#anyway. sorry shes just a really compelling character

[sskk-manifesto]

Ep 5!!!

[sabertoothwalrus]

I’ve seen you post some labru stuff and I’m curious what your thoughts on it are. personally I don’t see it? I can buy Kabru having feelings for Laios, but I think Laios wouldn’t be interested in Kabru, so it makes me wonder why so many people ship them. (Tbh I feel like Kabru has more chemistry with Mithrun anyway)

Sorry if this ask sounds rude, I just genuinely don’t understand the appeal of the ship, but I want to understand and I trust your analysis of characters very much :] maybe there’s something I’m missing

I really like both ships, actually!

For labru, there’s sooooo much I could talk about. The inherent homoeroticism of being narrative foils. The inherent homoeroticism of being the king’s advisor. All of chapter 76. The fact that Kabru has mask upon mask upon mask, and Laios is the first person that made his facade absolutely crumble.

Kabru struggles with being genuine!!! Everything he says and does is so perfectly calculated, even when he sort of means it. But since Laios doesn’t get social cues, Kabru gets thrown for a loop.

I get so frustrated when people act like Kabru still hates Laios by the end of the manga!!!!! He killed those corpse retrievers for being corrupt, and yet he couldn’t bring himself to kill Laios. He has such a strong sense of justice, and knew that killing Laios would be a mistake. Because, after meeting him, he could tell he wasn’t actually evil. He’s strange, sure, but not evil.

Kabru DEFINITELY wants to be friends with Laios!! He was not lying about this!!!

But this last comic shows how much Laios wants to be friends with Kabru, too. He’s so nervous after calling Kabru his friend 😭 he doesn’t want to be presumptuous and fuck it up again.

Laios does show an interest in Kabru, at least when Laios thinks he’s interested in eating monsters too. Like,, what was up with THIS

Laios’s gaze is LINGERING. Plus, (this is before that bit at Thistle’s house when he forgets his name) he brings up Kabru when they first form their plan to eat Falin.

And maybe this is just because of my own personal experiences, but Laios reminds me a lot of my own girlfriend. I think they have a similar flavor of gay/aspec & autism combo where, had I not asked her out first, she probably never would have considered being interested in me. But she was very down when I did.

The tricky part about labru is more the political aspect. Regardless of whether you see Laios as aroace or not, he’s in a situation where he will probably get married. He had a fiancée before he was age 13, likely betrothed since he was a baby. He’s already comfortable with the idea of getting married because He’s Supposed To.

However, Laios is king, and could make gay marriage legal if he wanted to (He would probably do this for his sister and Marcille before considering it for himself ). But at the same time, I think Kabru would object to Laios making whatever policies he wants without considering the repercussions of how other kingdoms might react, especially when they’re just getting Melini off the ground and need lots of support from other countries. Laios and Kabru getting gay married anyway and dealing with the aftermath could make for a really compelling story.

I do think Kabru would be a good ruler. He’s already fit for it. He speaks a dozen languages, he knows people and their motivations, and likes politics. The manga already joked about Chilchuck’s daughters trying to marry a king, so it seems like noble blood isn’t too important, but Kabru’s foster family IS nobility. When it comes to heirs, I do like trans Kabru headcanons, but at the same time, I think it’d be cute if they adopt anyway. Kabru seems like he’d have strong feelings about adoption given,,, yknow.

The alternative version of labru to this is Laios gets straight married out of obligation, and Kabru is his mistress hdhdhshsj. I don’t know if I could see Laios doing that? or if Kabru would risk the scandal of being outed as Royal Advisor and Regent trying to seduce the king. It could go SO downhill. but maybe that would be fun.

NOW FOR KABUMISU.

I knew people shipped them, and I could see the basis for it while reading, but I wasn’t really sold on it until the very end. There’s something about “I had no desires left. I decided to create new desires, and one of them is you” that’s really charming.

There’s also something funny about “the demon ate my heterosexuality so I’m gay now”

I think it’s interesting that Kabru hates elves. He was raised by them, and he hates them. He hates feeling patronized by them. He made absolutely sure that elves wouldn’t take control over Melini, not just for his sake, but for Rin’s.

But Mithrun’s interactions with Kabru are founded on more mutual respect. Though, that’s not to say that Mithrun doesn’t still have his biases towards short lived races..

Where Laios doesn’t understand social cues, Mithrun does but just doesn’t care. For that reason, I think Kabru would enjoy spending time with Mithrun. It’d give him a break from his compulsion to calculate all of his social interactions. But at the same time, Kabru is the KING at bottling his emotions. Mithrun is blunt, but also doesn’t care enough to pry. If Kabru had anything bothering him, I could imagine him seeking Mithrun’s company to avoid thinking about it. Could make for a fun dynamic.

I do think it’s funny that Milsiril 1) took care of Mithrun for potentially 20 years and 2) is only four years older than him. I imagine this could lead to funny situations.

I don’t ship things for no reason! I think both of these could work platonically, romantically, one-sided, or even “requited but they don’t do anything about it.” Their relationships compel me and I think it’s sort of bad faith to brush off either like they’re nothing more than baseless yaoi pair-the-spares. To me, I see just as much of a foundation in the source material as farcille.

After all, dungeon meshi isn’t a story about romance, but it IS a story about love. It’s a story about life and death and grief and the love that comes with it. Regardless of shipping, these characters love each other!!! And I love talking about it!!

[mia-can-yap-too]

Goal to Your Heart

(Blue Lock dating show, P.2)

What?:- The Blue Lock boys come onto a dating show called ‘Goal to Your Heart’ where they try to outshine each other to win the heart of Y/n L/n. In this segment, our host will ask them why they think they should be the one to date her! 

Warnings:- crack, otoya comments weird stuff under peoples posts, karasu is caught in 4k saying gay stuff

(P.1) , (jjk ver.)

Otoya Eita

“Everybody, give it up for Mr. Otoya Eita, the Ninja!”

There is a modest applause from the audience.

“Yo,” he says as he holds up peace signs.

“Let’s dive right in! What about Ms.L/n compelled you to come on to this show?”

He scratches his chin a bit before answering. “Ever since I saw her, I felt like I just knew that she was the one. My freak was matched instantly, man, no girl has ever done that before.”

The host raises his brow. “The one, you say? That’s a pretty big claim, Mr.Otoya.”

Otoya just nods, as if he did a great deal of thinking. “Yeah, my guy. Her vibes were immaculate, man, immaculate.”

“Do you even know what that word means?” A pre-recorded laugh from the audience resounds.

“Uh..”

“Anyways! Since you said that she was the one, can you explain this photo then?”

On the screen, a screenshot of the replies to an instagram post of a bikini model appears. A highlighted comment from ‘@all_the_huzz_luv_eita’ says ‘Step on me, Mami’ (a/n:- i took this from the replies of a sydney sweeny post btw)

Otoya’s eyes widen. “My…account got hacked, I don’t remember commenting that.”

The host doesn’t look like he believes him, and continues with a coy smile. “I’m guessing you didn’t comment these either?”

Four more screenshots of replies from the same account, all of the same nature.

“ ‘Call me a dog the way I be lickin’ it’,” reads the host.

“Umm….”

“ ‘Not a magician but I can make your period disappear for nine months’.”

“Uh…”

“ ‘I don’t have a car but I could take you for a ride’, really, Mr.Otoya?” asks the host.

“I never said loyalty was my strong suit, okay?!”

Karasu Tabito

“A round of applause for the Crow, Karasu Tabito!”

He smirks confidently as the audience cheers and hoots for him.

“Hello, everyone.”

“Right, so Mr.Karasu, tell us more about yourself!”

He chuckles. “Well, I like football, obviously and I would say that I’m quite smart and observant too, it’s not much, but it’s better than others *cough* Otoya *cough*”

The host has mirth in his eyes. Drama, that’s what we like to see. “You’re right, it isn’t much, haha! Anyways, how about we watch some clips from Blue Lcok TV?”

Karasu looks a bit confused but he goes with it. “Sure, if yer want to.”

A clip of Karasu shooting an impressive goal is on the screen.

“Incredible work, Mr.Karasu,” comments the host.

Another clip of him is on the screen now. A clip of him commenting on a pass of a teammate.

“That left leg pass was super sexy,” says the Karasu in the clip.

The Karasu in real life scratches his head, not being able to look at the cameras. “That was…a moment of weakness…”

Another clip comes on, this time Karasu is saying, “Forcing it through a small hole, huh? I like the sound of that.”

His face is red with embarrassment.

“Do you know your family watched this? What do you think about that?”

“I think I hate this fucking show.”

a/n:- this has been sitting in my drafts as a WIP for wayy too long. I dont like the way it turned out and the last time i wrote it was like 2 months ago AND it was supposed to have way more characters than just these two. but im tired of looking at this in my drafts and sick of pretending im gonna work on it. sorry yall

[stardustamaryllis78]

Hey, do you guys remember when these two were actually compelling characters?

Yeah, neither do I.

Bait is by far the most interesting character of these three and I'm not even joking.

But lets start at the beginning shall we?

Let's start off with Callum, the protagonist.

He is the son of Queen Sarai and step son of King Harrow 🐦 and the big brother of Prince or King Ezran, depends on which part of the show you're on. I guess spoiler if you haven't got past episode 3 where Pip dies and Harrow is forced to eat bird food for the rest of his life. (I have MASSIVE feelings about that "plot twist" but that's a potential post for another day.)

He struggles with the idea of being a prince because he believes he's not good at horse riding and sword fighting, things a prince should be good at.

Ignore the horse, Bait is the one clearly in charge, Callum doesn't know what he's doing.

All (kind of) jokes aside, he was dorky without being too annoying and him getting the Sky Primal Stone which in turn allowed him to use Sky magic which made him feel like he was for once good at something was interesting to watch, especially after he had to smash it to hatch a dying Zym and learn the Sky Arcanum through other means. A good well rounded character.

Then we have Rayla, who used to be one of my favourite characters.

Not anymore.

She was originally so snarky, sassy and feisty but in such a fascinating kind of way. She also had a kind and gentle heart and would do anything to help those in need. Plus, she had the inner struggle of being an assassin who cannot kill but that didn't really matter because she used her skills for the greater good anyway.

Its a shame her first and only kill in the show came in the form of herself.

Character assassination at its finest.

How did Rayla go from this:

To this:

Best Dragonguard of the century guys 👏

From a girl who would do anything to help others in need, even a dragon that would torch tons of innocent people to legit turning her back on a dragon in distress. This is not Rayla.

But how did it come to this you may ask? Well curious Tumblr reader, I have one simple answer. One simple answer that will burn so much of The Dragon Prince's fandom down and will cause an all out riot but let me just tell you, I'm speaking nothing but the truth.

The answer is:

Rayllum

Yep! Them becoming a duo literally murdered their characters and I still o7 them to this day 🫡

What was once two interesting characters who found solace in each other and set off together (and Ezran was there as the third wheel) to stop a war spanning centuries became a poorly written soap opera.

So where did it go wrong?

I'm gonna sound like a broken record in saying SEASON 4 📢 HAHA!

But no, not season 4, it was actually before that.

It starts with Rayla leaving Callum the nicest birthday present anyone could give someone - ghosting them.

Now you'd think that Rayla would at least wait a day or two after Callum's birthday so he can have an enjoyable day first but nope! She decides to dip on whats supposed to be a happy day for him and make it miserable. What a woman! 👏

Now you could be saying to me, "But she needed to go with full urgency!" To which, no she did not. She went because it was a mission of revenge, something she LITERALLY said herself so she could have waited a few days but she chose instead to make someone she's supposed to love miserable on a day of happiness.

But okay, she dips and leaves Callum sad and miserable on his birthday. Surely when she returns, she apologizes right?

...Right?

I don't think arc 2 Rayla would understand the word sorry if it bit her right up where the Moon don't shine.

Anyways, its two years later (Yes, you heard me, two years) and Rayla decides to finally unghost Callum.

Now, Callum is understandably upset with Rayla after taking off on his birthday and leaving without saying goodbye. So whats Rayla's stance on this? Is she understanding?

Of course not, this is arc 2 Rayla we're talking about.

Imagine letting the guy she let down have some room to sort things out in his head. Crazy right?

But anyway, he eventually relents to Rayla because she won't shut up in typical Rayla fashion and they both snooze on the couch.

This kind of soap opera drama goes on for THE ENTIRE SEASON while they just gradually "make up" and its just such contrived conflict. Especially as nothing came of Rayla leaving for those two years and it happened off screen.

Plus, her not taking accountability for her actions is a big deal.

Sadly the writers did it with this ship. ^

I love Red Herring story lines that are spent so much time on and are SUPER built up only to have literally no impact on the plot whatsoever. 🤗

Loved wasting my time on the Dark Magic Callum story line.

BUT HEY, he did get some great looking tooth-paste in his hair! 🪥 Looks great on you Callum. 🤥

Now however, I must talk about the most beloved of all seasons and no, I don't mean season 6 or 3.

Clearly I'm referring to season 7, aka, facing sucking the season.

Like seriously, if I ate a Moonberry Surprise every time Callum and Rayla snogged, I'd end up needing medical attention.

That's not the offender I'm talking about though. It's Rayla's super selfishness and Callum choosing her over his grieving brother.

Somehow, the writer's thought that was okay.

Remember, this is the same girl who left him for 2 whole years to put her need of revenge before his feelings.

Callum betrayed his brother for her.

But it's not even just that, it's just the selfish nature of Rayla in season 7. Ezran has just had Katolis burnt to a crisp, and all she can think about is herself and her own needs. Ezran's feelings? They don't matter. As long as she's happy, that's fine.

I don't even want to talk about them all buddying up in the Silvergrove happily while Ezran is still dealing with Katolis' fallout.

Plus remember, at this point, Callum still believes that Runaan killed Harrow. I get forgiving someone but bro is literally choosing the guy who assassinated the guy who raised him over his grieving brother. It's actual insanity to me.

There is much more I have missed but I have reached my Rayllum limit for the day. This ship is as fun as watching paint dry so I want to do something that is going to actually bring me joy.

Have a good day everyone! Peace! 🫡

[tanoraqui]

you’ve heard of Her Divine Highness Gideon the First, First Daughter of the House of God, and all the compelling, often Fake Dating-laced AUs that might follow. But have you considered...Gideon Jr. Dve, favored daughter of the First, heir of Gideon the First, Saint of Duty?

the timeline diverges at 2 points:

Gideon (ours) inherits her mother’s perfectly normal dark brown eyes

Gideon (lyctor) follows the escape pod to Ninth House, arrives to find Wake’s corpse and living baby, to the bemusement of all the locals is like, “yes, that’s mine” and takes said baby back to the Mithraeum to confess his sins and beg forgiveness

the conversation that follows goes like this:

Gideon 1: I am so sorry, John, I don’t know what came over me, Wake was just...really hot. She’s dead now. But, um, this is our daughter, and I feel duty-bound to raise her, or at least see that she’s raised well - but it’s your call, of course (again, I’m sorry for sleeping with the enemy for over a decade)

JohnGod, vibrating at a frequency known only to necromantic immortals who maybe swallowed a sun or something: N I E C E ? !

Augustine, Mercy, and maybe Cytherea, exchanging frantic eye contact behind the other two’s heads: Is that the baby? / I don’t know! I thought you were keeping track of it! / I don’t know! Can’t you tell!? / Are they keeping it? / What the fuck are we going to do about this?!

So, Gideon (Jr.) grows up in the Mithraeum, which needless to say is a fucking weird place to grow up. 

this au is dependent on the assumption that none of these millennia-old necromancers can identify the thanergic/thalergic weirdness of the biological daughter of God on slight, so, just accept that. Maybe children of lyctors (I refuse to believe there haven’t been any before) are a little Like That anyway? The Conspirators do learn the truth pretty fast, DNA test or something, but they quickly decide that stealing the baby and running for the Ninth is a terrible plan, and G1deon and God have to let her out from underfoot eventually. They’ll wait.

the Ninth had already named her Gideon. Gideon 1 tries to change this, but alas, his terrible immortal friends all think it’s hilarious and call her Gideon Jr, or “Junior” or “Giddy” for short.

Cytherea is undoubtably the Cool Aunt, and also Giddy’s first crush

(neither Mercy nor Augustine want to touch children on account of potential stickiness, ruling them firmly out)

JohnGod makes so many Godfather jokes in a terrible Italian mobster accent, which Giddy then imitates with equal inability to mimic an accent, which either produces something completely unrecognizable as old-Earth Italian mobster OR somehow loops back around to being a perfect impression of Don Corleone

Pyrrha tries to resist the urge to check in, but fails, particularly around bedtime (usually a private father/daughter tucking-in ritual). Giddy, with the uncomfortable insight for a toddler, quickly grasps that Sunglasses Dad is a different persona than Normal Dad. Sunglasses Dad swears her to utmost secrecy about this, and she keeps the oath...almost entirely

she does let it slip to Normal Dad, who...

listen, G1deon has been concealing his mysterious lapses in awareness from God and his fellow lyctors for centuries; he’s not going to stop now. And he MUST have had suspicions about what caused them; he’s not an idiot. But he would, I think, be a responsible father. 

So when 7yo Gideon Jr. lets slip about her interactions with Sunglasses Dad - which she definitely doesn’t realize is a whole different person; she probably thinks it’s a weird character her dad acts as sometimes, like how Uncle God will play pretend as a mobster, pirate, horse, etc. When Gideon Jr. lets slip, Gideon Sr. sits her down with his daughter, gets her to tell him about Sunglasses Dad, and admits that, uh, yeah, sure, it’s a fun game they play together, and still very secret from everyone else...and if ‘Sunglasses Dad’ ever makes her feel scared, or god forbid hurts her, she should run away and find Uncle God and tell him everything immediately. 

(Because he has suspicions, he must have suspicions, especially at this point...but just in case he’s wrong, he’ll confess to this centuries-old secret rather than let any harm befall his daughter. It’s the only right thing to do.)

Some Actual Plot Maybe, IDK?:

when Gideon Jr. is 13, her father finally agrees to enroll her in the Cohort Academy for Gifted Officers-To-Be, or whatever its called. Gideon Sr. has a quiet word with the current head of Second House and Gideon Jr. enrolls incognito, and rolls up to this place with

- sword skills trained since birth with fucking lyctors

- an uncanny ability to survive should-be-deadly wounds

- the social skills of someone who has never spoken with anyone under the age of several millennia

- probably slightly more respect for, like, the concept of authority/order/duty/not being a smartass 24/7 than the canon Gideon we know and love...BUT she has also literally never suffered a consequence in her life, and...you know how Miles Vorkosigan’s insubordination habits are based partly in that for the first 18 years of his life, his commanding officers, essentially, were 2 of the most competent people on Barrayar? God Himself used to give Gideon horsey rides. Gideon might try, politely, to be impressed by the commander-instructor glaring at her personally, but she is...not.

- gay

[insert a full YA novel’s worth of coming-of-age shenanigans here, absolutely ft. Judith Deuteros and Marta Dyas as soon-friends]

AND THEN ONE DAY, JOD SENDS OUT AN INVITATION to the heir of the Nine Houses inviting them to the First...

now, Gideon does not have a single drop of necromantic ability. She never has. So she wants to be a cavalier so bad...

but even Gideon, sword bimbo that she is, couldn’t grow up with The lyctors and not notice that... Well, no one really talks about their cavaliers, except when Mercy and Augustine fight about them. There is a grieving, sucking wound where every lyctoral cavalier should be.

she still tried so hard to be one. Judith very nearly agreed to have her even over <3Marta<3 (whom they were both madly crushing on). Then Gideon had one of her rare meetings with her father (he’d swing by the Cohort Academy sometimes and they’d get lunch), and told him about it all excitedly, and he flatly forbade it. And then he went over her head and flatly forbade it to the Cohort. 

so there’s something Weird going on there, or at least there’s something being unfairly forbidden to Gideon like birds are forbidden to the indoor cat staring out the window, eagerly lashing its tail. 

so she hatches a Plan:

- 1. Stow away on Judith & Marta’s ship to Dominicus - 2. ??? - 3. Profit!

when she sees Cytherea there, she thinks, Oh shit, I’m busted.

fortunately, she’d waited until everyone else had disembarked and gone inside before she snuck off the ship, so Cytherea doesn’t see her. So now it’s up to Gideon to sneak around, make friends with the heirs of the Houses, and recruit them into helping her not get caught by her aunt! Who she assumes is here specifically to catch her out...or maybe to covertly oversee the trials...? Hey what is up with this place anyway?

(It’s fortunate because as soon as Cytherea sees Gideon, she’s going to change her plan to “kill everyone immediately, except Giddy, whom I take to the Ninth and exsanguinate to open that damn tomb.”)

(Unfortunately, once like 5 people have died, Gideon is likely to honorably reveal herself in order to ask Cytherea for help, because CLEARLY something has gone terribly wrong. This can’t really be part of the trials, right? Uncle God wouldn’t do that.)

[districtunrest]

ONGOMGOMGOMG. (share thoughts. any n all. you know i need to know. PLEASE!)

HAHA sorry. anyway:

I didn’t really like it and I’m sad about it. ☹️ even though there were some interesting ideas and cool new characters, I was taken out of the story too much to fully enjoy them. it read to me like the laziest (most rushed? least edited?) yet most forced storytelling of the series, which sucks bc it’s supposedly the REAL backstory of my favorite character. but I just couldn’t shake my doubt while reading that this was what we and Katniss were missing all along. too many details (that I memorized by heart as a tween and have made everyone’s problem since) didn't match up, even with the card-stacking*. so I just don't believe this was always the intended ‘real’ story when it’s so hidden from the trilogy... imo, SC went back to it with a mission statement in mind after recent current events (and, more tellingly, after Ballad) and did her thing. which is fine, that's her right - it's just, when this whole book seems more like a writing workshop thought experiment than the intended backstory, I will treat it as such. bc as it stands, all the callbacks & connections & Everlark parallels in the world cannot replace Katniss & Peeta watching the highlight tape of his Games, Haymitch telling them what he did was “almost but not quite” as bad as them with the berries, Katniss finally understanding who he is in that moment, and Haymitch later admitting the loss of his loved ones were because of "that stunt [he] pulled with the forcefield" (which is. simply not true anymore with all of his stunts in and out of the arena). like say no more, that’s good enough for me! it’s what I prefer and what I find more compelling than what’s revealed/subverted in Sunrise. and tbh that discrepancy makes Sunrise unfaithful, at least in my eyes, for all it relies on references to the rest of the series. 

now, obviously I had mixed feelings about this prequel in the first place, and my concerns/reservations mounted with each excerpt, only to be confirmed now... but I did try, okay!?? haha I’d told you and several others privately that I really wanted to like this book and I was willing to set aside my gripes if it was good - but it had to actually be good! instead, the book was exactly what I was afraid it was going to be *and* suffered a drop in quality. I found the narration underwhelming, dumbed down and repetitive, and not evocative of Haymitch's voice. even things I thought there was NO WAY would actually happen and I was just being paranoid - but then they did, lmao. like, it was a letdown for me personally *and* it didn’t even do it well enough where I could at least respect it and oblige, lol

overall, it was just too off for me. by answering and explaining so much, it ended up taking away a lot of the trilogy's charm and intrigue - and did so in a way that left a bad taste in my mouth. it made me view Ballad in a more negative light, too, tbh. so I think going forward I’ll just consider it a weird spinoff that is secondary to the main/trilogy canon. 🤷🏻‍♀️

(some more Haybitching under the cut)

tbh, what guts me the most is what SC chose to do with Haymitch’s voice & character, where she watered him down to what he needed to be for this lesson & this plot. it’s frustrating that the dangerous, cunning, arrogant boy that Katniss sees in the highlight reel and can easily recognize in adult Haymitch is all an act. the character we thought we knew is not present here, sacrificed to make yet another point about propaganda, and that’s a crying shame. and his deterioration in the final chapters is so underwhelming (as are the death scenes 🫣) - I've read that same story countless times but told better by people who love the character as is and weren't on a time crunch for a movie deal, I guess.

Sunrise!Haymitch skews shockingly immature and moralistic and hates the idea of being a sarcastic, selfish “rascal." but since when are we calling surviving and fighting to get home in an unthinkable situation selfish? that’s now assumed in Sunrise’s logic, where instead having a ginormous alliance against the Careers with no exit plan (big ‘WHAT IF ALL THE TRIBUTES BANDED TOGETHER AND DIDN’T FIGHT?’ energy) is much smarter and nobler than going it alone and heading in one direction to get to the edge for no reason other than bc nobody had tried it before and trilogy!Haymitch, we know, is an out-of-box thinker & strategist. I know he & Ambert were operating under the notion that they were going to lose no matter what and had their own plans (which. hmm) but it was just so oddly accepted by the Newcomers, too, who had no such threat from Snow. they were so willing to be selfless martyrs and band together when they all know at the end of the day there can only be one survivor - which was heartening in a way, sure, but it almost seemed trite? and again, needlessly moralistic in an established world like Panem, where these things happen every year...? not even self-righteous (Katniss' words but with Haymitch's backing!) Peeta 'not a piece in their games' Mellark thought so narrowly. Idk. I might have to mull that one over more. but anyway, then Haymitch trying to rescue Maysilee is turned into a mini redemption arc in post, when all it was in the first place was a glimpse into his protective & caring nature underneath all the bravado, which was surely part of Katniss’ deepening understanding of him. but Sunrise wasn’t interested in exploring that, either, or even honoring it. okay

and I can’t get over how SC had to kind of retcon the final pages of Mockingjay to fit Haymitch’s epilogue into it, which didn’t help how it already rang so hollow for me, I hate to say. it’s not even done well, containing the most rushed, wrap-up-everything-before-the-deadline writing I’ve ever seen from SC (and it STILL doesn’t read like Haymitch’s voice to me :/). some things can just be; they don’t need some big, loaded, tragic explanation. Haymitch can glibly call Katniss ‘sweetheart’ once, bc she’s been sullen & hostile to him and he is in fact sarcastic (the horror!), only for it to go on to become an actual term of endearment by the end - like, that’s lovely in and of itself. why weigh it down further? who asked for that? I know I didn’t. 

most insignificantly & pettily of all: geese do mate for life - as in monogamously, meaning they stay together until one of them dies. then, they mourn and find another mate. just putting that out there, lmao

*how tf was Haymitch able to kiss his token and set up a bomb and throw it over the edge and put his token back when we know he was convulsing from shock by the end? to where Silka was able to start staunching her wound as she waited for him to die? if him going into shock was taken from footage anytime after, the arena would've been quaking/on fire around him?? Idk fam. it just feels off.

[humanmorph]

this scene makes me feel like i hit my head really hard

transcript by Iris (sacredwhim)

Jack: I did think that another major problem that we don’t need to get into unless we are compelled to is that Gucci Garantine has some news for Brnine, I think.

Austin: Oh, that’s true.

Ali: [chuckling] Oh, sure.

Austin: Yeah! I mean, does that news—

Janine: [singsong] She’s engaged!

[Austin laughs] [Jack chuckles]

Sylvi: Oh my god.

Austin: She’s engaged with another mission, yeah, uh-huh. She has another engagement to deal with, yeah.

[Janine laughs] [Ali giggles]

Austin: Yeah, I think that that maybe comes in the middle of this—

Jack: In the middle of movie night?

Austin: [cross] In the middle of movie night. Gucci doesn’t know it’s movie night.

Jack: No.

Austin: Wait, did you invite Gucci to movie night?

Ali: I tend to, but.

Sylvi: Oh my god.

Austin: You tend to?

Ali: [laughs] Yeah. I have in the future. Check the transcripts.

Jack: This is a question about Gucci Garantine now. Which is, would Gucci—

Janine: Has she ever once shown up?

Jack: Oh, yeah.

Austin: That’s a great question. We’ve seen—Gucci showed up when Brnine had come back from the combustor, right?

Jack: Oh, there was that lovely scene, yeah.

Keith: Was that movie night?

Austin: Well, the—

Ali: Well, that was a hospital bed movie night. That was Thisbe gave me a laptop that I was watching movies on.

Austin: That—right. That’s exactly right. Yes, exactly.

Jack: Would Gucci deliver this news in person?

Austin: Or in emojis? I think in person.

Jack: [laughs] Witch in Glass, devil face, thumbs up, exclamation point.

Austin: [laughs] Oh… Oh, it’s chaos to have her here. Which might be right. Halfway through the first movie, you know? She lands in some sort of hover flier.

Jack: It’s like, red.

Austin: Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Cool red hover bike.

Ali: [snickers] I just had this whole scene of everybody hanging out, and in the middle of it you’re gonna be like, yeah, every character is gonna fight with each other now.

[Jack laughs]

Ali: [laughing] Do we have to?

Austin: Well, maybe it’s the end of the second—well, I get a scene.

Ali: Sure. [laughs]

Austin: [chuckles] Maybe it’s the end of the second movie where she shows up late. She shows up late. She’s at the very end, she didn’t—she came anyway.

Keith: Flashback to her saying “I’ll be there on time.”

Austin: Exactly that.

Keith: “I guarantee it.”

Austin: “I guarantee it. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

Ali: Well…

Keith: “I Gucci guarantee it.”

Janine: And also, it’s Brnine’s birthday.

[Ali laughs]

Keith: And also Brnine’s got a little card that they’re looking at that says “I never will hire Clem.” [laughs]

Austin: [laughing] That’s right. Oh… Gucci shows up with popcorn-flavored wine.

Keith: And wine-flavored popcorn.

Austin: [laughing] And wine-flavored popcorn.

Jack: This is from the Mirage, right?

Sylvi: She’s that Patti Harrison character from I Think You Should Leave. “I can’t watch movies without popcorn!”

Austin: “I didn’t know if I should bring a red or a white, so I brought both.”

Janine: I would try the wine-flavored popcorn. I would not try the popcorn-flavored wine.

Jack: I’d try both.

Ali: Oh, opposite. Opposite.

Keith: I feel like shitty chardonnay is already popcorn-flavored wine.

Austin: Mhm.

Austin (as Gucci): Oh, I’m sorry, did I—have I missed it?

Ali (as Brnine): No, no, come in. You kind of missed it.

Austin (as Gucci): Hey, hi everybody. Hello.

Jack (as Movie Night Attendant): Hi.

Austin (as Gucci): I haven’t met some of you, I’m Gucci. I’m the commanding officer.

Dre (as Levi): Oh, hey, yeah, we talked on the phone.

Austin (as Gucci): Right, yes, you did show up with all of the food and supplies. Thank you. Levitation, right?

Dre (as Levi): Yep.

Austin (as Gucci): Sorry, should we hit pause on the movie or should I just talk over it?

Keith (as Eclectic): Pause.

Austin (as Gucci): I appreciate it.

Ali (as Brnine): Yeah, uh-huh.

Austin: Didn’t give a thumbs up. She wouldn’t give a thumbs up, but she nods. She says,

Austin (as Gucci): I appreciate it. Can I talk to you for a second, Brnine? I brought popcorn-flavored wine and wine-flavored popcorn for everyone.

Ali (as Brnine): Um…

Austin (as Gucci): For movie night.

Ali (as Brnine): Right. If this is a work thing, can we finish the movie?

Austin (as Gucci): No, it’s not a work thing. It’s just—

Jack: I have never heard a bigger lie.

[Ali laughs]

Dre: We’ve had some doozies on this show.

Austin: Yeah. Don’t forget that this is a relationship built on lies.

[Ali laughs]

Janine: It’s a personal thing that just happens to be in the context of work.

Austin: That’s exactly right.

Dre: Mhm.

Ali (as Brnine): Um, sure, yeah. You guys can put the movie back on.

Austin (as Gucci): I’ll be right back.

Sylvi: I am not watching the movie. I am watching those two.

Austin (as Gucci): We’re just gonna step out into the…

Austin: Where is the movie night? ’Cause didn’t it used to be in Phrygian?

Ali: No, no.

Austin: Oh, it was not in Phrygian.

Sylvi: It was always a rec room.

Austin: It was just the regular room.

Ali: My funny—my quarters that I was able to add to the ship is the media center.

Sylvi: My funny quarters.

Austin: Sorry, are we gonna call it “my funny room”? My funny quarters?

[Keith and Ali laugh]

Keith: My funny little room.

Ali: It’s what I get for not having magic. I get to add a room to the—

Sylvi: Yeah. A sound system.

Jack: My Funny Valentine except it’s My Funny Room.

Austin (as Gucci): Can we just talk in…

Ali (as Brnine): Yeah, yeah. You’re here to watch the movie though, right?

Austin (as Gucci): Yeah, absolutely. Which one is it?

Ali (as Brnine): ’Cause it’s a movie night.

Austin (as Gucci): Yeah, well, I’ve seen a lot of movies, so.

Ali (as Brnine): Right. Well, they’re movies.

Austin (as Gucci): Yeah.

Keith: You can keep watching them. [laughs]

[Ali laughs]

Dre: There’s always new ones.

Austin (as Gucci): The, um… The council has need of me.

Ali (as Brnine): [cross] This is a work thing.

Austin (as Gucci): It’s not. This part isn’t. I’m gonna be busy, so I wanted you to know that I would—it would be hard to get in touch with me, probably, for a little bit. Which is not just a work thing.

Ali (as Brnine): Right. Well, yeah. Well, um, sure. I mean, I’ll talk to you, then. When I can talk to you, I mean.

Austin (as Gucci): They—from here, after movie night, I have to go to the Crown of Glass.

Ali (as Brnine): Why?

Austin (as Gucci): This Crown of Glass, not the Crown of Glass that’s—not the planet. ’Cause there’s that now.

Ali (as Brnine): What planet?

Austin (as Gucci): There’s—the Twilight Mirage—did you not get a chance to look at the files on it?

Ali (as Brnine): No, I’ve been kind of busy.

Austin (as Gucci): You don’t have to get snippy with me. We sent over a folder with information. It should have been in with the food, which we also sent you, [quietly] which I wasn’t supposed to do.

Ali (as Brnine): Mhm. No, I was gonna look at it tomorrow.

Austin (as Gucci): Do you know about Lucia? We captured Lucia. Whitestar. Lander One?

Ali (as Brnine): Oh.

Austin (as Gucci): The second in line to the throne of the Principality.

Ali (as Brnine): When did that happen? I thought we weren’t doing any engagements because of the whole frizz.

Austin (as Gucci): Well, there were assets on the move already…

Ali (as Brnine): What assets?

Austin (as Gucci): Allied assets, as it turns out. Clementine’s assets.

Ali (as Brnine): [sighs]

Austin (as Gucci): And so, in order to—you have to understand. They’re sending me because they don’t trust her, but they trust me, and I trust you, and so I know I can trust you to run the Blue Channel with me gone, and I need you to trust me to run Clementine.

Ali (as Brnine): Why are you doing that?

Austin (as Gucci): That’s a great question. It’s, um…

Ali (as Brnine): No, but you’re gonna get hurt, or like—like, she’s a bad person.

Austin (as Gucci): Clementine is a—you’re telling me that Clementine Kesh is a bad person.

Ali (as Brnine): Yes. No, like—but she is, but like—like, you know that.

Austin (as Gucci): Of course I know it. Of course I know it.

Ali (as Brnine): Then why are—what are—

Austin (as Gucci): Sometimes you have to—[frustrated stammering] sometimes—

Ali (as Brnine): Sometimes you have to work with bad people.

Austin (as Gucci): Well, sometimes you have to work with dangerous people. You—hm. I helped defend your crew when you put a Branched on it.

Ali: [laughs incredulously]

Jack: [laughing] Ooh!

Sylvi: [softly] Yo…

Jack: Woah, Gucci big swing.

Sylvi: Pass me the wine-flavored popcorn.

Janine: Not the play… [groans]

[Art laughs]

Jack: Holy shit.

Austin (as Gucci): Didn’t I? And that turned out great.

Ali (as Brnine): I’m… I’m sorry, did you, like, know that Figure died?

Austin (as Gucci): Figure died?

Ali (as Brnine): [scoffing] Oh my god. Oh my god…

Austin (as Gucci): But Figure wasn’t—Figure wasn’t Branched.

[Jack chuckles]

Ali (as Brnine): [muffled] Oh my god.

Austin (as Gucci): Is everything—are you okay?

[Ali laughs]

Austin (as Gucci): Is—are you okay? Maybe me leaving isn’t—maybe you need me here.

Ali (as Brnine): No.

Sylvi: Oh my god.

Austin (as Gucci): I’m, um… I’m sorry. I know Figure was an important part of the crew. I know Figure was loyal. There had been some doubts, but I always knew Figure was—Figure seemed loyal.

Ali (as Brnine): [seething] Yeah, Figure seemed loyal. I really think that the thing people liked the most about Figure was that they were loyal.

Austin (as Gucci): I know you’re mad, but I feel like it’s misplaced. This wasn’t my idea.

Ali: [chuckles] That’s a crazy lie. [laughs]

Art: You’re so far into this relationship to learn that Gucci sucks.

[Ali laughs]

Art: Sorry, realize?

Keith: And I think it’s Ali who…

Austin: I mean, again, the basis of their entire relationship was that back on Partizan, Brnine used to lie to Gucci to take money from her.

Ali: Uh-huh.

Austin: It’s a sandcastle all — it’s a castle built on sand.

Ali: But, you know…

Sylvi: They’re so bad for each other.

Austin: It’s a sandcastle.

Ali: I mean, Gucci got those working equipment situation. [laughs]

Austin: Uh-huh. Mhm.

Ali: Her robots were fixed.

Austin: They were.

Ali (as Brnine): I’m—I’m—I’m mad at Clem, and I’m mad at you, and I’m mad that Figure’s dead, and I’m mad that Phrygian’s dead, and I’m mad that you would, like, use that as a bargaining chip when Phrygian was, like, our best crew member. Like, we wouldn’t have even—going to the combustor was Phrygian’s idea.

Austin (as Gucci): [stammers] And it was—and it worked. It worked.

Ali (as Brnine): Oh my god, what are you doing? I—it’s movie night!

[Sylvi laughs]

Austin (as Gucci): And I have to leave after movie night. I wouldn’t have a chance to come talk to you. I have to go to the Crown of Glass and keep a leash on her. Don’t you see how hard that’s going to be? I hate her! And she was useful, and she gave us the one thing she could give us to make us even open the door, and she’s gonna hold it over me, forever. [softly] Just like she held everything over me for years, and now we have to open the door for her again.

Because we have to, because she… Do you know what sort of bargaining chip we have now if we ever leave here? We have Cynosure’s daughter. And he’s… [scoffs] He’s as sentimental as they come. He wasn’t even supposed to be Princept.

Ali (as Brnine): Why do you think we’re leaving here? Why do you care about Clem or any of that?

Austin (as Gucci): Why do I think we’re leaving here? I’m not staying in the Twilight Mirage. The whole point of this was that we shouldn’t be here. You’re staying here?

Sylvi: Oh my god!

Austin (as Gucci): With who?

[Ali laughs]

Ali (as Brnine): Do you know a way out? Because I don’t know a way out. I don’t think anybody else knows a way out. I think that we’re here now. I think that we’re in the situations that we’re in, and—

Austin (as Gucci): You’re abandoning Millennium Break.

Ali (as Brnine): What?

Austin (as Gucci): They’re out there! They’re not in here! The fight is out there. And you’re gonna stay in here for movie night?

Ali (as Brnine): I didn’t say that. I said we’re stuck.

Austin (as Gucci): You didn’t say we were “stuck” when there was the stellar combustor. You said, “I’m turning off the stellar combustor.”

Ali (as Brnine): Well, I don’t have Phrygian here anymore. And I don’t have Figure anymore—

Austin (as Gucci): [cross] Phrygian didn’t tell me that. You told me that.

Ali (as Brnine): [cross] —and now you’re gonna go to Clem.

Austin (as Gucci): I’m not “going to Clem”. I’m going to the Crown of Glass and putting a leash on Clem. I’m keeping Clem from hurting you and everyone else.

Ali (as Brnine): Great.

Austin (as Gucci): Which, yes, I can do. And no, it won’t be dangerous for me.

Ali (as Brnine): Cool.

Austin (as Gucci): I know how to deal with her.

Ali (as Brnine): I’m glad. Are you talking me into this, or are you talking you into this?

[Sylvi groans]

Ali (as Brnine): Because it feels like if we have an hour to hang out, we could sit in that room and watch a fucking movie. And not be thinking about this.

Austin (as Gucci): [cross] You’re right, you’re right. I don’t have an hour to hang out.

[Sylvi gasps]

Austin (as Gucci): And I shouldn’t be spending the time I have talking to you. Good luck, Captain. The Blue Channel’s yours.

Ali (as Brnine): Come on. Come on.

Sylvi: This is such good shit!

[Ali laughs]

Ali (as Brnine): I didn’t mean it like—

Keith: She’s busy only ever taking credit for things we do.

Austin: Uh-huh.

[Sylvi exclaims]

Austin: And she is leaving.

[Ali laughs]

Dre: Good.

[Ali groans]

[sun4ndmoon]

rewatch Dark Phoenix and all I can say is... It's worse than I remembered.

Okay, I understand that they decided to dive into another part of Charles, a part kept unseen from others, a part that's completely contrary to his former selfless "nature". They tried to dive into his selfishness. And I totally get it that being selfless makes you a saint, not a human, whereas Charles is no more a human being with all those "human" desires.

However, in a myriad of ways they could have gone to explore his other characteristics, they chose the most unreasonable way?!

Raven blamed him for "changing", but since the beginning, has he ever strayed from his ideal of showing the world the better part of mutants so they can live in peace? Hank blamed him for indirectly causing the death of Raven, did he really remember who'd done this? Aren't they all trying to find someone to blame (and that person, how coincidentally, is Charles) instead of analysing what had happened and finding a solution?

Well, that's not how you write your characters, at least in a compelling way (since we all agree that it's so contradicting to the previous movies instead of showing "another" part of the characters). I'm no professional to show those been producing movies half their lives how to write contradicting parts coexisting in a character, but please, it's not impossible. See that Riario from Da Vinci's Demons? (I know, there are more well-known examples but the little cunning Count has taken all free space in my head T-T, and David S. Goyer did not do him dirty. He's truly a good example.)

Also, character development-wise, Jean just doesn't feel right to me. It feels like she was like me in my period (overthinking, hypersensitive, overemotional and extreme mood swings... honestly?!). The only exception is she's a mutant, her mood swings cause destructions whereas I can only harm my stomach and my back at most. She deserves a better development, something holding more weight and less impromptu. Yes, she could have left after realizing what Charles had hidden from her, but wouldn't it be better if we highlighted the way she learns to control the power by herself and others' help rather than put her into the manipulation of some aliens and then loose conscious for a while so we can see how Erik handled those aliens like the real master of magnetism?! And why do we need a second martyr in a movie not to mention the first one is completely unnecessary?!

Sorry, I get carried away. Anyways, I mean it's HER movie, I demand to see more of her than confusion and guilt!

Of course I only rewatch because I want to see Charles and Erik together :D (IT'S BEEN SO LONG I SWEAR I CAN'T HANDLE NO MORE T-T. I MISSED THEM SO MUCH!!!). Gosh I missed their acting too (or their acting together), but these:

And these:

"A long time ago, you saved my life.

Then you offered me a home.

I'd like to do the same for you."

And James' subtle facial expressions?

PERFECTION T-T~

NOW WHERE ARE MY POST-DARK PHOENIX SLOWBURN HURT/COMFORT ONESHOTS???

[shorthaltsjester]

fuuuuck your point about fjorjester fans who constantly compare them to Travis+Laura is something I’ve been trying to articulate why it bothers me for ages. Like yes, they are a very sweet couple and I love the behind-the-scenes shenanigans and discussions around the gradual development, but that’s pretty much confetti to Fjord and Jester themselves

sorry for the delay in responding to this, anon! i frequently forget that this inbox exists and this apps inconsistency w/ actually giving me notifications means it’s an uphill battle but ANYWAY. yeah no it’s truly like, it’s a similar phenomenon to some of the defences of cr3 where the parasocial aspects of cr fandom leads people to make claims about how it’s just a group of friends around a table — or in this case, just a married couple falling in love again. both of which completely dismiss the actual skills, talent, and effort which denote the successes of cr’s storytelling. because obviously the real people inform the characters in a unique way in actual play — i always think of brennan’s metaphor that characters in ttrpgs are like a kind of stained glass over the real person, a completely different and separate entity but an entity nonetheless made compelling and beautiful by the thing behind it — but to say that the success of fjord and jester comes down to the pre-existing relationship that exists between travis and laura, even when used as some kind of compliment or reason to enjoy the relationship rather than the dismissal it is often used as by fjorester dislikers, that (in addition to just, not being plausible) completely undersells how much character work both of them do to create characters who fall for each other in ways that Mean Something for the development of their characters — for example, the fact that jester spends the early campaign hard crushing on fjord but then doesn’t actually realize she capital L loves him until they’re in a relationship and she realizes that rather than the romance novel, huge sweeping romantic gestures (though fjord also gives her those) she’s learned growing up, love is being completely comfortable with the person she’s with is an excellent expression of jester’s ongoing character development with lessening her naivety while maintaining her love and whimsy. similarly, the fact that it’s two sets of Is It Too Late?s that prompt fjord into beginning to realize his feelings and then act on them; where as travis has mentioned at panels & in no longer available talks machina’s (whose number i could find for citations sake it so needed) fjord realized he might be losing something he hadn’t realized was really there during the jellyfish convo & that he was prompted to finally confess to jester and ask to kiss her because her life was at risk and that after vandran, fjord wasn’t about to let another person leave him without ensuring he told them what they mean to him, that’s all extremely important for fjords development as someone who cares for and takes notice of those around him in his role as the groups leader/diplomat/protector as well as his development towards being able to actually go and seek vandran out instead of just accepting that it might simply be the case that he’ll never get to tell him what he meant to him. none of the power of those character choices comes from the fact that laura and travis are actually married. and it’s consistently infuriating to see what is genuinely one of my favourite narrative love stories be reduced to a relationship that, aside from providing context for a crush that is also narratively grounded from the start of the campaign and (as both travis and laura have mentioned) provided travis with a lower barrier to entry re: romance in dnd, really has very little to do with the story that unfolds

anyway sorry for the word vomit op. it is early in the morning & im procrastinating grading at any and all cost. but yeah tldr: real fucking stupid to look at a story as good as fjord & jesters, as characters who develop in such a way that begets an extremely compelling relationship, and think that saying it’s bc of the real marriage of their creators is in any way a compliment.

[coraniaid]

Also sorry second unpopular opinion but this one's a lot simpler, for the longest time the only thing about Buffy that had crossed over to me was the term Spikeification from TVTropes now named Badass Decay I think, broadly the term for a character who is introduced as strong and gradually becomes weak. Even today I see people talk about how Spike was introduced as the Slayer of Slayers was cool and strong in s2.

Anyway Spike was kinda always a loser? Like yeah we're told he killed two Slayers but in his first episode he gets sent packing by Buffy's mother? I'm pretty sure his greatest onscreen accomplishment for the longest time is when he manages to overpower a child in the Annointed One. And like he didn't even manage to hold onto Big Bad status in his debut Season he had to pass that over to Drusilla and then again Angel before the end.

strongly agree | agree | neutral | disagree | strongly disagree

("Strongly agree but with a very specific minor caveat" isn't an option, alas.)

So, I think this is more or less completely right. I think "Badass Decay" is a pretty silly concept to care about to begin with, and I certainly don't think Spike is an example of it happening.

Yes, while Spike is initially introduced as being a uniquely dangerous vampire ("worse than any other creature [Buffy has] faced") and while School Hard does mostly play that straight (up until Joyce rescues Buffy), this status really isn't something he keeps for long. As early as Halloween, just two episodes later, he's teaming up with a gang of literal children in costumes and is only a threat to Buffy because she has no powers and no memory of being the Slayer; he runs away the minute Ethan's spell is reversed and he isn't even worth chasing after. In the climax of Lie To Me he is outwitted by a door. And as you say, he quickly loses the status of Big Bad (after ... what seven episodes, several of which he wasn't even in?) and never gets it back again.

The Spike of the second half of Season 2 isn't quite comic relief, but he's not presented as particularly dangerous or imposing either. He exists mostly to hang around the real Big Bad (be that Drusilla or the Judge or Angelus or Acathla) and make catty remarks about their plans ("It's a big rock. I can't wait to tell my friends: they don't have a rock this big.") And then the Spike of Lovers Walk is pretty clearly explicitly written to be some kind of drunken loser (which, to be clear, is not particularly meant to be derogatory -- I'm a Faith Lehane fan, I like losers). And -- at least to me -- the Spike of Lovers Walk feels very consistent with the Spike we knew in Season 2. Yes, if Dru dumped him for a chaos demon ("all slime and antlers") and told him they could still be friends, I think Season 2 Spike would be reduced to that. That fits.

I don't think "Badass Decay" makes sense as a description of what happens to Spike on his time on the show at all, and going back to read the TVTropes article I'm not at all persuaded otherwise.

However -- and this is the caveat I mentioned -- I do think it's unarguable that something about how the narrative treats Spike changes between Season 2 and Season 7, in ways that can't be explained solely by Dru leaving him or getting chipped by the Initiative or falling in love with Buffy or spending too much time alone watching Passions or regaining his soul or any combination of all those things.

And well, I mean, of course it does: it changes when Spike becomes a regular on the show. The Spike of Season 2 wasn't ever meant to last for that long. (There is a persistent rumour that Spike was originally going to be killed off after just a few episodes: as with the very similar rumour about Faith I've never seen any source to back this up and I am rather inclined not to believe it in the absence of any compelling evidence.) The Spike of Season 4's The Initiative and beyond necessarily has to occupy a different space in the narrative. Everyone -- the audience and the rest of the cast -- have to relate to him differently. He can't just blow through town and causes problems then drive off into the sunset anymore. He can't just be a catalyst for character development in other people. He has to become a real character; not just from that point going forward but also retroactively: he has to have been a real person all along. (Which is why we start getting Spike flashback episodes and the change to his backstory about who first sired him.)

Spike doesn't magically start being less competent or successful in Season 4, but the show itself increasingly expects you to feel sorry for him when he suffers setbacks. If you're not really paying attention, you can watch Season 2 and think Spike really is the dangerous badass he wants to convince people he is, because at this point of the show Spike is not one of the characters you're meant to take that seriously as a person. You can't so easily ignore how badly things keep going for Spike and how pathetic he often is in the post-Season 4 seasons, precisely because he is now a much more significant character in the narrative (and has correspondingly much more screen time).

Spike being kind of a loser never changes, but how much attention the show expects you to give him does.

And that is, I think, a pretty fundamental change that deserves some sort of name: a character is introduced into a long running show, initially only meant to be there as an antagonist for a few episodes, but for various reasons they end up becoming a core member of the show and start being treated more sympathetically by the narrative than when they were just a random villain. Who they are doesn't automatically change, but the way we are expected to feel about them does. (See also, among many other examples, Root from Person of Interest.)

If I'm being honest, for quite a long time I thought this was what the term "Spikeification" actually meant. The idea that this word and "Badass Decay" were meant to describe the same concept confused me quite a lot when I figured it out.

But since apparently there isn't a word for this idea after all, maybe we need a new name. Perhaps we could go with Anyafication.

[barblaz-arts]

I remember seeing that the addams are immune to fire,electricity, and poison, so when does that kick in? Are Sora(I'm making the safe assumption that she becomes an addams) and Enid (ig Morticia also counts in this) immune from birth? Does it kick in when they fall in love with the bloodline Addams? When their last name is legally changed to Addams? What's your interpretation? Cause right now I'm thinking about the first 2 options and scenarios where they KNOW they should have burned, electrocuted, or poisoned, and are just wondering something along the lines of , "Why tf am I okay rn?"

I'm sorry, but I don't really like to think that people married into the Addams family gain those kinds of abilities. Stuff that are canon in the movies dont necessarily have to be for the show, especially when they were done for comedic effect(i.e. Morticia barely being bothered as she gave birth). The invulnerability may be something I followed in Addams Family fics related to the movie, but I don't apply it to the series version of Morticia.(The invulnerability probably isn't even canon to the show's version of the Addamses anyway)

That hc is kinda attached to the Addams Family curse fanon, which I was never really a fan of. I don't want some kind of curse of fate compelling my characters to fall in love, and I don't want some outside force confirming that the person they're with is The One either. Falling in love has to be something that happens because of how their relationship has developed, and staying with the person has to be something they decide on their own. That's romance to me, not some curse.

And with the kinda love life Pugsley's had in my AU, applying the Curse in that storyline would be giving implications that I'm not interested in exploring.

I also don't like the idea of people who marry into the Addamses suddenly gaining or always having gained invulnerability because of the kind of relationship arc I want for Morticia and Enid in my AUs. If you've read my fic, you might remember there was a scene between Enid and Morticia talking about boundaries.

As well as Morticia and Enid may fit in with the Addamses like a glove, I still want to emphasize that they are both outsiders being welcomed to the family, and it has to be FELT, you know? It's an interesting conflict to explore, that even Morticia had difficulty adjusting to a different lifestyle with the Addamses due to them being just so different in many ways. Because it would be interesting to explore it in relation to how she could bond with Enid over it.

That was the mindset I had when I wrote that scene. I actually had plans to further explore it. There were supposed to be more scenes with Morticia and Enid, but I had to cut it short.

[efy727]

I'M NOT OKAY. I'M NOT OKAY. I'M NOT OKAY. I'M NOT OKAY. I'M NOT OKAY. I'M NOT OKAY. I'M NOT OKAY. I'M NOT OKAY.

Ninjago Dragons Rising Season 3 Part 1 SPOILERS

Sorry followers.

AAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHH

Ok, ok. Calm down me... I just watched the entire thing. Still shaking... I'm cursing and praising the writers. This is not a smart analysis, if anything btw. This might be cringy when I re-read it. But I'll just live in the moment.

Ninjago Dragons Rising's writing is so good, saying that as a Ninjago fan since childhood that felt the show lost a direction in later seasons, even with the good seasons.

Is just, this new series has given the world new life. Ok, out with the general thoughts. Focus.

Gosh, I haven't scream this loud this many times. So much going on... Can't really focus.

I guess I can get out some grievances first. I don't like how Kai felt like just comic relief in these episodes. The way the Forbidden Five were disposed once Thunderfang got released, I asume they are not dead, but idk, felt most were underutilized despite hyping all five as a big threat.

This part of episode 4 where Lloyd and gang were clearly heading to the Spectral Land only for next scene to show them in this canyon place, like they didn't need to emphasize there to not go there, it feels like continuity error. I felt baited. I wanted Morro and Lloyd to interact. It specially hurt due to the framing.

But oh well, that's just small nitpicks to a solid season.

Anyway, I already mentioned him, so let's talk about Morro. This season became my most anticipated thing the moment rumors of him showing up started to circulate. I had an attachment to the former master of wind; I was 14 during Possession alright.

A foil to Lloyd, Wu's biggest mistake, the missing element. A villain you can feel bad for. I was glad he had a redemption even if it came with his death. I mourned him.

I also like seeing him and Lloyd as cousins and their hypothetical dynamic did inspire me to create characters based on them, but I'm not elaborating on that.

Back on track, I loved how they portrayed him in this season. A soul weighted by his mistakes, trying to make up for them, guiding anyone he encounters, refusing to give himself rest. Far more noble than before, but in a way that feels in character.

Oh, and how the afterlife is handled. So, the dead still go to the new departed/cursed realm/Spectral Lands; but the souls eventually move on to somewhere else. It's good to know dead villains don't have to show up. (Damn, I wish Harumi was still dead.)

But now that I think about it, can Morro even leave the Spectral Lands? Is there a Monastery to begin with? I mean not that it matters, since his soul got absorbed.

Golly, they brough him back only to kill him again. He and his fans can't catch a break. Though part of me thinks he will be fine, though may be his only way out is moving on. Hoping he gets out of his predicament before the final two episodes. It would be cool to have an actual team up with the Ninja and Euphrasia (also hope she shows up in part 2).

Ah, honestly, I just wanted to gush about him. But I guess I'll talk about other things.

Arin's whole thing this season had me at the edge of my seat, like I don't want him to adopt Ras' mentality. Thank goodness he didn't got to hate the ninja.

Also, it's good that he and Sora are friends again. This two are kind of like brother and sister to me, the only family they have at this point.

Speaking of family, I knew Ras was wrong with Arin's parents being dead. Though it's weird how everyone refers to Arin's parents as just that, no names proper, that's all they need, so how could Ras guided Arin to tombs with their names?

I know that I just said I was done talking about him, but anyone else thought of Arin just asking Morro if his parent's departed. Of course, I know it wouldn't be as compelling as what we got, Ras is truly doing whatever he can to accomplish his goals.

But another thing regarding the ghost ninja, or really what was brought up in episode 3 was the elixir. I was convinced that was the only thing that could cure Roby. I kept waiting for a way to be brought up. I didn't know Arin still had some left.

Like I'll just accept the way Wyldfyre cured him, whatever, let her be happy. But no way using heat can undo decay. Maybe it was the power of love? Will this be addressed?

Speaking of love, we finally got Pixal back! Thank goodness it went straight forward and nothing really bad happened. I always love seeing her and Zane fight together.

Discussing another couple, oh my, we finally got him, no memories but at least they have him. All the stuff they did with Jay was fun, but I feel it's time to get him back to normal, maybe a little changed.

I can't wait for that.

It's embarrassing to admit, but I screamed at his long hair. How long has passed since the tournament? I like it but not in the ponytail he has it on, some many characters had that hair piece before. Hope they style his hair differently in the middle of his next arc.

(Ok, there's other thing I wanted to discuss, Jay's hair)

I do say, his electricity daggers were cool.

...

I guess that's all I wanted to talk about. Can't wait for part two and how are they going to deal with a ghost dragon. I'm considering doing art, but not sure.

[thus-wrote-mrs-zeppeli]

I came across your blog a little bit ago and wanted to tell you that I love your vibes!!

I think your pen name, Sweet V. Zeppeli, is great. It’s super creative; I love how much thought you put into it!

I came here to say how much I love your characterization of Bruno. I’m a wee bit obsessed with that guy, so I’m very glad he’s in so many of your posts 😭 You introduce a lot of headcanons about him that I love, such as when you mentioned that you believe Bruno gets chronic headaches from his stress. I’ve never considered that before, and you’re so right—Bruno would absolutely suffer from chronic headaches.

Honestly, I love all of your characterizations of jojo’s characters. I keep scrolling through all these posts like:

“yep… yep… yep… yeah, that’s definitely true... yep…”

Anyway yeah!!! You’re incredibly based! It’s very nice to meet you and I’m glad I ran into your blog!! <3 I’m also wondering if you ever got around to publishing that Bruno fic you mentioned in a previous ask? No pressure if you haven’t! It’s just that it’s something that I’d be interested in reading if you ever do decide to post it…👀

Aaaa hello hello! I was literally going to send you something because I’ve been reading your tags on a couple on my silly little headcanon fic things, and I’m a longtime lurker on your beautiful Bruno blog so hey! You beat me to it lol. Very happy to hear from you, thanks for reaching out!

THANK YOUUU I was super proud of that name and she’s Kinda an oc but I never do anything with ocs beyond give them names I think are cool lol. As much as I like making them I struggle to flesh them out😂

To have one of my headcanons embraced by THE Bruno enthusiast omg I’m glad you’re hearing me out on it! I have a particular vision of him kinda just pinching the bridge of his nose and shutting his eyes when his headaches flare up, but he tends to try and just push through them. No one would really think anything of it beyond thinking he’s just a bit annoyed at something lol. Felt like something I could really see him experiencing, sorry Bruno😭

I love that, it makes me happy to hear you like how I’ve been characterizing the jjba characters. It’s really been fun writing for them, they have such fun personalities and stories, and I really have to admire how many of the characters have won me over when I thought I wouldn’t think too much of them. This is targeted at Mista specifically lol I honestly thought I wouldn’t be able to stand him but he ended up being one of my faves by the time I got to the end😂And my ultimate fave Rohan. I would profess my undying love for him and he wouldn’t hear me because he immediately tuned me out lol. I love him.

Also I like how absolutely evil a lot of the antagonists are, it was kinda refreshing to go into a series that had pure evil villains, I think they’re compelling in their own way; as much as I love misunderstood antagonists or doing the wrong thing for the right reason type of characters, sometimes I enjoy a man who is just so ridiculously evil and selfish it’s kinda pathetic (Diavolo specifically what the HECK MAN. He’s so mean I genuinely laughed at some of his insane lines lol. I got Kellan Goff’s signature at the last con I went to because I adored his performance as Diavolo. I was cosplaying Doppio haha. Off topic but I really wanted to mention that lol.)

And you’re based too🫵 thank you very much, I’m glad to have met you too! Keep loving Bruno I eat up everything you say about him he is truly *loud scream of adoration and love*

About that Bruno fic! I did not get around to finishing it yet (got bit by severe writer’s block and also immense disappointment that it wasn’t coming out how I wanted it to lol) and every once in a while I go back and stare at it like this >:| as if the stuff I already wrote will magically edit itself to my standards lol. (Writing dialogue is my ENEMY.) The intention was for it to be a few chapters long at least, and I have thusly struggled to commit, buuut I would love to share what did get completed since I did like the idea behind it!

The basic idea is Bruno and female!reader were childhood friends, grew up together, kinda lovers/lots of pining but nothing ever official, and he never mentioned to her his involvement in the mafia, one day quietly disappearing from her life. To protect her. I wanted to explore how Bruno is a well-intentioned, caring man but struggles with communication. Actually kinda just wanted to explore Bruno as a character in general. And I had an idea for a stand and thought it would be fun to try to incorporate it, so I gave it to reader!

There’s not a Lot written of the fic, so hopefully it won’t be too confusing??? Hopefully?? The first part I wrote begins after Bruno comes to visit reader after a while apart. There’s a large chunk in the middle I omitted simply because I cannot stand how it’s written lol even though I’m the one who wrote it😭😭and it’s a rough draft so. Pacing might be all over the place even though it’s literally a prologue thing-aaaa I’m just gonna put it here now before I talk myself out of it lol.

Plz note there is some violence and death, nothing beyond the intensity of the series (think that scene where Bruno kills Pesci.) starts angsty with an argument.

You’ll probably notice a little something you’ve headcanoned about Bruno lol I liked it very much and wanted to just. Put it in there.

Aaaa anyways HERE YA GO:

Earth Angel, Earth Angel

Will you be mine?

Note: Reader is not a member of Passione but is a born stand user, and unaware that what she has is a stand.

Stand: Earth Angel

User: y/n l/n

Earth Angel connects the user to the ones she loves the most. The stand will grant luck to those she desires to protect, and her soul will be intertwined with the object of her devotion, granting them boons like peace and levelheadedness, and she can share in their agony to lessen it, no matter the distance, whether physical or emotional pain. The limits of these effects are unknown.

Earth Angel manifests in the shape of halos behind the heads of the user’s loved ones, only visible to her.

-

Tonight, in the darkness of your kitchen, that mysterious halo that had floated behind Bruno’s head since the two of you were children seemed to glow with a special sort of intensity.

You didn’t love the way it lit up more when you raised your voice at him during the duration of this “loud discussion”, like it was expressing pain each time you opened your mouth with hot tears in your eyes and agony on your tongue.

“Did you think I wouldn’t have helped you or something?!” you demand, trying to sound so mad at him when really all you feel is concern and sadness over the whole situation.

God, he had some nerve. Some nerve acting so resigned and calm about this. He didn’t scream at you like you screamed at him, but you wished he did. And the worst part was you knew he wasn’t intentionally making you feel like the unreasonable bad guy right now.

“You know I don’t think that,” he replies, that usual calmness tainted with desperation. “It’s complicated, I had no choice-”

“No choice?!” you interrupt, frustrated. “There were really NO OTHER OPTIONS but to join the MAFIA?! You had to go straight to THAT?!”

The halo light strobes in distress.

He surprises you. By letting out his own frustration, slamming his hand on your kitchen counter, the noise making you subconsciously step back from him.

“There were GANGSTERS after my FATHER, y/n! You expect me to ask you to get involved in something like that?! I ALREADY HAD ENOUGH I COULD LOSE!”

Your shoulders slump, the halo flickers angrily, illuminating his face with a white light. He’s glaring at you, the most frustrated you’ve ever seen him in his life. And just as quickly, his expression softens, the brilliant blue of his eyes seeming more faded than they used to.

“I cannot, in good conscience, ask you to risk your future for a man like me…”

You didn’t notice you’ve covered your hand with your mouth until you feel your warm tears dampen your skin.

“I’m sorry for raising my voice at you, I shouldn’t speak to you like that,” he murmurs, his voice quieting and the halo’s flashing lights relaxing into a dull glow. He always maintained eye contact when having a serious conversation with you, but you are unable to meet his gaze right now.

“And I’m sorry for yelling. You know I’m just…” your throat hurts from trying to fight back your tears that flowed regardless of how you resisted.

Why are you crying so hard right now? It was Bruno suffering a million times worse than you in this moment,and yet the thought of his agony felt like a heavy stone tethered to your heart. It was more than just empathy. Grief stabbed at your brain like a knife, as if you were the one burdened with putting your own loved ones in danger.

No…This was only a fraction of that kind of pain. But it painted an agonizingly vivid picture of what he must be feeling right now.

“Could you look at me?”

You shake your head, but in your peripheral vision you sense him spreading his arms a bit.

You step into his arms, slowly pressing your cheek against his chest. His cologne is familiar. Sea salt, and lavender, you’d never forgotten his scent, because it was one of your favorites.

Bruno wrapped his arms around you, slowly rubbing your back, a sweet habit of his.

He doesn’t say anything. Words are meaningless right now. He just holds you.

Bruno Bucciarati… he felt safe. Even when you were upset with him, he was the sanctuary you would always long for.

You pull away, some time after you finally stopped crying, and the halo’s glow has settled to a consistent thrum.

You lean against the kitchen counter, and your voice is quiet and resigned.

“So why come here now then?” you ask, your tone not accusatory, just genuinely curious.

“Because…”

You meet those blue eyes again. They were deep enough to drown in.

“I have nowhere else to go. And I wanted to see you again.”

Every instinct in your body told you that wasn’t the entire story. But if he was hiding anything, you knew it was not for malicious reasons. A man in the mafia would have to keep certain truths to himself, no matter how much he trusted you, if he wanted to keep you safe.

“Well. You know you are always welcome here, Bruno. I don’t have a guest room, so I can only offer you the couch tonight but-”

“I hate to impose more than I already have. I only meant to inform you of my current situation, you deserved to know at least that much.”

What he didn’t tell you is that he heard you were asking around about him. And some rival upstart mafia had caught sight of you and began to look into you…because you were potentially an old flame of a Passione member. And that made you leverage.

“It’s so late…You should stay,” you insist.

He came here hoping revealing his involvement in the Italian mafia would’ve encouraged you to stop worrying about him. He had intended to be the bad guy here, but finally seeing you again after so long, his will had faltered a bit. He was just supposed to make sure you were safe, and ensure you stopped asking about him. But when it came to you, he was weak. Those bastards searching for you were more on the mark than he wished to admit.

You were his weakness.

Evident by how easily he was convinced to spend the night. He mentally chastised himself for how all it took was one sentence to immediately change his tune and allow himself a place in your home.

He glances out the window, though he already knows it’s late, given it was dark when he first knocked on your door.

“Ah, I suppose it is…well…if you’re sure you’re comfortable with it,” his halo glows a little brighter. You can feel his hope that you’ll say yes.

You chuckle a bit at his wording. Such a gentleman.

-

A spike of anxiety, a sear of pain-

You wake up with a gasp, met with an unpleasant metallic scent.

“Hey…”

It’s still dark, but the man leaning over your bed was recognizable as Bruno.

“Bruno…what the hell is going on?”

You swing your legs over your bed in an attempt to get up.

“Y/n, wait-”

Your feet touch the carpet of your bedroom, and you immediately recoil with a scream. “WHAT?! BRUNO-“

Your carpet was drenched in a warm and wet liquid, and the smell-it was beginning to register in your mind as blood.

“Y/n…” he places his hands on your shoulders. “Listen. You’re safe for right now, but once these men don’t report back to their boss, they’ll send more.”

These men…

The light from Bruno’s halo, only visible to you, illuminated the bedroom enough for you to have a vague vision of the state of your bedroom.

Now that you were looking, you had almost stepped on a disembodied hand.

The rest of the body was similarly strewn about your floor, a leg there, an ear, a forearm…ripped into pieces in such a way you could imagine gathering them and putting them back together like a puzzle.

“God, you killed them…” you whisper, unable to match Bruno using his usual volume. You notice that your sheets are heavy with blood too…whoever these guys were, they had gotten way too close to getting whatever it was they wanted from you.

It’s like a switch had flipped in his mind. He had been in his serious, professional mafia persona, forgetting for a moment that you lived in an entirely different world. This was probably the first time you’d ever seen a murdered man. How regrettable the first murderer you ever laid eyes on had to be him.

“I had no choice. They intended to do much worse to both of us.”

You had heard his serious tone before, but this time the solemness in his voice was enough to command your complete faith in him, if just for this moment, so you can both get out of this alive.

-

The way I just stopped there and haven’t touched it since November of last year😭 I still like the idea, I should get back to working on it.

Thank you for asking about it, it gave me the courage to show it off finally😂

Ok thank you for letting me ramble, I hope we will speak more to each other in the future >:) I would love to hear your thoughts in return!

For now Sweet is signing off~🩷

[diabolikpersonals]

I seriously miss your ramblings on this blogs.😭 Plz don't ever Stop posting.

I was worried I was starting to repeat myself too much since there's no New dialovers stuff to talk about, but if u wish it, I will keep rambling forever mwahahahaha!!!! (and I'll keep playing chaos lineage so I can talk about it more.....!! it's just so easy to procrastinate playing video games, I'm the type that would rather be drawing or writing lol)

in the meantime, here's a long post about the "yuma is gay" headcanon, since I've been writing fics about it again.

I know this is like a "nooo you can't do that" type of headcanon for an otome game love interest I KNOW I'M SORRY I just can never stop thinking about how compelling of a story it would be, it drives me nuts!!!

since dialovers is a game with tons of religious themes!! yuma is this character that questioned the existence of god in his childhood and has been punished for it ever since. because god IS real in dialovers, and his name is karl heinz, and he has a plan for this world and that plan rests on YOUR shoulders, buddy. so yuma questions god and everyone around him dies, he finds a new group of (older, admirable, male) kids to belong to and THEY all die, everyone dies except for him! because he's being punished and because he has a part to play in god's plan.

and remember, this whole time, yuma's thought process is like "why not me? why them and not me? I should've been with them, I should've died with them, why did only I survive?" I think it's significant that he felt singled out. like if he were truly one of them in the way he wanted to be, he would've died with them, but by surviving he became "different." separate from everybody else for some unknowable reason.

so god picks you up and dusts you off and says, okay, little dude, I saved your life. I've gifted/cursed you with immortality. you're gonna spend your immortal life serving me and I'm going to give you a place to belong, for real this time. and yuma is hurt, he's lost so much, he's clinging to this place for dear life. god is real and he MUST devote the rest of his life to serving him.

the immortality makes him SO guilty as you can see in more,blood. guilty because his friends didn't make it, guilty because he's enjoying warm food while they couldn't, guilty because he not only survived but he's going to live forever. guilt guilt guilt. my christian or ex-christian gays, u understand

anyway, hopefully this is the part where u start to get what I'm talking about, so let's talk about karl heinz's plan and specifically his plan for the mukamis. god just told yuma, "a union between Adam and Eve is going to destroy-but-also-save this entire world. it's your job to make this happen. and you have an opportunity here: if YOU can connect to this woman in this specific way, if YOU earn the mystical type of love you don't understand from this woman, if YOU manage to love her back in the exact specific way I want you to, then you'll REALLY belong. you'll be REAL family to me." you'll be FORGIVEN by GOD.

and here's the part that's a little fucking too on the nose. yuma literally IS!!!! NOT!!!!! CAPABLE!!!!!!!!!!! of forming the adam and eve relationship with yui. he WANTS to so badly but he physically can't. even she becomes someone special to him, even if he loves her in his own way, he can't connect with her the way god specified. because he's different from everybody else! that promised "place to belong," that forgiveness and the promise from his father figure, it's out of his reach forever! because he just can't do it!! lmao!!!!

anyway. I hope all that ^ makes it clear enough why this headcanon speaks to me. personally, I think it's the most delicious if yuma realizes this about himself somewhere around late MB-early DF, when yui still hasn't necessarily chosen an adam and yuma still has all this pressure from his family and karl heinz. the way ruki was acting in DF, I totally feel like it could become a HUGE deal in the mukami family. because to give up on this mission means betraying karl heinz, and you CAN'T betray karl heinz!!! he's god! he saved you!! you have to serve him!!! ruki will literally excommunicate u!! so yuma would be forced to keep it bottled up inside, or else they'd have an awful argument at best.

imagine the guilt!! god saves you and tasks you with Heterosexuality and u can't even do that........that's the one guy you never wanted to betray, but it turns out you'll never live up to his expectations and he'll never love you. ughhh I get stressed out just thinking about it

[captain-space-kin]

Hey, this is an ask (from a fellow Kai fan) about your recent post about Kai’s mischaracterization in the fandom. That opening sounded like I’m about to disagree, my bad, idk how else to open.

But yeah, I’m kind of frustrated too. I really love Kai & Wyldfyre’s dynamic and do personally see them as some sorta familial dynamic, but not specifically father & daughter, if that makes sense. Just didn’t get that specific vibe from them and was a little surprised to see that when I started interacting with DR on tumblr. I just sorta went with it.

I’ve also noticed people acting like he never did anything wrong or claiming he was in the right early on in the show. Which is just something I personally find very frustrating because his flaws are one of the main reasons I find him compelling. He screws up, he can be a jerk, let him have flaws.

Also I wanna die a bit every time I see people act like he hates Jay or is overprotective of Nya and doesn’t approve of Jaya. He’s really not overbearing of his sister’s love life, and thank goodness for that. In season 1 with the SamX stuff he has to learn that she can manage herself, but that was more combat based than anything else. He literally says something along the lines of thinking he needed to protect her and admitting he was in the wrong for underestimating her. But again, that’s not over her love life. And it saddens me that the same thing is getting pushed to Wyldfyre/Roby. I just sincerely believe that he would never be overbearing over something like that. He makes mistakes sure, but I don’t think that’s one of em. And the people who say that act like it’s a good thing for him to do anyways.

anyways. Sorry for long ask. Just wanted to share thoughts on it. Thx for making the post

(Sorry if u don’t want these sorta asks)

Don’t worry dear anon I am a-okay with getting sent asks like this! I like chattin with people about fandom stuff. Especially in relation to topics I feel strongly about (i.e characterization of the faves). This ended up being kinda long so I'll put the rest of this under a read more. Complaining about fanon Kai ahead o7

That post seems to have really struck a cord with people, so I’m glad I’m not along in my frustrations with how a lot of people treat Kai as a character. I feel this way about all of the ninja to some degree, but they’d need their own separate posts.

Kai & WyldFyre are written with a family dynamic in mind I think, but that dynamic is definitely not a father daughter thing like you said. WyFy seems to already interpret family to be more nebulous in concept, or at least not something that is rigid in structure or label heavy like it is for other people. While I did say that HeatWave was her dad, I don’t think she’d necessarily think of it in that way specifically, just that he is her family. And the same goes for Kai. If I had to put a label on them it’d be something like a sibling/cousin whose significantly older then you but whom you still jive with, or like your favorite kooky uncle.

I also find it incredibly frustrating when people assign like cookie cutter overprotective older brother/dad to Kai. Especially in relation to Nya and WyFy’s relationships. I think it stems from the fact that a lot people think that Kai raised Nya. Which is just factually untrue, he was not old enough to raise Nya, their age difference isn’t big enough for that. In my opinion, they looked out for each other growing up in a mutual way. Like you said in canon itself he’s not really shown to be too involved with Nya’s relationships, and only really has overprotective moments when it comes to SamX. The only time I can think of where he gets mad at Jay for pursuing Nya romantically is in the pilots. When Jay hears that the sister of this guy he just met got kidnapped, and instead of like offering his condolences he asks if she’s hot. Which is a fair thing to get mad at I think. But like y’all Kai helps Jay propose to Nya, I think he’s fine with their relationship.

Same thing extends to Wyldfyre/Roby. I definitely think he’d tease them about it, older sibling traditions and all that, but he isn’t overbearing. This is mostly unrelated, but in my lil oppositeshipping brain I had a thought awhile back of like, Kai seeing how Wyfy behaves around Roby. Recognizing it as being extremely similar to how he’s reacted to having feelings for people in the past, and then being like “Uh-Oh”. And at some point he’s talking with Roby and just gets very serious all of sudden and goes “Hey man, never ever die.” and then moves on like that’s a normal thing to say. And I think Apollo hit me with his dodge-ball on that one, but THAT is neither here nor there.

And oh my god YES part of his appeal is that he’s a jerk. Dude full ass didn’t tell Jay that Nya had a perfume allergy because he thought it would be funny, there is something deeply wrong with him. I don’t think he’d do that now, but like he did do that. Kai can be kind of a snarky jackass at times, and that’s part of the appeal for me. I like my character’s with good and bad traits because that’s how you write good fucking characters.

I have a lot of Kai thoughts but it’s pretty late for me so I’m having trouble putting them into words ahgssfdsgd but like yeah idk no one gets him and it SUCKS

[thequietesthing]

SUNRISE ON THE REAPING REVIEW🕊️☀️

SPOILERS AHEAD

YOU’VE BEEN WARNED

I usually don't write this because it seems pretty obvious to me, but I've seen some completely over exaggerated reactions when it comes to this series, so let me make it perfectly clear that THIS IS MY REVIEW, which means that THESE ARE MY OPINIONS. k have fun!

gosh it's so long.

alright here we go.

let's start this by saying I really enjoyed this book, which from what I've seen I'm not sure if it has been a shared experience. but anyway, let's go in order.

I honestly found it extremely compelling and I stand by my opinion that S.C. knows her worth when it comes to interweaving political themes into a story. I do agree that sometimes it was too on the nose, but seeing the mixed reactions to tbosas, I think she wanted to make it clear what side she's on (and I'm gonna leave it at that because everyone is entitled to their opinions :) ). the writing on the other hand... I'm sorry but i really don't like the way she writes, and this has been since THG original trilogy days. she uses very short sentences, instead of letting them flow which I think makes her writing a bit stifling. I also believe that she may have had some troubles getting Haymitch's voice right, and this might have come through as a bit of flat writing, at least at the beginning.

now, Haymitch himself. my man. I think his character was really well built and multidimensional. I saw people that lamented that the Haymitch we saw in this book is different from the one in the original trilogy, and to that I have 2 things to say: first of all, it has been over 20 years, he has become a drunk, extremely cynical, and as shown in the epilogue, still in mourning. second, sometimes we forget just how much of an unreliable narrator Katniss is, so I do believe that all she says should be taken with the appropriate precautions. also, I think that when Haymitch saw the final cut of his games and so what other people had seen of him, after the months of utter despair, I do believe that he may have donned the character that the capitol painted on him, so he acted like that on purpose. this is a theory that I think has its credit when we see that in CF Katniss doesn't even think that the events in Haymitch's games may have gone differently, in some ways finding consistency between the punk the capitol depicted him to be at 16 and the man he was. (here, once again I think is important to focus on the whole driving force of this book which is how propaganda, even in way we do not perceive, seeps into our consciousness and makes us believe things that are very far away from the truth). but I also think that at the core Haymitch stayed the same: even back then he was taking care of the young ones (which is the most heartwarming thing possible, because every young boy reminds him of his brother and the girls remind him of Louella - very much like Katniss which further proves their connection and similarities) and in some ways coaching them, which then becomes his twisted obligation at the end of his games. i was also hoping to have his pov after the events of mockingjay and S.C. got my back. I think it's very interesting how different he is inside to how Katniss perceives him (once again, unreliable narrator) and how terribly haunting is for us to know that he lived with the ghost of Lenore Dove, so much so that he sees her as old as him. to conclude my segment on the protagonist, I really appreciated the exploration of his multifaceted character, especially because we see him in a different light than how we see him in the original trilogy.

onto now the other characters. I really liked Lenore Dove, although I felt it was a bit constructed on the Lucy Gray model, to stress that they are both Covey and are made of the same ephemeral subject, when I think that she could have diverted a bit more. Maysilee, I already knew she was going to be my favourite and I was proved corrrect. I loved every scene she was in. at the beginning I was disappointed from her death scene because I expected more, then I checked myself and I think it does make it more dramatic and heartbreaking the fact that there's nothing more to be said, because this is a sixteen year old girl brutally dying because she lives under a dictatorship that created a spectacle out of kids killing each other. Louella and Wyatt I think were very interesting characters (no, I'm still not well after discovering the origin of 'sweetheart') and I was completely and utterly horrified by the Lou Lou debacle, which was exactly what S.C. was going for so great work. I also really liked Ampert and his meaning in the story, which is that, as Katniss suspected, the games are often rigged and nobody is safe from them, not even the victors (as is further proved with the third quarter quell). I saw some people complaining about her inserting Mags, Wiress, Beetee, Effie and Plutarch in the story and how it was fan service. my friends, of course it was. to that statement, I'd like to elaborate. first of all, I think I saw somewhere someone pulling the numbers, this are the 50th Hunger Games, which means that even if the victor of the 1st was 12 when they won (improbable), they are at least 62 by the time Haymitch's games roll around, and considering the kind of life led in the districts, except maybe 1-2, I find it difficult to believe, so let's pretend that only the victors after Lucy Gray are alive. even in that case it makes only 40 of them and that is the best case scenario, assume that the oldest ones were too tired or passed the ball to younger victors you get what, the last 20, maybe even 15 victors. there are 12 districts and as we've seen apparently mentors double up when districts have no victors, so the pool wasn't really large to begin with, so it isn't that out of the blue that Mags and Wiress could have been chosen; second, Beetee had his own purpose in the story, connected to the tragedy of the reaping of his son and his punishment. third, which is the most important point, isn't it better to read of characters you already know? even if it is fan service, didn't you feel more connected to the story because you already know the characters? didn't the message of the entire book resonate more because characters you already knew were present? we mustn't forget that while set in a different time this is still very much a part of the Hunger Games story, it's just an extension. and I think it also shows the importance of the passage of time, like it has been only 25 years since Haymitch won when the rebellion happens, and while nothing has changed, everything has changed. (plus I'm a real sucker for cameos so that's that).

I think the metaphors in this book deserve their own paragraph. I really liked the whole concept of "the sunrise on the reaping", with Lenore Dove believing that only because something keeps happening doesn't mean it always has to stay that way, while Haymitch at the beginning can't see a different outcome. The whole Lenore poem which is the fil rouge that is treaded through the entire book and comes to its climax at the end was also very appreciated. But my personal favourite is the fact that Haymitch has as a flint striker as a token and he can't find a proper quartz to lit the fire in the arena which parallels the failure to start the revolution but then Katniss comes and, blowing on the embers of what he did, burning everything down... god I might not like the way she writes, but S.C. sure knows how to set up a proper parallel (but in general I really liked all the different parallels that can be found between him and Katniss). I think it's also worth mentioning all the references to Lucy Gray; she is in breeze and in the trees indeed people, and apparently in Haymitch's tv screen; that part I'm not sure I enjoyed, him basically figuring everything out, the attachment of Lucy Gray to Snow and all the ripples and tragic consequences it created, I think it would have been better if it was in some way still shrouded in a bit of mystery, although I understand the need of the author to make the protagonist connect all the dots (along with her readers, maybe for those that have not read/watched tbosas) and while we're on the subject I also cracked up at Snow after over four decades being still bitter about what happened with Lucy Gray, like he's genuinely triggered by any mention of her and has an extreme reaction (trauma dumping on Haymitch, putting katniss in the poisonous area, killing Maysilee with birds after she mentions her grandmother saying, etc.) – which, in case anyone's wanted my opinion, is because he sees proof that no matter how hard he tried he can't erase her: his success, but also his biggest shame. I often remind myself about the fact that he's brought down by someone that people identified as "the mockingjay"... isn't poetic justice just beautiful?

I honestly could talk about THG all day, but for now I think I can stop here.

so, summing up, story wise I really really really liked the political and philosophical references of this book, along with the nods it gives both to the original trilogy and tbosas. the writing for my personal taste could be better, but this is one of the very (very) few examples in which the meaning and message of the story overrides the way the story is written.

it's a ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5 for me friends.

you're free from my ramblings, go do something else now.