#as characters I completely do not recognize

[originalleftist]

Yep.

Over eight decades of stories, adaptations, and alternate timelines by dozens if not hundreds of different writers gives a whole new meaning to the line "Batman could be anyone".

But I think what works so well about it, and part of why Batman is one of the very best characters in my view, not just in superhero media but media generally, is that its not just people getting it wrong, or not respecting the material- most (probably not all) of those versions are genuinely recognizable, and work, as Batman.

Batman has a core concept, and a basic image, which are very simple, but very clear and compelling, while at the same time being quite malleable. Guy witnesses horrible crime (in most versions, the murder of his parents as a child), is deeply affected by it, and spends the rest of his life fighting crime/trying to save people. To do this he adopts the persona of a bat, a frightening creature of the night- turning fear against itself. But within those basics-superhero/war on crime, bat iconography-you can do almost anything, and still have it be Batman.

You can have a Batman who kills (the original did), though I prefer one who does not, as it draws a clearer distinction between him and most of his adversaries, and it adds layers of depth and pathos to his mission- he isn't simply driven to get revenge for what was done to him, but by a determination to protect life, that no one else go through that, which makes his story and character deeper, but also his goals far more unattainable, than a simple revenge fantasy narrative.

Likewise, you can play with the costumes a lot- usually its some mix of grey/black/blue with a cape, cowl over the upper face, pointy ears and bat logo on the chest, but one of my favourite Bat costumes is the Batman Beyond suit, which incorporates red, lacks a traditional cape, and has the face completely covered- the latter two being elements that would make it far more effective in real-life, probably. Oh, and it can fly, because it's a futuristic Batman (Personally, I think the pointy ears are probably the most vital element of the costume- you see that silhouette and instantly you recognize Batman, although the length and shape of the bat ears still varies a LOT between costumes).

Side note: I'd also add that I consider Poison Ivy the best Batman villain in part for a similar reason, which is the character's versatility. Ivy's basic motive (misanthropic (especially anti-male) eco-terrorist) and basic look (the plant/vine motif) can be adapted to a wide variety of situations while still being recognizably HER- compare modern superpowered plant-goddess Ivy to, say, Batman the Animated Series' Ivy, who was originally no powers, and just a femme fatale who bred mutant plants.

I would in fact argue that this ability to be constantly reinterpreted and reinvented, while still retaining a meaningful connection to its origins, is a key to making a character or story that will grow beyond its origins to become part of the mythology of the larger society. And its something that (good) superhero characters lend themselves to quite well.

“He would not fucking say that” is a Schrodinger’s phrase when it comes to Batman. There is probably Batman run where he would say that. There is also probably a run where Batman would kill the other Batman for saying that.

[takaraphoenix]

I saw someone refer to Steter as a comedy relief duo earlier and it just completely sent me, because that's just... so far from what Steter is, in canon?

As I'm currently rewatching the show, it has shot up into being my favorite ship on the show because of the gravitas it has.

It's a ship that highlights Stiles' fearlessness in such intriguing ways, in canon. From the boy who yelled at a feral Alpha in the school, to their first face to face meeting at the school, when Peter recognizes him, knows him, acknowledges him ("You must be Stiles", as though Stiles' reputation as the one who figures things out proceeds him, as he is the first one to put together that Peter is the Alpha).

There's nothing comedic about the scene on the lacrosse field, when Stiles is kneelng beside Lydia's unconscious form and Peter... for reasons beyond comprehension... decides to curl his claws beneath Stiles' chin and guide him up. Not grab him by the arm and haul him up, not command him, not demand.

This is... sensual, filled with tension, and I don't even necessarily mean the sexual tension (even though the imagery of Stiles kneeling before Peter and Peter grasping his chin is something that I find hard to not see a sexual read on).

Peter kidnaps Stiles into the parking garage to force the boy to track down Derek and, sure, the "His username is Allison? His password is also Allison?" - "Still want him in your pack?" is absolutely iconic and is comedic... how do you boil that entire exchange down to "comedy relief"?

The way Peter offers Stiles the bite - Peter, who so far, only took whatever he wanted, never asked or offered - and doesn't force when Stiles says "No". Even the way Peter catches Stiles on the lie is a moment of tension and revelation on Stiles' part. The way Peter acknowledges Stiles as the clever one.

The season 1 finale? When Stiles sets the survivor of a horrific house fire on fire? Absolute riot, huh. It's vicious, it's cruel - it's everything.

And when Peter is resurrected? Sure, Stiles sarcastically asks if someone can kill him again and sure, Peter snarks about living in a cave system. But even in that episode, these brief comedic moments are absolutely overshadowed by the way Peter and Stiles work together, figure out what the vault is made of, then call Scott to warn him and Derek, by finishing each other's sentences. Two brilliant minds working together, on the same wavelength.

The next time they interact is when Peter tells Stiles about Paige, explains what the blue eyes mean. It's one of the more heavy and serious moments in the season, aside from all the death scenes. It's a big lore drop and character background on both Peter and Derek. And it's Stiles this information is shared with. It's a serious moment and even as Peter tells it all, Stiles doesn't trust, sees past the silver tongue and that too is part of the appeal.

When Peter and Stiles work together to save Cora's life in the hospital, while the Alpha Pack is hunting them down? Blind trust. Stiles asks Peter to help him and Peter doesn't even ask, much less quip, he just follows Stiles' lead and they work together.

Now, I'll admit, I haven't seen seasons 3B through 6 in six years and hey, maybe they'll be a real Abbott and Costello in season 4 and I'm just not remembering it, but damn it all to hell if the first half of the show doesn't present them as two clever minds challenging each other, with a growth from terror and pain to respect and teamwork.

I understand and respect not liking a ship, but I am genuinely baffled when people deliberately misinterpret a canon to suit their needs. Always makes me wonder what alternate reality's version of the show they were watching, surely not the same as me.

[linics]

how would bllk characters comfort you?

featuring : i. rin, y. isagi, s. nagi

pt.2 coming soon ??

a/n : this is pretty much just a one shot w each of the characters !! none of this will be exactly canonical as some characters cough rin are completely emotionally unavailable. i am also new to tumblr so stick w me on this. not proofread & lowercase is intentional. also just coming out of a major writers block.

i. rin

this man would have absolutely no idea how to react. first of all, he’d probably brush you off if you weren’t close with him. so for the sake of this, we’re going to pretend that you two are very close. he’s probably opened up to you by his definition — which consists of letting you around him when he’s upset — so that’s likely what he’d do as that’s all he knows what to do.

his social awareness doesn’t end on the field, sure, he likes to rest sometimes, but it’d just come so naturally to him whenever it involves you. he can’t help it.

you’d probably have to be painfully desperate for some sort of comfort to go to the most closed off man ever, but you did so regardless. walking into his room, your eyes landed on him as he studied the previous match in places where his past-self couldn’t see. his eyes were glued to the tv.

even so, he instantly noticed your presence, his eyes not faltering as he recognized the footsteps approaching him. he stayed silent.

as much as he was expecting the footsteps to reach him, they paused in the middle of the room. this caused him to realize that something was wrong, it was a new behaviour from you, after all.

“come here,” he said reluctantly. you followed, not wanting to annoy him. and who were you to deny rin of a rare moment of him wanting you to be closer?

a few minutes passed and he hadn’t acknowledged you any further, simply studying the gameplay.

“i didn’t come here to watch you analyze a game,” you scoffed, shifting to stand up again.

“well, that’s what you’re doing. sit back down,” he retorted before you got the chance to fully stand.

you shook your head in protest, but went back to sitting, “this is boring, rin.” he just scoffed at your comment, standing up.

“eyes on the screen, tell me everything that happens.”

you looked at him curiously as he left the room. you tried paying attention to the game as much as possible, but there was no way you could dive into all the small details like he could.

about 2 minutes later, he wandered back, settling down to where he was resting before. he had a pillow in hand.

“there. if it’s so boring, then sleep.” he said simply, passing you the pillow. it was too hot for a blanket, anyways. but if you asked for one, he might’ve left to grab one.

you took it from him, placing it under yourself and laying down.

he let you fall asleep next to him. even if it seemed like he was more engrossed in the sport, he still left for a few minutes. a few valuable moments. and he never asked you about what happened in those 2 minutes.

y. isagi

he would go to you, for sure. he’d noticed that you’ve been acting off, maybe more on edge or fidgety, barely touching your food.

that being said, he wouldn’t want to embarrass you or call you out publicly. he’d wait a little until he can find you alone.

he also probably doesn’t know exactly how to comfort people. but he did grow up around a healthy family, so he knows the basics. but he’s more logical and direct.

late at night, he’d find you unable to sleep, wandering around mindlessly out of pure boredom.

“oh, what’re you doing up?” he hummed gently, not wanting to scare you, but also wanting to catch your attention.

“oh, isagi, hey,” you mumbled, your heart pounding in your chest from the shock of seeing someone up so late.

“wanna go for a walk?”

“sure.”

the two of you began mindlessly walking around, the air held some tension, like there was something missing. something he didn’t say, but wanted to.

“what’s wrong?” he said abruptly, the words falling out of his mouth in an almost demanding way. he knew as a fact something was wrong, or at least going on.

“huh?” you were simply shocked by his statement, it was unexpected.

“you know what i mean. you’ve been off for days. so spit it out,” his tone was a little softer this time.

“yeah, i know that, i just wasn’t expecting it, sorry,” you murmured hesitantly.

“it’s fine, go on,” he demanded, just wanting the truth from you.

you hesitated, thinking of the words to express the aching feeling in your chest at all times — the bad type of aching. soon enough, the words came to mind, “i guess i’ve just been really anxious recently. there’s been a lot of changes and it’s just new to me.”

he’d listen intently, analyzing your words and the tone slipping through your lips. he thought for a moment after hearing your reasoning.

“oh, i see.” he hummed, giving you time to see if you’d add on. when you didn’t, he continued, “it’ll be fine. i know new things can be scary with change, but you’ll be okay. everything will work itself out.”

he’d continue listening to the specifics of your stress and take an internal note of them. even though he couldn’t prevent all of them, he’d keep them in mind at all times and avoid putting you in overly stressful situations too quickly. but he’d also want you to adjust to them eventually, just at a controlled rate.

s. nagi

similar to rin, he likely wouldn’t go up to you first — unless it was really bad or you really worried him. don’t get me wrong, if he’s close with you, he’d hate seeing you upset like, at all. but he doesn’t want to mess up.

if it was something that involved him in any way, or it was something he could’ve prevented, he’d definitely blame himself. even if it’s subconscious.

will treat you a little nicer and be less difficult with you for a bit after you go to him, just to make your life a little easier.

this one’s gotta happen pre-bllk, so when he was in school.

you and nagi had always been close, and you relied on him pretty heavily. despite his lazy nature, he always pulled through when you needed him to. but apparently not now.

there was a test that he’d gotten notes for from the smart kid in the class, and you were coming back from a vacation the day before. meaning you still had to take the test, without any prior notes or even hints.

so, naturally, you asked nagi for them. and as much as he promised he’d give them to you on time, he fell asleep before finding the motivation to.

the next day, you were avoiding him as much as possible. you were mad at him, for good reason. when the test came around, you barely remembered half of the information, guessing for most of it.

tests came back the following day, and, as disappointing as it was, you nearly didn’t pass. retakes weren’t allowed with your stubborn teacher, either.

for the rest of the day, you were completely ignoring him, literally wandering to the rooftop for lunch, despite it raining. unbeknownst to you, nagi followed soon after.

“what’re you doing up here? such a bother, making me follow you,” he hummed, his tone bored. and again, you just ignored him. of course, he didn’t let that happen, “stop ignoring me and tell me what i did. something’s clearly up.”

you just snapped, had he seriously forgotten about the test completely? “you ruined my grade, nagi, and now i’m supposed to just go home and show my parents and almost failing mark? are you serious?”

he stayed silent, letting you finish. and when you finally finished, he spoke, “i’m sorry i fell asleep before giving it to you,” despite the sarcastic words, his tone sounded genuine, “i really am sorry.”

you just stared at him before walking back towards the stairwell, pushing past him inside. now that he understood why, he knew to give you space.

after a few days of ignoring him, you finally decided to start talking with him again. he started being nicer to you. you wanted something to drink? if it was water, you could have his. bored during lunch? he’d slide you his phone to play a few games, maybe even with him.

as much as you enjoyed this little phase, it barely lasted 2 weeks. then he was back to his stubborn-self. even so, he always followed through from then on out. at least he learns something..

[obxsummer]

mess // ghost of you

pairing: jj maybank x routledge!reader

summary: groff gets grounded, sarah's wifey material, and a statue apparently holds the blue crown, which means someone's climbing to get it.

warnings: usual obx angst

navigation -- series masterlist

ask me anything

--

Morocco was proving to stay a challenge to you all, especially when the vehicle’s motor blew up on Cleo and the poor girl was stuck attempting to fix it. In the meantime, Pope was observing the items John B and Sarah had managed to pull from Terrance’s boat in their quick mission. 

While JJ attempted to help Cleo get the truck started again, John B and Sarah were browsing at nearby booths. This left you and Kie to take the time to chill out and just observe the people around you. 

What your fiancé had begrudgingly revealed to you, was he pickpocketed the gun the mercenary had dropped and it was now tucked in his waistband, clearly visible against the light colored fabric. You had rolled your eyes, but didn’t bother to argue with him. You were all unarmed, in his defense, so it wouldn’t hurt to have some way to fight back.

“John B, I’m tired of driving. Take the wheel.” Cleo waved dismissively as she climbed into a seat next to Sarah, allowing your brother and Pope to take the front.. 

The next location, Agapenta, was supposedly where you’d find some answers. The drive would take a while, a lovely 60 miles of hopefully peace and quiet. JJ happily accepted the empty time, letting you rest against his shoulder as the wind whipped around you all. The ride was as smooth as John B could make it, the road proving itself bumpty and full of twists and turns. 

Eventually, pavement turned into dirt and Pope was pointing out a nearby well to refill water bottles and take a break to stretch. You groaned as the vehicle came to a stop and climbed out, your legs sore from sitting so scrunched together for the time being. 

“Pope, I really hope you’re right about this well,” John B said as he rolled his neck, a popping sound following the movement and he sighed. 

JJ reached up to help you climb down, the dirt hard and dry beneath your feet. You opened your backpack, shuffling through the mess to grab the empty water bottles you’d brought from Poguelandia to pair with the larger ones they’d bought at the market. 

“How does this thing even work?” You asked Pope as you walked toward the well with the various bottles in your arms. “Like is there a pump or-”

“Hello!”

Pope grabbed your arm to pull you back from approaching the stones. The shouting continued in a language you couldn’t quite recognize before you all decided to look down the well at the same time. 

“I guess we found Groff, huh?”

Bile burned your throat as you took a step back from the dark pit in the ground. JJ was standing a few feet away with a tan back in his hands, the contents inside likely belonging to the man stuck at the bottom of the well.

You wondered how he didn’t die from the fall, silently pissed that outside forces couldn’t have just ended this nightmare on your behalf. Because now, there was a decision to make that ultimately landed in JJ’s hands.

JJ gently squeezed your shoulder as he approached the well, a silent communication that he could do it. He looked utterly pissed and disappointed with the realization that he was really the only one to handle the situation, but leaned over the edge to address Groff.

“JJ, is that you?” The voice echoed back.

JJ sighed and looked straight ahead, completely dismissing the man in the well. “What happened?”

“I’m trapped down here because of that… Rafe.”

You snorted, pressing the back of your hand against your mouth to keep your laughter in as Sarah nearly broke her character next to you with a laugh. Leave it to Rafe to shove Groff in a literal well. 

“But now, my boy, my beautiful boy, is here to rescue me.”

That one got a full giggle out of Kiara, and JJ looked at all of you with an unamused look. Annoyance was winning its course here, and really, now you wanted to leave.

“What happened to the scroll?” JJ asked as he played with the flask of water in his hands. 

“Rafe! He took it and he tried to kill me, but I know where it is. I know how to get it back. We’ll go. We’ll go together, just… just throw me the rope!”

The blond boy stepped back from the view of the well, which evidently scared Groff enough that he started yelling again. You stepped away from Sarah and Kie to grab his arm, scanning his face for any hint of how he was feeling.

“You okay?”

To your surprise, JJ’s eyes were full of tears when he looked back at you and he looked angry. “He almost killed you. And now he’s sitting here asking me to help him?” 

The broken whisper felt like a punch to the chest and your fingers unconsciously brushed over where the bruises rested on your skin. You’d support JJ through a lot of rights and wrongs, but this had to be the hardest one. 

You’d come to hate very few people in your life, but Groff was the quickest one to reach that status. He was cruel. There were very few people that were wicked in that way, deep to their core, but he was a perfect example of one. Heartless, even.

JJ sighed, drying away stray tears with the back of his hand. You let your hand coast up his arm to rest on his neck, gently brushing the skin of his cheek with your thumb. “It’s okay. It’s your call.”

He shook his head harshly and stepped out of your grasp to approach the well again as Groff yelled out for him to toss the rope down. JJ picked up the twine with consideration and your heart felt like it was in your throat. 

“JJ, I need you to throw me the rope!”

“Why?” JJ countered as he stared at the object intently. “Why should I do that when you tried to kill not only me, but someone you knew meant the world to me? To us.”

There was a pause before the answer. “I snapped. Sorry.”

John B let out a loud laugh at that one, his head falling back against the seat of the truck before his hand rubbed at his face in disbelief.

“Just get me out of here, JJ, and we will get the crown. Together, just like we planned.”

“You gave me away. You gave me away because you don’t want me. You don’t want a son. Now you come back into my life acting like you had to do that.” 

“No of course not. You’re my boy, I love you.”

JJ reached back with an open palm and you took it wordlessly, making sure to stay out of Groff’s view but close enough that JJ knew you were right behind him. “No.. don’t, don’t say that. You don’t know what that means. You don’t even know me. You never were my father. You never even tried.”

“I’m a weak man, JJ. You wouldn’t kill me for that, would you? That’s not you. You’re better than me.”

JJ scoffed and shook his head before holding the rope out to you, which you took albeit confused. You watched as he untied it from the post next to the well, leaving it disconnected from any anchor point. “Being better than you really isn’t that hard. Bye, Dad.”

Without sparing a glance, JJ took a step back from the well to walk away and you stood there as Groff started yelling in protest for him to come back. You glanced back to make sure he was okay, Pope taking the time to hug him tightly, before you made your own decision.

Peeking over the edge of the well, you could barely make out Groff’s figure at the bottom and his voice was suddenly much louder until he stopped at the sight of you.

“Remember me? Daughter you never had but always wanted?” You asked, a teasing smirk making its way to your lips. Pulling the rope closer, you let it fall from your fingers and watched the saving grace hit the ground with a loud smack as Groff winced. 

With a look of disappointment, you sighed to yourself, “You made your bed, now you can lie in it too.”

--

“Careful, we don’t know what we’re walking into.” John B was tense and on guard as he led the group from the car when the path came to an end. Desert stretched out in front of you all, save for a few bare plants that shifted with the wind.

As you all approached the walled entrance to Agapenta, Rafe’s voice carried across the open land. 

“Okay, just take it easy, okay?” The stress in his tone was obvious enough that JJ was pushing against your shoulder to keep you out of view as they surveyed whatever was going on ahead. 

Peeking through the brush, you made out Rafe’s figure with the map dangling from one hand and the lens from the other. His back was toward you all as he spoke with whoever was threatening him as he held his arms in the air. There was just enough room over the makeshift wall that you could make out the mercenary group with their vehicles and weapons.

“They’re gonna kill him,” Cleo mumbled as a few armed mercenaries started approaching Rafe.

Kie scoffed, “Do we care?”

“Yeah, that’s a good question, Pope. Then they’d take the scroll.”

You glanced over at Sarah, the girl obviously torn between the words being said and the fact that Rafe was her brother. He was trying, she could tell, and at this point, that meant enough to her. 

“There are seven of them, they all have rifles.”

JJ’s hand fell from your shoulders. “I know. That’s why we’re gonna need to think outside the box.”

He moved to grab the gun from his waist, checking the bullets in the chamber before loading it. You swallowed thickly, knowing anything that involved JJ and a weapon didn’t tend to go well. 

“Hey.” You grabbed his arm to hold him still for a moment. “This isn’t Call of Duty, okay? We can’t rush into action right now without thinking this through a little.”

Sarah had evidently thought it through enough and grabbed the gun from JJ’s hand to steady in her own grip, the group falling silent as she did so. “That’s my brother.”

The shot rang out, perfectly nailing the fuel tank on one of the mercenary vehicles to cause an explosion. You stared, amazed, before looking at the girl next to you. “Sarah gets the gun from here on out.”

Rafe took off running as more gunshots started to follow and you decided it was probably a good idea to get away from here. Dust kicked up around everyone as you ran, shouts to go faster or change direction coming like rapid fire. 

The sunshine was so warm against your skin and dust coated your throat as you all came up upon the gates with barely enough time to slip through before Pope and JJ slammed the door shut just in time for gunshots to bust through the wood.

“We gotta move,” Kie called out as the boys barricaded the door as best as possible. Somewhere in the chaos, Rafe had managed to land here as well and brought up the rear as the group went running again. 

“Oh shit!” You yelped as a group of sheep were suddenly in the path. They were just as freaked out as you and took off running, giving you enough time to take a deep breath before JJ was grabbing your arm and pulling you to keep moving. 

An almost stumble in his step told you his side was getting irritated from the constant movement and you shifted to push him ahead of you, your hand pressed into his back to keep him going. You came up on a tunnel, Pope and Cleo coming to a stop as the yelling got closer to your location. 

“What are you doing?” JJ slowed to look at the couple, the gun now in Cleo’s hands as John B, Sarah, Kie, and Rafe kept moving.

“We got it, we’ll hold them off,” Pope explained, his hand falling on your back to continue moving you and JJ along. JJ hesitated, hating the idea of splitting up but Pope had already made up his mind. “Hey, let me protect you for once, okay? You’re not the only one who shot teddy bears.”

Cleo gave you a stern look and nudged you in the direction. You gave her an uncertain smile, squeezing her arm in encouragement before you grabbed JJ’s hand in yours and pulled him with you. “Be safe!”

“We’ll be so safe!” Pope called back as they disappeared from view. 

Your chest was heaving, sweat pouring across your skin as the tunnels and stairs weaved their way through the town. Before long, you guys managed to catch up to the others where Rafe so lovingly had John B at knifepoint. 

“What the hell is going on?” You gasped, your hand pressing against your chest where it hurt to breathe as Kiara put her focus on JJ’s now bleeding side. You slid your backpack off, handing it to her wordlessly as she began to sort through the first aid supplied lying within. 

“Rafe, I just saved your life!”

The elder Cameron sibling turned toward her, the knife following as he disagreed. “No, no, no, no, no. You did it so you could steal it from me. There was something in it for you. Not to actually help me, I know that.”

“Rafe, we don’t have time.”

“We can read that, you can’t,” Sarah argued back, completely unphased by the way he was shaking in front of her.

“Why would I help you? I don’t trust you. I don’t trust any of you, do you understand?” He panted, scanning the room where you all had him basically surrounded. He focused back on Sarah, taking a step closer. “Dad trusted you. You remember what happened to him? Remember?!”

You flinched as he yelled, taking a step back in shock as Sarah pushed Rafe away from her. 

“Dad died saving my life,” She shouted before taking a second to breathe. “And you’re so eager to blame me for everything, you won’t even listen to what happened. Singh’s men had me at gunpoint. I was gonna die. Dad took those bullets for me. And if he was still around, he’d want us to work together. I know you know that.”

Rafe’s angry exterior was dropping with each word and as Sarah’s face crumbled with the recount, he was slowly beginning to think he had it all wrong. Shaking his head, his defensive stance disappeared. “No, you’re just going to screw me like everyone else in my life. I know you will.”

“No, no, because I’m all you’ve got,” Sarah reminded him, her voice thick with tears. “And you’re the only family I have left.”

The two siblings stared at each other for a moment, shaking breaths coming from each of them as they spoke through the things that had been left unsaid for almost two years now. You’d never seen Rafe like this, so broken and confused by what he was hearing. 

For so long, Ward had such a deathly grip on Sarah and Rafe both. Rafe had received the brunt of the pressure, as the eldest child and male of the family, Ward used him instead of growing him in a way that a parent should. 

“Alright, if we…uh, if we work together, I still get my cut. So-”

Sarah pushed the scroll aside and fell into her brother’s chest with a sob, her hands wrapping around him tightly. Rafe’s eyes filled with tears at the action, his own arms hesitating before holding her back as the two of them cried together.

Yelling nearby broke apart the peaceful moment, just as Kiara finished rewrapping JJ’s side with fresh bandages after cleaning the skin. She zipped your backpack before returning it, her eyes glancing to where the yelling is coming from. “I hate to break this up, but we need to go.”

John B was quick to get Sarah back to his side, taking her hand protectively as the group shifted out of the room to keep moving. You stayed back with JJ, moving just a bit slower to keep his side from reopening and letting the others gain some lead on you.

“You okay?” You asked as he winced and pressed his hand where the wound was. 

He nodded, letting out a breath. “Just moving a lot. I don’t think fighting the waves was the best idea for it, yeah?”

You shook your head at him, eyes glancing over before you caught sight of a large, dark storm cloud on the horizon. “J? What’s that?”

He looked up and followed your gaze to where the impending issue lied. “Oh fuck. We gotta go.”

Not asking any further questions, you continued up the hill with him until you caught sight of John B, Sarah, Kie, and Rafe. Your brother was holding the map up to the sky, a shaped figure coming back in the reflection of the paper that looked nearly identical to the statue that was up ahead. 

“Crown’s gotta be up there. Come on, let’s go.”

--

a/n: hi i'm so sorry this is short and took forever, just wanted to give a lil something before we get to the next scene

navigation -- series masterlist

ask me anything

[bibibitchery]

my name. is a. ship name.

i was gonna put this in the tags but it's too long of a story to do so.

i actually get asked this a lot because my name is spelled pretty uniquely. it’s not necessarily a unique name, but the spelling is. essentially my dad is high-key obsessed with this book series called the shannara chronicles and there are two characters who never interact (in fact they were born on different continents, they are multiple generations apart, and have completely different life stories) but he shipped them.

when i was born, my mom proposed roughly the ship name and my dad suggested changing the spelling to match the ship name, and now that's my name!

i learned this when i was 14 and reading the shanarra chronicles, recognized the unique part of how my name is spelled, and asked my dad about it. this was in front of my mother, she apparently didn't know either. this may or may not have started a fight between the two. lmaooo

normalize asking 'who gave it to you?' after complimenting someone's name

[flightfoot]

ML Fanfic Recs for Completed Fics 4K - 7K Words

I've got 20 fics for y'all this time! Several Lovesquare fics, unsurprisingly, but also some nice character studies, AUs, and a handful of less common ships, such a Lukadrien and Kittybella.

All of these fics will be in my Keyseeker's Choices For Best Completed Miraculous Fics Of 2024 Collection, and if you like that, please consider checking out my other collections, Keyseeker's Choices For Best Completed Miraculous Fics Of 2023, Keyseeker's Choices For Best Completed Miraculous Fics Of 2022, and Keyseeker's Choices For Best Completed Miraculous Fics - Misc. Years.

---

Two is Company by Shadownoble

Adrien’s father wants him to play for an upcoming party. Only this time he won’t be doing it alone.

This Lukadrien fic's adorable! Luka's got selective mutism, which Adrien takes in stride. I love how their relationship develops, they're smitten with each other! Though of course while Gabriel brought the two of them together, he's an obstacle too. Because he's a dick.

---

memtempsychosis by @bittersweetresilience

Félix is always watching Adrien die.

I love time loop fics, and this is no exception. Felix somehow gets trapped in a time loop with Adrien where no matter what he does, Adrien always dies by the end of the day by some manner, and then everything resets. I love how inevitable it all feels, the strange beauty to the prose when going over his deaths, and how you can feel Felix's increasing desperation throughout it all.

---

Consequences of Dating Blindly by @mostmagical

Marinette knew she tended to get tunnel vision when she was focused, but luckily her boyfriend Chat Noir was always there to watch her back as they fought Monarch. With their enemy having disappeared, however, they decided together that it was finally time to reveal themselves. In public. Face to face. It's a little silly to have to introduce yourself to your own boyfriend, but after all, it wasn’t Marinette’s fault that she never knew her boyfriend’s name. (Adrien has never been to school, and Marinette doesn't know him.)

This is adorable! The two of them are so smitten with each other, and Adrien's not used to people not recognizing him as Adrien AGRESTE on sight. Marinette's got quite a few surprises coming her way, she didn't expect her kitty to come from this kind of background.

---

Chat Noir Cataclyms Hawk Moth's Balls by @a-flaming-idiot

It's what it says on the tin; Chat Noir castrates his unaware father. And at the same time, Gabriel hits a high C to shatter glass, Nathalie realizes she wasted her life, Chloe accidentally outs herself, Adrien becomes homeless, there are no more secret identities, Tikki thinks she's funny, Nino and Alya take what's their's, and Chloe finally respects another human being. And a partridge in a pear tree~

So this is a fun little crackfic! Lots of jokes and absurd scenarios, you're likely to giggle at least a few times (and hopefully several times) while reading this.

---

The Only Love We Keep by @nemaliwrites

Zoé is used to wanting things she can’t have — loving people who do not love her back. She’s made peace with that. But as soon as she meets Scarabella, she’s a goner. Or, five times Zoé’s love wasn’t reciprocated, and one time it was.

I love this analysis of Zoe and her circumstances, her mindset, her philosophy based on how she's grown up. How she yearns for her mom to actually love her, but she just... doesn't. And how she finds friends who actually care for her, and someone who actually wants her.

---

A Body Without Spirit by @nemaliwrites

“Look, I don’t know much about you guys, but I always hear other humans whining about how they have to listen to their parents or their teachers or bosses or whatever.” “Yes,” says Marinette, “but that’s…that’s different. Usually, when someone tells me to do something, I only do it if I want to. I can think about it, make a real decision. But this…it was like I didn’t even have time to think about it. Like I couldn’t resist, even if I wanted to. And if I did, it would have killed me.” -- Adrien and Marinette swap bodies. Marinette does not have a good time.

I love how this examined how it feels to be controlled by an Amok, especially by someone who's never felt it before, who knows something's not right, that this isn't just psychological, but doesn't know what's causing the inability to disobey orders. And it means that Marinette really, truly understands why Adrien can't disobey now, not just on a mental level, but through experience.

---

Blueberry Passion Fruit by @ninadove and @paracosmicat

He walked up to the counter, because he could not think of anything else to do. For all those times he had rehearsed their reunion, he had failed to consider the most obvious scenario: Adrien might want to run away once more.

I love Adrien just having run away, used a fake name, and then start working at a random cafe. Of course Felix still manages to track him down eventually. I loved seeing them talk things out!

---

The Music Of His Soul by @rosie-b

Ever since she was born, Marinette could hear piano music in her head. It wasn’t any song that was playing in the world immediately around her; instead, what she heard were the songs that her soulmate was listening to. They came to her as her soulmate heard them, at seemingly random times from early morning to late afternoon, when the golden rays of sunset began to stream throughout Paris. Marinette enjoyed hearing the piano; it was proof that her other half was out there, alive and waiting to meet her. Written for Ladrien June Day 1: Hiding in Plain Sight

If you like soulmate fics and Ladrien, then this is a real treat! I liked this particular take on the soulmate mythos, and the way Adrien and Ladybug had looked for their soulmate, had thought of them, was really sweet!

---

i love you to death by @wackus-bonkus-maximus

When Toxinelle vanishes after a battle with Hesperia, Loveybug takes her place.

So this fic takes place from Griffe Noir's perspective, showing his thought process and feelings towards Toxinelle, and his reaction when she just... vanishes and is replaced. I like how, as much as he'd convinced himself before her disappearance that he hated Toxinelle, he finds that he can't stand her being gone.

---

love's constant shield kept you safe while you healed by katrinette

When Chat asks Marinette to keep his tree safe for him, of course Marinette says yes. Marinette's got ten green thumbs. She can keep any plant alive, healthy, and blooming. But Chat's tree has hidden damage, and extraordinary actions might be necessary to keep him alive.

I've never seen a tree used as a sort of daemon, as a piece of a person's soul that reflects their physical and mental state, it's very creative! I loved seeing how Adrien's and Marinette's trees acted and what they looked like, and how Adrien's tree reacted to bad circumstances.

---

To Have Loved by @trishacollins

Adrien struggles with the loss of children he never had, with a life he remembers living but that wasn't real. The only person who understands him is Ladybug, his wife and his children's mother. Sleeping alone is such an empty feeling. Together, they might make a start at healing. Or they might just make a new disaster.

I love Jubilation angst. Depending on how "real" that timeline felt, waking up could be devastating - and Chat WAS certainly devastated in that episode. It's akin to the Pevensie kids in Narnia growing up, becoming rulers, and then tumbling out of the wardrobe a couple decades later, the same age at which they left. Of course Ladybug and Chat Noir would cling to each other afterwards, the only other person who remembers that imaginary timeline.

That's not all this story entails, however. Gabriel isn't too happy about Adrien sneaking out as much as he has been, and he WILL get answers, one way or another...

---

If I'd Met You First by @geek-fashionista

According to Tikki, Chat Noir has always been Ladybug’s partner. “Maybe someone ought to tell him that,” Marinette says bitterly. [An Enemies AU]

So apparently this was one of the earliest enemies AU in existence, with originally being written in early 2016, but it was only just now uploaded to AO3 so I'm still counting it for this list. Despite its age, it holds up remarkably well, the author guessed a lot of things correctly, like Gabriel being Hawk Moth, it being possible to akumatize multiple people at once so long as the same feeling is being used for all of them, and it being possible to reject akumas. Considering that none of that was confirmed in season 1 (granted, most people had guessed that Gabriel was Hawk Moth, even that early), it's pretty remarkable!

---

Happily Ever After by 3ggroll

Gabriel Agreste was a hero. Of that, Marinette is sure. So what's with the bitter taste in her mouth whenever she sees his statue?

This is an alternate universe version of Re-creation's epilogue, with Gabriel's Wish actually altering people's memories - Marinette's, most notably - to forget that he was Monarch, and to erase the memory of that knowledge whenever she figures it out. And she keeps ON figuring it out, over and over, but the knowledge is never allowed to stick.

---

honesty can only be if there is a lie by katrinette

Ladybug always tells the truth. Chat Noir always lies.

So this is an interesting concept. While transformed, Ladybug physically cannot say anything untrue, while Chat can only speak in untruths. As a consequence, Chat gets good at figuring out how he can lie in such a way as to convey truthful information to Ladybug, and Ladybug learns how to speak deceptively without actually saying anything false.

Unfortunately for them, while they aren't bound by these conditions as civilians, it seeps into their civilian lives. Adrien learns to lie freely, easily, and convincingly, which is empowering at first, but leads to the class avoiding him when he starts being caught in them. Marinette doesn't outright lie, but her tendency to dance around subjects gets on people's nerves and similarly leads to others running out of patience with her or avoiding her. Basically, neither of their social lives fares well.

---

No Names In The Stars by @nemaliwrites

Shadybug knows how her story ends: people like her don't get happy endings. She's made her peace with that. Her name on Claw Noir's wrist changes things.

I love Shadybug and Claw Noir talking like this, getting more emotionally sincere than they usually are. I especially liked how Shadybug kept thinking about how her soulmate wouldn't want her, that she's a nobody. It fits what we see of her in the special.

I also really like the reveal of who hers and Claw's enemy is. It's not unexpected, but it's still good.

---

in which chat noir comes up with an awesome gift for ladybug by @mixelation

If his Lady wants ultra rare Adrien Agreste merch, then that’s what his Lady will get! Written for the Miraculous Ladybug Secret Santa exchange.

This was really sweet and I love how mixelation wrote Adrien's internal narration! You really viscerally understood his thoughts and feelings. It had some of the intimacy of a first person perspective, but well, in third person.

---

Crossed Wires by @torvalvtt

Marinette has taken Adrien up on his suggestion that they share an apartment in university to help cut costs and be closer to school. This would be fine, except they both seem to have a problem with keeping their suits off around the apartment.

This was fun and hilarious. I loved seeing Ladybug and Chat Noir hurriedly try to come up with excuses for why they were in their own apartment, while Marinette and Adrien weren't XD.

---

Here is Your Chance (to Understand) by Neonlite

And when he turned back to Adrien, tired in a way he always was when he thought about Belos, at the concern in Adrien’s eyes, and he knew what really unsettled him about the boy. It was like looking in a mirror, at a younger version of himself. A version of him with a responsibility he shouldn’t have had, a version of him with a power different from everyone else. Cat Noir seemed to settle atop Adrien, like a skin he was more comfortable in. (And the Golden Guard’s mask was safe because he wasn’t Hunter in it, he was the strongest witch on the Isles.) -- Where Adrien gets plopped at Hunter's house and he has many feelings about it. (Maybe too much for someone who wasn't stranded in a different dimension.)

I love Adrien and Hunter talking. They don't know exactly how similar they are - Adrien is from the season 5 ending, so Gabriel's regarded as a hero and he doesn't know that he's a sentimonster - but even still, Hunter can see the similarities between his younger self and Adrien in the ways they act, can tell something's wrong, even without Adrien realizing it.

---

Blanc Space by @11jj11

Nino awakes to find himself in a strange flooded world...

So this is an interesting concept. Nino wakes up to suddenly find himself in Chat Blanc's timeline, with no idea of what just happened aside from it probably being due to an akuma attack, as most strange happenings are. Of course, he meets Chat Blanc, though the cat doesn't know he's real.

I love how Nino realizes what's going on and empathizes with Chat. He needs company so badly.

---

Miraculous: A Lovesquare Dating Sim by @nagisachan1

“Did you hear that, Tikki? A ‘choose your own adventure’ about a romance with Paris’ superheroes. Do you really think there’s people who’d be interested in that sort of thing?” Tikki giggled. “I have a feeling there’s a lot more than you think, Marinette.” What will Marinette do tonight? YOU decide, in this CYOA lovesquare adventure!

This isn't very long, but I really like the way it's set-up, I played through so many CYOA books as a kid. Playing through this simple little Lovesquare fic whets my appetite for something more involved, it seems like it'd be easy to do a multi-writer collaboration for some sort of CYOA fic, and if that happened, I'd like to use this fic as a guide for how to format it. I especially love that at the top of each chapter, there's a link to go back to the previous chapter so you can easily try out the other branches.

[tigreblvnc]

Hey Suo!

Favourite BSD character so far?

(since anon is not on I have to use my main acc so. I hope you do not mind lol)

Here we are.

I was waiting for the opportunity to respond to our last exchanges (1) (2) in the same post and to be far enough into the anime to have a clear opinion on my position. So, my favorite BSD character so far.

Bungou Stray Dogs spoilers until season 4:

— Ougai Mori.

At first, he seemed weak and ignorant in his doctor outfit, searching for his little girl on the streets. However, even if you didn't recognize his voice from his initial interaction with Higuchi, it was clear that this character would play an important role in the plot.

It's his first interaction with Atsushi that left a huge impression on me. I really love characters who appear vulnerable but aren't at all. This seemingly insignificant behavior often conceals a powerful character who knows far more than they let on.

What I like about Ougai Mori is that he's a leader with a profoundly personal moral code. He's wise but also merciless. He peacefully gazes at the view from the top of his tower, yet he can order his men to provoke a massacre below. I shared the scene where Chuuya finally joins the Port Mafia after hearing Ougai's explanation of what it means to be a leader. It reflects the harsh reality of leadership: sacrifice and devotion.

In this sense, it connects with one of the reasons why I like Blue Lock: it's a story about characters willing to abandon their closest allies when they are no longer useful, all in the name of moving forward and protecting what they believe is right.

I also want to share this scene:

Although Fukuzawa and Ougai were raised by the same man, they have completely different approaches to managing their respective organizations. It's not a simple dichotomy. It's nuanced: each fights for their own interests, their family, and, on a larger scale, the city they love. Yet, in the end, one cannot exist without the other. They embody a balance in Yokohama that reminds me of the interplay between day and night. Heaven and hell. Life and death.

Regarding the BSD kin assignment test, it's clear that our results often reflect our favorite characters. It also highlights how we tend to identify with and grow attached to characters who share similarities with us.

In my case, I appreciate all the characters I got for one reason or another:

Ougai Mori → Leadership, wisdom, the ability to make harsh decisions for the greater good, and a knack for concealing his true intentions.

Kunikida Doppo → Loyalty, a strong desire to protect, very firm personal values, knowledgeable, tough on the outside but soft inside.

Francis Fitzgerald → A love of luxury, exuberance, delusions of grandeur, and ultimately learning to develop a personal ethic.

Osamu Dazai → Speaks in riddles, knows far more than he appears to, loves to challenge and tease others, yet remains reliable.

Chuuya Nakahara → Big anger issues, a short temper, loud, and a gifted child.

As for your resemblance to Fyodor, he seems to embody the epitome of an extremely unhealthy INFJ. I'll elaborate on this topic in a dedicated post. But this Fyodor reminds me a lot of Geto in Jujutsu Kaisen. Wanting to eliminate an entire population for a noble cause.

All this to say that Ougai is my favorite character so far lol. His voice suits him perfectly, emanating years of experience while still being capable of playful interactions with others.

TIGREBLVNC 2025 | BUNGOU STRAY DOGS ANALYSIS x OUGAI MORI.

[northern-passage]

clementine

[frameconfessions]

I hope they don't make The Drifter and by proxy The Hex irrelevant by just leaving them in 1999 forever like how Excalibur Umbra stopped being story relevant.

[sagegreenyaps]

Hey, I get that you don't like that person's stance, but they don't deserve to die or to relive their own trauma because of it. Don't dehumanize your enemies.

If you're at the point where the most substantial thing you could say to somebody is a threat, just silently wish the best for them.

Wish that someday they'll stop being an enemy. Wish for character growth.

(Note: This is not asking you to "fix them." That's not your job, and helping people with the mindset of "fixing them" is not actually that helpful. If they ask for civil discussion-- and are genuine-- then it's your choice whether you permit it or not, but don't try to force your point without listening to them. Don't "fix them." It very likely is not going to work, and will very likely instead give them a bad/worse taste in their mouth about you and what you represent. Sometimes it is best to leave people be, in all honesty. You don't have to save the world, doing what you can is perfectly acceptable. Promoting good-will and stability in your own space is just as-- if not more-- important as stepping outside of said space.)

[winteriron-trash]

rdj the (whitewashed) electric boogaloo

This is a reminder to everyone who's excited about RDJ's casting as Doctor Doom that this casting is whitewashing. Victor Von Doom is a Romani character and has been a Romani character since his introduction in the 1960s. (Fantastic Four Annual #2 [1964]) Not only that, but his Roma identity and the persecution he and his family faced due to it is integral to his character, it is what forms his identity. (Books of Doom by Ed Brubaker) Even if on the off chance this casting is meant to not be Victor but instead be some variant of Tony or whomever else becoming Doctor Doom, it is damaging to the character to rob him of that important cultural background. Doctor Doom does not exist without that history. Fans have been pushing hard to cast Doom as a Romani actor for years, especially since the MCU has whitewashed other Romani characters. (Wanda, Pietro, etc) This casting is not a celebration moment, it's fucking heartbreaking that the MCU repeatedly ignores the important and nuanced cultural backstories of characters.

I know I can't change anybody's mind on whether or not you want to be excited about RDJ's return to the MCU. But I do think at the very least you should be mad that the MCU is baiting us all and destroying nuanced and interesting characters for the sake of self-referential easter eggs and nostalgia bait. Because that's what it is. Feel how you'd like to feel about RDJ's return, but personally, this is soul-sucking. I had such a deep love for the MCU as a teenager, it was obviously something incredibly formative to me, especially Tony Stark. This isn't recreating what I fell in love with the MCU for. This is turning a well-planned and artistic storyline of adaptations into cheap cash grabs and fan service. Because, I think we're past the point of being able to call the MCU an adaptation of anything. They can use existing characters' names and powers, but to say they're being properly adapted is laughable.

This is not an adaptation of Doctor Doom. This is RDJ the Electric Boogaloo because Marvel's fear of losing the interest of dedicated MCU fans overrides their willingness to tell stories that are genuine to the characters. I don't know what there is to be excited about that. The MCU has lost its authenticity and aside from a few projects, feels heartless. Every movie is a copy of a copy. This announcement isn't something celebratory, it feels like a death knell of a cinematic universe that's so desperate to cling to relevancy it's resorting to nostalgia for a character/actor who hasn't even been dead for a decade. We're not getting anything new, we're just rinsing and repeating the same song and dance.

I get it. I love Tony Stark, his death destroyed me and I to this day, rue the ending he got in Endgame. It misunderstood his arc and it robbed him of a satisfying conclusion. But the solution to that isn't dragging the corpse out of the grave five years later to whitewash an existing character with rich and interesting nuance, just to forcibly tie his existence in the MCU to Tony. Whether he is a variant or not. Why would you want someone else's fave's legacy to be destroyed simply so your fave's legacy can go on? Hell, if we were really all so hellbent on the return of RDJ and/or Tony to the MCU, we have the multiverse for a reason. There were other ways to do it that didn't whitewash and ruin someone else. This just. Isn't something to be happy about.

[doyouknowthisdisabledcharacter]

Do You Know This Disabled Character?

Riva is Deaf.

[grechkathekasha]

bonus:

my favorite part of secret invasion is when in 1ep maria revealed that she has a gf and in 2ep it was their wedding!! y’all also loved this, right? it was so nice of marvel to do this finally!!

(dedicating this to @blackhillverse )

[wistfulenchantress]

I have an irrevocable belief that he and noah were pulled aside seperately at the beginning and told 'mike is in love with will' or vice versa. it's an alan rickman playing snape situation.

but also neither of them know if it's going to work out, they just know how their characters feel.

seperately: how can you not know? like, you're the one who plays mike wheeler, and it is the gayest shit i've ever seen. so, a list of possibilities:

Finn completely accidentally made Mike gay (????), and milkvan is endgame. The whole thing is a misunderstanding

They are all deliberately queerbaiting us.

Finn doesn't know about byler endgame, only the duffers do, and he just hasn't questioned directions like 'look at his lips' 'act like ur in love with him' etc.

Finn is a byler and has been secretly playing Mike as gay but he doesn't know if the Duffers are on board

Finn is a byler and has secretly been playing Mike as gay and the duffers are openly against it but he just refuses to stop.

Ok, hear me out... he knows about byler endgame?

Seperately, not directed at these fans but just in general:

QUESTIONS TO ASK INSTEAD OF 'IS BYLER ENDGAME?':

What was going through Mike's mind during ________? (ex: the airport reunion with will, the fight in the rain, el's love confession at the end of season 3, will encouraging him to say ily to el, quarry scene (that's diff but i wanna know what finn thinks), after first kiss with el, snowball dance when will goes off with the girl, etc.)

Why does Mike ________? (ex: struggle to say i love you to el, look so unhappy after el says i love you to him, do whatever lucas tells him with regard to relationships instead of making his own decisions, look so miserable while he says i love you to el in season 4)

Or, some hyper specific ones:

"In season 1 we see tears in Mike's eyes when bullies make comments about Will's sexuality, and you yourself has said that Mike has is clueless to Will's feelings for him, so what is going through his head in season 3 when he says 'it's not my fault you don't like girls'?"

"Mike has no problem hugging Dustin or Lucas in season 4, why does he struggle with hugging Will?"

"In his monologue, Mike says that he knew right from when he met El that he loved her. However, until she recognizes Will, his primary focus is getting rid of her safely and getting back to the search for Will. Does this indicate that he might be lying to her, even then?"

"Was Mike going to say 'I love you' to El before Will said 'You're the heart'?"

"In season 3, Mike constantly looks to Lucas for direction in his relationship with El. Why isn't Mike fully honest with Will, another close friend (;D) about his relationship problems in season 4?"

In case anyone has doubt that byler is endgame ☺️ his reaction is very suspicious

[quirkle2]

the angst in your zombie au bREAKS MY HEART INTO PIECES (I LOVE IT VERY MUCH)

okay, okay, so!! if the kagebros got separated from reigen and teru when mob is still fine, i imagine that their reunion would be hEARTWRENCHING also, i'm a bit curious, would mob still be able to recognize teru and reigen? or would he thought about them as strangers?

(tbh, following your lore, i imagine mob would act a similarly like nezuko from demon slayer? but instead of little hums, his zombie sounds would more like babbling and incoherent mumbles :"D)

the reunion is fuckin AWFUL man it's SO gut-wrenching. both reigen and teru feared this for Months while looking for the brothers; pretty much the worst case scenario was that mob or ritsu or Both turned—a lot of humans prefer death over being a zombie any day, so the idea of ritsu or mob having to go through that and wander around aimlessly until starvation or smth else gets them,,,

it hurts them so much to think about. teru forces himself not to dwell on it and he's pretty good at that but reigen thinks abt it a lot and he's honestly not sure what scenario is worse. best case is that they're both alive and unturned, obviously, but what's the worst case? you'd think it's both of them getting killed, or turning, but reigen also knows that if One of them got killed/turned, the other would probably lose their mind, especially if they had to watch. the fact that they're kids makes this all three times worse and reigen has to act like he's Not worrying himself sick over the brothers while he tries to keep teru in high spirits

the reunion itself is rly fuckin gut-wrenching for them. they see mob from afar, wandered off just a bit from ritsu and tome who are just around the bend looting a place, and they book it bc ofc they do, it's mob!! but then they see how pale he is, and when he turns around they don't see that light in his eyes that's usually there and the red is dulled and dead looking,, teru almost moves in for a hug before he realizes mob looks vastly different when he Rly takes him in, and mob doesn't rly react too much besides staring at them blankly. the obvious answer is almost too horrifying to even consider, so it takes them a minute to rly,,realize what's going on

tome comes around the bend and shouts, cuz when humans and zombies mix it's usually guns pointed at zombie heads. ritsu comes running out after her and when he sees reigen and teru his thoughts go, in order: holy shit is that reigen and tero ohmygod oh my god they're alive they're alive ohmy god i could fucking cry, and ohmy god they see shige ohno oh no oh no

ritsu sounds like a lunatic when he pulls mob away from them on instinct and says that he's safe to be around and that he's "still him" and he's "not gone" and he's very aware of that. he's very, intimately aware that he sounds fuckin crazy, bc ofc he does, this is what all the crazy people in zombie movies sound like. but he doesn't care, he doesn't care if reigen or teru dismiss him as nuts—he has to make them understand that his brother is still in there somewhere

and yeah, they both kinda think that ritsu's lost his marbles a little bit, but while teru is focused on that and the fact that mob doesn't look like he's rly tuned into Anything that's happening rn, reigen is a bit more focused on the fact that both ritsu and mob look awful? they're both very skinny and very dirty, obviously barely scraping by. they're cut up and ritsu's jacket is basically blood and dirt with a little bit of green fabric mixed in. and just by the look in ritsu's eyes, reigen can tell, man ... reigen can tell ritsu is like.not okay at this point he's kinda lost it.

i think the most painful thing about this whole reunion in general is that later that night, when reigen and teru r finally like ok we get it he's,, he's still mob. we believe you (they want to believe him... [they Do believe him, later, wholeheartedly]) and they settle down someplace safe, teru asks how long mob's been like this. and ritsu has to answer "since we got separated" and they both have that to stew over while everybody else sleeps

they realize that ritsu likely watched mob turn, watched the entire process, and that process takes a long time. it's at least a week of deteriorating motor functions and cognitive skill, and the fact that ritsu stayed for that to keep mob company is .ough. and it doesn't end there bc ritsu obviously stayed after that too

given how these things usually go, ritsu probably did think about killing mob. it probably did cross his mind, bc that's basically what everybody's been told to do. kill them before they have a chance to do any more damage. and it's obvious that ritsu did not have it in him

ritsu not only did not have it in him to kill him, he didn't even have it in him to leave him there. the kid fucking took him with him. a zombie. and he's somehow made it work, for months. and the next few days are filled with watching him still treat mob like a brother and take care of him and gently steer him away from a bird he tries to follow down the wrong street.ritsu is as gentle and kind as he's ever been with his brother. and even tho they're both hungry and tired and barely making it, ritsu is doing a rly good job taking care of mob with what he's been given

the kid obviously wholeheartedly believes in a cure and that mob is still There. he's gone through the trouble to take care of him, and the grief of continuously seeing a loved one that many would consider effectively dead, to get him that cure. to get him his brother back. and mob doesn't seem to be in any pain or distress, so reigen and teru think that this path ritsu has followed is probably infinitely kinder than the mercy kill method they've been taught to do

i think they have a new respect for ritsu, after that reunion

[camgoloud]

one small detail that stood out to me about this latest episode that i haven’t seen anyone else talking about yet is that when the commentators are calling colin “inspiring” and the “man of the match,” they are celebrating him not for actually scoring the goals himself, but for providing the crucial assists to make both of them happen. and i really love that because for me it’s the absolute perfect wrap to his character arc across all three seasons!

like, we know that colin’s job on this team has never been to score goals. in fact i’m pretty sure we’ve never heard about a single goal that he has scored. colin is and always has been a team player, not a star—and we’ve seen that crop up over and over. notably, we’ve seen the fact that he’s not entirely at peace with that crop up over and over: see the way he was affected by nate’s entire holidy-inn-painting monologue, being benched to make room for zava, etc.—like, this is the thing he’s sensitive about! this is where all of his insecurities come from!

but at the SAME TIME it’s also tied very intimately with all his struggles re: hiding his sexuality— “colin’s a chameleon,” etc. it’s fascinating because there’s SO much tension there between colin 1. feeling bad about the fact that he never stands out on the pitch the way some of his teammates do, because of who he is on the team, and 2. feeling like he CAN’T stand out, ever, because of Who He Is As A Person. etc. it’s like. he’s filling this role in the background. he’s afraid he’s not doing it well enough. he’s afraid that what and who he is isn’t good enough and isn’t worthy of recognition. he wishes he were someone different. trying to be someone different in the locker room is clearly making him so unhappy and stressed out. it is All Connected and my thoughts have been doing laps around it at an ever-increasing rate since i watched episode 2.07 ‘headspace’ if not before!

and all of this is why it’s so incredible to me that in the end, colin’s big moment comes from making assists and not goals! because on the one hand i understand the fandom desire for the colin post-coming out glowup that we all knew was coming—to see him, like, ~prove everybody wrong about him~ and inspire people by suddenly becoming a standout player and scoring goals left and right, even though that never used to be his role on the team before. and don’t get me wrong, i was 100% on board that train, and would have loved it for him if that was how it went down in the end, also. i think he should get to score here and there! as a treat! especially now that richmond are playing total football and there’s been so much emphasis placed on how it’s not just jamie/dani/occasionally sam who are making all the goals anymore!

but i don’t know! especially after the events of the last few episodes, there’s something very special to me about getting to see a colin who, rather than becoming someone entirely new in the moments right after coming out, just feels free to become, and be at peace with, the best version of the same self he’s always been. he’s still a team player first and foremost, but now that he’s not as weighed down by the need to chameleon/hide/pretend to be someone he’s not, he’s so much better at it. and everyone sees this! he gets to be celebrated for his contributions within the role he’s always played! he (and everybody else!) finally recognizes the value that he adds to the team just by being himself—fully himself! it resolves all the tension and insecurity that we’ve seen him struggling with this whole time, on every level. and so this moment was genuinely the perfect ending for his journey in my opinion—i’m so so happy that we were tall enough to join him on the ride here, and so excited to see what he does going forward these last few episodes now that some of that pressure is off him <3