#also very funny doing an evil run and having so much more approval with him than shadowheart or lae'zel

[buntchugley]

romancing gale on an evil run (esp evil durge) is wild btw

act one

Gale: This is the worst moment. When the screams of the dying have faded, and the conquering hordes howl and yelp as they come to their vile climax. Gale: Massacre. A spectacle of slaughter. And I participated. Gale: What are these bloody stumps that used to be such delicate harpists of the Weave? Joy: Perhaps we've gone too far, but what's done is done. Gale: No! Gale: Two shadows are darkening my soul. The shadow within and the shadow without: Gale: You. Gale: You led me down this path. Joy: I'm sorry you feel that way. Gale: It's time to stop making excuses. Gale: I don't know myself anymore. All this… It's not who I am. Around you, I'm not who I want to be. Gale: I should leave. Joy: Stay. We make each other stronger. We make each other survive. Gale: Yes. Yes, I suppose we do. Few things are more powerful than the will to live. Gale: But carnage such as this… The shadow within is spreading like poison, corrupting kindness and compassion. Gale: I thought the orb to be the greatest of my sins, but I see now there are darker depths to which I might yet sink. You may be content to sink into that abyss, but I assure you - I am not.

then act 2

Gale: It's quite thrilling, to fight off such grim creatures as this region throws at us. Especially being at your side. Gale: I once read a book that explained in some detail the effect a brush with danger has on one's desire for… other forms of stimulation. Gale: Have you ever read anything on that subject? Joy: Read it? I could have written the thing. Gale: I believe you. You never look so beautiful as at the end of a stirring battle, your cheeks flushed, gaze bright, muscles glistening… Gale: Perhaps it's just the thrill of our near-undead experience talking. But standing at your side through such darkness and disrepair, it only makes me want you more. Gale: Unfortunately this is neither the time nor place to indulge such feelings. So, we must be patient and push all such thoughts aside. For now.

guess that abyss isn't looking too bad now, huh?

[mdhwrites]

(Owl House question) What do you think of the fandom discourse around Hunter needlessly suffering? A lot of other toh critical posts have been pointing out how Hunter suffers so much but never gets to address any of it, he's just expected to be okay with it in time for the next traumatising thing to happen to him. And I agree. He is a child soldier who literally cut his hair out of a nervous breakdown to not look like Caleb in TTT and later that very episode, after he confesses to finally liking who he is, he gets possessed, gets more scars, loses his first and best friend, and his hair grows right back. And he's never allowed to mourn Flapjack or process any of that (love that the only time he's allowed to be angry about what he's been through is in a dream). Hell, the writers confessed to originally wanting him to be covered in Belos goop in King's Tide and have a breakdown there itself. It's just all suffering, no healing with him.

Plus, he ends the series with long hair, his classic hair noodle, a woodcarver, and possibly dating Willow. He literally just became Caleb. It's so ironic that the writers who made him have a panic attack over looking like Caleb in TTT just transformed him into Caleb so much more potently in the finale, complete with the fact that his personality has been diluted enough to be blank enough for people to just HC him as anything - just like Caleb. And I think that's just so funny cause now Belos got exactly what he wanted. Hunter truly lost himself to just become Caleb by the end. Which wouldn't be a problem if he had not been shown to want to distance himself from Caleb as much as possible.

It all just feels like the writers wanted to give Caleb closure and a happy ending THROUGH Hunter but they sacrificed Hunter's character for that to happen. Not to mention, Hunter has never expressed interest in woodcarving prior. And besides, there was a much easier way to give Caleb closure - just let him be a part of Belos's death. Make him and Evelyn appear even for just a little bit in the finale so they get their closure and so Hunter can remain as himself. Between him not being there for Belos' death and the fact that he never gets to grapple with how he helped Belos even more than Luz did, it feels like he just got done dirty by S3.

Sorry for the jumbled thoughts though, but what do you think?

So I think the first thing one needs to remember is that this show does not like the male characters in it. That's not me accusing the creators of anything or the like, it's just how their writing style comes off. Every male character is evil, was evil, or a joke/was a joke. There are very few exceptions to this, usually requiring them to be dead at this point or debates on if they ever counted as a villain, like Bump in his first appearance theoretically counting.

So, that's the basis for male writing in the show in general. They are not treated as human. Now let's also discuss how members, including ex-members of the EC, are treated. They are treated as jokes, with part of how the EC is portrayed as evil, especially in the long run, being that just joining up with them makes you look like a moron. As such, if you're kicked out of that group, you must be genuinely brain dead in the writer's eyes. The only one that escapes this is Steve... And he's the only who left by choice who gets more than one rant. He is made out to be better than the EC through this enlightenment process. Lilith though? Absolutely loses her competence and intelligence, except for the 'smart character' ways a lot of show do intelligence that fucking sucks once she leaves the Emperor's Coven. Even her trauma with Belos or what she used to have to do is a joke. Remember, 'I'm realizing I was bad at my job' instead of any form of sympathy for just how codependent she is for others approval.

At the intersection of these two problems is Hunter. You have a male character who has to be redeemed but also is too important to be purely a joke. You cannot make him comic relief like Gus, King or Hooty but you also can't make him enlightened eventually like King became late in the series because... Reasons. That's because he's ex-EC. He's a dumbass enough that he didn't leave Belos until his life was at risk which genuinely puts him WORSE than Lilith in the show's mind because Lilith at least did it for someone else.

So kind of the only thing that this writing team, with their skills and how they treat male characters/EC characters, has is to lean into the trauma both for spectacle and for comedy. Look how sad the boy is. Look how mad he is. Look how right Luz was when he pitied him by calling him a sad but mad boy (which sorry Lunter stans, is NOT an endearing term because he wasn't sad in Hunting Palisman. This is Luz just straight up calling him pitiable AT BEST.)

NOW I will actually be fair and say that a full S3 could have genuinely handled this better. It would have had the time to have two episodes, one in each half, about all that was hurting him, at least theoretically. Without making S3 literally only about Hunter (which is the show's own damn fault for S2 making it so only Hunter, Luz and Vee had narrative potential left for human realm stuff) during the three specials, you just can't cover his trauma properly. There's no time for it. One could argue they should have pumped the breaks on it some then but possessed Hunter was one of the few things the fandom actually seemed to like out of Thanks to Them as I saw art of that before Lumity FINALLY dressing up canonically as Hecate and Azura. People REALLY liked that twist and Flapjack's death at least gave a large amount of spectacle that was different from the last time the cast got their ass kicked by Belos ONE EPISODE AGO.

And frankly while I started this with one potential explanation for why Hunter ended up the way he did, narrative necessity could be it too. You have a final season with characters in a world very similar to theirs, who are OP because of their magic and all their loved ones are far away. Their character arcs are over or stupid so you have no drama to milk for the specials out of them without damn near completely fabricating them like with Willow who... Even if it's true, she's doing a real shit job at being everyone's rock.

Hunter meanwhile is both important enough lore wise to deserve attention and ripe for abuse for cheap, soap opera level drama that is actually befitting a fantasy story. He's even weak enough to actually be threatened unlike everyone else. But then you get TOH never cutting anything so they can't decide if Hunter should be inspired to follow in the steps of the good man he is based on or to try to be someone new entirely... But the first one is a FUCK TON easier to do, fits in with getting in Belos backstory and is easier to do visually so it's the one they leaned harder into despite it being against the core theme of the show that individuality is literally the most important thing on the planet.

Tie this together with how TOH treats male/EC characters and... of course the first mention of Flapjack's magic isn't him marvelling at the power and having a moment from realizing that he now has magic, what his friend gave him, etc. like that which would be reasonable for the excuse of mourning but instead "The Power of Friendship?" Because really, how different is that then the line targeted at Lilith about how warped her perceptions of reality and self worth were in the EC? And in most kid's shows, that'd actually be okay. However, this is the same show that a fandom meme of a quarter of S2 being the weekly trauma club meeting, inviting all new members. It wants to have its cake and eat it too, even when it comes to its progressive outlook.

It's how you get a very obviously Zuko inspired character who ends up feeling NOTHING like Zuko. Then again, that's The Owl House in general, isn't it? Wanting to be Avatar, or any other great kid's show, maybe even better, but in that ego and hubris crashing into something that makes you question why it was ever compared to it in the first place.

[gothyanki]

I'm curious about how other githyanki Tav/Durge players rationalise Voss almost completely ignoring the PC in favour of Lae'zel when he visits camp. It's so funny to me, but also comes with a huge amount of characterisation/backstory potential?? Almost everything else in Act 1 is SUPER reactive to a githyanki PC (a lot of the crèche dialogue is different, right down to the most minor one-line NPCs), which makes it stand out even more. Even this conversation is quite reactive, with plenty of origin-specific lines - almost all of which Voss passes over to continue focusing on Lae'zel.

Sticking the rest of this behind a readmore because it's longer/mostly just me yakking about headcanons re: my own PC and Voss (+ some images):

Live reaction shot of Vin'ath after Voss names Lae'zel "Sister in Freedom" and says the two of them - just the two of them! - will be their people's light:

♫ hello darkness my old friend ♫

Voss’ dismissal of Vin actually fits right in with the backstory I gave them - they fell out of the crèche system as a teenager after their capture + rescue by a fellow outsider from a society deemed "evil" by DnD rules + accidental partial cult deprogramming. That means they're 1. already on board the "fuck Vlaakith" train (though they'd never have dared to so much as fantasise about taking the fight to her - their childhood trauma is the one exception to their "run after it and whack it as hard as you can" approach to problems) and 2. in a complicated insider-outsider position with regards to githyanki society. Voss seems to see Lae'zel as a protégée - I think she reminds him of himself when he was young, and also of other highly talented/dedicated warriors who've served under him. Compared to her, Vin's just a bunch of confusing mixed social signals and ??? motives.

Vin'ath pretends they couldn't care less about this - Lae'zel's the one who can't stop talking about silver swords and red dragons! They let go of that desperate craving for a superior officer's approval a long time ago! - but they are

I think they (unwisely) end up confronting him about what he thinks of them at some point in Baldur's Gate. Voss gives them a devastating "I don't think about you at all" kind of response, but he is ALSO

because given what he wants to do, I think he'd be unwillingly intrigued by a very-young-from-his-perspective githyanki who's already thrown off the shackles of Vlaakith's rule/the crèche system (to some degree - more on that later!) The fact that they did it by accident, moreover, has to be borderline infuriating.

This is the point where I admit I haven't had enough uninterrupted playtime to get far with Act 3 yet (I have spoiled myself extensively via youtube videos, though), so I don't know how the scene where Voss gifts the silver sword goes for a githyanki Tav. If it's similar to the non-githyanki scene and Voss passes over them AGAIN to give the sword to Lae'zel, I'm going to howl with laughter. And Vin's going to have that long-awaited breakdown not react at ALL and be FINE because they DON'T CARE. They DON'T CARE AT ALL that this celebrated hero of their people they grew up hearing stories about is standing right there not recognising their efforts. Kith'rak WHO???? He's not even that cool in person and they are DEFINITELY not flashing back to the starry-eyed adolescent crush they had on him. Shuuuut uuuuup.

[rottenbrainstuff]

Bg3 redo thoughts: after I finished my very first big amazing bard drow durge playthrough, I’m going back and doing it again with a tielfing paladin, to see what different things I run into and whatnot.

I’m really enjoying all the small little details and updates that have been changed since I last began a playthrough: stuff like Astarion’s boar now sometimes being found in a different spot. When I went into the spider cave, this time I noticed flies buzzing around the corpses… I swear I don’t remember seeing that detail there before?

Since my tav this time is a tielfing, she’s not getting her ass kissed by the goblins anymore, which is interesting. She failed an intimidation check with the goblins at the windmill so we got into a fight. Well. My guys are tired and health is low and there’s a lot of goblins here but whatever, we’ll see how it goes.

Then I hit Fezzerk one single time and he surrendered. Lmao! I had no idea that was even a thing that happened, it’s been so neat to see that even though my first playthrough was extremely thorough, there’s still been neat stuff to find.

I didn’t automatically decide who I would romance this game, I thought I’d just sort of let things happen as they happen. The end result is: I’ve got Gale and Astarion’s romances locked in now. I really just don’t get the folks who say they have such a hard time romancing Astarion, or even just getting him to like them. He’s consistently always the second in line for me, behind only Gale. Possibly Lae’zel would be quicker if my tav made less decisions that pissed her off, but it seems that they’ve also made some changes with recent patches and she needs a couple conditions to be met now before she starts talking about how much she likes your stink. I mean I haven’t even got to the necromancy of Thay yet, or Gandrel, or the goblin camp. I triggered his first romance after I recruited Karlach.

Astarion gets cranky at a few choices in the grove, but I mean, so does Wyll, so does Lae’zel. I dunno. Like, here’s some quick tips if you guys aren’t just making jokes and do legit have a hard time making him like you:

You can send him back to camp, along with Lae’zel, as soon as you enter the grove, because they’re both going to be cranky. Once you’ve talked to Zevlor and saved Arabella you can bring them back. Astarion likes Auntie Ethel so be sure to bring him back before you chat with her.

He has a lot of little cut scenes and special dialogue, and a lot of little approvals come from these and they add up. I wonder if people are missing these. Be sure to camp often. Like seriously. Camp all the time. There’s the first night camp scene, the musing about how would be best to die, the stargazing scene (although I dunno, I don’t think that gives any approval?) musing about what each companion would taste like, the drunk from bear blood scene, and the mirror scene.

If he’s on your party when you visit Raphael he has a couple approvals to give there if you refuse to be Raphael’s toy.

When he bites you, you’ll get five approval the next morning if you tell the other companions they can leave if they’re not happy about a vampire in the group, and you’ll get five more approval if you don’t force him to keep biting you, but instead just agree to his plan of biting enemies. You can get almost 30 approval just from the bite scene alone!!!!

Like I said, I triggered his first romance after I recruited Karlach: I had barely even left the grove at that point. I wasn’t being evil. I only sent him back to camp for two events (talking to zevlor and saving Arabella). I think I still could have romanced him just as early even without doing that. It shouldn’t really be this hard. I know it’s funny to joke about how he hates everything you do, but if you guys are seriously having troubles with it, I dunno send me a DM and I can help maybe, I’ve been very thorough in my analysis of his approvals.

[presidentdisastraofgallifrey]

Judging Doctor Who: Twelfth Doctor

Disclaimer: this is all in good fun and I don't take fandom seriously

Good episodes I like

Deep Breath - The t-rex is a little random, but the robot plot is a delightful setup for a new dynamic. Also beginning of Missy's first arc!

Robot of Sherwood - It's so fun and weird and charming, and he's so grumpy about it

Mummy on the Orient Express - the mystery is intriguing and I love them fighting but refusing to acknowledge that's what they're doing

Flatline - excellent silly monster of the week story

The Magician's Apprentice/The Witch's Familiar - Everything about this is so ridiculous and delightful. It's a great daleks episode! Missy stops planes just to get Clara's attention! She casually murders people because she's having fun being evil! The Doctor throws a depression party by breaking time travel rules! He's so full of nihilism but can't quit compassion! I kinda ship Missy and Clara I think, in a really messed up way

Under the Lake/Before the Flood - YES, appropriate use of time travel!! Go solve the mystery in the past!

The Girl Who Died/The Woman Who Lived - One of my all time favorite arcs. The tragedy of an act of kindness destroying her, the way she can't hold all her memories, the way she stops caring but finds a reason to again. It's so sad! But so compelling!

The Zygon Invasion/The Zygon Inversion - I always thought this felt like it was missing a third backstory episode, but even so the entire situation is wonderful. And the Osgoods are in this one!

Face the Raven/Heaven Sent/Hell Bent - Such a great arc ending for Clara, very Doctor-like of her to erase his memories and run away in a TARDIS. With Me as the ideal companion. Also first nu who use of Gallifrey that I approve of.

The Husbands of River Song - The whole thing is just so funny after so many stories of genuine emotion. He can't find a way to explain to her because he's too autistic caught off guard. That "hello, sweetie" kills me. Oh and they finally get their relationship concluding date night

The Return of Doctor Mysterio - I love the superhero theme, how lighthearted it is (despite actual brain stealing!), and the Doctor feels unusually Doctory for Twelve

The Pilot - Excellent intro for Bill

Smile - Delightfully creepy while being colorful and bright. Also, emoji horror

Knock Knock - silly but also horrifying and sad. Also, we should see Bill's school friends more

Oxygen - Delightfully anticapitalist, and I approve of the Doctor having to deal with a disability (even if the sonic sunglasses are cheating a bit)

Extremis - Another au episode! And the start of Missy's second arc!

The Eaters of Light - This one just has such a sweet sad tone and ending to it

Twice Upon a Time - It does give the Doctor some closure, and I like the idea of everyone's selves being saved like that. Also always here for the Doctor meeting himself!

Bad Episodes I like

Dark Water/Death in Heaven - Cyberpollen is ridiculous, I will always be mad about fridging Danny, and if he dies then Orson can't exist later. But it's here because this was such a great scheme and reveal for Missy!

Last Christmas - Not the most coherent and I always hate the hints at the end that maybe it was real, but I enjoyed it a lot. It's very creepy but sweet, and the fake out of the Doctor meeting old Clara really reveals his side of the companion trauma I think.

The Pyramid at the End of the World/The Lie of the Land - It was not a good decision to blind him then undo it, ok. It just wasn't. He should have stayed disabled until regeneration. But a lot of the plot was fun, especially the au bit, even if I'm not sure how Bill won made much sense.

World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls - I couldn't decide where to put this, tbh. There is so much wrong with it. It's a terrible ending for Bill, and bad timing since she felt like she was just starting to really settle in as a companion. It's also a terrible end to Missy's very good arc. But I like the tragedy of Bill spending years alone while the Doctor spends so little time, and for once it wasn't his fault. Also as much as I hate cybermen, this was a harrowing backstory and horrifying reveal.

Good episodes I don't like

In the Forest of the Night - I don't actually think this is a bad episode. I really like that the answer was plants protecting Earth and for once it wasn't an invasion. But the pacing is a bit slow and I thought having this revealed by speaking through a child like that was unnecessary (they should have deduced it)

Thin Ice - This episode is fine but didn't hold my attention well

Bad episodes I don't like

In the Dalek - This one was boring. And also it felt weird that Clara is suddenly a teacher but there's no line about her having a new job. Maybe they meant for it to be a time skip, but it felt jarring

Listen - Possibly my least favorite episode of the whole show. It makes no sense. They get no answers. Are these telepathic guidance circuits ever used again? And they absolutely should not be able to reach Gallifrey's past, right? I do like Orson Pink, though

Time Heist - Simultaneously confusing and dull

Kill the Moon - No. Just no. Not even worth the Moon is an egg jokes.

Sleep No More - Hate this ridiculous contrived plot, and hate even more the implication at the end that they didn't win anyway

Empress of Mars - It felt really slow to me for this kind of episode

Episodes that are kind of offensive

The Caretaker - The Doctor's attitude towards Danny is hypocritical, and unfair, and this only seems to happen with companions' Black boyfriends so I'm blaming the show for this writing choice

[fallowtail]

Top 5 Hetty outfits - jk ahem. Top 5 ghosts dynamics?

Oh this is rough their dynamics are all SO good....aahhhh ok. Ok. Going to try my best to fight my brain fog and lack of articulation skills to briefly explain why I chose them! These aren't in order either because that'd be just too evil, lol. Ok.

...I'M DOING SIX YOU CAN'T STOP ME because I accidentally wrote six of these because I miscounted and I don't want to delete one that I already wrote up, lol

Hetty and Trevor ...ok, this one is obvious, but they're just. So. Weird. In a way that you don't expect but that works absolutely perfectly. They're so similar when you get down to it and they bounce off of each other hilariously, I feel like that scene from Isaac's book where Hetty has created a scheme, and is so proud of herself for how devious she is, while Trevor rolls his eyes because he knows how stupid it is but he is still going along with it anyway because he knows if he does she'll give him a treat later (which she does!) sums up their dynamic really well. I love that they butt heads so much and think they have nothing in common when they so clearly do, lol. The way he's slowly shifted into being fondly amused by her vs aggravated is really cute- the way they're both so enthusiastic about what they get up to in the basement is so sweet, Trevor actively wanting Hetty to open up to him, to talk to him and be silly and let loose...that fond little smile she makes at him when he's being a goober during the pillow talk scene. Ugh. They do genuinely like each other but are just so stuck in their ideas about what they should want that they dig their heels in. This is the one I am the most mad about not being able to properly explain how I feel because there is just. SO. MUCH. Going on there with them. Why am I not good at writing, AHHH

Isaac and Hetty THE BESTIES! Oh Isaac and Hetty are just sooo funny like he watched her live her entire life, they are best friends, the two of them both think they run the house but they constantly default back to each other and are usually the only ones the other will listen to, he tried to romance her and then told her he was gay, he enables her bad behavior, he both refuses to take romantic advice from her but also desperately wants her advice, he deeply loves her but very clearly thinks there is something wrong with her, they have dates where they just stare out the window for hours, she clings to him constantly like he's a security blanket, she envies his ability to find love but also kind of hates his boyfriend who she encouraged him to get together with LOL, they're gossip besties, they both deeply crave the others approval, Isaac being happy Hetty found her stableboy but also not being sure why she's chosen Trevor, like. Oh my god. I love Isaac and Hetty so much that I can't find the words even more than the others. They're just so, so, so perfect together and you can always see Brandon and Rebeccas best friendship come through with these two, their scenes are always my favorite.

Sam and Hetty Wow, I wonder if there's gonna be a trend here with which dynamics I enjoy the most because it involves my blorbo, hmmm Something about Sam and Hetty finding family within each other and wanting to learn from their past mistakes and heal from their family damage with each other and then still falling into those same patterns they did in life but with the desire to fix it this time when they realize is so interesting. I love how even in the pilot Hetty warms up to the idea of her moving into the mansion so quickly despite claiming otherwise, and that even in as latest as the Halloween episode you can see them butting heads over Hetty's need to manage people to express care because she thinks she knows best and if she knows best, why wouldn't she tell people how to get what they want? And Sam lashing out when people do that to her because she wants her accomplishments to be her own and for someone to be proud of her for what she does.

Hetty and Flower and Alberta Look I said there was gonna be a trend but I'm squeezing the Lady Ghost Society into one group so that my last 3 answers aren't all for them, lol. The way the lady ghosts interact is so fun and I love that they're all different- Hetty and Alberta being all over each other this season despite their huge conflict at the end of s2, the way Flower and Alberta were the ones who volunteered to be roommates originally, Flower not realizing Hetty didn't understand what good sexual stimulation felt like and then being distraught when she realized Hetty didn't know what happened to her on the washing machine and Hetty feeling comfortable enough to come to Flower to confess her sins and Flower helping her work through it, Alberta having forgotten Flower's name in season 1 but then in season 2 she's the one who makes sure Flower remembers what her name is, it's just so...!! The fact they have a Lady Ghost Society Council is so cute too, oh my god.

Isaac and Trevor Oh my god one that doesn't involve Hetty, what the hell Isaac and Trevor are so interesting...they're kind of similar to H-Money in that on paper you don't think they'd get along, but their interactions are so?? I think Isaac envies Trevor in a way because he's so easily "one of the guys" which is all Isaac ever wanted, buuuut he also thinks Trevor is kind of an idiot, lmfao, because Isaac just thinks everyone in the house except for him and Hetty aren't particularly intelligent I think. (Also he can't get past the pants thing.) Trevor and Isaac both so very, very desperately, just want people to like them, both of them make up these stories about cool things they did to fit the persona they so badly want the others to believe...The Liquor License is such a good episode for them, the way Trevor is content to tease Isaac when he thinks Isaac is having fun doing his snooty thing but then as soon as he realizes Isaac got left alone he goes to find him...they're just really, really fun to pair up together and I'm looking forward to this next episode with them being a duo! You can really see Brandon and Asher's friendship shine through in their scenes together.

Isaac and Sam Isaac and Sam's relationship is so weird and I absolutely love it. Isaac shadowing Sam all day in the new episode and kind of making fun of her "Yogaaaa!", them doing yoga together and her ditching him when he fell asleep...there was an interview back in December where Rose talks about the Sam and Isaac dynamic and how weird it is saying Sam just really seems to want to serve him and his best interests and that there's something going on with Sam for her to want that out of Isaac LOL, she really does seem to cave into him the most out of any of the ghosts because something in her just seems to want to impress him? But at the same time he annoys her. It's fascinating. That little heart to heart they had about not needing outside approval but then immediately dropping it as soon as they got approval for her book was SO funny and they really just want everyone to like them and be proud of them and it makes for such a fun relationship to explore.

Phew! Ok, that was long, and I'm frustrated I can't properly say what I actually want to say or feel for any of these but hopefully that all comes across decent enough! <3

Ask me my top 5 anything game!

[fake-ascension]

mmmmm i dont have coherent thoughts rn but

nikolai parallels with the melusines. who were both ostracized by their origins or appearance.

nikolai finally meeting silvanus again and being nervous about walking around in public since he has a tail and visible scales/rashes but is encouraged by silvie and lyney/lynette/freminet to go out and do things with them.

like furina, he has Trauma when it comes to being on stage and preforming. but he little issue with doing his street preforming acts in other nation [to gather info for the house of hearth/the knave] but but has a hard boundary about doing anything public in fontaine.

thinking about him clumsily meeting the rest of the fontaine cast. and everyone is eager and friendly interacting with him. since a lot of them were there for silvanus' trial and very aware of both of their situations.

charlotte wants to do an interview about about nikolai's disappearance case and how lucky and happy it is to see the siblings reunited after so much pain and misfortune. silvanus quickly doges that and offering charlotte an interview with herself & neuvillette.

wrio has met niko once back when he was caught sneaking about in meropide. wrio is pretty casual/laid back and comments about niko made the right decision. and is very content with seeing silvanus so happy. sigewinne is also very friendly and curious and wants to do a medical exam to see if she could get any new info tohelp his & silvanus' medical condition

niko meets furina in passing while strolling the streets with silvanus. niko used to hateeee the hydro archon. seeing the archon who represented justice let so much injustice happen in fontaine, including his own situation.

Furina very much remembers silvanus' and was rather nonchalant during it all. but absolutely guilt ridden and terrified for silvanus' health. and is obviously terrified when running into both niko and silvanus in the streets. niko knows that she was faking being the archon for a bigger cause. and realizes now that she was a victim of constant performance (just like him, when he was owned by the Evil Circus)

so all those emotions he had towards the hydro archon & fontaine's government system as a whole all funnels to neuvillette instead. he heavily dislikes neuvi's relationship with silvanus and it shows when they interact. neuvi handles it so very awkwardly but neuvillette ends up deeply apologizing for being complicit with injustice that is fontainian high society. and makes it clear the since he has complete authority over the nation he will do everything in his power to stop political corruption that leads to injustice.

and in general i think it would be really cute for the melusines being absolutely enamoured with nikolai since hes also funny looking and has a tail

also dont get me started on the silvanus & nikolai narzissenkreuz adventures. then being the two to face jakob and rene/narzissenkreuz in the primordial see (and now exactly who they are), gives them the lore dump that they are distant relatives and that they have diluted abyssal god juice in their dna which is whats causing their incurable illness.

and after that nikolai goes on this conspiracy theory rabbit hole like an insane person connecting the dots with red string a bulletin board. over the harbinger sandrone who looks so much like mary ann and has an obsession with robotics just like alain guillotin and wants to figure out what the Fuck is up with that (its mostly a personal mission but the knave approves it because itll give HER more info on sandrone to keep in the back of her mind)

o h my god i rambled for so long holy shit. good night

[superanonymousthethird]

In the recent ign interview they were like "We could've substitute content for evil run but then it wouldn't be a consequence! The agency is in getting less quests and getting stuck in combat more often" lmao.

Larian. Guys. It's a game. Whether in games or irl most ppl don't do evil out of nowhere. Most ppl are evil for their own gain. A game typically offers a reward for being evil, some *power*, influence!.. Unique quests if it's an RPG!..

Devs seem to think that the only evil that a player might enjoy is chaotic evil where they just attack everything on sight. For ppl who talked of how they felt like ppl would enjoy trying the evil route too, their approach just feels like intentional punishment of the players.

"But you get into more combat encounters!"

You mean you get less allies, companions and resources (choosing Minthara and not Halsin makes you lose the owlbear, Arabella, Rolan, Zevlor, Mol and Halsin as allies in the final battle; going with the Durge quest or choosing to try out Shadowheart's Dark Justiciar run makes you miss on Jaheira and her haprers + all the listed above allies + the gnomes + Minsc, and within act 2 you storm moonrise towers with just 4 people) AND GET ASS KICKED MORE OFTEN???

Gee thanks.

Also. Okay. Rewards. Halsin, Rolan, Zevlor, Mol, Owlbear and Arabella are *allies* as in they give you a buff/can be summoned in final battle. The choice is between all of that and Minthara (which is already insane enough of a tradeoff).

Lets compare Minthara and Halsin. Minthara is not an ally. No buff from her in the final battle (god how is some shitty cop, a child, Shadowheart's abuser and a hag are all allies but not Minthara???). Halsin's personal quest (well it's impossible without his present) is crucial for act 2, Minthara has no personal quest.

Halsin has different lines when you're dating. Minthara doesn't. Halsin can be kissed, other characters react to you kissing him and he was the first to get an updated kissing animation. Minthara can't be kissed. Halsin's sex scene is unskippable in act 3, Minthara can be romanced without massacre but her sex scene requires you to murder the tielfings (and happens before you even know her truly as a person :( ). Halsin can be broken up with. Minthara can't be. You can ask Halsin about what he thinks of you. Minthara can't be asked that. And she still has several bugs plaguing her and her romance.

I also find it funny how they talk about Minthara. It almost feels like "Yes she's very likely to only be naturally recruited by murder hobos so we added the line where she asks *why* did you kill the tielfings to make you feel horrible". Yay thanks for giving evil so little content, giving one (previously) exclusive to evil companion to only later have them turn and morally judge you for evil ways.

They keep talking about choices and reactivity but is it really a choice when choosing "wrong" in the devs' vision path just makes you *lose hours of content*?

Also lol her writer said that if they were to add more to Minthara it would just be "a few more lines about Orin". Huh? Sorry, Halsin who was added because ppl were thirsting after him and who has no big plot reason to hang around with the party in act 3 (he doesn't even have a tadpole) has a more developed quest and romance content than Minthara, basically main reward for trying out evil... and you'd only add more lines about her traumatic past?.. Like cmon she's much more than was done to her by Orin :(.

She is also being inconsistent! Her approving of accepting Bhaal feels OOC, her reaction to Durge killing themselves is bland af, she is the only character to not say anything about the Slayer, she quite wierdly approves of giving up Scratch even though verbally she says several times she likes the dog... She lacks a lot and what is there has a bunch of conflict in act 3!..

What's also interesting that act 1 does show *signs* of evil run being... something rewarding.

Sided with Minthara? Oh you got the spider lyre and she explains how to get to Moonrise. Also, most explicit sex scene. Also the tielfing battle is easier. Sided with Nere? Yeah he tells you about Minthara and the shadowcursed lands. Spared Ethel? Get her hair piece.

But then you get to act 2 and it's like... Ah yeah Minthara has no personal quest, the cult still is against you (and tbh you have no reason to side with them in the first place), you're missing shitton of content and items because tieflings were extremely crucial to this whole act and Nere randomly dies offscreen and can show up as a zombie...

Ah and recent patch made it so *Nere doesn't mention Minthara at all*, and gives you *a spider lyre of his own*, so there's 0 hints to Minthara being anything valuable and recruitable snd no reason to help her.

Also the game *shames* you for not lifting the curse.

As an evil player if you killed the grove you walk in and have no idea the curse can be lifted. You're also likely to continue and make Shadowheart a Dark Justiciar. Yet when you leave act 2, Shadowheart says she's sad about not lifting the curse (hello? you worship Shar??? that's her darkness??) and your evil bastard of a character also feels very sad about not lifting it!.. Firstly I had no way to lift it, secondly why does narrator decide for me that my evil character is sorry about keeping it as is?..

There's also a Durge moment where you can reject Bhaal and think "ah now I can be evil for my own sake, without Father's control", but then everyone praises you as a hero, most dialogue choices seem like you're abruptly good and narrator goes "you're sorry you killed Isobel :(". No I'm not sorry for that, I'm sorry how the evil ending is the shortest out there!.. But evil ending is a rant of its own.

About the new "knock out" Minthara method to recruit her, I get why they put it in, but I will say, I consider it a lame cheap bandage solution. Are we seriously supposed to believe that our Tav that have been slaughtering Absolute cultists the whole camp coming in, and tasked with eliminating the goblins leaders, would just be like "ok that one lives". It's not like there's a special dialogue after you down her to 0 hp to spare her or a cinematic in which she run away. No, we just see a cultist and arbitrarily decide to knock her down because of meta knowledge. It's lame, it's cheap and it needed a serious narrative rework to be interesting for a good aligned player.

The fact is Larian put one of their companion behind a deeply unpopular choice. You either kill her, the most common option, you leave without saving or killing the grove, the boring option, you kill the refugees, the chaotic evil option. Both leaving and genocide cut ton of content afterward with little reward in return. Larian really should have included better alternatives if they wanted it to be played. They treat you being evil like you're a complete psycho, it's a very lackluster and disappointing path overal.

[nevertheless-moving]

INFODUMP AU continued

(Star Wars AU #22)

Possible Continuations from INFODUMP. I headcanon that exchange taking place about a year before episode II and episode IV

A) Anakin Force Shenanigans

Anakin walks up: “master- who’s this guy?

“You can SEE him/me?”

Obi-Wan urgently cry/yelling at Anakin to either wear a condom with Padme or at least take her to a healer if you’re worried about her pregnancy (seriously healer BEFORE evil sith wtf)

(its been a number of years for Ben so he’s pretty much puzzled out the ‘doing this for padme’ bit)

just before obi-wan fades out anakin panics because ben hasn’t told him how he gets together with padme

yanks him into this timeline and now Old Ben has to deal with Obi-Wan and Anakin freaking out over all the info he just vomited at them AND everything else

B) Brush Off

Obi-Wan practices some good old fashioned repression to mostly convince himself it was all a weird dream

yoda always says in motion, the future is anyway

he mostly puts it out of his head until a year later when Anakin VERY obliquely references having dreams of his mother

“...what kind of dreams, exactly?”

end-up rescuing Shmi shortly after her capture, Obi-Wan’s there to make sure Anakin doesn’t go off the deep end

Council is a little disapproving of their side mission because now Anakin is even more attached/devoted Obi-Wan 

Obi-Wan is a LITTLE freaked out but Shmi being in danger isn’t exactly a hard prediction to make considering they left her on Tatooine but...

almost immediately after they get specially requested to protect Senator Amidala.

things proceed like canon and when Dex says the dart is from Kamino, Obi-Wan has a little panic attack attack

the whole trip to Kamino he’s just thinking pleasenoclonearmy  pleasenoclonearmy  pleasenoawFUCK THAT’S A CLONE ARMY

good news here is when he’s bullshitting his way through the meeting/ inspection he very confidently brings up removing the control chips

at first there’s some hemming and hawing ‘oh you mean the inhibitor chips, are you sure you want them removed we’ve already installed them’

“I DEMAND they be removed- I- can i speak to your manger? Do I need to take my business elsewhere??”

Nala Se is very reluctant, “I was ensured by certain high level parties that the chips were intended to be an important safeguard...”

*Obi-Wan sweating, but all-in at this point* “Well, uh, Master Dooku and Chancellor Palpatine themselves told me they were concerned about the chips being abused by the wrong parties, and sent me to supervise, so,”

“Oh, I didn’t realize you were read-in on the project architecture to that extent, well here are our options-”

Obi-Wan still chases to Jango to Genosis because he’s got a mission and ‘this might as well happen’

Still gets captured in that stupid rotating energy field by Dooku 

“What if I told you the senate was now controlled by a dark lord of the sith?”

“...I would say that I would be very interested in any holo-recordings or legal documents you might have to that effect”

“oh?”

“would very much like some sort of proof to bring before a court of law, yeah.”

The rescue attempt actually goes well this time! Anakin is well rested and practically glowing after his week-long all-expense paid vacation at Varykino

They all manage to escape and intercept reinforcement mid-flight

The council is pleased Obi-Wan is safe and not surprised to find Anakin there, but it doesn’t really change their mission as the senate has ordered them to take out the federation army before they can attack...

“The Senate ordered it?”

“Yes, much has happened, while gone you were. Were given to the chancellor, emergency powers. Drafted a military, he has. Generals, the Jedi have been made. Uneasy we are, but serve the senate, we do.”

“Oh kark, the Chancellor ordered it? We DEFINITELY can not invade.” Obi-Wan's starting to have another panic attack, not sure how to get out of the sith trap

Anakin’s a little offended. “Obi-Wan! The Chancellor is a good man; the Jedi must do this, for the good of -”

“PALPATINE’S A SITH LORD”

“what”

C) He tries, ok? (inspired by @ourhitofsucrose )

Very similar to B except for the full year between the ‘vision’ and aotc, Obi-Wan is desperately trying to follow the future’s warnings but failing hysterically

kamino and genosis have both erased from the archives and it doesn’t occur to him to ask dex so he doesn’t even have a direction to go on

tries to find some proof about Palpatine but he is a sneaky bastard

tries to separate palpatine from anakin but he’s like I’M AN ADULT NOW YOU CAN’T TELL ME WHAT TO DO

tentatively brings up Dooku falling ‘in a vision’ to the council because that is something they can check up on- Yoda gets really offended

‘garbage planet on the outer rim’ is not a lot to go on

when he tries to get help searching because he knows that the sith who killed Qui-Gon is still alive and planning to kill his ex-girlfriend even Anakin is like... ‘ok buddy, i think you might be under too much stress, maybe we should visit the healers...”

best he can do for Shmi is leaving her an emergency beacon

A+ success in relationship repair with Anakin tho! through the application of a very awkward hug and a mumbled “you know I love you, right?”

Anakin drags him to the healers immediately, and after a drug test and an overnight stay finally responds by bursting into tears and ugly crying on Obi-Wan’s robes because “YOU’RE A FATHER TO ME BUT I THOUGHT YOU HAATED ME”

Obi-Wan is uncomfortably patting him on the back “Of course I don’t hate you! You’re my padawan! Why would you think that?”

Then when Shmi activates her emergency comm the same night Anakin has his first nightmare about his Mom and they fly to her rescue he’s even more OBI-WAN 5EVER  than canon or scenario B because

“You...checked in on my mom?? Why wouldn’t you tell me?”

“I’m sorry Anakin, I knew the council wouldn’t approve...”

hugs Anakin again since that is the only piece of advice he can follow from his future self and he just thinks ‘well its a long shot but hopefully this is enough to prevent any lava planet incidents’

it is 

Seriously in this version of events Anakin actively RESISTS being knighted because he was already obsessed with Obi-Wan in canon and now with hugs + verbal affection + protecting Mom proactively he is ALL IN FOR OBI NEVER GONNA GIVE YOU UP NEVER GONNA LET YOU DOWN

low-key ruins palpatine’s plans by itself because now when he tries to drive a wedge between them with his bullshit ‘your master doesn’t truly trust you’ Anakin gets huffy and responds with a space powerpoint presentation

i mean other stuff is going to go down once we get to the armies but already the stage is set for him to go running to Obi-Wan the minute he has a nightmare about Padme dying and him responding “J. Force Christ, lets just... go to a healer, fuck’s sake Anakin I hope it doesn’t need to be said but do NOT turn to the darkside over this”

canon would definitely diverge before that point but its also very funny to me to imagine RotS playing out more or less the same but when he gets to Palpatine’s big offer he just goes ‘sorry dad told me no’

[theamityelf]

How Each Descendants Character Would Be As the Mastermind (Danganronpa AU)

Mal- If she were the mastermind, she would be less of a gremlin than I establish her to be in my previous Danganronpa AU post. She would have to be Descendants 1 Mal, coyly pulling everyone's strings but never seeming obviously antagonistic towards anyone. Like, she would use manipulation and passive aggression, but no clear bullying or accusations. Also, the whole thing was probably her mom's idea, and she's doing it to earn her mom's approval. That is to say, bringing down the other Ultimates was her mom's idea; the killing game itself was really hers, and she was happy to tell Maleficent of her plan until she realized she was actually going to have to do it. Her actions are being closely monitored by Maleficent at this point, so even when she feels quietly guilty about what she's doing to her classmates, she doesn't feel at liberty to do anything about it; she already made the mistake of giving her mother access to her class, and now she's just stuck in this plot. She does enjoy some of the deaths, violence, and conflict. If someone dies in a way she finds funny, she will fully have to leave the room so she can laugh without drawing attention.

When she gets found out as the mastermind in the final trial, she puts on an evil smile and gloats and mocks everyone, but she really is not happy to lose her friends. Maybe Jay remembers something she said early on that was actually a subtle warning or hint, but she still was helping Maleficent with the killing game at every step, and it's still her fault it happened. Maybe she gets a laugh-cry in, for old time's sake. Basically, she's tormenting herself almost as much as she's tormenting them, and Maleficent is behind a lot of it.

Evie- She would make a pretty sad mastermind, I think. She's not doing this because she likes it. She has some ideology that she's trying to promote or some end that she's working toward. She loves all of her classmates and hates to see them hurt and turning on each other. I feel like, in an actual Danganronpa game, this would be a case of "something something despair" being the full explanation. Just, she fell to despair at some point and felt called to share her despair with her friends and the world, out of some warped version of charity. She's very good at convincing others to join her cause; she definitely has a whole movement behind her.

When the class finds out that she's the mastermind, she lets them yell and protest. She just stands there with a sad look while they demand why she would do this. When they let her explain herself, she is quiet and miserable but unyielding. She fully believes that this had to happen; otherwise, she wouldn't have done it.

Don't get me wrong, I can imagine a version of mastermind Evie who is enjoying herself, but this is the version I most readily picture.

Carlos- He is a mastermind who is either having a ton of fun or feels nothing. He has the tech skills to pull off pretty much all of this himself. I think I best see him as a more stoic, Izuru-like co-mastermind with someone who's having more fun, so this could be a Mastermind Jaylos situation, or Carlos and Mal. Mastermind Carlos and Evie would be a situation where neither of them is having fun, but Evie believes in what they're doing and Carlos believes in Evie.

If it is a scenario where he enjoys being the mastermind, though, I see it having vibes of "genius who was never challenged enough finally doing something he finds engaging". Operating Monokuma, controlling all the contraptions in the school, running the broadcast, and all while being a participant in the game and interacting with everyone. His shyness isn't an act; he does get flustered being around them all, and he has to be careful not to accidentally say something he isn't supposed to know, and he is fully aware that they could kill him at any time. But he finds that kind of thrilling; with his intellect, he has never had to deal with the possibility of failure like this. When he's discovered as the mastermind, he rolls up in dalmation clothes and black and red sunglasses, laughing that they actually figured it out.

Jay- He would be a pretty laidback mastermind. He's the type of mastermind who would go, "Jeez, you guys are boring me. Can we skip this part already?" But he'd say it with a smile on his face. I feel like he is similar to Carlos, in that he thought up the killing game just to have some enrichment in his enclosure, so to speak. He's a smarter guy than he gets (or seeks) credit for, and he has a lot of unprocessed issues. With his looks and people skills, he can easily trick people into helping him set this up.

On the surface level, I think when he is revealed as the mastermind, he presents himself as enjoying the violence for its own sake (similar to Mal), but really, I think his reasons for doing it could be related to his plotline in Descendants 1: overcoming his "me vs. us" thing, practicing teamwork, and more broadly coming to terms with the idea that the world doesn't have to be an inherently combative place that is out to get him. If Jay in the Danganronpa universe has the backstory that I gave him in that other post, he could easily have come to the same survival mindset where selfishness is the only way to survive, and after spending some time at Hope's Peak and having this worldview challenged by these incredibly brilliant people who he's now built relationships with, he needs to see, once and for all, if cooperation can win out over conflict. If the world isn't dog-eat-dog, then they shouldn't kill each other, right?

He was curious what they'd do. They didn't fully disappoint him. The survivors who didn't kill anyone, plot against anyone, or get killed all interest him. But in the long run, they didn't prove that they wouldn't kill each other, and he didn't prove that they all would. It's a lukewarm result. What's he supposed to do with that? Well, all that's left is to give them the choice of whether or not to kill him. They've won the game, their friends are dead because of him. But they're free to go. All they would get out of killing Jay is vengeance. Will they do it? (If they vote to kill him, he won't actually let them; he'll just mysteriously disappear with his adversarial worldview reaffirmed. If they vote not to kill him, then he has some things to reevaluate. Maybe these people really are his friends! He doesn't even mind that they think he's kind of a monster.)

Uma- This could be a case of her mind just breaking from having gotten through so many horrible situations unscathed, causing her to almost compulsively start to engineer worse situations for herself out of survivor's guilt or some other self-destructive urge. Or it could be spite; maybe she's tired of the weird social darwinism with which the Danganronpa universe treats talent and wants to show the "normal" people of the world that Ultimates really aren't so special. So, Option A- she's gone through so much that she feels invincible, but in a bad way, and has become so inured to catastrophe that she has to find some limit to her talent, and she's using this elaborate killing game to do it; Option B- she hates how the Ultimates are placed on a pedestal over everyone else and feels like she's giving something to the broader world by exposing their flaws.

Harry could either be in on the plot from the beginning (like Mukuro), be told about it during the killing game and join her, or find out when everyone else does but joins her anyway because she's the one he's closest to. Or he died during the game, worsening Uma's survivor's guilt or making her cling more tightly to her conviction that she's making a noble sacrifice. (If he or Gil dies in the killing game, she is absolutely wrecked emotionally.)

Harry- Okay, there's a yandere option and an angsty option. Yandere option: He's the mastermind because he knows that Uma is the Ultimate Survivor and he wants to see her triumph over all the other Ultimates. Maybe he didn't think they respected Uma's talent enough when they were in class together, so he thought of a "fun" way for Uma's talent to shine over theirs. (As the Ultimate Assassin, he can get very creative, as far as ways to kill people. They didn't just give him that title because of his weapon proficiency; he has great planning skills.) He has full faith that she will survive the killings, and his ultimate plan is for some fire or explosion to destroy the building after the final trial, which he is also certain that Uma will survive. ("What about the rest of us?!" one of the other students demands. "Best of luck!" Harry answers, with a grin.)

Uma would be shocked when all of this gets found out in the final trial, and after he gives a very yandere speech to her, she pretends to go along with him but then puts an end to his plan and keeps him pretty much on a leash. He's cool with it; he's proven his point, and really he didn't expect her to be willing to kill them all.

That's one all option. The other option is that actually he's only the "mastermind" in the scheme of their class; really, he was hired by some third party before school started, to assassinate them all. He still was the one to come up with the killing game, because he's still ridiculously creative about his kills. He joined the class with the intention of doing this but struggled with this decision when he made friends with Uma and Gil. He went through with the plan but does everything in his power to protect them and feels really bad about the whole thing.

Gil- Himbo mastermind. Just conceptually, I already love it. This could be because of a worldview inherited from his father (and this is about to be wildly stupid, so buckle in). Like, his strongest human connections always came with an element of sport or competition, and he was never allowed to express emotion or fondness outside of those contexts, so when he finds himself really loving his classmates, his only way to fully express the emotion of it is by making them fight.

Okay, so there was that idea. He could also be co-mastermind with someone else, which I think makes sense; he fits well into "cheerful henchman" territory, and while he is capable of hurting people, I don't think the killing game is something he would come up with or set up on his own, in most scenarios.

Although, invoking the Obfuscating Stupidity trope and making him someone who can inspire enough loyalty to get others to help him set up the killing game by acting as a himbo does seem pretty cool. Like, a version of Gil who is genuinely chill and cheerful and fun to talk to, but he also easily comes up with the killing game and has no problem setting it up, so he can watch his good friends fight all around him.

I think any version of mastermind Gil comes with some cognitive dissonance as to his own culpability. Either it's a matter of him not being the one to personally kill the others, so it's not his fault, or it wasn't his idea to do the killing game, so it's not his fault, or it's really just the circle of life and animals kill each other in nature all the time so there's no reason to get too bummed about it. Yeah, he'll miss his murdered and executed friends, but it happens. "Why the long faces, guys? At least the rest of us are still alive."

Ben- I feel like this would also probably be a case of mind break. He's the Ultimate Moral Compass for a reason; if he's behind the killing game, something has happened to drastically warp his mental state to the point where he thinks he's doing the right thing, similar to Evie and Uma. He would be a very earnest mastermind; whatever logic led him to think that this is what he needed to do, he believes in it fully, and when he is revealed as the mastermind, he is serious about trying to make the others understand why this was right and good. He really does care about his friends! He hates that they think he enjoyed doing this.

Audrey- I immediately think of a Queen of Mean situation. I feel like that would be her vibe as the mastermind. Very "Bow, peasants!" But it took magical brainwashing to get Audrey into that mode in Descendants 3, so what would get her there in the Danganronpa universe? It could be a situation where Evie fell to despair but didn't go out of her way to spread it; she just despaired quietly and channeled it into her work as Ultimate Fashionista. But Audrey, as the biggest fan of her fashion line and a princess who was already kind of on the edge emotionally, feels Evie's despair through her work and is also thrown into despair, and she's way more...proactive...about it. And she has the resources of her whole kingdom at her disposal to share that despair with her Hope's Peak besties.

Or maybe it's not related to Evie at all. But I do think she'd have to be brainwashed to go Queen of Mean.

Otherwise, as a brainwash-free mastermind, she would be very prim and a lot like Sonia in SDR2; she's bubbly and sheltered and into dark topics. Human consequences barely register to her, because she was raised as royalty, and lives are just pawns.

Chad- I feel like if he were the mastermind, he wouldn't participate in the game as an actual player; he would watch arrogantly from the sidelines and enjoy the show. The participants wouldn't meet him until the end. From the perspective of the audience, he would be very visible, in that he would be the host and have Kuzko-style interstitials where he talks about the participants over a freeze frame and makes fun of them. The killing game is his way of proving his superiority and earning the world's attention. He isn't smart enough to get all of it done on his own, but he's rich; he can afford to hire smart people to make his vision happen.

He would basically be Junko's queen persona. I don't even know if he would bother to make it a secret from the participants that he's the mastermind; he might have portraits of himself hanging all over the school.

Lonnie- She would be having a blast. She doesn't even mind being found out. She still considers all the participants her friends, and she is super companionable with them. "Wasn't that fun? Come on, I kept it fun for you guys, didn't I?" She definitely had some reason for doing all of this, and I feel like it would be a situation where some worse thing was going to happen otherwise. Like, maybe she was tasked with killing all of them (again, by some third party) but decided to do this instead; maybe someone hired her to kill them, not fully grasping that a skilled swordsperson is not the same thing as an assassin, and she pretty much just went "lol sure" but did the killing game instead. Internally calculating that if she doesn't agree to kill the Ultimates, her employer will just find someone else to do it, so she may as well set up a fun competition where their lives are enough on the line to satisfy her employers while they still have a fighting chance and she gets to enjoy the sport of it all. Or something like that. Basically, it's a combination of a guaranteed worse outcome and her thinking a killing game could be cool.

Jane- I feel like this would be an inferiority complex type of mastermind. Kind of like her outburst at the end of Descendants 1; she feels less special than everyone else, so she seizes power over them. She has the organizational skills to pull it off. I think she'd be a Laughing Mad mastermind. Like Chad, she has no larger reason for doing this. Unlike Chad, I think she would remain a participant even as the mastermind. As soon as she is revealed, she might launch into some rant about how all the Ultimates think they're so great but don't have the basic overall competence that normal people have.

Doug- I almost want to say that he would also be an inferiority complex type, but thinking about his character, I think I see him being more like, "I surprised you, right? You didn't expect that?" Idk, despite the way I tend to think of the character, his actual in-canon vibes are more "Well, that just happened 🙃" than anything, I think. Like, he would calmly admit to everything once they accuse him, like, "Yeah it was me. And the results were fascinating!" He isn't really a chummy mastermind or a sad mastermind or a broken mastermind. This was pretty much a science experiment to him.

[sweetea-rosey]

Ooo hi I saw you take requests? I have a writing request if you want to :))

So here is my idea:

Remus has a notebook given to him by the other sides to write his thoughts down in. See, Remus has clear impulse control problems so this notebook of for him to write his thoughts down instead of just doing and saying whatever comes to mind. It gives him a chance to think about it. Sometimes, maybe like once a week give or take a few days one of the other sides will sit down with him and read his thoughts with him just to make him feel validated and heard. Well this particular time one of the sides (of your choice) sat down with the notebook and found some rather interesting things.

Now, you can take this one of two ways (it’s really all up to you!)- You can make this something angsty (hurt comfort), or you can make it something shippy! It can be any Remus ship you want but I personally am more partial to intrulogical hehe 💙💚

Take your time and have fun with it!! Have a good day :)

Ah! Ty for the request! I started writing it on the day you submitted it, but Tumblr deleted it after a while of not saving :') so now my motivation to do this is deterred

Anyway, this'll be my first time not writing something Roman centric =w=""

Remus held the book in his hands. He remembered the day Roman gave it to him, when he risked traveling into the dark scape because he knew his brother needed this. Because he did, too.

An outlet.

A place for his monstrosities to be, other than inside his head, allowed to torture him to their best abilities. The illusions his mind creates are no longer just in his eyes. It's no longer insanity- it's creativity. The journal isn't the first one. But he and Roman make sure to keep eachother stocked up; they get filled rather quickly. The Imagination holds an entire library dedicated to their filled journals from over the years.

The journals have also become sort of diaries to them. So, imagine what were to happen if one of them got lost? The possibility of their secrets being seen by unbidden eyes.

Remus burst into Roman's room, "Ro!"

Roman jumped from his spot at his desk, "Jeez- ! What is it?"

Oddly, for Remus, he seemed almost anxious, "Have you seen my latest journal?"

Ah, that explains it. Roman understands the severity of losing something that holds your private thoughts. He stood up from his desk chair, turning to face Remus better, "No, I haven't. Is it missing?"

Remus nodded, unable to speak through the panic coursing through his veins, the hormone mixing with the feeling of the plasma we call blood rushing through veins and arteries, rest in his heart, which is thumping with vigor, the- Remus shook himself. The imagery coming on its own with nothing to do with it, "Thoughts, thoughts thoughts, thoughts, blood, where? Everywhere? It is me, I am thoughts and blood and gore and death and slime, and..."

Roman pulled his brother in, the physical touch of his second half grounding him, finally balanced out with his brother there to help him.

"Breathe, Ree...I get it...I'll help you look for it, okay? Do you have any spare journals?"

Remus shook his head. He had just started this one, he was too busy brainstorming on the pages to remember to restock.

"Okay, do you have the focus to conjur any, right now?"

Remus shook his head again. No no, of course not! He's too focused on the one that's missing!

"Alright, that's okay, Ree. I get it. Here, use this for now," As Roman spoke, he pressed a plain black book in the unstable man's hands, "Get some thoughts out on that, then we can start looking, okay?"

Instead of answering, he made the rest of the way into the prince's room and started letting the thoughts out.

.

.

.

"Feel better?"

Remus let out a breath and nodded, "A lot, thanks. Can we go look, now?"

"Of course, let's go."

It took hours. The sun was gone in Thomas' living room and they were still tearing the place apart, searching absolutely everywhere. Remus was tempted to just dismantle the mind palace and look through the stuff that gets left behind. The fear was boiling in his gut in the ocean of acid.

"What if we don't find it? My blood, sweat, and tears went into that book! Pieces of my heart are in there, I can't lose it, what if someone else finds it and reads it?"

Roman shuddered, because he didn't believe that Remus was being metaphorical, "I understand the severity of the situation, Ree. We should go look in the Lightside, now..."

Remus shrugged as much as his slumped posture will allow, "Sure..."

"We'll find it, Ree..."

"That's not what I'm worried about. If I lose it? Fine, I have others, I can start a new one. I'm scared of someone else finding it and reading it... there's things in there I don't want others seeing..."

"I get it, you know I do. We'll get it back before anyone else can even know it exists, alright?"

Remus just shrugged off his comforting hand, "Stupid prince, always making promises you don't even know if you can keep. Don't do that to yourself and don't do it to me. I'm not stupid enough to fall for that shit."

Roman recoiled, almost physically, "Sometime, people just need reassurance."

"And then, when you're wrong? I know you don't like breaking promises, Princey."

"...Then hopefully we'll figure it out."

"You're such a fucking optimist, it's gross."

Roman rolled his eyes, "I'm helping you look, be nice, you doofus."

"Oh wow, "doofus", I'm so offended," Remus said without much effort.

Roman ignored him.

.

.

.

"It's not HERE!" Remus screamed, a pot crashing through the wall.

Roman manged to muffle the noise and quickly put it back together, "We will, this was only the first room in the Lightside. You need to calm down."

"I can't! What if someone else already found it and read it? What if they hate me? What if they never wanna talk to me again because nothing in there makes sense, what-"

Roman caught his hands, "Woah! Woah...Remus, when did you start caring so much about what the others think of you?"

"I don't!"

"But...-"

"I don't care about what Logan and the other think of me."

"Of what...Logan and the...? Remus...is this about Logan?"

Remus hesitated just long enough.

"Oh great Aphrodite, it is..."

"Aphro-? NO! No, I don't!"

"Remus, is there something about Logan on that book?"

Remus said fuck it in his mind and sighed, "Yes... I...some fantasies...that he might not approve of..."

"Oh, Remus..."

"What if he finds out, and he...? He just doesn't...?"

Roman hit his brother on the head, "This is why you're a doofus. It doesn't matter if he finds it, you have nothing to worry about."

Remus rolled his eyes. Literally. He rolled them like dice and Roman had to look away, but got the message.

"How would you know?"

It was Roman's turn to roll his eyes (PROPERLY).

"I'm leaving you to figure that out. But, I do."

"Sure. Whatever. Asshole."

Roman moved on to look in the next room.

.

.

.

A flash of green leaped onto him and he was tumbling over, the item in his hands flying out.

"Remus!"

The man scrambled over and snatched the book up, "Did you read it?"

"I- no, Remus what is it?"

"It's mine. Roman, I found it!"

Roman? Since when do those two talk? But, as Remus said, Roman walked in.

"Oh, thank Hades."

"Logan had it."

Roman sucked in a breath, "Did he read it?"

Remus shook his head, relief is a weird expression on the man's face.

Logan wouldn't mind seeing it more.

"What is this about?"

Roman took the liberty of answering, "The book is Remus' and it's private. Reading it would be invasive."

"Oh, my apologies, then. But, I had just picked it up, it was left over from Remus' running through the room and into the Imagination, along with some other debris I cleaned up."

"It's alright, nerd."

Logan's gaze lingered on Remus a bit, before he bid his farewells, reminded Roman of some work he needs to do by Friday, then left.

"Y'know," Roman said as they turned to walk back, "You could tell him how you feel."

Remus scoffed, "I'm not self destructive, like you, RoRo."

Ignoring Remus' jabs is difficult for the prince, nevertheless, "And do, pray tell, how it's self destructive?"

"Because he'll say no and that will hurt. I don't like when things actually hurt. I'm not risking him hating me even more."

"Woah, woah, he doesn't hate you."

"Doesn't he? I'm chaotic, irrational, vile, ik everything he fights to keep under control."

Roman digested this and thought hard on how best to explain this, "But that's exactly why you two are perfect for each other. You help him let loose when he's being a stick in the mud and he helps you keep in control of yourself and stay organized.

"You're delusional. He doesn't like me, he can't Ro. It goes against our very beings! Go ahead and fool yourself, but you can't do that to me. That's just cruel." Remus disappeared and Roman sighed as he tried to brush off his brother's words.

As the embodiment of romance, he thinks he'd know when a couple will work out or not. How will he convince his brother and Logan of that? He supposes he can't blame them for that, who would listen to the love advice of someone who loves someone that loves someone else? Kinda hypocritical.

.

.

.

"Just leave me alone!"

"Remus! Would calm down? Just listen to me!"

"No! You're a liar and I hate you! Do you want me to get hurt? You're an asshole you good for nothing prince!" He screamed. Why won't his brother let this go? Doesn't he see that everyone is better this way?

"Fine! You're right! Is that what you want to hear? Call me an asshole, call me stupid, call me evil or whatever! But I'm not wrong! Why don't you believe me? Ha! Why am I trying to reason with the self proclaimed unreasonable?"

Remus looked down from his perch on the guillotine, "Wait, RoRo-!" But he was gone.

"Fuck."

He rushed out, hoping to Loki that he didn't do too much damage.

"Roman!"

But he found who he wants looking for.

"Why are you screaming in the middle of the common room?" Came that cool and sexy voice.

"Looking for my brother, duh."

"Funny, I just spoke to him."

"Where'd he go?"

"Not sure, but he told me to stop being a robotic fake and confess to you."

"He- ? ROMAN!" Remus summoned a hammer and maybe there's a new hole in the wall.

"He was right, surprisingly."

Remus was not expecting that, "Come again?"

"I have noticed, over the course of our interactions, that I have developed feelings that I didn't recognized until Roman brought them to my attention. Remus...I have romantic feelings for you."

And it was the last casual and calculated confession Remus ever heard. He imagined something with ropes. But it was the best thing he ever heard. He didn't expect to be crying.

"Remus?"

"I like you, too..."

Logan brightened and stood up, his heart beating unnaturally, yet pleasently, as he moved closer, "Then... perhaps we...?"

But before he could finish, Remus pulled him in and there was no need for words.

Part 2 with what happened with Roman afterwards?

Ty so much for the request and I apologies for the long wait.

@fireflyjunkie

[vaguely-concerned]

The Mandalorian Chapter 15 rewatch thoughts

- mayfeld does hear when the droid talks to him the first time, you can see him pretending not to like he hopes he’ll just go away haha. I also guess he’s had a lot of time to think, picking apart pieces of the large fascist machine he used to be a part of and going over everything he clearly regrets 

- hahaha fennec and boba are in the back intensely keeping watch the entire time they’re on the prison planet. I suppose a good two thirds of this crew is uuuuh extremely wanted by the new republic lol

- the thing din’s voice does at the end when he says “but you still know your imperial clearances and protocols. don’t you.” is beyond fucking words, it sends a chill right through me

- 

1) din fiddling with that panel; I think he’s phenomenally nervous behind the helmet here, that’s the sort of keeping his hands busy he does when he’s anxious and 2) why the hell does boba have this many chairs instead of like space for cargo haha does he throw bounty hunter parties in here or what

- ngl boba correctly guessing at a glance what sort of ore they’re mining and informing everyone in his sardonic deadpan voice is Big Sexy  

I love how he and fennec are standing together when they’re both present in these opening scenes too, first at the very back when they’re keeping a lookout: 

and then in the foreground while they discuss the scan 

it’s a nice subtle way to get across that they already have a dynamic, they’re somewhat used to working together as a unit at this point. (she’s also looking over at him when she asks what they might be mining in there, like she’s mostly asking his opinion instead of opening it to the floor. they’re talking the mission out between them before din enters the conversation)

- the inside of slave 1 when the ship’s moving makes me a little bit motion sick, I really love seeing it but I hope we don’t stay in here too often haha

- aaaw the small weary sigh din gives upon realizing none of his bros can go with mayfeld. I’m sorry about basically your entire life buddy

-

the awkward way din adjusts the helmet like he’s trying to get used to the way it feels ;______;  

- ah the distinct implication that mayfeld is needling din about this because he’s actually feeling super uncomfortable being back in empire gear and he needs to transfer that discomfort over onto someone else so he won’t have to feel through it... very psychologically understandable and such a fucking piece of shit asshole character trait to give in to haha

- din’s level of side eye is so epic you can see it straight through the helmet fhaskjfhd

- neat detail: din’s head turns slightly toward mayfeld when he calls mandalorians a ‘race’. (it’s sort of cool  that we as the audience know why that bothers him, but mayfeld probably didn’t even pick up on it). also shows that mayfeld doesn’t actually quite understand what he’s talking about, even when he makes decent points he’s caught up in his own myopic nihilistic point of view. ‘we’re all the same’ ------> ‘everyone’s secretly as shitty as me deep down’. (which also betrays a lot of self loathing, since we see later he does have the capacity to NOT be that shitty when he chooses to. rick famuyiwa manages to get a LOT of really interesting nuanced stuff into this character in two short episodes, that’s super impressive)   

the bright sunny look on mayfeld’s face when din finally gives in and takes the bait tho fsajdkfhasj he’s awful but that’s very funny

- rip all these excellent dudes who really only wanted to accomplish the noble goal of ruining the empire’s entire day and didn’t know they were also trying to blow up My Dad Who Does Not Deserve Any Of This, it’s honestly just really sad that there’s no moment to talk that out

well at least they blew up the entire refinery on their way out, I’m sure that’s the way they would have wanted their memories honored lol

- the comedy beat of din running out of ammo for the first time ever and the music briefly cutting out for it is so so good for me 

hahahaha din seems to actually take a moment to be a little aghast at that dude who ends up crushed under the treads of the tank thing, he’s just sort of staring for a few seconds too long and that’s how pirate nr 2 takes him by surprise and shatters his shoulder armour 

- I feel a bit bad -- two of the ‘pirates’ try to hold on to each other for balance and then din punches them apart and off the tank :( I mean it’s not like he could just let them murderate him either but like. ouch I’m guessing this one might haunt him for a while for several reasons huh

(the sequence is actually this guy, let’s call him pirate 3, swings the spear at din and misses, instead hitting his buddy who’s trying to get to his feet, then looks horrified and grabs for him to make sure he doesn’t fall off, and then... mando’s forehead happens to them haha)

- poor fennec and cara just running up that hill while everything’s on fire, they must be wondering what the FUCK is going on (at least cara knows that things blowing up is a sure sign din djarin is in the middle there somewhere)

- everything about carano in real life aside for one second -- I do like that we get this contrast in build between our main female characters of the episode and the way their costume designs enhance it

 - awwww the little gesture din does with his hand after he removes it from mayfeld’s chest after stopping him from leaving, it’s just so... sweet. it’s a little bit appeal, a little bit reassurance, it just lightens/softens the tone of what he says a bit (he has quite a lot of like... not conciliatory mannerisms exactly, but small touches here and there that are there to communicate that he’s not angry/aggressive or trying to be a dick about it even when he’s emphatic. I keep wondering how much that is just him being him and how much is him being practiced at settling other people’s hot tempers)  

- this shot is just... genius

it’s din seen entirely from the outside, with nothing of what we’ve learned to recognize as him for almost two seasons now in view -- not even his face, which we have at least a tenuous fledgling attachment to from before. it’s like we get introduced to him almost as if anew again and again in this episode, just like he’s getting introduced to new aspects of himself and what he’s willing to do and having to struggle to find ways to have that fit with who he is. his discomfort and stress is our discomfort and stress. it’s so interesting 

- I can’t stop cackling at this moment even in all the tension -- you only get a sliver of din’s profile but you can feel the sheer MURDER radiating off him sdhfasjk

- aaaaaaaagh the way you get a whole different view of din’s habitual impassiveness when you can actually see his face... the way he keeps appealing to mayfeld ‘just don’t make more trouble, just shut up’, the way he goes completely silent and watchful and frozen..... those are all really obvious trauma responses, and it leads you to wonder how often he touches into that even when he’s in his element, when he’s got the full armour on. hmngh my heart  

- ‘the believer’ is such a galaxy brain title for this episode, because it could be referring to either of the three men around this table or all of them at once. (and crucially the only person whose beliefs aren’t in a living, breathing state of adapting to the world around them is the empire officer, with his horrific inhuman ideology. mayfeld thinks he believes in nothing, and proves himself explosively wrong by the end of the episode, and it’s redeeming for him in some capacity. din is facing a more internal dilemma of different parts of his (and his culture’s) beliefs/values clashing and having to decide which one’s more important, to his identity and to how to exist in the world as a person (and love for the baby wins out supremely in the end. of course it does Y_____Y). the empire dude only sees the same sterile fascist world at the end of his shit rainbow that he’s clearly always done, even when faced with proof that it’s untenable. (I mean he wouldn’t give a fuck that it’s immoral because he’s y’know evil, but he’s not even fazed by the fact that the empire provably FAILED, and failed so quickly) his belief is a dead and deadening thing to contrast the others. man when this show goes off with the themes it goes OFF haha) 

- love the triumphant heroic mando music kicking in as we’re finally getting to pick off imps, love that for us 

- din’s protective instincts at work again, he helps mayfeld to his feet and makes sure he’s safely on board before going further in himself ;_______;

- fennec’s professional approval at mayfeld’s shot hahaha. well I guess he was supposed to be a sharpshooter back in the day huh

I do Not think she likes mayfeld even after all that, though, the withering look she sends him on her way past... should have killed him stone dead on the spot

- seeing din back in the armour is like a physical relief, I can breathe again haha

- tfw you catch yourself thinking ‘at least when all this is over we can go back to the razor crest and everything will be normal again’ and then you rEMEMBER 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

[hawkland]

(Mostly) Destiel Fic Recs #5

This is a LONG recs post because it’s been a while since I did an update and I fell hard into reading one author’s work (DeanRH). In fact I could easily do a rec post just of their fics alone, but for this round I’m just going to pick out a handful of my absolute favorites so far, the ones I’d recommend to start out with, along with more other authors’ works I’ve especially enjoyed lately.

Absolution at the Five-and-Dime by DeanRH (125k)  - this is perhaps THEE DeanRH fic to start with if you want a good, long read with a little bit of everything (Roadtrips! Intriguing casefic! Americana! Tasty Dean/Cas pining! Wing!kink and unique angel lore! Kinky soul fisting and tentacles!) It’s kind of two of parallel stories in one: the first, a flashback to Dean and Sam's first year hunting on their own (as well as trying to avoid hunting, and John in general); the second on how Dean and Cas finally get together during an unusual case and when Dean is able to really let go of his past trauma and accept himself/accept love from Cas. 

What I love about DeanRH’s work is that they write from the unique point of view of a drifter, so they understand living on the road, traveling place to place, and the highs and lows of that life like no others I’ve encountered in SPN before. (The author’s notes are often as much fun to read as the stories themselves). They also write a kickass angel!Cas and never lose sight of his non-human traits and background. Their writing style is unique - almost poetic in nature, and I know some readers have found it difficult to get into. But it works really well for me in their SPN fic...gives it the flavor of oral story telling as might actually happen at a drifter’s camp (with one story written exactly as such). Be warned this particular fic does play up the idea of John Winchester being mentally abusive and Dean having to turn tricks when he was younger in order to support him and Sam, so there is some dark stuff. But as someone who grew up with mentally abusive parent, reading this was extremely cathartic to me and believably written (unlike some stories that go too over the top with abusive John, or just don't understand how that kind of abuse leaves lifetime psychological scars.)

The rest of this round’s recs below the cut.

Carnevale by DeanRH (18k) - Actually the first fic by this author I read, because I just couldn’t resist a story set in my favorite place in the world, Venice, Italy. Castiel is the Angel of Venice, banished there for so long he does not even know or remember the reasons why. But Carnevale season is the one time a year he can let his wings out - figuratively and literally. And during this particular Carnevale season, he meets an intriguing masked young American tourist there with his brother and their one night stand turns into something far more powerful than either expected. This one’s hot, romantic, and achingly sad at the end as it all ties together unexpectedly with canon-verse...though with a hint for the future so it’s definitely not totally sad. I loved how DeanRH clearly understands Venice as a fellow lover of the city, the side of it most tourists never see unless they spend a long time there. This story made me cry just from wanting to be back in Venice again.

Ice cream was sweeter, food more satisfying, everything was an epicurean delight. There was just something magical about Venice, and he had lived here in the city for hundreds of years, so the shine should have worn off by now.

But it didn't, and there was always something more, something wonderful to discover around the next corner. The painted eaves of a church. The beauty of two women dancing with flowers in their teeth across the Piazza San Marco one day, overcome by the sheer joy of just being there. The way the university students still created Venetian masks, like Castiel's extravagant volto mask and Dean's humble servetta muta, with crafts that had been handed down across the generations. The morning silence that lay against the stones.

Hard Landing by DeanRH (26.9k) - A bit similar in theme to Carnevale. A pre-series Dean and Sam are sight-seeing in Spain when an angel, struck by a babel-spell, crash lands right in front of Dean. A strange yet seriously hot encounter with the angel turns into something much more complicated when the brothers return home and realize something more serious is afoot and they are both trapped in the middle of it. This is another story where things are very much not as they seem at first (as fun as that is!) It features master strategist Cas at his best, with a side helping of delightful trickery care of Gabriel and Balthazar as they deal with Lucifer, Michael...and a few others along the way.

The Sacred Band of Thebes by DeanRH (14.5k) - The last DeanRH fic I’m gonna allow myself to include in this round up, because it’s just very soft and sweet and beautiful - for a story about Dean & Cas being magically transported back in time to ancient Sparta! This is another story infused with a great knowledge of place and history, with some wonderfully delightful original characters added in that make it all the more enjoyable to read.

And now on to some other authors, I promise!

IPAMIS OL OLPRIT by emmbrancsxx0 (56k). A really wonderful fic that take a different look at what might have happened with a temporarily resurrected John Winchester during Season 14. Dean & Cas are in an established relationship here, and John here isn’t too happy about it — though mostly because he sees Cas (and Jack) as monsters, the kind of monsters he spent his lifetime hunting. This is a great fic for the emotional complexity of how John, Dean and Cas are all handled. John isn’t a cardboard evil dad, Dean is struggling between his loyalty to his father and to Cas, and Cas is increasingly bitchy/frustrated at Dean still being so desperate for his father’s approval (and all the more complex for not just being a quietly suffering perfect supporting boyfriend.) There’s some great action sequences in this too along with the emotional angst and a delicious dose of hurt!Cas if that’s your thing (as it is for me :D)

Abrenuntio by Neonbat (51k). A very dark but compelling AU take on the/a apocalypse universe. Dean, Sam and John are all alive in this post-angel war-apocalyptic world. They are part of a group of human survivors fighting against the angel army when they manage to capture “Blue” — a particularly feared angel of death. Dean is tasked with bringing Blue in for interrogation and he becomes a prisoner in their camp after John is killed. As mentioned, this is a pretty dark/sad fic (with some rather gruesome torture scenes) but I still found it quite compelling as a look at how things could have gone in some other parallel universe. And somehow the author manages to make the Dean/Cas relationship come together despite them starting out as complete enemies. This is one of those AUs that works for me because the core of the characters really shine through despite the differences in the setting.

if it all fell to pieces tomorrow by spocklee (37k) - a gorgeous post-Empty rescue fic that takes an approach I haven’t really seen explored in detail before (despite being something I’ve actually thought about as something that could’ve happened.) What if Cas has spent so long denying himself happiness, and then trapped in regrets and false-rescue scenarios created by the Empty, that he can’t trust that his rescue is real? And so he runs off to be on his own - literally stealing the Impala because he can’t handle being in Dean’s presence one moment longer - and only slowly comes to terms with the idea that it’s over now and he can be happy with/around his friends and family. This one’s both deliciously angsty and at times funny/sweet, looking at Cas’s relationships not just with Dean but with Sam, Jack, Claire, even Eileen. It does some fun stuff with other returned angels and demons who now find themselves back on Earth (and human), and...I just really enjoyed this one a lot.

Both Saved and Lost by angelfishofthelord (13.7k) Gen Cas character study, absolutely gorgeous and sad and one of those fic I couldn’t stop thinking about the day after reading it. AU where Apocaverse!Cas isn’t immediately killed by our Cas during 13x22 but instead hitches a ride back to the main ‘verse. Dean and Sam want to keep him alive for information on Michael; Cas is torn and trying to figure out just how similar—or different—they really are. Some great angel stuff here (I also highly recommend this author’s Jack & Cas “dadstiel” fics, they’re equally lovely and heartbreaking at the same time.)

flesh of the mighty by Mudprophet (2.7k) - THEE “What exactly did Dean eat in Purgatory, anyway?” fic you’ve probably already heard about. *cough* I’ve been trying to work up the courage to read this one for a while and finally gave in and OH MY CHUCK I’m so glad I did. It’s perversely disturbing and beautiful at the same time, Cas is wonderfully DERANGED and ALIEN in that way that I love it when fics managed to convey just how much angels are NOT human. Do heed the tags.

Full of Grace by ilovehowyouletmefall (11k) - Another one for the weird-as-fuck-angel!Cas lovers’ list. Heaven/canon-compliant fic where Dean knows he should feel happy and at peace but he just...isn’t, even with Cas and all of his friends and family there. He finally goes looking for Cas when he’s been absent for a time and, for the first time, gets to not just see but experience his true form. Another one that hits some kinks I knew I had and others I didn’t...until now. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

don't ask me where i've been by saltwound / @1x06 (8k) - I can never resist a good 09x06 fiction gap fic! What makes this one really stand out is how well it captures Cas’s internal voice - his struggles adapting to human senses, limitations and emotions versus what/how he experienced things as an angel. The longing and feelings between Dean & Cas here are so achingly beautiful and I just wanted to cry when Cas says he misses hearing Dean’s prayers, so Dean, he...oh, I’m not going to spoil it. *happy sigh* Just read it.

this room is wrong by DarkHeartInTheSky (12k) - Sometimes I like torturing myself with some good 15x03 divorce arc angst and this fic hit that button just so. It’s an alternative take on where Cas might have ended up after leaving the bunker and features some great Cas & Sam friendship feels, when Sam sets out to try to bring Cas home. It’s all the stuff you’d wish the writers would’ve let them talk out in canon.

Well that’s more than enough for this round! Go forth, read and give some great writers some kudos & comment love!

[bludhavents]

i really like the love language posts you wrote for the outsides and it got me thinking! only if you want to of course, but what do you think the cullens’ love languages would be? would they even have that lol 😆 <3

OH MY GOODNESS!?!?????!? this is such a good idea you’re literally the BACKBONE of this account i love u and would love to write this. thank you for the request and for being so active 🤎🤎

the cullen siblings’ love languages

edward cullen: quality time

- first of all he snuck into bellas room every night for MONTHS just to watch her sleep

- also in the book whenever they would eat lunch at their own table, it goes to show how much he loved to be around her!

- i feel like him introducing her to his family was another huge indicator of quality time because he wanted her to spend time with his family and feel more comfortable around them all

- the fact that he’s always there to pick her up on time and sneakily comes to hang out with her at nights is also another obvious reason

- i think this is why he chose to physically remove himself from her when they split up. he could’ve easily stayed in forks and just ignored her, but he goes so far away because he is trying to get rid of his feelings for her and the only way he can do that is to make sure they don’t spend any time together

- and the way he was so persistent about wanting to get married is sweet because they are literally going to live for eternity and he knows that, but it’s the precedent that matters to him. he wants them to be married for that time they’ll spend together.

- he also always talks about how he dreads living forever (not only because he thinks he’ll be damned for eternity) but because he thinks it’s pointless. he doesn’t like to have so much time because he feels it gives the moments in his life such little meaning in the long run

- but whenever he meets bella and they become more serious, he’s excited about his immortality! all the more time he gets to spend with his wonderful wife <3

emmett cullen: physical touch

- the first thing that made me think of this is how much bella talks about his strong build in opposition to his teddy bear personality

- the scene where he’s arm wrestling with bella stands out also because that physical touch is his way of being playful and fun

- but he’s also a strong fighter and knows how easy it’d be to hurt someone with his strength, which is even further evidence that he’s a physical guy

- whenever he’s sitting with rosalie on the couch is sweet also, the way they’re just settled up next to eachother is so adorable

- he likes to give hugs!

- he play fights with jasper and edward a lot too, and i feel like it’s his way of showing his love in a non-serious way

- he’s funny too, but he’s not one of the characters who’s at the forefront of the series and we never hear him needing to be reassured or comforted, but we do see people hugging him, hitting him playfully, etc.

- he likes to mess with people’s hair

rosalie hale: acts of service

- she tried to service edward and the rest of her family when she contemplated killing bella. she does everything she can to help keep her family safe and appreciates the same in return.

- she was willing to receive backlash from her entire family just to save that ugly, stank, mutant, baby monster renesme. she saw this as a service to both the baby and to bella, because bella wanted to save her child.

- she helps protect bella from victoria even though nobody is forcing her to. sure, she wasn’t happy about it, but she was there to help service her family and make edward feel better about bellas safety

- she did an act of service for the entire world when she murdered that hideous, evil ex-fiancé of hers.

- but relating to that, when we see snippets of her past life we see her helping people, trying to make royce happy, and sacrificing her needs for those of others and that’s another reason i believe her love language is acts of service.

- she helped bella get ready for the wedding which was a huge turning point in their relationship. for her to spend the time, effort, and work on bellas hair and makeup was her way of communicating her approval of the marriage to bella.

alice cullen: receiving gifts

-OH MY GOD SHES SO HOT AND THIS GIF IS BREATHTAKING

- anyways her love language is receiving gifts! she’s a bright, fun person who has many ways of communicating, but gifts are her signature way of displaying affection.

- she gave bella a prom dress even though it was last minute and alice was way more excited for the prom than bella was lol

- she just seems to give gifts when she’s excited or happy

- and she uses her visions to tell what a person will like the most which is so thoughtful and proves how much she cares about what to give people

- AND SHE WAS SO EXCITED FOR BELLAS BIRTHDAY AND GOT HER SO MANY THOUGHTFUL GIFTS AWH

- i think she did this with bella in particular since bella doesn’t respond super well to physical touch and can get overwhelmed easily

jasper hale: words of affirmation

- likes to be reassured that he can and will be able to control his bloodlust

- his quiet little conversations with alice

- also likes to be reassured about his past and told its okay and that he’s a better person now

- jasper not only likes to be reassured, but it good at reassuring others! he uses his calm voice (and emotional powers) to help get people to rely on him and feel better

- is very reliable and there for you to talk to

- quiet and careful with his words because he wants to make sure he’s saying the right thing and being cautious to monitor how his words affect the mood of the room

[anasticep]

Why Julie and the Phantoms is a masterpiece of a show. Part 2. Heroes and Villains or Let that foil shine

NOTE: Thanks again for your kind response to Part 1. I never expected that. It being my first tumblr post and a first meta in quite a long time I was blown away. I read all the tags, some were really hilarious. About having more than one brain cell xDDD I laughed so hard. It means a lot.

NOTE2: Please remember that the gifs are made by me, so don't crop, edit or give as yours.

Part 1.

Before diving into meta, I have to mention that the Villain of the story is actually one of the best in the decade. He’s cool, evil from the start, we understand his motives and we certainly are not supposed to love and make excuses for him. The writers made sure of that. So back to the main topic.

A foil is a character who contrasts with another character; typically, a character who contrasts with the protagonist, in order to better highlight or differentiate certain qualities of the protagonist

Foils in literature are not necessarily antagonists. A friend can be a foil or sometimes even a thing, a song. Whatever can make a good and real contrast to the protagonist. But it’s not very simple to use this author’s device and not fall down a deep hole. Because you have to make sure you did just the right amount of work to make it understandable for a reader, the things you want to contrast are definitely there and still you don't waste a character. On TV it can be even harder given limited air time. And, well, I don’t come across this device being used in full very often nowadays. It’s usually good and evil fighting for the plot. That’s why I personally appreciate JaTP so much.

Caleb is clearly a foil to Luke. As much as I’d love to say that Julie also has one, that’s not entirely true, at least not this season. Carrie is not her foil though it may seem so, and I really think that’s cool as Julie’s journey is being presented through her own demons and I'm going to cover that next. That being said, of course Caleb doubles as an antagonist plotwise, but I personally consider him being written more as a contract to Luke so we could see and appreciate his character and journey better.

1. Origins

Caleb and Luke have extremely similar backgrounds. They are both natural performers. They know how to deliver, because c’mon, “Now or Never” is something and so is “The other side of Hollywood”. Stage is their natural habitat, their element, power. Although they channel this power from completely different places.

Let’s start with our little ball of energy. It’s emphasized TWICE that he doesn’t care about the money aka the physical side of art.

All Luke wants is to make music. Connect with people. He is so happy just to be heard despite him loving to perform. Making music is what makes him feel alive and basically that’s enough. I think if there was no “hologram” magic at all, Luke would have still been extremely happy to make music with and for Julie. Because that’s the way he is.

But Caleb doesn’t know that. He knows, and I’m standing by that, right away that Luke is the one to aim at. Because we always feel the similarity in people. If Luke said yes, Reggie and Alex would have followed. So Caleb recognizes the passion and shoots at them what he thinks is appealing. And, oh boy, he delivers.

“The Other Side of Hollywood” is a perfect song to emphasize Luke and Caleb being foils for each other. Follow me here:

But these lines come from very different places. For Caleb the only thing that matters is himself. He owns the show, he IS the show. It’s about being famous, drowning in applause, admiration. Look at how he performs. Confident, yes, but still very much in control. He must keep his perfect face. No flaws, no real emotions, no real connection (Did you miss ME? I did too // This band is back). Whereas Luke is simply living the best time of his life each time he performs. Is it just jamming? Bring it on. Doing fun riffs? He’s all for it. He doesn’t care how he looks (though who could deny gorgeous sweaty Luke), he owns the show just because he is a natural.

So back to the business. Caleb immediately puts the boys in his own shoes:

On the other side we live like kings // Your soulprint on the walk of fame on the boulevard of your wildest dreams // I got your glamour, got your gold, got all you’ll ever need

And, I mean, he is not that wrong. You can see the appeal on the boys’ faces. They are young, passionate, handsome, talented musicians. Of course they wouldn’t deny fame. Of course they would want all that to some extent. And Caleb is very sure he pulled the right strings.

Watch me make a move, I’m your number one choice

Also I have to mention, as we are talking about TOSOH (IKEA name again) and it being a foil for Luke, thy lyrics still don’t forget about what is important for Reggie and Alex (we’ll talk about that just a bit later):

Welcome to the brotherhood -> Reggie

Where you won’t be misunderstood -> Alex

Then again, lots of foreshadowing in the song, if you listen carefully the lyrics are stressing the true colors of the offer:

A tomb with a view

Man, what a metaphor. I would have run out of there the minute I heard this line. But our boys share one brain cell (I can’t get over how funny this is) and it’s currently taken by Julie, so I don’t blame them.

Disappointment is huge. Caleb read it all wrong. So we are moving to the next point in our Heroes and Villains essay.

2. Recruitment

It’s very cool that Caleb offers the boys to join his band right after Luke offers Julie to join Sunset Curve. They both are going out of their ways to get that (although have different budgets apparently. But look, they live in a garage). Luke made a hit with a bunch of Julie’s not very well structured lines (I love Flying Solo with all my heart as a song, but as a poem it just looks weird to me) to impress her, and we all saw the show Caleb had thrown to impress the boys. Plus food. And fancy dancing. But here is where contrast comes again.

Caleb offers to join the band, yes, but only as backup singers. It’s his show, remember? It’s only about him. He doesn’t care if they are even good. He wants their magic under control.

Share the spotlight with ME / How do you like MY new band?!

Luke offering Julie a spot in the band is a completely different story. He saw what she is capable of. He instantly knows she must be the key to a new sound, a new level. And he, a natural performer, frontman, lead guitarist, steps back and gives the spotlight to Julie. To think about it, he could have just got her magic under control by giving her simple lines, incorporating piano in the songs and that’s all. They would be visible, he would still be a center of attention, and Julie herself wouldn't mind that much. But that’s not who Luke is. Yes, there is a funny scene of “Hey, I’m your lead singer” and “you don’t have to be mean”, but it’s just messing around. Because right after that he finishes Flying Solo, writes several other songs with Julie, seeks her approval of Sunset Curve songs and basically follows her around like an adorable excited puppy.

Moving on and back to the rejection. Again the writers are mirroring them. Julie quits the band & the boys decline the offer. What does Luke do? Well, he tries the way he knows: books a gig, makes Reggie and Alex sing in perfect harmonies and does his puppy eyes thing. And it doesn’t work. And Luke goes to reflect and then probably try to come up with a plan. But something tells me he would not have haunted Julie until she joined them.

What does Caleb do after the initial rejection? Puts a cursed stamp that leaves them no choice but to join HGC. You don’t need to say more.

But in fact the more I think about it, the more I suspect Caleb also not possessing enough mental capacity for a human being. Like, if it wasn’t for Willie, how would they even know? Has Caleb planned to simply show up one day and casually explain? Look, foils in everything.

“You’re in a tough spot… So, you wanna join the band?” | “Looked like it hurt… you know where to find me”

But we sidestepped a bit.

3. Pulling the strings

After the song Caleb comes out to consolidate his success. What he does is clever and, btw, that’s the only time he becomes Julie’s foil. They are stating basically the same thing.

Again, Julie is concerned about the band and the boys, while Caleb is only concerned about having them under control. But they both are pulling basically the right strings.

What is interesting, Caleb actually impressed the wrong person (and that person is our sweet Reggie). Luke follows the string Julie pulled. Although the offer is tempting, he insists twice that they are in a band already directly to Caleb and then in Eats&Beats he says "It's like Julie said, we have a new band, a new sound». No matter what Caleb promised, Luke is not affected at all although Caleb’s offer is a very-very safe choice.

Speaking about using friends as foils, Alex and Reggie also serve as contrast characters for Luke at some points. Luke’s indifference to money is first stressed through Alex who is clearly the chief accountant for the band. His lines about not getting tips, living in a garage and «it’s a little bit about the money» are waved aside by Luke. Reggie is clearly the most affected by the whole Bobbie thing. His lines «I don’t care what Julie said, I’m glad we scared Bobbie», «So we’re gonna forget about getting back at Trevor?» are getting a clear contrast by Luke’s «It’s what Julie said, we have a new band, a new sound» and «He has to live with that guilt».

While editing the article I realised a very cool thing I haven't noticed before. How badly Luke wants to go on tour. And again that's another thing Caleb offers as if reading his mind. That's actually brilliant, to think about it.

Caleb is a VERY good reader. He tests the waters with a speech about disappearing from stage and going around the world and all dreams coming true. Still he doesn’t know the boys and especially Luke, so his phrase “no real connection” doesn’t register that much.

But he learns. Remember the lines I’ve marked before?

Reggie is afraid they will not be together after they cross over. He is in desperate need of a family. So wouldn’t it be nice to spend the rest of your afterlife with your brothers? (Reggie's main insecurity is loneliness, feel of a broken family. That's why he is the most concerned about crossing over. Will his family stay intact?)

Alex is insecure, and not being understood by the people closest to him will always hit hard. So welcome to a place where you won’t be misunderstood. And actually we know there is a guy you like and find comfort in. (Alex's insecurity is growing up in times when he could not truly be himself even with his family and for sure not believing he would ever be able to find someone meant just for him)

That mirrors the whole Luke’s beach speech perfectly. Only comparing them we can truly appreciate why Luke is the leader. He shuts down his own demons to make Alex and Reggie remember that they are not alone (“and I believe in you”. sorry. Olicity fan).

Caleb makes them suffer to get what he wants. But this time he is careful with the words aimed at Luke. Yes, he repeats his words about vanishing and applauses BUT he makes sure that his words about CONNECTION are the key words for Luke. Intense look, calming voice, touching - these are all elements of hypnosis. And Luke is in a daze. (Continuing the parents' thing, for Luke the main insecurity is not managing to connect with his mom. Maybe that's such a big thing for him: through all these people he wanted to find that connection with her)

4. The Hero’s journey

That’s the best part actually but I won’t be saying anything new or that you don’t know. Luke is made of lyrics and music. That’s his soul, heart, that’s the feeling running through his veins. He doesn’t need anything other than that in his life. Playing for eternity is “a gift no musician would ever turn down”. But he actually does turn it down. As well as his dream to go see the world with his band (is there covid in jatp universe?). He is the one who resists the hardest to the pull. Luke, who always has a guitar in his hands, doesn't want to play. Because it’s not only about the music now. He has this amazing girl in his afterlife who was willing to accept them for who they were, helped Luke battle his own demons, eased his pain and made him open up. And it doesn’t make sense any longer without her anymore. “And you’re a part of me now till eternity”.

Caleb, being Luke’s foil, completely misses the whole point of connection. It’s not in his nature. His house band are just recruits (Just so happens you’re in luck we’ve got a vacancy). For Luke his band is his family (We are the only family we ever gonna need). The Connection theme is one of the main in the show. And it’s so cool to show it focused through Luke whose best way of interaction is a touch. But not being able to touch Julie Luke has to find other ways, although it’s not that simple for him. And Julie backs that up: We connect in so many other ways. They literally touched each other's souls. Without knowing she put a stamp of her own on Luke, Alex and Reggie. They’ve never felt loved enough, appreciated enough, supported enough. They’ve only had each other. And Julie’s stamp is love. And for Luke (as well as Reggie and Alex) from now on this girl is worth dying for all over again.

_______

So yeah. I hope you enjoyed it, as I for sure enjoyed writing. There is gonna be a part 3 about Julie and a few honorable mentions of parallels of the Pilot and the Finale (I hope at least to do all that). I’ve also figured very very cool connections in the songs and I can’t wait to share.

Also as I was heavily speaking about The Other side of Hollywood, @catty-words has a wonderful meta on rain metaphors here (sorry for tagging, if you don't want to be tagged), check it out if you somehow missed it. It's super clever.

[charmspoint]

what i know abt qifrey from u talking abt him uhh ok so he's genuinely just a nice guy but also he's evil and irredeemable but also he's literally just a pleasant gentleman

I know ur not asking for a rant about this but by god ur gonna get it.

So the thing is, I don't think Qifrey is evil or irredeemable at all. We joke around the fandom (at least i hope its mostly jokes) that he's evil and crazy but he's really not. If id have to pin Qifrey on a morality spectrum I'd say morally gray but leaning towards the good.

Did Qifrey do some messed up stuff? Yes, fo sure. But I've always gotten more of an impression that he's teetering towards the edge and not completely over it. He does do damage but so far he's mostly made sure that damage was extremely localized and not actually harming other people (I talked about before how Qifrey's own memory erasing spell seems weirdly specialized compared to what we were brought to believe memory erasing spell actually does when used by anyone else).

But now comes the question

Do I think Qifrey will get worse?

Yes, 100% I believe this is where we are going towards, I said before that I'm p convinced he will become some kind of obstacle for Coco down the line.

Qifrey is going through a LOT rn. He's already got ptsd from, you know being stripped of his identity, buried alive, almost drowned and then remembering he was experimented on like a lab rat, but now it's getting worse. Before he could at least relay on the fact that even though his past was horrible, his future was bright. He genuinely loves his job, he loves his girls, he loves teaching. This monolog gets me every single time

Now he's losing his future, he's losing not only his eye, but the whole identity he built out of nothing, he's losing his teaching position, he's losing his kids, he's losing Everything he gained after he had already lost Everything.

It leaves him rushing against an uncertain time limit, desperate, stumbling, sloppy. I don't think he's thinking straight anymore, not really. I think he's convinced he is being methodical and calculating but in actuality he's stumbling forward, grasping at straws, unable to hold on to anything but his need for revenge and the empty words that his actions aren't only for his own sake.

It's all very striking, in his relationship with Olruggio in particular. Olruggio is very clearly supposed to be the guiding light for Qifrey, the one who pulls him back when he goes too far, the one who helps him resist the growing darkness. It's very meaningful how as Qifrey continues on his path he makes sure Olruggio doesn't even know about it. He said it himself, if Olruggio knew, he'd try to save him. He'd try to bring Olruggio to light again and Qifrey doesn't WANT to be saved, he has decided on a road he wants to take and he won't allow anyone to change his course. Not even Olruggio.

So do I think Qifrey is evil?

No

Do I think he'll get worse?

Yes

Do I think he'll become evil?

Not really

See here's the thing. Qifrey's desperation, how quickly he's trying to work through this, how determined he is to throw everything else under the bus if he could just achieve his goals? All of that is dictated by the fact he's running out of time, the fact that once he loses his eyesight he can no longer be a witch. Eyesight is VERY important to witches since magic is a very visual art. We've seen with Tartar how something as seemingly miniscule as color blindness can basically doom someone, causing everyone around them to say they can't become a witch without good eyesight. So complete blindness is a death sentence to a witches career. Now, it's funny how a lot of the Coustas and Tartars arc has to do with adjusting the world to disability and not the person to the world. How it's made pointed, over and over again, that people with disabilities shouldn't be written off but given proper tools that will help them function, how the world should adjust to be a more comfortable place for all kinds of people and not just those who are already adjusted to it. Without the threat of his eyesight going out and cutting his whole identity into bits, Qifrey wouldn't have to act like this, he would be able to sit and think and not rush and if he still wants to pursue brimhats he could do it more safely for himself and everyone else because the desperation factor would be gone.

So what I think is going to happen is that Qifrey will lose his eyesight but won't lose his standing as a witch because he, Olruggio and the kids will figure out how to make magic accessible to him.

Now there's of course a bunch more unaccounted for variables which I'll probably have a better grasp on after the current arc is done being translated. Ininia and Lord Restis represent a very interesting development because they are brimhats introduced specifically via healing injuries. The rule of 'medicine magic isn't allowed cuz it's a slippery slope' has been there since the beginning of the series and a big thorn in the 'yeah the witch world rules are good and fair' side cuz of course, everyone thinks healing people should be allowed. Now the brimhats we've had so far were fully ready to attack and experiment on children's bodies in order to further their own goals so of course that immediately leaves you disliking them and not putting much account into their rhetoric even though it does make sense at times, but ur not gonna listen to ppl experimenting on kids. That's why I think Ininia and Lord Restis are interesting, cuz if they aren't literally attacking children they might get a good case in about medicine magic being allowed. I think we are going towards at least some sort of medicine magic becoming acceptable considering Tartar's arc. But then the question is, if some sort of medicine magic is approved, will it be used to heal disabilities cuz like...that would kinda suck. I would much rather have a 'world should be adjusted so disabled people can participate in it equally' narrative rather than the 'just heal the disability with magic lol' narrative. But honestly this whole paragraph is pure speculation because the arc isn't fully translated or even fully out yet but I sure af am LOOKING at it. I think it will be v important in understanding where the story is going to go. I just hope Shirahama does a good job with it, but honestly she never once let me down up until now so I'm feelin positive.

Circling back to Qifrey, I do think he's one of the kindest, most understanding, most lovable characters I've had a joy of reading and studying. But he does have a black hole in him that is pulling apart all that kindness, leaving him a shattering shell. I don't think he's evil, I don't think he'll ever become truly evil and despite what he's done I don't think any of what he did is irredeemable, especially with how careful he tends to be not to take away from people more than he has to to further his own goals. But I do think that hole will eat at him more and more and that before he can get better somebody will have to notice it and help him plug it up. Olruggio noticed and Qifrey refused the help, convinced that he can't be helped, not in the way he needs. He will need proof that he can keep his future before he can ease up on the frantic hunt after his past