#also I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve shown a human character I drew

[teensy-weensy-octopus]

I saw this art trend(?) on Twitter about drawing your two biggest comfort characters as the Steven Universe meme, so I wanted to draw my share.

Here’s the original tweet btw

[nerdypatrolcollector-blog]

Human Connections in 23.5

This show has completely taken over my mind and I am incapable thinking of anything else. In this essay, I will… no but seriously it’s been a long time since I’ve seen a shown affect me this hard in a long time so I had to write about it. None of my friends watch this show so I’m relaying my thoughts to (hopefully) kind internet strangers. 

At its core, 23.5 is a show about the craving and wanting of human connection. It’s such a beautifully written story full of nuance and consequences but ultimately is about the choices the characters make for the hopes of making a connection and keeping it. Let’s take a look at it through the lenses of our 3 main characters, ongsa, aylin, and sun (sorry Luna we don't know enough about you).

The easiest one is ongsa, this is her story and her journey through finding family, friends, and love. It is very much implied that before she moved to Bangkok, ongsa was a very lonely kid, having trouble finding friends. The more she missed out on these connections the more desperate she got and the lower her self esteem was. Maybe starting to think that it was something about her that made people not want to be associated with her. Moving to Bangkok was her chance to start over. And in the first episode we are shown how those experiences informed her view of the world, constantly blaming herself for the problems that she faced that day. And sure the show plays it off for the shits and giggles but there’s an inherent sadness to it. That desperate need for connection to sun makes her do stupid things. Of course she regrets the things she’s doing, she’s human after all, but the alternative is so much more scary so she doubles down and digs the hole even deeper. However, there’s a light at the end: tinh, chaoren, real sun, aylin. It’s only through the extension of a helping hand from tinh, chaoren, aylin and sun (people who are also craving more connections, we’ll come back to them later) that pulls her back in. And guess what? She didn’t have to change one bit. They accepted her just the way she is. Love, respect and acceptance will come but they will come to a version that is authentically us. The whole show is a journey of ongsa figuring out that lesson. 

Aylin, my favorite little alien, how long have you been screaming for someone to listen? At face value it seems like she’s the only character in the show that doesn’t care if she makes a connection with a human. With her constant insistence of “I don’t associate with human” and air of indifference. But that’s not really true. She is perhaps the most human character in the show. She spends countless hours of her life trying and desperately hoping that there is something out there that understands her. She was betrayed by her own kind and in her own desperation to find a connection she looked outside to something that might or might not exist but it’s the possibility that keeps her going. What’s more inherently human than that? We as a society spend millions on exploring outer space for the hope that we are not alone in the universe. Aylin just wants someone who is willing to sit with her and wait.

Ironically, ongsa and Aylin’s situations are mirrors of each other. They are just two people desperate to make a connection with someone else. They just adopted different ways to deal with that desperation. We are all searching for the same thing. The need and want for human connection. All of us are screaming into the endless void of the universe hoping to find someone who understands and responds. But unfortunately for so long, ongsa and aylin found out that sound doesn’t travel in space. The worst part is not only sitting alone in our own darkness and loneliness, but feel like we’re the only ones doomed to see it. 

Sun's need for connection is pretty straightforward and is mostly focused on romantic love. Sun is so desperate for a romantic connection that she feels like she's been lacking for so long. We are still unsure if Sun has ever had a crush on someone before, but she seemed pretty confused as to why she was reacting to ongsa's presence (ma'am that's called lesbianism). She thought she found that connection with Earth and in a desperate ploy to keep that connection she makes reckless decisions that only end up hurting her more.

This ended up WAYYY longer that I expected, but I just needed to get it out there. Not sure if anyone cares about my thoughts but I am throwing my opinion out there anyways.

[dynared]

“Characters in search of a plot” is a pretty good way of putting it. And you aren’t wrong about really weak villains. I think a lot of bigotry allegories tend to fall apart if you scratch them a bit but this one is particularly bad. Mostly I think I just don’t like how the war machines get treated with more leniency by the writing than any human it seems.

I’m pretty new to the franchise and was initially really interested in the IDW comics but the more I’ve heard about them the less enthused I am. I mostly gather wonky characterizations, a weirdly BNF-y trend to the fandom and poorly written space politics.

I also… may have spent a decent amount of time in a fandom with a weird amount of imperialism apologia because “well things had to change!” so I get really antsy if I feel any rumblings in that direction. Pity because I love Space Operas, I’m interested in Cybertronian worldbuilding and I’d like less focus on the humans but little of it sounds done well. I may try them at some point to at least form proper opinions but they sound like an incohesive mess, and not in the fun way.

I do hope that the people who enjoy them are having fun though. And despite my reservations and some issues I am quite enjoying the Skybound comics for the most part! Though time will tell if it stays that way.

There's a decent amount here, so let's go through it one step at a time since I don't want to come off as ignoring things:

One could argue that "characters in search of a plot" is probably a better conundrum than a plot where you just don't like the characters. I fully believe some of the Terrans might get another shot at being featured in something, even if it is with modified backstories not connected to the Maltos. Twitch is probably the most likely to get another crack at a big role, although I could see her being portrayed as just a regular Autobot in a subsequent production. Hashtag, despite a name that might make some cringe, actually seems to be the closest the brand has come to a proper Blaster replacement, and Jawbreaker as the Dinobots kid sibling would make a lot of sense and serve to humanize them in a future work. Unfortunately Thrash, who doesn't have much of a personality, and Nightshade, who has become a lightning rod of controversy, I'm less sure about.

That said, bigotry allegories are tough in the best of times. Even in good cases, they're often subject to bad faith readings, and in bad cases, like here? Forget it. It's an awkward, clunky mess that heavily contradicts the rest of the franchise, in particular the comic they're releasing right now where the Cons could not give a damn about anything other than themselves, and whose Starscream is a sadistic bully. But the writers here are clearly fans of the fanfic Cons, so in trying to make them as sympathetic as possible, their cruelty and issues are swept under the rug. It was worse in IDW admittedly since the Autobots were oftentimes just terrible people, so you were often let with no one to root for. For all its problems, the Autobots in Earthspark are more often than not ineffectual, not evil, which is probably because Hasbro pumped the brakes on having cash cows like Optimus Prime be shown as evil without say, brainwashing.

I would not recommend the IDW comics to anyone. The few gems of characterization and concepts cannot make up for the mountains of coal that was most of their run, and IDW2, the prequel that tries to establish a framework for the Great War? The damned thing was so slow and boring that no one mourned IDW losing the license. Not to mention if you're not REALLY familiar with these characters and why you should care about the variances in how they're portrayed, I find most people would just be completely lost, and if you don't like how the portrayals are altered, frustrated. It's simply put, not a fun comic unless you are in the market for a very specific portrayal.

The main issue with the humans (something the very first Transformers comic writer, Bob Budinansky noted was important) was that without that connection, the Transformers could be anything else. They could be humans with power armor, weird bug aliens, or freakish mutants. But it's that relationship and contrast with the humans that makes them special. That's not to say that there are versions of the story that significantly overdo the human element, because there assuredly are, but to have it be completely absent is to cut off part of why we invest in these characters.

Finally, while the Skybound Energon Universe is a little less than a year old, and there are definitely some concerns as well as plot holes that hopefully the narrative will fill in later, I argue that those comics have bought something that seemed to be missing from so much Transformers media as of late, a sense of actual fun. The writers get mecha and what makes them cool. They get the core of why these characters work. I can only hope that the quality stays high, especially with Daniel Warren Johnson, part of why I think the comics have been so good (no one in IDW would dare think of references pro wrestling or the 08th MS Team) phasing out of the book.

[aspoonofsugar]

hi!! i just came across your blog & am loving your bsd meta & analyses so much!!! :)

i was wondering if i could ask, in this post you say this about sskk:

The point is that Akutagawa represents everything Atsushi doesn’t want to accept about himself (the violence, the possibility of being left behind, how pathetic and wrong it is to let one’s worth being decided by others’ praise etc.). At the same time Atsushi is the same for Akutagawa.

…and i assume the same is true for skk (the soukoku curse… but also the very reason they work so well together). my opinion on what Chuuya sees mirrored in Dazai is something you talk about in this post (which is quite possibly my favorite bsd meta i’ve ever read… you put into words so well the ideas that have been circulating in my head for months!!)

…deep down Chuya wants to die…This is why he is so disturbed by Dazai's suicidal tendencies. He sees a dark mirror of himself in the other boy.

Chuuya “hates” Dazai because he sees his struggle staring back at him— the temptation he is constantly having to fight against, Dazai is pursuing. why does Chuuya fight it? because he is always trying to find an anchor for his humanity.

so i was wondering if you have any thoughts on what Dazai sees mirrored in Chuuya that makes him “hate” Chuuya (except they really just hate that part of themselves)

i have so many things from that second post that i’d love to ask you to expand on, but i’ve already made this way too long, sorry!! but lastly, do you believe that underneath the superficial annoyance, & the mirroring that rubs them the wrong way, Dazai and Chuuya really do care for each other? i’m not big into shipping, but i cannot accept that they are not genuinely friends bc while their words say one thing, their actions say another. thanks again for your analyses!! <3

Hi,

Thank you so much for this ask and your kind words! I would say that the answer to your first question is found in the same post you linked:

Dazai's skill is called No Longer Human because he feels inhuman:

"He's already dead," said Chuuya. "Quit shooting his corpse." Dazai was puzzled. His expression was bizarrely childlike- fit for a boy his age, yet unlike any he had shown before. His lips suddenly curled into a gloomy smile. "You're right. When you're right, you're right. That's the most common reaction to have." (...) His expression was back to how it usually was: lifeless and utterly disinterested. "Ha-ha. Normal. Ha-ha-ha." (Fifteen)

Dazai sees himself as wrong and thinks Chuya is far more normal than he is. Sure, he has an incredibly powerful skill, but deep down he is just another kid. This is why the reveal of Chuya's background leaves such an impact on Dazai:

Chuya: Arahabaki is me.

It forces him to look outside himself and to reconsider what it means to be human. The point of Dazai's character is that he thinks he is this impossible to read being, who stands above others. And yet, he is really a normal person. Not only that, but he is also pretty childish. He wants friends and grows attached to the few people who step into his loneliness (Mori, Chuya, Oda, Ango, Akutagawa, the ADA). And yet, he sucks at communicating with them out of fear, which leads to more problems than needed. In synthesis, the story of Dazai in Fifteen is really that of an emo kid, who discovers the jock has more reason than him to be emo.

This is why Chuya grows linked to the idea of humanity in Dazai's mind.

In short, Dazai reminds Chuya of his wish to die/live, while Chuya reminds Dazai of his monstrosity/humanity. Death/life and monster/human are the two themes that are intertwined in Chuya and Dazai's relationship. So, Dazai is both drown and envious of Chuya because Chuya is really a normal person, who is also a born monster. Dazai himself is instead human, but he feels a monster (no longer human) hence why he is lonely. To summarize:

Chuya is repulsed by Dazai because he embodies his own suicidal tendencies.

Dazai is envious of Chuya because he is a monster, who feels like a person more than Dazai.

As for your second question, yes, Chuya and Dazai definately care for each other:

Fifteen is the story of how Dazai and Chuya find a friend, basically. They both can't act their age because they are too different from their peers (too smart and too strong respectively). Still, they behave as kids with each other.

Storm Bringer shows Dazai risking the destruction of the whole city to prove Chuya is human. He is also clearly the person who believes in Chuya's humanity the most.

Dead Apple has Chuya risk his life to save Dazai's and he is clearly worried about Dazai when he is hurt by Lovecraft.

On another note, even if you said you are not into shipping... I really do think the subtext of Chuya and Dazai's relationship is meant to be read as romantic. Or at least as teasing... Two examples:

Dead Apple has Dazai play Snowhite and Chuya play the Prince

Storm Bringer parallels Chuya and Dazai's partnership with Verlaine and Rimbaudt, who have had a pretty famous love story

By this I don't mean they are canon or will be canon, but simply that there is the intended willingness to have people ship them. Anyway, Chuya and Dazai do care about each other, but they would never admit it!

Thank you for the ask!

[everlastingremorse-blog]

So I just finished watching season one of Overlord, and honestly, severely disappointed.

And to be fair, I’ve been pretty tired of shonen anime/manga with overpowered protagonists for awhile now, but it’s more than that.

In contrast, I really enjoyed That Time I got Reincarnated as a Slime. Admittedly, I wasn’t tried of the overpowered mc, but I still enjoyed it significantly more than Overlord.

So let’s compare the first season (13 ep) of Overlord with the first 14 ep of TTRS (end of the orc invasion arc).

Now I did have fun with overlord. The key moments was when Ains was annoyed by the angel, when he crushed Clementine, and when he started equipping items in his fight with Shalltear, and any time Cocytus was in frame. That was pretty much it. Everything else was mediocre in my opinion.

Now it’s been awhile since I saw TTRS, but if I remember correctly, I had fun in these places: Rimuru’s interactions with Veldora, his fight against the dire wolves, his interaction with the dwarves king, his fight with ifrit, the death of Shizu, his fight with the ogres, that time Gobta fucked with Gabiru, any time Gabiru was on screen, orc cannibalism, and the defeat of Geld. Besides that, I was pretty amused when watching the rest of TTRS. I enjoyed the rest of it even if I thought it was stupid. I’ll get more into that later.

Now something significant is that I wasn’t as annoyed with TTRS as overlord, specifically with the fan service. I’m gay, so I’ve always found female fan service kind of annoying, but fuck off Overlord. Albedo and Shalltear’s rivalry was dumb and annoying whenever it was on screen, and starting the show off with some mild groping was barely bearable. And don’t get me wrong, the fan service in TTRS is also annoying. But Shuna and Shion suddenly getting bigger boobs isn’t as focused on (if I remember correctly) as shalltear’s underwear getting soaked. Seriously overlord, fuck off.

Now the fights in Overlord was boring and tedious to get through. I get it’s the trope of naming your abilities and stuff, but it really takes away any of the spectacle of their fights. Like even though I know both Ains and Rimuru are going to win, at least the fights in TTRS is interesting to watch. Overlord is basically just “I’ve got my shield that can block anything.” “Lol, it can’t block this,” over and over and over again. Even if Rimuru is just dodging and running fast, at least it’s something to watch.

The parts of Overlord I enjoyed was basically the “there’s a bigger fish moment.” I find it fun when the antagonist suddenly realizes they messed with the wrong person. But there was nothing else drawing me into Overlord.

As for TTRS, I actually cared about the characters and character drama. Like when Shalltear gets brainwashed in Overlord, I had NO reason to care about her. The only character trait she’s shown is that she’s horny for Ains. And unless you’re horny for her, SHE’S BORING TO WATCH! Unlike TTRS, where I can get invested in the Ogres as victims in political machinations. Sure, you can be horny for Shuna, or Shion, or think Benimaru and Souei are badass, but they have more to their characters than just aesthetic appeal.

So, like I said, even though TTRS felt stupid at parts, it never felt tedious. Gabiru’s hype squad: Dumb as shit, fun to watch. The king of the forest is a giant hamster: The joke is that it’s supposedly cute. Just dumb.

TTRS has some interesting themes about sentient beings treated as subhuman because they aren’t human.

Overlord hints to that with the Slane Theoceacy, but does nothing with it. I know season 2 deals with Lizardfolks, but I doubt I’m going to watch any more. And Overlord has some interesting monsters! Cocytus as an Isopod warrior is fucking cool! That rules! TTRS doesn’t have anything that isn’t vaguely human shaped, and all women have got to look sexy. That’s boring, that’s annoying! But at least they explore what that means in a way overlord doesn’t.

In conclusion, overlord is meh and TTRS is alright.

If anybody who likes Overlord can explain why/ if it improves, please do so.

[theredpharaoah]

Season 2 was both the best and worst season. It’s the season where we see all the characters come into their own, but it’s also the season that sets up the downfall of the show. It’s the Jahaerys Targaryen of The 100 seasons - Good on its own, but bad for the rest. As with the first season: there’s a very obvious graveyard of plot lines(Clarke being groomed as Lexa’s heir one of the most obvious). But Jason’s biggest mistake was what he did at the end. Lexa’s betrayal makes no sense politically or culturally. Grounder culture would’ve seen it as honorable for their ppl to die fighting an enemy that had terrorized them for so long. They also would’ve considered Lexa’s betrayal of Skaikru to be dishonorable. Especially after Ton DC, where members of Skaikru had fought and died beside the Grounders. When people like Octavia, Clarke, and Abby(as a healer) had earned the Grounder’s respect. The whole first half of the season was establishing how Skaikru and The Grounders had more in common than they realized. That while Skaikru might idolize past human life - which the mountain men imitated - they were in reality more like The Grounders. Skaikru may not have been raised as “warriors” from birth, but they were raised as survivors. They were used to going days without food and water, rationing, clothing that had been mended over a hundred times, people being killed for stealing food or the “crime” of having a second child.

The first half of season 2 showed Skaikru what they thought they wanted vs. who they really were. And after they thought about it, they found themselves identifying more with the Grounders than with the Mountain Men. Lexa committed political and social suicide at the mountain. And considering how politically savvy she was shown to be in the first half of the season, that switch made no sense. One might argue she did it to try and let go of her love for Clarke which she considered “weak”….but the previous 2 episodes were literally meant to show Lexa that love wasn’t weakness. Then they Mary Sue’d Clarke. Clarke could’ve already had the Wanheda title from what she did at the Drop ship, she didn’t need to be the one to do that at Mt. Weather. The logistics of the entirety of the Mt. Weather plot we will not be discussing. I’ve already talked about how the whole thing doesn’t make sense many times. Anyways, they should’ve let Jasper kill Cage. That would’ve been great growth for his character. Or even having Bellamy irradiate Mt. Weather to put him at an equal level to Clarke could’ve been good. Clarke and Octavia are my faves but they put so much into them that they robbed nearly every other character of growth. Raven and Sinclair’s father-daughter relationship should’ve been explored way more. As soon as they got close they killed him off. Jason kept on doing that. Killing off too many characters is as bad as killing off too little. The issue is that the odds were always in the realm of sci-fi realistic UNTIL it came to The 100. Any time they would’ve benefited, some unrealistic obstacle shows up and it’s just ridiculous.

The other issue with Season 2 is that Jason seemed to have written himself into a corner. This is why they had to go the Allie route and eventually Praimfaya and all that other stuff. Now I liked Allie and The Primes, but I really don’t think leaving the Earth was a good idea. Something vital to the spirit of the show was lost when they did that. Transcendence was horrible too. It wasn’t really any different than the City of Light, and I feel like it undermined the whole point of the show - there are no Good or Bad guys, just survival. Praimfaya really didn’t make any sense. I’m not extremely well read on the physics of nuclear reactors breaking down, but I’m pretty sure those would’ve exploded when the bombs went off too. Jason didn’t have a real villain after the Mountain Men were killed. He could’ve did something more with the 12 clans, but he killed Lexa off and he didn’t let Luna or Clarke become commander. That would’ve been interesting - maybe the lack of Nightbloods, Clarke’s closeness to Lexa, and her being Wanheda, would’ve allowed them to accept Clarke being an artificial nightblood. Her and Luna competing for the Throne of The Commanders could’ve been really fun and interesting. The Coalition breaking, and Skaikru having to carve a real name and identity out for themselves could’ve been cool too. Unknown Clans from the West or Overseas, Flamekeepers attempting to take over, a conglomerate of Mountain Men, the Primes being a mistake Becca made and trapped in Bunkers on the Earth, idk - there were so many different ways he could’ve taken it. And the biggest crime of the show was the lack of payoff: No Bellarke, no meeting loved ones again, no real closure.

[2309analysis]

Do you all remember Vice-Admiral Johnathan? Possibly the first ever „good” Vice-Admiral.

For a Marine, Vice-Admiral, husband and a chess-strategist he’s kinda humorous too. I’m not just saying that because I actually like his character. I’m saying it because he may have a busy plate, he has the time on his hands to strategize the moves of Luffy and his crew.

It’s a shame he’s supposedly non-canon and filler. He’s a really cool character. He has the wits and patience to go over a couple days to wait for the straw hats to come to him. It’s were the “battle of wits” part comes into play. Which interests me more, why you ask? It’s because he’s met Luffy already, and he knows that Luffy’s isn’t the best priotizer. You can understand that by a glance at him, trust me.

Instead of commanding others to barge into his office to arrest Luffy he actually patiently asks Luffy his intentions on why he’s at M-8. He knows forcing Luffy to tell him information will get nowhere and make it even more difficult to get the information he wants out of him. It’s even more cooler that he’s the type of Vice-Admiral who doesn’t assume the impossible and goes on a rant about his own accusations. Unlike most Cammonders/Captains of the Marines in One Piece.

Also, at this time between the episodes of their arrival (195 - 196) Johnathan takes it slowly and smoothly. He starts to strategize on a chess board. Obviously, Luffy’s the King, Sanji is the Brook, I assume Zoro is the Bishop, Nami is the Queen, Choppet is the Knight, while Robin’s the Rook, Ussop is mostly a pawn. Now, I have no idea Zoro and down are actually it or not. I only know about Sanji and Luffy. Yet, he not only appearently knew most of the straw hats strengths throughout their ship’s condition and disguises. He even knew that they would try to disguise themselves.

The first thing he said about them is, „pirates are always hungry.” He meant hunger as in food, so he wanted the marines to focus on the mess hall. Metaphorically speaking, «hungry» can mean a few things for him. Power, treasure, obviously, food, fame, all those what men are usually hungry for. I assume that was also meant to play a part in the line.

He’s a fair analyzer too. If I have to guess, he likes to write down his thoughts. He’s a fisher too, he especially fishes at night. A particular time. It also improves patience and wits. The two things his character is obviously been shown to have great deal of. He even stated that he knew that he was league’s ahead Luffy with wits. That was also after he met him.

You all know how Smoker was possibly the first ever introduction of a Marine that doesn’t seem inhumane? He actually treats people like people? He doesn’t get infuriated with every little mistake? He actually has a pretty soft and light-hearted scene with a kid?

That’s how I feel about Johnathan. He’s humane towards his subordinates. He’s patient and knows how to deal with a mess-up and work around it. He knows humans aren’t perfect and will accept the best he can get. His humor helps this too, since he’s always telling his lieutenant to basically become less uptight. He knows that everyone isn’t like him, and can deal with it. He prioritizes his health of his subordinates and makes sure they properly taken care of. Regardless, he doesn’t care how quickly his subordinates take care of the straw hats.

His humor? I’ve realized I’ve not gone into detail about it. It’s more of a dry type of humor that points out the obvious in nice ways. He tends to joke around the seriousness and starts to break it down through going through a good way to approach the problem. What I’m saying is, he makes sure that his subordinates aren’t overwhelmed. (Even though through the first half of this filler arc he left his subordinates under the impression that the Going Merry was at first a ghost ship) Althoigh, both the straw hats and Johnathan thought it go in their favor. So, I’m not surprised he let that happen. His humor is really the relief humor alongside with pointing out the obvious but in calming ways.

He’s also a people-pleaser. His wife, is the chef cook of the Marines in his front. In the filler there was two brothers who came over to basically show up his cooks who supposedly the better cooks are. He obviously was curious on their cooking. Yet, Sanji got there first, and as you know he’s a 5-star chef. Yet, his wife cooked the food for him this time. He starts by softly telling his wife that he would prefer to try Sanji’s cooking because it started to spread around that his food was amazing. His wife goes and tells him that he’s rather refuse the love and effort she put in his food, but there’s also a rude that you’re supposed to eat everything on your plate before seconds. Him, feeling guilty for making his wife mad starts just nervously eating her food. Then, finally he can try Sanji’s food. The food Sanji (unaware) made was meatballs. This is the scene where he meets Luffy for the first time. Yet, he pleases his wife by eating her food instead of demanding Sanji’s. He has the authority of it, but he knew his wife would be mad, he’d feel guilty and I’m sure Sanji’s food would’ve of tasted half as good as it did. He’s just that type of guy.

Seriously, he’s not only interesting, but he’s actually a good guy. He’s nice, charismatic, has a fresh character, smart, witty, and analytical. Like me, a people-pleaser. As I can tell, at least. He may have an intimidating look but he’s more wholesome. He also treats his subordinates as if they’re not questioning his authority and ability but comforts them.

His attitude towards them makes them respect him more. Notice how any Commanders who treat their subordinates like trash aren’t respected much, in comparison to those who do? Yeah, I believe Johnathan knows this. Not only knows this, but wants to make sure he seems friendly enough to earn the respect and trust of his subordinates. He also is authoring them too. He has that tone of comfort and friendly attitude but will not excuse the unqualified behavior. Like a teacher. I’m sure he knows this well; his attitude will reflect on his subordinates efforts and attitudes back. They all obviously respect him and treat him well too.

In this filler, we’re actually looking more into the Marines. I mean, yes, they’re background characters but their characters too. The Marines in here actually have personalities and they’re not acting like robots who just unwilling walk into battle without a thought. They have fears, questions, concerns, wits, doubts, humors, jokes, and smiles. They’re obviously comfortable in Johnathan’s command. They don’t fear him, they only fear the straw hats. They all trust their Vince-Admiral. It shows us that he had a healthy relationship and reputation among his subordinates.

He seemingly had a Haki too. Which means he could’ve taken on Luffy and probably defeat him at the time. Yet, he didn’t. He decided to let him and his alleys go. He made a promise with them, but they couldn’t keep it. It was an unfair promise in their defense. Since he was a filler character there’s no traces of his character anywhere else expect these episodes. So, it’s hard to remember such a character. He’s fresh and fun.

His character brings back some lighthearted vibes to the show. He what makes the filler arc so good and worth your watch. He’s the observant type. He’ll wait and watch his enemies with a smile and tiger’s eye. He analyzes every movement they make and treats it as if they’re playing a chess game. At least when he’s calm and relaxed.

His type of self-formality is the relaxed but still on the job. He doesn’t usually wear his uniform completely and takes off his hat and coat. It implies that he’s not just seeing his job as a job but a second home. He likes to be comfortable and tends to be care-free. His clothes and behavior shows that.

You also have to keep in mind the state of his mind. His maturity isn’t taken lightly, it shouldn’t. It’s one of those rare “learn from the mistakes of the past” maturities. He knows that making a good move takes time, patience, and good judgment of the people who he’s against. Which is why he allows the straw hats to move as freely as they could.

Why he tried to trap them in the jailhouse. He tried setting them up by allowing them to go to it so easily. Without Sanji’s observation himself him and Luffy would’ve, without a doubt been caught too. Or had to fight their way out and attract more attention. John knew he had that opportunity. Either way both Sanji and Luffy would end up being caught.

I like to imagine he puts himself through his enemies shoes before making a new move on them. Notice how he waits for new things before judging the next step? It implies that he knows how to play the game of wits. Making it almost impossible to beat him at it. He makes sure that his strategy and wits is at the top of their game before coming up with a plan.

He makes sure to keep the Marines on guard so when the unexpected happens they’ll be ready to take it on. He tries to come up with the best and most efficient way to make sure his subordinates are doing the best possible. He won’t give them stuff that they’re weak in; not for a serious situation. He might do it for training but he doesn’t care that much. He’s just grateful he has comprehensive subordinates.

I also like to talk about his introduction with Ussop. He lets Ussop go on his rant and denial of being caught. He allows him to try to act his way out of trouble without saying anything about it. It shows that he can already tell he is panicked and likes to wait it out. It shows that he preferably wants to keep up the banter of the straw hats assuming they can act their way out of the mess they’re in. Even after his act fails and he gets caught again he never stopped smiling genuinely. Instead, he moved on anticipating.

Even after one of his moves ends up being the successful he never gets egotistical he still remains sharp and observant. Even though he’s more easygoing than not, he knows how to slack off his job while being still analytical of the whole situation. Making sure that even while he’s drifting off from duty he doesn’t waver the priority.

I also like to think he prioritizes his mentality too. Simply over him being overworked. He likes to take way more breaks than the usual boss. He also is pretty laid-back with his commands and how he wants his subordinates to do them. He doesn’t really think much of things when it comes down to detail. He tends to go over the surface level and start analyzing from that.

Notice how he never takes anything for granted either? I assume he knew after Luffy served him his food that was made by Sanji that he wasn’t resting from the supposed brothers. Yet, he still ate it without a problem and even called it “outstanding.” He will still eat and compliment the food regardless who made the food. I don’t know if it’s coming from his wife constantly reminding him to take whatever he gets and don’t complain, but he never hated the thought of eating food made by a pirate.

I don’t think he hates pirates either. I think he judged based off action and intent. If the pirates don’t have all bad intentions he’ll be less forceful to them and more easygoing. We can tell by this by the way he treats Ussop and Luffy. He never forces his authority down their throats and tries being friendly but stern with them. He simply would like to know their reasons why they went to G-8 of all places.

I don’t think no matter how many times he’ll get “we fell from the sky!” He’ll always want to know more about the straw hats actual reasons as why they’re pirates and their intentions for their actions. He likes to know how the people work before trying to force them to talk.

Hence his over friendliness towards them. He wants to keep them off guard as much as possible. He makes sure that he allows himself to seem friendly and not wanting to hurt them. Obviously, he has the plan to capture and interrogate them too. Yet, he wants to do it in the least frightening way possible.

Noticeable how the only of the straw hats he met are still teenagers, kids. I think he favors kids more than adults and will try to dim down his questions to a more less intense level for kids. Especially for someone like Luffy and Ussop. The two immature/kids (including chopper) in the straw hats.

His actions are dependent on yours. He knows most attics that are going to be usually used against or for him. So if most people try to fight their way out of his grip he’ll be merciless. He’ll most likely have the upper hand too due to his Haki and you’re on his territory.

He’s also prepared of devil fruits. Considering the bars of his jailstails are made of sea prism stone. Since most “popular/modern” pirates are devil fruit users. He makes sure to be prepared for just about anything. So he allows others to brave right in and waiting for them to spring the trap he set for them.

I also like when he knows how to call it quits. He knows when his bare and subordinates have seen enough action and need to break from it. He prioritizes his subordinates and bases own well-being over capturing the straw hats. He knows they’re no ordinary foe so they can’t be taken lightly.

He may allow some casualties but he doesn’t let them overflow. He knows when to take the risk but also knows when to back off. In episode 201, he realizes that. His base has seen them crash through it and had many Marines get injured too.

He may be a great strategist and planner but since he never sees most of the action he has to assume the worst and hope the best. Unfortunately the worst for him usually happens.

It helps his favor that his subordinates do as they told no question. They not only do it, but they seem to have no problem with the ideas. They trust him enough to be able to let the planning and strategizing process to him and not question his judgment.

Instead of trying to capture them at wherever they may go. He then focuses on their goal of where to go. The dock 88, where the Going Merry is docked. He knows they all want to get out of there as fast as they can. While he still peruses them there. He tries to think ahead of them and make a move further than their current thinking.

He tries to stay one step ahead of his opponents. It what makes his strategies quite difficult to get across. They’re so effective because he allows his opponents to think they have the safer option than him. In reality, he traps them inside their own goals. Makes him a little manipulative.

Then, and then, oh I think this what makes him an even more beautiful character. He still keeps the bridge unguarded to allow the straw hats to pass, but he also has the lower part guarded. He wants to slow down the straw hats to get to dock 88 because it’ll his lieutenant more time than them to get there.

He wants to make sure that he stays one step ahead of Luffy. He does that by not only harming his own plan of action but makes sure that plan succeeds. They all do, but they also all fall apart due to Luffy’s unpredictabilities. Most because Sanji seems to be mostly on the same wavelength of him. Sanji seemingly knows what type of attack Johnathan goes for.

He decides to make the Marines watch. Something that he’s good at. The repetitiveness of him being observing rather than attacking shows us how much he’s willing to wait his enemy off. When it comes to patience he obviously has the advantage. Almost every straw hat are very impatient and impulsive when they’re stressed. He knows they’re stressed so he’s using it to his benefit.

I also think he knew that most of the straw hats aren’t the boxing type or don’t have much physical strength. So he sent ‘55 after them. He may be a little intimidated by them too, but he knew they’d be a match for the straw hats.

Did I mention now he won’t fault his subordinates for his mistakes? He takes the blame no matter how dire it seems. He knows that they were only following orders and that they were his and he’s the one who has to take the blame. Unlike most who just blame their incompetence on their efforts. Johnathan actually realistically believes in them. He knows that they can’t do the impossible and he won’t blame them for it.

His wife, Jessica is just as determined with her job as he is. She isn’t as tactical or strategic as him but she knows how to command just as well as him. They both share the same brute power of a good leader. They obviously take after each other. She’s uptight and forceful while he’s easygoing and laid-back.

They both correlate each other they fill up for each other’s flaws. They complete each other. They also both know how to make their men proud of them. They’re just as proud as their men are of them.

His anticipation is off the charts, dude. He knew that the straw hats would go after their gold after they realize it gotten confiscated. From the beginning of this filler arc he had this plan ready to roll. He knew that they think that the big giant vault would be a great place to hide gold so he set up the straw hats to go there and get ambushed.

Plus, he knew that the map was stolen which makes his plan even more rock solid. He did it, boys, he finally won a round against the straw hats. He also makes sure that he allows that to sink into the straw hats minds because of how heavily and in heavily guarded the ambush was. He wants to subtly attack the minds of his enemies.

His perception IS AMAZING. He knows that most of his plans failed and he allows the straw hats to still take their gold but the line „even if the baits gets stolen from the hook, there’s still more than one way to catch a fish. All fisherman needs to be is patient.” He even still goes after the straw hats with the same amount of patience as he has before. He knows he can wait it out and still patiently watch the game go on, no matter how close the straw hats are to winning.

I love how much Johnathan compares the straw hats to fish. Their playing a game he patiently waits by to watch what happens next. It’s the sole thing of his planning, his analysis, his entire perception of them.

It all comes from fishing! He allows them to escape multiple times just to be caught up again and set themselves free. So after the first few times they escape he plans another set-up so it won’t happen again. Just like a fisher would do after his fish has gotten away.

He’s a chess master, because of his anticipation skills. He can easily anticipate and adapt his strategy to the position of his enemy. He can treat the game as if he doesn’t care to win, but in reality he’s analyzing your move and determining his to yours. An average chess player, but he’s the master of it.

In conclusion; his character on the outside is pretty easygoing and carefree. In reality he’s strategic, persuasive, charismatic, adaptable, intelligent, witty, patient, analytical, tactical, perceptive, thoughtful and anticipatory. All what really makes a Vice-Admiral’s position something to respect but fear.

He’s also easy to please. He’ll be satisfied with what he’s given with regardless if it meets his standards or expectations or not. He’s accepting and laid-back with his subordinates and will treat them like real people. He only asks for what they can give. Nothing more.

He tries to stay one step ahead of his enemies regardless how it’s done. It’s mainly through trying to catch the fish on the hook with bait. His patience is his key attribute. He waits most things out before pursuing his enemy. He uses his anticipation skills to dictate which plan the straw hats are going to use next. He allows them to set it in gear before really pulling out his attack.

These is what makes his character stand out from the rest in my eyes. He’s more relaxed and humane than most Marines and tends to rage more breaks than actually work. He’s really good at prioritizing and multitasking. He’s due more credit than he gets.

@ 2023 — Saturn. Please do not repost this without my permission or consent. I’ll block you & report you.

[thatonefandomjumper]

I feel like a big part of Heroes of Olympus was influenced by audience reaction. 

I don’t think I’m grasping at straws here. I genuinely just don’t get why some decisions were made if this wasn’t the case.

The plot of the books themselves has always felt very muddled to me and that’s why it always feels like it’s supposed to be a story about characters and relationships, but it just kind of isn’t. Sure, on a surface level, yes, and we get some very lovely character dynamics, but it also feels slightly artificial in a way? The plot was built first and the characters thrown into it, but there wasn’t much thought given too how the characters should be with each other. Even the romantic ones.

Though I feel that I could tie this idea into pretty much every part of the books, there are two things that I personally think of the most while discussing this idea.

For one, there’s Octavian’s entire character.

I have always been confused as to what exactly Riordan wanted from Octavian. He really feels like a plot device most times, made solely for the purpose of stirring conflict between the Greeks and Romans. He as an individual never really mattered. Now, there are some very cool people on this website that have managed to squeeze a decent character out of the scenes we got, but with the way he was written, that in itself is a challenge, as post SoN, it feels like the only intent behind his character was to make him as unlikable as possible. He really was a real character in SoN, despite weird decisions here and there (The killing Gwen scene for example was purely to establish that the doors of death weren't working, and to make Octavian unlikable, but Octavian himself really didn’t have any motive for the killing. It benefitted him in no way.)

In SoN, Octavian is manipulative and well spoken, but after that, he is portrayed as some sort of dim witted idiot, clouded by his desire for personal glory.

The only way I can rationalize this shift in character is in the truly visceral reaction the then fanbase had to his character. They loathed him, taking not a second to rationalize his actions, but simply hate. It also made it so Octavian became the but of a lot of jokes. Those jokes characterizing him as his idiot and megalomaniac that it he shown as in Mark of Athena, House of Hades and Blood of Olympus.

I always suspected Octavian was supposed to serve some sort of grander purpose, or his role in HoO was supposed to be at least a little more dignified or dare I say sympathetic, but there really was no turning back with how hated he was, making Riordan embrace it rather than giving him actual human qualities.

Then on the other hand, there’s also Leo and his relationship with romance in general.

I’ve touched upon it in my Caleo essay (That I kind of wanna redo with more points and evidence to back up my claims, because I am unhappy with certain aspects but I still stand by all I said) that Leo is a character that was written in such a way that getting a romantic partner before resolving certain things would actively detriment the development of his character, including healing from his trauma. The way he was written was just not meant for romance and I will take this to my grave. I’m not saying there was no room for romance, but the way they went about it was... very bad. (A girlfriend will fix my problems. That is his mindset. But he doesn’t grow out of it. Instead he gets a girlfriend. A girlfriend that he treats as a fix to his problems when she is not. A girlfriend that is bad to and for him in so many ways.)

But it is very interesting to note, that especially after Mark of Athena, the speculations and demands for Leo’s future girlfriend went absolutely crazy. I can’t speak from experience but from the tweets from Riordan and fanarts from that time that I've seen it was at least to the point that he took active notice of it. 

Besides Nico and Reyna, there weren’t really any other characters just lying around to pair Leo monogamously up with (I doubt Riordan be willing to make any characters besides Nico explicitly queer at the time and then in the next book he decided to pick up one of the background characters and said, you will do, when pairing Nico up with someone. )

There are many more examples I could go into. The universe suffered in many ways from this. Sure, it’s not the only problem that were detrimental. I believe Riordan had a plan from the beginning with all the main plot points of the series, but I feel he didn’t exactly know where he was going with the characters besides the basics. Don’t get me wrong, I love all the HoO characters. That is why I spend so much time talking and thinking about them, but the issues with the series and characters are so many that it’s borderline ridiculous.

[brucenorris007]

Hot take (granted it’s about a show almost 40 years old but I’ve never seen this come up anywhere else): Muten Roshi, the Kame Sen’nin, is one of the most traumatized characters in Dragon Ball. 

Yes. This dork.

Wait, wait, hear me out, I know his reputation, but bear with me...

I’m essentially expanding on thoughts I’ve had for a while and started putting into to words through an ask for @dragonballwish​ but I had another epiphany on the subject a few days ago and now it’s all boiling over. 

All right, everyone knows Roshi is the OG Dragon Ball sensei character, the one in the memes about perverted old men, who people probably like to laugh at but maybe not talk about at length. I’m not going to list instances of the sort of behavior that gave him this reputation, IYKYK and all, but what if Roshi had a reason for living isolated in the middle of the ocean, away from people, interacting more with animals and sea creatures than other human beings, who in all likelihood will die long before he does?

No, I’m not accusing Toriyama of doing anything other than his usual MO of flying by the seat of his pants, I’m just saying, the pieces are there for a pretty compelling narrative/character arc.

Roshi’s vague about his personal history. When Dragon Ball gets rolling with the Wuxia elements of the story, he’s iffy about taking on pupils; he primarily makes the initial offer to Goku because he’s Gohan’s grandson. He only takes on Kuririn after the boys bring Lunch back to Kame House for... let’s call it companionship. Despite his choice to live alone, one could infer that he’s actually truly lonely. Hell, his goofy perversions could easily be the result of extended isolation, which all of us know does weird things to the mind.

Wish actually brought up this point; his isolation likely started after seeing the results of his teachings in Ox-King and Son Gohan, one a pillager, a murderer and a hoarder of treasure, the other thankfully not violent but uninterested in interacting much with the world (seems like Gohan also had his own sad story.)

He takes great pains to keep Kuririn and Goku from getting swelled egos; perhaps not only for the sake of their growth, but so as to avoid the mistakes he made with his previous pupils, Son Gohan and Ox-King. 

He’s unfazed by most forms of threat to his life; Goku’s Ozaru form startles him, sure, yet he refuses to kill his student despite clearly being capable of doing so and chooses a far more drastic alternative instead. The Red Ribbon army showing up at his house only get taunts, a chuckle and a beating until someone takes Lunch hostage. Even then, he discourages her more violent persona from killing the soldier who threatened her; his appreciation for the sanctity of life could be part of his own disciplines, but it’s just as likely something shaped by his experiences.

He drops out of the 22nd Tenkaichi Budokai, despite hints that he could’ve gone to the finals again if he’d continued; he plants seeds of altruism in Tien’s mind to sway him away from Shen’s violence and in his words, foster the growth of a new hero. 

We only learn anything of substance about Roshi’s past when 22nd Budokai arc ends and kicks off the start of the Piccolo Daimao saga. 

And it’s here that we see Roshi well and truly rattled for the first time. 

Roshi fought Piccolo Daimao alongside Mutaito and his fellow students; the battle cost him the lives of his friends and his master. Worst still, Shen, the only other martial artist shown to have survived the fight and the Kuririn to Roshi’s Goku, turned bitter; the last friendship Roshi had became so sour and resentful that neither of them could stand each other. 

When the time comes for Roshi, Tien and Chaozu to confront Piccolo, the old hermit refuses to let anyone else face him; for all he’s lived through, he wouldn’t survive fighting another doomed battle alongside friends.

Toriyama doesn’t show or explain anything else about Roshi’s past, but we can infer that, at some point in the intervening years before Goku’s story begins, Roshi established his reputation as the Kame Sen’nin, while Shen did the same as the Tsuru Sen’nin. 

In contrast to Shen, who garnered his reputation alongside his brother for taking the technique and skills he learned from Mutaito and twisting them for the purposes of torture, pain and assassination, Roshi must have gone to lengths to heal, at least somewhat, from the trauma and survivor’s guilt and grow stronger. Personally, I think to assuage his guilt, he would’ve traveled and helped people (maybe ‘twas in this time when he met and grappled with Korin) as something of a... hero.

I know it might feel like a stretch to see him that way, and I suspect he doesn’t feel much of a hero himself despite the somewhat flashy façade he puts on as Jackie Chun. But consider this fact: 

There was a time when Roshi could ride Kinto’un.

We don’t see it, nor is it explicitly stated (that I can remember) but both Roshi and Turtle are surprised when he falls through the magic cloud instead of landing on it when he passes Kinto’un on to Goku. So something that happened between his Master’s demise and the start of the story we’re shown that robbed his purity of heart, at least by Kinto’un’s definition. 

Again, was this traumatized survivor narrative what Toriyama intended for Roshi? Probably not.

I’m just saying, all the pieces are there.

[nikakistos]

The Perfect Closure of EreMika

The title is pure clickbait (as always), there will be lots of tags (as always) and this post will be huge. As always. So, let’s examine and evaluate the perfect conclusion of the most important relationship in Attack on Titan. We will analyze why this is the best conclusion they could have gotten and of course we are going to talk about what their scenes meant for their relationship, their feelings for each other and the themes of the story.

First, let’s ask the question: What was the purpose of this chapter? Ending the fight obviously, but also giving closure to the relationship between Eren and Mikasa. Now, there were 3 questions that needed to be answered in order for the two of them to have closure. 

Why did Eren say to Mikasa that he hated her?

What does Eren feel for Mikasa?

What would have happened if Mikasa had given Eren a different answer back in chapter 123?

Isayama answered all 3 of them in a spectacular way. Let’s see how he did it. The chapter literally starts with Isayama, via Mikasa, setting up the closure. This was achieved by having her wonder if this really was the end for her and Eren. Could it be that their last interaction ever ended with him saying that he hated her? 

Isayama answers that with a big, fat NO.

That’s the purpose of Mikasa’s vision. Mikasa’s vision is not there to introduce us to Alternate Universes or to portray her as a delusional fangirl that can’t cope with reality. It’s purpose is to answer the above 3 questions. And that it does.

Essentially, Mikasa’s vision is a “What if” scenario. If Mikasa had chosen the ideal for her answer back in chapter 123, Eren would have abandoned everything and lived with her. This means that Eren is also in love with her.  He said that he hated Mikasa, because he wanted her to forget him. That’s why he also asked her to throw away the scarf.

Mikasa though, being the truest representation of all major, positive themes in the series says no. She chooses to remember him. That’s essentially the meaning of life. That’s what Armin taught to Zeke back in chapter 137. Memories of everyday life. That’s the meaning of life. Back in Trost, Mikasa said that she couldn’t die, because she wouldn’t be able to remember Eren. Even back then, Mikasa always knew the true meaning of life. 

Afterall, the series heavily criticizes the usage of memory manipulation. Deleting memories or altering them have been methods empoyed by the Royal Family for years, hiding the truth from the people. One of the themes of the Survey Corps is remembering their fallen comrades and carrying on the torch. Mikasa forgetting Eren would be an insult to the themes of the story. As would be if Eren was revealed to have been sending fake memories and dreams to Mikasa out of pity for her. 

Finally, Mikasa decides to kill Eren. Not because he hated her or because he didn’t have romantic feelings for her. Because she had to save the world and because that’s exactly what Eren wanted. Back in chapter 133 Reiner foreshadowed Eren’s desires. He explained that it is very hard for Eren, mentally, to handle the murder of the entire human race. Through Reiner, Isayama reveals that Eren wants someone to end it all for him. That someone was Mikasa. That’s why Mikasa knew where to find Eren. His relieved face when he saw her swinging the blade said it all. That was Eren’s design and Mikasa delivered.

And so, the chapter that starts with Mikasa thinking that the only closure she would get with Eren was the “I’ve always hated you”, ends with the first and the last kiss between the two of them that puts all of her worries to rest.

Is Mikasa delusional?

I’ve seen this being thrown around, so i have to also tackle said point. No, Mikasa is not delusional. This wasn’t a fantasy that only she experienced. This dream of hers is the same dream that Eren had back in chapter 1. Eren experienced the exact same things she did in the dream. We even see him with his titan marks. It is clear as day that they shared these moments.

Also, i have to give credits to Isayama here for his usage of “itterasshai”. The word generally means “Go and come back safely” and is usually said to people leaving the house. For Mikasa, Eren is her home, but she is also home for him, as shown in the RtS arc:

These were the perfect parting words for the two of them. Nothing else could encapsulate their relationship better. Eren of course, won’t come back, but that’s the irony of the word here.

Moving on to the next point, Mikasa’s characterization in this final arc is about her seeing Eren for the person he truly is and stop ignoring his faults. It starts from the Marley arc and it concludes with chapter 123 where she realizes that this was simply part of Eren’s nature.

He always had it in him to become the monster that he became. However, he always had a different side to him. A side that had been shown to her a few times. At first, when he wrapped the scarf around her and later when he asked her “What am i to you”. Finally, it manifested as a desire to live quietly with her in their shared dream. It would contradict her development and characterization in the final arc, to have Mikasa start seeing an incomplete Eren again, after realizing earlier who he really was. Mikasa understood who Eren truly is and she accepted him and continued to love him anyway, even though she didn’t agree with his genocide. 

It is not out of character for Eren to run away with her either. At least not in that instance. The series highlights the moment that he asked Mikasa “What am i to you” as a pivotal one. Sure, under normal circumstances, Eren would have chosen to fight, but we saw him breaking down just moments earlier. The only person that could have saved him was Mikasa. Alas, that wasn’t meant to happen.

In any instance, the biggest indicator that Mikasa is not just a delusional girl who kissed the decapitated head of the man she loved, when he never really loved her in the same way, is Ymir’s face at the end of the chapter.

Ymir, as i have mentioned in previous posts, is a girl who never knew real love during her lifetime. She didn’t understand what she was looking at, when she first say a couple kissing with their friends cheering them on. And after that she was sentenced to a cruel life, with a man who never loved her and only viewed her as a tool. This girl, remembers longinly that scene of the couple kissing for 2000 years. She was waiting for 2000 years to see real love again.

She witnessed that through Eren and Mikasa. In a scene that would have otherwise been painted in a negative light, Ymir’s warm smile at the sight of the final act of love between two people who never got to be together the way they wanted to, clears any and all doubts regarding Eren’s feelings for Mikasa and the latter’s sanity. Eren reciprocates Mikasa’s feelings and he was alive for enough time to kiss her back, before completely fading away. Eren and Mikasa replaced the married couple and Ymir replaced the crowd that was cheering at them from 2000 years ago.

Of course, one might ask, could Eren really kiss her? Didn’t she just take advantage of him? No, he did kiss her. The way the scene was directed, it shows us that the events, which take place in their dream, mirror the events in real life. Just look at Eren’s lips one moment before Mikasa kissed him and compare them to the picture above, where they kiss. They are different.

 Also, you have to remeber that decapitation doesn’t kill immediately and does not immobilize facial muscles. That was the entire reason that Eren and Zeke managed to get the Coordinate. Eren survived long enough from Gabi’s shot to make contact with Zeke. Even his facial expression changes as you can see below:

More importantly, was there really any chance that Ymir would look at Mikasa beheading and kissing Eren, while also smiling in approval, if Mikasa was a delusional girl who was unable to understand Eren’s feelings for her up to the very end? Most of all, do you think she would have allowed him to die, without experiencing real love? She died in such a way and she stayed for 2000 years in the Paths waiting for someone to show her real love. Eren was her benefactor. Would she ever allow him to die in such a way, when she was being mistreated (sexually and in many other ways) by King Fritz? I doubt it. Actually no. I don’t doubt it. I’m sure this is not the way we are meant to interprete the scene.

Eren’s relationship with Mikasa, from the very start, is an allegory for the world of AoT. The world is cruel, but is also very beautiful. Eren’s story with Mikasa starts with him murdering in cold blood her kidnappers (cruelty) and then warmly and gently welcoming her to his family by wrapping a scarf around her (beauty). Their story ends with Mikasa decapitating him (cruelty) and kissing him (beauty).

Eren’s tendency for violence has always been portrayed as going hand in hand with his better side. That side has always been represented by Mikasa. It is only fitting for them to have their most beautiful moment happening almost at the same time as their most cruel one. This is how Isayama juxtaposes this duality:

If we interprete this scene as Mikasa being delusional and Eren not being in love with her we get a very disturbing and creepy scene, between an obsessed, psychosis-suffering girl who can’t understand the feelings of Eren, a genocidal maniac who never had any chance or willingness to live a normal life, even though there are hints of that, and a 2000 year old ghost who just happily smiled at the decapitation and forceful kissing of her emancipator. I am pretty sure this is not the message Isayama wants to send. Not simply, because it is a disservice to Mikasa as a character and to her relationship with Eren, which has been one of the most prominent and consistent part of the series from the very first chapter, but because it is also a huge disrespect to Eren as a character as well. Does anyone really think that Isayama would choose to write Eren’s death like that? Not a single important person in the entire story has gotten such an exit. Not even Floch. Even Zeke, who thought that his father never loved him and only used him as a tool, got to see that his father truly did love him, before finally dying. Of course Eren and Mikasa would get the same treatment.

What i mean to say is that Eren and Mikasa’s closure won’t be recontextualized in a way that will paint their feelings for one another and their relationship in a negative light. If anyone’s expecting that, he/she will be disappointed. Eren and Mikasa were confirmed as a canonical couple in chapter 138.

On the other hand, if anyone’s expecting that this wasn’t their real closure and that they will get an even happier ending, he/she is also coping hard. Eren died here in this chapter. There won’t be a scarf rewrap (i’m here to eat my words if it happens), because Isayama gave the couple a kiss. A kiss that was in the makings ever since chapter 50 dropped. And of course, there is not going to be a baby born to Eren and Mikasa. Like, no way it’s happening. Eren is not coming back to life as that would turnish the series and it’s ending.

In conclusion, Eren’s relationship with Mikasa ended in the same way it started. Violently and Beautifully. Tragically and Happily. They acted on their romantic feelings for each other the very moment they had to part ways forever. This is how Isayama hurts us. The essence of a bittersweet conclusion.

EDIT: EATING MY WORDS AS PROMISED. EREN DID REWRAP MIKASA’S SCARF. HE KEPT HIS PROMISE.

[lillianofliterature]

rant about this song i heard

sometimes i forget there are some extreme marauder fans that completely dismiss the bullying each of those characters did for years—and then suddenly i’m smacked with victim-blaming content that leaves me gobsmacked … a song popped up on my discover weekly on Spotify and i thought wow this sounds a lot like Lily and James, I’m gonna add it to my Harry playlist! It’s so pretty! and then I realized it was so much like them that there was no way it wasn’t written about them. I looked up the album and the artist, and when it was confirmed that it was about them, I also found out the whole album was about the Marauders. That’s cool! I love that people are making content about their fictional loves, I love that stories can influence so much creativity! So then I though oh! I wonder if there’s a song for Snape! I could add it to my Snape playlist!

Yeah, there’s a song about Snape. About anti-Snape-x-Lily (which is whatever, I’m not bashing people’s opinions, I myself don’t like the pairing either but for Snape’s sake). But it didn’t end there. The lyrics. The lyrics are literally so biased of a narrative against Snape that my stomach dropped. The kind of biased where people are ignoring or omitting the reality of the story and what actually happened just to be able to villainize a victim in that particular era of the story.

“Never wanted me around

Till I went ahead and planned my first date”

Wait. Uh—Snape literally wanted to be around Lily, all the time, because he loved her. She was his best friend, his only friend, the only human being that had ever shown him any sort of decency. (It’s never even stated it was romantic love, for all we know it was platonic love, which I think makes much more sense with Snape’s character and everything that happened. If I screwed up and my best friend chose my abuser over me because of that mistake, I would be devastated.)

Nevermind the fact that it’s making it out like Snape dismissed her entirely until she decided to date James, because he was so controlling and jealous that he only cared until someone else was about to get her. When did that happen? Snape cared about her consistently. he made mistakes and he admittedly did not know how to communicate well or manage a friendship (or any relationship, really) very well because he’s never effing had a positive back-and-forth with someone in his whole entire effing life. 

I’ve been jealous and self-sabotaging when my best friend started dating because I was terrified that I was going to lose the only person I wholly trusted to someone new, to someone I couldn’t compete with, especially if it was romantic. This is a human response, a very human experience. Are we going to then say that everyone whose ever felt that way is an awful, jealous, controlling ass? I hope not, because I’m pretty sure everyone’s experienced that kind of jealous, desperate fear, where we truly believe that we aren’t special enough or important enough to keep someone around. 

“With the guy you swore you hated

Turns out you're the worst and he's great and

I’m friends with all his friends”

HUH?????

I—…Do I even need to comment on this?

I understand if this song is giving us a version of Lily’s unreliable narrative, then it makes sense to an extent. But if we’re taking this as evidence of what’s totally accurate for the story and what was happening—then what the actual hell?

Turns out the victim whose only known abuse his entire life, the one who admittedly clung too hard to the only friend he’s ever known, who was bullied and tormented and assaulted, who was gas lighted and told to keep his abuse secret by the only adults in his life for the sake of his abusers, is “the worst”.

But the guy who did the bullying and the tormenting and the assaulting, and went so far to make someone miserable as to write it down in the form of a pledge to his little club of bullies just because this victim existed, and also blackmailed this girl into dating him or else the bullying would never cease or he might do worse—“he’s great”.

also fyi one of those friends sells you and mr. great out and gets you killed so great choice---

I’m—I don’t want to bully the artist or their opinions AT ALL, we are allowed our opinions and our creative freedom, and their music is BEAUTIFUL, it was just a shocking reminder that so many Marauder fans literally rewrite what happened in the Marauder era just to make Snape the absolute worst character ever.

And y’know, I thought, maybe it’s a dramatized, modernized take on it, and it’s not supposed to be exactly about Snape and Lily, but just sort of inspired by this one-sided narrative in a similar sort of relationship. But no, it’s confirmed it’s about them. It’s supposed to be about their relationship as friends, as if he was an abusive, controlling ex, when he was never even with her to begin with. 

Again, I’m not attacking the artist or their opinions and their favorites, or attacking Marauder fans, okay? People have the right to love who and what they love unapologetically and I support that. And in the same vein, I deserve to love who I love just as passionately. But my point is, I don’t understand why the whole reality of the story needs to be altered...maybe don’t change the narrative or the events that canonically took place to put your faves on a pedestal they don’t fit on?? 

And it’s not just about this song, but an overwhelming amount of hate and discourse I’ve seen since entering the HP fandom. 

But I’m just looking at this song like 👁👄👁 tf?

[kongkhoi]

back and forth

characters: scaramouche miniscule bitch boy, tartaglia triglyceride.

warnings: nsfw, harbinger reader.

a/n: oh boy this turned into sub scara whoops. also by no means do i simp for tortellini boy here, but the thought of blueballing him is enough to make my day

please how do you write smut because i’m aware this isn’t exactly smut

scaramouche:

you instantly have an unpleasant impression of scaramouche when you meet him. even if he’s acting nice with that persona of his, something feels wrong. it’s slightly unsettling

you don’t know what’s up in the beginning. unbeknownst to you, this is only the tip of the iceberg of what happens when you’re with him.

you get to know the man, realizing what he’s capable of. how he acts, and who gains his respect enough to treat them with an ounce of humanity. he’s sly and arrogant. not many things are worth his time, and you aren’t one of those things either.

your exchanges are witty and cleverly crafted, and when you’re not arguing, its passive aggressive insulted being hurled across the room. your conversations can easily escalate to you two trying to establish dominance over one another. at times, someone plays the “oh, you care about it that much? sad.” it never fails to piss either of you off.

but even with the unending bickering and hateful things you spew at each other, neither of you can deny the unmistakable tension between one another.

it’s been there from the start. the intrigue, the aggravation, the satisfaction. the confusion from said satisfaction. it’s been building and building and the air gets uncannily thin. but you’ve both been keeping your cool. as composed as you can get when you’re constantly at each other’s throats, besting each other in any way possible.

that is, until it can’t be dealt with anymore. it all spills over at one point, and the threshold for that has been more than met.

scaramouche has been patient. more so than usual, and for much longer than he’d usually allow. he’s a man of action, and one that doesn’t like to waste time. but you’ve been straining every ounce of patience he has, and not always in the way you’d expect.

your exchanges have always been carefully worded, and both of you are aware of it. the subtle innuendoes can’t me mistakes, can they? surely not from you. surely not from him, right?

so now you’re outside his current residence, and without even finishing the sentence, “i’d expect nothing less from you,” you’ve found yourself in a heated kiss with the man you were so foolishly insistent on abhorring mere seconds ago. his kisses are rough, and thus, so are yours. 

but you shouldn’t let yourself give into the sheer desire. not yet. you should make him seem like he wants something from you. control the situation, steer him to become the bitch craving sex. so you pull away from his face and chuckle.

“what’s that all about, hm?”

he’s breathing heavily with darkened eyes. “shouldn’t i be asking you that?”

“well if you ask me,” you trace a finger down his jawline and coo at him. “i’ve got you shut you up for once. it’s been far, far too long.”

he removes your hand from his face and snickers. “if we’re talking about waiting, i’ve been wanting to put you in your place for a very long while now.”

“well, i hate to break it to you, but we’ll have to see about that.” you trail your hands up the back of his head and lightly tug his hair, making him hiss. his head is tilted up and to the side, exposing his neck.

“you don’t seem to be stopping me,” you smirk as you lick the spot below his ear.

he fights back a shudder when you kiss and suck on his neck again, and before long, you’ve freed your hand from his hair to look at the entranced look on his face. but you’ve been shown no satisfaction. the moment you untangled your hand, he spun you around and trapped you between his arms. he grins.

“not so fast.”

you crash your lips into his before he gets to speak again, but he’s barely dazed. he’s more focused on the fact that you’re leaning into him so cutely with your back arched ever so slightly. he smirks into the kiss. his hands are on your back, gripping your hips slightly to gain just a bit more control.

upon your disadvantage, you drag your hands down from his neck, to his chest, to his crotch. you palm him through his shorts, knowing he can’t keep his hold on you if he wants to react properly to your ministrations.

he growls into the kiss and opens the door you’ve been pressed against, causing you to almost tumble into the room. he drives you onto the couch and pulls away from you, unbuckling his belt. you take this moment to pull him to your side and climb on top of his lap, straddling his now hard cock. he groans at the sudden pressure, gasping a little and the contact.

“put me in my place you said? you’ve got it confused.” you cup his face, making him grimace. “you’ve got the pretty face, but what comes out of your mouth ruins the image. what a shame.”

tartaglia:

nothing at work has been very interesting lately. stress is getting to you and things seem more and more tedious. you run into childe and he notices the evident.

“something the matter, comrade?”

“how would you like a duel? spar with me, let’s kill some time.”

you’re in an abandoned building with the eleventh harbinger. the space is restricted and well hidden. nobody would be able to disturb. so with him adamant that you make the first move, you advance towards him, displaying a faint mirage as a distraction. he doesn’t fall for it, expected from a fellow harbinger. but he doesn’t expect the speed of you attack from behind him.

“looks like i’ve underestimated you.”

you laugh. “i may be tired of the tsaritsa’s tedious assignments, but i’m not rusty yet. i’m still your senior. don’t miscalculate my abilities.”

a thrilling fight ensues. powerful attacks, cunning parries, quick evasions, solid blocks, he has it all. but so do you. the longer the battle goes on, the more you feel refreshed. the adrenaline rush of battle has you grinning like a madman.

yet you haven’t unleashed your most powerful attack. you need an opening.

its right after he slashes his electro sword. there.

you dispel a barrage of blows to him with one final shot. you’ve held back for the sake of fair game, so he isn’t injured too badly. he’s panting hard on the ground, defeated, but grinning. you hide your weapon away, bending down to grab the collar of his shirt. you know him pretty well to see what’s going on now.

“are you getting off on this?”

he doesn’t respond, which tells you more than you need to know. that certainly changes the mood.

you chuckle darkly, looking down on him. “oh tartaglia.” you crouch next to him and bring your face closer to his. “you certainly helped out with my.. problem. though i won’t be able to say the same for yours, unfortunately.”

you release your grip on him and walk away rejuvenated. watching you leave the building, he props himself back up smirking.

“well,” he hisses at the pain shooting up his arm. “you’re more than welcome.”

[witch-hazels-musings]

Okay okay, I’m super excited and nervous bc i’ve never requested anything but: can I request some headcanons of Dainsleif, Scaramouche and Tartaglia falling in love with a god? I’m the anon from that ask 😅

archons of my heart

this might have been the most different set of short little stories i’ve ever written - each character responds so differently to this scenario! (note: based on what we know about these characters, I stuck true to their values* - it might not be what you were intending, and I keep things true to their character) <3 

Warning -> angst (Dain), fluff (Childe), genera/fluff?(Scara - mention of long hair)

Character X GN Reader | Anthology 

Includes: Dainsleif, Scaramouche, Childe

Dain

Devastated, conflicted - these words have never resonated more in his mind than the day he found out about who you were, what you were 

What does he do … he dislikes, no hates the archons and yet … you were one of them - you’d always been one of them and the whole time you hid this fact from him knowing full well the feelings he had for them 

He couldn’t really hear as you desperately tried to explain to him why, he only heard the shattering of his heart as your face turned into something he no longer recognized 

He stood there, his hands balled into tight fists at his sides, eyes tracking your movement as you paced back and forth in front of him, your feet wearing down the grass with each passover. 

“I know you’ll never forgive them for what happened …” You begin, your voice somehow distorted now that he saw you for what you really were. He didn’t have words to respond, he felt out of his body. An observer rather than a participant, how he wished that were the case. 

You stepped closer to him, hands reaching for his arm - the arm that had been tainted for so long - and without noticing he recoiled from your outreach. It was the first time he had ever deliberately refused your touch and, although he understood the pain it caused you, it was clear from the reaction of your face, he couldn’t bear your hands on him. Not now, not when the whole world was crumbling down around him. 

You stood there, just the way you always did, incredible, perfect, beautiful and reverent in a way no-one ever looked before - he loved you, he thought he loved you 

You were so different than those gods that destroyed everything he ever knew, everything he ever cared for, fought for 

If only you hadn’t tried to save him then maybe he could have gone on living in the delusion of this relationship .. though, it was only a matter of time before he found out anyway - one day he’d notice how you never aged ... it was inevitable 

To love you, to love you so deeply and intensely; to love you after keeping his heart sealed up for so long, to love you with the passion that burns like the stars in the sky only to know this truth - he felt that light burn out in a painful flash 

An eye for an eye - he will maintain his beliefs  

“Dainsl…” 

“Do not …” His voice caught in his throat, it was the first time you’d heard him be taken over by his emotions, “ … do not speak my name.” 

“Please, I love you.” Your hands pressed against your chest, body bent forward as if to beg him, plead with him to reconsider. 

“I owe you nothing but the repayment of the life that you saved. I shall spare yours to conclude my debt.” For one final time he gazed upon your face, burning into memory the cheeks that he once touched, the eyes that held his breath, the lips that lingered against his skin and were capable of transforming into the most incredible smile. He looked, he lingered, he tried so hard to will the power in him that would whisk him as far from you as he could go but each time he tried he stalled, like a stubborn fool he hesitated. 

Your wet cheeks moved as you studied at him with a hopeful, supplicating smile, your head shook and your lips parted as if to call out to him and the power he lacked to leave you filled him suddenly. Like a flash of lightning in a storm he disappeared from your eyes. 

Citizens will often recall the days when it rained with an intensity of a woeful god, and can’t help but notice the mysterious man who would leave the room every time your name was mentioned. 

Scara

Cool -- cool, cool, cool - you’re a divine being - bet

It’s very likely that Scara will be excited about this revelation - he already thinks so highly of himself that knowing that he has captured the affection of a god only swells his pride more than it already did

He’s so smug when you tell him, when you spill to him what you are - he doesn't believe it either and will make you demonstrate that power to him and if you look back at him after your display, you’ll see him with a devious grin 

Be careful, he may manipulate you to act as an extension of his wishes -- and if he has any vengeance to enact on the people who harmed him, you’ll have to be very strong in your convictions (though, you can do whatever you’d like honestly, you a god) 

“Again.” Scara commands, his arms crossed over his chest, head tilted up so he can look at you from his perch on the rock and a smile stretched so far across his face you wonder how his lips don’t steam in pain. 

“I’ve already shown you multiple times. Do you still not believe me?” You huff, resting your hands on your hips, adamant that you won’t comply with his request. 

“Okay okay, I’m convinced.” He shrugs, hoping off of his stoop and walking toward you. “So how long have you been a god?” 

“I don’t know, it’s hard to keep track of the years … though I’d say around 500.” 

“Interesting. Can you make me a god?” 

“No, I don’t have that authority.” 

“Disappointing, but oh well.” He stopped just before you, he was shorter than you so you looked down at him, thankful that he removed his hat otherwise you’d have a hard time seeing his face. He reached for a strand of your long hair, his fingers twirling around it before sliding down the silky strands and repeating the process. “So, why did you decide to tell me this secret of yours?” 

“I …” Why did you tell him? You knew what kind of person he was, you knew the actions that would follow - his greed and selfishness would motivate him to use this information for his own advantage. “Against my better judgement, I told you because I love you.” You cover your face with your hand, embarrassed by the confession. It’s the first time you’ve ever fallen in love with a human before, Scara was your first and that notion electrified your skin. 

“You love me?” You didn’t need to see him to catch the cocky attitude spilling from him. 

“I do …” You replied with a sigh. 

“Who would have thought that?” “Listen, if you’re going to make fun of me then I’ll just …” Your voice was cut off by Scara pulling you toward him and pressing his lips against your own. Your knees nearly gave way at the contact and you reached to his arms to stabilize yourself. His lips are thin and the power he uses, the pressure of the kiss tells you what kind of man he is. 

“This is excellent news, don’t think I’ll let you get away from me now.”  He hummed, his lips dancing over your own as he spoke, his breath warming your skin. Was this really the best human that could have stolen your heart? Well, you were sure it wouldn’t be borning. 

Childe

He’s likely indifferent to your real status - to find out that you’re an archon or a god - he’s almost unsurprised by the news  

You wonder if he didn’t already know that you weren’t human, you wouldn’t put it past him to have done some digging on you and after being alive for so long it was bound to be suspicious that you knew things that many people didn’t anymore -- it was also suspicious that Zhongli seemed to recognize you pretty quickly, his eyes shining as if he saw an old friend  

“You could have just told me.” Childe emphasized, crossing his arms and leaning against the large pole behind him. 

“I know … but, well I wasn’t really planning on sticking around.” 

“Oh, so you’re one of those.” 

“Ah, no! That’s not what I meant.” For being of reverence, you always found yourself stumbling over your words when talking to Childe. “Ugh, I meant that I didn’t think that … well that I’d fall in love with a human.” You picked at your clothes and shook your head. 

“If there was ever a human for you to fall head over heels for, I am the best candidate for that.” You looked at him, laughing at the way he pointed his thumbs at his chest and grinned from his own joke. 

“I don’t know … maybe I made a mistake?” You express, rubbing your chin with your hands.

“Hey now!” 

“I’m joking of course … so, you really aren’t … upset?” 

“Why would I be upset?” He asked, eyes furrowing and head tilting to the side. 

“I don’t know … my timeline is different from yours for one.”

“So. That doesn’t matter to me.” 

“There will be a day when you’ll be old and I won’t have aged a day.” 

“Don’t care.” You huff and take a few steps away from him. He didn’t seem to grasp what it meant to be in love with a god. This was the reason you rarely took human companions, the guilt in your heart at watching them age and the pain of losing them was all a strain on your heart. 

“Childe …” You begin again but as you turn to face him you notice he’s moved from his place and is now standing in front of you. 

“I don’t care who you are, what you are, or what you’ve done.” He takes your hand and brings it to his lips, his breath of humanity filling your very soul. “I love you, and I don’t take that feeling lightly.” 

“I don’t want you to regret choosing a partner who cannot live a normal human life.” 

“If I wanted a normal life, I wouldn’t be where I am to begin with. What I want is you, and I’m pretty good at getting what I want.” He smirked and kissed each knuckle on your hand. How was it that a man could bring down a god so easily? 

“Now, the real question …” Childe’s tone shifted, his body extended to his full height which made you tilt your head to look at him. “Do you still have your divine powers or whatever?” 

“Like …?” 

“Like, can you summon lightning or manipulate the earth with a snap of your fingers?” 

“Haha, oh, I still have my abilities, yes. There were times I had to fight, so I’ve adapted them for those purposes.”

“Excellent.” He grabbed your wrist and pulled you along after him. “Let’s fight, don't hold back.” 

“Childe! That’s dangerous.”

“Even better.” He gave you a quick wink before dragging you to a place where the two of you could engage in the battle of his dreams.

[unofficialadamtaurus]

What's the difference between Sienna and Adam's methods as High Leaders of the WF? Because under Sienna's role many workers abd Weiss relatives were executed. I get that Adam hates humans, but before CRWBY fucked up his character, he never attacked civilians without ties to the SDC.

Are you ready for a way too detailed examination of canon to answer this question? Because I’ve got a way too detailed examination of canon under the cut. I also generalized your question a bit to explore the differences between Sienna and Adam even before Adam usurped the High Leader position.

We’re going to break this up by character. First Ghira, then Sienna, then Adam.

We know Ghira is a pacifist. We know he’s an extreme pacifist, to the point where, even when under unprovoked attack by humans shooting to kill, he doesn’t fight back or order anyone under his command to take measures to defend themselves. He admonishes Adam for fighting back, stating that “this” (while gesturing to the one human that Adam killed while defending Ghira) is why humans feel like they can treat faunus the way they do. His methods and mindset are pretty easy to glean in their entirety from that interaction alone.

Now let’s see if we can get a fix on Sienna’s policies based on what’s shown in canon. Her scene in V5 sums up her mindset nicely, but her methods are harder to pin down.

Blake describes Sienna as “a new leader with a new way of thinking” when explaining the WF to Sun. She describes peaceful protests being replaced with organized attacks, setting fire to shops that refused to serve faunus, and hijacking cargo from companies that used faunus labor. We don’t know for sure if she’s referring to Sienna or Adam here, but Sienna seems more likely, since there was some stretch of time between her becoming High Leader and her promoting Adam to leader of the Vale branch. That gives us a baseline of what methods Sienna supports: physical violence, arson, and robbery. And, of course, as you mention, murder. Weiss’s family and company are repeatedly targeted by the WF outside of Vale over the course of years - so under Sienna’s orders or at least with her knowledge and permission.

Based on Blake’s words, we also know that the WF would “never work with a human.” Whether this is Sienna’s policy or Adam’s is unclear and I’m not as confident picking one or the other, so this fact is a bit of a wash.

Traveling back in time a bit, in Adam’s character short there’s clear tension between her and Ghira. It’s Sienna nodding at Adam (specifically at 01:39 in the short) that prompts Adam to fight back against the humans attacking them unprovoked. Afterwards, Sienna and Ghira have a glaring contest over whether Adam’s actions were “necessary.”

Jumping all the way to the end of Sienna’s role in the story: she tells Adam that the WF will not attack Haven Academy and that he should “beg for forgiveness and nothing else” because “the assault [Adam] led on Beacon was not the great victory [Adam] clearly think[s] it was.” She says Adam should be grateful that his (unspecified) punishment wasn’t more severe. She admits that she was one of the first to suggest violence where it was “necessary” because peace bred complacency. She states that she won’t allow humanity to push the faunus around without pushing back - but that “the destruction of the huntsman academies crosses a line.” She further states that Adam’s actions at Beacon have justified humanity’s campaign against the faunus, ironically echoing Ghira.

Right before Adam’s I’m-Irredeemably-Evil-Now speech, Sienna says, “I want humanity to fear the faunus, to know that we demand respect. I do not want to start a war with the humans that we cannot win.” Unlike Adam, she refuses to cross two lines: targeting the huntsmen academies, and starting an unwinnable war.

Oh, and one last note. Under Sienna’s leadership, bringing a human to WF headquarters is grounds for execution. So, uh. Execution is on the table for her when it comes to disloyalty.

Let’s move to Adam.

We don’t actually know if Adam “never attacked civilians without ties to the SDC” outside of what Cinder’s faction convinced him to do. We know that Sienna did based on Blake’s words to Sun. It’s probably safe to assume that Adam did too.

Episode 2 introduces the Adam-led Vale White Fang for the first time during a brief news clip before Glynda gives a little speech to the students on the ship flying to Beacon. Adam’s WF “disrupted” a peaceful protest; we don’t really know what that disruption looked like.

Before he’s under Cinder’s thumb, when Cinder visits him the first time, he, with visible irritation at her gall, explicitly calls the WF "not an organization for hire” but “a force of revolution.” (Also note that he says “we” when referring to the WF). He says, “You’re asking my men to die for your cause. A human cause. That is not an idea I’m willing to entertain.” He then lets her and her two human buddies leave the camp unharmed.

He leads (and presumably plans) the mission in the Black trailer and expresses the clear intent to harm civilian employees on the SDC train with explosives. He has a history of “accidents” on missions and in his character short seems to relish the fear of the soldier he’s about to execute.

Pictured: Adam smirking as he’s preparing to stab a downed man.

Also in his character short, he tells Blake that “when you fight, people get  hurt.” He sees his actions in the WF as a fight against humans and  apparently justifies casualties in that context. There’s also the  concerning implication that he views his own existence as a battle,  which is...an angsty headcanon I’ll pocket for another day.

Sienna doesn’t display the same enjoyment of violence that Adam does; she does smile during combat, but it seems more like she’s enjoying the thrill of the fight rather than the pain she’s inflicting.

So, based on all of this, we can reasonably say that Sienna and pre-Cinder Adam have similar views on the role of the WF and the actions the organization is justified in taking. The flavors of violence that appear under their leadership are similar in scope and scale. Maybe there are more deaths in the Vale Branch compared to the rest of the Fang, but if there are, it’s not drastic enough to come up in canon.

After Cinder’s second visit, Adam nosedives into extremism. In the WF headquarters scene, he expresses to a stunned Sienna that the faunus should take humanity’s place and oppress humanity in the same way that the faunus have suffered. We can tell by Sienna’s surprise, anger, and refusal to buy into Adam’s vision that she does not agree with that stance and didn’t expect to hear it from him.

We don’t see a ton of Adam’s policies as High Leader beyond things addressed in the main plot. The following are undeniable: he opts to continue working with the humans in Salem’s faction, targets Haven, and orders the Belladonnas killed and Blake brought to him. We don’t see Sienna attacking an academy, working with humans, or ordering hits on other faunus, and in fact she explicitly states she’s against at least two of those three.

To conclude this overlong analysis, Sienna and Adam - pre-Cinder Adam, at least - are way closer than fanon seems to portray them. They diverge sharply as High Leaders, however, because Adam targets the Academies and wants to start a war. Sienna wants neither of those things.

Given what I’ve talked about and how drastically Adam’s character changes over the course of the series, the generic comparison scale is less like this:

And more like this:

Hope this clears things up a bit!

[supercantaloupe]

the movie reviews of DEH coming out this week have got me thinking a lot again about why i think DEH doesn’t work and in which ways. normally when i do that i like to find another show that has a similar or shared storytelling device which i think does it better to compare. and given that, now DEH has a stage and a screen adaptation to compare to, i think My Fair Lady is actually a good point of comparison to use for the aspect of DEH i've been thinking about this week.

obviously My Fair Lady and Dear Evan Hansen are. Very different shows, lmao. but i have my reasons: both were acclaimed stage shows that later got turned into infamous films (be it in a good or bad light). but moreover, both shows have an unsympathetic protagonist, which is made more stark and obvious through the transition from stage to screen.

there is an important difference in medium between stage and screen and that has to do with objective framing and point of view. basically, in a theater, you have zero absolute control over where any and every audience member is paying attention at any and every given time. you can direct it with blocking, light, sound, etc, but you cannot force an audience member to look at what you want them to look at for every moment. the framing is inherently subjective in this way because the viewer is free to focus on what they want, and make their own judgments based on that.

film is different; film has an objective framing. it is the camera. when you are viewing a film on screen, you have no power to see anything outside the frame that is shown to you; you don't have the power to turn your head and look at something else in the scene. this introduces an implicit bias in the narrative, because the point of view of the camera is what the audience is practically forced to identify and sympathize with.

now, back to DEH and MFL. both shows have a protagonist who is unsympathetic. but a crucial difference between them is that, while DEH's protagonist is also its point of view character, in MFL they are different.

it's sometimes difficult to separate the concept of "protagonist" from "main character" and from "POV character," but in this case i’m going with a narrative definition of protagonist, where they are the character who changes through the narrative. in MFL's case, this is henry higgins, as he spends the entire show being a whiny narcissistic manbaby until the final number when he realizes that he's developed the ability to care about another human being for their own sake for the first time. while eliza does go from speaking and dressing like a common cockney to a genteel lady, she is not changed as much as a character, and therefore i do not count her as the protagonist.

eliza is, of course, the POV character; she is the center around which the story follows; there are more scenes about eliza alone than there are about henry higgins alone, and those scenes about henry higgins alone tend to be about his relationship to eliza.

the framing of which character is the POV on stage is not so important as it is on film, because, again, objective framing on screen. when eliza's POV on stage turns into eliza's POV on screen, we are able to see henry higgins more directly through her eyes. because she is the POV character, we sympathize more readily with her than anyone else, and more clearly see higgins as the asshole he is, because he treats her like dirt to her face, which we as the audience are also experiencing by proxy. film framing makes more distinct the separation between POV character and protagonist, therefore allowing henry higgins' very unsympathetic personality ring out loud and clear.

DEH, on the other hand, has its protagonist and its POV character be the same character, that is, evan. this was a problem in the stage show, yes, but looking back on the past four years of audience interaction and feedback with the show demonstrates that it's still possible to sympathize with him even though he's a jerk. i believe this is because the show tries really hard to frame him as being sympathetic despite his bad behavior, and the framing from his POV is still more subjective since it is in a theater.

but, just as the distinction between sympathetic and unsympathetic character becomes more obvious on film when the POV becomes more objective in MFL, so too does it become more obvious in DEH.

it becomes even more obvious that the story wants us to sympathize with evan. he's the POV, the framing is objective, we're mechanically meant to identify with him. but that introduces some pretty hefty tonal dissonance when we're being asked to sympathize with a character who does some pretty shitty things (in other words, is unsympathetic)

of course, i haven't seen the film of DEH yet since i am, regrettably, a college student at the moment and not a professional film reviewer. but from what i've read in reviews so far and heard about the songs that were cut, it seems like the film also exacerbates the issues of the stage show through script changes. (for example, the cutting of Good For You really hurts the narrative since that's the biggest moment of evan actually facing consequences for his actions in the show.) it doesn't matter how much the movie is begging me to identify with their POV character; if they're a shitty person, i am not going to sympathize with them!

i think that's at the heart of a lot of the criticism of the film i've read so far. the story banks everything on you liking evan as a person and caring about what happens to him -- sympathizing with him -- when he is utterly unlikable. even beyond the bad casting choice.

is it possible to have an unsympathetic protagonist as your POV character in a film? i'm sure it is. but this is not the way to do it. could DEH have succeeded with an unsympathetic protagonist as its POV? probably, if treated differently. i can’t help but wonder what a dark comedy version of DEH would like like, akin to Heathers. although, what i think Heathers does well that DEH does not is both show that its protagonist does in fact do shitty things we are not supposed to support, and she realizes this after facing consequences for her actions and makes a change in her behavior two thirds of the way through the movie. but, ultimately, as it is, it seems like the route the DEH movie went down was not a good one, exacerbating problems from the stage show both through writing and, more simply, through the medium itself.

[beelspillowpet]

A Lesson in Love - A “Character Analysis” on Asmodeus

I had to come for the tracks, wigs, and weaves of bitches when Pomade dropped because I saw people talking shit about my boy. This was a milestone “project” or “reward” I guess?

I hit 400 followers today while I was out running errands!!! Thank you guys SO SO MUCH for the love and support! I can’t WAIT to produce more content for everyone!!!

Below the cut there WILL BE talk of season 3, as well as some talk of chapter 16. There’s a healthy amount of theorizing on his personality as well, I hope you don’t mind! This came out more like a plea to get people to change their minds about how Asmo really is, rather than a comprehensive essay of sorts. So here we go!

There’s something we apparently still need to talk about in this fanbase. The unrealistic idea of Asmodeus being a sex freak, and an unreliable person in general despite there being little proof of it. We need to set a few things straight about Asmo moving forward.

December 25th rolled around and Asmo’s audio drama and song were released. I take it everyone enjoyed both parts, as well as I did. My timeline both on twitter and tumblr were filled with Asmodeus content, as well as the other brothers and such. But I mostly got Asmo content. However, in peeks and cracks, if I looked hard enough, I still saw people who absolutely loathed Asmo or who were indifferent to him. Keep in mind; I think it’s okay. You don’t have to like everyone.

I’ve only joined the fanbase in September, but even I could tell some of these takes were old fashioned. I downloaded the game on October 17th, a very important anniversary for me, while I 

was still in bed in the morning. I blazed through the entire story of season 1 and now I am stuck in season 2, specifically in Chapter 24. I obviously don’t have every card of Asmodeus with his Devilgrams, but I have been analyzing his character over the past few days for this.

So needless to say, I have a considerable amount of information on him, as well as personal thoughts that may help some learn to love him. Or at the very least, from spreading a negative idea of him around as if it were true. Enough that should help clear his name, so to speak.

Let’s look at his title; Avatar of Lust. Now naturally the thoughts that come to your head are sex and other sexual bits. So I can understand how some people would come to the conclusion that he’s just a sex freak. But if you look under the surface of his title, like I’m sure you’ve had to for your own personal favorites (*cough* Lucifer, Belphie, and Satan ESPECIALLY) you would discover that Asmodeus is more than just about sex. In fact, sex takes up very little of his pass time, if you were to believe it!

In recent chapters, as I’ve been told, Asmodeus doesn’t really get around much anyways:

Granted, this was said while in Celestia, but I imagine not much has changed for him since his fall, as well as his brothers.

Not really comfortable being with just anyone, huh…? Sounds like someone who doesn’t have sex so warily often as you’d think!

Being lustful can come in many shapes and forms. It can be merely in appearance, which Asmo is not afraid of doing. He’s very comfortable about skinship and it’s very apparent in how he dresses and acts that he wants you to adore his body. To worship it! Maybe not sexually, but aesthetically! Being lustful can mean just thinking about sex or sexual scenarios often, which if you take a peek at Asmo’s chat’s either with you or his brothers, is very apparent too.

Personally, I believe that people would assume he is not good in a relationship because he would have a “cheating problem”. I don’t think Asmo is a monster, just like I don’t think any of the brothers are monsters. They may be demons (technically fallen angels) now but they used to be angels too. Their falling out with their Father doesn’t mean they’ve completely abandoned morality, it was a rebellion for Lilith’s right to live. Not for them to sin as they pleased. For all we know they might have been fine in Heaven otherwise! (with the exception of Lucifer.)

A monster knows right from wrong and chooses evil anyways. An ignorant person doesn’t know right from wrong. Asmodeus is not a monster, nor is he ignorant.

When Asmo genuinely loves you, I think he would take steps to calm down that side of him, if it were to exist. Lust is fairly limited, but it is a part of love to some extent. LOVE is vastly different. Love has many languages, and they aren’t all spoken either. For me, personally, I found that Lucifer’s love language can be either very direct, or roundabout so as to not let it go to your head, for an example. Asmo is just far more direct about his care for you.

I feel as though Asmo gets a lot of crap constantly for his presumed nature and because we don’t get to see much else of him at first, especially in season 1, his impression on us sort of stays. With most of the fanbase either somewhat new to the game or somewhere lost in the sea of the difficulty curve that is season 2, we can only assume based on what we’ve seen, and what others have headcanoned about him.

Let’s break and talk about Satan for a moment; this is going somewhere.

I’m led to believe that Satan can control his sin fairly well. He’s easy to get irritated, sure, but he isn’t as much of a walking ball of rage as I suspected. I would argue that, aside from Leviathan, Satan can handle his sin the best out of the brothers. But again, we’re forgetting about Asmo. The Avatar of “Lust”. Like I’ve shown before, he doesn’t really sleep around a lot, according to anon.

At worst, Asmo being flirty is through text and he’s not actively trying to sleep with you. It can be interpreted that way, but for me personally, it comes down to having a friend that is very up close and in your personal space.

(I myself am one of these types of people. Having ADHD, my social cues are always sort of off, and I’ve struggled with coping with it for years. With my best friend, we have seen each other naked countless times and have slept in the same bed as well. We were never romantic with each other. We were just very comfortable being close and personal with each other.)

I’d like to point out also that Asmo isn’t even there for most of season 1 too. Which can give you the idea that maybe he just was out sleeping around a lot, but to me he probably just went out partying a lot. You don’t get known that fast for sleeping around. Maybe in 5,000 years, sure, but I’d imagine being a party boy, as his Devilgram “Guided by Desire” suggests.

So the idea that Asmo isn’t in the house a lot because he’s out having sex all the time isn’t true is it? He’s probably just out partying, which can LEAD to sex with someone sure, but again, Asmo doesn’t feel comfortable doing that, now does he?

I feel like of all the boys, Asmo is the one who radiates with everyone else the most. Most people will never realize how surreal it is that Asmo is faking it until he makes it. He doesn’t always think he’s beautiful, or that he’s worth all the love he’s striving and straining to get. Something that is extremely relatable for a lot of people with self-worth issues. Asmo is just like that, but instead being sarcastic and self-deprecating, he simply works to make himself look as beautiful as possible, so that in his eyes, his beauty matches the affection he gets.

Which is why, when he falls in love with you, it’s strange. You are constantly telling him he’s nice and pretty, but you aren’t lusting after him. You’re just being nice. It may just be me, but when people are overly nice just for the sake of being nice, I’m very attracted to that. That is Asmo, to some extent. The fact that he reflects the insecurities and habits of others so clearly may make others uncomfortable, but that brutal honesty veiled behind insecurity is what a lot of people with self-image issues deal with.

Now for me to share my favorite personal idea for Asmo that completely changed how I saw him in season 1 onwards; Asmodeus is an empath. Now let me explain:

First, what is an Empath?

The term empath comes from empathy, which is the ability to understand the experiences and feelings of others outside of your own perspective. Seems simple, right? Everyone can do this to some extent. However, what makes you an empath is the fact that empaths genuinely feel the same pain as you do. So much so your experience becomes a very personal part of their own. They are capable of being able to feel other people’s emotions without them speaking, or even showing signs of it through their body language.

This would explain, for me personally, why there’s so little of him in season 1. The intensity of what goes on in the house, his sensitive soft-spoken mannerisms, the only time he truly gets mad is when he’s childishly arguing with Mammon? Asmo is afraid of true conflict, he’s afraid of violence and negative emotions. Let’s face it; everyone is indifferent or hates you at the start of the game.

While this changes fairly quickly, all the intense feelings come to a head in chapter 16. All those negative emotions swirling around, of course Asmo isn’t going to want to be in the house when it’s that intense. The attic didn’t just disappear completely, too. Belphie was still in the attic hating humans. That negative emotion could be affecting Asmo and he didn’t know why, so he could have been out of the house more.

Where Asmo can feel the emotions of others, it may mostly be the negative ones because they fill him with anxiety and panic if it persists. Which can be helpful in making him so urgent to want to make others smile and feel better, right?

Imagine being intimate with Asmodeus, and suddenly you aren’t in the mood for it anymore but don’t want to make things awkward. He could pick up on it in an instant and wouldn’t get mad because he understands how you feel completely.

Now to close this out about something that genuinely hurts me; Asmodeus is a narcissist.

I mean, the wiki says that he is, but personally? No, no he isn’t. Since when is loving yourself a bad thing? Sure he may go a bit far sometimes, but people with self-image issues need to go a little harder than the rest to make sure they're getting the love they need.

(Talking about myself AGAIN, but I do this a lot. At random, I will look up in my own mirror in front of my desk that I sit in front of all day and tell myself I am a cute bitch. I am VERY VERY cute and anyone would be lucky to have someone as drop dead gorgeous as myself. I say that a few times a day. In reality, I am very insecure about my looks. I do believe I’m cute, but sometimes it’s hard to say it. Which is why I force myself. Why wouldn’t Asmo do the same?)

Talking yourself up to be as beautiful as a sex god is no easy task, but Asmo isn’t the Avatar of “Lust” for no reason. When an insecure girl talks up her beauty, it’s her being strong and independent. When Asmo does it, its narcissism… it doesn’t really seem fair, now does it? Maybe he’s just an insecure person who needs to tell himself ALL THE TIME that he’s beautiful. That if he stares at his reflection long enough, he may see it too.

(Also, Simeon literally calls him out on being insecure. Insecure people tend to try and overcompensate where they feel they’re lacking.)

”Asmodeus is hinted to be insecure and seeking for love and attention. When Simeon was asked about what he thought of Asmodeus, he says that Asmodeus is still trying to fulfill the role of the angel he used to be; an angel that was adored and loved by many. Asmodeus laughs at Simeon's remark and brushes it off by saying that he is only jealous.” - A section from said Asmodeus Wiki.

People can choose to love or hate Asmo, obviously. Making things up about his character without having anything but speculation and having that dictate how he acts is plain silly. This entire “essay” if you can call it that, comes from the heart. I love Asmo as a character, and in the beginning he did make me uncomfortable, I didn’t like him that much. But I learned to look past that and figure out why he acts the way he does. Something didn’t sit right with me about him for a while, and it was that air of insecurity that I didn’t see at first.

All I can really ask for, is giving Asmo another chance as a character. He’s not as wild and wacky as Mammon, or as cool and sexy as Lucifer, or as edgy and precious as Belphie, but he matters in this story too. He fell from grace with his brothers for Lilith. Give him another chance, and let him show you that he is the Avatar of Love.