash x Serena is alright, I just haven't watched the XY anime to grow attached to that ship, while the original Pokemon anime was my childhood. XD Ash x May is okay, very neutral to that one... Ash x Melody is fun. She was only in the 2000 movie, but man she left an impression~ Melody is probably the reason I enjoy Natsumi Kuzuryu so much. Or rather, girls like them - spunky, tough girls that have tender sides they don't like showing. Ash x Anabel is fun, too, from what I remember of the Battle Frontier anime... Ash x Dawn is okay, like May I'm pretty neutral about it. And then the grass girl there... I haven't watched the Sun and Moon anime either, so I dunno what that ship - or rather, how the girl thinks about Ash....

I guess to summarize, my favorite Ash ships are Misty, Melody, and Anabel. Serena to a little lesser extent. Then Dawn and May. Then anyone else, so long as it's not toxic or creepy. XD I suppose that girl from the fifth movie... Bianca, I think? Or Latias in her form...? Whichever it might be, the kiss at the end of that movie was cute, but I'm a bit unsure about dabbling in human x Pokemon.... Not sure if that's a kink of mine. It might be easier to "assume" that was the real Bianca kissing Ash, and not Latias... Even though the evidence points to the contrary. lol I'm used to burying my head in the sand~ XD

But I digress. Outside from Ash...? Uh.... Probably the only other Pokemon ship I like is Brock x Lucy (the Pike Queen). That episode in Battle Frontier was awesome. XD Beyond that, I can't think of other ships in Pokemon that I like. I haven't read the manga, so I'm neutral to any Red, Brendan, Krys, or any of their ship stuff. I do find Leaf to be cute. Claire is hilariously tsundere. Cynthia is bae~ Gardenia is cute. I love Team Magma Courtney, specifically her Omega Ruby version. She's crazy, but I like the crazy~ XD I don't necessarily ship those girls with Ash. Maybe Courtney x Brendan (Hoenn protagonist), but that's about it.

[kamenstranger]

Before I dive into this review proper I want to give a heads-up that I am about to get into book spoilers and will be approaching this review with the assumption you've read the source material, which the show also expects. Likewise, I cannot talk about the show without getting into spoilers, due to the very nature of it. If you want my one piece of spoiler-free advice; think of it as a spin-off. Cause it kinda is. You'll have a much better time in that "What If?/Elseworlds" mindset.

If spoilers are cool with you, let's jump into it.

So, I was pretty much obsessed with the series in 2010. I was about 17/18 when I first got into the series. The 6th book wasn't out yet, and I can't even remember how I got into the series to begin with. But I believe I ordered volume 1 followed by 2-5 as soon as I finished, or maybe I went all in. I know for a fact I preordered vol. 6 when I finished vol 5. Still have the receipt for it; July 18th, 2010. 10.58 total.

I followed the various video updates on the movie, fan art, fell in love with the game, bought a Smashing Pumkins shirt, and the Anamanaguchi soundtrack was even the first digital album I bought for myself. I was basically just at the right age and state of mind for the series to grab me and have a profound effect with its themes. I think it's something I needed at the time.

But as much as the series meant to me, it's something I mostly moved on from. After all, the book ended in 2010, and until recently I probably hadn't reread it since 2013 or so. My books are in remarkable condition, actually. I mostly kept up with O'Malley's other works, and preordered Seconds when that was announced. Sadly haven't been keeping up with Snotgirl as much as I'd like, but I digress.

So when the show got announced… well, honestly my first reaction was "That thing they should've done after the Adult Swim short" Because, yeah, animation is a better medium for it. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the 2010 movie- one of the best theater experiences because the like 5 other people in the audience were massive fan girls loving all the bits. And there is a lot to love about the movie: its visual gags; the performances; the music selection; the overall direction- seriously, Edgar Wright doesn't get enough credit for how good he is at keying in on visuals. Dude knows how to translate comic panels and mimic the vibe of the source.

But it lacked the depth of the books. There's no major character arc for Scott and Ramona addressing their flaws. Hell, the books weren't even finished yet. There are a ton of great translations from comic to screen, but mostly the superficial. Moments like Scott's meeting with Knives in the alley showing that he's becoming more empathetic and confronting his mistakes are either absent or glossed over. Likewise, Knives' own journey of maturity isn't there. This isn't a complaint mind you, it's not like those cuts are unreasonable. I can hardly blame them for not cramming 6 (and incomplete) books into a two hour film. That just ain't gonna happen.

The biggest advantage in a series as opposed to a movie is the opportunity to properly explore the characters beyond a surface level. I'm not saying anything particularly revolutionary by stating the most universally agreed-upon element from the books is that Scott is a bit of a shit.

However, I think that statement is overly simplifying the situation and the character, one far too often invoked by hack frauds who don't truly engage with the work, because clickbait engagement is more valued than a nuanced analytical one. I won't sit here unpacking the full 6 volumes, you can check out someone like Popculturebuffet for that. But part of what works so well with Scott is that we don't initially know the extent of his baggage- and rightfully so. His worst aspect early on is ignorantly getting involved with Knives in the first place, stringing her along even after becoming enamored with Ramona, and being a bit of a slacker. This is something which is pointed out by literally everyone (sans Stephen) as being shitty. But otherwise, he seems fairly average and even endearing in a way. Scott's an affable character that's easy to like in spite of his very major flaws, and that's a statement that remains true throughout. The reader doesn't even get to simmer much on the scenario with Knives until later- and to some degree, this even applies to Scott himself. He's slightly oblivious to his actions, past and present. A prime example would be that we're initially under the impression that Scott doesn't like to drink, which is mostly true. Mostly.

It's not until volume 6 that it becomes clear he got into a drunken fight with Envy on New Year's, suddenly re-contextualizing that and other events. It doesn't negate how Envy was very much a bitch who treated Scott like complete garbage, cheated on him, and screwed his head up something fierce. She is unequivocally the worse person there. But it adds nuance that wasn't present before. I focus on the event with Envy because it's sort of a perfect microcosm of Scott as a character. Scott "doesn't" drink because of what happened, except on the 3-4 social occasions over the course of the 6 volumes, showing how he has a habit of just flat-out lying in various ways, including to himself. He's aware on some level, but simultaneously suppresses that awareness from memory and even re-imagines scenarios outright (Sometimes with a little help, unbeknownst to him) acting like everything was always fine on his end. This is even more true in his prior relationship with Kim.

Scott's solutions are half measures where he can pretend that he was always the victim in a breakup, or at least innocent and free of blame, thus never growing in a meaningful manner. Hell, that's the reason he ended up with Knives in the first place; he was trying to get over Envy, but not in a healthy manner. Change is seen as scary to Scott, and yet it's inevitable. That is, at least due in part to Envy changing into a hateful person. As such, Scott wants something simple where he doesn't have to put in effort. Knives is naive and doesn't see Scott for the dick that he is, she doesn't ask him to be better because he's already perfect to her naive mind. It's shallow, and a tad messed up, and everyone knows it, including Scott- hence his continued dreams about being alone. He knows it's not, cannot, and never will be serious. He's stupid, but not a monster- but stupidity can be a form of malice if one doesn't change their heart. It's not exactly like the story is even subtle about this. The entire existence of Nega Scott is that you can't fight the past, you can't run from it even if you hate that part of you. You have to confront it and accept it to move on, hopefully changing for the better. To say nothing of how Gideon is what Scott could become if he never owned up to it. That angle is why I felt Scott and Ramona worked. Quite frankly, Ramona is just as flawed of an individual running from her past. She's constantly trying to change herself, but always on a surface level. She's afraid of normalcy, of being stuck in a routine, of being happy. She makes out (Not that much) with her ex, Roxie, in anger because she sees Scott hanging with Lisa Miller and suspects the worst. She (rightfully) gets enraged at how Scott was still with Knives when he and her first went out, thus cheating- yet she did the same with the Katayanagi twins, and possibly Lucas. And, ya know, she never formally handed off the breakup letter to Gideon, so she's kinda doing the same thing Scott did with Knives and her. Ramona's past is just as checkered as Scott's. She's just as jealous, hypocritical, and nuanced. It just takes longer to realize that because she puts up emotional barriers and isn't the titular character/main focus. Neither one is evil, but they've wronged people. Often they've been wronged, and sometimes it's not a clean-cut scenario of easily blaming anyone. For all the great supporting cast, gags, fun references, and so forth, our two main protagonists being flawed yet likable is what makes the series compelling. The heart is two people gradually learning to get over their selves and their mistakes. To stop running away, and accept their faults and one another. Over the 6 books, we see them (albeit mainly Scott) put in the effort to be better, to build and maintain something special, and not just go with what's simple and easy. It's not about fighting the exes, it's about fighting for each other.

That type of character arc requires time for development. So, when it comes to this Netflix series, my biggest hope was simply that they would capture that element found within the books. In the lead-up to the show, there were some rumors about the exes having more to do, and I can see that working. As much as I do think the book does a fine job, Todd and Roxie are the only ones with a decent amount of depth. Matthew works perfectly because his simple backstory is a gag in itself. Lee is a fun character with a tiny bit of backstory, but it's barely there. Gideon I can forgive due to his mysterious final boss nature and his schtick is being the extreme opposite of Scott. But the Twins? They're shafted pretty hard. They're there to fill out a roster. Honestly, though, even Roxie would've benefited greatly from the smallest of backstories ala Lucas Lee. She's perhaps the most interesting because she and Ramona are on good enough terms to have coffee together. Hell, Rox genuinely cares for Ramona, and unlike Lucas Lee, she's prominent enough in the story that a simple flashback could have been the cherry on top of all that.

The other part is streamlining story elements. No surprise there. From the get-go, O'Malley said it was not a 1-1 adaptation, and honestly, it shouldn't be. Some parts should be changed for the sake of convenience, and frankly, the book has some superfluous parts. Does anyone even remember Jason Kim? He shows up like twice as "dude with car" and apparently dating Kim Pine until dorking her housemate. That gives the impression of each character having their own life and drama that we're not privy to, which is nice. But it's also not important to include outside the books. Kim (Pine) becoming self-conscious when Envy is brought up, smiling when Scott stays over, or her dead-eyed expression as she lies during the fight with the Twins. All of that says far more about her, her feelings, her love life etc.

Then there's Knives' dad. Fun in the book, wouldn't take him out. But completely unneeded for emotional and narrative development. Sometimes you gotta look at the source material and realize that even if you like something, tacking on an extra hour for the most obvious whodunit would kill the pacing in an adaptation. (That was a LOTR reference for those playing at home)

However, the above scenarios are a trepidatious path. How does one decide what needs reworking, cutting, or expanding? They're necessary for an adaption, but they're not always obvious. If you're not careful, you can completely undermine or mishandle key elements that made the original so beloved. You risk removing seemingly innocuous moments that add a lot to a character's growth. Above, I mentioned that the Twins got shafted in the book, but there isn't really a good place to expand upon them in the original story. They're not as important as Ramona's growing discontent. It's why Scott's fight with robot 01 is relegated to background gags while we focus on Ramona and Kim. You could put a flashback during the final confrontation with the Twins, but that would muck up the pacing and take away from Kim's far more important character moment in lying to Scott to bolster him. The Twins are just narrative scaffolding holding a spotlight on what we should be focusing on. That's what all the exes are to some extent. Shallow, sure, but only so the other characters get depth.

It's not an easy line to walk. If you push too hard on telling a more original story or focus too much on "correcting" various details, you can negate what were otherwise successful plot points. Do too little and the pacing falls apart because the medium is completely different. Would the changes made still contain a similar level of depth and satisfying character arcs, or would it merely be a shallow reworking of the broadest of strokes? The only way to not lose is not to play. These are the concerns I had in the lead up to the show, which is fairly routine. We also weren't getting a lot of information storywise, aside from that it would be mostly doing its own thing (This is something that should have been emphasized more in marketing) The trailers showed familiar set pieces; that Ramona delivers DVDs for Netflix now, which is a great and absurd change; You saw some of the streamlining by having Scott rent Lucas Lee films, thus inadvertently getting a head start on that and cutting out the No Account Video segment; there's a brief original bit where Ramona talks to Julie about how well the date with Scott went. Most of the setting also looked like it was from the first and sixth volumes, which was a tad odd. But other than that, they were tight lipped about the narrative. Most of the promotional focus was on music, the returning cast, and the animation. All great things unique to this medium that we will get into in due time. Speaking of, let's finally discuss

Scott Pilgrim Takes Off

So you know how Final Fantasy 7 Remake emphasized the "Remake" part? Well, we kinda have that here with the "Take Off" part.

I'll just cut right to the chase. Scott seemingly dies in the fight with Patel in the first episode. Episode two is his absolutely absurd funeral. Almost the rest of the episode is centered around Patel wanting to take over the league for himself, and succeeding in doing so, gaining all of Gideon's assets, while the league dissolves once they realize Patel didn't even get Ramona back after winning.

This is uh, certainly a direction to go.

Let's put aside not following the source material and this being an original story. Why should I care about this story? I'll concede that he and Gideon have a great fight. The animation from Science Saru is great, and the voice performances are great: Shoutouts to Satya Bhabha, his delivery is impeccable, hilarious, and a major highlight of the show. But why should I care about these events, this retake? What's the hook? Thus far, the primary purpose of the show feels like a fake out, gags, and fights. I spent the opening of this review going over the emotional weight of the books, that's the anchor. So far, I'm getting moments without substance. Am I supposed to care because I have a prior connection to these characters? This is something I wouldn't figure out a proper description and answer for until the finale. My issues also felt exacerbated by both the advertisements not making the original story angle clear, and also how good the first episode starts off. Because Cera as Scott is truly perfect. Cera was a voice actor before transitioning to the screen, and his performance is top-notch in addition to being a great vocal fit to begin with. So it's kinda disappointing to not have him around for quite a bit. Anyway, the second episode ends with Ramona dreaming and hearing Scott's voice, meaning that Scott isn't dead, he's in Subspace or somewhere.

Episode 3: Ramona Rents a Video.

As if answering one of my questions immediately, the third episode finally gives a hook as Ramona starts playing detective, like Pikachu Columbo. That's the selling point, that this is primarily Ramona's story.

She checks out footage of the Patel fight, showing that someone pulled Scott through a portal (Hence the title of the show, wink-wink.) Ramona then heads to First Cup to get a person of interest list from Julie- which is a pretty damn funny sequence, actually. I'm starting to enjoy the show at this point, and it's kinda wild how much more enjoyable Julie is in both the movie and show compared to the comics. Sure, she's a bitch, but she's a fun bitch due in no small part to Aubrey Plaza's wonderfully riled vocals. After getting the necessary info, Ramona is led to Kim since she knew Scott the longest. We even get a cute story about the poorly drawn Sheep Scott did, which looks hilariously WAY worse in the show.

There's also a key comment from Kim that I think is to make a point for dorks like me. Kim mentions that she was once kidnapped by a guy named Simon and rescued by Scott. That was a false memory of Scott's in the books. In vol. 6, Kim pointed out to Scott that Simon was just a dude she went out with like twice, probably hugged, and Scott beat up. This is one of a number of clues that seem to be here to firmly establish this isn't the same continuity as the books being messed with, and should not be thought of as a sequel if that was a concern.

Anyways, their conversation is cut short when Roxie arrives in the hope of rekindling her former flame. But things go south pretty quickly and Roxie's hotheadedness takes over.

What follows is one of the best fights in the show, equal parts funny and clever. Hell, it starts with Rox drawing her sword and accidentally cutting the sprinkler line. It adds a dramatic pseudo rain that's completely negated by Kim's wonderfully deadpan expression as all the damn tapes in the store become soaked.

During the scuffle with Ramona, a shelf of movies falls on the two which… somehow transports them into various movies? I dunno, we're working off video game logic, I guess Gex counts. It's a sequence that I'm sure was done purely for looking interesting. To its credit, the visual styling is on point. From Japanese historical drama to a post-Matrix early 2000s green filter era, to a scratchy film-grain-heavy WW2 film. The backing track also flows into each film genre. I also love a quick gag where Kim watches the fight on a CRT and fucks around with the rewind and pause feature, allowing Ramona to counter an earlier attack. Roxie gets knocked back into the store, smashes the remote, and gets dragged back into the movies by Ramona. That's great.

As the fight continues, Ramona and Rox begin arguing about their relationship, and we get that flashback sequence! It's a small thing, but they show that Ramona left without a word and how that tore Roxie up. Good lord, someone hug that poor girl, she looks like a sad puppy. In a legit great moment, Ramona has to confront how she treated Roxie, sincerely apologizing for it, which Roxie tearfully accepts it. I gotta say, Mae Whitman really gets to shine in the role more than ever. She's one of those I point to when talking about just how perfect everyone sounds exactly how I'd expect.

After the fight, she hangs out with Ramona and Kim for a bit, being very flirty with both. Kim even smooches her for the hell of it, although both admit there wasn't anything there. But hey, they managed to still get a Bi-curious Kim in here, and in a way that was better than in the books.

Elsewhere, a beat-to-hell Gideon arrives in town, meeting with Julie, an old schoolmate.

I legitimately liked this, there's actual emotional weight going on, there's interesting shit being done, and I'm settling into the show's intent. I like the idea of giving Ramona her own story with a slight focus on how she feels about her past. I think her going out of the way as much as she does for Scott, a dude she just met, is a little flimsy. Again, it's really expecting the audience to care because we, in theory, care about them getting together.

Ep. 4: Whatever.

Things get really fucking meta in this one. Ruling Roxie out as the kidnapper, who didn't even know Scott was alive, Ramona turns her attention to Lucas Lee, who is starting a new picture in Toronto.

Turns out the movie is from Young Neil's screenplay, which "he" wrote back in ep 3, or rather a mysterious "sleep paralysis demon" he saw did. The movie is about Scott's life if he won the fight with Patel.

This toying with the universe thing is getting a little unsettling.

Most of this episode is one big meta gag about making a Scott Pilgrim movie with Director Edgar Wrong. I'm not even mad at this, I'm just completely flabbergasted at what the hell I'm seeing. And this will become a reoccurring bit throughout.

Also hope you like gags about Knives' age cause holy shit they reference this a lot throughout the show.

It's at this point in my viewing process I have developed a headache.

To give some credit, Lucas is fun in this episode. He's more in line with the film version, and Evans actually sounds better than ever, likely thanks to age and simply having more to say. And like with Roxie, Lee has a Flashback. There isn't much more than what was in the book, but I think the presentation is better. Seeing Ramona patch him up after a bad fall, and Lucas arranging his Locker (which is filled with photos of Ramona) as she and Todd walk behind him. Man, that stings.

Needless to say, Lee isn't responsible for Scott's disappearance and with the whole "controversy" regarding him dating a 31 year old actress playing a highschooler, he's hounded off the lot and has to be replaced by Todd, which seems to be a reoccurring thing for him.

Ep. 5: Lights. Camera. Sparks?!

I'm now starting to believe this entire show may have been an elaborate troll towards people obsessed with adaptation accuracy to a fault. I almost want to applaud the sheer audacity of it. Suffice it to say, 95% of this episode is done in a documentary style, and there are a lotta hijinks on set. Ramona is working as Envy's stunt double just so she can have easier access to the set and hopefully get a lead from Todd. Wallace also bones Todd. A LOT. Oh yes, Wallace shacks up with Todd, and Todd is really into it. Wallace, on the other hand, just wanted to hook up with a hot dude, leading to a whole excursion and depressive vegan breaking episode for Todd. Brandon Routh really gets to go full ham here, and it's wonderful.

Some damn funny parts aside, Todd wasn't behind the portal, but it was certainly vegan in nature. Ramona is otherwise back to Square one until Patel, by happenstance, arrives on the lot to fire everyone. Afterward, Patel has a brief confluence with Stephen Stills and Knives, who manage to get an in with him. Since Scott's apparent death, Knives has taken his place in Sex-Bob-omb on Bass (and keyboard) making decent music with Stephen Stills. The importance of that will come into play next episode.

Patel then turns his attention to Ramona. Obviously, Patel wouldn't have any reason to keep Scott around, but it's entirely plausible Gideon, or rather his real identity, Gordon Goose, would as part of a revenge scheme.

Ep. 6: WHODIDIT. This episode starts with probably the best opening gag that I kinda don't wanna ruin despite spoiling everything else. I'm probably gonna be adding "I was gone for 90 %#&! minutes" to my quotes, though.

In any case, this is a fairly straightforward episode. Ramona interviews Julie once again, but it becomes clear that Gideon, Goose, has neither the mental state nor resources to pull something like that off. As an aside, we get a flashback with him as well, showing that he was the school nerd. He supposedly had no fear (No pain) until he aimed well above his status in asking a girl out, leading to him being laughed out of school, which Julie remembers all too well.

It seems like another dead-end, but when Ramona accompanies Julie back to her house, they both see a familiar Robot, the Twins' 01 Robot, which has been making very unsubtle appearances in every episode up to this point; Lee's place; outside the video store; the studio lot, etc. We also have a B-plot with Stephen Stills and Knives making music for a stage adaption of Neil's Screenplay so it doesn't go to waste.

Cute.

It's here where it becomes known that Neil didn't write the script, and upon checking the original file, realize something is off and that Ramona should be informed. All parties gather in Ramona's apartment as she goes over the pertinent information in whodidit (dunit?) fashion, including treating us to another flashback, this time with the twins. It's probably the least engaging of the flashbacks, honestly. Even in this, they get shafted. Regardless, the who and how are solved. But Not the why or where. Where Scott is remains a mystery, but it's likely the Twins know, which is where Ramona intends to check out.

Oh, and the information the gang has about Neil's Script? The metadata says it was written 14 years from now. But just as more questions are raised, another winds up on Ramona's doorstep; Scott, safe and mostly sound. The Twins were in fact behind it, and the robot, and… himself.

Ep. 7: 2 Scott 2 Pilgrim.

Yes, the one who pulled Scott out of Time was himself, from the future; a 37 year old Scott. The how is rather simple and already answered; the Katayanagi twins. Older Scott and them became friends in the future, even starting a band; Pop'n TwinBee (RIP Shatterband.) By the way, if you ever wanted to hear Will Forte sing a hilariously bad cover of Konya Wa Hurricane from Bubblegum Crisis as an older Scott Pilgrim, this is the show for you. I was laughing my ass off at this.

Anyway, the robot was disconnected from a fixed time stream, and being a vegan cause, ya know, robot, is able to create portals. Therefore Time portals. As to the why, Scott showed his past self using a virtual reality machine on the Virtual Guuy[sic], complete with red and black pixel art mimicking the style of the game. Past Scott sees memories on the not Virtual Boy; Defeating the Evil Exes, future marriage to Ramona, their honey moon at Universal… and divorce. Well, technically they're just separated after 13 odd years of marriage. Older Scott has since been living with Wallace and his husband.

Exactly what happened is never stated, just that the pain was so much Scott decided to follow through on a sarcastic comment from Wallace and prevent falling for Ramona in the first place. Old Wallace sums up the mental state of Old Scott to regular Scott, describing it as "Like after Envy, times ten." Which uh, yeah, no wonder Older Scott's a tad kooky.

It's at this point I have to bring up personal stuff, and it's something that I thought I might have to. So, when Scott Pilgrim's Finest Hour dropped in 2010, I distinctly remember reading an interview with O'Malley about the ending. In the lead-up to the final book there was a lot of speculation from fans that maybe Scott and Ramona wouldn't end up together (there was a strong case to be made for Kim) maybe it would end badly since both Scott and Ramona have their struggles. Some people even thought he would end up with Knives, which is missing the entire point of her character arc, and also fuck no.

Ultimately we got the ending we did because, at the time, O'Malley was happy, so he thought Scott should be happy. But O'Malley divorced in 2014.

I dislike bringing that up, but that was leading me to speculate (and brace myself) if that would have an impact here. I mean, how could it not? And look, there is a good argument that Scott and Ramona needn't stay together for their journey together to be satisfying. It would fit right in line with the theme that things don't always stay the same. People can grow apart, even the important ones that change your life. I don't like that outcome, but it's not as if it's wrong to consider. Particularly for a story like this.

But I also think there's an element of overt cynicism to that. What's interesting is that the show doesn't go in that direction. In fact, it's actually insistent that Ramona and Scott can't help but be drawn to one another, there's a spark there. We even get a scene of Scott hooking up the 01 robot to the VR, and since 01 is connected across time, he can see into the past versions. The robot seen throughout the show was Scott seeing that Ramona was constantly looking for him, and that's genuinely sweet.

Still, the situation is bad, as Scott is trapped in the future and can't use the Robot to travel for reason.

On Young Scott's insistence, he and Older Wallace meet up with Older Ramona, discovering she was the one who went back in time and wrote Young Neil's Screenplay in a failed attempt to preserve their story and hopefully thwart Older Scott. (Let's not go crossed-eyed thinking too hard about paradoxes)

He's a misguided idiot, but Ramona still loves the moron, even if she has her doubts after her failed plan. But Scott's words of encouragement about his Ramona never giving up on him gives her hope. Importantly, she can time travel with her DeLorean roller blades, which is how Scott can and did get back to the past.

But even after Scott's return and reunion, their problems aren't over, as a force field prevents Ramona and Scott from kissing. Someone is still interfering, and the list of who might as well just be the entire list of exes. Thankfully, Stephen Stills and Knives have a convenient plan: The stage musical is going to have all the exes in attendance, so they've got one big gathering spot to get to the bottom of this.

This is one of my favorite episodes of the show. It's cool seeing older versions of the characters, and frankly, the presentation is just great. I do think that too much of that emotional weight is relying on events from the books for your investment. I know, I know. Can't enjoy a good thing without a critique. Still, this is a great episode, one of my favorites along with ep. 3, and our next and final episode.

Oh, and the end credits has a proper rendition of Konya Wa Hurricane, so that's fucking cool.

Ep. 8: The World Vs Scott Pilgrim.

So here we are at the big finale at the premiere of the Scott Pilgrim Musical.

The thing is, none of the exes seem to be suspect. Gideon is the only one with ulterior motives, but they're not towards Scott and Ramona, he just wants to blow up the stage and Matthew Patel.

But not long after everyone is seated something goes awry. A portal appears and transports all the exes and Scott's friend group (And also Julie and the robot) to a barren land.

The one behind this, and the force field, was an Even Older and very buff Scott (47) He slipped past Scott nano machines as a backup to prevent him from ever getting close to Ramona, but even that wasn't enough. So for 10 years he trained to take everyone out, as it's the only way to be sure. And so our final battle begins: The World vs. Scott Pilgrim. If you listen closely to the track during this scene "Big Bad" incorporates elements of "The Dark One" Nega Scott's theme from the game. That's a nice touch.

Even Older Scott is no pushover, he breaks Ramona's Hammer, and despite a fairly good comeback from regular Scott, he beats him pretty bad. The others come to his aid, Knives attacking with daggers, but Even Older Scott punches Knives so hard he knocks the highlights our of her hair.

Ramona begins handing out items from her bag, cyber broccoli for Todd, a cyber skateboard for Lucas, and a cyber sword for Roxie, just as the sub boss music from the game kicks in. Along with Matthew's mystic arts, they mange to actually lay into Even Older Scott, but that only causes him… to go… even further beyond, and One hit KO the four.

The Twins Robot is ineffectual and even Gideon's not quite the glow-douken has no effect. Even Older Scott just grabs it and turns it against Stephen, Knives, Kim, and Neil. This. This is actually fucking awesome. It's going full Shonen ham.

We're down to just Ramona and Scott, who team up and hit him together, followed by Scott and Even Older Scott literally butting heads. We get our obligatory speech between a younger Scott just wanting to live his life, and Even Older Scott saying he'll just end up where he's at if he does.

And it finally clicked into place what the hell Scott Pilgrim Takes Off actually is. This is like a Shonen spin off story. Your Broly Trilogy, Hunter X Hunter The Last Mission, Naruto Blood Mission. But with an X-men time travel plot slapped on. It's an excuse to play around and do different (mostly cool) shit with a set of familiar characters. Like a movie or OVA, the characterization isn't as deep as the main source material. It banks on you giving a damn because of the familiarity so they can mostly get right to the cool bits and not try as hard or waste time on the re-interpretative parts. Don't think too hard about the misgivings, think about Akuma Scott beating the shit out of everyone while the familiar music you're nostalgic for plays.

And goddamn that's frustrating because that's what they should've led with. All the damn trailers were dancing around the new material and making it seem like an adaptation. To keep on the Anime brand, if people are expecting a "Brotherhood" or "Ultimate" version with a Cast they like, and then they don't get that… well yeah that's not gonna go over well. I can't fault anyone for being mad about that. That's having the rug pulled out from under you. But once you realize what this is, and what it's doing, it's a lot easier to enjoy and be its own thing. It branches off a similar story to the books, but it's not like this is a canonical revision or sequel to them.

That said, just because it's "less developed" doesn't mean this is without heartfelt moments I enjoy. When it seems like Even Older Scott has the upper hand, an even older Ramona shows up to chew old Scott out for not even texting in 10 years, fighting people in the past rather than fighting for them, all because of one rough patch. It's funny, but it also confirms the biggest divergence. This is a world where Scott was never kicked out during the Roxie chapter, a world without Gideon's "Glow" mental manipulation, and presumably Scott never faced his inner demons because of it. This also means Ramona didn't run off after the twins' defeat because the glow wasn't affecting her mentality, and thus she faced her own. That one line snowballs into a lot of stuff not happening for their character growth. That- that is an interesting concept.

This all leads to a poignant scene where Ramona questions her older self if she should even bother. What's the point if it ends up like this? Maybe it's best to just keep moving. But, that's also Ramona's thing, isn't it? Running away from what she loves, which is presumably (along with his own stupidity) what set Older Scott down a spiral in the first place. In a scene that parallels Scott's own understanding within the books, Ramona comes to realize she's ran all her life.

In the end, Ramona chooses to stop running and embrace herself, quite literally. Both Ramona's combining into, as Scott puts it "Super Ramona" Able to see the situation for what it is, one Scott still in many ways a dumb kid, the other Scott just a sad mess. She simply sends Older Scott back to his time with the hope he'll straighten out. Meanwhile, the nano machines are still a problem with current Scott. But that's nothing a super form can't overload with a determined kiss. Daww.

Before things go back to normal and because she'll have trouble saying it later, she tells Scott she loves him, and that she tends to run away from what she loves. But who she was in the past isn't who she is now. She just needs help remembering that.

Everyone returns to the theater to enjoy the rest of the musical, and Patel's demon girls subvert Gideon's plans. After the show, he and Julie are apprehended, but Matthew instead begs Gideon to take all his crap back. He has no idea how to run a company, is stressed out, and has lost billions. All Matthew wants is to continue the stage show.

We then get an epilogue. Lucas Lee takes up a job at Second First Cup; Todd has returned to being a Vegan with coaching from Roxie; The rental store Kim worked at closes down; Wallace takes a vacation to Paris where he meets Mobile; Knives continues performing with Sex-Bob-Omb as their keyboardist; Ramona gives up delivery work and instead returns to being a stunt double.

We end on Ramona coloring her hair once again, before heading out and meeting with Scott and the others, as Plumtree's Scott Pilgrim plays us off.

Only for a mid-credits scene to show Gideon and Julie plotting revenge. Oooo.

And that is Scott Pilgrim Takes Off.

s'allright, innit? Okay, joking aside- I think I'm gonna have a hard time conveying my feelings on this one. But I still have three more things to talk about before we get to my final thoughts.

First off, the voice acting is great, shockingly great. I'm a person who is very much of the mindset that you should hire voice actors for voice roles BUT, in this instance, I can understand why. It's incredible they got everyone back and how well they work. I've already given my praise to Cera, Bhabha, Plaza, Whitman, Routh, and Evans in the story portion of this review. But I'm drastically overdue to talk about Winstead's performance. I think this was the one people were most curious about because in the movie there was this aura of Ramona feeling more "cold" in her personality. This was due to the original direction they wanted to take that version, and sadly it meant we didn't quite get a more angles. Here? Yeah, this is pretty great. We hear Ramona full of regret, angry, annoyed, sentimental. It's a much more well-rounded version. My one nitpick is Winstead needs to work on her battle cries, it really stands out in the Roxie fight opposite a veteran VA like Whitman. But otherwise, this is how I imagine Ramona sounding. And I'd be remiss if I didn't bring up how anytime Ramona has a vulnerable moment talking about Scott, she genuinely sounds smitten. The Future Ramona (the first one) in particular stands out to me. That's a version of the character that's older, clearly hurt, and weary, but still very much in love. I can't help imagining that being applied to scenes from the book. In Vol. 5 the part after The Twins are defeated and Scott returns. That scene always tears me apart when I read it. I'm fairly certain if I heard Cera and Winstead's performance of that it would rip my soul out. So maybe it's best we only have this original story. So yeah, I'm happy to see that she fits right into the role better than ever.

Another performance I've yet to mention is Ellen Wong, who is just as perfectly energetic as she was in the film. It's a shame we don't get to hear her do a somber Knives in this setting, but it's hard to complain with how pleasant it is hearing her chipper over the top excitement. Alison Pill's Kim Pine is as sardonic as always, and much like Routh and Evans, I think she's even better now. Johnny Simmon sounds exactly the same, no complaints, 10/10. Jason Schwartzman is an experienced VA, so no surprise he sounds fine. He doesn't get to stretch out much since Gideon isn't super prominent here. Although episode 6 did show a lot of range and potential for what you could do with him. Maybe next season? Similarly Brie Larson's Envy doesn't have a whole lot of screen time, but she's equal parts charming and manipulative. Honestly, for a small as the role is, it made me realize just how much Larson is good at the role and how that level of emotion is often subdued in roles elsewhere. Honestly, I hate to say it, but Mark Webber's Stephen Stills is probably one of the weaker performances on the show. It's not even that it's bad, it's fine and works- except for the animation. That's the one caveat. There are a couple of moments where Stephen Stills is pantomiming, and the voice doesn't match that energy. Truth be told, I even sorta have a similar issue with Kieran Culkin's Wallace, which I swear looks like the syncing was off in the earlier episodes. The saving grace is that Wallace has more scenes than Stephen Stills and therefore Culkin got more opportunities. This is sorta the area I mean when I think it's best to get trained VA. It's a completely different medium and hard to jump into immediately.

I don't wanna end this segment on a downer, so I'll once again mention Will Forte sings Like a Hurricane. OH, Segue.

Soundtrack

So I did not know what to expect going into this. I mean, I was a fan of Anamanaguchi, but I hadn't kept up since Endless Fantasy, sans the Miku single- which is really good by the way. And Joseph Trapanese I was most familiar with from his collaboration with Daft Punk on Tron Legacy, so no worries there. But I did wonder how well a chiptune heavy sound would work. As much as I dig it, it's a very upbeat vibe. Even some of Anamanaguchi's more dramatic tracks have a charming bubbliness to them. How would that work within a series? Well, the short answer is they don't have as much chiptune going on as you would assume. There are a few that incorporate chiptunes to a limited degree, others a bit more, but most not at all. The vast majority of the OST is more traditional fair and Synthwave, and in a way, it sorta mimics my own evolving tastes. I still listen to Chiptune stuff, but I'm also really big into synth music nowadays. It feels like a proper bookend to my late-teens early twenties listening to Anamanaguchi, and later Dance with the Dead and Midnight Danger, and now Anamanaguchi's synth offerings. One of the tracks, Yet Another Winter Again (Calling back to the first stage in The Game) has a Redbook audio sound with a hint of Chiptune, but not the NES/GB Anamanaguchi is known for. It sounds like a SNES. In fact, I would compare the track to something you'd hear in VA-11 Hall-A. So even when there are chiptunes, we're branching out quite a bit in both sound fonts and style. Of course, there are a couple of vocal tracks as well. Like the movie, there are universe songs for Sex-Bob-Omb. They have a unrefined roughness to them, which is perfect for a small unprofessional indie band. As for some of my favorite tracks, the aforementioned Yet Another Winter Again; He's You; And They were Roommates; Blame it on the Goose; Big Bad; Bad Guys; Knives & Kim; and God Only Knows. I'm sure that'll change as time goes on. I'm really digging Lucas' flashback music, and Fond Memories, nice parallel between those two. In fact there's quite a few pieces that, in tandem with the animation, do a lot to sell those heartwarming (or wrenching) moments.

Animation.

Oh right, the animation. So, if you read my Castlevania Nocturne review, you know I went on a slight tangent about how I think it's silly that they labeled it an anime despite it being produced and partly animated in goddamn Texas. It was just a label because they're embarrassed to call their super serious animation what it is because they think anime sounds more mature. I swear some people still think it's 1985 and Vampire Hunter D is the wildest shit cause blood.

Funny thing about Scott Pilgrim though, it's just straight-up animated by Science Saru. I'm not here to get into semantics, because then we'll be asking if Batman TAS counts because Sunrise. I just find it funny. At the very least Takes Off certainly fits the bill more than Nocturne does. But back on topic, it's fucking good. I mean, I don't think that comes as any surprise. Science Saru has made a name for doing really impressive work from Devilman Crybaby, to Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken!, and the shorts Akakiri and T0-B1 for Star Wars Visions. Not to mention supplemental work for the Garo anime, OK-KO, and Adventure Time. So Scott Pilgrim is perfectly in their wheelhouse, and they do an incredible job capturing O'Malley's illustrations while adding their own unique flare to the styling.

Sadly Tumblr's gif size limit means I can't easily showcase some of the fights as much as I'd like, but suffice it to say the level of fluidity and cinematography is astonishing. Again, episode 3 is an amazing showcase in itself.

To say nothing of how expressive everyone is in the show.

Also this is a weird one, but I think with the exception to episodes 5 & 7, each episode has Ramona going through a bleaching and dye routine. It is bizarrely satisfying to watch, like the tea making in Samurai Jack.

Final Thoughts.

Takes Off was both a confusing shock and a pleasant surprise upon first viewing. It's impressive in its existence, and has moments that I fucking love. Like the Shonen it emulates, it does also come off as a tad superfluous or melodramatic in many respects. But it is fun to bust out old toys and play with them again. The fact that in 2023 I'm seeing a new work related to Scott Pilgrim is fucking incredible. I'm happy that this exists, I'm happy to hear the cast together again, and happy to hear some great music tracks. And I do love the characters of Scott Pilgrim, I love the performances in this show, I love numerous parts of this show. But, I also think it's fair to say what I love most aren't these characters. And that's okay. Those characters should remain in the series that ended in 2010, while these are easily malleable versions for an animated series to have fun with. Maybe you could never capture or replicate the exact magic of the books again, so it's better to just do your own thing. Takes Off was, in the end, a fun time that I think works best when you know what you're getting into. Once you're armed with that knowledge, I think you'll find a show much easier to appreciate.

All that said, as backhanded as this is going to seem, I still think the nicest thing that Takes Off did was get me to re-read the book series for this review. I got to re-examine a profound series from the perspective of a 31 year old, but still find all that I originally loved as a 17 year old. When it comes to adaptive works, no matter what, the nice thing is you'll always have the originals to go back to. You change, maybe your tastes change, and certain things hit differently or don't hold up when you go back. But it's nice to revisit. I think nostalgia can be a poison. Too many people get caught up in wanting to relive the exact moment, to be trapped. But I think it's more fun to see something you love still remain a love even after so much time has passed. I'm happy with how I felt as a teenager reading a story about emotional growth. Some personally, some apart, and others closer. In my 30s, I still appreciate that, and it still affects me and resonates. But just because I cherish that above all else doesn't mean I wouldn't be interested in more Scott Pilgrim. And if O'Malley and Grabinski wanna make more people sing 80s anime songs badly, I'll be on board for that alone.

Or Roxie flirting with every woman. Seriously, she's so much fun.

As always, thanks for reading. Reblogs are appreciated and you can find me elsewhere on the worldwideweb at: Bsky Ko-Fi

So does Gideon still have his exes frozen somewhere, or is that another difference?

Oh, and now that we have a Netflix Series, can we get a Nendoroid Ramona? There's been like no high end merch since Mondo in 2017.