#arc: allie / young adult.

[silverselfshippingchaos]

could cozy up to me- ahem

[itchose]

 ❝  oh, finally, there you are! ❞ she's ecstatic, rushing towards @manslaught like they're the best of friends, because to allie, they are. she might have visited her in prison for all the wrong reasons, crafting her own narrative in her head that certainly didn't match mikayla's, but she did genuinely care for her, too. now, being invited to her wedding, it's like a golden ticket for allie. there's no reason for her to ever question what their friendship really is; clearly, she matters to mikayla just as much as mikayla matters to her, and she's ready to make that obvious to everyone she knows.

❝  oh, my god, you're just the most beautiful bride i've ever seen! oh, i mean, your wife, too . . . of course! calliope is a real stunner, huh? ❞ it's totally lost on her that she's mistaken the name of her wife, too focused on shuffling to get her phone out, sticking it up with no warning to pose for a selfie with mikayla. ❝  buzz, buzz! ❞ she cheers as she snaps the photo with mikayla, anxious to spread it on her socials immediately, but for now, she focuses back on mikayla. ❝  really, it was so good to hear from you again. oh, we've just had so many good times, i'm so glad you thought of me. ❞

[plounce]

i think putting thancred & urianger with koana is a sound writing choice:

koana's little character arc is largely about putting aside his pride and stoicism to trust wuk lamat and throw his support to her - a lot like thancred with ryne.

while i think saying that koana is their new adopted child is inaccurate (and a bit reductive - koana is an adult, after all), i do think that thancred and urianger's approach to koana (and his need for growth) does intentionally remind the audience that they were co-parenting a young adult prior to this. they're hands-off but encouraging to him, letting him make his own mistakes and have his own triumphs, helping him when he wants the help - similar to how they treated ryne in the eden questline. it's a nice subtle connection to their prior storylines.

"all the promises recruit different allies that reflect on their understanding of their father & his legacy. wuk lamat seeks out the warrior of light (hero & peacebringer) koana gets thanuri (duo of reason & resolve) zoraal ja gets some truly inscrutable freak"

[starsh0cked]

16, 21 and 24 for mienna (cuz shes iconic)

hiya rez!! veeeery big thank you for the asks!!

[16 - 📺]: If the anime got a reboot or if there was another Kirby TV show, do you have any ideas for episodes that your OC could appear in? What would the plot be and what role would your OC play?

i really, really enjoyed thinking of an answer to this one! if we're going with a reboot of KRBAY, then i think she'd probably appear in more lore-heavy episodes surrounding things like the intergalactic war, the star warriors and N.M.E. she'd stay a background character (ugh..) and be used for (wait for it) exposition dumping (UGH) or filling in bits of knowledge that tiff doesn't know yet. outside of lore-heavy episodes, i doubt she'd have any role greater than a secondary mentor to tiff.

if we're talking about a completely new kirby anime, then i've obviously got greater ideas in mind for her! mienna's debut episode would start a new arc (wherever along the series this would happen) and surround powerful magical artifacts like the dimensional mirror, the master crown or the star rod and finding them! within the episode (or arc) she'd star as secondary protagonist, hint towards lore within her dialogue and aid the progression of the main plot.

[21 - ⏳]: How old is your OC? If they don’t have a specific numerical age, feel free to just give an age range instead (child, teen, young adult, older adult, etc.)

minnie's in her late 30s/early 40s, so i'd say she's an adult!

[24 - 😴]: If your OC could pick one of the Star Allies Dream Friends to go on an adventure with them, who would they pick and why?

she'd pick meta knight with NO hesitation. like, at all! they've been extremely close friends ever since the events of triple deluxe passed (i need to talk abt this soon) and they've already gone on a few adventures together pre-star allies. she likes his stoic attitude, his (outwardly) calm demeanour and his appreciation for the world around him, so he's her go-to when it comes to exploring.

[azurecanary]

Not enough people talk about Kristen's character arc across Fantasy High

Ally does such a good job portraying a queer young adult struggling with ADHD and religious trauma while also progressing in her own faith

[jellysnail-draws]

I can’t let go of the idea of Skeleton King actually coming back into touch with his human side and being somewhat of an ally. Redemption arcs have always been my thing. Anti hero Skeleton King, anyone?

Young adult! Chiro and Jinmay🤍

[also please pretend I didn’t forget to make the monkeys’ tails robotic 👉👈]

[ifeellikeameowster]

Steven Universe Fusion Opinions: Peridot

I've seen a lot of people commenting on posts and tiktoks that no one is allowed to make fan fusions of Peridot, so I wanted to throw my two cents in.

Before we start, let me just say that I Myself Am On the A Spectrum!! I'm a sex-repulsed asexual and fall somewhere on the aromantic spectrum (still note sure yet if I'm aro, cupio, or demi romantic).

No that that's out of the way,

I Think Peridot Should Be Allowed to Fuse.

"But the creators said she's asexual (and maybe aromantic)!"

Yes, true. And I love that for her. We always need more a spectrum rep! But let's get Several things straight.

First of all: Fusion Does NOT Equal Sex! Fusion is a relationship in ANY form, whether friendship, familial, romantic, toxic, business, allies, etc. Saying fusion is sex would put into question ALL of Steven's (who is a Minor) fusions with adults.

Not to mention Greg is his father, he sees Amethyst as a sister and Pearl and Garnet as mother figures.

Even Stevonnie would be questionable since they were so young when they first fused. So NO, fusing = having sex is just NOT a thing. Fusions can be between Anyone! Not just romantic or sexual partners.

"Okay, but Peridot seemed so uncomfortable when she tried to fuse with Garnet! She hates fusion!"

Peridot never outright stated that she hated fusion. She just spouted Homeworld propaganda because at the time she was still considering herself a Homeworld gem. She was still starstruck over Yellow Diamond. As for Garnet,

Peridot was still new to the Earth. She was lost far from home, stuck on a planet about to be destroyed with "dangerous" rebel gems, and was learning how to deal with all these new things she'd never experienced before. She wasn't a crystal gem yet and hadn't been through her full redemption arc yet. Of Course she'd be too nervous to fuse, she didn't fully trust them yet! Any fusion that resulted from that dance would have been unstable at that current time.

But the thing is, Peridot Has Come a Long Way Since Then.

She joined the Crystal Gems, rebelled against Homeworld and Yellow Diamond, and formed Genuine connections with other gems for the first time in her life.

Saying she can't fuse is like saying she doesn't experience love for or connections to anyone in her life. It's like saying those on the a spectrum can't experience love or connection to anyone in their life. But she can and so can we! Friendship exists! Platonic love exists! Familial love exists! QPRs exists! We don't need to experience romantic or sexual attraction to form bonds with the people we love around us, and neither does Peridot. We're not broken or lacking in love, and neither is Peridot.

TLDR: Peridot should be allowed to fuse in fandom based works because Fusing Does Not Equal Sex and because Peridot has Formed Genuine Platonic Connections with Other Gems.

💚Thank you for coming to my Gem Talk!💚

[jessread-s]

Thanks to the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review

✩🌊🖤Review:

A dazzling adult debut from Saft!

“A Dark and Drowning Tide” follows Lorelai Kaskel, a sharp-tongued folklorist, and Sylvia von Wolff, her academic rival, as they pair up to solve their mentor’s murder whilst on an expedition to find a magical spring for their king.

Saft’s atmospheric writing contributes to her immersive world-building. Her story is set in the fictional kingdom of Brunnestaad, a country heavily inspired by Germany, that is populated by both Brunnestaaders and the Yevani, akin to the Jewish community. Saft tackles problems of nationalism and antisemitism through the perspective of her main character Lorelai, a young Jewish woman whose determination to make a name for herself in being a part of the Ruhigburg expedition stems from her experiences in being “othered”. I really appreciate the Jewish representation and how Lorelai’s rich knowledge of Jewish and German folklore contributes to the reader’s understanding of the country’s history, culture, and politics.

I could not get enough of the murder mystery Lorelai tasks herself with solving as well as the sapphic, academic rivals-to-allies-to-lovers subplot! Sylvia is the only suspect that Lorelai can rule out following their mentor’s murder. These circumstances push them to strike a begrudging alliance as they work together to prevent the murderer from striking again. I love the slow pacing of their relationship development as they are forced to confront their feelings while in each other’s proximity. I thoroughly enjoyed occupying Lorelai’s mind during this time. Lorelai is fascinating to follow as she draws on her knowledge of folklore, quick wit, and keen observation skills to find the Ursprung and the killer. At the same time, she is actively fighting against her love for Sylvia by burying her emotions and masking them with self-loathing. I adored watching Syliva break through Lorelai’s stubborn and guarded personality with her unrelenting optimism! They are truly opposites in every sense of the word and complete each other. Nothing was more satisfying than watching them capture the culprit and each other’s hearts!

Cross-posted to: Instagram | Amazon | Goodreads | StoryGraph

[itzrafee]

One Piece Chapter Discussion (Chapter 1126)

Ooh looks like the mystery continues with Yamato investigating the disappearances. I am so curious to see what kind of long lasting effects this will have as with this chapter we’re getting some resolution on a six to seven year old cover story. It’s nice to see Oda expanding on the story around Wano as it’s clear he had a lot of thoughts around it when he was writing it that he didn’t get to explore. I’m also quite curious as to what will happen with the cover stories the closer we get to the end. Whereas he has space to explore other facets of Wano through the cover story, is that something he’ll be able to do with Elbaph with it being so close to the end? Anyways, the rest of the discussion, which is spoiler filled, can be found below the cut!

I don’t know about y’all but I think it would be absolutely terrifying to be where the Straw Hats are in this first page if they weren’t allies with the giants. They straight up just kinda look like their dinner. But we’re not talking about Big Mom so I think the Straw Hats are probably safe. Also while somewhat terrifying, the designs of the Giants are great, they all ooze personality and joviality. I would not want to see them angry either. It’s interesting that the name of the absinthe they’re drinking is the “Green Fairy” and that it can cause hallucinations. Is that just set up to explain how and why the two parties got separated or is it set up for some absinthe-driven hallucinations? 

It’s interesting to me on a story structure level that this chapter kind of illustrates how Oda might have to delve into more slice of life stuff with the crew going forward. That before making this chapter important by flitting around the world and getting updates, Oda first spends some time with the crew just having fun and goofing off. It satisfies the pre-timeskip crowd clamoring for these types of scenes, me among that crowd.

This small sequence with Bonney also gets me right in the heart. Not only does she feel comfortable enough to finally be a child and not put on the airs of a grown adult that the One Piece world requires of people but also she gets to finally be free with her father. One Piece has this startling quality to it that makes the reality of war and oppression so real by contrasting the comedic with the emotional. And nothing hits quite as hard as the fate of the children of this series. We see through the suffering of the Straw Hats as children, Nami, Sanji, and Robin, among a few other characters throughout the series, on how oppression forces you to grow up and be stronger than any child should have to be. In recent arcs that oppression is a reality our young adult Straw Hats face head on. From Otama and Toko in Wano to the metaphors of growing up too fast that Bonney and Momo face us with, Oda is able to use these fantastical elements to deliver truths in more digestible ways. The tragedy of Momo and Bonney having to grow up so fast is such a potent and heart wrenching way to show this side of opression. But Oda is able to provide us with a catharsis that the real world so often denies by having Bonney feel safe again. By having Momo be safe and surrounded by loved ones.

Moving on from that dour and entirely too real note, we finally get a resolution on a cover story from wayyyy long ago where Bartolomeo burned down Shanks flag in Luffy’s name. And there’s a lot to talk about here. For such a fan-favourite and an audience surrogate for many, including myself, It’s odd that it’s been so long since we’ve seen Barto(don’t even get me started on Bon Clay!!). But it’s interesting that Oda seems to understand his impact as it seems like he’s being placed on the same level as Kid and Law in a way. Now this might be a little tin foil hatty of me but don’t you find it odd that Kid, Law, and Barto, all devil fruit users by the way, were all sunk at sea in the New World, the most dangerous sea maybe aside from the Calm Belt? 

And if we remember certain man with a burn scar who was first mentioned in chapter 1056(56=GoMu) and then again brought up in 1081 where it was mentioned that anyone who comes close to him gets swallowed up by whirlpools, I think we might have an option for what might’ve happened to those three. Adding on to that, if we go allll the way back to chapter 2 and full tin foil hat, we can see Luffy getting sucked into a whirlpool soon after he sets out on his journey but then bursting out of a barrel sometime after with Koby. In my head, I can totally see the aforementioned three joining Luffy on Elbaph, especially now that’s been separated from his crew. Maybe Luffy was also kidnapped by this whirlpool wielding man with a burn scar…again.

Okay, fanciful thinking aside we still gotta talk about how we’ve seen Shank’s main crew be ruthless badasses. Lucky Roux in Chapter 1 straight killed a dude while the whole crew laughed. Benn Beckman not only threatened Kizaru but also cut off Kid’s arm. And here, Yassop basically has a cannon attached to his gun and blows up a fleeing Barto Club. While these guys may seem easygoing, they’re still stone cold pirates. Also that ultimatum with the poison was pretty cold too. Barto’s ship blowing up also shows how lethal Yassop’s Haki must be, because I can imagine that Barto might’ve tried to shield his ship with his devil fruit.

I find it curious that Koby was so important to Blackbeard’s plans. I wonder if Blackbeard wanted to use Koby like how the Marines used Ace? We know how much Blackbeard’s plans mean to him. His scheming, though a lot of the time quite impromptu, is half the reason he’s an emperor already. And Blackbeard is in prime position to execute some big time operations. Not only does he have leverage in Garp(though thinking about it, wouldn’t the marines be glad to be rid of him?), he also has Pudding and all the knowledge Caribou brings. Oda makes it a point to show that Caribou has finally gotten to Blackbeard. It’s interesting that he’s surveilling the Revolutionary's too. Especially with Lafitte. Maybe he’s trying to get the heat off of himself by having Lafitte do some undercover hits and then blame it on the Revo’s?

Though, weirdly, the most important tidbit here to me is that Moria got away. It seems most likely that Moria will join Cross Guild as it seems to be the place for Warlord Alumni and Perona already has connections there in the form of Mihawk. I’d originally thought that Blackbeard was going to get Moria to reanimate Kaido, Big Mom, and Garp’s corpses with the obstacle standing in their way being that Blackbeard was responsible for Absolams death but now it seems like Moria’s going to be a player for Cross Guild, with at least the Yonkou resurrections still on the table. Also if Cross Guild is the place to be for former Warlords then we could see Boa join too. And maybe even Kuma and Doflamingo if the latter breaks out of Impel Down. Which I kinda hope he does just purely due to the fact that it might provide a path for Bon Clay to get out too.

This scene with Bonney and Jinbei is adorable but uhh, what’s Lilith staring at? Could she be communicating with Vegapunk?

Finally, in the last page we get some weird shenanigans happening. First, someone wakes Nami up but it appears that she’s alone. She’s had a change of clothes and seems to be in a lego house. The floor is kind of undeniable proof of that even if you want to try and explain away everything else. And finally, she seems to be alone. The going theory seems to be that this is Prince Loki’s lego house and that he’s playing with the StrawHats like toys. He could’ve been the one to call out for Nami. He could be a fan of the StrawHats. And honestly, that theory kinda makes sense, I totally subscribe to it. Loki could be a somewhat petulant giant like Big Mom. I also don’t think the impatient figure at the end of 1124 is him either as that seemed to be a human who was drinking, my going theory about that person being that it was Scopper Gaban, the third crew member of the Roger Pirates after Roger and Rayliegh. See ya next week!

[localapparently]

i love kimcom so much.. i love them so much..

theyre so..!! honestly if i think about them too much i'll cry.. and I'm rereading a few bits of dark castle to compare the novel and the webtoon and gosh, sleepyc and team's art really allows kimcoms interactions to feel more alive and goofy, silly even,,

epilogue spoilers ahead near the end

and novel's narration are like the gaps to fill in, both sides elevate the story,, i sound like a food critic but like. oh my goodness you read the part where kdj reunites with sys in dark castle after his revival and youre so taken by how sweet and cute it is. and then you read novel and..!!

I wouldn't have been able to run straight here if it wasn't for this feeling. I saw Shin Yoosung crying and thought that parents probably felt like this.

GOODBYEEEE I AM SO DEADDDD LIKE OH MY GOD YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME???

and webtoon chooses to let kdj maintain the same composure he had when he talked to jihye after saving her just moments prior,, and it works because now i read his inner thoughts in novel and I FEEL SO INSANE?!?!?! YOU BITCHHH SAY IT SAY YOU MISS HER?? no wait .. im getting off topic. this is becoming a kdj sys ramble

Honestly even though i call them found family I don't really classify them as a family either, they feel more like a home? at least at the first half of the story.. In an apocalypse where everything feels uncertain and you've lost all your close friends, you'd end up wandering aimlessly, so sticking to a group is moreso a temporary means of survival than friendship of any sort. It's also why kdj is so essential to kimcom as their glue, as the person who gathered them together, he provided them with that temporary party. and having that 'constant' you can return and realign to in that setting is so.. augh...

not to mention that three of the kimcom members are kids and kdj is their form of stability. lgy and sys hug him whenever they see him because he's the first adult that had ever shown them care. jihye is probably shaken from the first scenario but while she clings to yjh and admires him as her master, he probably doesnt do enough to reciprocate her respect or communicate as enthusiastically. now that i think about it, jihye feels kind of lonely, not young enough to get along with the kids particularly closely and not old enough to be buddies with the adults. does she make up for it by being talkative?)

And at this point in the story its evident that theyre not even that close !! singshong's writing style isnt one that elaborates on emotions and descriptive fluff to begin with, but sys is stated to not be so fond of jihye in ch162 because jihye was rude to kdj, they still feel like theyre in their own cliques. sys and lgy stick together as kids of similar ages, jhw and lhs get along normally, hsy is. hsy. lhs for one narrates kimcom as his 'companions' quite early on, but i'm unsure whether that choice is becuase thats just a suitable word for people closer than 'allies' but not close enough to be 'friends'. ultimately its just a buncha people who are trying to survive, and care about the guy that brought them tgt. it doesnt really feel like anything more than that.

and then as you're caught up in kdj's shenanigans, small snippets pass by and they feel a bit warmer yk. like sys and lgy having a coin flip whenever they're uneasy. (sys states that lgy has "done this before", like he's the one that has suggested the past coin flip(s). it feels like its implying that hes initiated this game system just to cheer up sys because shes a lot more transparent about feeling sad that kdj isnt there.) sooyoung of all people, willing to get an outer god contract to save sangah. jihye, hyunsung and seolhwa chilling in the room during proof of stars, and hyunsung was picking his nose like are you fr they are so unserious,.

in jttw arc ch 433, yoosung growing close enough to joonghyuk to not get intimidated by him and (forcefully (forcefully is a strong word but she straight up just puts it on his cheek unprompted and that is so funny of her)) apply seolhwa's ointment, even giggling when he allows her to do it after she brings up doctors orders.

after proof of stars, theres a portion that goes

The party members supported each other. (...) I saw the white lines connecting the empty universe. The stars, that seemed like they would never meet each other, were facing each other.

please know this: i wanted to cry and scream so bad. ive started to spell out kimcoms names rather than address them in their shortforms, that writing inconsistency is how emotional i am right now.

I can't do the justice of listing down every instance where they've grown a little closer, but i'm hoping to remember more on my second reread.

because orv is such a long novel, the way they gradually grow closer also feels realistic.. and by the time you're in the ch400s, its so clear that they wouldn't go anywhere else without each other.. if i start talking about vacation arc i'll just start sitting and staring at a wall again.

"you're explaining how an average found family trope is realised" Youre right!!! youre right!!,, me when the found family is actually found family.. don't shame me like this.. i'm just an emotional person..

Ah and then you get moments where their unity really shines, and they become god pummeling probability festering forces of nature... and its when one guy's life is in jeopardy. even when they weren't all that close yet, its when they save kdj where they feel most strong. and its a bit obvious because its like, common goal makes people group together yknow, but god the adrenaline and relief when they appeared in demon king selection.. the way their names pop up one after another when they vote for jung heewon's skill..

and 1865 !! 1865 was really the epitome of it all!! oh my god they were all so reluctant to return to the hell of the scenarios but they dragged themselves back because of one fucking guy that they loved too much. and i'm rereading 1865 a bit as i write this but the way they all yelled at their sponsors to pick them is so so funny and the whole speedrunning thing really shows their desperation to quickly find him but also feels a bit fun and even exhilirating with how theyd already beaten the game once, and they were going to storm through the whole thing again to reach kim dokja. like a fuckin earthquake. the lines in ch 536

They had to be insane. (...) These people who lost their minds were clearing the scenarios with insane methods.

YEAHHH THATS MY FUCKING KIMCOM WOOOH OH MY GODD THEYRE SO INSANE!!!!

kimcom's bond was strengthened because of their love for kim dokja, kimcom drifted so close because of how much they wanted to save kim dokja. whenever i think about the 'found family' trope between kimcom, it exists because they love kim dokja, and once again i'm reminded of how much that bastard is loved and how he denies that he is anything else but a reader outside the covers of the story.

It's not to say that all of kimcom's bonds were because of him, but it's clear that had it not been for him, they would have dissipated so much quicker.

agh. what was i talking about again..

genuinely i dont know if ive proven anything through this. i just had to talk about it. i havent even talked about the relationship between kdj and each kimcom member but then the post wouldnt end. sys's section would be thousands of words and i would even have a portion for gong pildu and jang hayoung..

i love kimcom. thats it thats the post.

[princess-of-the-corner]

It's worth noting that the RWBY characters are the allusions with twists.

What if Lampwick grew up, but was just as rotten as an adult as he was as a child?

What if Mulan's call to action came when she was TOO YOUNG to "play soldier" and thus couldn't protect her family?

There's also the matter of combining allusions at times. (i.e. Cinder could work as the Giles to Jaune's Joan of Arc due to her being a serial murderer who pretends to be an ally before her true colors are revealed.)

Like, Cinder has two wicked step mothers, one of whom is both her fairy godmother AND Rapunzel.

The Grim Reaper preserves life instead of ending it.

mm fair

[itchose]

@manslaught asked, “can i sleep here?”

allie’s face lights up,  as if this is a question she’d been anticipating.   she’s spent so much time with mikayla over the years that she started to assume she’d be all she had once she got out—  something she shouldn’t have had so much pride in,  but she does.  it’s why she started visiting her in the first place— she wanted to be her friend,  but not exactly because she was trying to rekindle something from their past   (  ‘friends’ is certainly no way to describe what they had back then.  )  she just needed to feel close to this in some way,  to feel like she was a part of it and could help in any way she could.  mostly, that was through her parents’ money,  helping mikayla with whatever she needed, whatever she asked.  she still wants to do that now,  even though she’s been cut off by them now,  but she still prepared a room for mikayla in case it’s what she needed.  ❝ like you even have to ask! ❞   she scoffs,  clapping her hands together.   ❝  i already got the guest room all ready for you. you can stay here as long as you like!  don’t worry,  i don’t have a lot of people over.  ❞   she ignores what that reveals about herself,  focused instead on taking care of mikayla.  ❝  i even have pajamas for us already!  ❞

[horizon-verizon]

There's something really strange about how HotD allows women to seemingly have power until they actually have to exercise it and maintain it.

The young Rhaenyra fights to be heard but seeks to establish herself, then we jump in time and all her fire has gone out, Alicent denigrates her in the council and in 6 years in DS she has not gained ally for her future council to not speak above her and truly respect her.

Alicent as Rhaenyra's opponent apparently has allies, lords and knights who will follow her (even if it is in the name of her son because exercising power through a man is still power)then we reach her moment of greatest triumph and she... She was left out of the plans and begins to lose more and more influence.

Baela appears confident on e7 but as soon as it's her turn to stand firm on the council she starts to be a scared little girl (which wouldn't be a bad arc because in fact she shares it with Jace in what It could be age discrimination instead of gender, but it's still strange because I'm sure they are already legally adults and AEMOND doesn't seem to have those problems even though some must have objected to a 16-17 boy who may have only strategized in Westeros chess being his main strategist).

Rhaenys has apparently never been afraid to voice her opinion and ruled in her husband's name, so in theory she should know how to deal with men their man·splain and its benevolent misogyny or not. But eventually she needs to ask Corlys for help and be rescued because she's not enough to keep the council in order.

These are our main women and they all express in their plot that women cannot have or maintain power by themselves. Then we also have:

Lady Serena/Sabitha (still confused by the name) who sits at the negotiating table with Lord Frey and Jace in apparent equality. A woman who shows up with several men to shout at Daemon for the Blackwoods without any fear. And Alys and Mysaria whose power depends on what they achieve behind closed doors with more socially influential people.

There is a whole history of women in history clawing and fighting for power and influence any way they could. Henry VII's mother is one of my favorites because she was only the king's mother, not even queen dowager, but she was a constant and influential presence at court, many wives/mothers/sisters of Roman emperors were involved in political intrigues (Caligula's mother had to be exiled for seeking justice for her murdered husband and inviting rebellion, Comudus' mother and Marcus Aurelius' wife when she thought her husband died moved to protect her children by inadvertently causing a political disaster and Comudus's sister thought that power should belong to her and her husband and not her brother, etc) We have, of course, Matilda but there are also Isabella I, Mary I, Isabella of Castile and several of her daughters.What about the power of the consorts? Catherine of Aragon was loved by the fountain even after her death and the legitimacy of her divorce called into question the marriage to Anne and the legitimacy of Elizabeth I, Anne and Parr were well-read women who had a far from insignificant influence. Or Catherine the great? This is a very messy and incomplete list and we wouldn't even have to look at the real world because Asoiaf already has it, I think one of the favorite reviews I read pointed out that Martin managed to show in a world that oppressed women how they were equal in ability and intelligence to men, which made his world misogynistic, but women themselves were no less.

hotD refuses to give us that because every time women have to show real power and not an appearance of it (which is what these women do in the background, Pretend that hey, yes there are women with power, just not any of our protagonists!) is degraded and put in her place carrying a message completely contrary to a supposedly "feminist" narrative.

There is only pain, suffering and the romanticization of that female martyrdom. We don't need it to be a girl power fantasy but at least there should be some nuance, some catharsis and hope because otherwise the message is... Why would you bother leaving the kitchen?

Now, to be clear to any readers: Anon is describing more how the writers have women held back and/or men intervene on for women to have any ability to address or resist other men's pressures: example, Rhaenys and Corlys as Anon said above in that specific scene. This is NOT a in-world character hate spiel!

Getting into it:

Rhaenys didn't directly ask Corlys to step in for her, he did that on his own in the episode...HOWEVER, the WRITING and plot sequence has Corlys have to step in. And I'll add another scene that anon's point reminds me of--Rhaenys didn't know or wouldn't rule Vaemond to just not do shit or face severe consequences....she was the ruling Lady for Corlys in his absence, of course she can order Vaemond around...but she doesn't. (No he can still ignore her, but that in itself would be so much more interesting [and truer to her orig/better character] that she falter in how to address him. Imagine she had ordered him to not go to KL, he goes anyway [thus this is another breach of higher authority], and thus there are TWO levels to his disobedience and duplicitous behavior in trying to become lord against his Lord's wishes and while he's too weak to address such a thing).

I think that we can keep Baela's trepidation as is bc as you say, non, it could be age but it'd also mean her gender and position as a future consort. She'd of course have some "beginning" trouble with addressing the council BUT I think what the issue is 2 things: A) in 1x08, Baela didn't know how to address Vaemond and that's fine, but we need to see progress and that requires more scenes of her growing some confidence. B) those scene before Vaemond's attempt that S1 didn't provide, and thus maybe we could have had a more "fronting"-and-resentful/openly-indignant-but-not-retreating-Baela like we saw then

Aemond has a totally different experience from Baela as a second born prince who was not, at first, to be King or that close to practicing a ruler's power-authority. Despite his position & his belief in his own abilities, he also has been feening for a chance to actually put those abiliities to practice. Other than him being 2nd born, he doesn't experience the layer of misogyny that includes engendering young girls that they can't do a thing AND they shouldn't specifically bc their femaleness is seen as (in)humanely and inherently lacking.

"Alicent as Rhaenyra's opponent apparently has allies, lords and knights who will follow her"--well, in 1x06/07, she tells Larys that she is "alone" and she needs Otto's hand to help her gain more influence in court. Enough to properly intimidate Rhaenyra....but since we don't get to see and witness the actual results of Otto's return to court (Rhaenyra immediately leaves for Dragonstone BEFORE Otto even comes back!), even this is more an appearance of power. Why? Because if Alicent of 1x06 wanted Otto to use against Rhaenyra, and Rhaenyra leaves before he even arrives...what is the point of Ott? Bc Alicent is now #1 bitch at court, at least actively?! Why couldn't we get Otto creeping (not sexual) on Alicent's authority and sorta taking over over her slowly but surely and we see Alicent's quasi-regret in asking him back? Instead we have Otto completely taking over and Alicent totally unaware! Rhaenyra is not there to "negate" Alicent at council, "show off" her "plain-featured sons" (& what...sully Alicent's eyes? or what?), or take possible/present supporting courtiers at court...who we never ever see as you say anon...so Otto comes to court at Alicent's ehest, and she actually doesn't gain much except a man leadign her around more than her making at least some use out of him for use all to WITNESS in key scenes where instead of Otto making announcements at court, it's either her or one of her lackeys....again, this is not about COUNCIL, this is about COURT but why not both with more scenes of Alicent leading court than her at council?

nice pointing out the discrepancy b/t the main lead female nobles vs the fewer side female nobles and Mysaria.

"There is only pain, suffering and the romanticization of that female martyrdom." I mean, there was already much over use of pain-suffering of women compared to men in Rhaenyra's story; problem with HotD is that there was also the stripping down of female rage/defiance/militancy/determination/self-assertion despite some men's most stupid desires. Their own desires for power vs the males' desires to use them for power [again, that example I gave pf Alicent--in real time--realizing Otto trying to use her for his own power trips or just ignoring her & trying to still keep use Otto for her own ends but finding such a tightrope nearly impossible to walk], to be specific. This goes for the Vaemond-Rhaenys thing as well]

"We don't need it to be a girl power fantasy but at least there should be some nuance, some catharsis and hope because otherwise the message is" -- bc of GoT, there is no real message of "hope" for women specifically...as the Dance was always woman-focused, specifically the plight of a woman who has been killed simply bc she demanded the same privileges men had concerning feudal-monarchial authority. There's little-to-no catharsis in Rhaenyra's story--you can maybe find some comfort in her life at Dragonstone after the show is over...oh wait😒--but it is true HotD refuses to handle the moments and spaces of her life pre-end of war that would have showed her both happy and more in control over her body/residence/etc.: Harwin & Daemon, [canonically, both at Dragonstone]; Laena [both Dragonstone & Driftmark]; her own kids,Rhaenys [Dragonstone/Driftmark] -- And I already described more nuanced rewrites for Rhaenys and Alicent

[leoruby-draws]

Finding a certain Someone...

One full week of drawings posted, but I'm still not done yet. Cause there's one more after this, something I've been wanting to post for over a year, but first lets go into this post.

There's a certain archetype that I've been wanting to put in the TrWh Outlaw team, and that's the 'Superman' type hero. Someone clearly strong, with powers that can be similar, and give off that certain 'super' vibe. In canon it was Bizzaro, a failed superman clone. He exists in my au, but being an adult was obviously not what I wanted. Perhaps in the future he can join the team tho. There are also a couple of current members that could sorta fit the mold but weren't quite what I was looking for. Like Grant Emerson and Gillian Wahrman for example, Gillian ended up filling a different archetype tho.

Grant esp kinda came close, esp when you factor his older self seen in Sins of Youth. His older self seemed more secure and when his emotions stabilized he could even fly, he really gave off that superman attitude. He never really got there as he actually matured in the comics, if anything his life got shitter so he's still a ways off from this mature ideal. At any rate he didn't quite fit the bill for me, sorry Grant.

Another idea was Lindsey Wah aka Aura, you can find her in Superboy and the Ravers. She had magnetic powers so she could be pretty strong, but I'm not sure if she was strong enough for what I wanted.

She's kinda a party girl but I thought that would make her fun in a way, wanting to both party and help people. But the more I thought about it, the more I thought she didn't quite have that 'spark' with the others that I wanted. In fact, I was kinda thinking she should join the Young Justice team when it forms in my au, she's already friends with Kon through the ravers.

Three random characters here, but I'm gonna focus on Sierra ? aka Matrix II. The other two I can talk about another time. Look at Sierra bothering Linda Danvers, speaking of, her story is super convoluted. Kinda had trouble following it tbh.

Sierra was part of Lex Luthor's pet team, Infinity Inc. II (crazy how you can just buy names rights like that), she proved to be a total coward, but I kinda find coward characters fun in their own way (think of like Usopp form One Piece). There could be a character arc for her, where she learns to become more braver and heroic as she grows. But in the end, I didn't go for her. She didn't have enough fire power for me, I still do like her. Maybe she could ally up with team at another point?

Captain Marvel is a superman expy himself, so having his arch nemesis's sidekick could be something that could work. This hero is Amon Tomaz aka Osiris. I thought the way Amon tried desperately to become a hero but everything was just stacked against him endeared him to me, that struggle to be what he wants to be is something that I think fits him with the Outlaws. Amon came close but I still wanted someone closer to the Superman mythos. He might join the team at a later time or ally up with them.

David's story from World's Finest is so sad, it a genuine tragedy what happens to him, though he does sorta get a happy ending. It's pretty obvious that his story and teenage look is modeled after Jason (almost blatantly so), so it should be expected that he could be what I'm looking for?

I did think about it for a hot second, but if you read World's Finest then you see he starts off in Dick's age group, making him too old for me. I suppose it doesn't matter since World's Finest is elseworld (I think?), but that's what sticks in my head. He came really close too, aw well.

Also I tried to copy Mora's style as best I could, esp tried to copy that :] type of smile he sometimes does. It's a really cute quirk of his work I noticed lol.

This one is more of a joke, having Superboy prime as a candidate but I was never gonna go for that. I don't think he would enjoy being part of my goofy au honestly.

I started getting a little desperate for what I wanted, it felt like my standards were just too high and specific. I even start to go into making oc's to fit what I wanted, like these:

This was a oc created to be a sorta legacy/sidekick for Maxima, who was a kinda a anti-hero (with the hots for Superman). I made her personality more reserved and calm to contrast with Maxima. But still not what I needed, I'd still like for her to exist in my au, maybe as an ally of sorts.

Another oc, Starsha was a character I created years ago, she was a part of fanfic 'idea' where Jason meets an alien girl to be friends with. Separate from the Training Wheels au, and I think she might've been created before all that too. The story for her goes that she was a robot from space that crash landed on earth and Jason has the difficult task of hiding her from her creator and from Bruce. It eventually goes bad and Starsha dies trying to protect Jason (in a explosion, calling forward to Jason's eventual death). She eventually comes back when Jason's older, and is kinda meant to replace Starfire in a new52 style outlaw team.

I thought maybe I could transplant her to my au, Starsha had just about everything I wanted it seemed. But having an oc for my 'superman' just didn't fell right and I though I could just keep looking in the comics. Then!!

Then I did! I found someone perfect!!

And that someone I'm gonna talk about tomorrow!

[jetwhenitsmidnight]

Take All of Us by Natalie Lief

Publisher: Peachtree Teen / Holiday House

Release date: 4 June 2024

Genre: young adult apocalyptic/dystopian horror

If you like:

Unbury-your-gays

Disabled kids surviving an apocalypse together

Found family

Zombies 🧟‍♂️

Some light cannibalism

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5

Synopsis

Five years ago, a parasite poisoned the water of Ian’s West Virginia hometown, turning dozens of locals into dark-eyed, oil-dripping shells of their former selves. With chronic migraines and seizures limiting his physical abilities, Ian relies on his best friend and secret crush Eric to mercy-kill any infected people they come across.

Until a new health report about the contamination triggers a mandatory government evacuation, and Ian cracks his head in the rush. Used to hospitals and health scares, Ian always thought he'd die young... but he wasn’t planning on coming back. Much less facing the slow, painful realization that Eric left him behind to die.

Desperate to confront Eric before the parasite takes over, Ian joins two others left behind—his childhood rival Monica and the jaded prepper Angel—on a journey across town. What they don't know is that Eric is also looking for Ian, and he's determined to mercy-kill him.

Content warnings

Death, violence

Ableism

Blood, gore, body horror

Cannibalism (but its not super graphic imo)

Vomiting (but descriptions of vomit is minimal)

Abandonment

Past medical content

Epidemic

Hallucinations

Mentioned physical/parental abuse

Review

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC!! 💀🧟🛢️

There's a post about how if people became zombies they would just continue going about their day-to-day lives because that's what their bodies remember. That is literally this book.

I found the synopsis to be rather misleading. It gives the impression that this book is a scary survival thriller, where the characters have to fight to stay alive, against terrible odds with heavy angst. While Ian, our main boy, does do some angsting, for the most part, this book feels really cute and cozy to me. The begrudging-allies-to-found-family pipeline is real and I eat it up every single time. The characters initially beef with each other upon meeting, but quickly bond over their shared circumstances (being abandoned, chronic illnesses, being outcasts). I liked how the author quickly established their personalities and circumstances, making it clear how their dynamic works from the get-go.

I'm sleep deprived and running out of steam so the rest of this review is in bulletpoints.

The Romance

Cute!

It's giving 😳👉👈

I didn't expect it to turn out the way it did, given the synopsis, which made it sound very ominous.

The Chronic Illness Rep

idk how accurate it is, as I have no first-hand experience

The synopsis says that Ian gets chronic migraines, but he is dead for most of the book, so he doesn't have any migraines in the story, but he also doesn't mention it ever

He does talk about his epilepsy though, but mainly in terms of how people react to him (staring, calling for an ambulance when he doesn't need it)

The synopsis says that Monica is chronically ill, though the book doesn't state exactly how, and she also uses a cane

Character Arcs

Ian's arc is mainly about how, as a chronically ill person, he struggles to take up space because of the guilt he feels from needing people to help him

I think Ian's arc was well-executed, but the arcs for all the other characters were lacking

I wish Eric could have gotten his own arc, he has a bunch of stuff that goes unaddressed

The Premise

The most unrealistic part of this book is that the dead people have oil for blood and the US government didn't round them up and throw them in the Oil Extractor 3000

The most realistic part of this book is that the government (belatedly) discovered a parasite in this town's water supply that turns people into zombies and instead of trying to clean the water or evacuate the townspeople, just told them to drink filtered water

Amount of Horror

Most of this book didn't read like horror to me, other than the light cannibalism

The last 10% is the most horror-y part, very trippy and strange, with more gory bits

Overall

This wasn't the best written book, there were some minor plot holes, and the character development could use some work

But! This was so entertaining and so much fun to read so 5 stars just for enjoyment reasons

[weirdestcornelius]

I hate how CC is presented to be a happier AU of SCH when the kids aren't very happy. One example nobody talks about is Marco, he's obviously stressed about having to deal with his giant family everyday. A child being parentified at a young age can be very traumatizing, especially with so many siblings you have to take care of. I've been parentified by my parents and that resulted in very bad anxiety, depression, and family stress. I know Marco isn't the only one struggling in the family, but his situation is the least talked about. But maybe I'm so fixated on his situation because I relate to him so much ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

- 🦝

I agree with you so much. The CC family is so royally fucked up it's insane.

Marco's trauma is completely ignored even though it's been stated that he feels like his childhood was robbed from him. I can relate to him on so many levels and it makes me angry when it's swept under the rug; especially because that's the exact thing that usually happens to these issues in real life. People tend to say "it's not REAL trauma, you don't have a right to be angry at your parents for needing help". Marco feels like he can't be mad at his parents. I want to see an arc where he just stops fucking caring and goes off on his parents for what they did to him. It would be refreshing to see a character be angry without it being a gateway into another ship.

I feel like Ally is also an example of how bad the main four are as parents; kit gets angry at and yells at her siblings, has temper tantrums, and NOBODY does ANYTHING about it. Anger issues are fine, but honestly Ally is a grownup in the comic and I thought kit was a teen with the way kit acts. It's been stated that Ally has autism but honestly? That's still not an excuse to act like that. It would make sense if she was younger, but kit is GROWN. So obviously the parents haven't tried to do anything to try and correct this behavior if Ally is a grown adult and still gets set off at small comments from her siblings who are still KIDS.

The same goes for Eve. Eve constantly makes fun of Sly for literally everything. Eve makes fun of fen to the point that squeak reminds me of bullies I've had before, which is why I literally can't STAND her as a character. I know people may attack me for this saying "But Eve is Kc's self insert!!!! You can't say you hate squeak!!!" but I really don't care. I don't HAVE to like a character that is constantly bullying the one character I can instantly see myself in. The most fucked up part of this is that the main four don't CARE. They tell Eve not to be so mean, but they do literally nothing about it in the long run.

I've been emotionally abused by people before and I can tell you that this is what it looks like, especially in large families. We're supposed to see the main four and think "Awww, they're parents now! That's so sweet!" which would be the case if they actually took care of their own kids. Emotional abuse and neglect runs absolutely rampant in the CC household but we're supposed to see it as the "comfort au". This isn't comforting.

At this point I really only read CC to see Marco, Sly, Cream and Levi. I'm also hoping we'll eventually find out what happened to Cuddles cause if I'm being honest the whole cover-up is one of the only things interesting to me in CC.