#and we never will. because its intended to be ambiguous. believe what you want to as long as you're not gripping throats about it

[nylonesques]

god seeing good opinions about korekiyo on the tl that isn't just re-hashing the same old same old fandom-fed-and-raised bullshit is actually soo refreshing

[ride-thedragon]

My blood and cheese thoughts.

I want to get it out of the way and say I didn't hate the adaptation. I think it was a bit underwhelming in terms of the atrocities committed and positioned in the books, but for the changes the show made, I think it's a really good adaptation of one of the worst aspects of the dance.

To go in further though a pros and cons list because I didn't entirely love it.

Pros:

1. PHIA SABAN. She was just excellent. I saw a lot of people early on hating on the delivery, but to me, it worked extremely well. That's Helaena experiencing this disaster without anyone at her side. That's show Helaena, it's amazing that she understands the character so well. Her immediate reaction is her discomfort at someone being so close yet still being terrified. The necklace handed over because she didn't know better, she's never had to know better. The way she reacted to Alicent and Criston, running through the castle muttering things to herself. It was all so excellent and she really sold it. "The boy is dead" sounded like a part of the prophecy she couldn't face when she was afraid of the rats and the way she's trembling as they believe her, that she sacrificed her son. It was incredible acting so early on, and it was excellent.

2. The trade-off. It was set up so well to me. Aegon confuses Jaehaera from behind in their first scene. Helaena is the one who can tell which child is which. The mother knows, is haunting, and the fact that she was checking on her kids that late in the night was so saddening. Then she, the only one so far who we see keeping track of who is who willingly is just beyond heartbreaking. The fact that they had the killer look her in the eye and admit to the other that she wasn't lying when she pointed to her son was just insane.

3. It was Aemond. In the books, they say Daemon, Mysaria, and Rhaenyra purposefully tried to kill Jaehaerys and traumatise everyone involved as payment for Luke. The fact that it was Aemond in the show made a lot more sense .

Cons.

1. World Building.

Helaena is the Queen of Westeros. Her children are the heirs to the throne. WHERE ARE THE GUARDS?!. Where are the at least 2 guards that should be obligated to be at their side. The handmaid's that would go with her to the kids' room in case they wake up, her maids who'd prepare her for bed after?. It makes absolutely no sense for them to be alone in that moment. It's not Criston’s responsibility. He's Alicent's guard. Helaena and her children should have guards.

2. Cruelty.

The cruelty of the killers was lost in the adaptation for the worse. Obviously, they don't have a personal stake, and the way it's set up, Cheese finds Helaena, and blood is trying to work it out, but I do think they should've been worse. There was just a menacing quality missing from the killers, especially when we followed them around. I think having it from Helaena’s perspective isn't the best, but it would've been better to have it interchange. To build up to the suspense.

3. Brutality.

No, I did not need to see a child murdered on screen, but I think the brutality of the situation was lost as well. Helaena is terrified because she's a princess left alone with criminals doing something unknown. Why not make it clearer. Have some bashed in heads of fallen guards, have a murdered handmaid, and the kids left sleeping. Decorate the place with the cruelty of what hey intend to do, have it resonate what her choice means, and when we see her run and hear the noise, it's past what they've already done. This also means blood is more a part of it and it isn't a split decision. This leads to more last issue.

4. LET DAEMON BE ACCOUNTABLE.

Why is he not? Why is it left ambiguous? It's so strange. When Aemond killed Luke, you could tell it was him overestimating the situation, its a mistake only to the extent that Aemond was playing a cat and mouse game with a war shipment because he didn't think of the consequence. It makes jo sense to do that with Daemon. This man wants to burn and kill and go to war the entire episode only to not have him say any prince would do. He schemes and plots, risks himself in King's Landing only to not have the final call? Let him be extreme. Now I'm going to have to sit through Daemon and rhaenyra again, misunderstanding each other and Daemon being sad because no one trusts him because he's a horrible person to be loved by and I'm sure by the end it'll be rectified. But I wanted that call from him, on screen for his anger towards what happened, towards the delay in action, when Rhaenyra gave him an inch by saying she wanted Aemond, I needed him to take a mile because that's who he is.

Overall,

I think it was a good adaptation for the show. I don't want to watch the episode back because the sounds of Jaehaerys' death made me sick. I don't think they could've done it better off-screen or more responsibly for the current events of the world. It was simply effective. I just had my expectations as a book viewer and as someone who was excited to see where the writers are taking the world they created because either like a lot of their choices.

[kataraslove]

katara isn't sutble at all in her interest in aang i think zutaras have their blinders on if they can't see how much she was into him. its why i find that fandom so frusterating i've never seen a pairing that was so obvious and yet they act like it was one sided.. when katara was all into him since ep 1 to wanting to run off with him when he got banished. if that dont scream girl is gonna fall in love with main character i dont know what does.

in order to understand katara’s feelings for aang, you need to understand katara’s character at a fundamental level. unfortunately, many, many people in the fandom do not and refuse to understand. for an example, a common misconception is that katara crushed on jet because he was the tall, good-looking “bad boy” archetype. while she did have an instant infatuation for jet because he was tall and good-looking, he was also brave, charming, and heroic and a natural leader to her - all components that katara’s described about aang throughout the series.

“You’ve been training for this since the day we met. I've seen your progress. You're smart, brave, and strong enough.” Katara in Nightmares and Daydreams.

the depths of katara’s love for aang can be seen in the ways that she speaks about him:

“Aang is the bravest person I know!” (The Storm)

“Please don’t go, Aang. The world can’t afford to lose you to the Fire Nation. Neither can I.” (The Winter Solstice Part 2)

in the ways that she’s fiercely protective over him:

in the ways that she’s physically affectionate with him:

in the ways that she gets immensely happy when he acknowledges her power or calls her heroic:

in the ways that she cries when they’re apart:

and in the ways that she cries when they’re reunited:

or when he tells her how much she means to him:

I mean, after they get through a really emotionally charged moment, or overcome danger or death, just look at the way she looks at him. look at the way she hugs him.

only in the atla fandom will someone look you straight in the eye and say that character A kissing character B (after the characters literally had an implied cave kiss) on the cheek before they’re separated isn’t meant to be romantic, but rather maternal.

and okay, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt: it’s true that katara’s feelings were intended to be “ambiguous” up until the climax so that we don’t get any canon verbal confirmation that she was in love with aang. i am critical of that. but nothing in the narrative suggests that katara ever viewed aang as a brother or worse, as a son. katara herself does not admit to that when aang brings it up in the ember island players episode, even when she had time to state that she did view him as a brother or, at the very least, did not see him as a love interest.

if you believe that the ambiguity of katara’s feelings for aang is far too much for you to ship them, that’s fine by me. but at the same time I’ve seen people say that katara had feelings for haru just from one blush. or feelings for zuko from their conversation wherein they bonded over their mother’s deaths in crossroads of destiny. if the hug at the end of the southern raiders can be read as romantic by these same people, why not the many hugs, cheek kisses, face touches, and emotional reactions katara feels towards aang? i do have to believe that the reason why it’s so hard to view these as romantic for people is because aang does not look the part of the stereotypical romantic lead, ie he’s bald, younger than katara, and shorter than her.

[vickyvicarious]

It was almost impossible to believe that the things which we had seen with our own eyes and heard with our own ears were living truths. Every trace of all that had been was blotted out. [...] We were struck with the fact, that in all the mass of material of which the record is composed, there is hardly one authentic document; nothing but a mass of typewriting, except the later note-books of Mina and Seward and myself, and Van Helsing's memorandum. We could hardly ask any one, even did we wish to, to accept these as proofs of so wild a story.

I love the book ending by emphasizing the ambiguity of its own truth. We don't see this in Dracula Daily, but Stoker prefaced the book with a note that implies he knew the Harkers and they had shared this with him:

How these papers have been placed in sequence will be made manifest in the reading of them. All needless matters have been eliminated, so that a history almost at variance with possibilities of later-day belief may stand forth as simple fact. There is throughout no statement of past things wherein a memory may err, for all the records chosen are exactly contemporary, given from the standpoints and within the range of knowledge of those who made them.

This note frames Stoker as merely an editor of a true account shared with him, rather than the author of a fictional work, which is a common trope for older fiction (though I think most often travel fiction, not horror). This is aided by the modern technology in the story, something he even emphasizes in his note here. Not that I'm saying people would really be likely to buy that it's real, but if they wanted to they could pretend they did.

But here at the end the characters admit that they could never prove their account. And they aren't really trying to do so for the wide world, but time makes it difficult even for them to fully believe what they recall happening to them. And we all know the power of the written word - to preserve events more firmly, yes, but also potentially to alter them (Jonathan's diary preserving memories he has forgotten vs. the Whitby headstone preserving a lie about the sailor's death). Without even primary sources for almost all of the book (in-universe; for readers of the novel, even if they bought into the fiction that it's a true account they wouldn't have access to any handwritten portions), it's up to the readers to decide how much trust they wish to place in the truthfulness of this tale. Both potential in-universe readers (explicitly and probably only ever intended for Quincey Harker) and us too.

If you begin with Stoker's note, it's extra fun because the novel starts by the (real) author asserting this is all factual and trustworthy, and ends with the (fictional) characters admitting it's mostly unprovable and people would have to just take their word for it.

[princeescaluswords]

So, because Scott is poor, Derek should buy him a new car? That seems logical to you?

Did you come here looking for a fight? Because you just found one. I believe that this ask refers to this post, where I argued that Derek's performative asceticism isn't accidental, and that the show was implying that his privilege and wealth enabled his antagonistic behavior in the first two seasons.

Nowhere did I argue in that post, where I compared the speed with which Derek repaired his car window after Chris Argent's thug smashed it to the fact that the McCall family vehicle didn't have a driver's side window all season, that Derek owed Scott a car. I have, in the past, argued that the Hales owed Scott McCall reparations for repeated assaults, property damage, disruption of academic pursuits, and for taking over their self-appointed task of protecting Beacon Hills. I wish that the show had made it explicit in A Promise to the Dead (4x11) that Derek gave Scott the money from Garrett's locker rather than leave it ambiguous.

I'm never going to suggest that Teen Wolf went all in on an analysis of class struggle -- Heavens, no! -- but it didn't ignore the consequences of the Hale's upper class identity. "Everyone can be corrupted by money!" Peter howls in Monstrous (4x10) and he is a prime example of that. Similarly, Derek's wealth and privilege enable him to dwell, unhealthily, on the traumas of his past. I know of very few people who could take three months out of their life to obsess over family tragedies with no mention of work or responsibility, and still have cars, properties, and personal care items. Derek is not well served by this behavior, isolating himself from the mundane and from the mechanics of living. He intends to achieve his goals by himself due to trust issues, but he is forced to rely on Scott McCall as the only way to accomplish these things, and man-oh-man is he bitter about it.

But as the show had it's lead protagonist argue in Weaponized (4x07) "while we're trying not to die, we still need to live." In fact, I would argue that you can trace Derek's redemption arc by his willingness to live. At the start of the show, Derek is "totally alone" and his wealth and privilege allow him to operate like that. In Seasons 3 and 4, though, he starts to remember how to live. We see him in an actual home, even though it is the Loft of Solitude. He purchases a more practical vehicle. He allows himself to think about romance. He makes friends with the Sheriff and, amazingly, Chris Argent. A key scene is when he puts his wealth and privilege to positive use by trusting Braeden, hiring her to find Kate. He's using his wealth in a positive manner. It is no longer enabling his isolation. Look at Derek in the movie. He is fully living. He has a home, a family, friends, a business. Before the nogitsune seeks its revenge, Derek's primary focus is watching his son play lacrosse and getting him to embrace his family's heritage.

Since Derek's role was always to serve as a narrative foil to Scott, the lead protagonist, this arc highlights Scott's story. Regardless of what happens to Scott, he never isolates himself, with one important exception. At all other times, he worries about his grades, he wants to get into a good school, he wants to play lacrosse, he wants to date people, he keeps his friends close, he works with Deaton, he brings his mother lunch, etc. Yes, there are terrible things happening, but he doesn't forget to live while trying to stop corrupted hunters, Alpha packs, Japanese fox demons, and multi-million dollar assassin hit-lists. Fandom tends to hold the attention he pays to everyday living against him, but Scott knows from direct experience these things are important, and he doesn't have the wealth and privilege to put them on hold for months while dealing with villains or his own trauma. The exception? Season 5A, where Theo schemes to isolate Scott. Scott is still an alpha, a True Alpha, but that privilege alone won't save anyone. There's a reason that Melissa's primary advice -- as much as I might despise it on an emotional level -- is "You'll get them back. You have to."

Teen Wolf certainly wasn't an "eat the rich" show, but it did have a definite point of view that virtue was based in everyday things, the tasks and opportunity that should be in common with all of humanity, and not in the isolation that great wealth, ancient pedigree, or exclusive privilege grants.

[broodwolf221]

People keep insisting that Solas ‘killed Flemeth/Mythal’ in that last scene but I don’t know if that’s actually true? I feel like what happened in that scene was more ambiguous than that.

We don’t actually know how involved Flemeth/Mythal is with his plans, only that she’s deffinetely in on it. We know the because Flemeth herself insists that she intends to avenge Mythal in ‘a reckoning that will shake the very heavens.’ Idk about you but to me that implies very violent intentions.

It contrasts directly with what Solas intends. He wants to restore the world to its natural state for the sake of his people. Whereas Flemeth simply wants to punish. She wants to punish The Evanuris. And there’s some dialogue between her and Morrigan which implies that she wants to punish Solas as well, she just needs him to complete his task first.

Flemeth is basically unkillable. She knows that, and there’s every possibility that Solas knows that, too. The way I read that scene, I think this may have always been the plan. At the very least it was a contingency, one the two of them were both aware of, and which Solas clearly wanted to avoid. I think the reason he was so upset when The Orb was destroyed may have been because he knew he’d have resort to that contingency.

Flemeth isn’t stupid. And she’s not particularly selfless either. In fact she is explicitly very selfish, as well as being a manipulator. Whatever went on in that scene—I have my theories—Flemeth was well aware it was coming. She was counting on it. It somehow benefits her that this took place, otherwise she’d have never allowed it.

Before it happens, she says, “I’m sorry, too.”

What is she sorry for? We don’t really know, but my interpretation is that she’s apologizing for what’s about to happen. This was her plan. Solas didn’t want to do things this way, but the events of DAI have forced his hand.

One of Solas’ greatest flaws is his assumption that he has more control over any given situation than he actually does, and I think that applies to his relationship with Flemeth/Mythal as well. Again, Flemeth is a manipulator. She’s been manipulating the people and events of Thedas for centuries, maybe longer. I think Solas is no different. When I look at that end credit scene I don’t see two equals. I see one person who clearly has the upper hand, and another with a deeply mistaken idea of what their relationship actually is.

I agree, although for a long time I definitely thought he 100% killed her, but she has a way of surviving and is just... too big to have just been quickly killed in a brief epilogue?

oooh I didn't know about/catch that dialogue! that's so interesting... changes the dynamic a lot if she actually wants him to fail on some level. running with that, one might even go so far as to assume she aided corypheus' surviving opening the orb. letting him wreak brutal havoc across thedas and tear open the veil (vs. solas' pulling it down) is a good way to 'shake the very heavens'.

yeah, her apologizing doesn't really fit as a response to letting solas kill her, but apologizing for what she's about to put him through? the chain of events she may well have incited somehow? that seems more apt. and I do believe she cares for solas to some degree, but not enough to not use him for her own ends. as you said, she's a master manipulator, that's a core part of her character. she's not going to drop all that just because a sad wolf comes to her door.

and I love your point about solas' assumptions of knowledge and control, because that's so accurate. he always assumes he has the power in a relationship because of his knowledge, his age, his experience... he thinks he knows more, understands more, and sees more, and he trusts his interpretations of events, but even within dai we see him have to face that those interpretations are flawed a number of times. he didn't expect the inquisitor to care about spirits - understandable, considering the general opinion of them, but still an assumption. the whole balcony scene, whether or not you romance him, is about confronting his assumptions not only about the inquisitor, but their entire species - and by extension, all people. the banter between him and the companions, particularly the man on the island banter with varric... there's so many times he's forced to confront his assumptions, but he continues to subconsciously hold that he still knows more, that his initial interpretations are right unless/until they're plainly proven wrong

he's so interesting i love him so much... and ty for this! such a thought-provoking ask, i love talking about him <3

[notsosilentsister]

Anatomy of a Fall (Justine Triet, 2023)

I find myself wanting to talk about this film like the characters in it are real people, which can be the mark of a story that has accomplished its aims. So the question is, did she do it? What do I think, what are we supposed to think?

I think we're supposed to think it's ambiguous. The climax is all about the son making a choice - it's clearly not an easy one for him. He isn't just telling the truth. He's - if not inventing entirely - embellishing, at least. The testimony might not provide much admissible evidence, but emotionally, it's too neat of a resolution, fits too well with the lawyer's characterisation of the husband. So well that at first I thought, sure, this has to be true, how could a kid have come up with this? But of course this is the kid of two writers. He cannot know if his mother is innocent, but he decides to save her anyway.

Sandra herself doesn't agree with her lawyer's characterization of her husband. She tells him right in court, where others might hear, when that's the pillar of his defense, undermining her own best shot at being exculpated. (Are we supposed to think she is at a real risk of being found guilty? I don't know enough about French courts to evaluate that, but I would normally assume there's not much of a case, the accusation is based on too much conjecture. But that's not truly what's at stake here, isn't it, the real stakes are about losing her child's trust and love. The suspense of the court's verdict might be taking artistic licence to dramatize the suspense of the child's verdict.)

Sandra has enough of a self preservation instinct to lie about the bruise, but she hesitates to support the suicide theory. She still doesn't seem to be entirely on board even after she herself has disclosed her husband's first suicide attempt. She's muddling her own story, and it does seem like a mark of counter-productive honesty. It could be manipulation - maybe making her lawyer think she's innocent is just as, if not more, important to her as proving her innocence in court? But it does seem genuine to me. Sandra is presented as someone who almost can't help her honesty. She's straightforward, blunt, she won't smile at her husband's friends, when she's not feeling it, she's showing her true colours, even if it costs her.

I declared Sandra innocent in my mind pretty early in the proceedings, I just couldn't buy the motive. A fit of rage? I kinda never buy that as an explanation, killing seems often like a fairly drawn-out-affair, where you have to commit to see it through, and it certainly does seem so in the scenario presented, where she would have to lift his legs over the windowsill. Like, I could sometimes see someone inadvertently killing a victim they just intended to scare, because they misjudged their power, but it's also hard to see that as a strategy Sandra would use in this scenario. My guess is that fatal domestic violence (without financial motive) is usually either habitual intimidation with miscalculated impact, a honor killing, or the last resort of a cornered animal. And those other options also don't seem to fit Sandra, whose honor doesn't rely on controlling her husband and who always seems to have plenty of agency - if she's unhappy in her marriage, she speaks her mind, she takes a lover; if she's unhappy enough, why wouldn't she just get a divorce?

But isn't that just the textbook mistake? To believe that a strong woman like Sandra would not get trapped in an abusive relationship? (She always seems to have plenty of agency - except when he's ruining her interview with his awful music, and she can't just tell him to shut it off..). Because that husband sure is a piece of work. I'm immediately predisposed against him, before he's even shown on the scene, with his first aural emantion. I grieve for him, when I see the grief of his child. And then he's on my eternal shitlist again, when he accuses his wife of always forcing others to meet her on her own territory, when he's just roped her into moving to his home-town. Because he has to speak English with her instead of his native tongue French, when she doesn't get to speak her native tongue German to him either! The gall of it! Shit's so transparent, it's adding insult to injury.

So the husand certainly _tries_to trap her, in isolation, in guilt, but doesn't she see through it, when she reads him for filth in that climactic altercation? Shouldn't that be enough to break the spell? Would she have to resort to violence to escape?

For what it's worth, I think the laywer's theory is much more likely. Husband tries it, and fails, and sees that his guilt trips won't work on her much longer. He's the one who's cornered. And I wouldn't put it past him to pull a Gone Girl and choose his exit in a way that frames the wife he blames for all his miseries. Vindictive self-destruction. Also fits well with the injuries to his knuckles and the holes in the walls, for which we do, after all, see objective evidence. But maybe I would believe any theory presented by Swann Arlaud (who, since we're talking about imagining animals' heads on people's bodies, obviously looks like a stoat. A beautiful stoat. I've been keenly waiting for Sandra Hüller to say it in that last scene they have together, when she cradles his head and looks deep into his eyes. But this film is really all about witholding resolution.)

[invinciblerodent]

I'm rambling cause I'm bothered and saw you mentioned it once so lol, feel free to ignore this is you want hun xoxo I genuinely did not want to believe that people were complaining about the lack of consent/the fearful/uncomfortable expression and body language on tav in the ascended astarion kiss scenes, like I straight up couldn't believe it, but i just looked at the patch notes for a hotfix in patch 6 and saw three separate people commenting to complain about it being "traumatizing" and wanting it to be more consensual and for him to be more dominant rather than cruel.... losing my mind i hate it here, gg on missing the point to those ppl. Rather than asking for maybe like a pop up saying "hey you chose the evil route, he's going to be evil and manipulative TW" they want it completely changed to fit their narrative and ideas. He isnt dominant hes meant to be bad, I feel so defeated they got what they wanted... Larian literally giving in and changing the point of that route is so frustrating wtf, that completely alters the whole thing...

No yeah, I totally agree with you on that.

I think I'm not even frowny about it being the way it is-- I'm obviously okay with people misunderstanding the whole route (I'd be having a really bad time if I wasn't okay with people misinterpreting media on the misinterpreting media website lol), it's not a big deal, if they want to entertain their whole "sexy dommy vampire daddy" fantasy (which, lol, this guy? really? this sopping wet rat whom I love?) it doesn't bother me-- usually I just block the people whose takes I find obnoxious or tone-deaf, and I don't even mind the expression being more ambiguous than straight-up fearful, because it allows for it to fit with a wider variety of characters.

What I dislike, upon further reflection, is how much this now comes off as if the changes are being made because of the complaints.

Even if the expressions were always intended to be more ambiguous and they just took it a slight bit too far on accident, even if it was always meant to be the way it is going to be now (which I agree, is a better way for it to be, just from a character customization point of view- i can imagine a number of characters who wouldn't look at A!Astarion like a scared bunny even if they're not "into" his cruelty), just because there was such a vocal minority responding so loudly to it and it's being changed the way they want it, it kind of makes it seem like it's setting a precedent I really don't like. Which is a precedent that says "instead of examining the actual story being told and examining the choices we made that lead to the outcome we dislike, we should just complain and yell loudly enough until all the uncomfortable aspects of it are edited out of existence". I really don't like that. (Have these people never played an oldschool otome game, with actual bad endings? Have they never had a handsome anime boy sneer into their face about how much he hates them because they didn't give him enough gifts on day 5???? Have yall never gotten friendzoned by anime boys???????????)

I already don't make much of a secret out of how much I'm not a fan of the kind of access fandom has now to the creators of the piece of media they enjoy-- how uncomfortable I am with people, like, referring to actors and game developers by their first names as if they were trusted friends, how prone people are to going through someone's twitter likes with a fine-tooth comb, and how much insight (even if we don't want it) we are given to people's completely innocuous comings and goings. I already don't like how much control people feel like they have over art created by other people.

Idk. I know Larian is trying to be a "cool game studio", and they're trying to please fans to retain their darling status, and I think it's to their detriment. I love the game they made (of course I do, I've been talking about it non-stop for the past year lol), but I genuinely hope the chunk of change they got from its success will allow them to just take a breath, and put out their next game with the confidence, and the finality it deserves.

please let's just go back to releasing a game fully and not futzing with it beyond bug fixes a year after release still, please let things just be finished and done and jfc please let's all just collectively grow some media literacy, we can't keep pissing on the poor like this they're already soaked to the bone, please

[oddlylongtelephonecord]

setting aside the definitions of queerbaiting and queer-coding (bcuz i dont rly agree w the way u use those terms and i think discussions of them should start with definitions bcuz ppl keep using them differently) I think you might be overlooking the real polygamous undertones in VNC! Vani's relationship to Jeanne starts out forced for thematic reasons beyond orientation, and its settled into something very sincere atm. This does not discount the stuff going on w vanoé. That scene in s2 for example-- it's doesn't just cut to Noé. It's INTERCUT between Vani's developing feelings for Jeanne and Noé's support and presence in his life! The stuff going on between Jeanne and Domi seems real too, so we are looking at WAY more than Vani.

OKAY OKAY so this person actually brings up some fantastic points!

(side note: I literally had to hunt through the manga volumes on my shelf to confirm the stuff about the scene being references in s2/chapter 42)

First, I want to clarify the definition of queerbaiting that I understand. The definition I have been using is the oxford dictionaries one [the incorporation of apparently gay characters or same-sex relationships into a film, television show, etc. as a means of appealing to gay and bisexual audiences while maintaining ambiguity about the characters' sexuality.] I have adjusted the original post to more accurately explain this!

But more importantly, I think that your point about the polygamous undertones is actually really fascinating, because I think you're right.

I think it would be really interesting to see the author explore the relationship between Jeanne and Dominique too, BUT BACK TO THE POINT! You brought up something that I actually forgot about! Now we just have to dissect what exactly the scene in s2 cuts to both Jeanne and Noe. There's a ton of nuance in this, and unfortunately I look too deep into things and tend to get lost in my own thoughts, so the author's intention is lost on me LMAO, but here's my thoughts on it:

I believe that it was because Vanitas is split. I think it would def be even more interesting if the author were to explore the polygamous undertones, (because I actually totally believe that Vanitas is in love w both of them, again, ch 42 implies this heavily) but I will be so honest, I think that these themes ever becoming more overt is unlikely just because of the general opinions surrounding polygamy.

ANYWAY, I think that it was likely split with the intention of showing that Vanitas is having split thoughts between the two. While I'm not quite positive that this was the author's intention, (primarily because of what anon brings up, actually; it's very possible the intention was to subtly pull in polygamous themes) I do believe that it is very likely that it was intended to show that Vanitas' feelings towards Noe are developing into something he never anticipated. Now, he is trapped in this weird limbo in which he has feelings for two different people.

I also want to add that there is like a shit ton of other stuff going on in this series right now. I chose to focus on Vanitas in the og post because it's just something that I personally find incredibly interesting. I don't intend to take away from anything else going on, I just chose to zero in on that in particular.

Basically, I actually agree with everything in this ask, so I really appreciate this stuff being brought up because it gives me a chance to go in depth on more stuff that I didn't explain as well in the first post!

[penniedreadfuls]

The Problem of Lenny

Some thoughts about what could, or should, happen with Luke Kirby's Lenny Bruce in season 5 of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.

Cw: for discussion of drug use and suicide

Okay, I'm probably writing this half as an apology for not having updated "All Things are Temporary" in a while. (My other writerly obligations have hard deadlines D:). And the other half is because I was peeping in on the TMMM reddit and there's some guy saying he works on the show as a sound editor, and is giving out spoilers. Ones that say "Lenny dies, eventually" (as do we all) and that a Once Upon a Time in Hollywood like ending doesn't happen.

I take those "spoilers" with a grain of salt. But here are my personal thoughts both as a fan of the show and a writer.

Show Lenny is a fictional character and should be treated as such. TMMM has never been biographical towards him. Several parts of his life have been changed to fit the show. That's fine and dandy.

We all know he was only supposed to appear in the first episode, but that Luke Kirby charm is powerful. All of his previous interactions with characters have fit within plausible deniability. But that changes once he sleeps with Midge. I think that crosses a line when using a real person as a character in a show. (As much as I loved it)

The real Lenny Bruce died of a morphine overdose in August 1966. It doesn't get discussed much here, but there is the very strong likelihood that it was a suicide. The circumstances around his death, how he was found, what happened afterwards, are incredibly sad and tragic. (If you want to know, you can read it on his wikipedia. I will warn you, it's very upsetting.)

I can't imagine The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel putting that in the show, and doing it well. TMMM is a cotton candy world. There has not been anything truly dark in it. I was not impressed with the narrative of Midge's victimhood in regards to Shy. (I didn't like her apology)

TMMM is not Mad Men, historical happenings either do not intrude much or are played for laughs (Jackie Kennedy). But if the show got further into the 60s, that would get harder to ignore. And like the above realities of Lenny Bruce's death, they would not fit into the TMMM world. I also cannot see Mei getting an abortion.

ex. The Cuban Missile Crisis, 16th Street Baptist Church Bombings. Characters would and should comment on these. So it's probably a good thing the show ends in 1961. A lot happened from 61-66, and the show has so many plotlines, I think a big time skip would mess them up. I got away with the huge time jump in "All Things are Temporary" because of Lenny's internal thoughts and I cheated and had Midge give an interview.

I digress. I fear if ASP and the powers that be have fictional Lenny die as he did in life, that they would change it to make its more "palatable" for the show. An idea that I find immensely disrespectful, since it probably was a suicide. Midge would certainly come to know the details of Lenny's death and her reaction would be heartbreaking (I know Rachel Broshanan would knock it out of the park however).

So what do I think should happen? It comes down to three options. Spare, Ambiguous, or Dies. I've already outlined my thoughts on the last one.

Lenny is one of the most popular characters in the show, sparing him would be giving him what he was denied in real life. As long as the real Kitty Bruce approves?

I personally think that the show should keep it ambiguous. It will be better for all of us fic writers :D Most of all, I just want the ending to be well written. I never watched Gilmore Girls, but I've heard that I should be concerned.

What do you all think?

One last thought. I really believe that ASP intended for Midge and Joel to end up back together during the first two seasons, and then realized the idea is not a popular one. (Are people writing MidgeJoel fic? I don't think so!) Hence we get Mei and Miami.

TL;DR: TMMM should either spare Lenny or go all out in depicting the realities of his death. To lessen it is disrespectful.

[harrison-abbott]

A Short Review of Oppenheimer (2023)

Why would you want to make a film about Richard Nixon?

Oliver Stone did that in 1995, with Anthony Hopkins starring as Nixon. Hopkins’ portrayal of the President is one of a chronically paranoid, insecure man who is in charge with heavily charged international matters. He barely seems to comprehend what he’s doing.

And surrounding him are the other characters of 1950s/60s America who were key to geopolitics at the time. They’re also played by terrific actors; such as Paul Sorvino, Ed Harris, James Woods, Joan Allen and Bob Hoskins, among others. They play the parts very well. Especially with Paul Sorvino as Henry Kissinger – who was a great geopolitical villain and pantomime-like character in real life.

There was no need for Oliver Stone to glamorise the plot in Nixon (1995) because the events occurred in reality. But, what Stone did need to do was make the story a piece of art. As opposed to a documentary.

Well, for one thing, it had to be long. So it finally churned out around three hours in length. In order for it not to be tedious, Stone spliced up the time periods. It couldn’t be a long, linear epic – so he mixed up what happened into short, frenzied scenes with bursts of action. Often using black and white for historical parts and colour for modern; and yet, with present-day scenes featuring Nixon as an older, finished, defeated man.

This mix of content is dense and spanning. But it never gets dull. And it is essentially the portrait of one man. The movie is asking questions about this single person, against a background of mayhem of which he is directly integrated.

I thought the exact same way about Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer (2023): and have rarely seen a pair of films which I found quite so alike.

We have a brilliant lead actor in Cillian Murphy. Who is constantly fraught and uncertain with his plans, which have worldwide consequences. And all around him are these other people who are equally as compulsive in their disastrous ambitions. [And they’re also played by a star studded cast, of Robert Downey Jr, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, Kenneth Branagh, Gary Oldman, etc etc.)

The movie lasts 3 hours. It switches throughout its tenure with an array of time periods and the scenes are short and alarming and the tension never quite ceases. Many of the scenes are shot in different tonalities and this adds to the overall sense of nightmarish delusion.

Why would anybody want to make a blockbuster film about the men (or man) who invented the atomic bomb? If we were to watch Grave of the Fireflies (1988) would that not be enough to make up one’s moral notion of what happened?

What I believe Oppenheimer has triumphed with in being a blockbuster is by making entertainment ambiguous. Which is difficult to do in a mass sense: make a popular movie questionable. There is no doubt that it’s a great film. Many ‘big’ movies come out each year which are only intended for gluttony or indulgence.

However. And, just as a parting thought: is Oppenheimer as disturbing as Grave of the Fireflies? Or Nixon, for that matter?

Of course it’s important to inform people about the past. Just as it is with current affairs.

There are films like Downfall (2004) and lofty television shows like Band of Brothers (2001) which are both historical accounts, and yet have completely different attitudes or modes of expression. Both were about World War II, yes, but, they show very alternative depictions of the conflict.

In Nixon, about 90 minutes into the flick, there is a terrific moment of cinema. Whereby we’re introduced to Nixon’s 1968 inauguration speech – and we see Anthony Hopkins by his podium: just as he’s about to start speaking. But the camera is below the podium. And we can only see his edgy, distressed face. He does not look like a man who is happy at just winning the Presidency of the United States. It’s a fantastic feat, sure. Except he’s in total terror about what to do with his position, or where it will lead.

The camera then spans up and the light and colour changes and Hopkins then smiles and waves to the crowd and the folks applaud and cheer for him.

Quite similar (if you agree?) to the scene in Oppenheimer where he making a speech to the filled auditorium just after the bombs have been dropped in Japan; and he inwardly imagines the explosions going off in his very vicinity, and what they would do to the bodies in the audience.

[ultraericthered]

PREFACE: I am a Volo fan too and also believe he has more nuance to his character than some fans might be willing to see in him. That said, I don't do any blorbofication or babygirling of the character, as that tilts things too far in the other direction from seeing only the evil in him. Volo exists in a moral space that for many is hard to "get."

One thing that I think makes people less sympathetic to Volo than you seem to be is that "his past trauma" is never detailed in-game. Moreover, whatever it was is treated as being of little significance in comparison to what it fostered within Volo, which is his insatiable curiosity and hunger for answers and further knowledge of the world, of the meaning of life itself and the secrets of creation. Volo never wanted to feel too badly about the painful hardships of life, so his coping mechanism was thinking rather than feeling, and that deep thinking is what stoked his passion for research and discovery, which came so naturally to Volo and is what he directed his energy into.

"You see, ever since I was young, whenever I met with something painful or heartbreaking... I couldn't help but wonder why life was so unfair. Why I was cursed to live through such things. Of course, I imagine we all go through something like that. Eventually, I chose to direct all my energy into my own natural curiosity and ambition. And what tickled my curiosity more strongly than anything were the mysteries to be found in legends, in history, in ruins... You see, I fancied that by unraveling these mysteries, I could find out how the world itself came to be–and with that knowledge, maybe even forge a new, better world!"

I've not yet encountered any fans who "treat him like the second coming of Ghetsis", but I can only assume any inclination to do so is because as of now, Volo is on TV Tropes' Complete Monster trope whereas the gameverse version of Ghetsis, for whatever reasons many of us fans will never understand, is not. The writing for the game is such that the redeemable qualities that some players might see in Volo will not be very strong or apparent to other players, and when looking at his actions, not only does he bring world-threatening instability into his time period, have Pokemon driven into dangerous frenzies, and wants to attempt universal omnicide, but he's one of the rare few villains where when he attempts to kill the Player Character, there is an actually convincing threat of he/she almost dying from it since this game doesn't do the "you just white out and end up back at the Pokemon Center" thing and in its place has you needing to be rescued from certain death by the Galaxy Team Survey Corps.

And as for his Pokemon, this has to be the single most hazy area of whether or not Volo has a redeeming trait since on one hand, there is no ambiguity that he is kind to his Pokemon and has formed very strong friendships with at least half of his team. He likes Pokemon enough to treat them nicely and Pokemon like him in return. What is ambiguous is whether or not he intended for his Pokemon friends to survive what he planned on doing to the universe with Arceus' power. Because these are his exact words before you have to battle him:

"Of course, if I create a brand-new world, then the Hisui region that we currently exist in will be undone and returned to nothing. You, everyone you know, and all the Pokémon living here will vanish in an instant, as if you'd never been."

If his Pokemon would be at his waist in Poke' Balls, they'd be safe. But if not, if the process for purging and remaking reality required only Volo and Arceus to be playing God, then Volo would have to sacrifice his Pokemon and have them erased as though they'd never existed to start with. And given Volo's character as established, how the desire to know all of life's secrets and use that knowledge to attempt a do-over of life itself matters more to him than all else, this prospect would not deter him. Sadden him, yes. But not deter him.

Unless an appearance in PokeMas debunks any of this, I'd honestly prefer it be left this way, with the full scope of Volo's character being entirely up to your own interpretation rather than spoonfed to you. And personally, I'd think he was a fascinating character and an excellent antagonist whether he be "irredeemably evil" or not.

Me: So anyways, I really think that Volo’s character and motivations are viewed unfairly by the fanbase.

Yes, he’s the antagonist, and YES, he went about the worst possible approach to dealing with his past trauma, but he’s really not this human manifestation of all evil that exists in the Pokemon world like some people are making him out to be.

For example, half of his team is composed of Pokemon that can only evolve through friendship-

Some People: Girl, just admit you think he’s hot and sit down.

Me:

The fact that this is always their retort on Volo character analyses that don’t treat him like the second coming of Ghetsis…

So, what exactly happened to bring this post to your dash on this lovely morning, most of you are probably NOT wondering (but I’m going to tell you anyway):

Somebody tried to argue that half of Volo’s team being composed of “friendship evolutions” (yes, they said friendship evolutions with air quotes) doesn’t indicate anything about Volo’s character, and I-

Ok. OK. So I suppose the above ALSO applies to Silver’s Crobat, then! As well as Cyrus’ own Crobat! Oh, and Ghetsis’ Hydreigon being underleveled and knowing Frustration at maximum power, don’t be ridiculous, that has absolutely no meaning at all, Frustration was just chosen at random from Hydreigon’s movepool!!

This is “the door is blue” debate, but Pokemon edition.

[sneezemonster15]

I agree that SNS has some moments that can easily be interpreted as romantic, but I disagree that anyone who sees them as platonic "sucks at understanding media". Sounds bit condescending to me

Strong emotional bond doesn't necessarily mean romantic bond. I believe it's up for interpretation since nature of their relationship is left ambiguous at best. I'm neutral to SNS, but to me it seems some shippers become too overwhelmed by their love for ship and interpret every moment between Naruto and Sasuke as romantic.

Plus how do we know Kishimoto ever intended sns to be romantic/canon? He never said so in interviews. So for same reasons anti sns stans can't claim he never wanted them to be seem as romantic, sns stans cant claim he intended for them to be romantic. He's an author, he has no power over his fandom will interpret his work.

Sorry if this sounded bit mean, it wasn't my intention. I'm just tired of shippers calling nonshippers blind for not interpreting their relationship as romantic

Heh.

People who think they are brothers or their relationship is platonic DO suck at interpreting media. No their relationship is not up for subjective interpretation since they both say it explicitly that they don't think of each other as brothers. Plus a thousand other things. If you ignore clear and ubiquitous text, subtext and visual imagery that gel with everything else in the story, the narrative, visual language, overarching themes etc, your skills at interpreting media look juvenile at best.

Sasuke and Naruto don't just share a strong emotional bond, the author does his Best to impress upon the very romantic nature of their relationship on the audience. It is NOT open to subjective interpretation.

Would you watch 'Triumph of Will' (it's a Nazi propaganda movie, check it out) and say it's pro Jews because your subjective interpretation says so? Would it be the right thing to do? If you do say that, you are essentially doing the same thing here. You are ignoring text, subtext and visual language to satisfy your own headcanon. But do you see how harmful it is? Is going against author's intent by the way of 'subjective interpretation' really the way to understand media? Was that why it was made? Is that what should be your takeaway? Who cares what the creator meant? You are going to just do your own thang? Fuck the narrative, visual language, major themes and characterization? Who cares how much work the creator put in his story, you are going to dismiss all that just because?

And no, their relationship is not left ambiguous at best. Just depends on how much you understand media and human condition and emotions. Given Kishi's limitations, since he was writing shounen, he had to make sure that he would be able to tell his story even if he couldn't be explicit about it. So he used all the romantic tropes and picked up all the best romantic elements from the best literature and media available to him and got to work. I can't speak for others but I am quite experienced to know what I am looking at when I am looking at it. I have the knowledge that makes me sure of my stance and I am not gonna apologize for it. So I don't need him to be explicit. Not everything needs to be said out loud in exact words, this isn't some PG 13 American movie.

Naruto is also not some experimental film. Try and understand how genres work. Like any other shounen manga, it's supposed to be expositional. It's supposed to cater to kids, it is supposed to be pedagogic. It is supposed to instill a certain value system in its audience, it's supposed to inspire and teach and guide. It is not open to subjective interpretation, everything (the major themes, the values, virtues, vices, the takeaway etc) is made quite clear. If you are actually paying attention. Yes, Kishi was not as explicit with SNS as other themes, but he had a reason. What reason? Shounen guidelines about portrayal of homosexuality. But does he need to be explicit? Given Naruto and Shippuden are love stories? Nope. Kishi does an extremely good job of telling this story with the narrative tools he has learnt and mastered as a professional. If you can deconstruct it, like I do on my blog, you will have no problem believing they are lovers. There is no doubt they are lovers.

Yes, their relationship does overwhelm me. Because Kishi designed it that way and it worked because he has a good grasp on child psychology and he obviously takes advantage of that. Which is why he was able to write such amazing and complex and realistic and relatable characters. Are these moments romantic? Totes. A lot of them are. They just are. I am not going to go in detail about that for this ask, just go through my blog.

The reason I am this adamant talking about them not being brothers is because essentially, it's a homophobic stance. It is. A lot of homosexual narratives the world over get reduced, appropriated and trivialized to brotherhood and friendship because of how much taboo and lack of awareness surround the topic of homosexuality. Especially in conservative societies. Which is harmful to homosexuality and gay people. I will NOT push any stance that encourages that.

If the writer has made things clear for me, and they are clear to me because I just know better (I don't care if you think of me as condescending), then I will say it out loud with utmost confidence.

Dude, why do you think post Shippuden has such a Brokeback mountain vibe huh? Why are Sasuke and Naruto so damn disinterested in the women they got married to, mothers of their kids who happen to be the main characters of Boruto? Why does Sasuke treat Sakura as if she has the plague? Why is he so disinterested in his family? Why does Naruto not go home and stay in the office at all hours? This boy who wanted a family with such passion? Hmm? These two boys for whom family was the prime motivating factor are now, at the end, so isolated from their families? Kishi had provided such consistent layering throughout. How do you compute that? Why would it be necessary if Sasuke and Naruto were just brothers or friends? Why? Because they aren't friends. They are only happy when they are with each other, these husks of their former selves brighten up like they used to before only when they are with each other. Why? Because they are friends? Brothers? Fuck off. Lol. This is a very common trope on gay media, I request people again and again to watch it but no. They have to spout bullshit without any knowledge because it's easier. Well my blog ain't insta. If you are coming here, think twice before bringing your arguments.

I have mentioned before that I work in the field of media and communication. I work in a leadership capacity. I am also a cinephile. My analysis is based on reason and the actual process of storytelling. I am very very assured of my takes. And I know sometimes it makes me sound condescending. But in reality, I am just very clear, my personality might come off as a bit rough, but I try not to be too rough. I can't help it if it makes me sound arrogant. I won't deny for a minute I am emotionally attached to this story. But my analyses are always based on clear reason and logic.

I live in a patriarchal society and I know what harmful narratives do to people. Ruins their lives. Women have to be a certain way, men have to be a certain way. Women (they are supposed to be beautiful and delicate and feminine and polite and submissive, no?) spend hours and painful hours trying to look beautiful and skinny and desirable. Men try their best to look cool and masculine and capable, (Real men don't cry, right?) when they aren't feeling it in the least. Men are supposed to love and marry women and women are supposed to love and marry men. Married couples need to conceive a child in the first three years of marriage. Old people are always supposed to be respected and honoured no matter how shitty and inhuman they are. Kids are supposed to be seen, not heard. Etc etc etc.

I have seen so many lives go to waste because of these narratives that are so deeply embedded in the fabric of society, no one questions it, or very few do. We don't wanna mess with something that has been going on for centuries, we grew up with it, it's our comfort zone. A lot of women end up perpetuating the same patriarchal values through other women that made them powerless and agencyless in the past. Because no one wants to fight the popular narrative. Half the time, they don't even realize they are encouraging these narratives by not calling them out. They do it because that's how it's done, so it must be right. I am sure a lot of westerners also understand this issue. Not as black and white, is it? Layers upon layers. So better just sit down and learn. Deconstruct. Peel those layers and see what concepts are harmful and need to be gotten rid of.

Just look at Hinata stans. Their main flex is that Hinata is pretty and rich and fertile and has a superior bloodline. And so many girls and women worship her because of this. Do you really want this narrative to continue? Is it really good for women?

He is an author, he has no power over how his work will be interpreted? Seriously, this is your argument? Wow.

Except he DOES. He is a master actually. I can't go on about how stories are written because I am tired but let me say this, visual language and narrative building inherently depends upon psychology and perception. The stories are created to affect the audience a certain way, the creator controls all, he knows what buttons to push and how to push them. They know what they want the audience to feel, and so they go for it. That is why we have genres such as drama, comedy, horror etc. Because the creator knows that, that's what he wants to portray. You think Hitchcock went like - Damn, people were supposed to laugh at the shower scene in Psycho but instead they are afraid to go in their shower stalls??

Lol.

No. He intentionally designed it that way, so that that scene can create unholy terror in the minds of the audience. Btw, he used chocolate syrup to have effect of blood, just a random tidbit.

And yes, it's true that when Psycho was released and watched by people, they were scared shitless to go to their own bathrooms, especially women. You think that kind of visceral reaction comes out of oblivion? No. It's deliberately planned and executed to affect the viewer a certain way, as intended by the maker. If you actually pay attention and not daydream about your headcanons, you will easily get it. No desperate text and subtext bending required. It's clear as water already. Just use your head.

Lastly, Kishi doesn't need to say it in his interviews. What a pointless argument. I didn't watch Naruto for the interviews, I watched it and later read it for the story and characters. He wanted to tell me this story through his manga and I got it. Message received. I don't need to see his interviews to get the story. What, you read all the creators' interviews to grasp the meaning of their creations? Who says you have to? The story is supposed to be self-contained, that's how it's written. And this story is. I don't need any outside material to understand the story. And frankly the relevant outside material that I did find about Naruto, only strengthens SNS, heh. If 700 fucking chapters weren't enough for you to get the meaning of this story, no interview is going to help you, lol. Any person with average intelligence knows this. I don't know why Naruto fandom needs to be told this over and over. You aren't five. Grow up.

I don't mean to sound too harsh. But I have answered so many asks like this, it just gets annoying when people give the same non sensical, non-arguments to prove their point.

[silkylious]

“I love you. Truly, deeply, eternally.” (Lucifer x Reader)

fandom: obey me! shall we date?

pairing: lucifer x gn reader

warnings: angst, fluff (mildly lol), suggestive (nothing explicit though!), bittersweet, ambiguous ending (??), unedited 

wc: 2.1k

“Lucifer?” you called out to him on a whim, eyes trailing the seconds ticking away on his grandfather-clock.

“Yes?” he didn’t spare you a glance as he worked methodically through his second hill of paperwork; a heaping stack of duties assigned to him by Diavolo, endless bills–a consequence of Mammon’s latest spending spree, you ought to talk to him about those soon–and the sort piled neatly on his pristine desk, slowly but surely decreasing in size as Lucifer burned through the tedious task with unwavering efficiency. You felt exhausted just watching him work. Lucifer? He hadn’t so much as blinked more than three times in the past five minutes (yes, you counted). Obsidian sleeves rolled up just past his elbows, hair perfectly framing his face with one strand slightly out of place–hot–and a gentle crease between his brows (the only observable hint alluding to the mounting stress on his shoulders). He looked positively delectable, nothing like someone who’s been working diligently for hours without any breaks. But that just served as a testament to the fundamental difference between the two of you, you supposed.

“I’m in love with you,”

That made his meticulous fingers pause in their tracks.

“Pardon?”

As it turned out, his ears hadn’t, in fact, deceived him. You repeated the confession as if it weighed nothing on your tongue. You were strangely calm given the words you’d just blurted out; he almost didn’t recognize you. An unfamiliar shade of desperation painted all over your face, and yet your voice bared to him a serene conviction, one he’d never heard from you before. Lucifer’s heartbeat stumbled in your wake.

Basking in your courageous display just a second longer, he sighed. Too bad he’d have to mutilate such a pretty sight so soon.

That didn’t go exactly as he’d planned. The harsh rejection barely deterred you, leaving only a petulant pout on your lips and a promise that you’d come talk to him later.

Lucifer was anything but stupid. He knew that he let things stray too far between you, knew it was his fault for not pulling away from your kisses and instead indulging you (and himself) to the fullest. His fault for ignoring the guilt that settled deep in his gut like hunks of steel when you looked at him like he’d never experienced before. Lucifer had lived for many millennia, had relished the warmth of countless passionate lovers and faceless hookups, none of which had ever set him alight from the inside out like your adoring gaze had. It terrified him how after all these years, watching humans thrive and collapse over and over again, he thought he’d seen everything there is to see, all that humans had to offer. And then you come along, reinventing what love meant right before his eyes, with a simple look no less.

He never intended for you to fall in love with him, and he never intended to reciprocate. Had he been mortal, maybe things wouldn’t be so complicated. But life dealt a cruel hand, and he wasn’t. A relationship like yours was doomed to crumble in heartache from the start, it was best to stop it before things went too far. That was the plan anyway.

You didn’t share the same sentiment.

With one last exasperated sigh, Lucifer focused his attention back on his duties. He didn’t know how long he could hold up against your persistence, and honestly he preferred not to dwell on it. Whatever outcome lied for the both of you in the near future, itching one step closer with each tick on the clock, he’d face it head on when it was time.

Meanwhile, you laid wide awake, in your bed, rethinking every decision that led you here. You didn’t regret your confession, nor were you keen on giving up, but Lucifer’s ruthless rejection, his vehement claim that a relationship between a human and a demon is destined to end in tragedy festered a bud of doubt in you. You noted pettily that he hadn’t outright denied any feelings for you. How could he? Lucifer was many, ugly things but a liar’s not one of them; you wouldn’t believe him even if he did lie, not with how delicately he holds your hand in his gloved one, not with how heartbreakingly beautiful he was when he lets you in at his lowest, stripped completely of his pride.

You knew though, that as much as Lucifer was a creature of the past, he was a creature of regrets.

Somehow, you’d managed to reach the heart of the Avatar of Pride himself, bestowing a porcelain touch on it and subsequently rocking the monotony of his endless life. Despite the acknowledgment of both your feelings, you weren’t naïve enough to dismiss how his heart drums thousands of years apart from yours and would continue to do so long after yours gave its last valiant pump.

He was a creature of the past you realized; humans intently watch minutes, hours, years approach because there’s only so much of them live out, there’s only so much to do in a lifetime. Naturally it would be counterintuitive to waste scarce time on the past. The immortal have no such concern. When time is limitless, and life is all but a blur of recycled events, its only instinctive to lose interest in what’s to come. And you guessed, maybe there was a strange comfort in the predictability of eternity, maybe that’s why Lucifer was so offput by the notion of something serious yet temporary, especially romance.

You decided. You wouldn’t let him look back and ponder what ifs in that stubborn head of his, not while you were still breathing. With regained determination, you glanced one last time at your countertop alarm and entered a dreamless slumber.

Not even two days later, three consecutive raps on his door made Lucifer rub at his temples for the nth time and begrudgingly called for you to enter. Piled on his desk were several stacks of papers (as was the usual), though, that night he was in a particularly sour mood. Ever since your confession, he’d been feeling uneasy, Diavolo hurling more work at him last minute was only pushing him to his wit’s end.

“Lucifer,” he hummed in response, not bothering to conceal his growing agitation. “we need to talk,”

Ah, there it was. He was wondering when you’d confront him again.

“I believe I made myself quite clear last time,” he sighed, dropping his pen and finally meeting your eyes. “If this is about your feelings again then I’m sorry but I can’t–”

“But why? Can you really say that what we have isn’t special at all?” your lower lip quivered just a bit and Lucifer had to fight the immediate reflex of holding you close and hushing your worries. His impassiveness quickly arose frustration out of you. “God Damnit, Lucifer! All I want is to be with you while I still can! To die with no regrets, knowing you’ll be there with me, but it’s very fucking hard to do that when you’re too scared of the future to do something about–about us!”

It was a low blow to go after his pride, you knew that, but he wasn’t giving you much to work with.. Rubbing salt in a ghastly wound had certainly done the trick, the dimmed crimson that pooled just below his pupil began to shine scarlet. You would have found it gorgeous had it not been imbued with near murderous intent. Lucifer’s poker face was rapidly breaking, a horrid mix of anger and melancholy sat heavy in his throat. He was looking straight at you, but his eyes were somewhere else, some time else. He was staring hundreds of years behind you at an unhealed, poorly bandaged cut. An everlasting guilt he carried with him everywhere.

“What would you know about regret?” he breathed out the words like they’re bullets, whatever restraint he’d managed to scarp together deteriorating. He stepped closer, each stride bigger than the last as he closed the distance between you, a perfect diamond manifesting on his forehead and you could see the beginnings of black feathers sprouting from his back. “Do you have the slightest clue what a blessing mortality is? Do you have any idea how agonizing it is to live with your regrets and not be able to die with them?”

“You’re right. I don’t,” you stood your ground. “But, do you really want to live with one more regret to bear?”

He kissed you. He kissed you like he hated you, animosity and anger and pain and, most prominently, pining spilling from his lips. Lucifer parted from you just as quickly as he’d initiated the kiss, taking the time to let his irritation bleed out of him, until he was left grappling with (frankly terrifying) longing and adoration. Just this once, he’d take a leap of faith, he’d break his own rigorous code and take the risk of undying heartache in the future to be with you in the now.

One kiss turned into many, and soon you found yourselves stumbling your way from his office to his bedroom. He couldn’t get enough of you, the thought that some day he would be deprived of you broke him and made him yearn to cherish you just as much. Precious things aren’t meant for longevity, he learned. All the more reason to treasure them when given the chance. You were pushed onto his bed and not once did his hands and mouth and breath leave your skin; he couldn’t bear sever that connection.

Before long, your hands were pined to the mattress, fingers tightly laced with his as if he was petrified the moment will break and a thousand years would pass you by the instant he let go.

“I love you. Truly and deeply.”

Neither of you heard the clock strike midnight.

Lucifer was well-acquainted with sleepless nights. He was no stranger to the prick at the corner of his eye, excruciatingly familiar with midnight’s cold, lonely touch. But this one was different. Where usually lied a cool emptiness in his sheets, your warm, inviting body was just in reach. Where the corners of his mind were usually plagued by past mistakes and sorrowful repentance, you were all he could think about. He reflected on your words now that the high of emotions had worn off. He still disagreed with you on many things and, if he was being true to himself, it would take more than one night to abandon his reluctance, much more. But he was willing to put in his fair share of effort. He was willing to do many things for you, he mused. You were right about one thing though, regardless of whether or not he acted on his feelings, your parting would hurt all the same. Part of him was still resentful that he let himself fall so deeply in love with you, and a part of him knew it couldn’t be helped. You’d carved a home for yourself out of his heart, invited yourself in and declared pompously you’d be there to stay, and he’d be damned to hell all over again if he said he didn’t like that.

Pulling you closer to leech off your warmth, for the first time in forever, he dreamt of the future, a future with you.

Snapping out his reverie, Lucifer refocused his vision on the framed picture before him. It’s been a couple dozen years, the pain dulled into a hollow longing, and yet not a single regret weighed on his back. He was astonished, how you, who had lived but a fraction of his own lifetime, had such impeccable foresight. He lays in bed every night and morning thanking you for not giving up, knowing that if you had, he’d be spending the rest of his infinite days in self-loathing regret.

All Lucifer could ask for now is a little guidance. What was he to do now? Was he even capable of falling in love again after you? Would he allow it? All questions that began frequenting his head since you’re no longer there to occupy it. He only knew is that he’d love you, and love you, and love you until this world fell apart. He toyed with the idea of reincarnation. It certainly wasn’t out of the realm of possibility; he saw you in everything he did. Strange how you’d taught him more about appreciating every day’s mundanities than he had in the many eons he’s been alive. Lucifer wonders about the possibility of you donning the same white wings he once had back in the Celestial Realm. If you ever did, he wonders about the complications that would arise from that, he wonders if you’d even remember him. All Lucifer was left with was a simple truth. If you ever came back, whichever form you may take, he’d welcome you back into the adobe of his heart without a second thought.

He ran his thumb over your smile, a bittersweet acceptance in his own.

“I love you. Truly, deeply, eternally.”

Obey me! taglist: @katsucookie @strwbry-m1lk​ (you wanted to be tagged in this one lol) join my taglist here! <3

[onebizarrekai]

ok NOW I have time to talk about the v3 ending for a second and why the popular belief that the audition tapes were real is one of the most baffling things to me. don’t get me wrong, ‘pregame’ has the capacity to be an interesting au if done correctly, and there’s fun to be had with it, but the writing in the game does not actually encourage you to believe in its existence and it’s so odd to me that it’s taken as hard fast canon.

I mean, actually, you technically can check. I think this is the writing deliberately encouraging the player to revisit the prologue and see that the way tsumugi described it happening in the trial is not actually what happened.

number two, they claim that the prologue of the story began after they got their costume changes, which is also obviously not true. it started when they came out of the lockers in their ordinary school uniforms. (seems like tsumugi is indirectly trying to divert attention away from that point that the player has access to, claiming that it is not part of the story.)

shuichi specifically flashbacks to this moment. they go on for like three minutes talking about how everything tsumugi said could’ve been bs.

they literally end on that note of shuichi refusing to believe they auditioned, and very ambiguously too. they didn’t actually give anyone any incentive to believe what happened during the trial–in fact, they encouraged otherwise.

amidst all the ambiguity, the only lead the game really gives you is the one that tells you to replay the prologue to confirm where the characters can’t. the attention drawn to this particular inconsistency between the prologue and the final trial feels very purposeful, not to mention shuichi’s lack of belief towards it. the difference is glaringly apparent. like I said, it draws attention.

of course, they don’t resolve it at all and the whole game ends on a big maybe, but again, the only lead they give the player is revisiting the prologue. they want you to see how it’s inconsistent. the truth is not supposed to be set in stone.

there were a couple other things I wanted to mention.

one, prior to being refitted as ultimates in the prologue, all of the characters remembered being kidnapped. if they had willingly signed up for the killing game, why in the world would they need to be kidnapped? why would all of them seem so confused about what’s happening if they had knowingly auditioned for danganronpa? if they’d already had their memories wiped at that point to prepare them for new memories, why let them remember that they were kidnapped? it seems very convenient for tsumugi that nobody remembers anything from before they transformed into ultimates… but the player does.

even tsumugi’s explanation of the prologue flashback makes very little logical sense. if all of them really were fans of danganronpa in some regard, they would probably know right away that they were going to appear on the show; there wouldn’t be any room for confusion. if tsumugi’s account was even accurate in the slightest, and there was somehow some dialogue that was obstructed from the player during the prologue, it seems infeasible that it would take them so long to realize what was happening because they would have suspected it the moment they woke up in a dark, mysterious school and were asked to gather at the gym.

not to mention, why the heck would they show kaede and kaito’s audition tapes and not maki and himiko’s–y’know–the two other people that were actually there? it’s like this “evidence” was handpicked for the protagonist… oh wait.

two, ever since I noticed the implication that maki is not affected by flashback lights, it puts a whole new perspective on every story she tells in the game and even her placement and purpose in the killing game itself. I feel like this theory speaks for itself, especially when you take into account maki’s story about going to a convention (tsumugi in her natural habitat) to kill a target, and failing.

three, kinda.

all three of their school uniforms in their audition tapes are distinctly inconsistent with their sprites.

after I noticed shuichi’s, I was about to pass this off as another dumb artistic mistake, but then I checked kaede’s and kaito’s and found the same exact thing.

let me point them out if you can’t see them very well: shuichi has 3 buttons on his uniform, not 2, kaede has 1 stripe on her uniform and not 2, and kaito’s buttons are black on his shirt in his sprite and rather ordinary in the audition tape. also, shuichi’s shoes look light brown, even though they kinda match his hair on the sprite. the inside of kaito’s jacket collar is also white on the sprite, while it isn’t in the tape.

… I really wish I could say this is a striking observation and all, and possibly even intended to be proof that the tapes were fake, but also… I’ve made a post about the art inconsistencies in this game before. I failed to notice this one at the time, but v3 is not known for the quality and consistency of its art. a couple of kaede’s prologue cgs show her with two stripes as well. heck, the one of her being kidnapped up there is one of them. when I realized that all three of the audition tapes had inconsistencies with the official character designs, I got my hopes up a little… but we can’t win ‘em all, huh.

anyway, long story short, the epilogue implies one thing: it’s that 1) the prologue is different from how tsumugi explained it, 2) the player has the power to revisit it to confirm this, and 3) the game wants you to revisit it to confirm this, deliberately drawing attention to the incongruity of the two tales. the version of the prologue that the players see is not part of tsumugi’s grand story. last of all… it’s just my own theory about the game itself, but I think tsumugi was full of shit and the players were never supposed to take what she said as the simple truth to begin with, especially due to the narrative encouragement to distrust it.

it’s clear that the game planned for ambiguity and multiple interpretations and reception, thanks to all the ‘maybes’ it ends on… but isn’t it so strange that fans seem more willing to trust tsumugi’s contradictory account rather than the distrust of the main characters that has so much attention drawn to it? nobody knows what’s in the outside world… and that’s the point.

[thefools-journey]

So. Some of you may be wondering why we haven’t written a whole ton about the secondaries or what have you. Here’s the reason: we were waiting for them to end before we really dug into the problems we were noticing. We felt that it was only fair to wait for the routes to finish so that we had an understanding of the writers’ vision. Who knew, we thought, maybe they would see the problems themselves and course correct, maybe they are building to something we can’t quite see yet and these issues will have actual payoff, maybe-

In light of Muriel and Lucio’s endings, and the general mess that has dominated Portia’s route for a year plus now, we are breaking our silence. We are actually going to talk about this shit show.

The fandom at large has talked about a bunch of issues with the secondaries but for me, the cardinal sin, the thing that really all the issues lead back to, is this: the writers lost sight of the tarot themes which so strongly defined and held together the primary routes. Let me explain.

The primary routes each center around three thematic cores:

The Love Interest’s Major Arcana and its Reversed/Upright meanings

The MC’s Fool’s Journey, both how it can go right and how it can go wrong

A question about the MC’s identity and their relationship to said identity

Asra’s route asks: Who was the MC? How does the MC navigate a past they cannot and will not remember? What do they owe a past they cannot remember? How do they handle the revelations of what Asra, Nadia, Julian, etc did? How do you right the past? Can you?

Nadia’s route asks: Who is the MC? The MC has no past. Are they the Fool only? Are they actually the same person they were? How can they tell? Who are they, really? Are they an imposter? No one can answer these questions for them.

Julian’s route asks: Who will the MC become? How does the MC see their future? Is there anything worth fighting for for that future? What will become of them and their loved ones? 

Now, if you notice, these themes are expertly woven throughout the primaries. Asra’s past dominates his route, Nadia is also missing memories and trying to construct her identity both with her family and with Vesuvia, and Julian’s fear of the future drives his flailing for control. Asra has to learn to take a broader view of his actions to get his Upright Ending, Nadia has to learn to trust herself and those around her for hers, and Julian has to learn how to let go for his. These lessons are the issues their cards stand for. The primaries are so dang elegant and delicate in their handlings of theme it is honestly awe-inspiring.

Thematically, the secondary routes have completely lost their hearts. First of all, the MC does not have strong, core questions which need to be answered. They just don’t. I suppose the writers did not want to retread old territory (which is weird considering how tightly bound the primaries are; it really tricks you into thinking you’re living the same events but from different angles depending on your route) but they did not replace the old with anything new. Muriel’s route is, on the surface, about discovering and owning his past, the good and the bad. Why not tie MC’s self-discovery to that story? Or they could have taken the angle that Muriel’s route is about convincing him to be present and active in the world while MC builds an identity for themself outside of Asra, the shop, and the memories they cannot retrieve. Why not tie the investigation themes running through Portia’s early route back to MC and their past? Portia has the unique angle of being as in the dark as MC about all of this, why not discover the past together? And for goodness’ sake, Lucio has no future when his route begins, why not tie that to his need for growth, responsibility, and MC’s own future between the Fool, the Devil, or something mortal and in between?

Secondly, the routes lost their tarot backbone. We have a primer on how to get specific endings for each LI and it still holds, but the writers did not follow through on the thematic coherence of each secondary. The Hermit is looking for something, be it perspective, insight, a solution to a problem, whatever. The key here is that the Hermit must find or learn what they are searching for, this thing must change their understanding of the world, and finally, they must bring this lesson back to the world from which they retreated. Can someone please enlighten me as what exactly Muriel learns then teaches the world around him? Nothing Muriel learns from Morga, MC, or even the Hermit ties back into anything. The Devil warns that you are out of control and exerting a lot of manipulative, destructive behavior on the world around you. It asks you to take responsibility for yourself and your actions. So can someone tell me why Lucio’s route actively avoids any interaction or reflection on two of Lucio’s biggest victims: Muriel and Julian? Why does the route only try to make amends with the “easier” of his victims in the cast? The Star is first and foremost the card of clarity, the light at the end of the tunnel. Perseverance, if you will. Yet Portia’s route has been the muddiest of the trio; the writers drop the investigation aspect of her route in favor just handing her and MC information they could have easily found and muddying the waters with Tasya (she blows up the palace but it’s all okay bc she has a secret daughter Julian never thought to bring up or mention) and the complete removal of the Devil as antagonist. 

So that leaves just the Fool’s Journey trying to hold this stool up with only one leg. And well...it doesn’t go well. At best, the secondary route books pay the barest surface level homage to the themes of the individual cards. At worst, they ignore the cards completely. Muriel's Moon book has nothing to do with illusions or delusions or lies or even an Alice in the Looking Glass upside down world. Portia's back half is a complete and utter mess, starting with her Temperance book being so badly mangled that Muriel's aftermath book does it better. Lucio's route too bungles the Tower and the Star. There just isn't enough here to carry the routes alone.

Add to the core loss the loss of intertextuality. The primary routes are very good, even great but they too do have their moments and mistakes. What helps strengthen them when the cores stumble is how the trio is woven together. Things you learn in Asra's route can inform the way you play Nadia's, for example. Julian's route informs what is going on in Asra's route and slots some missing puzzle pieces together. Nadia's route tells you of the power struggles she is facing and informs the other two routes' handling of Julian and his trial. On and on, the three routes support each other because they are built out of the same basic plot beats, just tackled in very different ways. Now, the writers are allowed to try and write whatever they want. They apparently wanted to be more experimental and less tied down to an overarching plot with the three secondaries. Okay, fine, they are allowed to do that. The problem is that they sacrificed one of the key strengths of the primary trio and didn't replace said strength with anything else. They also, on some level, harmed the very premise of the game, which is that only the player's choices and route selected change the overall plot. Instead of feeling like legitimate possibilities or offshoots of the same timeline/plot, the secondaries feel almost like Arcana AUs. The secondaries throw out all relations to the primaries and each other as quickly as possible and for what? 

It is probably the height of arrogance to suggest fixes for works whose behind the scenes I do not know. At the same time, some small, obvious changes could have salvaged Muriel and maybe Lucio's endings (rip Portia). Instead of having the Hermit appear as a disappointing cameo, why not have him say something cryptic to Muriel, then have MC start trying to seal the Devil. Then let Muriel use his forget me mark to cloak MC and hide them from the Devil's attacks. Protecting MC by hiding them from Lucio, keeping him focused on Muriel, seems to me a simple third solution between Muriel's desire to run and his desire to never fight again. It lets him stand up to Lucio and let him have it while holding onto who Muriel has become. The Reversed End would have MC try to draw Lucio's attention at some point, disrupting the sealing, and eventually leading to Muriel killing the Devil. With Lucio's Upright End, I just have to ask: why doesn't MC fully claim the power of the Fool instead of the Devil? We don't need the other Arcana involved in this fight; we have three routes that demonstrate that. Just have MC pull Scout into the conflict, then have Lucio tell MC he believes in them, then add his power to the mix. You got yourself a full Fool who leaves Scout guarding the realm until they and Lucio's mortal bodies fail and they return to the realm to be together forever. Boom, you're done, you can even add some ambiguous lines so that players can decide how happy their MC is with this arrangement, send me the check.

Here is the bottom line. Our group is full of aroace, and several combinations therein, individuals. We are the last group who should have gotten into a dating sim of all things. But the Arcana did something with the primaries that was special; they wrote a compelling plot with dazzling lore, complex characters, and strong themes wrapped up in a dating sim bow. The writers know better and we know they know better. I do not know what happened with the secondaries, especially around books 10-11, which is where minor issues slowly start spiraling into major ones, but it is clear that Nix Hydra needed some more planning before they released these routes. Hopefully they will learn.

TL;DR: Nix Hydra fired their tarot consultants about eighteen months ago and it has wrecked their secondary routes until they were just embarrassments. They never intended for the secondary routes to even exist and once they had to make them, they scrambled and threw out everything that made the primaries work.

- Mod Telos