#basically a glorified plot device

[incorrectfatui]

Once upon a time in Zapolyarny Palace Dottore, about Pantalone: Can I tell him he looks nice?  Crucabena: ..Sure? Dottore: Can I tell him I respect him?  Crucabena: Maybe, if he asks.  Dottore: Should I show him an oil painting I made of us surrounded by our three cats and four dogs?  Crucabena: …  Crucabena: I’d maybe save that for later.

[fraudulent-cheese]

No it's because in TD High specifically Trent only exists on screen for a single screenshot to get Scott to dump Heather and Rodney only exists for stupid cheating drama and also i just dont like his personality in the series.

...So i guess you're technically correct with that assesment oops

Anyways official td high character tier list, ask me to elaborate

[glitchedoutpxie]

Squid Game 3: that damn baby.

Considering the amount of plot holes and misrepresentation, this "plot twist" was nothing more than the pro-natalist propaganda often seen in Korean and Japanese storytelling.

Here's why da baby was a complete narrative failure from a bitter writer's perspective:

Realistically, that baby should've died.

So listen. A 24-hour-old newborn baby doesn't have a fully formed skull. Medically. At birth, an infant's skull is made up of several soft, flexible plates that haven't fused yet (those gaps are called fontanelles), which is why babies need to be handled gently.

Their neck muscles are basically nonexistent, and their brains are still extremely vulnerable to motion. So when a literal newborn is held through five minutes of jump roping, being shaken, jostled, bounced, its brain sloshing and rattling around like a BB pellet, it's supposed to die of a traumatic injury. Scientifically, medically, realistically, it should have suffered catastrophic brain damage and died. This isn't hate. It's facts. Unless the producers are trying to tell us it's totally safe to jump rope with your newborn, I haven't a single clue what was going inside their heads when they decided to overlook this.

But of course the baby survives perfectly fine!

Because in media, babies are often reduced to props: symbols of "life" for shock or sentiment, with zero understanding of the physical reality of pregnancy or newborn care. It's giving anti-abortion fantasy.

Now, you're telling me...

This lady who just gave birth somehow did it in 2 minutes and is able to stand immediately after birth. There's minimal blood loss, and the baby only cries twice in the span of 48 hours. Uh huh..

Baby bump the size of a pineapple.

Baby only needed to feed twice in the span of 48h.

The broken ankle wasn't even needed as a plot device bc jump roping after birth? I don't think so.

Of course she delivers a heartfelt monologue about self-sacrifice and a Better Future™️ for her daughter after willingly placing it in the hands of some stranger in a tuxedo she met on the street.

She doesn't get along with the child's father but she's going to have his baby anyway? WILLINGLY SIGNING UP to be a single mom??? While in tremendous debts???

But she paid for her mistakes! Her story wasn't presented as a mistake. She was framed to be a heroic figure whom everyone was scrambling to die for. Again, what are they trying to glorify?

Mother-dies-so-baby-can-live trope much?

But hold up!

Was 149 just intentionally written to be deeply narcissistic and delusional? Did the writers genuinely think we'd sympathize with her for choosing to kill her own son to protect the baby of someone she met two days ago? Questions questions...

They did put sad emotional piano music when she admitted to her abuse towards him growing up so it's not looking too bright, chief.

Also...

The games are twisted, yes, but they still keep some semblance of "fairness" or "democracy" going on. The votes, the evened out rules, everyone is recruited the same way, have the same background, or the fact that you have to be at least 18 to play and present your own signature. They had a nice thematic going on. Screw that i guess. Here's a 100 shots of the CGI baby!

All in all? 4/10.

But that's just my humble opinion. Poorly written. That baby should've never been allowed to "play". Or exist. Cheap way out to kill off Gi-Hun and promote some American spin off.

[usagirotten]

Why Mr. Robot Is the Cyberpunk Masterpiece You Didn’t Know You Needed

Mr. Robot: The Show That Made Hackers Cool Again (But Also Sad, Real Sad) Alright, fellow sci-fi heads and tech romantics, let’s talk about one of the most underrated psychological thrillers of our time: Mr. Robot. If you’ve ever wished Fight Club had more code, fewer abs, and a darker, glitchier aesthetic—this show’s for you. It’s not just a drama about hackers. It’s a deep, moody exploration of mental health, capitalism, and whether we even control our own lives in a surveillance-obsessed society.

Sounds heavy? It is. But stick with me, because it’s also one of the smartest shows you’ll ever binge. 🧠 Meet Elliot: Our Favorite Unreliable Narrator At the core of Mr. Robot is Elliot Alderson, a hoodie-wearing loner who’s basically the Batman of the darknet—if Batman had social anxiety, insomnia, and a serious dissociation issue. Played by Rami Malek (yes, that guy who crushed it as Freddie Mercury), Elliot is equal parts genius and mess. And then there’s Mr. Robot—his rebel mentor, played by Christian Slater—who may or may not be real. I won’t spoil anything, but if you like plot twists that make you question everything, you’re in for a ride. The rest of the fsociety crew? They’re misfits with purpose. You’ll love Darlene’s punk energy and curse the name “E Corp” every time it flashes on-screen. (Seriously, it’s Evil Corp. Not even subtle.) 🎥 What Makes Mr. Robot Hit Different? Fourth Wall? What Fourth Wall?Elliot talks to us—yep, you—like we’re part of his broken reality. It’s trippy, unsettling, and incredibly effective. Cinematic AFWeird angles. Silent tension. Haunting scores. You don’t watch Mr. Robot. You experience it. Actual Tech AccuracyForget movie hacking with 3D cubes and blinking lights. Mr. Robot keeps it real—Linux terminals, Python scripts, social engineering. It respects its nerds. When it premiered in 2015, it looked like another cyberpunk thriller. But what creator Sam Esmail delivered was far deeper: a complex narrative about mental health, capitalism, surveillance, and identity—all wrapped inside the story of a socially isolated hacker trying to bring down a corrupt conglomerate.

🚧 The Flaws (Yeah, It’s Not Perfect) Okay, even masterpieces stumble. Some episodes in the later seasons slow to a crawl. Dialogue gets... philosophical. Occasionally, you’ll yell “Just hack something already!” at your screen. And a few side characters? They fade into plot devices. Still, the emotional and thematic payoff by the finale? Worth every minute. 🧩 Themes That Stick With You Mental Health ≠ GlorifiedElliot’s mental illness isn’t a superpower. It’s raw, painful, and treated with care. Late-Stage Capitalism Gets RoastedFrom debt culture to surveillance to Big Tech overreach—Mr. Robot isn’t subtle about the system being broken. It’s here to smash it. Morality Isn’t BinaryHeroes make bad choices. Villains have sympathetic motives. You’ll be questioning who you’re rooting for the entire time. 📺 How It Stacks Up If Black Mirror had a long-lost, emotionally tortured cousin with a vendetta against capitalism, it’d be Mr. Robot. Unlike the anthology format of Black Mirror, this show follows one wild, spiraling plot across four seasons. Fans of Fight Club, The Matrix, and even Breaking Bad will find plenty to obsess over here. 👾 Should You Watch It? If you: Love tech Are fascinated by mental health Like stories that don’t spoon-feed you Appreciate stylish, smart storytelling Then yes. Plug in. Hack in. Fall in. But if you’re looking for quick payoffs or feel-good fluff? Maybe not this time. 🧠 Final Thoughts Mr. Robot isn’t just a TV show. It’s a layered, brain-breaking critique of everything from data privacy to the illusion of choice. It’s dark, it’s demanding—and it’s absolutely worth your time. So the question is: Are you ready to wake up? In an age where data is currency and algorithms shape behavior, Mr. Robot isn’t just relevant—it’s prophetic. It asks the big questions: Who owns your identity? What is real in a curated digital world? Can individuals still disrupt systems? For anyone working in a space influenced by tech (which is all of us), those questions aren’t fiction. They’re strategic considerations. 🖥️ Have you watched Mr. Robot? What did you think? Drop your thoughts below or hit me up on Discord—we’ll debate capitalism and keyboard shortcuts all night.

Read the full article

[gwenllian-in-the-abbey]

i think Helaena can be autistic but also a happy and joyful girl , autism ≠ depression. the way the portrayed the only neurodivergent character on screen as unstable, shunned depressed, and with no importance to the plot feel very ableist and weird , but then they're the ones who made the guy with a foot disability a feet fetishist 🫠

Hi OP, finally answering this because the trailer dropped and still the only Helaena shots we have are from her Jaehaerys' funeral. There is also one still photo of her. If you haven't seen it, here she is, apparently sewing the funeral shroud for her little boy:

So it seems like season 2 is going to continue on this trajectory for Helaena as a character who exists in order to suffer beautifully.

Don't get me wrong. I am glad that the show is going to wring the full emotional effect from Blood and Cheese, not just shock value. The audience will feel the real horror of a six year old child brutally murdered in his own home and the psychological torment of Helaena. It should be terrible, it should be devastating, and I hope they do not pull any punches.

What's disappointing about how the show has handled Helaena is that they didn't really put any effort into building up her character before her tragedy. It's all well and good that she likes bugs and she's touch averse, but what are her opinions? Who is she closest to? How did she react to becoming a mother so young? To what extent does she understand her visions? What does she value? She can be happy and cheerful, or she can be frustrated and angry, and hell, she can be depressed too, but I need to know why. It's telling that I can describe the basic internal motivations for each of the male children, including Luke who was a glorified plot device, but I cannot for Helaena. Aegon wants to feel loved, Jace wants to prove he's as worthy as any trueborn heir, Aemond wants what his brother has, Luke wants to be free from his family's expectations. Helaena? Fuck if I know. I guess she wants not to die horribly.

The ableism is an issue. F&B is full of women who were deemed "simple" -- Gael, Daella, Jaehaera-- without being given much else to define them, and HotD adds another (there's something, I think, to the way the "simple" Targaryens are always women and how disability kind of used as a way to remove them from the narrative and shunt them aside, often tragically). And while it's great to see an autistic person represented on screen, the show consistently has an issue with treating representation as characterization. "Autistic girl who likes bugs" is not a personality. Autistic people, (even those with horrifying prophesies I assume), do have hopes and dreams and feelings about things. The one peek we get into Helaena's life is at the in episode 8 when she roasts Aegon and even that scene is open to interpretation (and gets taken wildly out of context). Now, I can read a lot into the actor performances, but ultimately, lines that could have given a glimpse Helaena personality were cut. It's as if they're afraid that if they give her an opinion on anything she would lose that (frankly kind of infantilizing) "pure cinnamon roll too good for this world" "i would die for her" sympathy from people who are not inclined to be sympathetic for her family as a whole.

(And anon, you're right about Larys. And let me say, turning Larys' clubfoot into the punchline of an OnlyFeet joke also does not inspire confidence that they'll handle Aegon II's eventual disability with any sensitivity either, especially when Mushroom's accounts of his last few months are incredibly mean spirited. We need to start that discourse now so they get the memo).

Sadly, I don't think the show really has any intention of course correcting with Helaena in season 2. I imagine at most we'll have her try to warn Aegon and/or Aemond about Blood & Cheese but they won't understand her warning, and then this will be a vehicle to further their guilt and grief. And while we do need to see Aegon's guilt and his grief, I also want to know if Helaena blames herself, if she wishes they'd run away when they had the chance, if she thinks Aegon could have done something, if she is angry at Aemond for killing Luke, if she wants revenge. I do think, with the public funeral for Jaehaerys, they are going to show that the smallfolk are fond of Helaena, and hopefully that will be expanded upon this season and in season 3 because her death is the catalyst for the revolt that sees Rhaenyra driven from the city, and we should understand why her death has such an impact before she actually dies.

[kats-other-stuff]

you know

ive pretty much only been saying positive things about LoS the entire time ive been here

Time to flip the script on its head.

Despite how much enjoyment I seem to get out of this series for some strange reason, it is genuinely so poorly written. You can absolutely tell that the writer is an amateur. And before the ACNH lore, this story was just the most generic early 2010s edgy backstory ever. Dead dad? Check. Evil twin? Check. None of the characters are well fleshed out. Most of them are basically just glorified set pieces with zero personality, and the whole thing with the dragons made zero sense. Shouldn’t it have been obvious to Wincar that the dragons were trying to manipulate him? And why was *one* burst of power from the dragon enough to turn him to the dark side?

The dialogue is so ass. It reeks of cliche in some spots- like with the whole “no, it can’t be” reaction from c!Failboat when LoS 1 starts. Don’t the dragons do that thing where they mention that they’re brothers at the end of every sentence? I get it. You’re brothers. I’m not five. And the stupid laugh Wincar does- you know what I’m talking about, there’s no way in hell you’re making me type that out. I forgot the rest of the dialogue because it’s too mid to be worth space in my brain.

Nothing about the Power of the Scythe or Failboat’s family is EVER explained. What the hell is it? What are its capabilities? Oh wait, it’s a poorly disguised plot device. It has no limitations. Where the hell did it even come from? Why aren’t more people trying to take it? What’s up with the scythes, by the way? If Failwhale has the stone scythe, WHY IS THERE ANOTHER ONE ON THE ALTAR???? How special are these weapons really, if there can apparently be two copies of them at once? Do they just have a storage room full of scythes hidden somewhere?

This series is undoubtedly the worst bit of the Failboat lore, and it isn’t even close. I’ve said this before in brief moments of sudden clarity, and I’ll say it again- LoS is a tumor on the lore, the channel, and the community. This whole thing is like if someone dug up some short story you wrote when you were six or something and became strangely obsessed with it. Like, cool for them, but you’re probably not proud of that writing anymore. What even is the point? Why do I want LoS 5 to happen, again? There’s no saving this dumpster fire of a series, no matter how much headcanon glue I use to try to fill in the gaps. It’s not a Silksong or Deltarune situation where waiting was absolutely warranted, I’m just a fucking clown.

[pruneunfair]

The author clearly tried to make Navier's background way too perfect as though her parents are perfect cuz they always care for her sound entirely plausible when clearly it can't be all that perfect, they're too oversimplified

Even if they truly care for her and wanted the best for her, you would think her father would put up a massive fuss or cause a huge political tantrum over it but this man stays quiet even though his son-in-law, the Emperor wanted to ditch his daughter who has been his lawful wife for years now and staying quiet sounds very much okay for him? If they didn't show him you would think he never wanted to see Navier again cuz she's damaged goods, having a daughter for a deposed empress should've been shameful for him even

You're telling me the family that has a big connection with the imperial family in almost the entirety of the Empire's history basically did nothing when an Empress, a daughter of theirs got thrown away for a stupid reason like that? It's almost too good to be true

Let's not bring just how dumb the entire Sovieshu plan to make his daughter legitimate is and how yes Navier could've kept her position but it could lead to future complications if Glorym's raises by her, I'm not entirely sure about it but I'm sure Sovieshu could've changed the laws, MF is the Emperor, I'm pretty sure that's not very hard, yes it would likely cause scandals and oppositions but I'm sure he could've done it

Navier's perfect parents again show that Navier always got it all in the most shallow ways, we basically know nothing about her parents or the Trovi House's history, they're just another plot device to show Navier has always been the Perfect Empress and that her House has always produced Empresses, which is supposedly a good thing even though that should've gotten them a whole bunch of enemies, enemies who should've exploited on Navier's divorce to fuck them over, like a big propaganda of "Trovi House is corrupted or doomed to fall because of their latest Empress is a failure" or sth like that

I mean I didn't expect scenes like her parents hating on her for being the cause of her failing marriage but COME THE FUCKING ON, I rather that than the stuff we got, hell I don't think they got much going on at all, they're glorified cardboard cutouts of what is called Navier's family

But of course why care about politics in a story designed to always paint its Protagonists as the most righteous even when they made the worst political choices ever as those in power?

If we consider the fact that the Trovis are implied to be the second most powerful house right behind the Victs than surely this would cause more uproar than Naviers parents just being like "It's a shame that bad emperor divorced our daughter like that but at least shes getting remarried to an even richer king"

Plus if the Trovis were the only royal house producing empresses. (I'm assuming they were since every empress prior to Navier looks exactly like her) then there would be a lot more Emperors with hapsburg jaws. (A whole Lotta inbreeding)

Naviers parents also have no character, as you've said. They only love and support their daughter and they even look the same to the point where it wouldn't surprise me if they were cousins or something.

[zzthekaiju]

Geez...

Call this whining, but now that Wingard's out of the director's seat (here's hoping they either get Dougherty back in the saddle OR someone like Guillermo del Toro on the line), I've been noticing a LOT of people wanting the next Godzilla movie to basically be "Godzilla gets fed up with humanity and turns on us all". And I really don't want that for a number of reasons (reinforces the bias against reptiles, been done before a million times, personal bias, etc.), particularly one specific detail...

It renders Serizawa's sacrifice, and the overarching themes of coexistence in the Monsterverse, entirely pointless.

That heart-tugging scene of him putting the fate of the world and its number one guardian above his own, of him making one last connection with the beast that inspired him, that moment they lock eyes before he gives his life to save him...it all goes down the drain if the ultimate endgame of the Monsterverse is Godzilla becoming our greatest threat when the OH SO PERFECT AND SQUEAKY-CLEAN APE gets to be the hero all the time (don't get me wrong, I love this version of Kong, but it just feeds into the "mammal good, reptile bad" trope I despise so much). Everything Serizawa and Monarch stood for as a whole ends up being for nothing if that's how it all goes down. And really, we've now done the whole "Godzilla gets pissed at us because of the actions of a few" thing with the Mechagodzilla situation.

NOW, I'm not saying Godzilla needs to be totally spotless. Absolutely not. I'm fine with him being kind of a jerk at this point...but what if he changed? What if, instead of just keeping him that way...we saw him develop? Y'know? As a character? Which is what he very much is, and NOT some glorified plot device?

Listen, making our relationship with Godzilla the centerpiece of the conflict isn't a bad idea. Not at all, as a matter of fact. A good way around it could be that the new monster he has to defeat is Hedorah, or a monster very much like Hedorah (considering the involvement of Yoshimitsu Banno, it feels inevitable). A horror conceived by our hubris and lack of care for the Earth. And yeah, Godzilla would be really angry at us...but he could also be tired. Overwhelmed. Borderline depressed at his Sisyphean life of having to undo every mistake we make. Maybe the real conflict could be him trying to find something, anything that makes his job worth it and not him not feel completely out of place in a world that's changed so much in the centuries he's been dormant. Maybe Monarch and/or a new cast of humans could help show the Big G that we appreciate him. They already teased this with how he acts around the Roman Coliseum (the novel confirms that he's homesick, awww), so why not give him that sort of emotional arc like they did for Kong? Maybe even give him more than just one scene with him and Mothra together, and show why their relationship works so well, ESPECIALLY when Big G's having a crisis! A unique jerk-to-nice-guy plot! I don't know, something that doesn't begin and end with him doing nothing but destroy things. That was cool for a while, but we need to get out of this "Godzilla can't be relatable because reptile" bunk that I have no doubt the higher-ups think. Heck, give him that son that Wingard clearly wanted to give him. Maybe the twist is that Little G absolutely adores humans and convinces his old man that they aren't so bad. That would work amazing! The possibilities are endless!

That, or they could go with my pitch for a "Godzilla X Mothra" movie. Please...?

I'm kidding, Twitter user Riamus came up with a WAY better premise, to be honest.

[hannie-dul-set]

heyy i love ur fics and just wanted to ask what app you write your stories in... are there any specific websites/apps you use for organizing your thoughts or preparing the banner and aesthetics for ur fics.

also, when you have an idea or a potential plot, do u plan the whole thing out then start writing (or have a rough idea) or do u just start writing and see where it takes u... sry if it's too specific

hope u have a nice day 💗💗

hi, there!!

i use google docs for just about everything HAHAHAHAH mainly because of the autosave function, how i can open all my docs on any device, and i’m just generally used to its functions and interface. you don’t need a special writing app or anything! just work with what you’re used to.

for organizing and planning my fics, i usually have a separate gdoc from the actual fic doc just to barf out my outline HAHAHAH. the term organizing is a stretch tbh bcs this doc is essentially just bullet points of my streams of consciousness that i have to decode during the actual writing phase 😭😭😭 it’s mostly dialogue and stage directions. my outline docs are glorified word vomit.

however!!! when i have a more complicated fic, i like to make a spreadsheet to keep track of timelines and all HAHAHAH. other than that, i don’t really use anything else to write!

for banners and headers, i just use canva. but if there’s a look i want to achieve but canva doesn’t have the function, i use a drawing app called firealpaca!

i know a lot of writers that make moodboards for their fics but i really don’t HAHAHAHAHHA there’s....not a lot of prepwork that i do besides an unhealthy amount of daydreaming 😭😭😭 which leads me to ur next question!!!

generally, i just start writing HAHAHAHAH even when i don’t know how the fics ends or goes, i just start writing or barfing out my ideas in a doc whenever i have one!!

for fire and brimstone for example, i just had a bunch of scenes that i wanted to write, thought of an intro, and pulled open another gdoc to start writing— fuck it, we ball, basically HAHAHAH. whenever i get the idea for new scenes or how to tie together existing ones, i just quickly jot them down into my outline doc so i don’t forget.

don’t be sorry!!! i enjoy getting questions abt my writing process. even if the said process isn’t all that helpful because i run on vibes only 😞🤙🤙🤙. tysm for dropping by!!!

[skyfallscotland]

House of Earth & Blood thoughts, part two/two:

• Bryce's mum is really cute and it's kind of nice to see a story where the heroine isn't a starving orphan, sorry not sorry 🤷‍♀️

• Hunt's mum however 😭😭 that's so sad? And why do I feel like we're going to circle back at some point to that comment about not knowing who his dad is 👀 Is it someone important? It's someone important, isn't it?

• I also find it kind of hilarious that so many people rag on Violet in Fourth Wing, but Hunt Athalar is just as fucking bad. The boy is thirsty af, does he ever think about anything else??

• I also like that Bryce's depression and survivor's guilt is sticking around and not just being used as a plot device, like a lot of books usually do. It's nice. For me, not for her, lol.

• I still don't like Fury. She's still blacklisted. Go run off with E Ithan.

• Hunt’s wings, what the fuck. Honestly, Bryce isn’t doing enough threatening around here, blackmail these fuckers?!

• Ohhh I get it now…I think? Did someone shove that drug down Danika’s throat and she killed the pack? And that’s why she was begging? And why the protections on the apartment couldn’t stop it?

• Oh, Danika shoved the drug down Danika's throat? Well that's...charming. I know people are imperfect but damn this still feels like a Nehemia-Aelin relationship and I'm...not digging it.

• I really want to know more about the Autumn King, which seems like the situation every time there's an autumn king of any kind in an SJM novel, so, you know...par for the course.

• Micah is such a dick. TBH they're all dicks, but still 🙄

• Bryce begging for Hunt's freedom 🥺 I fully expected her to be like "he's my mate!" but IDK do they...not...realise that? Is it because she hasn't made the drop? They do have those in this universe, right? Because now I can't remember.

• I like Ruhn. Is pretty sword going to end up being Bryce's sword though? Because we're talking about it way too much for what's basically a glorified kitchen utensil in his hands.

• Ok so the last like however many pages were while I was out, which honestly? Always seems to happen? So I don't have a ton of live reactions but:

• Did I think Hunt was being a little mouthy about hating the archangels for a man in his position? Yes. Did I think he was actively planning a rebellion? Nope, you got me there.

• Oh and MICAH killing Danika and the pack? It makes a lot more sense, but that doesn't make me feel any warmer about her to be honest, she DEFINITELY learned from the Nehemia school of friendship (called it!) and I hate that for Bryce 😒

• The vacuum cleaner? That's such a trauma response and honestly, Bryce deserves to have that small moment of peace because she's a badass bitch. Nice work honey, you're doing great! 🥹

• Sandriel is just...I don't even care about her? She's meant to be this second big bad and I just never cared, tbh. Good riddance 👋

• Hunt gets blown up and put back together way too much and too easily tbh, which rankles considering Lehabah is apparently actually dead??? What's up with that? Rude.

• "Light it up, Bryce! Light it up!" Ok I might have teared up a little 😭In the grocery store. 😭 The same grocery store I was in when I listened to "you do not yield, you do not yield" on my last big shop. You're right, I can never go back.

• I also wasn't sure Bryce was ever making the drop, I was starting to think that she was going to remain human forever (and I wouldn't have been that mad about it). I'm kind of relieved though that she did and she didn't have to give up all her power? I think? From my understanding. That seems like an SJM special and I was waiting for it, prepared to roll my eyes.

• "I'm not making it ... Because it got too hard. Without you. It is too hard without you." I love Bryce so much. I felt her more than most other characters SJM's ever written. I feel like the way her depression and trauma showed through in little glimpses was something I'd been hoping for out of other characters in her work and never gotten and I'm glad she decided to tackle it properly this time around.

I can also see her getting along really well with Remi, so there, that's my answer now for everyone who kept saying Remi and Aelin would be friends. I can't see that, but I can see Remi and Bryce. And maybe Remi, Bryce, and Nesta being a dangerous trio 😅

[st4r-th0ughts]

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!!Request guidelines!!

𐙚⋆.˚ No reader with an enforced story that makes it seem like a oc

𐙚⋆.˚ I don’t answer asks in order of when I receive them, I do then whether bc I feel like it or bc I rlly like the plot or I have the motivation

𐙚⋆.˚ Don’t be rude when requesting

𐙚⋆.˚ I get picky with what characters I want to write so sometimes I’ll refuse to write for certain characters until I get thier personality nailed or i just don’t want to

[x1e3ju]

another rant: my tumblr era has started i feel withdrawals…

i might not finish this so if it gets posted. something won but drawing most definitely did not ToT anywho this is in fact another persona rant! im fixated on kingdom hearts pretty heavily now but i still hold persona very very dear to me as we now dhskd im here to rant about the aigis and yukari, this wont be as in depth as last rant but hey its worth a try and its been on my mind why not

thinking about aigis’ character and everything about her character down to her bisexuality really makes me wish they explored her humanity more. i know she wasn’t an allegory really or anything of that sort just more of a “plot device” of sorts to help handle the theme of appreciating your humanity and living and all that. but i love her so much so yes, as indulgent as it is, i want to explore that for her hehe. since i played the game and my fixation and love for aigis had commenced, ive always sorta shipped her with yukari i guess? because i think they would really nice together lmao and also because i think there’s so much potential between a dynamic like that between the two of them.

i was working on a fanfic idea and i had written some stuff i really liked but in short the idea was about aigis and yukari and how their relationship would develop during the answer time or after the events of the main game basically and how they would deal with makoto’s death in a rather odd manner to say. mind you, ive never seen the answer dlc and knew very little about it so i sort of didn’t include that specific time but anywho, no matter all that, the point of in short is that aigis and yukari only really find that sort of sense of “love” in each other because they both remind each other of makoto. i know that sounds probably insane and i don’t really like writing about gay couples and just focusing it so much on societal standards or like in sapphic relationships for example, i don’t like the fact so many are based around men and comphet and all that but i feel that this would be such an issue for how aigis and yukari would navigate their lives afterwards, as of course it would be, i think it has a lot of potential to be discussed and i know atlus would never state it the way that i think it would look but just in the friends way and not in the jealous “he was mine!!” way, its so ridiculous bc again, i havent seen it myself but i know its handled so horribly i dont even wanna imagine. ill see it eventually ToT

but anywho, i think their relationship has a lot of potential to be explored. just the ship dynamic in general and aigis having to handle teen emotions lmao. i think her being extremely awkward and learning the concept of embarrassment would be hilarious i mean mostly tragic but in a way, it’s something that could speak to a lot of people. and i know the game didn’t have time to really explore that and i think surprisingly they did pretty well with what they did with aigis and just that game in general (the first and last time lmao) but im just saying whatever yk fhsjfb

i just wish more media expanded on what toxic relationships genuinely are. i wish more ppl thought critically and realized the very thin but visible line between toxic and abusive and didn’t either glorify or exaggerate it so much yk? like i wish more media discussed mutually toxic relationships and actually didn’t put such a disgusting narrative like they always do especially with gay women and sapphic couples. just for the fetish it’s absolutely disgusting just like with gay men and the power dynamics its like… why. why are we missing the point here how do we manage to make the same mistakes everytime ToT i like aigis and yukari as a ship because its something that already in itself is a bit questionable to say the least and it could really feed off well on that differentiation between their humanity you know? and also handling grief but realizing that its the same and they both need to let go you know? it’s like even with yukari and mitsuru, i wish more people didn’t treat them like “aww cute gay girl couple from persona 3!! yass lesbians diversity win!!” and actually thought on the WAY bigger picture that their relationship is and just how messy and complicated and tbh, really unfortunate it would be. although i do think that mitsuru and yukari would probably “be together” late in the future like probably reconnect late 20s or smth but it would all have to be secret and still, mitsuru would never be able to really be with her due to the company and marrying off and all that. and just with mitsuru’s avoidant personalty and a bit of nativity and i personally headcanon yukari with bpd or just a more emotionally based personality disorder so those leading factors would probably make their relationship to actually come to fruition so difficult

ok i was going to finish this and ill still post it but my head hurts so bad rn i hate playing kingdom hearts the graphics are miserable omg.. so ima head to sleep at only 3 am like a loser.. goodnight to the dust under the bed and alsoooo

goodnight too to the inspo for today’s rant.. i was finally able to get my hands on a baby aigis and she has arrived and im so happy i feel like a father right now… even the box has naorise tooo like fjskfjr♪٩(๑>ꇴ< ๑)و ♪ …you all better say goodnight to my child im looking at you too dust bunnies dont think i forgot

[touchingmadness]

Help me choose a Nano project?

I am by no means promising to heed the results to this, but I could use some opinions. I have a few ideas for what to work on for Nano but can't make a final decision which is... a problem, since these all need some more planning before I actually start writing them.

Descriptions and pros/cons below the cut.

Reblogs allowed and appreciated.

That Which Remains (post-apoc sci-fantasy)

In a post-apocalyptic world where the passage to the afterlife has been mysteriously cut off, the streets are oversaturated with the spirits of the dead. Trained Quellers take to the streets with their spirit-sensitive subordinates to channel and extinguish these spirits. Aereas is an unsanctioned Queller who is secretly spirit-sensitive. When they're called in to investigate the apparent suicide of a Queller-in-training, they get pulled into the mystery of why the spirits of the dead are lingering and what the Quellers are - or aren't - doing about it.

Pros:

Most developed plot

Main and secondary character decently developed

I know DEFINITIVELY how this ends, down to the scene

Cons:

Might be derivative -- formulated as a dream while I was binging stories about body-hopping and talking to the dead

Most of the other characters don't even have names

Unsure if this is a single book

Wither and Woe (high fantasy, political drama)

Five nations are on the cusp of deadly conflict. Tensions are rising, and plans are being pushed into motion under the veneer of civility. A young princess married off as a glorified hostage barters with the demon Wither for a child that will earn her nation's protection. She bears her husband an heir that is not his own amidst the political machinations of the inner court and begins to suspect that she is not the only one who Wither has helped.

Pros:

WITHER!!! I love Wither so much!!!

Most of these characters are well-planned

Wrote a bit for this a few months back

Cons:

Still unsure is this should be one POV or like six

Worldbuilding needs some work

Heavy subject material with little room for levity -- usually prefer to write these types at the same time as a lighter project

Casey Draper's Big (Gay) Alien Road Trip (contemp sci-fi)

Casey Draper is stuck in a rut since graduation, faced with the harsh realities that her dreams may never come true and her friends might not want to see her again. Life isn't like the books, and that sucks. So who can blame her when she lets herself be kidnapped away from her dead-end job by an angry alien who seems to think she's a missing alien prince? Casey's in for the adventure she always craved as they flee secret government agencies, stumble upon strange towns, and eventually have to stop the actual runaway prince from getting himself killed with his party boy attitude.

Pros:

Main cast is completely planned

Incredibly dissimilar to anything I've watched/read lately, so less likely to accidentally draw from things half-remembered

Almost episodic, can afford to be rambly and unfocused

Cons:

It's the type of contemp where the worldbuilding is basically just our world, which is difficult and often boring for me

Literally no existing outline AT ALL

Annoyed with my own job in a way I wasn't when this was first planned -- risks getting too pessimistic or just frustrating

Project Evergreen (post-apoc sci-fi)

Arden thinks his life is over when he leaves behind his family's stronghold to take his sister's place at the Eternal One's estate. But instead of being imprisoned for Fern's habitual impulsiveness, he is given a new name and instructed to work on a mysterious device alongside others in similar situations. And he would truly prefer it if the Eternal One would simply lurk. Instead, the mystical woman infamous for somehow surviving long past the Before Times visits him and speaks as though he is someone else.

Pros:

Relatively developed cast drawing from discarded projects

Basically a fucked up and nonromantic sci-fi Beauty and the Beast story, so most of the big story beats are planned for me

Strong thematic center - easier to make story decisions

Cons:

No clue what happens between the big story beats ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Worldbuilding is slapdash at best

I have no clue how this ends

[voidfalcon]

Alright, Bucky Barnes stans—you weepy, metal-arm-obsessed, trauma-fetishizing disasters—let’s tear into this. You’ve been simping for a brooding slab of man-pain since he fell off that train, acting like he’s some misunderstood poet instead of a guy who spent 70 years as Hydra’s personal murder Roomba. James Buchanan Barnes? More like James “ I’ll stare into the void and call it character development” Barnes. You’re out here thirsting over a walking war crime with a $12 haircut and a personality that’s 90% PTSD and 10% “ huh?”

You clutch your Winter Soldier edits like they’re holy scripture, sobbing over his “ tragic past” while ignoring that he’s a one-note sad boy who’s barely said ten sentences since 2014. Oh, he’s got a metal arm? Cool, too bad it’s attached to a dude who’d rather glare at a wall than crack a smile. You’re so busy romanticizing his brainwashed assassin phase—calling him “ complex”—that you forget he’s less a character and more a plot device with good cheekbones. “ Save Bucky!” you cry, as if he’s not a grown man who could’ve therapy-ed his way out of moping by now.

And the fanfics—Jesus, the fanfics. You’ve got him paired with everyone from Steve to the Quinjet itself, drooling over “ tortured soul” vibes while he’s just trying to buy plums and not get arrested. You’re Team “ I can fix him” for a guy who’s already been fixed, unfixed, and refixed so many times he’s basically a Lego set with missing instructions. Take your Bucky body pillows and your “ he’s been through enough” whining and shove it—he’s a cyborg with a sob story, not your personal redemption project. Wipe the tears off your keyboards and stan someone who’s not a glorified sidekick with a stare that could curdle milk.

[stellaafterdark]

Ok let’s talk about the most tragic character of the Pantheon sci fi series.

No, not Maddie Kim

No, not Caspian Keyes.

[Spoilers for Season 2 under the cut.]

No not David Died-Three-Times Kim or his wife.

These are compelling and all. Don’t get me wrong. But there’s a clear winner in angst here.

No not Non-Consensually Uploaded Chanda with a blown apart redemption arc.

Renee.

RIGHT as she was going to upload after two decades of service to the man she loved, who was basically functionally dead, after desperately begging him to let her join him and being turned down, she arrives . . .

but he’s already been murdered by his clone.

The clone SHE RAISED.

Guys. Understand. As a character? She’s totally underwhelming. No charm, except the paper-thin fake kind. She’s not a charismatic villainess. She shot a man. She didn’t apparently actually bond with Caspian. As a person? She’s unlikable in ALL ways. Boring even. No interests or development outside the mission or outside Holstrom. She’s a glorified plot device. But in terms of the situation?

This woman SMASHED HER OWN FOREARM WITH A HAMMER because she believed in this guy’s cause so religiously.

and she was denied a reunion moment

This woman RAISED A CARBON COPY OF THE MAN SHE LOVED FROM A BABY. CAN ANYONE FATHOM THAT? The mannerisms. The speech patterns. DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW UNSETTLING AND MIND-BENDING IT WOULD BE TO WATCH YOUR BELOVED’S FEATURES GRADUALLY EMERGE FROM A CHILD’S FACE YOU WIPED BABY FOOD OFF OF.

but she was willing to put up with this off-the-deep-end insanity, probably because there were no other candidates that could trust to do it.

(a running theme of the show)

The writers don’t even seem to realize that this POV is a perfect explanation for why she went so bonkers.

It would be why she was utterly incapable of bonding with him as a mother.

He was just a placeholder, like looking at a photograph as a reminder until a husband returned from war.

A reminder of the ache and pain of him being gone. A reminder that if she screws this up, he really will be permanently dead.

Constant. Reminder.

THAT’s the most horrific and compelling thing a writer could ever dare to dream of!! And they totally fumbled the ball !!!!!!!!

I see no narrative indication- none- of linking these two things together.

just ‘oooo bad devout-to-the-point-of-psychopathy lady who’s willing to Terminate her own adoptive child’

Despite having a therapist right on hand??? Huh??

Cary gets his ‘I’m gonna miss him’ gut punch transition scene where he’s breaking down sobbing in his car, and Renee doesn’t even get 2 minutes to unpack this Bizzaro World life she’s committed 18 years to??

AND THEN.

SHE GETS A TOTALLY IGNOMINIOUS DEATH SCENE.

She doesn’t even know his clone has killed him.

She never got to be Renee Holstrom.

She never even got to digital-somatic kiss the guy.

Lemme tell you, I’m AROMANTIC and that hit so deep.

AND INCREDIBLY, except for a scene centered on Caspian, IS NEVER MENTIONED AGAIN.

Not by Pope.

Cary is AWOL.

Stephen Holstrom? Did he profess his enduring love to her in between god-complex monologues? I don’t really recall?

She seems an afterthought to everyone. Both from a writer’s room perspective AND the therapist who should care. One of the people who held this entire thing together. Under circumstances that would crack anyone’s mind.

The narrative left this character criminally under-examined.

I looked it up. Her character ISN’T EVEN CREDITED WITH A LAST NAME.

Like I guess legally she was married to Cary … but you’d think she’d refer to herself as Holstrom at least once.

[submarinerwrites]

jane austen, persuasion

★★★☆☆

written by austen in the last years of her life and published posthumously, persuasion is the story of anne elliot, a woman on the brink of spinsterhood, and her relationship with captain frederick wentworth.

to be completely honest with you, i’ve never been an austen “fan”—i read pride and prejudice in middle school, decided i wanted nothing to do with it, and mostly washed my hands of the period romance. i don’t like that her works (and to an even greater extent, her fans) glorify a deeply racist and sexist period and place. i picked persuasion up because i actually have not read anything in two months and wanted something quick to get into the swing of things.

persuasion was indeed a very quick read. i finished it in two sittings. it went down easily. that’s about as much as i can say to recommend it.

actually, that’s not true. wentworth’s final letter to anne was swoonworthy genuinely. you pierce my soul?? i am half agony, half hope???? c’mon man.

for pretty much the entire rest of the novel, i was annoyed. annoyed as FUCK. most of this story consists of anne’s deeply unpleasant relatives complaining about something or another, and anne complaining about them. this plot device exists to make anne seem contemplative and intelligent. in general i feel it does not.

on that subject. austen loooves writing about anne’s interest in romantic poetry to make her seem smart but she (austen) is also a true hater of basically all romantic sensibilities. make it make sense girl.

i do appreciate (without necessarily enjoying) the role austen’s novels had in the development of realism as a genre. it is definitely a novel written in reaction to the romantic movement. the rich symbolism and imagery of the romantics are essentially abandoned in favor of interpersonal interactions.

also a very good example of free indirect discourse. if someone doesn’t know what free indirect discourse looks like. well. they can just read persuasion.

idk. i sometimes struggle to know what to take away from books like this. it felt like a nothing story, that said very little about anything. clearly i am not the intended audience. it’s not a bad novel. just very much not for me.