#also zero is just terrible imo

[arnieb95]

totally correct tags courtesy of @akilice

[snowblack-charcoalwhite]

Something something the concept of granting meaning and importance to an object/phenomenon/person by giving them a name

It is especially relevant in the world like the one ASOIAF is set in, where the name serves as an extremely important defining factor for many characters (mostly a family name but also their given one). And boy, did HotD writers lean into this - in their own way.

I am not the first one to point out that Jaehaera's name hasn't been mentioned in the show at all - not once. But guess who got to have one?

Sure, everyone absolutely needs to remember a girl who was raped by the prince (who is now the king) and who, except for that fact - which serves the purpose of vilifying said prince (and, in some way, by association, the entire TG) - had zero relevance to the plot. And so we have Dyana - because this absolutely unbiased show can't have anyone forget that the Greens' candidate for the throne has some deplorable proclivities. She even got some extra screen time in season 2: once again, absolutely unnecessary except for reminding the audience of her existence - and of Aegon's sins.

But who cares about the only remaining child of the king; the girl who came within a hair's breadth from death and then lost her twin brother; the one true joy left to her mother? Why would she even need a name?

Jaehaera's fate in the show is uncertain (the writers didn't do away with her at the very least) - but for now she is not even a tool of the story but merely a dead weight that just had to be there for Blood and Cheese to have someone to choose from. And then she was simply conveniently (nearly) forgotten becoming just "Helaena's daughter" - no name, no face, no emotional attachment from the audience. I just wonder if the writers' unwilingness to actually involve Jaehaera in the story (or just let the viewers properly see her) comes from them being equally unwilling to make the audience remember her brother whose death and its consequences they are so eager to sweep under the rug in order to minimize the PR damage done to the Blacks.

P.S. Speaking about the importance of names - they need to be not only revealed but also remembered. Jaehaerys didn't end up nameless - but how many times was he actually called by his name in the show? Right off the bat I can remember only one such case: Aegon asking Helaena where he was in episode 1. And while I believe this was not the only time (I am terribly sorry but right now I can't make myself rewatch any part of season 2, not even for science - so feel free to point out the rest), I have a distinct feeling that he still was far more often referred to as "boy", "child", "son", "heir to the throne" and whatnot. Once again: no name, no memory - which IMO is exactly what the writers were going for.

[space-blue]

I still cant wrap my head around how vi eventually joined enforcers after years spent in prison and cop brutalities she experienced first hand. I’d try to rationalize it but The only logical reason i can think of is because of Cait and vi’s bias towards her that influenced her to join enforcers

I think, the issue that Arcane presents with Vi is one of archetypes.

Some fans have a tendency, even in my own posts notes, to defend and construct Vi as a real person. But she isn't. She's a fully fictional character, part of the great human art of storytelling.

I think that the issue at hand is that Vi's story as depicted in Arcane, doesn't follow very normal/standard/popular archetypes.

Her backstory is that her and her family are relentlessly harmed by cops, she spends half her teenage years in the worst prison. It would be a great backstory for someone like say, SILCO!!! Someone who goes on to hate Piltover and go to great and terrible lengths to oppose and fight them.

Transitioning her to her "game end state" is extremely hard, because her in-game status is that of a cop who polices her own people for Piltover;s sheriff. Ekko has barks that call her out for betraying Zaun. Vi used to have barks that were police brutality jokes. She has art where she's a US like donught eating cop. It's a vibe, and not a vibe that screams "I was abused by police my entire life!"

In the show we're not there yet, and we may not even go there at all (I'm of the opinion that if they make her Vander 2.0 it'll be more palatable and also provide a new skin to rack the money in with.)

But the transition is pretty brutal because they hurried to sell us on a Caitvi romance in season 1.

I think more people now are feeling iffy about Vi's actions because she goes along with the whole gassing operation, but IMO it is consistant with what we see from her in season 1. I'll explain.

I've seen the argument around that she only joins because the other option would be worse and she's basically a limiter for Cait, but no, sorry, she could argue with Cait for Zaun's protection, and be happy she decides on a smaller strike force while being horrified/opposed to the use of the Gray. She could be grateful Cait reduces her actions and still refuse to join her. She could not kiss her in the pipes while they probably both smell of mustard gas lol.

All of Vi's actions put together depict a picture so far, out of 12 episodes, and that picture just isn't very heroic or very nice. It's also very much not archetypal, so it's a lot more unpredictable. Some of her fans also have a tendency of defending her every action instead of embracing the darkness we see peeking through, which muddies the waters.

But I'm now pretty comfortable in my assessment that she's a good Vander 2.0.

She had a hard and broken childhood, ends up hardening and getting skills in prison, but not class consciousness. This isn't shocking, because Silco is taking over Zaun, and she hates that everyone seems to be working for him. Vi has zero awareness that her young self and Silco share the exact same goals (a Zaun that's not inferior to Piltover, where someone like Powder could live happy and safe).

Worse, Vi has her priorities all mixed up. The story is just complex and human. Vi is forced to raise Powder and also lead Claggor and Mylo her entire childhood. That's not great... She basically didn't get to be a child at all. Vander put a shit ton of responsibilities on her. We know from the Enemy video that she was pretty rough at times, which is a realistic depiction of a kid struggling under a lot of pressure in a rough environment. Then the sister who is so difficult to care for goes and kills the whole family seconds before they could all escape, the blow is dealt, they're separated…

And when freed, Vi has now 3 things on her mind:

-find her sister,

-kill Silco and destroy his operation/get revenge,

-and, oh wow that cop lady sure is hot!

Rescuing Zaun from Piltover is nowhere in her head. She complains about the Lanes having easily fallen to Silco, but at no point does the show hint that Vi may have greater goals of rescuing the Lanes from Silco.

Despite Vander's dying wish being "Take care of Powder", Vi's priority list is spoken right to Silco's face: She's going to find Jinx and undo what he's done to her head, but FIRST she will dismantle his business. Like, do you think Vander would be good with that agenda? lol

And don't come into my comments to argue that she's only saying this because she's facing Silco. Vi follows up by hitting Silco's factories and then wiping out the Last Drop and beating Sevika. Let's not forget name dropping her sister to the Council.

Saving Powder just ISN'T HER PRIORITY!!!

So what is her main drive? If it is "getting revenge" then the enemy of her enemy is her friend. Ekko, and Cait.

Vi going to Ekko's Firelight hideout and not becoming an instant member and not returning to them after season 1 also speaks VOLUMES about her priorities and her lack of "belonging" within Zaun.

You'd think she doesn't feel at home in the Lanes but may want to join and help the Firelights, right? They're the hope of Zaun… They're against Silco. But no. In season 2 she remains with Cait, hanging out awkwardly at her palatial home.

She goes and drinks in the street rather than seeking out the Firelights to see if they are fine or if she can help. As far as we can tell, she never saw Ekko after he took a bullet for Cait's plans and then a bomb to the face to stall Jinx!

So she just doesn't have any sense of home, any attachment to Zaun as a place or concept, despite being raised in it. She has resentment for Piltover and enforcers, but not enough to not fall for Cait and bend her principles. She cares for her family, but when it becomes complicated and difficult, she caves and changes her mind. She's also all talk about killing Jinx. She just can't, and after 2 missed opportunities, Cait is also mega fed up with it xD

Now Vi is going to go destroy her life with booze while rising and falling in the pits as a fighter. Then, from the trailers, seems like she'll get her shit together and fight Noxus.

I think in that way she's a Vander-esque character.

Rough start in life. Very angry. Prone to punch first ask later. Then, lacking guidance, they latch onto someone who is happy to give them direction (Silco/Cait). Then comes a breaking point (whatever triggered the drowning of Silco/Cait dumping Vi after the Jinx fight) and they switch to other occupations (running the Lanes/Pit fighting) and this is followed by another trigger that produces their end state as a collaborator (The bridge and adopting the girls/Whatever will happen fighting Noxus).

I think Vi can be given the space to basically gain a healthier view of Piltover (as an occupying force that can't be trusted for Zaun), while also being close to an enforcer for the good of Zaun (Vander worked with Grayson, Vi can work with Cait after Zaun becomes independent).

Vander is also a very flawed character. Lots of fans like to just see him as a sweet loving daddy, but he's a brutal killer who runs a racket business in the undercity lmao. We first meet him killing a man with his gauntlets, and the second scene he's threatening 2 people of death if they don't behave on his turf. Vander lacks the incentive that Shimmer is, so you bet your ass he was staying in power because "hound of the underground" had a gnarly reputation. Even foreigners know him by name.

He's the guy who was insane and violent enough to coldly drown his best friend with his bare hands. And let's not project any fanon here: He straight up apologises to Silco, says he's always regretted his actions, never says he was justified, and never contests Silco calling his actions a "betrayal".

Vander BETRAYED Silco, who trusted him. And Vander tells us he respected Silco, everyone did!

If we saw his arc live before us, I fucking bet it would be as swivelly and mystifying as Vi's. Poor slum kid becomes second in command to fanatical Zaun wannabe leader and revolutionary, creates the Lanes with him, then betrays him by trying to drown him with his bare hands, then takes over the business alone, hides his injuries, then leads a revolt due to some unknown inciting incident, then adopts kids, keeps running a smuggling/racket/protection business, whatever it is, while also collaborating with enforcers in secret, before being killed when his demons catch up with him???

I'm sure there's plenty of moments on such a journey that would make people scratch their heads. It's not very archetypal either.

And as a result Vi also only work if you see her outside archetypes. She's not an abused kid turned revolutionary, Silco style. Or abused kid turned freedom fighter/gang leader, Ekko style. She's not a very good sister, never was, never could be, simply from her circumstances. She's not super loyal because she has pretty weak principles. She's not driven by a strong sense of justice. She gives her word, then goes back on it. Acts strong and talks big and then buckles. And Cait can't have that, since it gets in the way of killing Jinx twice now.

Vi is mostly self interested, and driven by revenge and anger. Now that Silco is dead and revenge obtained, she's falling back on her sweetheart, and her lack of strong principles or loyalty show again, like in scenes where a bit of buttering up make her accept an enforcer badge.

I fully disagree with people who try to tell me she takes the job to protect Zaun! She takes it because she realises how much it would mean to Cait, and she has NOTHING BETTER TO DO with herself. She should be joining Ekko, at a minimum, but she isn't loyal to Zaun and isn't out there to save it. She cares about her family, but this only manifests in her being incapable to actually kill Jinx.

And like, it's OKAY!! Personally I'm okay with that.

I think Vi still has 6 episodes to gain a real, strong conviction, the way Vander did with the kids. And I'm also okay if that ends up being as a collaborator to Piltover. I would have written things differently because I think a longer and more non-romantic build up of trust and care with Cait would have been more beneficial, but I'm liking where things are going, because I've written Vi off as a good character.

She's very grey, and pitiable, but not sympathetic in her choices. A lot like Jinx, too. Jinx is just too cruel and sadistic to be sympathetic, but she's very pitiable.

And neither of the girls' flaws are their fault. They are the by-product of Zaun, of generational trauma and abject poverty and oppression. They are the fucked up women created by Piltover's fucked up rule.

As always, it's all Heimerdinger's fault, and I'm a little frustrated to see him cheapen Ekko's character with his Jar Jar humour right now.

Anyway, that's a pretty long answer, sorry lol

I'm always happy to get Meta posts, so thanks a lot. Don't hesitate to reply and elaborate.

[scoobydoodean]

so imagine emma somehow reappeared in season 15. i think we can all pretty much agree that dean would be quite emotionally affected by her, but how do you think sam would react? obviously he’s changed a lot since season 7, and of course they’ve had jack now, so do you think he’d feel terrible and admit he was wrong, or even with all that do you think he’d defend his actions? do you think he would bring up amy and let it become a bigger debate about other times they’d disagreed? thanks in advance if you answer :)

I certainly don't think Sam would try to kill Emma again. I think he saw killing her as a necessary evil in 7.13 due to his and Dean's tenuous psychological states, which caused Sam to assess her as a much more serious threat to Dean's life than Sam would at almost any other point in the series. Basically, in any other season, I think Sam would look at Emma with much more compassion, and would believe they had the practical capacity to try and get through to her (see: 1.16, 2.03, 4.04, 5.06, 12.04, 13.01-13.03). In another season, Sam would (imo) be willing to risk another surprise assault thinking they could handle it if it happened—especially in the future with the bunker at their disposal. But in 7.13, the brothers have no home (not even the impala), recently lost Bobby, and lost Cas. They have absolutely zero stability and no resources. Dean is suicidally depressed, and Sam is hallucinating. Sam does not believe he and Dean have the capacity to handle a brainwashed child who might show up and ambush them within that very precarious context, so he kills her. He has lost everyone and everything, and he absolutely will not risk losing Dean too. That fear comes out as rage at Dean in the car, but I don't think Sam killing Emma was mean-spirited or an attempt to punish him. It was just... incredibly cold and calculated.

Is there a reason why you pick season 15 specifically for an Emma revival? Sam navigating how to handle a revived Emma later in the series would be interesting, but I personally wouldn't do it in season 15. I'd do it a little earlier than that—maybe 13-14. Maybe it's just because of my bias against season 15... but it feels too... mytharc heavy? Sam's morals surrounding family sacrifice change around season 14/15 which adds another complication as far as how he might re-assess 7.13. I think Dean might just implode if he had one more thing on his plate in season 15 and a lot of the juiciest father/daughter bits would be subsumed by Dean's fears of Chuck meddling which to me would be a shame. I also think conflicts between Sam and Jack over Emma would be juiciest in season 13 or 14 and imo there's a lot of potential there that would be overcomplicated or missed.

In general though, Sam handles a lot of negative emotions and traumatic experiences by pretending they do not exist/never happened. This is why he immediately sows the narrative that Emma was not really Dean's child. So he can make that the story and invalidate any significance she might possess. Her coming back would force him to confront something he already knows deep down but won't face—that Emma was Dean's child who had been brainwashed by a cult, and Sam killed her in perhaps the most cold-blooded play he's ever (knowingly) made. It's possible that Sam would react negatively to being in Emma's presence because it would resurface those feelings and that Sam would eventually make justifications to try and shove all those feelings back down again. But I actually suspect if Sam went the "Well things have changed now but I wasn't wrong for what I did back then" route, his main conflict wouldn't end up being with Dean. I suspect his biggest hurdle in terms of family conflict would end up being with Jack in a season 13-14 context, because I think Jack would see their similarities, and it might color his perception of both Sam and Dean's reaction to him in early season 13. I think he'd have a lot of questions about how Sam could see the good in him but not Emma despite him being objectively far more dangerous than her and having actively demonstrated that several times by hurting and killing several people and almost reviving ancient evils, etc. I think it could revive some of Jack's early concerns over Sam wanting to use him and not really caring about him. I'd even wonder if he might see Dean's initial rejection as part of a foundation Sam himself laid when he killed Dean's child then went back on without any explanation. Like I think they could reach common ground and Sam could reassure Jack, but I think it could create some very juicy conversations surrounding Jack and necessary evils.

I don't NOT think Sam and Dean would have a conflict over Emma, but tbh one has to acknowledge that at the end of the day... there is pretty much nothing Sam can't get Dean to shut up about, including his own traumatic experiences in hell that Dean specifically does not ever talk about because of Sam. If Sam tried to kill Emma again, that'd be another matter... but if it was just about whether Sam was wrong for Doing All Of That...? I'm genuinely not sure I would look to Dean to reignite a war over it. If anything, he probably told himself the entire situation was all his fault a long time ago. Now if you push that Emma revival back to the CARVER era...

[bumblebeehug]

By the way: if you’re only watching the hyq anime and are complaining about the bad writing and bad animation — read the manga. “Oh but everyone says that the manga sucks as well!” IT DOES. But at least know the source material before you criticise it.

People keep saying that they don’t wanna read the hyq and ik it seems terrible based on what everyone’s saying about it, but truth is: it isn’t that bad. Like, it’s very much in the same league as the last Fairy Tail arc imo, and while the art is different and sometimes portrays characters poorly, it’s not nearly as bad as the anime.

Also, people have to remember that most of the complaints are coming from us who follow the sequel as the chapters are coming out: OF COURSE we’re gonna complain, it’s naturally disappointing when we’ve waited 2 weeks for a chapter that doesn’t cover what we want. But when I reread the manga I realise that the pacing is good — it’s pretty fast, even! It just doesn’t feel like it when we’re in for the long run.

All I’m trying to say is don’t be scared to read the hyq. Unless you only like Fairy Tail for side characters, the actual series isn’t bad.

And for NaLu fans: I urge you to read Eden’s Zero. Because Shiki and Rebecca are pretty similar to Natsu and Lucy, and if you understand how Mashima portrayed their relationship, you’ll understand why Natsu and Lucy are progressing, just not in the same way as gruvia and jerza.

[merrysithmas]

warning: The Hobbit review where I am a hater lmao

I know I'm like a decade late to watching these but:

• Mourning bc we could have gotten Guillermo's version of King Thanduil who wouldve been the ancient and frightful Becoming-the-Forest shadowy, eldritch, eerily mad power-clinging creature we deserved but instead we got Makeup Vlogger Thanduil (which is still so funny to me I'm almost not mad) & jock spray-tanned Legolas. THEY KILLED LEGOLAS AND THEN LET A MEAN JOCK WALK AROUND IN HIS SKIN FOR 3 HOURS.

We could've had scary pagan Green Man Thranduil the ancient being who refuses to give up power so much so that he's being consumed by the (ever-darkening) Forest which he once ruled with magnanimity ... and baby!Legolas struggling with the isolationalism & prejudice he learned from his father's court but we got... That instead.

LMAO proof nothing perfect can last

• also Tauriel? every scene between her and Thranduil should've been between Legolas and Thranduil to flesh out their relationship, instead of sideling him for an unnecessary OC who was put there to fulfill a weird corporate romance tick box, a repetitive and boring romance nonetheless with a subpar stock Strong Female Character.

• The only good thing about the movie was Martin's Bilbo (spot on!!) and the Gandalf/Elrond/Galadriel teamup even tho it was a little infected with the Avengers-y virus for me, they're all just such good actors I could watch them sleep and I'd be like... Oscar.

• I also hated Bard (they shouldve cut Tauriel and genderbent Bard or a couple of the dwarves if they wanted to add women) and I hated the design for Smaug & the Trolls. No creativity there at all.

• The film had zero regard for tone and went for pseudoLOTR instead. Where was the fairytale-esque children's tale of growing up and leaving one's comfort zone and discovering the big, sometimes terrible, world? Where was the almost Winnie-the-Pooh shine which covered the Through The Looking Glass maze?

• Also, I hated Thorin (why did they make him Discount Aragorn?) and none of the Dwarves had ANY development... wtf? They were Dollar Store Fellowship.

• I cannot for the LIFE OF ME understand why they put BILBO in the "Emotional Supporter" role for Thorin LMAOOOO... what??? Anyway, I support all the Bagginshield shippers because everything should be, and is, gay. No issue there.

That's my review, overall I was deeply surprised how bad it was and it makes me leery about The Hunt For Gollum, because shockingly Jackson&Co are 1 for 2 in regards to triologies right now and the odds of it being quality are split.

IMO I genuinely feel like The Hobbit should be remade by another team, that's how off it was.

[hellsbellschime]

i think his 'it was a mistake' was also about him realizing that his machinations helped the green's PR team. he is trying to gain support for rhaenyra and now he's made it that much harder when they see her as a kinslayer and baby killer. i will say i truly don't understand why rhaenyra is so shocked by this. not only does she know the type of man daemon is, but what was she expecting to do once she took the crown? if aegon's children still lived they would always be a threat to her and her children. there's no way she thought exiling them or holding them under house arrest or making them bend the knee would have worked in the long run. even if she presented them/heleana with the same deal she did laenor there is always a risk someone would find out or they would grow up to amass an army to take back what they viewed was their's. there's always going to be people scheming to take her off the throne simply for being a woman. leaving an alternative male heir alive makes zero sense in the long run. not me condoning daemon's actions, but i'm just baffled how she seemed so upset by an innocent child dying when the fact that jaehaerys being alive at all would have spelled disaster for her reign and the future of her line.

idk i kind of hate how the writing is making her more passive and stupid when it comes to political intrigue. it's taking away her agency by making daemon the mastermind behind all the evils the blacks were responsible for. i would have much preferred to see her not only be the grief stricken mother looking to go scorched earth, but also the one thinking 10 steps ahead by eliminating any future threat to her crown. i get they don't want to make her monstrous and have her more sympathetic, but i just feel like making daemon the responsible party and her left dealing with the consequences just weakens her character. i know the story basically is making all the terrible deeds in this war the men's fault and the women are left burdened with consequence, but it steals away from their agency imo. i think it made sense in s1 where the men are portrayed as the reason this war started, but this season should have given the women more autonomy over their choices in how the war progresses.

LOL well that would certainly make more sense than him calling it a mistake because he didn't want Jaehaerys to die. And I agree, obviously it's horrific, but this was always the endgame if Rhaenyra wanted to keep the throne and pass it on to her illegitimate children, the entire Green line would have to be extinguished so Jaehaerys was always a goner and it's bizarre to pretend otherwise. I don't like the passivity either, I mean I get why Rhaenyra wouldn't immediately go scorched earth but it was hilariously hard to believe that it didn't even occur to her that Daemon would do something like this until she saw his face, like friend please you just sent Daemon to commit murder and Aegon's heir is suddenly beheaded in the Red Keep, we don't exactly need to put Sherlock Holmes on the case.

[twopoppies]

How is OD a potential beard when they’ve been friends for a while, she has a boyfriend and he could simply like her music and she’ll open for him etc.? 😭 he’s just been single like - between OW and TR it was at least like 7 month break but he was also on tour and working etc. there’s zero need now imo and if then it won’t be her lol

Yes, logically none of it makes any sense. And it’s such a bad look for him IMO. But he/his team make a lot of terrible decisions where “girlfriends” are concerned.

[besttropeveershowdown]

The Most Annoying Trope Showdown: Round 2, Poll 15

Pair the Spares

Every or nearly every character who did not get together with someone during the story is paired off in the epilogue or very end. The characters are often shown having kids together as well

Propaganda:

This may just be my aromanticism talking, but it's annoying seeing everyone getting shoved into a relationship at the last minute. It doesn't even make sense most of the time. Let! People! Be! Happy! Single!

I am aroace and I hate this. just let them be happy on their own, don't just pair up characters for the sake of pairing them up, even if they have zero chemistry. this happens so often in all kinds of media, and fandom is also guilty of this. not everyone needs a partner! leave them alone!

I love romantic subplots but this is just amatonormative bullshit. It has all of the "romantic partner=happy ending" bullshit that fucks people up in real life, with none of the fluttery crush feelings or the angsty decisions. It doesn't add anything to the character arcs and is only detrimental to the themes of a work as a whole. It can cast a shadow over other romantic subplots in the series I might have enjoyed up until this point, because I start to wonder if those romances were really about the character/themes/plot, or if the writers simply think "leading lady goes with leading man, sidekick with sidekick, etc. etc."

It's fucking stupid. A lot of the characters that end up together either barely interact, make no sense or both. It also implies the only happy ending requires love and marriage. It makes no sense for some of the characters to want to settle down and have kids even if they are with someone they love.

Redemption Equals Death

An evil character redeeming themself dies almost immediately afterwards.

Propaganda:

“Oh no, I’ve done terrible things and an irredeemable idiot” *decides to die instead of facing their actions and becoming a better person* It deprives us as the audience of more interactions between characters. Imo this is trope is such the worst that I can’t put into words how much I hate it

[biracy]

I'm too nice to screenshot it and also too tired to say anything Too significant about it but God I cannot stand that post that's like "no one on ao3 is smart enough to write Lolita, therefore all content depicted In Fanfiction is automatically something the author finds uncritically erotic and acceptable in real life and is only included To Get The Writer Off." Shameless shameless reinvention of "high art" vs "low art" dichotomies that does zero work to actually address what "glorification" of a certain topic looks like, instead relying on reductive dominant cultural ideas about the inherent inanity of "fanfiction" that, imo, not only undermines the very, heavy quotes, "intelligent" authors present in mediums like fanfiction, but also makes a lot of room for supposed "high art" that actually DOES promote, glorify, or uncritically present harmful or dangerous topics. Too much discourse about "presentation vs glorification" on here is so reliant on "Good art = presentation, bad art = glorification", and in general so much discourse is reliant on enforcing "high brow/low brow" dichotomies about art that I find wholly unuseful. And no this isn't me saying ao3, the inanimate website, is perfect or that there's nothing wrong with incest fanfiction or What Ever, that's not what I believe. It's just me saying that "classic lit = smart and good, fanfiction = dumb and bad" is a terrible take that at best belittles a neutral medium in favor of paying lip service to academic establishments and at worst makes space for the Actual glorification or promotion of dangerous or harmful beliefs or behaviors as long as it is presented in appropriately "high art." And in general me saying that "fanfiction" should more often be treated with a similar level of good faith and willingness to engage with the text on its level as more "traditional" modes of literature. Bad take. D minus

[theteasetwrites]

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon | S1E1 Thoughts

Okay I am gonna list all my positive and negative thoughts regarding each episode (I know no one asked but I feel like this is the only thing I am somewhat “qualified” to talk about ad nauseam on here).

⚠️ SPOILERS AHEAD ⚠️ do not read below the cut unless you’re okay with spoilers

Positive Thoughts

Norman’s acting is so good like?? Listen we all know he’s not Laurence Olivier and he doesn’t claim to be but goddamnit he nails the subtleties of Daryl’s expressions and conveys his emotions really well I think! I’m very impressed

Daryl hot

Obviously the cinematography, setting, and aesthetics are really cool. It’s both gritty but pretty!! I love the gothic architecture and how OLD everything looks, which is only exacerbated by the apocalyptic feel

Everyone in the cast is so good in terms of acting (well, I mean… Laurent is certainly there but he’s a child so we’ll be lenient)

Daryl hot

The walkers are great as usual. I love the burners. Really interesting! I’m kind of wondering if the “experiments” the people on the ship refer to relate to the burners? Maybe they’re making them like that idk.

I love the religious imagery. We have had cults and stuff in TWDU before but I don’t think we’ve had this Catholic vibe going on. I’m a sucker for anything nun related because I have a weird infatuation with them, so I’m all for it.

DARYL BATHTUB SCENE??? They put that in for the girls and the gays and we are LIVING for it

Daryl hot

Daryl is so reminiscent of early seasons TWD era with his witty lines and snark remarks. I feel like we don’t get to see this side of Daryl very often anymore, but now that he has his own show and is THE main character, we get to see those sides that have been neglected again. I also love how much he sort of scoffs at the nuns and their religion. Atheist Daryl we love to see it

It’s cool seeing people in France dealing with the same things our characters have dealt with since the beginning. It’s interesting to see these new parts of the world in this universe for sure

Daryl hot

I honestly just love thinking about how when Daryl gets home he is gonna have such a crazy ass story to tell everyone! It’s gonna be so cute to see him telling all the kids about how heroic he is and ugh yessss

Daryl deserves his own show. He deserves to be THE main character. People who said he can’t lead a show? Nah. Reconsider

I also love that Daryl MIGHT potentially save the world. Cool asf. And if anyone from the original series should save the world, I think it’s him.

Daryl hot

Negative Thoughts:

Okay. I have some very petty/subjective critiques. I realize a lot of you guys probably disagree with me but that’s okay! Don’t read my negative thoughts if you aren’t prepared to be annoyed with me lol. Once again, a lot of these are super petty/nitpicky

First thing that bothers me is that Daryl says he is from the Commonwealth. No. He is from Alexandria, thank you very much. Well, at least he should be. He should’ve been living at Alexandria imo but the finale didn’t really make it explicitly clear where he was living in that year time jump. Basically I just hate the Commonwealth because I have zero attachment to it and it’s just a stupid ass place that I wanna forget about

Daryl seeing Carol in his haze 🙄 … just annoys me solely because Carol annoys me. They could’ve just shown Judith because that would’ve made more sense to me. But don’t get me started, I don’t even want Carol in season 2. Anyway.

Laurent isn’t terrible but he’s kind of annoying in that “I’m so smart I know everything” way. Just very annoying smart kid at school who everyone hated vibes. Plus I just don’t think it’s realistic that he would be THAT smart just from being raised in a convent of nuns

I also fail to understand what they’re doing with Laurent. Is he just some kid that the nuns think is the messiah or is he ACTUALLY the messiah? Like are they gonna throw in a whole other supernatural religious element? Because Laurent conveniently knows Judith’s line from the finale “you deserve a happy ending too.” Right down to the letter. I find it cheesy as hell because I’m so tired of these blatant in your face parallels that are trying to be clever, which always involve children too like we get it children are basically the duck tape of TWDU. Don’t know what to do for this plot? Throw some kids in there!

Neither Positive nor Negative Thoughts:

I don’t trust the nuns. I think they’re gonna use Daryl to get what they want and they don’t really care about getting him home. Worse, I think it could be possible that Isabelle won’t let him get home. She already tried to keep him from using the radio. I’m not saying I hate her character or anything (I actually like her so far… as long as she stays friendly and not… overly friendly), I just think she’s way too invested in this “messiah” stuff to actually care about Daryl so I fear she will take advantage of him. We shall see.

Ok, those are pretty much all of my thoughts!

[y-rhywbeth2]

General attitude of the Dead Three towards their followers that I've observed in the Time of Troubles and sometimes other sources. Bhaal seems to like his followers the most; Myrkul would love you more if you were a zombie; and Bane:

Bhaal: Can be attentive to his followers, apparently. Bhaal loves his clique of murderous fanatics (or at least he loves their murders) and they may "personally warrant [his] attention", multiple times, if he's particularly in awe of their skill at murder. Seems to take it badly when people who aren't him kill his followers - and he's willing to resurrect his favourites if they die while in his favour. But that's hard to gauge if he takes it that badly because that "numbness", fear, then rage response seen in the novels was also in reaction to almost all of his followers getting massacred (although this being pre-3.5e, his power was not dependent on the amount of worshippers he had at this time, so it wasn't as big a deal, more of an inconvenience).

Myrkul: Seems to hate the living more than Bhaal does. He thinks you'd be much cooler if you were undead. Or - memorably - an horrific, mindless, body-stealing soul-eating abomination. Tendency to eat his follower's souls or inflict horrific withering curses on them as a show of "favour". He happily supports the dreams of his undead followers though! Still, he advises his living worshippers to take protective measures and has to look out for them, because otherwise he's rapidly going to have zero followers because he's insanely unlikable. Funny, but unlikable.

Bane: Plays favourites. Bane's interactions in the Time of Troubles were a little skewed, due to having mortal emotions at the time, but the fundamentals stay the same: Most of humanity is beneath his notice, but he does crave the attention of those few he values who may receive leniencies and such. He also refuses to acknowledge that he values them emotionally, and he will still treat them terribly and says there's still a good chance he'll leave them for dead if it's more convenient. Still, even as a god he made the decision to elevate Fzoul to demigodhood when he died instead of just tossing him aside, so some of that remains?

While this is more of an insight into the mortal who predates the God of Tyranny, imo, he has an interesting response to grief, progressing from shock to murdering people around him in a blind rage, to this:

"I will not grieve, the god decided coolly. Blackthorne was merely a human. A pawn. His loss is regrettable, but he can be replaced. Then Bane thought of his endless talks with Blackthorne. He remembered the strange emotions that coursed through him when he had realized that Blackthorne had saved him, and aided in his recovery. The Black Lord looked at his hands and noticed he was trembling. Then the God of Strife screamed a cry of grief, loud and long. All over Bane’s Dark Temple, people covered their ears and shivered at the sound of the Black Lord’s pain."

Then more murder time, so we can stop having disgusting emotions and channel it all into hate on the battlefield:

"A fire crackled in the eyes of the Black Lord and Fzoul stepped back from the angry god. Then Bane’s lips curled back in a frightful grimace. There was fire behind the God of Strife’s pointed teeth, too, as his eyes narrowed and he said, “Now.” "

[cartoonrival]

HEY YOU Hit me with some Julie Su propoganda cuz I'm mostly lukewarm on her character and don't know all that much about her.

OK OK ... well baseline info she's the daughter of dark legion general luger, and half sister of lien-da and kragok, who are twins and both high ranking legion soldiers. when their mother (merin-da) died and luger remarried, ld and kragok hated his new wife (julie-su's mother) (mari-su) so bad they orchestrated her death, info which was they kept on the DL for a long time until js eventually found out about it. memory situation, js is raised by other folks who actually love her and doesn't learn who her blood family is until later. she joins knuckles because she feels inexplicably drawn to him (soul touch) (echidna soulmates) so she defects from the legion to join the chaotix. the soul touch thing sucks and i hate it but this is how it goes. ill talk about my au version of her at the end lol bc things ive built on top of canon are part of the reason why shes one of my fave charas in the series lul

ANYWHO i honestly find it pretty frustrating when people talk about js as just being pink knuckles, shoehorned into the story to give knuckles an obligatory girlfriend, because it really demonstrates that they like. weren't paying a lick of attention to anything because she genuinely has a LOT of personality but since people just go in anticipating anything penders touched to suck they don't even bother to think about her for longer than half a second.

js fills a niche that, imo, could always use filling, especially with regards to girl characters, which is to say shes a well meaning asshole. shes incredibly blunt, she's pessimistic (immediately assumes knuckles must be dead when enerjak returns and they cant find him, tells knuckles not to search a fallen ship that his mother was on because shes probably dead and she doesnt think he'd want to see that). shes terrible at handling interpersonal conflict (knuckles confesses to her that he feels guilty and stressed over all the pressure put on him as guardian and she scolds him and says "this isn't just about you", which results in a minor shouting match when she really had zero intention of starting an argument), she's almost constantly beefing with vector (tbf its because hes sexist he refuses to see past her history as a member of the dark legion). these might suond like cons but i love characters like this LOL and they fit especially well in archie where people love to get mad at each other and make dumb mistakes and it just feels very genuine and interesting and endearing to me. shes rough and difficult but she's also DEEPLY loyal. she'd die for knuckles and the chaotix and the way she interacts with them always makes me soooo ........ im just gonna give some examples i can find.

(knuckles is on the phone with her)

^ this was the genuine conclusion of an argument they had and im obsessed with it because both of them suck with emotions so they both give the worlds strangest apology and know that the other means it and they move on. plus putting her arm in front of SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG while theyre confronting eggman even after watching him CHAOS BLAST, primarily because she feels like this is more her fight than his (its about knuckles).

theres def more and i could find them if i was more on top of archie but unfortunately im #narutopilled rn. BUT ANYWAYS. shes just a very fun character with a messy personality and fun interactions and she loves her buddies sm even tho she bickers with them. shes just very special. she fits well with knuckles in a way that makes their relationship actually feel plausible instead of just forcing him to have a girlfriend (tho ofc the writing is fumbled sometimes like. ITS ARCHIE. bffr. but thats the case with literally everything ever in archie so you take what you can and its amazing). also see below. BASED AS FUCKKKKKKK

and ill discuss my au briefly bc u r asking me my opinion on js and that does play a large role in how i feel abt her, but rly im just expanding on elements of her story that werent discussed as fully as i wouldve liked. her relationship with lien-da is obviously BAD in canon, but theres not a lot of time spent lingering on precisely how lien-da and kragok feel about julie-su as the product of their fathers second marriage to a woman they KILLED because they hated her so much. ive also given her much more internal strife over turning away from the legion, originally joining the chaotix planning to betray them from the inside then being slowly convinced to join them for real after realizing how much she'd been brainwashed by the legion and what its like to have people who truly love and care about you. her story as someone who is trying to find herself outside of her history as a child soldier is something that TOTALLY deserves to be expanded on and its a bit sad that it wasnt explored. but i mean really im not changing her actual PERSONALITY at all because as i discussed shes oozing with it.... im honestly never going to make the full comic i wanted to so at some point im just going to compile all the lore and concept art and stuff into one big post to share. but thats like a spoiler free taste.

she also has a gun. which is fucking awesome because not enough sonic characters have guns. people make shadow the guy with a gun but he hasnt been seen with one since shth. hello....

[codenamesazanka]

What do you want shiggy to see?

This is going to be hard to answer because I dislike Deku and find much of his saving of Shigaraki so far extremely unconvincing. You should also ask someone who likes Deku, because I cannot properly give you a good, unbiased answer. I am sure the memories I will talk about will be ones that move Shigaraki in the near-future canon, but I'm seeing them through very negative light and will call it bad writing. And I am right. But I'll tell you what I personally think.

The thing is, when I made that post about Shigaraki's memories, it's because Deku barely knows anything about Shigaraki, because the 'Villain' label means nothing except 'horrible person i need to defeat'; barely knows what happens in the shadows that creates villains, which is why I want him to see Shigaraki's memories and understand why Shigaraki is so angry and in pain. And from that, how he can stop Shigaraki and give him hope, saving him.

Meanwhile, Shigaraki already knows Deku is a hero who wants to save him, is a Good Guy, loves his friends and teachers, wishes to do good in the world - that's just being a hero. He just rejects it. Shigaraki already knows the Hero System and how it works, and he hates it.

What is in store for Shigaraki is to be convinced by Deku that he should stop, that the world shouldn't be destroyed, and that he should regain hope, let his heart be saved and released from all that hatred and pain. So the memories he should see would be moments where he can be reassured of Deku's sincerity and determination to improve things, and moments where Deku experiences despair - something Shigaraki can relate to! - but Deku makes the choice to keep the world going anyways.

In the series, in this long process of Deku trying to save Shigaraki, there are few good moments - Deku being extremely stubborn about saving Shigaraki despite Shigaraki's taunts and Nana giving up, Deku telling Shigaraki somewhere inside of him is still a person - but overall Deku's journey getting there so far, and all the things he's doing at the moment? Imo, pretty terrible effort.

Like, what would Shigaraki even see? Well, he could see how when Gran Torino says "killing is saving", or when Heroes are discussing the "Coffin In The Sky" plan, Deku is silent. Offers zero objections.

Deku may want to save Shigaraki, but isn't willing to say so, isn't willing to speak up against others. He accepts Gran's cape, he sits and listens and goes along with the plan (that in Chapter 402 Shigaraki would end up saying he dislikes, "those jerks that hurt me over and over again").

Now, this might not seem like a big deal - you can say, Deku's just trying not to start a screaming match, he has to go along with what the adults says anyways, it's actions that matters more than words since Deku's still trying to save Shigaraki, isn't he?

But Shigaraki's childhood was full of this type of thing: his mom and grandparents trying to keep the peace, never speaking up for him against Kotarou even when Tenko isn't there, trying to comfort him with hugs and treats when out of sight of Kotarou to show that they actually do care... but never enough actually fight for him, even if it meant shaking the stability of the household.

After fighting Shigaraki to save him will come the need to fight for Shigaraki, against the rest of the Heroes and government and society. If Deku can't do that while he's got it in his mind to save Shigaraki, it doesn't ensure confidence.

Now it would be cool if Shigaraki sees this and calls it out! Force Deku to admit he hasn't been trying his best, but will do better. I don't expect it though.

Memories of Deku's accomplishments aren't actually much better. Deku has indeed saved someone who hates him and hates Heroes - that's Kouta, the five-year-old. Deku has saved Eri, the visibly sad and abused innocent six-year-old. So he's got a track record of saving Sad Children, which explains why he wants to save The Crying Child inside of Shigaraki, and that's a genuine thing Shigaraki can believe in... but what about the adults? The much more dangerous, jaded, have-gotten-their-hands-bloody Villains?

Shigaraki already thinks Gentle and Nagant are a "flip-flopping screw-ups." Deku's second encounter with Muscular has him asking Muscular like five questions, before giving up on him. So far Muscular and Shigaraki haven't been all that different in their taunting of Deku. There's also Overhaul that Deku meets again, and Deku is also uninterested in helping Overhaul who's worried for someone important to him until Overhaul expresses remorse. That's fair—except so far Shigaraki has also not expressed remorse.

The only difference between Shigaraki and these two villains is that Deku knows for sure there's sadness for Shigaraki due to the psychic bond, while he can't know that for Muscular or Overhaul, so he didn't pry deeper or go the extra mile for them. Shigaraki might not care about these two, but Shigaraki also hates hypocrisy. It's why he couldn't stand Stain and tore Overhaul's arms off and mocked ReDestro for staying up in a tower.

There is Aoyama. The scene where Deku says "Doing wrong doesn't make you a Villain for the rest of your life!" is good. That is a memory that Shigaraki can see and consider. It is made, imo, weaker when Deku gave conditions - that Aoyama hated and regretted working for All For One, that Nagant didn't 'sell her soul'. Because what if Shigaraki eventually did come to willingly work for AFO, and was even grateful to him, as he has explicitly said in the text? You can argue all you want about AFO manipulating Shigaraki - which Shigaraki himself acknowledges - but if there ever was a moment where Shigaraki enthusiastically participated in a crime, would Deku still stand by what he says about not being a Villain for life?

Again, it would be cool if Shigaraki sees this and ask Deku about it! Idk if that would happen though.

I think if we go back to memories from when and before the series begin, though, that's where I think we can find memories that Shigaraki can see and be swayed by.

Deku being a bullied quirkless child is a big one. What I want is Shigaraki seeing those things and adding it to his long list of 'everything i've witness in this world tells me it's shit' and being mean to Deku about it, because then this is something Deku can refute using his own experiences of injustice, alienation, and despair. This is something Deku can point to and say, 'Yeah, the world can suck, but don't give up.' Shigaraki finds the world not worth keeping around because he thinks it's rotten and there's no fixing it. Deku has seen part of this rot, but still thinks the world is worth defending. They should discuss that.

Related, that means the moment where Deku saves Bakugou who earlier that day told him to kill himself is also a good memory. Convincing argument that awful, angry brats can change, and is worth saving so they can stick around to change.

I am despite everything still a sap so Deku's memories of heartfelt moments with All Might would be good. This can make Shigaraki even more bitter and resentful towards All Might, but might show him that All Might is just a flawed human who tried and failed, something I think Shigaraki knows but refuses to forgive. Seeing it might nudge something though? Plus, the deep affection and loyalty between Deku and All Might - as well as between Deku and his friends - is something Shigaraki can relate to, with his League.

I'm likely missing lots of moments. But these are the ones that come to mind.

Thanks for the ask anon! Sorry.

[zipstidbits]

hi zip! 👋 i'm just really curious about how you got into astrophysics 👀 and what careers interest you in that field if you don't mind sharing ☺️ i just think it's so cool, but like, in the way of someone who knows absolutely nothing about astrophysics except that it's probably really hard and also rockets 😛🚀 have a lovely day! 💞

hi zesty!!!!! thanks so much for asking, i don't mind sharing at all :))))

how i got into astrophysics:

both my parents are second-generation americans so education/college was always The Big Goal growing up. this translated to my parents really emphasizing math and science skills and i got really interested in science this way. (the post-cold war american cultural emphasis on science as a whole probably contributed to this as well, lmao.)

i ended up momentarily ditching the science dream because i started struggling with math in middle school. i can do it, but my adhd means i struggle to hold numbers in my head (do mental math) and sometimes i can be slow/need to write things out more than others/make silly mistakes/and then get bogged down by imposter syndrome. this was like 10+ years ago so i had zero diagnoses and minimal support so i hopped onto the anti-math train.

i never stopped liking science though. i want to know everything and imo, science contains the answers to everything and is how we'll learn all that is unknown right now. once i hit high school and science class started having a shit ton more math i started to view math differently. it became the whole 'the enemy (math) of my enemy (the unknown) is my friend' thing. thankfully, math, when applied to physics concepts, makes more sense than when in a pure math class, so this became a very doable arrangement.

i also started consuming a lot more pop-science/science in the news around this time. neil degrasse tyson, the one astrophysics class i took in high school, and my dad who played a lot of star trek and pbs space videos on youtube to bond with me opened my mind to the most beautiful thing ever (space). i just think it's the coolest thing ever and the unknowns are so cool and i want to know what's going on up there so bad!!!!

this (and some spite*) led me to apply to college for a BS in physics. doing just physics and not astrophysics was sort of a safety net because i thought i'd really like particle physics too but it turns out quantum mechanics is evil and fucked up so i chose to stick with astrophysics as my concentration, lmao.

*i felt like a lot of my peers in high school assumed i couldn't do this because i wasn't naturally good at math/physics and i took a little more time and effort (i spent a lot of early mornings and afternoons in help sessions, lmao) and a part of me wanted to prove them wrong.

then, this past fall/winter, i applied for a bunch of astrophysics phd programs because i've thankfully got a BS degree and i've made my mind up on what i want to do in life (study/learn about space). i got rejected from 7 out of the 8 schools i applied to which was terrible in the moment but great now because i didn't really have to choose what program to accept, lmaoooooooooooo.

careers that interest me:

i very much enjoy teaching (i was a teaching assistant this year) and i would really like to continue it. i could probably do that in most research jobs by mentoring others in a lab/research setting but also being a professor sounds really cool and appealing to me since i could do research and traditional teaching, lmao.

i'm kind of willing to give most astrophysics research jobs a try, i think? the only line i'd really draw is i don't want to work anywhere near the american military-industrial complex for moral reasons

thank you again for asking zesty!!!! sorry for rambling so much and i hope you have a lovely day as well!!! <33333

[pawznacho]

Here are my personal opinions about the TGCF donghua S2 character designs!! (I don't have anything else to do with my life)

So, I've seen a lot of people hate on the new designs, especially on Qi Rong and Goushi Fang Xin's. I mean, they surprised me too, but I wouldn't necessarily say they are bad.

For Fang Xin (Xie Lian), his design and colors and stunning, it's just the mask that looked pretty weird to me, but I like how it's butterfly shaped. He's not too recognizable, so it'll do it.

For Qi Rong, yes, the colorful stripes, the purple lipstick, the little accesories, the neon green eyeliner are all absolutely needed and in character. Like, let's think about it, Qi Rong is probably one of the most chaotic and weird MXTX characters we could've met. The manhua version is a masterpiece, but the donghua is really...him. He would always comment on anybody and we also know that he is a born royalty, yet nobody said he's fancy or elegant. I'm pretty sure he'd have a terrible taste in outfits. While Xie Lian is elegant, simple and pretty restrained when it comes to outfits, our guy Qi Rong would have messy, greasy hair, unmatched clothes and jewellery, and absolutely zero sense in styling. He's technically an unintentionally funny, weird and stupid witch sitting in his own little cave with his "cheap son".

Now, let's take a look at Hua Cheng and Shi Qingxuan. Wake up, they are majestic!!

I adored Hua Cheng in his San Lang form. Our little guy looked absolutely adorable yet still like a grumpy teenage boy in love. His original form was also shown at the very end of S1, but honestly, his new design looks so much better. His hair got fluffier, and his features prettier. Also, I love how the edge of his eyepatch became more thin, it simply look cooler now!

Shu Qingxuan, my beloved, I literally love the whole design. I'm pretty sad the female version didn't get her pretty blue eyes, but she still looks as adorable as always. And the male version, it's perfect. He looks elegant, yet kind and adorable, like a true king/queen. Such a bestie material!!

Talking about Shi Qingxuan, Ming Yi is also just so so pretty. Altough I love the "dark 'n edgy Earth Master" vibe he gives off in the manhua, the dunghua version is (imo) better, we are talking about a god's apperance, after all. He's colorful, yet not too vibrant, which is pretty nice, most of the gods we can see there tend to dress colorfully in their own ways (it also makes it more visible that these people all come from different places, having their own traditional stuff).

And for Lan Qianqiu, he instantly became a Fengqing's kid in my eyes. For sure, this is not how I imagined him, I've got used to the dark hair and red accesories, but he looks really good, they did a great job with his design. No matter what, he'll always be a grumpy orange cat!

What do you think? 🦋