#also this feels unpopular to say on here. but I get very little enjoyment out of things like making headcanons & the act of fleshing out

[baravaggio]

I like Jolyne a lot and I think she’s one of the better protags but I’ve always felt kind of bad for completely understanding why some people don’t like p6 (not talking about people complaining in bad faith who partook in the hate train it had a few years ago).

I think there’s a certain subset of fans who’re very overly-defensive as a result of said hate train who accuse any criticism or dislike of the part of coming from misogyny though and it really gets on my nerves because.. people can just not click with certain parts, it’s not uncommon for a Jojo fan to not particularly like at least one part and that’s not any different with p6. Idk it’s just not 2018 anymore, most people moved past that ‘Ugh Jolyne is a Mary Sue Jotaro with boobs, skip part 6 it’s boring as hell.’ mentality a good while ago.

yeah, as someone whose love for jojo is more rooted in the way we can see araki continue to grow and improve as an artist/writer with each part, I definitely find the defensive way some fans react to simple disinterest exhausting. I've said it a lot on here but this is pretty much how I feel about part 4 - story structure issues aside, there's just something about the setting/genre/tone that doesn't appeal to me. meanwhile it's possibly the most beloved jojo part, which is fine lol!

jumping off what you said though, I find the way some fans selectively mishear legit criticisms of araki's writing exhausting....like one of my biggest gripes with stone ocean is the way hermes is completely sidelined for a large chunk of the part. she has such an interesting setup, araki totally fumbles her story and she ends up being one of the most underwhelming jobros because of it. this is a criticism of the way araki's sexist writing makes stone ocean a weaker (and to me, a slightly less enjoyable) part, it's not about thinking hermes isn't a good deuteragonist because she's a woman lol, but that's what some people choose to hear

and of course I do think that even if a lot of the fanbase is past that overt sexism about stone ocean/jolyne, misogyny absolutely tints the way many people read and talk about the part (or neglect to talk about it), so I completely get the frustration and why some fans might have their hackles raised about certain statements....the people who you're talking about are unfortunately a loud minority 😕 which sucks because all the stocean enthusiasts I follow are actual scholars and philosophers

[sapphicdib]

FIRST: Looks to the Moon! And if you want to Hunter as well?

HEHE YOU KNOW ME SO WELL <3

Fav thing about them:

Moon: Her. Just her. Her entire adorable being. Her structure, how calming it is to be inside it. The way she hangs upside down on her rig a lot, especially when examining you. Her cute nicknames for you. The way she thanks you for bringing her things. Her lil beepy voice she has before giving you the mark. Everything. Her personality, her puppet, her breathtaking structure. I can’t choose one and I will not.

Hunter: Her story! How selfless her mission is, and how she’s a little creature doing her best to save someone she’s never even met before. She uses her limited time to save someone who suffers the same fate as her—body breaking down, seizing and collapsing. I also like that she’s pink :)

Least fav thing about them?

Moon: Impossible. Nothing.

Hunter: I guess…how neglected she is? She’s never anyone’s favorite campaign (just get good at the game, scrubs), and she was the only scug that didn’t get an updated ending/attention in downpour. Obviously artihunter means she’s popular within the fandom, but game-wise a lot of ppl seem to forget about her, when it’s honestly a REALLY fun campaign!

Favorite Line:

Moon: “And so clearly, this forced broadcast is directed to you, Five Pebbles.”

Idk what it is about this line specifically, but I legit cannot read it without bursting into tears. I managed to hold it together but I read that line in her broadcast and just lost it. I cried for like 30 minutes and had to go hug my mom.

Hunter: Obviously she doesn’t speak in the game, but here’s one of my fav line(s) from a fic Im writing:

She’s very proud of her name :)

brOTP

Moon: Is it weird to say Moon and Ruffles? It’s so cute that Moon named her and Ruffles seems to stay around even after the campaign. I headcanon that Rivulet struck out on her own to find out who she was, and after many adventures, decided that Ruffles was who she was.

Hunter: Ruffles too!! I see them having a cute sibling dynamic thanks to lilypad :3

OTP

Moon: LILYPAD OF COURSE!! DOOMED YURI MY BELOVED !!! Sig n Moons personalities work together so well and I love them sm ;-;

Hunter: APPLE JUICE!!! Monk x Hunter!!! I would have said artihunter but apple juice has captured my heart so hard i can’t help it.

nOTP

Moon: I don’t rlly like Eclipse but that’s just cuz I hc Moon is a lesbian. Also Waning Crescent/Slivermoon just doesn’t do it for me.

Hunter: Cherrypie…sorry cherrypie enjoyers I just can’t see it :( I feel like gourmand would see Hunter as more of a daughter figure.

Random Headcanon:

Moon: BEEPS! She beep-snorts when she laughs and often tries to hide it but Sig has made it her life mission to make Moon beep-snort-laugh as much as possible hehe

Hunter: She acts a LOT like Sig. Despite her ferocity in battle, she’s pretty goofy and playful during less intense moments. She also considers herself as Sig and Moon’s daughter (as do they)

Unpopular Opinion:

Moon: SHE IS NOT JUST “BORING FEMALE CHARACTER.” She has personality! She’s insanely stubborn when it comes to using her seniority privileges and obviously takes her role as local group senior very seriously. She is “nice and kind” but that doesn’t make her flat/stereotypical. Of course she’s gonna be nice to the player, you’re a little helpless animal.

Hunter: PLAY HER CAMPAIGN. PLEASE. It is not as daunting as you think it is, ESPECIALLY if you’ve beaten downpour cats! It IS challenging, but for me it really brings back the spirit of the original game: youre a helpless little creature. You can’t generate spears out of your ass, you can’t make explosives, all you can do is run slightly faster and throw spears slightly harder. You have to use your wit and skill to get through it, but it is so worth it.

Song I associate with them

Moon: Afterlife by Shadow Cliq

Hunter: No Mercy by DeathByRomy (it’s an artihunter song but god it goes hard)

Favorite Picture of Them:

MEWNIE…

And not to suck my own dick here or anything but this is my fav drawing i’ve done of hunter, my new year’s resolution was to learn to draw scugs so here’s my fav drawing of her i’ve done so far :3

TY FOR THE ASK!!

[shallowseeker]

Shal SPN meta masterpost

(The thought of labeling my unhinged ramblings as "essays" or "meta" honestly gives me hives.) But well. After a year, I'm still here, and I am making and updating this (A) to happily re-visit my thoughts for my own enjoyment and (B) to add to my pinned post.

MY META:

==Most Liked==

Dean, Cas, and sharing pockets

Jack's nephilim eyesight triggering Dean's germ anxiety

== Roles, Identity, Careers, Class ==

Performing Dean, the AV Club, and Jack as varsity MVP

Even when Chuck "humiliates" Castiel, Dean still likes him

Cas + "dad material"

Anna and the angelic non-integration of her own emotions

Are angels terrified of fathering Nephilim?

Jack is not part of a traditional, cookie-cutter nuclear family. That's the WHOLE POINT

Nazi Cas, and the implications for Jimmy Novak

Beware the validity of Cupid in My Bloody Valentine

== Core traits ==

Dean + I don't deserve happiness

Cas + shabby angel of the Lord

Lucifer + cognitive empathy

Lucifer...doesn't really rib Cas that hard about his feelings for Dean

Dean's guilt and emotions make him LOOK guiltier than other characters

Dean + ashamed of being alive

== Symbols ==

Castiel's coat of arms - When Cas dons the overcoat, he hijacks the narrative

Dean, the Cupid, and the insidious motive to demoralize his faith in ever finding "True Love"

Searching for a rainbow + forbidden love is forbidden

Jack ate the world: foreshadowing gods eating souls + nephilim lore

Cas died on a beach! + Jack's place of birth was specifically the famously doomed Washaway Beach

==Car meta ==

Cas + cars (!)

The pimpmobile as a marker of Cas's unsettled identity

The truck is the mark of a family protector and Sam loves little blue cars teehee

Family cars + protecting the ones you love

==Pop culture, music, media ==

Head canon that Dean buried Cas by a windmill, but it’s because he and Cas have had deep conversations about Animal House.

Jack + Dean + hyperfixations on music

==Grief ==

The familial murder of the mother, the blaming of absent father, and the symbolic death of a child in 14x18 Absence

Dean looks around for Cas after he prays in 13x01

Smiting Belphegor made Jack's death real

Harper Sayles and the romanticized first love

How Jack & Dean wanted to look ahead in Optimism and fail at doing it when Jack dies just two episodes later

==TFW dynamics ==

Dean's family was willing to sacrifice him, and that gets overlooked (from an ask)

Dean's Farewell Tour + Avoiding Cas - part 1

TFW are messy disaster parents and I dig it

When Dean killed Belphegor, it was about Rowena, but it was ALSO about [OMITTED]

Cas + resilience + repeat existential crises

Dean & Cas + Covert Communication in 15x09

Claire & Jack are uneasy around each other at best; actively dislike each other at worst

== Breakdowns ==

Jack's best memory was in 13x06; some notes about the scene

Oh, my GOD, Cas. Dean was so stupidly worried about you, you dumbass. (12x17-12x19)

Season 11-12 Lucifer + war + rejection + Jack -> the thing that will give his life new meaning

== Script talk ==

Like a baby lion is proud of his kill, Jack overkills Nick with graphic, brutal efficiency in SPN 14x17 Game Night

The mission before all else + Mary's trust in Jack in 14x17 Game Night

Dean & Cas in season 15: doomed by too much faith in each other?

== Unpopular and/or controversial opinions ==

Dean would never say I Love You to ANYONE in those circumstances.

How Dean and Cas lost the thread of free will in SPN season 15

The incest jokes and innuendos are primarily about class disrespect

The argument that Cas has no parental authority over Jack (and Sam and Dean do)...doesn't hold up

Ben is not's Dean's son. Full stop.

Heaven is a war machine

Endverse Cas + The Nephilim-making Strategy

-> Contrarian takes:

Purgatory isn’t pure in the *good* sense; it’s a suicide trap and a black-and-white, unthinking world (long)

Cas actually DID check out naked Hannah (very long)

Cas has good reason to need forgiveness during the divorce arc...he is not blameless (long)

Does Chuck's female coding carry ill intent?

==Finale metas==

What if Dean dying on the rebar was an accidental manifestation of Chuck!God!Amara!Jack’s latent feelings? (long)

Searchin' for a rainbow + Cas's death + forbidden love (long)

== Funny thoughts ==

Jack + typewriter

Lebanon inhabitants + TFW fake jobs

Jack & Dean + nephilim eyesight + GERMS

Ketch, the father

Sam wigged out when Eileen didn't leave and note and Dean deserved to say things about it - lol

Cas is SO old, y'all

Dean hate-watches Gone with the Wind

Dean doesn't "feel more deeply than anyone," you FOOL

Dean/Cas are that unsettling, unhinged couple who looks absolutely demented when they kiss

== Random ideas ==

What if Cas's Enochian rib carvings affected Cas's abilities to hear Sam and Dean's prayers?

== SPNwin ==

There’s a lot of merit in being anti-destiny, anti-soulmate, anti-chosen-one, anti-Cupid, anti-mirrors/anti-parallels. (long)

Natural crisis points built into The Winchesters character arcs (long)

To be updated.

///

(Text Attributions// Supernatural scripts here via @spnscripthunt. Transcripts are located here via SPNWiki. Visit their Tumblr to donate.)

[ordinarymaine]

🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 for whatever you want <3

HEHEH

1. resident evil 8 was such a missed opportunity to do like. idk. anything. im not sure if i necessarily agree with people saying that it was nothing more than a tech demo for re4make, but i definitely see where they're coming from. the factory is a slog, moreau's swamp sucks. house beneviento is by far the scariest part of the entire game and the atmosphere is incredible, but it is CRIMINALLY short. castle d is gorgeous, but lady d herself falls flat as a nemesis / mr x type of enemy. i also just? dont like the writing in re8 at all. the characters are written strangely. i dont know how to put it into words. ethan feels weird. chris feels weird. mia feels weird and was tossed to the side and went from who she was in re7 to like an anime mom. this one is very petty but the fanbase for re8 is annoying as SHIT also. most re fans are irritating but re8 fans are something ELSE. the best thing about re8 is how it looks

2. this very quickly turned from unpopular opinions to Lilith's Hater Hour and im not sure how to word this either but a part of me hates how popular aw2 got. like a big part of me LOVES that, i feel like alan wake has always been underrated and ive loved it for years, its one of my favorite games ever, and im so happy to see it get recognition!! but predictably most of the fanbase has latched onto casey and zane/darling while completely ignoring saga as a character. its a bit annoying </3

3. i do not understand the hype around star wars, or why it got so popular. sorry to my mutuals for saying this on twitter like 3 times in the last 2 weeks and then again here FJFGHJH but i dont get it! i like the prequels, i like the sequels, i like rogue one, i like kotor (havent played either of them but i enjoy them nonetheless), i liked kenobi (pointing obi wan fan) i havent watched andor yet but i know i'll enjoy it. but most of star wars as a whole i just dont think its that. good? like. dont get me wrong when its done well its enjoyable!! but there are better sci fi serieses out there by far. star wars feels like lucasfilms throwing shit at the wall because it looks cool but has little sustenance. i will NOT start on my star trek vs star wars bullshit again because its INCREDIBLY biased LOL

4. i hate fallout 3. i hate traversing it. i hate playing it. i hate how it looks. i dont like the characters. i dont like the story. i dont like the writing. i like fallout 4 more than i like fallout 3, because 4 is at least enjoyable to play and lose myself in, even if the writing is arguably worse. when i first played fallout 3 i kept thinking to myself like. this is it? because for years all i heard was how good it was. and it just isnt LOL

5. i hate alien 3 also. i have not seen it and i do not plan on watching it because i KNOW it will make me angry. i am a BIG hater of shit thats just needlessly pessimistic / depressing / nihilistic simply for the sake of it, and from everything i've read of alien 3, thats exactly how it comes across to me. im sure if i WATCHED it i could more coherently explain why i dislike it, but im so attached to the dynamic that ripley, hicks and newt have that seeing it get thrown away immediately in the start of alien 3 would make me pass away badly

HELP. i didn't mean to ramble this much omg JJFDGJKFDGH i dont think most of this is very well written im sorry it's all very word vomit. i have had a little bit to drink and im feeling very haterish tonight. something in the air. thank you for indulging me <333

[sycamorre]

You know I gotta get my girl Ledo! Also Wisteria, please. I barely know her, but I love her already.

[send me a character]

Another long one!

Ledo —

Favorite thing about them: It's a hard tie between her design elements and her passion for what she cares about. I love how her design has come out, in part because of how long I've picked away at her over the years waiting for a chance to play her, and how everything fell into place with the campaign's setup, but I also love how passionate she is about things: her work, her goals, and even her problems. Coming off of playing Oriana, who has a tendency to downplay a lot of her emotions due to her anxiety, it's been a good change of pace. Ledo is pretty calm most of the time but won't hesitate to say what's on her mind if she thinks it's important.

Least favorite thing about them: She's really hard to pinpoint morally/alignment-wise. I've settled on lawful neutral, but she flip flops between wanting to actually do some good and not caring about others at all and it's one of those things that will probably either go one way or another as her story develops, but for right now is just hard to feel out without regularly writing or playing her.

Favorite line: "If the universe wanted us gone so bad, it should have done a better job at killing us." for a specific line. But I'll echo your sentiments about their little campfire talk. I had never gotten a chance to show Ledo angry and when a little bit slipped with her "I am no damn pirate," comment, that was satisfying.

brOTP: Already adoring the vibes between Ledo and Char, they get shit done. But honestly I can't wait to see where the relationships with the other characters go, too. Especially Celeste once they get to really talk about Twalan one on one and maybe even Foaly at some point if they ever get to swapping war/battle stories.

OTP: ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) You've seen him. I've only let his name slip once, but you've seen him on this here blog. That's all you get.

nOTP: You've also seen him but do not yet know his name. There's a lot of people in the world she would sell to satan for a corn chip, but she would pay for Satan to take this fellow.

Random Headcanon: In-character, her steel guardian Drache is based on a drake for one primary reason: a joke between her and her father. One day he asked her what she might want as a pet, and she said a dragon. She eventually learned that this was not possible, but the family in-joke remained. Out of character, the reason he's a drake is because I didn't want him to be a dog or a bear, and nothing else felt right. I originally was going to make her an armorer or artillerist artificer and she was gonna have a small monkey automaton, but after reviewing the sub-classes and realizing neither of those actually felt right and battle smith felt like the most useful sub-class, that automaton eventually morphed into Drache.

Unpopular Opinion: I doubt this technically counts, but I honestly think looking back that Ledo would have been better as a Pathfinder character. The inventor class is perfect, and I very well might replay her one day if I do ever get to join a Pathfinder campaign. But she feels like she fits well into the current party so I don't dwell on it too much.

Song I associate with them: OH boy. Currently her main song is "Queen of Kings" by Alessandra, but specifically this cover by Annapantsu for thematic reasons. "Runaway" by AURORA was her main theme before that. I have... a very long playlist for her I am still fine-tuning.

Favorite picture of them: I still think this is the best headshot I've done of her, even if I need to update the horns:

Wisteria —

Favorite thing about them: She's just fun! Half of my enjoyment when it comes to thinking about Wisteria is considering the fun things like what she might wear, how her spells might appear since she's a dancing-based bard, or what kind of shenanigans she might get into.

Least favorite thing about them: Intelligence is absolutely her dump stat and hoo boy is that gonna be hard to get used to if I ever do get to play her in some kind of game. She also has no sense of personal space and is the worst kind of nosy.

Favorite line: We'll come back to this one day. One day...

brOTP: Her little eladrin bard gang back home. The tightest clique of court ladies and performers the fey have ever seen.

OTP: This gal's not looking to settle down or just pick one... but I could be convinced if the right opportunity presented itself.

nOTP: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Random Headcanon: Since Eladrin can change their "season" willingly, back in the Feywild she would do it on a whim or based on which court she was performing in, but she heavily preferred spring since that is the court she originates from. However, once she enters the material plane and the idea of the courts is no longer looming over her, her "season" tends to change depending on her overall mood for a while, at least until she starts understanding that seasons in this plane are a set timespan and then she starts adhering to that a bit more as she settles.

Unpopular Opinion: Probably gonna need to actually play her some to get an idea for what this might be.

Song I associate with them: A bit of a cop out if I'm being honest because I haven't worked on her playlist yet, but "The Willow Maid" or "Round and Round" by Erutan because they feel like songs she would perform to

Favorite picture of them: She's ready for mischief and other nonsense

[dogmetaph0r]

10, 13 (alfie - i mean i have to - plus one of your choice) and 14 for salty asks game 👉👈

OOOH HERE WE GOOO

10. Most disliked arc? Why?

I didn’t not like it narratively, but I didn’t particularly enjoy the whole arc of trying to get Linda and Arthur back together :/ I did appreciate it in a “fellas we are never breaking the cycle” way, but it kinda drove a wedge between me and my enjoyment of Arthur’s boyfailure arc at some points. Linda kinda reminds me of my adorable little WASP-y mom so seeing her threatened and upset because a man will do anything but go to therapy……eugh, hard watch.

13. Unpopular opinion about XXX character?

Alfie - this is gonna maybe be a bit controversial (or not? idk it took a while for me to wrap my noggin around the vibes) but……I don’t think Alf is all that religious? He is very very involved in his community and seems to be a well respected member of Jewish society in Camden Town, but idk how much he really practices in his day-to-day. I could be entirely wrong (would be happy for a Jewish PB fan to correct me if I am, and honestly I much prefer the headcanons that imply it matters a bit to him because as you’re about to see….I love cultural exchange) but Alfie’s irreverence and self-deification don’t really come across as terribly devout to me. If you consider the non-TV works to be canon, he definitely seems to be of the impression that nothing really matters beyond the carnal. He does seem to believe in a God, but that God’s existence isn’t really consequential to him. So I think his Jewish identity is more forged in community than shared reverence! I can relate, in a way; I never practiced Catholicism, but because my entire dad’s side did and I grew up in a highly Catholic neighborhood, it impacts how I interact with the world. So that’s how I kinda see it: it’s not the religion that he practices, but more the identity of someone raised with the religion.

I also wanna doooooo……..

Polly - she wasn’t always a wise, rational woman throughout the show. There were plenty of times she acted out of anger, fear, stubbornness… and while I do love that we kinda treat her as our voice of reason, she’s still as flawed as the rest of them. I feel like I’ve seen a lot of fics fall into the idea that Polly knows everything. It makes for a good story driver, but I feel like that unfortunately just doesn’t encompass who Polly is as a person. I don’t wanna ramble super long AGAIN but I think a lot of her interactions with/about Michael kinda demonstrate that. She’s easily blinded by her fear of loss in particular, and in a way it’s very similar to Tommy’s motivations. I think that’s part of why they butt heads sometimes. I’d like to explore that more myself!

14. Unpopular opinion about your fandom?

Oooh boy, this one is kinda tough to say. But I think we have a looooong way to go as a fandom in terms of cultural sensitivity. I know we’re working with source material that already has a pretty problematic and shallow way of going about Romani characters, but I think it’s our duty as fans to sorta….grapple with that a bit? Address it with nuance? Or at least listen to POC, particularly Romani, creators who take issue with the things done in the show and in fan content. There are SO many aspects of the show itself that play into racist stereotypes about Romani people, and I’ve seen a number of tropes and fic concepts that revolve around those stereotypes in particularly shocking ways (for example, maybe don’t have “sold to the Shelby family” or “magical g**** fortune teller” as a plot point??? Many levels of inappropriate to that). I do largely give people the benefit of the doubt because I know that not everyone knows what to look out for, especially if they themselves are not targeted personally by bigotry in their communities, and fewer people know where to go to figure that out…. but I feel like specifically Romanichal culture is a strong enough theme in the show to warrant SOME promotion of cultural research. Of course we all have work to do (I’m no exception, and I wholeheartedly welcome concrit if anything in the story seems off) but I feel like some people really lean into exoticism and stereotypes without any unpacking of why they’re doing it. And, when other people express discomfort, I’ve seen more than once the sort of response that sums up to “well so-and-so said it’s not a slur/bad trope/stereotype so I’m gonna keep using it”. Thankfully it’s less prevalent here on tumblr but it’s still a problem! Let’s rid ourselves of the idea that any one culture is a monolith! Cultural exchange and education are exciting! Decolonize your writing! Respect and an open mind go a long way!

BUT YEAH basically that’s it teehee :•)

[canonicallysoulmates]

I'm starting with what I didn't like and making my way to what I did like about TVA because I wanna end this post on a positive note.

I'm starting with what's probably an unpopular opinion but I refuse to believe I'm alone in this, there has to be somebody else that feels the same way about this man: I don't like Marius. He was already on thin ice at the beginning of this book but the end made me hate him.

I've already said that I'm not a fan of Marius and Armand's romantic relationship and I've given some of my reasons why but I'm gonna go into a bit more detail because, from the beginning, we start off on the wrong foot because Marius rescues Armand from the brothel where he has suffered a lot of trauma including sexual abuse, and the first thing he does... is engage in sexual acts with him while he bathes him. Motherfucker you couldn't wait? Armand had been starved for days when he found him he couldn't even feed him first 🤨

And they end up in this very unhealthy dom/sub type dynamic where Marius wants to be in control and whips Armand when he angers him, and literally one of my notes about one of those moments is just 'Armand dump his ass'. It's when they get back from Kiev and Armand is basically finding himself but Marius wants him to go back to the studies that he had planned for him and when Armand tells him no, leave me alone (paraphrasing) Marius grabs a switch and hits him, and then when Armand rightfully angry calls him out on just wanting him to be an obedient little pupil he slaps him! Like sir!

And actually, this reminds me of something else I don't like about this relationship as a romance, after that event happens the next night Marius tells Armand that it's difficult for him to treat him as anything but a child even though he's not a child. That's part of the problem there's no development in this relationship there's no point where they become equals even in present time Armand continues to think of Marius as "Master". These two should not be together. I love toxic, twisted, fucked up ships but I don't love every toxic, twisted, fucked up ship and these two just don't do it for me. There's nothing that makes their toxicity fun or enjoyable, they're just toxic.

However, as I said the first time I mentioned my dislike of this relationship I can understand why some people would like it even though it's a no from me. But Marius relationship with Armand is not the reason I ended up hating him, no, it was that after Armand trusted him with his children he went ahead and turned both of them without consulting him. That is a breaking of trust. That is a crossing of boundaries. Also, I'm expected to believe this character is wise, and knowing and yet he turned a 12yr old.

In TVL Marius says turning Armand as young as he did is the worst crime he had committed and warned Lestat to never turn someone as young. Armand was 17. Lestat ignored what Marius said and created Claudia who was way younger at 5 and whose story ended in tragedy for both her and her parents. But Marius learned nothing from this and turned Benji at 12.

He's gonna have to work overtime in Blood & Gold to win me back.

Another thing with this book is that it does have some inconsistencies with things that were stated in previous works. Like in TVL the way Armand being turned is presented is as if Marius had decided it that it was time but here Armand was dying, Marius didn't have a choice it was either he gets turned into a vamp or he dies.

I know this is from Armand's pov and he's gonna see things differently so I don't know if this counts as an inconsistency but to me it kinda does, the way that he describes and talks about his and Daniel's relationship to me has a very different tone and presents a different story than how Daniel described their relationship in QOTD. These two build a life together for a period of time when Daniel was mortal but you would never guess that from the way Armand talks about their relationship.

And then there's Claudia's head. In this series, up until this point, decapitation had remained a consistent way to kill a vampire but then in this book Armand reveals he played Dr. Frankestein with Claudia before she got tossed outside, and removed her head to re-attach it to Madeline's body. Where's the logic? Why did he think this would work? Even if it had, she wouldn't have been able to blend in.

I'm getting double use of this gif

If this happens in the show I need to see Louis reaction to finding this out.

Was this an attempt by Anne to make his involvement in Claudia's death seem less awful because he tried to give her what she wanted? Cause it kinda feels that way but with me, it had the opposite effect, it reverted me right back into disliking him for a minute. I might like him now but I'll never forgive him for the shit he's pulled on Louis and Lestat during IWTV and TVL.

I wish we had gotten a more clear explanation as to how Armand somehow momentarily ended up in Sybelle and Benji's room and was able to kill her brother and then go right back to burning to death outside.

We have entered the pet peeve section.

There are some mentions of how David became a vampire. I hate it. I don't need to be reminded. Trust me I wish I could forget but I never will.

David. He was so pushy about Armand telling him his story, it was so annoying. He and Marius would get along wonderfully cause they both think they're oh-so-smart. He's probably the next character I'm gonna end up disliking/hating.

I am definitely in the Gabrielle defense team because the way Armand described her like who is he to judge her for not showing up every time Lestat gets in trouble, I don't remember him showing up to help when Lestat was crying, pleading and scared stuck inside a human body so he needs to shut it and deal with his bitterness over her never liking him.

And that brings me to what I did like about this book! Starting with Gabrielle we don't see a lot of her but I loved her scenes. She is the one vampire that could say 'I don't like you, and I never will' and mean it because she hasn't liked Armand since day one. She tore into him and I was totally on her side while feeling bad for him.

I don't like how or when they got turned, but I do like Benji and Sybelle as characters. And their turning aside I do like the very end with Lestat showing up having come out of his coma, wanting to keep hearing Sybelle play.

I really liked learning more about Armand. I've been wondering since the first book what is wrong with him and now I have the answer to that question, he is the way he is because he has gone through a lot of really horrible and traumatic things. There were several points in this book where my heart just broke for him. I wasn't sure if I was going to like this book because up until now I hadn't been his biggest fan but now that I understand his character more I do like him. And I feel like for all the flaws in the writing we do see his growth, he seems and comes across as much more mature. Like he knows himself better, and who he is and is ready to start entering into healthier relationships which is good cause now he has two kids to take care off. I really do like the character development that he gets.

For me the highlight was seeing his pov in regards to his relationships with Lestat, and Louis. He has so much affection and love for Lestat. They have such a fascinating relationship and it's interesting to see it go from basically enemies to genuine friendship. It's quite sweet, I actually like them being friends. And then him talking about his relationship with Louis, why he fell for him, and how time eventually destroyed their relationship- it's funny because the way it's written like the way that Armand talks about his and Louis's romantic relationship lines up in some aspects with the way that I view their romantic relationship like him saying the reason Louis stayed with him after Claudia's passing was because he had to in order to be able to keep existing and then he learned to be alone. I was nodding my head in agreement the whole time.

I feel like it might not seem like it but I did really like this book a lot more than I thought I would, and the positives outweigh the negatives so I'm happy to say that this is staying a 4-star read ⭐

[joshuaalbert]

For the ask meme , what about jadzia ?

favorite thing about them

she’s just. genuinely very enjoyable. like I feel like other characters I have more specific things to say about them but she’s literally just very fun to watch I love her beautiful woman weird guy who is also a worm energy. her swagger her panache her power. all the scenes where she’s doing her professional science job and also just saying some vaguely insane shit are important to me. but then like I also think one of the most interesting things in her character was kind of unintentional as they were trying to sort her out where early jadzia was a lot quieter and more serious and theoretically more like she was before joining and then she just kind of evolves into her final form. like I don’t think that was intentional I think they just kinda went hmm this character isn’t working let’s try something else but I think the idea that sometimes it’s this gradual progression towards a balance (in a different way than it is for ezri later as well) is an interesting one.

least favorite thing about them

it’s too easy to talk about tears of the prophets and the whole like “she’s never mentioned that they want kids before now but since they’re killing her off she is now Woman Who Wants A Baby because i guess her death isn’t tragic enough otherwise, and it feels like cheating to talk about how “if worf hadn’t shown up it would’ve been you” (idr if that’s the exact quote and I refuse to look it up but it’s like that) is a horrendous retcon, but holy shit everything that happened at the end of s6 into s7 was like. it’s just so clearly spiteful?? like I’m not breaking new ground here we all know it but god.

also I do think her willingness to just like throw her life away for some random guy she met two days ago is kind of funny but if I knew her in real life it would drive me insane

brOTP

benjamin!! literally just. I mean she has great dynamics with so many people and some of them didn’t even get ruined in s7 but they’re so important to each other both across lifetimes and as sisko and Jadzia Specifically that they gotta take the top spot

OTP

I do like worfzia a lot when they’re written well (90s trek loved the “a relationship can’t be interesting unless they’re fighting about dumb shit all the time” school of thought, and while some of their arguments made sense bc they had conflicting worldviews and experiences and shit that they should reasonably have to struggle to work out, some of them felt like they were more a feature of this). but also kiradax soooo deeply important to me from like late s1 onward and I simply think. what if they were wifes.

nOTP

sigh ok I’m gonna talk about it but just like. I really liked what the julian and jadzia friendship settled into!! she wasn’t into him and he eventually got over it enough that they could become rly good friends!! and like I’ve said this before but I get if he still had lingering feelings ik that doesn’t always just go away but like. to treat it like it was ever remotely mutual is so disingenuous and a disservice to both characters imo

random headcanon

this is really specific but I like to think she kind of loosely keeps in contact with arjin (the trill initiate she was the field docent for) even if he doesn’t go on to be joined. I think it would be nice if they had a little like pen pal mentorship thing going on every so often yknow.

unpopular opinion

it’s funny I feel like there aren’t a lot of wildly differing opinions on jadzia. like generally speaking pretty much everyone thinks she’s enjoyable? I feel like I have seen people say she’s not the best written character and I don’t think they’re Wrong (and i do feel like to a degree they do more interesting trill stuff with ezri) but it also doesn’t. bother me that much in this case tbh.

song i associate with them

I can’t remember who it was anymore but someone mentioned recessional by vienna teng as a kira/jadzia song but after ezri shows up and it’s.

yeah…………..

favorite picture of them

if I don’t talk about rejoined at some point during this I’ll die for real so here it is ⬆️⬆️⬆️ women kiss

[missielynne]

Answers for my latest CBS Ghosts anon

I love both Sam and Jay just about equally, and even though I don't talk about it much (either because I just don't think about it or I never had a reason to before now) I do agree somewhat with how Jay has annoying traits too and he's not just the wonder saint who has control over the ghosts while Sam is just a pushover (although communication about ghost whatsits between the two of them is long overdue.)

I do see what you mean about Jay being like Jake and it's one of his problems (now that you mention it, I kind of shy away from Jake for that same reason.) And while there's nothing wrong with being a gamer or loving your mother, I almost think they hit those parts of him way too hard, you know? Just like they really hit Sam's "need to please" tendencies on the head as well as her difficulty saying the word no to risk being disliked.

And speaking of that, yeah...the social climbing aspect of them as a couple is getting old too. Like it made Halloween 3 hilarious, don't get me wrong. But what is wrong with them finding Ned and Nellie normal next door who like Christmas and gaming and becoming friends with them? That would be nice.

I'm gonna give Jay a bit of a break about the cult thing. Sure, it was a bit extreme, but as he points out to Sam (and I would say, legitimately,) he's more of a city guy, maybe a little more outgoing than she is, and needs people in a way Sam doesn't because she can see the ghosts. And people, apparently, are hard to come by (which is why we need more of him and Mark bonding or for the love of god let the man see Pete!) He also, I feel, has more of a safety net to fall back on family wise compared to Sam which might be why Sam is more independent and mature: cause she had to be with her parents' divorce and everything, whereas Jay...he kind of seems like the golden boy who always got what he wanted, especially from his mom, which is why I smile every time Bela just insults him. It makes me smile even though I love the man.

Also, it seems like even though Jay's very close with his family, they don't like Sam so much, so I wonder if that will have anything to do with the plot of the Christmas episode. I hope his status in his family doesn't mean he leaves Sam hanging out to dry, if you know what I mean.

So basically on that one, I get it. Differ a little but surprisingly agree. And yeah, unpopular opinions definitely welcome here. I might disagree but I won't bite your head off for it. :)

2. I would like Thor and Flower better if they'd kept it more casual personally. Like, the combination has potential but the story they're giving us is, I feel, trying to push them into a typical monogamous romance when personally, I would have liked to see something a bit more nontraditional than that.

3. Hetty and Trevor: Agreed, agreed, agreed! Like with Thor and Flower above, them just being friends (or Partners in Crime with Benefits) is a much more enjoyable thing to watch for me than them being a typical couple. As for Nisaac...I could go either way. Like I wouldn't hate it if both were properly developed individually and got back together later, but it also won't crush my soul if we never see them together ever again.

4: I don't know what my favorite season is, honestly. One is good. Three is probably the last. Two had lots of good things in it. It's tough for me to decide.

5. I love Alberta! Her episodes are always my favorites, and her friendships with Hetty and Isaac just make me so happy.

6. Trevor is not at my top either (that's Hetty and Alberta, with Nancy if we're going outside the main eight). But I also feel like it's been really nice to watch his story and him as a person develop over the series. He may not be my favorite, but I'm rooting for him.

(It wouldn't let me reblog the original post with my answers for some reason so here you are!)

[theha1r]

🔥 rping <3

( send the fire emoji for an unpopular opinion )

oooh boy okay - i'm gonna do multiple bc i have a lot of feelings lmao

1 - idk how unpopular this is but - the rpc! is not! what it used to be! like the rpc used to actually FEEL like a community, nowadays things just feel so vastly different. no one comments or interacts with people's ooc & hc posts anymore. crack threads & silly little things are few & far between. people are constantly acting like this is a jobby & not a hobby tbh! i see it all the time! it literally seems like there's no enjoyment in rping anymore & it really seems like no one wants to branch out anymore -

2 - if you're writing an oc - pls at LEAST tell me what they are. like you don't have to have a full bio but at least some basic info? or even for unpopular or unknown canons. ones that aren't easily googleable. like i'm talking even just giving me a name, age & basic personality traits. because if you're throwing a character at me that i don't know at all - i don't know if certain situations or reactions would be appropriate & all. like just pls, give me something to work with at least?

2A - ALSO to add to this, if you have a canon muse that is canon divergent in some way or your own spin or au or you have certain hcs that go against canon ... PLEASE LIST THEM! OR LINK THEM! SOMEWHERE??? bc otherwise i'm just gonna assume canon stuff & throw canon situations at you! & then you'll be frustrated & i'll be frustrated & it'll be a whole mess - like pls just list your stuff somewhere bestie - just listing 'divergent' with no other information tells me nothing ...

3 - if you have faceclaims for your muses, pls list them! somewhere on your blog! idc where, it doesn't even have to be a fancy list - but there's a whole ton of actors & singers & influencers that i don't know, plus i'm just generally face blind - so having to play a guessing game of who this fc is can be very frustrating - like if i wanna make edits or if this fc does something problematic or something i'd like to be able to know who they are -

4 - i do not like teeny tiny icons. i'm sorry - but i don't. i barely like anything smaller than 100x100 but if you're going smaller than 75x75 ... why - i have to be over here like ken jeong in that community gif trying to figure out who tf i'm looking at. especially with the above point if you don't have your fc/fcs listed. like no offense to anyone who does the small icons but pls don't be offended if idk what your muse looks like -

5 - ... this one is gonna get me flamed but ... i don't like first person or second person pov, especially in rp. i don't like second at all & first i really only tolerate with like actual novels/books - i don't even like it in fanfic. & i get why some people might do it, but idk i just don't vibe. it throws me off for some reason. i think they can work with certain characters, but moreso for drabbles & things. it just throws me off to see in actual rp threads tbh ...

6 - this is more so for not just rp but also for fandom spaces but ... IF YOU WANNA WRITE A GENDERBENT CHARACTER OR A IRL PERSON/CELEBRITY ... literally. just. make. an. oc. make an oc sibling. make an oc based off the irl person. make an oc that exists in the universe w very similar traits as the character you wanna genderbend, slap a different last name on them and say they're cousins with similar traits. or something! anything! it's twenty-twenty-fucking-four why are we still writing genderbent characters & rping as irl people. like literally why

[soup-for-ghosts]

Roland Glenbrook and/or Temenos Mistral for the character ask meme?

I’ll do both!

for roland:

How I feel about this character

he’s one of the first characters I immediately latched onto when I played tristrat. the game’s start is a little rough in my experience as I find it a tad boring (after chapter 4 it picks up plenty though), but since his appearance in chapter 1, I knew I would like roland. he starts out very carefree and he jokes a lot in his first appearance, which initially caught my attention, and then his development throughout the game is just excellent. he’s a well-written, incredibly nuanced character, and I like those.

All the people I ship romantically with this character

none, I give him the honorable title of “aroace”

My non-romantic OTP for this character

serenoa is the obvious answer here, but I’m also gonna say that him and frederica’s friendship is so fun to me. morality was my first route and their friendship and dynamic after you know what makes me think a lot…

My unpopular opinion about this character

I don’t think I really have any? again, I can’t always tell if an opinion of mine would be considered unpopular, and the tristrat fandom is pretty small anyways, so I haven’t a clue

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

I haven’t played every route yet so no comment on this yet!

for temenos:

How I feel about this character

he’s genuinely one of my favorite characters of all time. I chose him when I was giving the ot2 demo a spin (I had played some of the ot1 demo but nothing more for the entire series) due to his story being described as a murder mystery (I consider myself THE ace attorney guy of my friend group sooo /j) and also my general enjoyment of playing healers tbh. I was IMMEDIATELY fascinated with his character, I mean… I’m an atheist myself and I have a… complicated relationship with religion sometimes, so it was pretty easy for me to latch onto the witty priest who’s first introduction is getting bullied by children for forgetting the lines of the scripture and then minutes later proceeds to say something that might be considered heresy. as his story went on I also found him uncomfortably relatable! so that’s fun pff- but all around, he’s a very good character, I like him a lot if you couldn’t tell pf

All the people I ship romantically with this character

take a guess, I don’t need to write another essay about why I like the dynamic of the devout knight and the doubting cleric /j

those simplistic descriptions aren’t doing them justice really, their individual characters are MUCH more complicated than that, but again, I don’t need to type another essay about that pff

My non-romantic OTP for this character

take another guess, I’m a sucker for the surprisingly talented detective duo that is a trained assassin and thief and a cleric

My unpopular opinion about this character

again, don’t really know, sorry

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

I have SEVERAL notes on the parts of his story that I have gripes with, most if not all being in the latter half (including crackridge actually, but that’s more about me wishing reiza actually got to be a character)… but that’s probably too long a talking point to put all here, and it’s more about his supporting cast than about him, his writing was excellent

[goddamnwebcomics]

I’ve been thinking about this particular discussion for a while…While I understand and disagree with your new policy at the same time, I’m not here to talk about that nor challenge you. I’m here to talk about the two comics themselves.

As I mentioned to you privately, I have an opinion to share the original comic and the reboot: I am reading the original as we speak, and I can’t understand why he has so much shame over this. I think it’s a fun little comic that’s enjoyable unlike the reboot! Here’s why.

The way I see it, the original is just pure fun. No obnoxious subplots that get dragged out, no whiny angst, nothing. Just pure wackiness and hijinks; It’s basically something anyone can enjoy. Sure, he borrows aspects from comics like Sabrina Online, and doesn’t really stick to one solid plot nor have much character development, but it’s still a fun read and one I intend to continue given how enjoyable it is. Arguably, it’s because of the lack of it that makes it so appealing on an esoteric level at least. It’s the same exact reason why Frankie Avalon’s Beach Party series or the Original Sabrina Online Comics had so much appeal; no solid plot, no annoying angst, just fun antics.

Meanwhile, the reboot that Jon and everyone else holds in such high regard is pretty much either:

-The same exact hijinks and lack of plot that he despised from the original continuity except this time they’re obnoxious instead of fun and it’s even worse the second time around given how they frequently disrupt the mood and the grounded feeling the reboot is supposed to set, as demonstrated by nonsense characters like Von Munchkinn and Korgar, which makes the entire point of the reboot a moot point. He may have done away with Munchkinn for good, sure, but the damage is already done. Not to mention, turning Seth into a guardian, and the whole “guardian” nonsense makes the entire comic feel like a dumb kodomo series.

-Frequent pity parties for Peter (try saying the last four words together 10x fast; I can’t) and the author by proxy especially in the earlier chapters, all of which have aged poorly and ring hollow.

-Bad/questionable writing choices like with Chelsea…which I’ll be honest, I don’t care to talk about…but is still worth mentioning since he almost decided to give her another pointless villain arc that would have brought back Von Munchkinn and that fish guy who, again, bring the same exact problem that he had with the original continuity. I also got a particular issue with Ezzy’s existence in the comic, particularly where it concerns implications of Persephoni disguising herself as her multiple times, but that’s a topic I won’t discuss here.

-In general, all the characters in the reboot carried over from the original are written to be as dislikable as possible; Peter, Seth, Chelsea…about the only one who is as he was, is Iggy and Theodore (aka Skin), and even then!

To top it all off, and arguably this is the most damning aspect of the reboot, you got the shoehorning of Whitney which starts the “first crush arc” that pretty much takes up most of the plot in the first comic and extends into Peter and Whitney to make his relationship look like it was some sort of destiny, making it seem more inspiring and romantic than it really is. It has as much depth as Bradley Bell’s in-your-face “destiny story” between Ridge Forrester and Brooke Logan (Trust me when I say Brad’s favorites are very unpopular for a very good reason; soap writing is garbage). It’s even worse than having no plot or direction at all; It might as well just be called “Peter and Whitney: The childhood years”.

Basically, what I’m trying to say is that it’s honestly a mistake that Jon gave only one continuity for readers; If he had not tried to deliberately hide the original comic and had just let it remain, this could have all been avoided. It’s a clear sign he really doesn’t know how the internet works and that at the end of the day, no matter how anyone feels about TJ’s actions (and I have my own mixed feelings on that matter), Jon can’t force the internet to abide by his terms as it ultimately never forgets whether he wants it to or not. I personally think he should throw his hands in the air and just be like “Fuck it” and repost the entirety of the original comic on his own website while explaining it’s no longer canon and then go on about why he discontinued it. It would be a hit with a lot more people than he thinks!

Sorry for the harsh long-winded speech, I just needed to get that off my chest. It honestly gets annoying to watch him create his own problems like that.

Fair point. This is an interesting point to make, because I got the idea that the original comic was abhorrent and even downright offensive, what with how it has been treated by both Jon and people who want me to riff it. I got some big “smoking gun” wibes out of it, personally.

It’s also surprising, because I absolutely dislike Jon’s wacky attempts at meaningless comedy. And I sort of get the idea Peter and Company Original Ver is full of that.

[fairy-pd]

back by unpopular demand

❤Tommy boy as a caregiver pt.2❤

GN reader, regresses between 1-8 years old, Tommy's lines are in ASL

WARNING: This is 1000000000% sfw, if it sounds a little off its cus I cant write for shit, not cus it's sexual okay? okay

notes: hello im sad and small me needs this. might not be for every regressor tho. enjoy

You won't ever feel truly alone anymore. Even though he can get a little too busy between his new "job" and his family, he is almost always at a scream distance- you can always call for him, and if he isnt busy with you know what, he will come to you at full speed

Best hugs ever. Those arms were made to hold and calm down fussy babies

Mama Luda knows almost every thing about you two cus Tommy cant keep secrets from her (lowkey from no one he truly trusts) so she knows you're a little "childlike" sometimes and thinks it's endearing.

Which means if Tommy can't come to you she will, and will take care of you till he's back

After a while, with Tommy's intense glares and Luda's bribing, they'll get through to Hoyt and will get you into Tommy's room, where you'll spend most of your time. His bed is now half-covered in homemade plushies, and you have a drawer for your other small things

Unfortunately, if you didn't bring your small items and managed to keep them with you, you won't have access to a pacifier :(

They both try really hard to shield you from their lifestyle now, except when it comes to food cus they really dont have many other choices- but because you're Tommy's, Luda will try to make exceptions for when you're feeling "sensitive" and will try to get her hands on something simple and cheap for you (most likely sweet): think biscuits, lollipops, etc.

But if you need something similar you'll always have Tommy's old bottle

And he will gladly offer one of his fingers

Insert image of Tommy holding you oh so gently in his arms, while you got your hands on his wrist and his index in your mouth. Man is holding his happy tears back like a champ

Just keep in mind that no matter how hard he tries to keep himself clean for you, his hands will always taste a little like blood :p

If you experience vent regression often, don't hold back on crying. It will take a while for him to learn, but he will eventually make a habit of craddling your face in his hands with his forehead resting against yours, while he softly sushes you

He is a great listener, though not a great problem solver: if you just need to get something out of your chest, he will be there for you, holding you as tight as he can and trying his darn best to make you feel better

'Do you want your bottle, sweetpea? A stuffie? A hug? Wanna suck on daddy's thumb, darlin'?'

He will also make a point on noticing what triggers your regression and sometimes will do some of those things on purpose, if he knows you're both alone and you need to let him take care of you- will take your shoes off, will bring you some of those biscuits his mom hid behind the toaster, will take his mask off and kiss the top of your head till you say "Papa stOp 😡"

He can be a little insistent in taking proper care of you: will help you take baths, will help you brush your teeth, even do your hair if you're comfortable with it/taught him how. One thing is for sure, you 👏 are 👏his👏 little👏 baby👏 and you wont lift a finger if it depends on him

We love this man your honor, and there's nothing he loves more in the whole wide world than his sweetpea

THIS GOT SO LONG AKAKSKSKSKKS

anyways 😪 here's another 3am blurb, from a very inexperienced writer and mediocre english speaker. Hope it was still enjoyable tho!!!!

[nonbinarytheatrekid07]

Hello RTC enjoyers, I am giving you my assorted thoughts on the McCarter version. I have only ever seen the off-broadway version and I really want to see what this one is like so away we go!

Karnak is not a puppet or a suit this time, but he has a cool hat

this karnak feels rage

Virgil is a lady and she is shredding the bass

oh my god they made a covid joke

I am afraid of this karnak

ricky has a tambourine and stickers on his wheelchair and is very unenthusiastic I love him

props to this karnak for being an animatronic very well

He didn't grab his crotch and i don't know if im happy about it or not

Ricky is filled with sass, i love it

this jane adds more emotion and acts/sounds a lot more like a kid and it hurts my heart

WHy does everyone have so much more sass in this production

I like that ocean and constance(and everyone really) are actually being friends here

ocean's actress is so expressive it's great

the SASS

I love her

I was expecting borthday, I did not get borthday

"no one's making out with tambourine guy"

everyone is pissed at ocean and rightfully so

I would give Jane a hug

HE TURNED TO THE AUDIENCE AND DID THE GAY HAND OH MY GOD I LOVE HIM

he has earrings you guys Noel has earrings have you seen Noel with earrings you need to see Noel with earrings

I stand by my previous statement that Noel would like 'Chicago'

I wouldn't say that the voices are particularly better or worse. I have gotten used to the off Broadway and recorded casts. So this is different, but they're doing an amazing job.

Ricky, I am going to take away your squeeze keys privileges. Stop memeing

Noel please to not moan

Constance and Mischa did a little handshake

Ocean keeps kicking Karnak before her songs

Constance and ocean did a little handshake

Fun fact: mischa slaps less asses in this version

talia is such a beautiful song you guys

TALIA AND MISCHA GET TO DANCE TOGETHER IN THE FAST PART ON THE PROJECTION

ok so noel went over to comfort mischa after the song ended and he just sort of grabbed him and hugged him and it was the sweetest thing

"what if people cant handle what I have to say" well we can't but I am looking forward to it so go ahead

I don't know how they managed it but they hypersexualised SABM

(ok so they changed it to "mysteriously stopped talking" which i think i prefer because that means that he is now choosing to speak, rather than now able to. Selective mutism? I also like how the second he gets to the afterlife he isn't just free of the chair or cane, he keeps them.)

I love Ricky so much you guys

He has an electric guitar

also he didn't concede, i don't know why

Jane seems genuinely sad and afraid

it continues to baffle me that these women can hit the notes

I love Jane

I know I have said this a lot but I love them all so much my little dead children

Constance's monologue always makes me cry

I haven't cried at sugar cloud like this since the first time I watched rtc

ok im sorry if this is an unpopular opinion but I like how she does sugar cloud more than the cast recording

Karnak you bitch

*don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry don't cry*

karnak's death was a lot more chaotic

*don'tcrydontcrydontcrydontcry*

[hopeswriting]

finished rereading the shimon arc, and the later half of the arc just really doesn’t hold up to the first one in terms of... pretty much everything tbh. now the last part of the arc was good too, don’t get me wrong! i enjoyed reading it, and it gave us nice, interesting and insightful moments too, be it about the characters, their dynamics, the worldbuiling, etc.

(noticeably not much about the various shimon arc’s plotlines tho lol. which were all pretty much resolved the moment daemon revealed himself as the Big Bad Guy and The Cause Of Everything, because after that it was just a matter of making enma catch up on that too. and tho i wish we’d have gone another route, it of course makes sense that’s what happened because daemon is the one who started it all, from all the way back to primo and cozart, but i still wish amano would have taken a bit more time with it, would have allowed a bit more nuance there. like mostly i wish the characters would have actually talked to each other about the conflicts and issues between them first before making them all daemon’s fault and “resolving” them by beating his ass. anyway.)

but it’s also kinda the problem that we only got good moments in between succession of events that otherwise fell kinda flat, for me at least. meanwhile the first half of the arc had me soo invested every step of the way, which you know if you read my posts about it lol. and imo amano wrote it so well at pretty much every level right up until the daemon reveal, setting up so many interesting things, interconnecting them and making them affect each other, and exploring them little by little and more and more each time, but then we got the daemon reveal and...

okay i think i just figured out my issue with the later half of the arc. i think daemon took too much space in it. and of course it was inevitable that the story focused on him from the moment he revealed himself as the actual antagonist/villain of the arc, that’s not my issue here, but i really think it was a mistake to also put him at the forefront of the story to do that. like imo amano should have kept giving equal focus at the very least to everything she had set up until then between the shimon and the 10th gen, and especially between enma and tsuna. but she made all of that take a back seat, which inevitably made me less willing to pay attention to what was happening because that’s what i cared about and kept me invested to that point, you know. and that’s what we were made to care about too, so i guess my issue is also that the daemon reveal came a little too late? and also with little foreshadowing before that.

so yeah, not sure how unpopular an opinion this might be, but that’s how i personally feel about it. but all that said, i of course still had such a blast reading the arc!!! it was really a lot of fun, and despite the later half being lacking, the shimon arc is still what i’d personally solidly call a good arc. and a very enjoyable one at the very least. also enma kozato, my beloved, i’m so glad i got to have a new-found appreciation of him. <3 he’s entirely too underrated for NO reasons guys, he’s literally such a good character!!! both on his own and when it comes to his relationship with tsuna!!!

it’s still really a shame the quality of the writing didn’t last to the end because i was ready to call it my new favorite arc, but it still became my new second favorite arc. which is saying something because i had a really negative memory of it for some reason lol. anyway, shimon arc good and underrated and i loved it <3

[southsidestory]

I’m in a Hunger Games mood, so I’m gonna give y’all my unasked for reviews of each book (while unapologetically wearing my Everlark glasses). Here we go!

In terms of plain quality as a novel, The Hunger Games wins for me. It’s so tightly plotted, the world building is immersive, the conflicts are compelling, and I love how focused the story is on Katniss and Peeta.

In the later books the world opens up, we meet so many more characters, and Katniss’s other relationships—with Gale, with Haymitch, with her mother, with Prim, with the other victors—are explored in greater depth. Which is awesome! But I love the (forced) intimacy that the 74th Games creates for Everlark. It’s complicated and messy and absolutely fascinating. What’s more, it expertly sets up the central challenges that Katniss and Peeta will deal with in the rest of the trilogy.

Catching Fire is the book I enjoyed reading most. First, because Finnick Odair is one of my all-time favorite characters, and definitely my fave in THG series. I love how Katniss has all these negative assumptions about Finnick and many of the other victors, but getting to know them forces her to accept that they’re just flawed, complicated people surviving their trauma, exactly like her.

The clock arena was a brilliant and brutal idea, and the ending was such a WTF moment that I immediately dove into Mockingjay afterward.

Best of all, we get maximum doses of Everlark all through this book. The bedsharing on the train. Peeta illustrating the plant book for Katniss. Their sunset scene on the rooftop of the Training Center. So much Everlark goodness that it’s practically a banquet.

The only major flaw I can lay at Catching Fire’s door is that the concept of sending Katniss and Peeta back into the arena feels a little contrived. BUT the execution is excellent so I’ll happily forgive that.

And then there’s Mockingjay. Which I’m going to spend too much time talking about sorrynotsorry.

I have what I suspect may be some unpopular opinions regarding the third book. First, I actually really liked Mockingjay, and I think a lot of Everlark fans don’t?

I understand why! Katniss spends a large portion of the book separated from Peeta, and when she finally gets him back... well, we all know how that turns out. However, while those things are difficult to read, I think they’re good narrative choices. During Peeta’s captivity, we finally get to see the depth of Katniss’s feelings for him. She doesn’t realize it, but her love is astoundingly obvious. Her longing for him is palpable—which is what makes their reunion all the more heartbreaking.

Peeta getting highjacked is so tragic, but imo the book needed it. Up until this point, Peeta is a beacon of goodness. Certainly he has flaws, but Katniss doesn’t really see them, and to some extent she takes his love for granted. The highjacking destroys all of that. While it’s painful to read, it’s also really fucking interesting. And it takes Katniss’s grudge against Snow to a new level. What he did to Peeta is beyond unforgivable, and after it happens, she is out for blood. Peeta’s excruciatingly slow recovery keeps the reader on tenterhooks, wondering, Will he get better? Will he regain his love for Katniss? Will he ever be the Peeta I know and love again? It’s A+ conflict with high af stakes.

But perhaps what I loved most about Mockingjay is the characterization and story lines for the other victors. Haymitch’s involuntary sobriety, and the possibly even less enjoyable role as the resident Katniss Whisperer lol. Finnick airing all of Snow’s dirty laundry, even though it means revealing that he’s a rape survivor to a public that has been slut shaming him for years. Johanna’s morphling addiction and severe PTSD, and how she and Katniss finally find common ground.

Now for the things I *didn’t* like about Mockingjay.

#1 is unsurprisingly Finnick’s death. It happens in such a horrible way, and I think Collins chose to do it because she knew that Finnick dying would hurt the worst, not because it serves the story best. Prim’s death is gutting, but it’s narratively necessary. Finnick’s death is for shock value.

The pods scattered throughout the Capitol is a horrible idea. That makes no goddamn sense. It’s clearly only there for the “Welcome to the 76th Annual Hunger Games” line and all that it entails, which is not a good enough reason. Katniss and Peeta have already been through the arena twice, they don’t need to trod through a knock-off arena in the last book. It’s repetitive, and unlike the Quarter Quell, it’s not executed well enough to overcome how contrived it is.

I’ve got other gripes, namely all the Galeniss moments. But I will freely admit that it’s because they’re a NOTP, not because those scenes are unnecessary or poorly done. On the contrary, they’re very necessary and very well done. I just don’t like them lol

But then there’s the ending to Mockingjay. It’s perfect. It concludes on exactly the right note. The ending recognizes the longevity of Peeta and Katniss’s trauma, as well as the cost of war, but it still wraps everything up on a hopeful note. After three books full of death and destruction, Katniss and Peeta are allowed to find peace and recovery. It’s as happy of an ending as books like these can possibly have, and it’s 1000% earned. No small feat.

From an Everlark perspective, I could not be more pleased with the end. I’m sure all I have to say is the word “Real” for everyone to understand why. Collins stuck the landing like Simone Biles on floor, and I have great respect for that.

Tagging @awhiskeyriver @rosegardeninwinter @muttpeeta and @badnovels because you’re all wonderful writers and I’m really curious about your opinions. I’m not expecting or looking for perfect agreement—and in fact, I’d love to hear other perspectives! Even if you think I’m dead wrong 😂