#because I do see some people on here who are very specific character focused

[daydreamerdrew]

The Avengers (1963) #3

[asidian]

One thing I haven't seen talked about is Crystal's character arc, and specifically the way the timing of it interacts with Charles' arc. They stumble over each other in the worst possible way en route to their respective character growth, and from a narrative perspective, it's absolutely genius.

I'm going to preface all this by saying: none of this is a criticism of Crystal. Part of what makes her such a dynamic, refreshing character is that you don't get to see women in fiction written the way she's been written. You don't get to see women with her flaws that aren't throw-away mean girls or villains. You especially don't get to see women with her traits who learn and grow and become better people. So yeah, I'm going to talk about Crystal's character flaws. No, this isn't Crystal hate. We love our girl in this house. Okay? Okay. Let's start.

Crystal's character arc, at its heart, is all about her learning to be a better person because she has good influences that love and support her for the first time.

When the show starts, Crystal is not a nice person. She's abrasive in a way that's specifically designed to push people away. She's used to getting her own way, and it shows. She's used to having no meaningful connections with anyone, and it shows. She's breathtakingly selfish, in the very literal sense of the definition. She is focused on her self. Her problems are front and center to her; everything is about what she needs, and what she wants, and how she's struggling.

Jenny calls her out very early on. In episode one, Crystal is complaining about the boys, and Jenny, for all her cynicism, strikes right at the heart of the problem. She tells Crystal, "Everybody is always thinking about themselves, all the time." People only care about their own problems. And she says, correctly, that that's what Crystal is doing, too.

This moment is a revelation for Crystal. For the first time, she considers what her behavior looks like from another person's perspective. As she says, she gets mad at herself over it, and that awareness allows her to do something selfless for the first time in the series. She takes a step back and insists that instead of focusing on her problems, they go to help a little girl. It's a big moment for her.

But importantly, she's not done growing as a character here. She's only just getting started.

On my first watch through, I didn't realize how often, over the next few episodes, Crystal redirects things to her problems during conversation, but it's quite a lot. She's still focused on herself – selfish, in that most literal definition of the word. The issues most important to her are her issues. She's starting to learn to think about other people, but she's not there yet. The process is still underway.

Which brings us to Charles.

Charles' arc is a different sort of self-reflection. He's terrified that he's a bad person the way his father was and the way the boys that killed him were.

During the course of the show, he gets systematically stripped of his confidence and made to feel helpless, and just like Crystal needs outside influences to help her reach a more stable place, Charles does, too. He desperately needs reassurance that he isn't everything he's afraid he is.

But my goodness, the timing in their arcs is such a trainwreck when you put them together, and it is brilliant.

Let's start with the Devlin House.

Crystal has some amazing character growth here. She displays genuine concern about Charles, makes an attempt at comforting him, and learns to work with Edwin even though she still doesn't particularly like him at this point.

Charles, meanwhile, is beginning to fall apart. He's just had the worst night of his afterlife. He's been viscerally reminded of how helpless he is. He couldn't stop the Devlins from being killed over and over, just like he couldn't stop his own father's abuse. He messed up his attempted rescue so badly that he was completely out of commission until the case was finished. He managed to help not one single thing. He made no impact at all. He couldn't help those girls any more than he was able to help himself, while he was still alive.

So they get back to the butcher shop, and what do we see? Monty immediately coopts Edwin. Niko doesn't know what's happened because she wasn't there and Charles has been all fake smiles with her. And Crystal goes off with Niko, leaving Charles to flounder on his own in the wake of everything. She's still learning how to support other people. She isn't there yet, and it's extremely on display in this moment.

Then we get the lighthouse episode, and they both get put through the wringer here. Crystal gets her hopes and expectations jerked around by the Night Nurse in the very worst way, and Charles gets hit with a whole pile full of trauma. All that helplessness wells to the forefront again. Combined with being forced to relive some of his worst memories and the desperation to keep Edwin safe from hell, Charles lets himself act on his anger for once.

And what does he get in the aftermath? Horror.

Everyone who cares about him is horrified by what he's done. Edwin goes so far as to call it extreme. They don't know the half of it, of course; they haven't seen what the Night Nurse just put him through. But in this moment Charles is at his absolute lowest, and all he sees is confirmation that he's exactly as terrible as he thinks he is.

That's why Charles shrugs off Edwin's attempt at comfort, here. When he needed to be able to do something to protect Edwin and also himself – when he needed to believe that he could be better than what his father always was – all he sees is the confirmation from the people he cares about most that when push came to shove, he really is a bad guy.

Then comes the aftermath. And this moment is such a brilliant, awful clash of both of their character arcs. It is so delightfully messy.

Because Charles starts to open up to Crystal here. He starts to lay himself bare, the way he ends up doing with Edwin in episode 5. He's on the verge of admitting something that he's been worried about for literal decades. He tells her, "I've been angry for such a long time."

And what does Crystal do? She's still in the midst of her own character growth. She's still struggling to support other people. She's still learning how to. In a lot of ways, though she's made progress already, she's still that selfish girl that Jenny called out in the very first episode.

And she shows it here it with the absolute worst possible timing. No sooner has Charles started to talk about what's bothering him than she cuts in with her own problems. She's tired of riddles and spirits and demons and not knowing who she is. And the look on Charles' face. The moment when he visibly sets aside his own problems, because Crystal doesn't need any more disasters on her plate? It's heartbreaking. You can actually track the subtle change in his expression there. The actor does a phenomenal job.

And then comes the kiss. And what spurs it? Crystal saying she needs something real.

This moment isn't about light-hearted attraction, the way the earlier flirting is. It's Charles setting aside what he needs – comfort and reassurance and a moment to talk through the things that have been tearing him apart – to give her what she says she wants. He can't even feel it. And Crystal isn't far enough along in her character growth here to realize how selfish she's being. Like Jenny said way back in episode one, she's only thinking about herself.

And then comes the absolute unmitigated disaster of episode 5.

Straight out the gate, Charles leans in for a kiss. From his perspective, they have something together; there's affection there. Charles "I think I'd miss kissing" Rowland, who has been starved for meaningful physical contact for thirty years, is not in a hurry to give this up.

But Crystal is fresh out of a nightmare where she conflates Charles with her abusive ex. She withdraws; she calls what they had a distraction. She cuts it off almost as soon as it's started, so focused on her own worries here that she misses how damn fake Charles' smile is, to cover up that he's coming to pieces.

To be clear, she's absolutely not in the wrong here. It is 1000% her prerogative not to jump into a relationship again while she's still struggling to work through what happened with David. But the arc of her narrative is still early enough that she does it all without so much as the awareness that her focus on her own issues has hurt Charles terribly.

And then the episode really kicks off, and both of them are in shambles in very different ways.

Crystal is projecting her issues with David onto Charles. She has a lot of history, and David seems as though he's exactly the right sort of toxic to leave lasting a lasting impact. But Charles hasn't done anything to deserve her assumptions, and he takes the brunt of her temper here and throughout the episode.

Charles is desperately projecting onto the dead jocks. He very badly wants them to be good guys, because he sees himself in them and he needs himself to be a good guy. He snipes back at Crystal for the very first time in this episode, and he does it in the worst way possible, accidentally prodding her where it will do the most damage.

They're both hurting. They both say some truly painful things to one another.

She does not need to hear that she has unsorted hangups about David still plaguing her while she's unable to move past them. He desperately does not need anyone to tell him that he has rage issues while he's still struggling to think of himself as a decent person.

They apologize, in the end. They start to move past it.

But it's telling that Charles doesn't try to open up to Crystal again. He goes to Edwin instead, even though Edwin is the one who called his actions regarding the Night Nurse extreme. He gets the reassurance he needs so badly; he gets the connection he was looking for with Crystal from Edwin, instead. (I have a lot of thoughts on why Charles initially tries to open up to Crystal so quickly, but it is very much an aside, and this is already extremely long, so it will have to wait for another write-up.)

But the important thing here is, Edwin is the one to offer Charles what he needs to overcome the self-doubt eating him alive. Edwin provides the physical affection Charles was seeking in the form of that long-overdue hug. Edwin is the one who's able to reaffirm for him that he's not just a good guy, he's the best person Edwin knows.

And for all intents and purposes, Charles' major character arc ends here.

Charles has a few last little moments to go on the path to rebuilding his own self-image, after this, but for the most part his concerns have been resolved. He saves Crystal in episode 6 and Edwin in episode 7, proving to himself that he's able to make a difference in the face of overwhelming odds. He's not helpless, no matter what the Night Nurse told him; he can be a force for good in the world. By the end of the series, his crisis of self-doubt seems to have been largely overcome.

But it's the conversation with Edwin at the end of episode 5 that really allows him to work through his most pressing issues. Edwin is there to help support him when he stumbles. Edwin provides him the comfort he was looking for while Crystal was too worried about her own problems to notice how badly he needed the help.

Crystal, meanwhile, still has a ways to go after episode 5. The last three episodes are where she does her most important character growth.

In episode 6, she learns some hard lessons about keeping secrets and letting people help and appreciate you even when you can't offer them anything in return. And Charles, importantly, is there for her every step of the way. He consistently offers her physical and emotional support. He models for her, in a very real way, what it looks like to have someone prop you up when you need the help.

And in turn, Crystal steps in to save the boys. She's the big damn hero at the end of this episode.

The breakthrough continues into episode 7. She's so intent on helping to get Edwin out of hell that she literally goes to face her own demons, not for herself for once – not for her own purposes or needs or wants – but because she wants to help someone else.

And episode 8, at long last, brings her to the culmination of her character arc.

Crystal is at her absolute lowest here. Her family, the people who were supposed to love her unconditionally, didn't even realize she was gone. Her precious memories, that she's spent the entire series trying to regain, have showed her that she's not the person she hoped she would be. She's overwhelmed enough that she means to flee, to cut herself off from her new friends entirely.

Then the boys get kidnapped. And just like that, she makes up her mind.

For the first time since the start of the series, she sets aside her most important issues in order to let what other people need take precedence. She disregards all of her own personal concerns and focuses instead on others. She's finally stepped out of those selfish impulses that Jenny calls her out on, all the way back in the first episode. She's finally learned how to support other people when they need it.

Crystal has finally figured out how to be there for others, despite having troubles of her own.

It's a lovely arc, and it's beautifully done.

Charles' is just as touching.

And god damn, but it was a brilliant narrative choice to have their character arcs line up in exactly the wrong way.

[is-nini]

They're Good Girl

A Neuvillette x reader x Wriothesley

You'd always have a fun time between the oh-so-sweet ludex and the rough Duke.

Minor DNI!

Tw: pussy slapping, filthy words, slut calling, size kink, overstimulation, dumbification, pussy slapping, spanks(near the end), double penetration, breeding, manhandle. (Aftercare at the end) Word Count: 2k

The Duke and the Iudex rarely meets eachother. It makes sense. The both of them are in a different line of world. One is underwater and the other one is up above the water.. but, if anyone wanted to meet them both at the same time, they know who to look for. You.

No one know specifically what you're relationship between you and the two powerful man are but.. one thing for sure is they don't want to know.

The last time someone tries to make a story about your relationship and the two man, they ended up retired and never wanted to talk about the duke or the ludex. No one knew why but seeing that, the Fontaine people has a unspoken rule to not talk about you and your relationship.

Both Wriothesley and Neuvillette are a very private and mysterious characters to other people, but you.. you get a special treatment.

Of course you'd be special. Always listening to they're beck and call. Always ready to accept they're rambles and gossips about tea or about the new case that has been going around. Such as now.

"This case has not end yet though. After much consideration there are things that seems to be in the fog's" Neuvillette ended his observation regarding the newest case. He has never been afraid talking to you because he trusts you with his secrets. How could he not? You'll forgot about whatever he said an hour ago. Such a dumb cute girl of his is the only person he can trust.

"Are you listening darling?" He asked as he looks at your trembling and embarrassed form Infront him. "N-neuvie! Pl-please th-this is embarrassing" you whine as your legs are wide open for your dear ludex to see.

Your cute pussy clenching around nothing as you try your best to keep your legs wide open. Afterall you wanted to help Neuvillette to focus on his work.. you wanted to make sure that he is satisfied so that he can focus properly.

"Embarrassing? My dear y/n, I have already seen everything. There's no such need to be embarrassed" he said as he stands up and walk around the table to stand Infront your your small figure.

Such a beautiful sight. Your cute skirt bunch up around your waist as the both of your feet placed on top of the seat that you sat on currently. "Ne-Neuvi" you whimper out as his hand started to leaves ghost touches around your inner thighs.

Your body shiver as his gloved hand grazed your little bundle of nerves. Your body immediately jolts up, making the chair shake with your reaction. Neuvillette looks at your reaction with his sharp eyes as he slowly puts down your leg back to the ground.

"come here love" he gently picks you up princess style and laid your down on his desk. You hold yourself up with the both of your hand behind you as your feet dangle. His hand softly pushes your skirt upward, letting your very wet pussy be seen again.

Neuvillette sat down on his work chair amd goes back to focusing his attention on your parts. "No matter how much I look at it.. it's always so enticing" his finger picks up some of your essence from your wet parts and let's out a chuckle. "So wet" he whispers as he took of the gloves that he uses to touch your pussy.

You can feel your pussy throb again looking at his act which of course didn't go unnoticed as you gain a laugh from him. His deep laugh gave you goosebumps all over your body, making your nipple harden as it pokes out of your white shirt.

"do you enjoy my voice that much my dear?" He asked all the while he bend down and gives a little huff to your pussy. You squirm and squeeze your eyes shut, embarrassed and shy about the situation.

Being the gentle dom he is, Neuvillette pulls away and kisses your forehead with love. Kiss that is reassuring but gentle as he make a circle motion around the outer layer of your pussy.

Although he is definitely much more lenient to you, his patient is so so much higher, meaning that as long as his cock is not buried deep inside you, he won't stop the tease until he is satisfied.

"My, what an adorable sight" he sigh out, looking at the overflowing juice that your pussy made. Your body tremble and twitches, aching for something - anything to just insert your pussy. "N-neuvi! Pl-please please!" You beg as you slowly open your eyes to look at him with teary eye.

"Please what, love?" Neuvillette asked in a gentle tone with underlying darkness behind his voice. How could he not? He is slowly being hypnotized by you because you and him both know, after you answer his question, he would do anything for you to make your wishes come true.

Your lips tremble as you try to make a coherent sentence "N-need your c-cock-!" your sentence was cut off when another voice decided to join the fun.

"Oh? Starting the play without me?" A very familiar voice speaks out with a fake sadness underlying his voice. Your body jumps a little with surprise hearing wriothesley's voice suddenly joining in. "I assure you we have not started...yet. I was merely preparing her for us" Neuvillete speaks out first after you move your head to face the duke who is walking ever so calmly towards you.

"Then I owe you my thanks, Neuvillette" Wriothesley smirked and looked at you with a dangerous glint in his eye. He looks at your sensitive parts that are still being played with Neuvillete's fingers. You thought that he would also play with your pussy but your body shakes a little when he pinches both your perky nipple from behind.

"Ngh! Ha-" your chest puff up as if you're asking for more. One of Wriothesley's palm stroke your sensitive nipple while the other holds your waist down. Neuvillette is making himself busy as he slowly insert two of his long finger inside your pussy with much ease.

Neuvillette looks at the way your pussy eat his finger. He can feel your walls clenching around his finger. Wriothesley saw more and more of your wet part let's out more and more juice. "So wet. Such a slut" Wriothesley comment. "Wriothesley.." Neuvillette warns him almost with a growl. "Come on Neuvillette, you can feel her pussy clench on your finger can you? She likes it" Neuvillette will be lying if he said he didn't notice your pussy clench when Wriothesley degrade you like that.

"I feel no need to degrade when she can also clench the same way if you praise her." Neuvillette finger you faster and harder as he smile, looking at your trembling leg "Sweet girl, are you going to cum? yes?" oh the way you melt with his sweet words that brings you to the edge. "Would you like to cum sweet girl? go ahead, princess." One command is all it takes for you to just unknot the tie on your stomach. " Ngh! A-ahn! Neuvi- ha-" fat tears are pouring out like water.

Your juice splashes everywhere, wetting the table and the porcelain tile floor. "Ng-ngah! Neuvi-Neuvi!" You squeal out. Your pussy spasm and your chest heaves up and down. Wriothesley feeling a little bit left out so he stuck his mouth to the nape of your neck and suck on it. Your brain has slowly turning in to mush.

Neuvillette pulls his finger out slowly as the squelching noise filled the room. He looks at Wriothesley and step away from your pussy to give Wriothesley a sign that he is done prepping you, although you will never be used to they're size.

Wriothesley walked and changes place with Neuvillette. He looked at your cute pussy throbbing on nothing. He groaned and cup your pussy, smirking at you. "Such a slut. Look at your pussy begging for something to enter it" he then gave is a slap. Your body jolt's up as he slap your pussy as then he proceeded to give a couple of little slaps. Laughing at how your body react.

His open his pants, freeing the suffocating cock inside it. "Okay then princess. It's time for your reward" you almost perked up when you hear the word "reward" but before you can say anything, Wriothesley slowly insert his girthy cock inside of you slowly.

Your back arch and a sultry moan came out of you. You make grabby hand at the table, trying to catch a breath as Wriothesley fully insert it in. Neuvillette grabs your hand and kisses the back side of it. "Doing a great job baby. Doing a great job for us" he whisper while caressing your hair lovingly, contrast to Wriothesley who started to thrust hard and precise into your sloppy cunt.

"Good. Slut. Our. Little. Slutty. Girl" every word he makes sure to thrust deep into you. Your legs are wrapped as your eyes roll back.

Neuvillette pulled down his pants and slowly rub his already leaky cock. His cock is similar with Wriothesley in some ways but it is longer and just a little less girthy than Wriothesley. Doesn't mean his cock feels less better.

Wriothesley looks at Neuvillete while thrusting in to you. "Just stuffed her mouth Monsieur Neuvillette" Wriothesley said teasingly. Neuvillette grunt and slowly shook his head "I want to hear her". Wriothesley immediately took your waist with ease, pick you up in his arm while his cock is still deep inside you and bring you over towards Neuvillette.

"I'm sure she can take another cock inside her ass" you widen your eye and whine as you claw on Wriothesley's shoulder. "Hng-! Neuvi!!" You whine out. "She can be a good girl and take Neuvillette right?" Wriothesley whisper as he kisses your cheek. "N-Neuvii pplease!" You moaned out Neuvillette's name, desprate to try and be a good girl for the both of them.

Neuvillette rubs his cock on the entrance of your pussy and slowly pushes in. "F-fuck.." one of the rare times Neuvillette moan as you scream "ha-hng! Big-big-ah! Please! Oh-!" You babble out and scratching Wriothesley shoulder. Neuvillette looks at you with concern "A-Are you okay princess-fuck so tight.." Wriothesley laugh and shake his head "She's fine Neuvillette. No worries. She can take is like a good. Fucking. Girl" Wriothesley started to thrust again although it's not fast, you can feel absolutely everything.

Your ass is full, your pussy is full and your brain is full of the word 'Neuvi' 'Wrio' and 'cock'. They have fucked you dumb at this point.

Once Neuvillette started to move, oh gosh the pleasure is overwhelming. Fat tears came out, your tongue is hanging from your lips, and your eyes are rolled backwards. Beautiful sight for Wriothesley, making him thrusts harder. Neuvillette rubs your stomach and pushes it once in a while. He can feel Wriothesley cock deep inside your stomach and it bulges everytime he thrust.

"So beautiful princess.. keep going. Ngh-so so good baby..such a good baby" Neuvillette moans to your ear as he also pick up the pace.

They're tempo are similar but everytime Wriothesley pulls out, Neuvillette would make sure he fills you so that both of your holes would never be empty at the same time.

The tempo picked up fast. You can tell they're on the edge because you can feel they're cock getting bigger inside of you, ready to shoot. You whine as your leg tighten around Wriothesley. Your pussy are also clenching around them so sweetly. Wriothesley too your mouth and kisses you sloppily in the midst of the kiss.

Neuvillette rubs and pinch on your right nipple while still holding on to your stomach with his other hand. The pleasure is overwhelming as you spew out words between you kiss. "Cum! Wan-wan' cum! Ah! Pleaseplease" you babble out.

Neuvillette grunt and bite on your shoulder, leaving a mark. Wriothesley pulled away from the kiss, he wanted to ask Neuvillete if he's willing to let you cum now but looking at Neuvillette's flushed face and seemingly too deep in pleasure to talk he decided to take control. "Cum like a good slut come one" he rubs your clit, bringing you closer to release.

Your stomach tightened and you squirted out clear liquid as you scream hard. Your pussy and ass hole tightened a little, getting Neuvillette and Wriothesley closer to the edge. "F-fuk! C-comming" Neuvillette grunt as he thrust faster.

Wriothesley's pace also fastened as the both of them cum together inside your body. You squeal as you legs shakes because of the pleasure. "Ng-Ah!!! So ghood! Pleasepleaseplease! Fill me! S'good!". You scream out. You can feel both of them feeling you up so deliciously.

"F-Fuck- such a good girl- like being filled up by two cocks huh?" Wriothesley growled as his cum slowly drips down your pussy. "H-ah.. g-good girl. Sweet princess" Neuvillette moan out, he slowly rubs your stomach that has been filled to the brim with Wriothesley's cum. Neuvillette's cum also filled your asshole the heavily filled to the brim.

"Ngh-ha!" You let out little hiccup as you cry out of overstimulation. Neuvillette breath and huff up and down as he whisper sweet nothings into your ear while Wriothesley is admiring the way your cunt flutters when he pulls out. His cum flowing out of you like waterfall.

Neuvillette rubs your belly and pushes it slowly, his cum inside you ass also flowing out but it is so mesmerising. Wriothesley's kisses your cheek softly and gave your ass a one good slap, making your body jolt as your sensitive body take the hit. Neuvillette looks at him questioningly.

Wriothesley smirked "hold our cum in princess" he teasingly said, making you whine weakly. Although you're fucked out of your mind, he can see you try to tighten your pussy. Wriothesley laugh happily but Neuvillette just sigh and readjust your position as he carry you princess style to the sofa in his office.

"Wriothesley, please stop being such a tease" Wriothesley just shrug and smile at Neuvillette. "Ah, but you also enjoys it Monsieur" he teasingly said as he took a couple of tissue and walked towards you, he took care of your face, slowly wiping your tears and saliva so your face would feel better.

Neuvillette sigh as he knew what Wriothesley say is right. He took a cloth and wet it with his hydro power and proceed to clean the lower part of your body. He softly touches and wipes your over flowing pussy making your body twitch.

After the both of them makes sure you're clean, they clean up after themselves. All evidence pointing to sex has been taken care of. Wriothesley draped his coat on top of your body while Neuvillette also drape one of his many layer of clothing on top of you to make you warmer.

"Such a sweet girl. You have trained her good Monsieur Neuvillette" Wriothesley teasingly said to Neuvillette. Neuvillette smile softly as he proceeds to comfort your must be aching body. "I too, admit that you have given her a proper... Punishments".

They're eyes looks fondly at your sleeping figure. So peaceful and relaxed after such a rough session. While waiting for you to rest up, both of the man decided to have a nice and relaxed tea and water while talking about some cases. They kept they're voice low but even so, they're voice is calm and soothing as you fell deeper into slumber hearing them talk while Neuvillette stokes your hair and Wriothesley softly hold and message your thigh.

[ofswordsandpens]

Okay compiling my most critical opinions on the pjo show so far (episodes 1 & 2)

The Gods' Conflict, Foreshadowing, & Big Three Kids

The show has seemingly dropped a lot of the foreshadowing and threat regarding the gods impending war over the theft of the lightning bolt. In the book, Percy remarks about how the weather's been inexplicably weird and extreme. When he gets to camp everyone is on pins and needles about something and they don't want to talk about it but its still very present. By the time he's claimed as a son of Poseidon and everyone's like "oh fuck" and then Chiron finally explains to Percy that the gods think he's the lightning thief, everything clicks into place for the reader. It all makes sense why everything seems so wrong... because things are wrong. Meanwhile in the show, that doesn't carry through as much, so the reveal of the conflict between the gods and why that's a big deal falls flat in comparison imo.

They dropped/stalled the foreshadowing of the fates and the cutting of the string. They could very well include this in future episodes, and probably will, but I think the timing of it - Percy seeing this before he even knew he was a demigod - again carries some hefty significance and helped set the foreboding tone of things being wrong even from the beginning.

They did drop Zeus's attack on Percy in the minotaur battle completely, which does disappoint me. In the book, its lightning that blasts the car off the road. In the show, Sally seemingly loses control of the car. That change is pretty significant, because it's again losing the power of RR's foreshadowing in the book. The attack on Percy outside the camp borders was a duel attack from Zeus and Hades.

Finally, I don't like the changes they made to Percy's claiming scene, namely, the reaction from the rest of CHB. Percy being a son of Poseidon is a huge deal. When Percy's claimed, the attitude is very much begrudging reverence paired with genuine fear of what it means and what he represents. In the book, Percy is claimed. People gasp. Everyone kneels. Annabeth says, "This is really not good." In the show, Percy is claimed. People... stand there? Annabeth smiles - she's going to get her quest. The only person who has the most outright negative reaction is Luke. I won't go so far to say this is out of character for Annabeth, but it is focusing on an entirely different aspect of her character in the moment, and what the audience gets from Percy's claiming scene here, the tone, is now different from the book. Basically, the reverence and fear don't really carry across to the show, which I think is important.

The phrase "forbidden child" slaps tho.

2. Gabe's Characterization, Sally's Characterization, & Why the Changes do Make a Difference

I'm going to say this with great care: The show has absolutely depicted an abusive relationship between Sally and Gabe. The show has shown Sally to be a strong woman who would do anything for her child. The show has shown Gabe to be a controlling, toxic man.

What they have depicted in the show does not read like the characters and dynamic in the books.

Book Gabe is a violent, menacing drunk. He is so disgusting and vile that monsters avoid him. This is overwhelmingly apparent from the second Percy gets home in the book, even before he is aware of the physical abuse Sally has been facing. Percy has already been dealing with physical abuse from him, amongst other things (edit to be more specific: this is including verbal, emotional, & financial abuse). I've already spoke to it here, in-depth, so I'll try to keep it short but all of this has not been translated accurately to the screen. (Is this to say that a person must be overtly abusive to be abusive? No. But does this character on-screen feel like Smelly Gabe? No.) These things have shaped Percy (and Sally) in very specific ways. As others have mentioned: Percy cannot stand alcohol. He meets Dionysus and is reminded of his step-father. He gets to Tartarus and the air reminds him of Gabe.... The character on screen, while abusive, does not share this presence at all, and that makes a difference.

Edit: To emphasize once more, I am not saying that the show has not depicted a realistic portrayal of abuse. It has (verbal, emotional, & financial so far). It has also distinctly changed the tone and Gabe's presence from the book, to the extent that it no longer feels like the same character and that does have a rippling effect on the dynamics he shares with both Sally and Percy.

3. The Lack of Annabeth

Annabeth in the show is just like... really not as present as she is in the book so far, and I'm just kinda like, why lol?

Annabeth in the books is already way more involved in Percy's life. She was in the infirmary feeding Percy ambrosia after the attack (ulterior quest motives lol), she's the one who lead Percy around camp and re-explained godly parentage to him - and its a moment where she's very sincere with him, and even trying to help him! Instead these moments are given to Chiron and Luke, which I do get the merit of, but still, these were her moments!

Annabeth in the books had already surmised that the gods were fighting, something was stolen, and the something bad was going to happen, all before Percy had even been claimed. And she shared that with him! Again, the loss of foreshadowing and little bonding moments has me :(

I'm a little worried how they're going to deal with her crush on Luke because its pretty central to her character in the books! It helps Luke to manipulate her and also keeps her from admitting he's done something wrong. Also, it was very sweet and funny reading her get flustered - It drove home the point that she was just a kid with a crush that she didn't know how to handle. But in the show Luke spoke to her and I was expecting there to be some sort of reaction to it and there just... wasn't? (This is not something I'm laying at Leah's feet btw! Only the writers/directors!) We're only two episodes in tho so maybe we'll see it some more moving forward.

4. The Minotaur Battle

Again, I've already spoken about this in depth here but !!

The lack of Zeus's lightning strike, them all coming to a standstill and just chatting instead of running for their lives, Grover being awake and just sort of off to the side watching the fight, Sally being like "Promise Me Grover Swear it"... it all just doesn't ring right to me

I wanted more panic, more terror, more urgency. Higher stakes. I wanted Grover unconscious, I wanted to see Percy drag him into camp, and I wanted to see more of Percy's grief alongside his rage. Like the book did.

The pacing in the show here, and just overall, is weird

5. Other Stuff

Mrs. Dodds fight kind of fell flat too. It was honestly too sudden and Percy killing her in the show seemed even more accidental than in the book lol. Like, accidental impalement vs intentional swing of the sword.

They really had show Grover throw Percy to the wolves and not just gaslight him, but low-key have a part in getting him expelled? Not sure how I feel about it tbh.

More New York. I wish we had gotten the part of Percy taking the bus home with Grover included cause like? Him ditching Grover was funny, but it would have been the perfect opportunity to show Percy traveling through New York and establish it has his home. Shots of him looking at the city, walking the streets, interacting with people near his building.. yeah.

More Montauk too tbh. Like more shots of him and Sally on the beach rather than just the cabin.

Nectar and Ambrosia! Unless I missed it, which I might have, why have we still not gotten an onscreen depiction of it yet lmao.

[aroaceleovaldez]

i know a lot of people talk about the Cupid Scene as not being great as Nico's coming out story (which i think is a complex matter but that's a rant for another day), but I personally find it way more compelling if it's just not Nico's coming out story at all - it's the beginning of Jason's.

Because it doesn't really work or make sense to be Nico's, right? It's not Nico's pov. Nico doesn't have a POV at all in this book. And in House of Hades, the Cupid Scene is one of the first major things Nico gets to do right out of the box jar. Why introduce a character, have him be outed as gay, lead the crew around, and then leave to go travel with someone else all in one book where he's not even a POV? It's also contrary to the way Nico generally functions as a character - he's either exposition, dues ex machina, or damsel in distress. He's kind of a damsel here, but ultimately he doesn't need anyone else to save him - or even be there. He handles it on his own. Jason is mostly just a witness.

But, if you view the Cupid Scene as being about Jason, it narratively fits a lot more; Jason at this point is dating Piper, and they're three books deep into their relationship. TLH they start dating and are relatively happy with it and where they are. SoN is a skip but we know they're happily dating during that time, and then Mark of Athena we get a slight shift. Jason and Piper see Percy and Annabeth and go "Oh! They're perfect. Their relationship is perfect. We could be happier if we were more like them." Piper and Jason are also both characters who go through an identity turmoil in general - particularly about how both of them want to be perceived by others and who they are as people. The things they identify with - their parents, their heritages, etc etc. Their orientations. Piper's get more focus earlier in HoO, and Jason gets more later.

The Cupid Scene is from Jason's POV, in a book where he is beginning to struggle with his identity and what people expect from him - particularly him not feeling like he perfectly fits with "either camp." He's too "Greek" to be "Roman" but too "Roman" to be "Greek." He's not quite one or the other. He doesn't meet the expectations either has for him. (This is bi-coding, if you couldn't tell. Just replace "Greek" and "Roman" with "Straight" and "Gay.") It starts with Cupid addressing Jason first, before Nico, very directly - asking him if he's so sure he's happy in his relationship? Does he really think it's perfect? Even Favonius very pointedly asks him if he really forget that guys can date guys? Do you have some internalized bias around that, Jason? Hm? Heck, they're both specifically in their Roman forms, not Greek. Why would they appear in their Roman forms if they're there for a Greek demigod? And very notably, they have this exchange:

(remember what I said about the bi-coding with Jason's Greek/Roman identity crisis? I don't think it's coincidence that this so pointedly comes up during the Cupid scene.)

Favonius' introduction to the Cupid scene sets up Nico's portion of it, but Cupid almost exclusively speaks to Jason for the first half of it. Then Nico steps in. He diverts the conversation away from Jason and focuses the attention onto him. Nico's the one Cupid wants, he insists, not Jason. He's the target, not Jason. This is very in line with Nico's character - practically one of his core character traits is he trusts and starts caring about people very quickly, probably quicker than he should or even wants to, and will put himself in harm's way to prevent others from being hurt. The Cupid Scene isn't the start of Nico's coming out story - Nico already knows he's gay. He has no internal doubts about that. He's known it for awhile. He's just in the closet. And he starts coming out of his own free will in the next book, first to Reyna and Coach. The Cupid Scene is Nico recognizing that Favonius and Cupid are pushing Jason for something he's not ready for and hasn't figured out yet, but something Nico has and just hasn't said out loud yet. The Cupid Scene is Nico taking the proverbial bullet/literal arrow for Jason (Jason consistently describes the arrows as whizzing by him before striking near Nico, interestingly) and being outed so Jason isn't. And that presents Jason with the path to begin questioning his identity further. (Jason also then directly compares Cupid to Aphrodite, specifically her Greek form, which also ties into Jason's greek/roman stuff.)

And I don't think it's coincidence that Jason and Nico mirror each other so much, and that their arcs in HoH are so intertwined. The Cupid Scene functionally, on a meta level, establishes an explicitly queer character to parallel Jason and for him to bounce off of during his own arc. (And, also on a meta level, establishes to the audience to be sympathetic to queer struggles, with Jason's arc then proceeding to be a queer-coded struggle.) Jason is presented as having this strange level of isolation from how others perceive him in a positive way/the expectations people have of him that wraps around to something akin to Nico's ostracization as being an outsider and atypical demigod in general. Nico is a rouge - he explicitly expresses how he feels like he doesn't fit in at either camp (something he expresses explicitly during the Cupid Scene, mirroring Jason's simultaneous questioning his own place at Camp Jupiter) and a core part of his character is that he does function outside the rules and expectations of both camps. He operates on an entirely different realm to them. If the camps are an expectation of normative concepts of acceptable relationships, Nico is outside of that. And he recognizes that he operates outside of that and will never fully fit into the mold either expect of him, and he recognizes he doesn't need to fit in, even if he theoretically could force himself to fit that mold. Jason, meanwhile, is still locked within those boundaries, and grappling with this idea of how he can exist between them.

Nico hands Jason a goblet of poison and says "how much do you trust me?" and it's Nico challenging Jason to take his own advice about trusting others about their identities, and almost immediately after that Jason gives up his praetor title to Frank. Jason's Greek/Roman arc is directly tied to Nico and the Cupid scene. BoO ends with Jason asking Nico to stay at CHB so they can hang out that summer. By TOA, we learn that Nico has started dating and is staying at CHB (is exploring the niche of expected and socially accepted relationships) while Jason has broken up with Piper and is living away from both camps (rejecting hetero/allonormative expectations), still struggling with his own identity. They functionally swap places. And that's fascinating.

Anyways i think about Jason's bi-coding a lot.

[taffywabbit]

idk if i'm way off the mark on this, but the way some people are responding to that Guillermo del Toro interview about the decline of studio animation is a bit frustrating to me. specifically the bit where he talks about "emoji animation" and how everything is over-animated and pushed too far and things are rarely allowed to not be ultra-cartoony (y'know, because animation always needs to be marketable to children who are never trusted to have attention spans, right?). like, i think he's generally correct about it! but some folks are taking the wrong message away from that.

i've seen people going off about how "soulless" and "corporate" various recent examples are, and talking about these pieces of media as though they're the result of some kind of personal failing or lack of skill/range on the part of the animators, and it's just like. do people realize that's the only animation you're usually allowed to DO in the industry, unless you get incredibly lucky and land yourself on a project/studio that's unusually cool?

when i was in college for animation it was literally drilled into us nonstop that everything had to be pushed more, that exaggeration was not a guideline or a sometimes-treat but a hard rule that always had to be applied regardless of what was going on, because the viewer couldn't be trusted to pick up on subtlety and we sure as hell couldn't be trusted to convey it. you ever wonder why there's such a specific vibe to a lot of self-directed student films, particularly ones that are focused on character acting/interaction or deep emotions and introspection (especially when there's minimal/no dialogue)? it's because for a lot of young animators, they haven't had the freedom to experiment with realism and subtlety up to that point and they're likely not going to have it again for a while (or at all, unless their career path leads to higher positions where they might have more creative direction over the things they work on. which also becomes a lot less likely if they're anything other than a cishet white dude, for what it's worth).

i would LOVE to see more nuanced, realistic, understated motion and acting in animation. i WANT more characters to be able to express what they're feeling through natural body language and facial cues and for scenes to allow me to breathe instead of spelling everything out in giant bold flashing text all the time. what del Toro wants to see changed in the animation industry sounds great, and i hope others join him in seeking to revamp what modern animation is allowed to be.

but as things currently stand, and as they've stood for a long while now, most artists doing the grunt work on the shows and movies you see are completely at the mercy of corporations and networks who have a vested interest in producing a very specific kind of marketable and cost-efficient media all the time. (and by extension that style is ALSO what's taught in most animation schools, because their job more than anything is to grind you down into a perfect little sweatshop worker who will bend over backwards to meet quotas and get your work approved and not question the higher-ups, even if you have little to no personal investment in the projects you're working on, so that the studios who employ you can maintain their good reputations or whatever)

anyways idk what my point was here, this really just sorta became a rant and my views have undoubtedly been coloured by my own personal experiences (this kinda shit is largely why i dropped out before my last year of animation school, for the record).

i guess just be kind to folks in the animation industry? they've had it fucking rough nonstop for well over a century (the majority of them are still not unionized and there's HUGE pushback against doing so in many places). i assure you they are doing their best to infuse the latest uninspired illumination flick or weird spinoff kids' show with literally any amount of soul they can. you don't have to like the stuff that gets produced by any means! be a hater! i'm certainly not gonna stop you. just remember where these creative decisions come from and why these conditions exist, and consider that when YOU watched something and thought "hmm that could've been done better", you can bet your ass someone actually working on it probably thought the same thing but couldn't do anything about it. these things WILL change as the industry itself improves, but in the meantime folks have to pay their rent, and that usually means doing what they're told and working in a way that will minimize revisions and meet quotas so they can keep their jobs. it sucks, but it is what it is.

[extremely-judgemental]

Subtext is completely lost in this fandom. I partly blame SJM for it. This is a rant from both reading and writing standpoint and leans towards the characters since I like to psychoanalyse them.

The one thing that tired me the most in these books is the excessive narration. I don’t mean the wordy description to support world-building but the never-ending monologues. SJM takes ‘show, don’t tell’ advice literally with the visual cues when it should apply to the characters and their personalities as well. Where subtext usually exposes depth of these characters and lets you decide who they are, SJM strips away that chance by writing it down for you word by word. The reason so many are going with 'in the book' argument is exactly this.

Here’s what I mean.

In real life, people don’t think linearly. They have an idea about themselves as much as they have about everyone else around them. There are self-imposed restrictions on their thoughts based on who they believe to be and who they strive to be. And it shows in their interaction with outside world. Say, when someone is ashamed of their actions, they will deny it for as long as possible. Someone who regrets something, they will sugarcoat it.

But in her books, her characters think clearly—way too clearly so that you latch onto the ideas she perpetuates. You don’t get to know them based on their thoughts, words, and actions, and see how these three support each other. You don't get a chance to draw conclusions as to if they are the hero/villain and good/evil based on their actions. If their behaviours match their words or if their choices are acceptable. Because SJM sets it in words for you. The characters come with a label beforehand. (Feyre, Rhysand and Inner Circle are good guys. Tamlin, Eris and Nesta, sometimes Lucien are evil.) It's why so many toxic and abusive themes are dismissed because it’s the 'good guy' or the 'morally grey guy’ who does it.

And so, her lead or ‘good’ characters fall flat since they have everything figured out. They know themselves inside out. They are never wrong about themselves, there’s no part they hide from themselves or the others. There’s nothing for you to read and identify the beauty or ugliness in the character. There’s no depth in them because they don’t contradict themselves, they don’t struggle to be someone they always believed to be. They don’t have to prove anything to themselves or others. They say what they think and they do what they say. They are very aware of their shortcomings and they all seem to know the exact consequences of their decisions.

Feyre doesn’t change in the three books. Her ‘rags to riches’ story doesn’t lead to much character growth. She starts out as an adamant, reckless child and ends up being arrogant, reckless woman with a crown. She doesn’t undergo a shift in personality but climbs up the social hierarchy. And that’s considered character development. Rhysand remains the same throughout. He starts out as a villain but later revealed as a good guy playing bad. Instead of growing into a hero—given his crimes, his ill deeds are negated with sympathetic backstory. And from there, it’s a flat line. There’s no growth.

In the end how does the character change in the aftermath of the events? Which of their beliefs are shattered and rebuilt? What is the emotional impact on the other characters? SJM does offer some closure on these regards but they are solely focused on a list of traumas and specific reactions set by SJM herself. And so readers refuse to think for themselves how these scenarios may play out and take the words relayed through the unreliable narrators who are essentially preaching SJM’s biases. Also, when they are so explicitly written down, there’s not much room for subtext. After going through pages and pages of justification, it tires you from using reason.

Even if we get past this (writing) flaw, there are other major issues. Story telling is a way of experiencing life. It helps build empathy, compassion and understanding of the world. Even in a fantasy book, when that world doesn’t exist, when the characters aren’t real, their journey are drawn from real life experiences. Relating to these characters is subjective and solely depends on the reader, but determining the rightness of their actions is not. This too is warped as SJM dictates which behaviour is acceptable and how far through her lead characters(Feyre vs Nesta imprisonment). Instead of allowing you to judge the choices, the verdict is spoon-fed through the ‘hero’. If the characters are forgiven, it’s not abuse. It’s a simple mistake. (It’s a mistake if it happens once and if there’s a changed behaviour after the apology.) If the characters are happy in the end, their acts are admissible. Unless SJM stamps the word ‘abuser’ and ‘bad guy’ in block letters herself(Tamlin), it's not even considered a possibility.

In short, in this fandom, ‘reading between the lines’ is acceptable as long as it supports what the author preaches. When it contradicts ‘it’s in the books’. Logic is valid only if you use it to justify the fan favourites and applaud them. Empathy is conditional. Compassion is conditional. Critical thinking is so discouraged that it’s pitiful.

[brekwrites]

In Defense of Sun: Addressing the Bald Issue

So, we all know that Sun adamantly insists he is not bald and his rays are hair, despite contrary opinions from literally every other character. While this is technically true, I personally believe that the nuance of the situation is being overlooked, and that Sun DOES, in fact, have the right to call Moon bald.

Let me explain.

So, to start off, let’s take a look at Sun’s claims:

1. He is not bald

2. His rays are hair

I’ll be analyzing both separately, but before we get into specifics, let’s define our terms.

Who is bald?

The dictionary definition of bald, according to google, is: having a scalp wholly or partly lacking hair.

To meet this definition, a person must be lack hair on their scalp, meaning there is no hair there AT ALL. This is the official definition, which I will refer to as Bald (with a capital B), or True Baldness.

Two famous people that meet this standard are Mr. Clean (left), and Saitama (right) from One Punch Man.

These two individuals are Bald. This is the standard of True Baldness.

However, I would argue that there is, in fact, another definition of bald that is commonly accepted by society. To differentiate the two, I will refer to this secondary category as bald, with a lowercase b, or apparent baldness.

So, what is apparent baldness? I think the best example of apparent baldness is Seth Everman.

Seth is widely known for being bald (among other things, but I’m focusing on his baldness here). However, upon closer inspection, we can see that he does actually have hair in his scalp, he’s just shaved his head.

Thus, Seth does not meet the standards for True Baldness. He is, however, still widely accepted to be bald, as seen in his notorious youtube comment:

1.6 million people agreed with this, so it must have some merit, but Seth is not Truly Bald, so what is he? I would argue that Seth fits into the secondary category: he is bald, but not Bald.

What this means is that Seth appears to be bald, but is not truly Bald. THIS is apparent baldness.

I think the biggest factor in apparent baldness is the smooth silhouette, which I’ve highlighted here.

Seth shares this shape with Saitama. Both are bald, but only Saitama is Truly Bald. Do you feel me?

So now we have:

Bald: lacking hair on the scalp

and

bald: sharing the smooth silhouette commonly seen in Bald people; widely accepted and labeled as bald

By this definition, Saitama is both Bald and bald, and Seth is bald but not Bald. Finally, if someone who is Truly Bald wore a wig, they would be Bald, but NOT bald, since they lack the appearance of baldness.

Now we can examine Sun’s arguments.

Claim #1: Sun is not bald.

When you go by the traditional definition, Sun is Bald. He lacks hair, plain and simple. However, I would argue that his silhouette does not have the appearance of baldness.

Thus, he is not bald.

Moon, on the other hand…

Is very much apparently bald. And even if you argue that his hat disrupts the silhouette, let’s look at Pitbull, another famous bald individual.

Here we see Pitbull performing in a hat. Though the hat disrupts his smooth silhouette, we all know the truth: he is bald beneath it. Thus, Sun is Bald, but not bald, but MOON is Bald AND bald.

Whether or not the statement is true depends on the definition of bald you are using, and Sun could technically argue that he is not bald. Additionally, I don’t believe he is in the wrong for calling Moon bald either, because of relative baldness.

Relative baldness

Can Sun joke that Moon is bald? I say yes. Here’s why.

Let’s say I’m 5’5” tall, and I have a friend who is 5 feet even and one who is 6 feet even. The national height average is 5’4”. Thus, by technical definition, I am not short.

However, I would argue that my 6 foot tall friend could still call me “shorty” as a joke and get away with it. When standing next to them, I do appear short, even if I’m not technically Short in the official sense.

I can also turn around and call my 5 foot tall friend short, and I would be within my rights to so so as they would be both apparently short and Truly Short by definition. Finally, someone who is 5’2” (True Shortness) could probably still get away with calling my 5 foot tall friend short.

By these standards, I would argue that Sun has a right to jokingly call Moon bald, since Moon is relatively balder than him. This does, however, mean that the animatronics with synthetic hair, who are still technically Bald, are within their rights to joke that Sun is bald in comparison to them.

As an aside, you could also argue that one requires a scalp to be Truly Bald, since that is included in the definition. This would mean that technically none of the animatronics are Truly Bald, but the rights for who can call who bald would still default to relative baldness in this case, so the outcome would be the same.

So, to summarize: Sun is either Bald but not bald OR neither Bald nor bald, and either way you swing it, he’s still LESS BALD than Moon. On to the final claim.

Claim #2: Sun’s rays are hair.

Again, the technical answer is no. None of them have real hair that they grew from their head, but there are some technicalities here based on the same relativity theory.

No animatronic truly has hair, but if you want to define an animatronic equivalent to hair, it would probably be ‘something that is attached to or comes out of the top of one’s head.’

If we go by the attachment theory, animatronics like Monty and Puppet can be considered to have more hair relative to Sun and Moon. But is a wig truly hair?

Depending on how their synthetic hair is attached (is it a wig glued down to their head or threaded through the exoskeleton like a barbie?), it’s possible that what Sun has is actually the closest thing to hair, since his rays clearly originate from his head and are extending out from it, not just glued on top. Would you say that someone who is Truly Bald and wears a wig ‘has hair?’ They certainly appear to, but it’s not a part of them, so maybe you could argue that they don’t.

So, if Sun has the closest thing to hair, relatively, then I think he at least has more of a right to call his rays hair than is being let on, especially if we consider that he’s not apparently bald. And if Monty and Puppet’s hair is glued on, like a wig, then I would argue Sun has more relative hair privileges than them, since they are an actual part of him that extends from his head. Thus, the argument is not QUITE as ridiculous as it sounds, even if Sun’s rays are not truly hair by definition.

As another side note, you could maybe argue that Sun’s rays are closer to horns or even antennae? But I think that since they aren’t clearly defined as anything, it can go either way.

In Conclusion

Tldr: Sun is Truly Bald, but not apparently bald, and thus has the right to call Moon bald as a joke. He is less bald than Moon. Additionally, there is an argument that his rays could be considered at least the closest thing an animatronic has to hair, depending on your qualifications for animatronic hair and how Monty and Puppet’s wigs work.

[bi-badass-geek]

Hades 1 vs Hades 2 Designs

● Hermes besides Hypnos was first character that made me think when i saw him oh some time has passed since Zag's escapes indeed, makes you feel that time skip. In this particular debate between those i'm really digging both but if needed to say which i prefer would go with second. I feel it should be said he sure rolls nicely with longer hair i would say darker outfit too but that's probably because pallet that's used for levels.

Ps. I saw post that mentioned how his ring is the same as ones Charon is wearing in first game and if it's a hint at something i'm here for it!

● Zeus for this god specifically there is discourse about how his pose is less dynamic and oh boy if i don't agree with that so much. In first game you see him and his look makes you think yeah this is the king of gods while in second game man is just there with posture i take often because i'm useless gay that don't know what to do with my hands and feels like they took all this might and put it into chiseling his nipples & abs into his golden chestplate. Not to mention the detail of missing the iconic bolt! Don't think it needs to be said but 100% would pick Hades 1 design out of those options.

● Poseidon the King of the Sea another example in my humble opinion where they went with flattening that dynamic looks exchanging it for man that just standing there chilling which is good for him but where first screams cool uncle second one goes uncle that wants retirement. I really like how we can see the trident now tho and need to point out his outfit sure got more print on it. When it comes down to pointing out which one is the winner in my eyes it would be 2020 one.

● Aphrodite if she wasn't the one that got thrown into drama because people double standards and hypocrisy. Design from first game and the pose straight up makes you think of love, lust, seduction all the things that are associated with said goddess. As for Hades 2 version i have no clue why it feels like this considering it's actually the opposite because we can see armor on her legs now but she feels less covered for me, do i find it negative or in any way problematic? Not one bit let the woman show off all her assets all day long! Really love the adds of her weapon and shield makes you immerse in the store of oh fights are happening around these parts. From seduction to i stand here at the ready kinda vibe and i'm really digging it.

Ps. Another post i read was about fact that her war paint i will call it (not 100% sure if that is it or just line for the giggles) is reference to Ares and considering her myth i really like that touch!

● Hypnos was the first OG i saw and was like man not only catching up on his sleep but also got such glow up i absolutely adore the design. Not to say he looked bad in Hades 1 but there it was like okay nice to Hades 2 like Damnnn and his lil helpers that keeps him up! Love the fact that of all things they made him be tucked into his cape like burrito.

Ps. I really do hope by the end of the game we get to wake him up so he can try out that nectar that we all leave there waiting.

● Chaos so many things to say and at the same time silence says it all. Seen people focusing on fact some out there call them he or how it's a downgrade from previous but don't even elaborate why they think that because everyone has right to have their own preference but at least put it into words instead of going trash next..there was also notion how they resemble Meg and while i see where people get that idea from for sure before reading that my mind didn't went there at all. I think both designs really work with someone who is primordial originator and how time goes so can their form. I find it very fascinating that they put old skeleton with new one and adore galaxy under suit makes me think of Nyx right away and how they're connected. Can totally see how between those two gamers got major stance that left reminds them more of male and right of female beings but at the end of the it chaos is chaos. Gotta take chair routine from Meg while they at it! The face on the shoulder surely throws me in loop tho fits? Sure. Does it disturb me in micro scale? Yes. About frames and poses don't have much to say cause both caption the essence of i mind my business everything unrelevant until i say so.

Ps. I know it's about physical aspect but let me say Chaos roasting Mel about how her brother is amusing one out of two Hades spawns is living rent free in my brain.

[aboringredmop]

k still don't know how im gonna post the videos (YouTube? unlisted?someone please help) but I can't sleep so I thought it'd write down whatever I remember happening!

(edit: here's the full recording! )

Becky and Joe walked on stage wearing sunglasses and red leather jackets and threw 3 of the trio plushies into the crowd. didn't get one unfortunately but it's really cool some people got free plushies :)

they made this robot child called the Inspiration Child, who's clearly meant to be a nod to ai (can learn from our show and generate it's own content!)

they explained how they met (and had some dodgy animated retelling), and how they started with small projects like commercials and music videos, until they came up with designs of the trio (and a mysterious fourth fella)

they made the designs first, then made the set, then the song and finally wrote the script for creativity. red guy was just a red mop head with legs at first ("alien squid thing") but Joe put the red guy head on for shits and giggles once and Becky thought it was hilarious so they kept it in the show

they were really not expecting it to blow up, and when Sundance called because they wanted to show creativity Becky thought it was a scam caller lol

they talked about the kickstarter and the credit card fraud kid. the mailed him saying "hey maybe dont do that" but the kid didnt know how to undo it cuz he just found a website full of credit card information and went ham, so Becky and Joe had to contact kickstarter because people were pulling out of the funding because they thought the project was overfunded (kickstarter was very difficult to contact)

they also made (lighthearted) fun of nsfw fluffybird art ((no padlock 😔) "using OUR characters to act out their SICK FANTASIES" - Becky) and theorists, especially because most if not all of the webseries is just them fucking around.

Inspiration Child also says something along the lines of "wow what a cool show with a great message of how corrupt the media is. I hate the media!"

Becky and Joe had these rules to make the show as vague as possible (no pop culture references, no names, no swearing and way too much detail put into small things)(the duck guy drag queen absolutely obliterates the no swearing rule lol)

they talk about the pilot, how they focused too much on the story because they felt like they had to due to it being on the big screen now, and how it ended up ruining the atmosphere and such of the pilot. they did show the entire thing sped up but my phone sucks ass so I could not get it to focus correctly. I'll see what I can salvage so you people can dissect frames of your blorbo you're Legally Not Allowed To See (which is also the official reason we don't get the pilot)

also pilot concept art showed that Mean Steve is in fact just called Key

they showed a whole post-it wall full of ideas for the tv show. don't know how much I got on footage, but what stood out most to me were 2 episodes called Money and Christmas. Joe mentioned "clock in a wheelchair" specifically

also really fun fact. Becky made the Lesley suit during covid, and pretty much threatened Baker into writing a human character into the show to wear it. concept art also shows Lesley with a mask made out of the same fabric, don't know if this was part of the original suit tho

they showed Warrens old models (?). he was gonna be a wayy more ugly looking silicone pug-worm thing y'all got lucky with the bald fuck

lily and todney were directly based off of some cancelled show about two porcelain doll children with panda parents. do not for the life of me remember what it was called but Becky and Joe were very enthousiastic about it (UPDATE: Candy and Andy!)

international release of the show soon!

Inspiration Child talks about what he's learned and sings a little song, then generates his own dhmis inspired content of a cult meeting in a forest at night. the dhmis Discord server called this "potential new content" but I doubt it

3 cultists walk on stage, face the screen backs to the crowd, drop their cloaks and boom! drag queens!!!

they were not mentioned on the site or during earlier parts of the show at all so they were a complete surprise. I asked Becky about it later during the night and she said she really wanted them there, so she asked and they were excited to! hope this means more official content with them soon I love them

they dance to There's Three Of Us, then Duck lipsings the shredder song which turns into a techno remix while Red and Yellow dance during the background

then Duck and Yellow make out while Red tries to undress to the instrumentals of the Fucked Up Part of Creativity but can't get out of his suit on time before the song ends

the drag queens, Becky and Joe and the Inspiration Child walk around during the meet and greet later and I got signatures from all of them! except inspiration child he didn't have thumbs

the drag queens were so fucking funny. Duck adopted inspiration child and loudly yelled at everyone to "GET AWAY FROM MY FUCKING CHILD" (their duck voice is sooo good). yellow stood in a corner staring at a wall for like 10 minutes and red was constantly awkwardly hovering just outside the frames of pictures (and also could not see shit lmao)

Becky liked my shirt! (the one with the melting trio heads) said she handdrew it

I'll post the signatures and some more stuff tomorrow because it is. 5 am

edit Heres the signatures! yellow guys is Italian I think? and means hi I love you :)

(the liyskaen is duck trying to spell my name. they got pretty close)

[rdng1230]

Sal Deluca Meta

Okie dokie here we go. Just remember y'all asked for this.

Here are some repeated talking points I’ve seen about Sal and why I think most of them are ignoring certain contexts or misattributing things to Sal that were said/done by somebody else. Also just general thoughts about our little mook.

Hen Begins

That Sal was a raging racist/sexist/homophobic. 

Let’s deal with the first one first. Is he a member of the white boys club? Absolutely. He makes no effort to include Hen and doesn’t really acknowledge her at all until he’s complimenting her for her skills at the end of the episode. This is OBVIOUSLY not good. He should’ve been kinder and more welcoming to her. But the only one who specifically makes negative/mean comments about Hen is Gerrard and Tommy. Literally the only thing you could even interpret that way is him saying “for real?” to Gerrard’s diversity hire comment and the fact that he drops the pick axe or whatever the hell that metal thing was on the floor along with everybody else besides Chim. Not great, but also with what we know about how other rookies are treated even by Hen herself, I don’t think any of this behavior falls into “irredeemable racist monster” Buck chased Ravi with a chainsaw for christ sake. 

Ok now the sexism. He actually stares daggers at Gerrard for the entirety of his stupid “waste of taxpayer money/women won’t be able to rescue my guys” spiel. Like the camera specifically focuses on Sal looking pissed as hell. Another thing I’ve heard falsely said is that after Gerrard storms off, Sal/Tommy follow him. That’s not true. They do get up and leave but they actually leave in the ass opposite direction. Sal’s face when he signals to Tommy to get up reads to me as “let’s get the hell away from the fallout of that grossness.” not “I agree with what that dinosaur just said.” But I also realize people can interpret that moment differently. 

I think the sexist reading largely comes from the Kristen Stewart conversation. And come on, This is the lesbian website, if we start dinging people for finding Kristen Stewart attractive, we’re all going down. Plus again, Buck was STEALING EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT TO GO GET LAID AND HE’S EVERYBODY’S FAV SO I DON’T WANT TO HEAR IT. We see Sal kind of ignore Hen but also agree with her at the same time during this exchange. Again a case of Sal not really acknowledging Hen but not attacking her either. Go and look at his face when Tommy says that NY bitchiness comment. Sal does not look at all happy with him. Most of the time when anyone is being actively mean Sal looks pissed off, not approving.

Ok now the homophobia thing. And it's at this point I’m going to bring up the idea that some characters seem bad/good not based on their actions but on whose perspective we’re viewing those actions from. I see this being a problem with several characters. Most notably Taylor Kelly. But that's a whole other post. 

Sal’s team Jacob comment is homophobic and gross but it's also 1) 2009 and 2) directed at someone who he clearly knows incredibly well and who we KNOW gives as good as he gets. I easily could’ve seen this interaction reversed with Tommy saying that to Sal because that's who they are and how their friendship works. But because we’re seeing this from Hen’s perspective it's another thing that makes her feel isolated and othered. And again THAT IS NOT GOOD SAL SHOULD NOT BE DOING THAT. But I don’t think Sal at all said that with the intention of putting Hen down, it very clearly reads to me as Sal teasing/riling Tommy up as they always have. Now obviously the harm still hits even if the intent wasn’t present. But I think if we can forgive Tommy for comments that were MEANT to be mean, then we can forgive Sal for comments that were just him fucking around with his best friend of several years. 

That Sal was the ringleader or Gerrard’s right hand man

Does Sal have a sort of in charge vibe? Yeah absolutely. But very notably the only thing he actually initiates is the olive branch. It’s him that offers a hand to Hen and says nice job and you’re good at what you do. I also will die on the hill that the hemorrhoid complaint was his. Chim would definitely say that but not in an official report, Tommy would definitely bad mouth Gerrard, but not like that. Now who is known for kind of cruder language and a short fuse and absolutely would put that down in an official report? Sal motherfucking Deluca that’s who. 

One notable thing that I find interesting is that Hen herself distinguishes Gerrard’s behavior from the rest of the team's. She definitely gives them hell during her big speech but when Chim does dishes with her she specifically says men like him not men like them. Just something I realized on my most recent rewatch. 

To summarize, the only real thing Sal did that was unique to him (because they all failed to stick up for Hen, yes even Chim. Chim was nice to her but he never actually stood up for her to Gerrard’s face. He tried to redirect the conversation a couple times but that was it.) was the Kristen stewart comments and the Team Jacob comment. I would argue Tommy’s comments in Chimney begins and his NY bitchiness comment in Hen Begins are way more targeted, hateful, and fucking rude. (said with all love because we know Tommy had a bunch of growth and change and became the man we all know and adore.) IMO nothing in Hen begins that Sal says/does is as bad as what Tommy did/said.

Bobby Begins Again

Ok another reason why I don’t think Sal is this irredeemable sexist/racist/homophobic pig is WHY ON EARTH WOULD HEN STAND UP FOR HIM IF HE WAS???!?!?!? Hen is THE FIRST PERSON TO CALL OUT THAT CRAP even from the first episode she says something like “why is that always the first instinct with you whiteboy macho types?” So why why why why would she stand up for Sal if he hadn’t shown any improvement in that area in the now 7 years minimum that she’s worked with him. Answer: she fucking wouldn’t. Ok moving on.

The Bobby stuff

So remember how I said perspective changes everything? This is the major reason why. We as the audience love Bobby and know intimately the struggles he’s faced, so we’re naturally going to be angered by anyone who is antagonistic towards him. The thing is Sal doesn’t know ANY of that. This is what Sal knows about Bobby.

He’s from somewhere in middle America and has never worked in a MAJOR American city like LA/NYC. That’s it. He COMPLETELY ACCURATELY I MIGHT ADD predicts that anybody with that background will struggle to adapt to the specifics of LA. It’s Sal that has to pick up Bobby’s slack as he adjusts, calling out the shots at the tree trimmer call, taking the initiative with Maurice even though Bobby does ultimately do the saving. (Which Sal actually seems impressed by btw.) Bobby still can’t even read the city map when they pull up to the restaurant fire call. 

Now imagine you’re Sal. First you had Gerrard as captain, who (I think it's fair to say) you DID NOT LIKE. One of the things he did was put down firefighters who disobeyed orders by rescuing people. We saw this with the “fetching a tide” call and with saving the boy in the submerged car. Hen disobeyed orders but showed real skill as a firefighter. And all she got for her troubles was being berated by her Captain. 

Ok then after Gerrard you have an interim captain that seems like a decent dude, but he leaves and for a while you have a revolving door of retiring brass that are checked out, behind the times, or just generally disengaged. You become used to filling in as captain and get actually pretty damn good at managing the team. (I say this because Sal leads the team several times in BBA and nobody looks at all like this is a new development) Then they finally pick a nobody who has never worked in a proper city before and to you he’s just the newest asshole that will probably screw up and get someone killed. Sal has no idea about the challenges or traumas Bobby has had to face, just like we have no idea what might have happened in the 5+ years between HB and BBA. Sal has probably MANY REASONS not to trust Bobby that we don’t know about. 

So how would you feel after you’ve successfully rescued a teenage boy’s life, if your new captain who you’ve known for like a day and still doesn’t even know how to get the engine to calls on time, calls YOU stupid for SUCCESSFULLY SAVING A CHILD’S LIFE. I think you’d be likely to blow up a little too. 

Was Sal a hothead? Absolutely. Was he being smart by mouthing off to Bobby? Absolutely not. But I think his lines to Bobby during that scene are so telling. “You’re just the latest jag off in a long line of jag offs to come to this house and think you know how to run it.” In other words, he’s not really seeing Bobby during this exchange (he couldn’t possibly, Bobby is still being very closed off and won’t tell anyone what his story is for years) he’s seeing the long line of assholes that started with Gerrard that Bobby is unknowingly falling into the pattern of. Just like how Bobby didn’t really see Sal and one relatively tiny restaurant, he saw his wife and family and a massive apartment building with no way out. That to me is the tragedy of Bobby and Sal. I genuinely think they could’ve learned a lot from each other if they had left their baggage at the door. 

In other words, would we judge Sal if he had gone after Gerrard in the way he went after Bobby? I doubt it. And that to me is what Sal is actually doing, going after Gerrard and all the other nameless asshole captains he’s been dealing with for YEARS. Sal was hotheaded and impulsive, but at the end of the day I think he was just dealing with misplaced anger that he put on Bobby, something both Buck and Eddie have done at some point or another even when they DID have all the information. If you can forgive the lawsuit arc, and Eddie’s comments in season 5 about Bobby’s kill count than dear god I think Sal has more than earned a pass. 

Overarching things I find interesting about Sal that I don’t see anyone talking about 

He cares a lot about the people they save on rescues, he’s the one on the majority of calls saying some variant of “its gonna be ok/we’re gonna get you out/don’t worry. Whatever the firefighter equivalent of bedside manner is, this guy has it. 

His personal code of who he gives a shit about seems to boil down entirely to who has skills/is talented and who isn’t. The minute Hen shows real promise by saving that little boy, he is down there hand shaking and complimenting her. Ditto Freddie Costas. “Smart kid, probably saved his own life with that move.” You see this in his conversation with Bobby too “that wasn’t luck man that was skill.” You have to earn Sal’s respect and the way you do is by demonstrating competence. Sal genuinely does look impressed with Bobby for apprehending Maurice and showing ingenuity, the problem is it's immediately undercut when Bobby belittles him for saving the kid. 

Anywho, that’s my Sal defense thesis. There’s probably other stuff I forgot but that's the bulk of it. I reserve the right to randomly reblog this with any other shit that comes to mind. Also as a disclaimer I still LOVE reading toxic Sal or asshole Sal content, absolutely eat it up with a spoon gimme gimme gimme. But I think it would be unfair to say that’s the ONLY read of him. He clearly does give a shit and is capable of growth and change, he just also happens to have a short fuse and very little willingness to go about things in a tactful way. 

TLDR: free my man, he did do some of that shit but so did your blorbos, it's just your blorbos had the narrative on their side when they did it.

[whateverisbeautiful]

Now that TOWL is over, what do you say is your top five favorite moments from the show and your not favorite top five moments from the show? From the start of their relationship, people were against this coupling, and some still are what do you have to say about that? Did TOWL exceed your expectations of what the show was going to be about, and what pulled you into liking this couple? Sorry for so many questions, and I love your breakdowns. I started to reread them all from the beginning. 😍💓

Hi! Thank you! I always enjoy answering so thanks for asking these questions and for rereading the breakdowns. 😊 I wrote out what drew me to this couple here. And for the rest of the questions I wrote out my response below. ⬇️💗

#1: Did TOWL exceed my expectations of what the show was going to be about?

TOWL for sure exceeded my expectations with the love story they promised. When they announced it was going to be a love story I figured we were going to get some pretty heartfelt scenes between them. What I didn't realize is that every scene of the show was going to be rooted in Richonne's love because their love was going to be central to each aspect of the plot. That was great and refreshing to see.

I appreciate how TOWL solidified that Rick and Michonne and the family they created are the most important in the world to them. Richonne's love and relationship have long been such a powerful thing and a massive motivator for these two characters and I love that TOWL didn't hold back in depicting how vital they are to each other. The passion and love displayed in TOWL felt very true to the characters. And allowing Rick and Michonne's relationship to take centerstage gave room to really explore the character's humanity in fresh and focused ways.

#2: Thoughts on people being against this coupling?

I think one of the great things about being a Richonne fan is that we really don't have to make anything up. The content speaks for itself. So while I have my thoughts on the people who hate on this couple and who have commented negative things about them for literal years, I feel like the TWD/TOWL content always ends up affirming what we know to be true and proving all the Richonne slander false.

People who are against this pairing can comment for years that Richonne came out of nowhere but there are seasons worth of pre-canon scenes that confirm the seeds of Rick and Michonne's attraction and love were planted long ago. They can say Richonne feels forced or like fan service but Gimple has said he was seeing the potential for Richonne when he was a writer crafting Clear long before any fan had even seen Rick and Michonne together on screen.

They can try to say that Rick's relationship with so many other characters is more important but TOWL especially set the record all the way straight on the person Rick prioritizes and loves most. They can try to knock the chemistry and say they just don't see it "for some reason," meanwhile it's on record that part of why the writers kept writing so many scenes for Rick and Michonne is because of their undeniable chemistry.

And especially after TOWL, which is Andy and Danai taking their chemistry to another level for six straight episodes, still not seeing the chemistry is certainly a choice. There's a reason many viewers said they tuned in to TOWL just from seeing the chemistry between these two actors and characters. What those two have is unparalleled and magnetic.

People don't have to like Richonne. We're all entitled to our opinions. But I have yet to see any substantial critique of the pairing, as people tend to just say they don't like it or buy it but never seem to pinpoint specifically why. (Although for many (not all) but many, we know why they don't see or like it.) The negative things said about Richonne are often either purely biased opinions or easily disproved. But again, it doesn't even have to be argued because the actual media shows, and has always shown, that Richonne is a beloved fact within fiction.

With 7 seasons of Richonne content on TWD and their closing TOWL chapter being heavily focused on the love they found with each other, it's clear that everyone behind these characters understands the absolute importance and value of Richonne. All these years later and Richonne being something special and meant to be is still proven true every time.

#3: TOP 5 Least Favorite Moments In TOWL

1. Jadis & Father Gabriel Scenes (1.05)

These are the most skippable scenes in TOWL to me. And I think there were a bit too many cuts back to their scenes which weakened the episode's pacing.

2. “If We Don’t Who Will?” “No One.” (1.06)

I was really not a fan of the writing for those two lines. 😅 It just didn't feel like how those two characters or any people would naturally speak. The visuals were beautiful tho.

3. Museum Scene & The Bumbling Trio in General (1.05)

There were a few decent moments in the museum scene but some of it felt a bit like clunky shenanigans. I also wasn't crazy about the bumbling trio of siblings in general. TOWL had done such a good job of making even small characters feel real and lived-in but those three siblings felt more like walking plot devices.

4. Final Fight Scene Dialogue (1.06)

This is another time where I didn't like the heavy-handed dialogue. It felt like they were saying things that should have just been left on a poster, like "In a dead world love is dead" and "love doesn't die."

5. More of an alternative opinion: Okafor should have lived & took Beale's place

It was sorta hard to think of a 5th thing I disliked since I loved so much of this show. So instead I figured I'd just say a personal change I would have been interested in seeing.

I think Terry O'Quinn is a great actor but he didn't really get screentime in TOWL. And so since they didn't give him more of an opportunity to show off his chops, I would have rather seen Beale be the one who dies in the helicopter with Rick in episode one and then have Okafor be TOWL's main antagonist.

Okafor was one of the most compelling characters to be added to the franchise in years and he played off Rick so well. They were great foils to each other. I think Okafor being the one left alive would have complicated things in a really interesting way both for Rick & Michonne and the CRM. Especially if they added some more layered villainous motives to his agenda, Okafor would have made a great and perhaps even stronger series antagonist.

#4: Top 5 Favorite TOWL Moments

Now this one is tough because there are so many scenes I love. Every episode of TOWL has some Top 10 worthy moments. One day I think I just might sit down and really try and see how I'd rank my favorite TOWL moments because I still don't know just yet where I'd rank certain scenes. Which is a great problem to have since it shows TOWL really did give us an abundance of riches. But until I have time to figure it out and elaborate on my top five, one thing I always know for sure is that the masterpiece Episode 4 features my favorite Richonne content of all time. 👌🏽

Thanks again for asking these questions and for your patience with me answering @theoneswholive32! 🫶🏽 I'd love to know yours and other people's least and most favorite moments from TOWL if any want to share! 😊

[ratwavegamehouse]

Transgender Deathmatch Legend has a few solid facts about your player character (your Face). You're explicitly trans, you're explicitly a wrestler and implicitly you exist in a world that is hostile to you.

Character creation in the original TDL focused on key pick lists to fill in some of your backstory and then pulling cards to create a finisher. Character creation for the sequel builds on that while also adding questions that are intended to guide players towards creating more well rounded, full textured characters.

The ring names you can pick from got an overhaul (basically to keep things fresh for long term fans). The intention of those names is if you grab one from the picklist it's evocative enough you can start to build a whole character around that. If you decide to not pick one and just make your own hopefully the picklist has served as some inspiration. Here's four of the picklists names I think are particurlaly good:

Tiger Masc

“Hot Rod” Trinity

“Flaming” Blu Heatly

“The Consequence” Shelly Theodore 

Dominator 1

The two big picklists then focus on your shoot background and the gimmick you have. Similarly to how you pick a ring name and a gimmick name the character creation in Transgender Deathmatch Legend is reminding you that you are someone who puts on a persona. That persona might be a lot like you, or it might be an escape from parts of yourself. I think this an element where the game reminds you of that a lot and then assumes that someone used to roleplaying games should find something interesting in there.

(There's more explanation on how gimmicks are thought off and an outright blunt question of "how much of your real self is in this gimmick?" in TDL2 to help out people less used to thinking about performance and personas. It's a theme that compels me as someone who's been a wrestler, a comedian, and a teacher; areas where to different extents you're putting on a mask.)

Here's some of the shoot backgrounds:

Started learning the ropes after experiencing a hate crime

Introed to wrestling through an ex-best friend

Wrestling legacy blacksheep

And here's some gimmick starting points:

Flamboyant showboat who frustrates and flusters your opponents

An old-school throwback with a loud personality

A serious shooter with black trunks and black boots and a mean look

A tortured anti-hero who mines pain for pathos 

An in-your-face punk with skills honed in bar room brawls

(These are broad because you can match them up with the implications of the shoot name you've picked or created and that combination brings a gimmick to life)

More open questions in the game include stuff like "Describe your gender, both in the terms you use to yourself and to society." and "Did you realise you were trans before you became a wrestler?" as well as the aeformentioned real self/gimmick question. There's also a picklist for "what people say about you" which is obviously a very different question than what you're actually like. These questions are there to get players thinking about how their characters marginalisation affects how they interact with the world around them.

The drawing cards for a finisher mechanic is back, though expanded this time so there's a unique table for each different fighting style.

At the top of this page you can see that one of the scenarios (Fight Forever) involves doing a mirror image character creation for your rival, before playing out a series of fights through time that defined your relationship. I think the most interesting question there is the open one "Are you trans as well?". Like, this scenario specifically is about fighting/sport as a relationship. I think that question has a lot of repercussions about what that relationship is build on; is it something you have in common and connected over, where you placed together as the only two trans people in a way that feels semi patronising, or is there a tension in that one of you just has significantly more opportunities in the world than their creative partners.

So yeah, that's an overview of character creation. I'll probably do a layout sample of what it'll look like in the book proper sometime. The games launches on the 29th and things have been slower than I'd have liked (I worry that the games content has meant it hasn't been favoured by the algorithms of the world). If you're excited about the game giving the teaser page a pre-save would go a long way to ensuring the launch is successful. There's big exciting things coming for this as a campaign, but to get to any of that I need to hit that initial goal. I'm not down for the count yet.

[estcaligo]

Problematic post, dark content, if you don't like dark topics - skip this

I have this absolutely masochistic desire to read a series of fics with each twst character, theme: rejection. + upd:some general headcanons

Reader conferences to them and they reject prefect's feelings. 100% angst, no comfort, some disturbing warnings too.

Specifically I want to see :

Hanahaki with Sebek. He wants to be with you but can't because duties. OR he doesn't even want to, he's 100% focused on duties and you're a nuance, go disappear, useless dirt. (I have 10000+ sad scenarios for Sebek...)

Humiliation, degradation, bodyshaming with Vil aka "Have you even seen yourself? What was going on in that ugly head of yours that you could even consider such possibility? No, don't touch me with those ugly fingers."

"You're not a match for me" with Leona.

"Very funny. But I AM a prince after all. What can you offer me? Are you an important ally? A monarch from any country? Maybe you're a valuable business partner? No? Didn't think so. Now move, you're blocking the sun."

"We belong to different worlds" with Malleus. Everything here screams doomed romance. Your life is so short - it's like a second for him. He's a prince, the heir to the throne, a powerful fae, the mighty dragon and one of the strongest mages in the world. And you? You're a grain of sand in his life. Useless, bleak, weak grain of sand.

Manipulation and gaslighting and even enslaving with Azul. Manipulating you into dating, making you fall for him and then sign a bunch of horrible contracts. The contents of those contracts? Trust me, you don't want to know....he makes you do horrible things. Disgusting things. Truly sorry for you.

Public humiliation and playing with your feelings - Ace.

"I was just messin' with ya. Did ya think we were a thing? Are you that naïve or actually stupid? Nah why r u crying rn. It's not my fault you're so fucking stupid lol"

Ghosting with Idia. It was clear from the start - it wasn't going to go well. You're too different… No, it's him who doesn't deserve you. You tried to make it work, but… Idia just can't communicate well. And you're kind of tired of it, too. At first, you did try to reach out, you asked him to talk about it… but he just kept ghosting you. Not a single word to explain why he doesn't want to see you anymore. It's unfair. It hurts.

Jack? Your presence makes him uncomfortable. You just irritate him. You're so unserious. everything is a joke to you.

"Even now you're joking, right?" he said when you tried to confess to him. "I will never think of you as my partner. You're not a match for a wolf. Not with that attitude. I bet you can't even imagine what a lifelong partner means." He didn't mean to be rude, just clear. But it hurts, because you truly love him. And yet, he will never even look at you that way. The best decision would be to never see him again.

Lilia is mischievous, everyone knows that. But you didn't think he would do this to you. Play with your feelings just like that. All that occasional teasing, random hair stroking, small kisses on the cheek… he made your heart flutter every time. But when you decided to confess?

"Fufu, young people are so hopeless these days. Sorry, little bat. I'm not interested."

Not interested. That’s what he said. After doing all this to you. Luring you in and then breaking your heart like it was nothing.

Spoiler: it leads to suicide and not Lilia's.

not rejection, just some headcanons

Floyd - Kinda dating but with much much physical abuse. Domestic violence. Rape too. You're bruised 24/7 in those relationship. Consent? Never heart of it. He's touching you where he wants, when he wants. Your opinion doesn't matter. Say a word and he'll break your ribs again. You're so annoying, jeez. You were supposed to be fun, why're you nagging all the time...Blood suits you now, dear.

Jade - Oh, he he was so charming at the beginning. And by charming I mean fucking mind games, but it was so captivating and you just couldn't resist his charm and by charm I mean manipulation. In the end - makes you his test subject. He kills you and grows mushrooms on your corpse. Scary but eco friendly!

Rook - It started with stalking. He followed you everywhere, he "occasionally" stumbled upon you in every corridor. You constantly felt someone's gaze wherever you went. Eventually, he confessed, but you made the mistake of rejecting him.

"Sorry, Rook, I think Cupid's arrow missed this time" you tried to joke. Too bad.

"He might miss sometimes, but I don't."

Yes, he shoots you because "if you don't want to become 'us,' there will be no 'you' at all."

[nayatarot777]

do you view this person clearly? (preview to extended patreon reading)

if you’d like a personal reading, then please check out my pinned post 💚✨

• pile one •

how do you view this person?

you view this person as someone who’s “prickly” in some way. someone who’s hard to reach. but at the same time, you see something that’s extremely precious in them. you may assume that this is why they have the type of demeanour or energy that repels people - as a method of protecting the preciousness that they have inside. you view this person who’s worth spending time on to develop something practical with. although it seems like it’s difficult to progress your connection with this person. it may be slow because they’re very slow to open up. you view them as someone who’s quite practical and grounded. someone who’s focused on steadily working on what they’re building for themselves in their practical life. there’s something about a prickly demeanour that hides a soft inside. you view them as someone who’s either very emotionally confusing or someone who’s very emotionally overwhelmed. i don’t think that this person speaks about their feelings that much. they prefer to keep them a secret. but there’s a lot that you pick up on about this person’s emotions in an intuitive way. this person also stands out compared to many other people who aren’t really what you’re looking for. people who you have hit a dead end with or who you know that you would. this person is majorly different to anyone else that you’ve met so far. they stand out the most. there’s something about them being golden. being very healing too. there’s some type of innocence and goodness that you view in them. this person shines bright to you.

you view them as someone who’s very abundant physically (they could have a lot of money). there’s an elegance about this person - maybe even a chivalrous type of character - and you could definitely view them as an earth angel of some sort. you’re someone who has high standards and you see this person potentially being the one person who could live up to them. you feel like they could possibly be the one to be on your level in a connection, a friendship, a business partnership - whatever this is. there’s a repetitive message about this person just being golden in your eyes. one of a kind. you see that this person is deeply connected to their inner child. no matter how self-protective their demeanour is, their inner personality shines through. their inner child shines bright. they’re extremely authentic to you and they’re someone who elicits happiness and growth towards those around him. they have the energy of warm sunlight to you. they have an energy that many people need in their lives. you view them as very self-sufficient and very confident in their abilities to gain their goals and achieve their aspirations. they seem like they don’t need anyone for their own happiness. they’re self-sufficient in their physical life as well as in their ability to make themselves happy and content. and that may be the difference that you see in this person compared to everyone else. they’re someone who doesn’t rely on or use other people to give them something that they can’t give themselves. they don’t rely on others as a source of energy to siphon positive energy from. they’re someone who naturally has that for themselves - and therefore they have that for everyone else.

if this has resonated with you and you’d like to see if the way that you view this person is accurate + how they view you, find the extended reading on my patreon here OR on kofi (to purchase this extended reading individually)! 💚✨

• pile two •

how do you view this person?

you view this person as someone who’s extremely giving. extremely charitable. either with their money or their time. this person is extremely charming to you. you believe that they love to help people who are less fortunate than them. people who are in need of help. specifically younger people for some of these people. they just seem to really care about others and always want to be of help or of service. you also view this person as extremely focused. one-track minded in some way. they’re very perceptive too. and you might see this person enduring a lot of pressure in their life. this major focus and pressure is either towards helping other people (could be their family, their friends, people who they work with - especially if it’s children or vulnerable people etc.) or it’s towards their work and their finances in general. you view them as someone who was raised right. that’s what i’m really feeling. this person really has a lot of chivalry or respect or just a lot of manners for people. so therefore they attract that back to themselves too. this person could prioritise being very helpful towards women too - which is where this energy of chivalry and being a prince charming is coming - regardless of gender. they’re just someone who likes to be a protector or helper of some sort towards people who they believe should be cherished and cared for, from your perspective.

i feel like you view this person as someone who always wants to help people who are struggling emotionally too. people who are grieving and people who are going through emotional loss. you may pick up the energy of emotional grief from this person at times too, and therefore you assume that they have a lot of empathy towards the people who they want to help. you may know about a new financial opportunity that this person is going after and you can tell that they’re extremely focused on this. this could also be someone who gives people new opportunities in their life. new financial or work opportunities to build a stable life for themselves. this could also be very valuable advice. i feel like you view them as extremely abundant themselves, but someone who’s constantly looking for more opportunities in life to go after. someone who’s very ambitious when it comes to their personal goals. and i feel like for a lot of you, you can tell that this person’s personal goals revolve around helping people in the world in some way.

if this has resonated with you and you’d like to see if the way that you view this person is accurate + how they view you, find the extended reading on my patreon here OR on kofi (to purchase this extended reading individually)! 💚✨

• pile three •

how do you view this person?

you view this person as someone who you have a very strong emotional connection to. you feel like they’re your equal emotionally. like the emotions that you have for them are equally reciprocated back to you. you could definitely already be in a relationship or a friendship or some sort of connection with this person. and you view them as someone who you have pure, genuine love and care for that’s reciprocated. someone who’s your emotional comfort as you are for them. you feel like you’re on the same page, and that you’re both moving towards the same place in life together. you view them as someone who greatly helps you with your direction in life. someone who helps you to gain control over your life in some way. you view them as someone who really inspires you. someone who finds new excitement or new inspiration to exert their energy towards too. for some of you, you can see that this person is trying to start a new chapter of their life - perhaps with better morals and values than before. this person could have a bit of a dark past in some way, but you can see their effort to use this as energy and motivation to propel themselves forward onto a new path.

aw, this person really gives you a lot of happiness, pile three. they light you up because both of your inner-children can be authentic and be themselves around each other. there’s also something about this person shining an awareness on your emotions. on your ability to emotionally connect with another which is something that you may have really struggled to do before. you view this person as your vitality in a way. they give you something that you need to grow and evolve. and again, i’m seeing that you view this as an equal effort on both of your parts for each other. you view this person who you are going to build an EXTREMELY happy and stable life with. 10 of pentacles is out here. you view this person as someone who you can move towards building a very happy family with, for those of you who are in a relationship with this person. if not, then this is just someone who you view as someone who you’ll be with for the long-haul, building a life together. going back to this person’s past that they’re trying to move away from, i am seeing that you feel like they have A LOT of regrets about this. their past could keep them up at night because of this. someone who maybe even sheds tears because of the past that they’re trying to build a new life from.

if this has resonated with you and you’d like to see if the way that you view this person is accurate + how they view you, find the extended reading on my patreon here OR on kofi (to purchase this extended reading individually)! 💚✨

[fndmfrenzy]

I rewatched Death Note focusing on the japanese 1st person pronouns the characters use (because I'm an otaku and I find it interesting). I'm not an expert, so I'm mainly going to point out everyone's pronouns and add a little analysis/opinion based on what I know or read online about their usage. Some characters probably won't get explanations because I have nothing to say. Also: since this is a piece of fiction the pronouns can tell us more about someone's personality. Also: I can only analyze the formality of the pronouns not the rest of the speech, because I don't know japanese that well!

Warning: like half of this post is about Higuchi because he's funny to me. And I included all of Yotsuba, who are pretty minor characters.

Kira Task Force:

Light Yagami Starting with Light as the main character, his pronoun of choice is 僕 (ぼく/boku). Boku is typically used by boys and young men. It's considered polite and humble. If I'm not mistaken only 2 other characters in Death Note use boku (Matsuda and Hatori from Yotsuba). It's a fitting pronoun for the perfect student and son, Light Yagami. It also gives a funny contrast to his ego-driven Kira speeches.

There is a couple of situations when Light uses 私 (わたし/watashi) (because it's gender neutral, and more... neutral in general). It's when he acts as L or Kira on the phone with someone, so in situations where he's trying to hide his identity.

L L uses 私 (わたし/watashi). It's gender neutral and usually used by men in formal settings. L comes accross as wanting to sound polite (he always uses honorifics for people, even correcting himself one time when he forgets to do so with Matsuda).

He yells out "Matsuda", but then corrects it to "Matsuda-san". He also calls Light "Light-kun" or "Yagami-kun". It's a funny contrast that he cares about this, because otherwise he isn't very polite (especially to Matsuda).

In the anime (sadly I don't think he uses any pronouns in that scene in the manga) when he calls Matsuda (who's in Yotsuba building) and pretends to be his friend he uses 俺 (おれ/ore).

Matsuda As I said earlier, he uses the same pronouns as Light - boku. He's the youngest member of the Task Force (save for Light and L) and his pronoun gives him that youthful feeling.

One situation I've heard him use a different pronoun was when he got busted by the Yotsuba Group, and introduced himself with 私 (わたくし/watakushi) - an even more polite version of watashi. Oh, he also uses watashi on Sakura TV, for similar reasons to Light's usage of watashi.

Soichiro Yagami 私 (わたし/watashi). I don't think he's ever shown using a different one? We only see most of the Kira Task Force at work, so it's expected that they all use formal pronouns.

Aizawa 私 (わたし/watashi). Except for when he's quitting the Task Force, then he switches to 俺 (おれ/ore). Ore is a masculine informal pronoun, considered more rude and rough. He's angry at L and it shows.

Mogi 私 (わたし/watashi), I think, but he doesn't talk much.

Team Kira:

Misa Amane Misa's main pronoun is her name. She basically talks about herself in 3rd person, which might sound silly in english, so most translations don't include it. It's cutesy and childlish and she probably does this as part of her idol persona.

She also uses 私 (わたし/watashi) at times (which is basically the most common pronoun used by women). As I mentioned before, it's considered formal when men use it, but for women it can be both formal and informal. Well, she uses it formally (when it's weird to just use Misa) for example in the Yotsuba interview. And of course, just like Light she uses watashi when posing as Kira (on the tapes in Sakura TV, on the phone in the 2nd part of the series).

Here's Misa using watashi during the interview:

Teru Mikami 私 (わたし/watashi)

Kiyomi Takada 私 (わたし/watashi)

Shinigami:

Ryuk 俺 (おれ/ore)

Rem 私 (わたし/watashi)

Yotsuba Arc:

Most of my research comes from Yotsuba arc (like all the specific examples above...) so I'm including the Yotsuba Group guys. But first, others from this arc.

Aiber 俺 (おれ/ore) usually, 私 (わたし/watashi) when acting as Eraldo Coil.

Wedy 私 (わたし/watashi)

Yotsuba Group: First I have to say that we see them most of them only at work, so they're going to use formal pronouns.

Hatori 僕 (ぼく/boku), but he uses watashi once when keeping watch on Matsui.

Takahashi He doesn't use any in the Kira Meetings (because he doesn't talk much). I'm pretty sure I heard him using ore (maybe at the party?), but I couldn't find it in the manga.

Namikawa 私 (わたし/watashi)

Mido 私 (わたし/watashi)

Shimura He actually is only shown using 俺 (おれ/ore). Even at the meetings. He's a very unassuming guy, so I feel like there's a contrast with him using the informal ore with his coworkers, when most of the others use watashi.

Namikawa and Mido still use formal watashi, even when the three of them are hanging out at Mido's house. The only one using ore is again, Shimura.

I think thanks to his kind personality his usage of ore gives a sense of familiarity, instead of sounding crass.

Ooi 私 (わたし/watashi) in the meetings. In a call with Kida, he uses 俺 (おれ/ore). I want to add that in a work setting ore can be used by people that are either older or in superior positions. Ooi is the oldest in the group, and de facto leads the meetings, but idk if it means anything. Maybe he uses watashi with the group, but ore one-on-one? Maybe that's the etiquette?

Kida 私 (わたし/watashi)

Higuchi We get more scenes with him and we get to see him switching pronouns. One of them is 私 (わたし/watashi). He uses it in those situations: - talking to Rem (and/or himself). He seems to respect her so he's usually formal when talking to her. This might be also him talking to himself, but since Rem's there let's assume it's at least half-aimed at her... Anyway, here Higuchi talks about marrying Misa:

Even when giving this ego-driven speech (again, about marrying Misa and some more...) he uses watashi:

Talking with Rem in the car:

- thinking. He's kinda inconsistent because he thinks with both watashi and ore. Mostly watashi though. Maybe he uses ore when he feels more confident? Here after confessing to Misa he's Kira:

And some more:

At least in two of those he's like "my life is over, i'll lose my job... oh and go to jail and maybe die... but my job...!"

- in formal/business setting. Ok that's a stretch, but before making this post I was convinced he used it more in the series. We can assume he would in a formal situation, but it doesn't happen in the manga so I have no proof. Huh. Here he pretends to be a lost businessman before shooting Light's dad:

Then there's 俺 (おれ/ore). It's typically used by men around family and friends. It can sound cocky, and indicates a sense of masculinity. Situations where Higuchi uses ore include:

- talking to coworkers. Higuchi doesn't talk that much during meetings and if he does he doesn't use any pronouns. I was wondering if he's more like Ooi (watashi during meetings, ore outside meetings) or Shimura (always ore). I think it's the second based on these two panels:

At least I think it's him talking to Shimura? This moment was cut from the anime so we don't know who's saying it, but it fits Higuchi (and the person saying it uses ore so that excludes most of the people there). The panel below it shows him responding to Mido with ore.

Below are other moments he uses ore with coworkers, during the Misa interview and on the phone with Mido:

Like with most things Higuchi does I think he's going for nonchalant, but it comes across as sloppy and disrespectful. Just look at him here:

His chair is so far back, he's leaning in it with crossed arms. He's trying to show how much he doesn't give a fuck about this interview... Even if it's in his interest to get info about L from Misa! Talk about posturing.

- date with Misa, including his Kira confession. I think it's common for men to use ore when talking to women they're pursuing? I've read about a shoujo manga where the male lead usually uses watashi, but it's a big moment when he switches to ore with the female lead to show he's serious about her (/interested in her romantically).

- thinking. This one happens before he confesses he's Kira:

And he uses ore after making the eye deal when he's like "I'm invincible" (lol). I don't know what to get from this, but there's like 3 panels where he thinks with ore as compared to 6+ with watashi.

Wammy's house:

Near 私 (わたし/watashi)

Mello 俺 (おれ/ore). He's the odd one out when compared to formal L and Near. Well, he is a thug and works with the mafia.

Matt 俺 (おれ/ore). I was surprised to find it so easily considering his lack of screentime.