#and i'm coherent again

[kanerallels]

Okay my crisis is over we're good now

[egophiliac]

buckle up lads we're going BACK INTO THE BOOK

[dittydipity]

going INSANE. what is he thinking. why did he say this. why does he do all of this. i am thinking so hard.

we know he's seeking arceus to recreate the world bc in his eyes the world is cruel and unjust and it needs to be destroyed and remade. he's set himself on a mission to create the better reality he's envisioned for his whole life.

but everything else he does. the way he spends his time on pasio making people smile with togepi. even if he justifies it as something purely transactional to get more customers, we know he doesn't really take his merchant job seriously. the way he loves his pokemon so much that they will pop out of their pokeball to excitedly tell whoever will listen how much they love volo back. him trying to capture these moments of happiness tangibly because they never last long and can be wiped away any second.

he still hangs onto hope so much despite what's implied to have happened to him. in spite of all the anger and bitterness that's festered in him, he doesn't really want to destroy everything as he says.

it all started with a wish for the world to be a better place, for the good in the world to outweigh all the cruelty. he's still trying to spread what happiness he can.

but at the same time his past drags behind him and reminds him that he can't afford to trust in the goodness of the world.

that self-assigned mission to usurp arceus's power and rewrite everything.. to him, it's his duty now. he has to do it for himself and, as he rationalizes to himself, for the world.

so he ignores the flaws and holes he finds in his own reasoning. he can't help but seek out the brightness and happiness and goodness that does exist in the world, yet he has to dismiss it to justify his goals.

... all this to try and explain to myself why volo's asking all these questions and making all these comments that seem to go against what we'd expect given his ulterior motive and plans. and it's like he's asking the few friends he has to remember him as the one who seeks joy, even when he does the worst to fulfill his dreams

[eyes-of-nine]

tfw when minibosses take you an average of like 8 attempts minimum but then you somehow manage to defeat your fav boss in the entire game on your first try :v

[saints-who-never-existed]

So we all know that Blanky is cool and badass as fuck. That goes without saying. There's a sense, right from the get-go really, that he pretty much always knows what to do in any given situation.

Blanky knows when humour will lift a mood, and when seriousness is required. He knows when to give grace and kindness, and when to dole out much-needed tough-love.

I think it always worth repeating, though, that none of that would be possible without an extremely high degree of empathy and emotional intelligence. To me, that's Blanky's real greatest strength. It's the root of what makes him so cool and badass as fuck so I want to ramble more about some examples of it.

-

In Episode Two, for instance, we have his nighttime conversation with Crozier where Blanky matches the captain's energy beat for beat.

He laughs with him first about the erstwhile reindeer and while he remains optimistic throughout the rest of the scene, he's also honest, both acknowledging Crozier's various fears and drilling down to the root of them immediately - "Aye. You trusted Ross and you trusted Parry."

When Crozier remarks on his perceptiveness, Blanky's incredibly tactful and kind too - a casual "No, it's just that I know you." when in reality Crozier's been doing a horseshit job of concealing his thoughts and they're visible from fuckin' space.

-

In the following episode, I think the response Blanky gives to Little's fearful teatime diatribe is great.

In contrast to Crozier's vague and even condescending reply which only seems to rile him up further, Blanky shuts Little down clearly and firmly but without being unkind. I think a simple, factual response was the right tactic for the lawful-good sort of guy Little is.

I think his accurate judgement of Little's character is further confirmed later in the episode vis a vis the clandestine rescue party. He's right when he says "Lieutenant Little will never agree to it."

-

Another example that's very special to me personally is in Episode Five and it's not Blanky delivering his warning after Crozier punches Fitzjames, or even when he lightens the mood with jokes and toasts before having his own fuckin' leg sawn off (although I could talk about those forever).

It's actually a wee almost throwaway line Blanky utters to McDonald right before he heads up on deck:

"He's ill with it now..."

Crozier's behaved abhorrently to everyone around him up until that point. He's been vicious and manipulative, cruel and thoughtless. Threatening to throw Silna out into the elements and actually following through with Blanky, ordering him out into weather he knows full well is so cold that it literally just killed a man.

It would be so easy for Blanky to decide that that was final straw, that he was done with Crozier's bullshit. But no! Even then, even then, Blanky seems to be able to take a step back to some degree. To recognise Crozier's alcoholism for what it is - a debilitating illness and not some great moral failing.

It used to confuse me to some degree why Blanky would greet Crozier so warmly at Carnivale (other than the fact that the absolute mad-lad is drunk off his ass). Like, that's the man who made the decision that lead to you nearly dying and losing a limb - how can you just hug him as if none of that happened? But the more I thought about that earlier line, the more clearly it spoke of the incredible depth of understanding and feeling Blanky has for Crozier and the more beautiful that relationship became. He can forgive him so quickly because he can see so clearly the true person under the difficult surface.

-

We talk so much about Blanky remaining outside of the horror story the rest of the characters come to inhabit, refusing to dignify it with his presence. And, again, I just think an important part of the reason he's able to do so is that he sees the world around him and the people within in it for exactly what it is and for exactly who they are. It's just a lot harder to jump-scare a man who sees the mask you're wearing from a mile away, and understands precisely why you've donned it.

[icantdothistodaybruh]

Definitely not me finding random nightgown on pinterest and making a whole au just because of it haha nooo why would you think that?

Anyway, please listen to "I Wanted to Leave" by Syml while looking at this, it really adds a lot to the experience and in this essay I will-

[vaguely-concerned]

powerful mental image of lucanis expounding passionately about any given one of his limited but extremely deep areas of interest (the wyvern/knives/coffee/cooking/murder continuum of lucanis dellamorte special interests if you will) while rye lounges around and Beholds him with palpable twink boutta pounce energy

[gideonisms]

it's easy to forget due to the amount of fluff produced as a result that the original tma was that good of a horror story you are like huh did we all have a collective hallucination in 2020. but no it was just genuinely good.

[vargdottern]

starting an episode off with crowley going absolutely crazy over not being able to find aziraphale (especially after basically telling him that he doesn't need him) is one hell of a choice

ALSO THE CHOICE OF MUSIC WOW

[relicsongmel]

Something I've always found fascinating about Raymond Shields is that despite seemingly having altruistic reasons for being a defense attorney, his reasons for trying to convince Miles to be one are anything but.

It seems understandable enough on the surface. After Ray comes around and agrees to work with Miles in The Imprisoned Turnabout, he sees remnants of Gregory shining through him despite von Karma's influence. Whether or not he recognizes that Miles' decision to become a prosecutor wasn't just born from that alone—that it was in tandem with wanting to distance himself from anything that reminded him of his father to alleviate the burden on his heart—is up for debate, but regardless: he acknowledges Miles as Gregory's son through and through and wants to capitalize on his dedication for pursuing justice in a way that he knows would make his father proud. He wants to let Miles in on the life he was robbed of at 9 years old—the life he once dreamed of living, where he follows in the footsteps of his father by giving everything he has to save people, by fighting like hell for the vulnerable and the condemned.

That said, as much as Ray dresses up his proposition by making it out to be as if he's looking out for Miles' best interests (and the best interests of society, even)...his motives for trying to get Miles to switch sides are almost entirely selfish. Ray's efforts (and most of his actions in general, really) are ultimately a product of his desperate attempt to cling on to anything related to Gregory out of an inability to move on from his death. Wearing his hat and coat, leaving the name of his office unchanged...and now, requesting that his son literally change jobs just because he can't bear the weight of his own loneliness anymore. Because he can't bear to think that the damage done by DL-6 is irreversible and Miles has moved on while he has stagnated for the past 17 years. Because he has an idealized vision of what he thinks Gregory would want and fails to realize that his son's occupation wouldn't matter to him as long as it brings him happiness and fulfillment. In his mind, letting Miles go means accepting the circumstances that brought him where he is and allowing both of them to move on. And that terrifies him.

It's even more deceitful when you realize that Ray's pitch comes at a very opportune time for Miles given his circumstances at that point: that is, he's under threat of investigation for prosecutorial misconduct and at risk of being stripped of his badge. Ray might fake incompetence, but he's not stupid—and he takes full advantage of Justine's warnings to try to sway Miles when he's in a more vulnerable position in terms of his job. Which is...pretty fucked up, to put it lightly. Despite having a better idea of where he came from compared to most people, through this Ray shows a lack of understanding of who Miles truly is and a lack of respect for what he's come to value, even if his path toward obtaining those values had some bumps along the road. But he's so blinded by his grief that he doesn't even stop to consider how much he's really asking of him, or what Miles is really searching for.

Ray was moved by Gregory. He values saving people. Defending the weak is an undeniably noble endeavor. But to ask that of someone else without consideration for their best interests is decidedly less so.

For all his occupation requires a certain selflessness, Raymond Shields is far more selfish than he lets on. And I for one find that contradiction fascinating to unpack.

[sicklyworm]

My head is too full of sickness induced brain fog to say anything smart rn so...

Some interesting quotes from the forth book extras (English translation pages 216-217):

"At the beginning, it was purely to vent, and he wrote whatever and however he wanted. Though the stories were unbearably shitty, and even struggled to get monetized, he did manage to get good reviews from a niche crowd."

"The more he wrote, the more of a shut-in he became, and the more of a shut-in he became, the more he wrote. As a classic worthless otaku, the people with whom he had the best relationships and got along with most were all on the internet, oceans and seas apart. He basically didn’t have any friends like Mobei-Jun, and it would likely be very hard to find any again in the future.

Wait.

Mobei-Jun? A friend?

Since when had he started seeing Mobei-Jun as a “friend”?!"

Points of interest:

He started canonically started out as a emotional outlit for his struggles in life but then capitalism came knocking on historic and his creative outlet turned into what I would consider worse then a nine to five.

As he has no work-life balance whatsoever in ether life.

His life style became objectively less healthy as he became a shut in inorder to write enough PIDW to pay for his living expenses. It seems on some level he very much dislikes being a shut-in considering his worthless otaku comment but, yk, gotta do what you gotta do.

He, canonically, had close online friends. Wich is not only really endearing and relatable to a lot of readers but also amazing fanfiction material.

Discord AU on my dashboard due yesterday. Please and thank you.

Also his panicking about even thinking about MBJ as a.... Friend. Is silly and goofy and I love him.

So, conclusion,

I'm very sleepy

and very ill

and I very much need to put SQH I a blender with a bunch of rocks.

[zukosdualdao]

Just some more thoughts I wanted to chat with you about. I am getting some of these points from anti-Zuko spaces, admittedly, in an attempt to think about things, but only the ones that I think are interesting questions to explore regardless.

The first thing I think is interesting is the idea that part of why Zuko stole the ostrich-horses from Song is not just because it was convenient, but specifically because he resented the vulnerability, and it was a way for him to lash out. I think that's interesting and it fits with some of the other stuff I've seen you saying. It was especially cruel given Song's mother helped Iroh, but nonetheless, I think that makes sense.

Second one isn't actually directly from any anti-Zuko blog I don't think, but I've seen people in your circles (I can't remember if you said this) say that Azula brought Zuko back in honor purely as a way to pawn off the blame on him potentially, but I... don't feel like that really fits? Like, obviously she was also being manipulative a lot, by not telling him she told Ozai he killed the Avatar, but if she really wanted Zuko out of the way, she didn't need to bring him in at all? She could have probably won by herself (or at least, I find it hard to believe she would think she would need Zuko), and she certainly didn't need to give him credit for killing the Avatar– she could have just said that she got in a deadly blow but the Avatar has a waterbending healer, if she knew that as I believe Giancarlo Volpe said.

Fundamentally, I don't see a reason for her to bring Zuko back, especially in such a way that he would return to the role of crown prince, unless she genuinely also wanted to have him back. Sure, her love might be selfish, and she may have also wanted someone for Ozai to blame for things, but it strikes me as odd to claim that there was no positive feeling towards Zuko, especially given The Beach, which I just rewatched for this ask. For example, we see her come get Zuko from their old house, and then try and help Zuko figure out who he's angry at, which I do think was genuinely her being helpful, given Mai and Ty Lee were also doing it.

To be clear, she obviously also loves making fun of, tormenting, putting down, and generally, abusing Zuko, and it's very possible that was part of her motivation for bringing him back, but it seems like it's not just that.

Third, and this one you might agree on, Zuko seems to genuinely not have much positive feeling associated with Azula? Like maybe I'm forgetting something, but I can't think of a single time Zuko felt positively about Azula. The closest three times I can think of are when he suggested to Iroh that he should try and get along with Azula (which sounded kind of rote, but maybe he also believed it), when Azula was falling and he said she's not going to make it, sounded shocked and maybe a tad worried, then had a very slightly barely soft expression for a single frame when she did, and finally after her breakdown. I think that does fit in with the idea he can only feel compassion for Azula when she's in a vulnerable position, which I think I've seen you reblog before and I agree with? (And of course, this is precisely what makes it possible to help with Azula post-war, because he's seen her in that vulnerable position and she continues to be in a relatively vulnerable position).

Anyways, that one seems doubly interesting because he also doesn't seem to have any good memories of Azula when she was younger, either? He has a flashback of Ozai with his hand on young Zuko's back, of Lu Ten and Iroh, of Ursa of course, but there's never a time when he has a flashback to Azula at all.

Anyways, these are just some things I was thinking about and I was wondering if you'd be interested in going some of them, and what you feel about the positive feelings in the Fire Sibling relationship more generally. Are there signs of care from Zuko to Azula that I've missed?

Putting most of this under a cut, lol, maybe one day I'll be able to talk about things with any sort of concision but no one should hold their breath on that tbh

Oh, I 100% agree with the point regarding Zuko and the ostrich horse he stole. I don't even really see that as an anti-Zuko take and rather, just like. What happened, because it was part of his journey, lol.

(Aside: which is I guess what bothers me about many anti-Zuko spaces? Which is not to say you're doing or saying this, I know you're not, just in general. I'm perfectly willing to criticize the characters I like and talk about their faults and poor choices, of which Zuko has many. The issue is that so many treat those things as a condemnation of Zuko's character on the whole or his redemption journey, but, like... the narrative treats those things like they're wrong. Iroh may agree to it, but he's not happy about taking the ostrich horse and notes it as being unkind, especially, as you note, given the kindness Song and her family just showed them. For a redemption arc to work, the character has to have something to redeem himself FROM, so I"m like... yeah... he sure did do that... and then he grew and changed, lol. They don't go back to every specific instance and be like, "Yup, that was wrong" because it wouldn't be realistic and wouldn't move the story forward. When he does get confronted with the wrong things he did, it's from the Gaang, because that's what's most relevant to the larger story being told, and he takes accountability and atones.)

I think something important to remember that Zuko's perspective on the war and the Fire Nation cannot be disentangled from Zuko's perspective on Ozai as the father who abused him. Because Ozai's power-hungry and imperialist worldview, whether Zuko would put it in these terms, was something he was challenging when he defended the division being sacrificed, and even in refusing to fight Ozai back. Which relates to this episode because Zuko, for the first real time, is considering the perspective of the people the Fire Nation, in their war efforts, have othered and harmed. When Song is showing him the scar on her leg, he looks horrified - the war effort is not just soldiers battling out on even footing, but families getting displaced from their homes and torn apart, civilians getting burned, too. Zuko, up to now, has been willfully ignoring what some part of him knows is wrong, but when confronted with Song's suffering, real and right in front of him, he is forced to look at that more deeply. I know a lot of people might say "Okay, but then, if he knows it's wrong at this point, why doesn't he change right here and now?" But that's what I love about Zuko's character arc. It's not clear or linear are simple because people aren't that way, generally. Yes, in this moment, Zuko is confronted with and aware of at least some of the atrocities the Fire Nation has committed. But in that same scene, he's also confronted with Song noting that he is a victim of the Fire Nation, too. (Which he is, albeit not in the exact same way. But there are parallels - not only were he and Song both burned, but they were both forced out of their homes.) Zuko can't fully acknowledge or comes to term with the Fire Nation being on wrong side of the war without also acknowledging that not only is Ozai abusive and doesn't want him back, but that he's wrong for that. Zuko isn't ready to accept any of that, so instead of taking this moment of vulnerability as a chance to grow, he doubles down and reasserts himself as what he thinks, based on Ozai's standards, he should be - someone who's cruel and take things like they're owed to him.

I do think we disagree on the second point pretty heavily, which is fine, but to offer my perspective:

I disagree with the notion that Azula wouldn't think she may need Zuko to win. Azula is very skilled and can be very arrogant about and assured of her own skills, that much is true. But she also often prefers not to fight alone. I remember reading an interview (I would have to dig around for it) where one of the ATLA creators said that she surrounds herself with people like Mai and Ty Lee because she understands they have skills she doesn't. I tend to see her as someone who is very distinctly aware of what advantages she has and very intentionally fills those gaps.

Zuko is the wild card in "The Crossroads of Destiny." He is the only person, by the point of the final battle, who no one (I think, for a moment, even himself) knows exactly what he'll do or which side he'll fight for. Iroh and Azula both make their bids for him - Iroh tries to appeal to his sense of morality and sense of self. Azula tries to appeal to things she knows he wants - his honor and the love of their father back, yes, but also to be genuinely needed and respected by his family in general, including her. And while what she says here is couched in manipulation, often, what's so dangerous about manipulation is that there is or can be an element of truth to it, but it's twisted to fit the manipulator's agenda. She tells him that she needs him to win the fight, and I think that part, she genuinely means.

I don't think she would believe she needed Zuko to win a fight in most or every circumstance. This fight is different. She has faced off against the Gaang-Zuko-Iroh when they very, very briefly joined forces against her in "The Chase." The only reason she got out of that is because she feigned surrender, and, using their moment of surprise/distraction, targeted Iroh. That will not work twice. I think she is incredibly aware that this group of people at least holds the capacity to genuinely pose a threat to her. In fact, she is notably growing wary and arguably losing, with Aang and Katara facing off against her together, before Zuko intercedes. She's also very explicitly losing when she and Katara are facing off and Katara's got her trapped with her water-tentacles, and again, it's Zuko who cuts that off and saves Azula there. So not only do I think she was very intentionally encouraging Zuko to join her to fight because she needed him, I think she was pretty smart to do so. (Not morally good or justified, of course, but strategically competent.)

Of course, people can have more than one reason for doing something. I would say most people usually do. I don't think that Azula MINDED that the end result would be that Zuko came back, because (this is something I will delve into more below), having him around, I think, kind of boosts her ego. It's possible that she also has some degree of unhealthy but genuine affection for him - after all, people are complicated, and while Azula is abusive toward Zuko, it's possible to abuse someone and still love or be convinced you love them. That doesn't make it healthy or the abuse okay, of course, but my point is that I do agree with the general notion that Azula, while a villain in the narrative and abusive on a personal level, is not born evil nor 100% devoid of any good qualities. But I think we would also be remiss to act like it's not true that, a lot of the time, the reason Azula seems to enjoy having Zuko around, it's because she can demean him, like when she cornered into playing with them so she could embarass him as children. Or when she quite obviously delights in calling him paranoid and making him squirm while he confronts her about the lie she told that he killed the avatar.

Zuko being around gives her someone to be better than, given her status as Ozai's golden child and Zuko's as the scapegoat. (But again, more on that in a minute.) Any affection she does have for him is unfortunately deeply entangled with that aspect of their relationship as well.

I don't know if you've read that interview with Volpe in full, but I made an addition to this post a while ago that details the quote about this. Volpe makes it pretty explicit in the interview that as soon as Azula saw Katara sweep in, it was her explicit intention to lie about Zuko killing Aang so that he'd be the one to take the fall if/when it came to light that he was alive. One could argue about how well that was executed in-show (I would argue well, but to each their own), but it was the authorial intent. Authorial intent doesn't count for everything, of course, but in such a series-defining moment as this, I think it should count for a fair amount.

(*Note that I don't know where to fit but I think is relevant - on the Zuko coming back and being crown prince front - I agree that it seems somewhat weird that Azula's willing to have him back, given that. But I did also read a post a while back (I can't find it; I'll try to see if I can dig it up at some point) talking about how Zuko's status as the crown prince, set to take over as Fire Lord one day, is... somewhat murky. Yes, he returns and is immediately hailed as a hero because of Azula's lie - but he's also often aimless and unsure of his real role in the Fire Nation at this point. He's frustrated with being sent off on a 'forced vacation' in "The Beach", he's not even sure whether he's allowed in the war meeting from "Nightmares and Daydreams". (And I read a lot of deliberate manipulation on Ozai (and Azula's) part in that. As mentioned in that last post, Zuko spends a lot of time in the series talking about his crown - but I'm not sure he spent a lot of time thinking about what it would mean to get it back. By the end of the series, Ozai is clearly drunk on power and trying to make himself the most powerful person in the world, basically, handing off the hollow title of Fire Lord to Azula. In truth, I don't think he ever wanted or expected either of his children to succeed him; he only saw them as extensions of himself. When Zuko is back, yes, he's being treated like he's a hero and more trusted/respected, but I'm not entirely convinced it would have lasted very long, had he not left. This next part is somewhat based on conjecture/headcanon, but I don't think it's entirely unreasonable to think that Azula doesn't think bringing Zuko back will mean, in Ozai's eyes, he is still next in line to become Fire Lord. Which I actually think she's right about. In her eyes, Zuko has always been the scapegoat who can't do anything right, and it won't take long before that's true again. But I also think that, while Azula has a pretty good read on how Ozai sees Zuko, part of her tragedy is that she does not have as good of a read on how Ozai sees her - he might on the surface treat her more respectfully or with my trust, but at the end of the day, he sees her as a weapon in service of his own ego and power. Knowing that, it's not difficult for me to imagine Azula might have thought she could eventually work things in her favor so she would be Fire Lord - she does, after all, have a pretty good example in Ozai of him doing just that. When Ozai makes her 'Fire Lord' in the finale, I do read some surprise there, but it doesn't seem to me like surprise that he would do such a thing - she deems that it "seems appropriate". I think the surprise is because the timing makes it pretty clear what a hollow gesture it is, and for the first time, she's being confronted with how Ozai truly sees her, and has truly used her.)

The last point is difficult to discuss because Azula and Zuko have a very complicated relationship because of Ozai's abuse of them both, and because his treatment of Azula encourages her to participate in Zuko's abuse as well. (Something pretty relevant to the second point above.)

I talked about this briefly before, but to reassert it: I see the way Ozai treats Azula and Zuko as a pretty clear demonstration of the idea of an abuser treating their children a 'golden child' and 'a scapegoat', respectively. (I have complicated feelings about the origins of these terms which I won't get into now, but regardless, they are pretty commonly recognized roles family structures can fall into that character dynamics and tropes often parallel.) Azula, on the surface, is praised and seemingly treated with more respect or trust, but there is a lot of pressure that no one can truly live up to placed on her, Ozai sees her skill as an extension of himself and in the context of how they can serve him (see him having her demonstrate for Azulon in the flashbacks of "Zuko Alone"), and Zuko is always there as an implicit threat of how she COULD be treated. ("You can't do this! You can't treat me like Zuko!") Zuko, by contrast, is most often treated like everything he does is wrong, and even when he's trying to do what he thinks Ozai wants, he's still a failure. (He's notably displeased by Zuko, in the same flashback sequence, trying to demonstrate his own skill even before it goes wrong, because the expectation is that Zuko will fail before he ever even tries.)

I know this is just like, defining terms, but I genuinely think it's important context to consider when talking about Zuko and Azula's relationship. The tragedy of Zuko and Azula is that they should be able to have a good relationship, but Ozai's abuse has ensured that they don't.

So, yes, I would say that Zuko seemingly has few positive feelings about Azula. Because there has been very little to be positive about. What he does displays a desire that things were different. While Azula is lying about wanting Zuko back home, she is obviously there as an extension of Ozai, but it's her telling this lie, her he's choosing, in this moment, to believe. Because he wants to be able to trust what she's saying and that their family, as a unit, including her, wants him back. In the moment you mentioned where he says he should be trying to get along with her, I think that is another acknowledgment that he wishes things were different because he would like to just get along with her. But she has proven herself dangerous, having just attacked Iroh, and Iroh rightly points out that he doesn't have to simply get along with her, because she is not willing to make the same effort. And yes, a lot of the moments of compassion he seems to feel for her are in moments of vulnerability, because in moments where she's in power, she's often using that power against him, to target him.

Azula does have moments where it may seem she has more positive feelings about Zuko's presence, but as I said before, it's hard to disentangle that from the broader context of their dynamic. I do think the moment in "The Beach" is one of her more genuine moments of care for Zuko, because she sees that he's sad and does something to show there's more to Azula than just cruelty, manipulation, etc. But it's also notable that Zuko is sad because he's finally starting to acknowledge that the way their family is isn't right or healthy, that he's not happy being back in the Fire Nation. Turning away from that is what Zuko's BEEN doing most of the series. He NEEDS to face that if he’s going to grow. Azula trying to get him to turn away from it in the moment isn't entirely healthy, even though that's not something I think she herself recognizes. I'm less inclined to think she was being caring when she asks him who he's angry at, because she immediately demeans him for the answer.

Which is sort of the problem with a lot of the evidence people will sometimes pull to show Azula caring about Zuko - they usually come from moments where either she's manipulating or straight up lying to Zuko or where she is insulting him. It's fine and in fact important to acknowledge that she has more sympathetic moments and is not this completely evil person with no capacity for love or affection (one of the show's central themes is, after all, to suggest that no one is born evil), but I often feel that, when people are making this argument, they are using it an attempt to justify the abuse Azula has committed against him. To say that, because she cares about him, it's okay. And I've seen people go further than that and suggest he's a bad brother for not putting up with her abuse. And I don't agree with either of those stances.

[silverraes]

Okay but may I just say that I LOVE what Pit Babe is doing rn. It is rare to see a show have the balls to just completely neglect both of the main characters for an episode or two straight only to flesh out the side characters and Pit Babe is doing the side characters so well.

Babe and Charlie were barely even there this episode but I also didn't miss them bc I was just so invested in whatever Kenta had going on. I was absolutely overjoyed at the handful of scenes where we see Kim just being a part of the X-Hunter family. I am ecstatic every time North and Sonic are literally just on screen, chilling in Alan's house like they actually live there. I was in shambles about Pete and Kenta because of one single flashback scene. Hell, I even cared about Way genuinely being sorry for all the bullshit he pulled.

This isn't just a show about racing or omegaverse or human trafficking rings or even the main couple's love story, it's a show about all of the characters and their stories and their personal growth and their relationships with each other, both romantic and platonic, and I am so here for it.

[noicevibes]

𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐝𝐬, 𝐢 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐞 & 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐞

sfw, the boy's definitely an over-thinker. not beta-ed oops.

Dan Heng's starting to think you have a staring problem.

This is... a new discovery of his, or, at the very least, a new habit of yours. Who knows how long it's been going on? Certainly, not him. But now that he just so happened to catch you looking his way, a little more focused, a little more intensely, he's... a little self-conscious.

For one, why him? Surely, there isn't anything on his face, not for any of the time he'd caught you. You or one of the others would have mentioned it, anyhow, especially March 7th.

Is it because... he looks different now? Is it because he dons the appearance of another? Is it unsightly to you? Are you upset that he didn't tell any of you, but especially you?

At least you aren't glaring at him, or even completely looking in the other direction away from him whenever your eyes met (unlike a certain grey-haired someone). At this point in your acquaintanceship with each other, he's not sure he can handle the anxiety that would come out of both of you ignoring him.

It unnerves him, and whether it's a good or a bad type of unnerving, he's not quite sure yet. It makes him sweat a little beneath his already-lightened clothing, though, and on his neck behind his long hair; makes his heart race a little faster.

Why? He wishes you'd tell him first, so he wouldn't have to approach you for an answer. Why? He wishes you weren't looking for an excuse to walk away from him when you see him approaching, like you aren't internally panicking (and quite too obviously, externally) when he stops before you. Why?

"So?" he says. You barely flinch, but your expression twists into a bit of a grimace, and he frowns.

Please.

"So... what?" you mumble, gaze firmly averted toward your own feet.

Please. Be on my side.

"The... looks... you've been giving me this whole time," he starts. "It's just... I'd like to know why."

Don't you avoid me, too.

"O-Oh." You clear your throat and press your shoulders back to raise your head, but you still don't meet his eye. "I... well... I-It's nothing bad, if that's what you're worried about."

"Then, can you tell me what it is?" he asks, barely a second away from pleading with you if you decline.

You huff, not irritably, but as if nervous, or inconvenienced, and it makes Dan Heng's heart palpitate.

"It's... it's difficult to look at you and speak to you at the same time," you lowly admit. His eyes widen in surprise, and almost immediately, his thoughts begin to race again.

"I-I'm sorry," he tells you. Now, you somehow have no problem looking at him, lips parted in shock.

"What? Why are you apologizing?" you say with a disbelieving shake of your head. But then it clicks, and you realize your mistake. "Dan Heng, it's not because of that, I-I promise."

Now, he's confused. It's not? Then, what else?

"I-It's..." Why are you stammering? Is it so hard to just... tell me? "Y-You're just--"

"Just what?" Dan Heng begs.

You swallow harshly, and under his intense and saddened gaze, you feel yourself growing warmer and warmer, almost boiling like a kettle atop a fire until you could hold yourself back no longer.

"I just didn't think it was possible for you to look even prettier than you already are, okay?!" you hiss at him. "I-I was embarrassed! Don't ask me about it anymore, alright?!" And you stalk off towards March 7th and Welt Yang, hands covering your face and stuttering out a loud, "S-So, we're leaving now, right?!"

Dan Heng can barely bring himself to react. Standing there amidst the rubble of the Scalegorge Waterscape, his eyebrows have shot so high up toward his forehead that he manages to jokingly wonder if they've flown away.

His skin flushes, his cheeks rosy and lips parted in shock.

"... p-prettier?" He blinks. Several times. The shock doesn't dissipate. "You... You think I'm pretty?"

What floods his veins is a confusing, concentrated mixture of relief and, surprisingly, adoration. For your lack of frustration for him, for the fact that you weren't ignoring him for omitting such a huge fact about himself, for so many silly thoughts and concerns that you managed to invalidate by shouting a simple compliment at him. You weren't ignoring him, after all.

That's all it took to shake him from his funk. That's all it takes for him to step forward, his toes barely touching the floor when he floats across the floor of the Dragonvista Rain Hall after you.

© nc-vb 2023 please don’t repost! reblogs & comments are always appreciated.

[brw]

Should be illegal to have a beautiful repressed transgender woman and then to trap her in the body of DOC SAMSON. Marvel tests me every day.

[elbiotipo]

Also, to expand on it, it's not so much the "edgy" thing that throws me off, it's like the Overwatch lore to me. You got all these characters which all seem to belong to completely different settings, and you try to make it work, you try to make us care about the moon gorilla and the robot and the cowboy. And it doesn't work. It just doesn't. The more seriously you take it, the more coherent you want to make it, the less it works. Blizzard pretends hard that there is Overwatch lore and it isn't there. I'm not sure why, exactly it doesn't work. It's not inherently bad to have a bunch of wacky characters and aesthetics. But it just doesn't work. People pretended it did but now you find nobody really is a fan of the Overwatch lore and plot anymore because it didn't work.

And yes, this is what League of Legends lore really is, and I'm not saying anything extraordinary here, a bunch of mismatched characters with a paper-thin plot to justify why they're fighting on the same map over and over and over again. And really, good for the writers who somehow managed to create a massively popular series from that but I think the concept on itself is full of holes, and I think that's why everything I hear about it is the DRAMA, because you have to fill those holes in somehow.

I'm not saying you can't make it work but I think there is a limited depth to things.