#because we absolutely would have this in common!!

[rottenpumpkin13]

How would a conversation between Miniroth, Sane! Sephiroth and Post Nibelheim Sephiroth go if they were all stuck in a room or something

The real kicker here is that Miniroth going through his edgy teen phase, and Post-Nibelheim Sephiroth would have a surprising amount in common. Both would be brimming with angst and harboring a deep disdain for humanity. Meanwhile, Sane!Sephiroth would be stuck in the middle, deeply unsettled, trying desperately to mediate between his misguided younger self and his full-blown genocidal future self, and absolutely failing.

Post-Nibelheim Sephiroth: Humanity is worthless. Their existence is nothing but a cycle of ignorance and destruction. We should ascend beyond them.

Miniroth: Yeah!

Sane Sephiroth: No, that is a very ignorant and reductive worldview.

Post-Nibelheim Sephiroth: They grovel in their own weakness. There is no need for compassion.

Miniroth: You're right! Why show compassion to others when none has been shown to me?

Sane Sephiroth: Because our job is to rise above the cycle of cruelty, not perpetuate it.

Post-Nibelheim Sephiroth: Intense Devotion to Mother is the only truth. All else is irrelevant.

Miniroth: Absolutely!

Post-Nibelheim Sephiroth: Now, let us go set something ablaze as a symbol of our godhood.

Miniroth: YEAH!

Sane Sephiroth, grabbing Miniroth by the back of the coat like a disobedient cat: NO.

[spacekiku-blog]

My brainrot worsens with each day so there are my ramblings about Beasts and Shadow Milk Cookie

TW: Spoilers I guess??

Okay, Beasts. When I first saw this name for the new antagonists, I thought "lol fate series got even cookie run" and when they were finally released I was sucked in so hard.

I love the concept of corrupt gods or higher beings. Not just being controlled by something, corrupted or going crazy but specifically their ignorance of using powers or disappointment in how mortals perceive their domains. And while I won't say that the plot of Kingdom and Beasts is a complete mind-blowing thing and the most awesome scenario but compared to the previous plots of Devsisters, this is a big step-up and something that is interesting and well-developed.

Not only in terms of plot but the concepts themselves. Yes, the three Beasts that have come out are based on fairly common things (Buddhism, Hinduism and Christianity). But man they did their homework as hard as they could.

And naturally, even though we already have three Beasts, a lot about them is shrouded in mystery. Especially Shadow Milk Cookie, since we were given absolutely no information about his backstory. The new costume that came out? Honestly, it looks like an AU written by him for shits and giggles. A sort of “What if?”. While it may shed some light on how he behaved as a Fount of Knowledge it says nothing about his past.

With White Flour Cookie and Burning Spice Cookie everything is relatively clear. We were given their plot and what caused their corruption on a silver plate. And, frankly speaking, I think that based on the change in the other two elements of the Beasts, it is relatively clear what most likely happened in their domain of rule that caused their corruption.

Eternal Sugar Cookie was initially “Happiness” – which represents, well, happiness, joy. It is quite possible that her task from the Witches was similar to White Flour Cookie in that she was meant to spread happiness and joy among the Cookies. Well, too much jollity can easily become boring and it also requires a huge amounts of energy which could lead her to Laziness.

At the same time Silent Salt Cookie had the element of “Solidarity” – which essentially means unification, community. It also often means support and mutual assistance. And as we know, if you support everyone around you then it will begin to be perceived as given and in return you get a whole nithing. And because of which he could correspondingly close himself off.

Of course I might be wrong about this predictions. We will see when they will come out.

The fate of the Beasts is tragic. They are Deities created by even Higher Beings with one specific purpose. To distribute/preserve the elements entrusted to them. They were given a huge responsibility reinforced by the expectations of mortal cookies. Give knowledge, grant wishes, monitor changes, spread joy and cultivate friendship. Were they allowed to do anything else? Most likely yes. Were they aware of this from the start? Most likely no.

We, as mortal individuals, often have a hard time breaking away from the expectations of our “creators” (parents) and society. So how can you immediately realize that you are allowed to be someone else, to do something else when you were created with a fixed personality and a certain purpose? So frankly it is not surprising that the Deities saw the one and only way to break the expectations of others and be "free". After all, from the descriptions of White Flour Cookie and Burning Spice Cookie, they could not even realize that there were other ways to release their frustrations.

White Flour Cookie went into depression and apathy as a defense mechanism. And the only way she saw was that if everything was purified (dead), then everyone would be happy. Including herself.

Burning Spice Cookie, feeling the first stimulation in centuries of monotone whatching and waiting, latched onto it, becoming obsessed with it. Addicted to it. He concentrated on this one feeling and forgot that he could find something else.

But Shadow Milk Cookie is a different story. You see, Knowledge is a very powerful thing. In my humble opinion, Shadow Milk is the strongest Beast and God among all if you put aside his personality and focus only on his powers. Unlike other Beasts, from whom Witches could keep some information that they simply do not need for their role - Shadow Milk Cookie knew everything from the very beginning. About what Cookies are grown for, how this world works, how personality develops and many, many other things.

Unlike other Beasts Shadow Milk Cookie knew there could be another way. And it's just such a rich soil for theories, headcanons and the reason I'm so obsessed with him.

Was he trying to save his brothers and sisters by trying to show them another way? How much knowledge did he share with them? How much did he keep back? And how much did he lie to them?

After all judging by the description of Shadow Milk Cookie knowledge consists of truth and lies. Lies appeared at the same time as Shadow Milk Cookie himself as a Fount of Knowledge. Which means he could have started lying from the very beginning. I like to think and headcanon that the first one to start "corrupting" was Shadow Milk Cookie. Or rather, that he was initially already corrupted by the knowledge he had access to.

This is what makes his personality so interesting to me - he knew everything. He saw everything. Not only the destruction of his domain of knowledge but the signs of destruction of other domains. How White Flour Cookie finds it increasingly difficult to fulfill wishes and not receive even a simple thank you in return. How Burning Spice Cookie became increasingly bored with the same cycle of history. And perhaps how Eternal Sugar Cookie gets tired of the eternal celebration and Silent Salt Cookie loses control over attempts to unite everyone.

How desperate was he about all this? Or was there a cold pragmatism deep inside him that said, “this is what has to happen”? Or was he fascinated by it? How were his Deity friends changing? Maybe he was egging them on because he, too, was bored with his knowledge?

Beasts are lonely. Deities are lonely. Even their own race can barely understand each other since their minds were created for specific purposes. And you don't want to lose face in front of equally powerful beings.

Only Shadow Milk Cookie could understand them all. And yet no one can understand him.

No one can carry as much knowledge as he does. No one can even come close to understanding his burden. To come close to him. I wonder becouse of this did he became a jester and a showman? After all, the truth of his existence is as bitter as sour milk.

I wonder if he was always a "jester"? Judging by his behavior in the new costume, there is still some "softening" in his actions, intonation, expressions. Not exactly condescension, but as if embellishment of his words, his "truth". In the end, information is best absorbed through play. Through associations. He playfully invites you to debate with him, he gestures while telling about something.

Is Shadow Milk that far removed from his past as a Fount of Knowledge?

Maybe he was always like this? Less cunning and selfish but just as playful, humorous, and perhaps even deceitful. It's just that when everyone finally became "monsters", Beasts, there was no longer a need to satisfy the needs of mortals and it was time to focus on his own.

Maybe he helped other Beasts become corrupted so that he himself could finally allow himself to "play" for himself and not for others?

I squeeze him like anti-stress toy. I don't know for what purpose this ramblings of mine but maybe you will able to take some interesting insights for yourself.

And I'm not even starting about his relationship with Pure Vanilla Cookie not even as a ship thing.

Man I need help

[cece693]

ANOTEHR PART OF HR LOKIS BROTHER X BUCKY OLEALLSPE I LAV U 😭😭😣😣☺️

He's Cute Pt. 3

pairing: bucky barnes x male reader tags: ongoing series because people like this, which is weird cause I never thought this would go off, but I don't hate it, loki makes an appearance, bucky is protective over reader, having the 'talk', even bad guys have people they love

Bucky’s hands still shook with lingering excitement whenever he recalled your last date. The two of you had been going out for a while now—casual walks through the city, late-night movie marathons in the Avengers Compound, even that weekend trip to a cozy little café upstate—and with every new memory you made, Bucky found himself falling deeper in love.

He’d never expected life to feel this…comforting. Even the nightmares that sometimes plagued him at night dulled around you. You had a knack for gently coaxing him out of his shell, whether through quiet conversation or a playful nudge toward some new, exciting Midgardian treat you wanted him to try.

Yet, despite this whirlwind of affection, Bucky still couldn’t bring himself to say the words aloud. I love you. They stuck in his throat every time he tried, leaving him feeling both frustrated and a little guilty. It seemed too soon, too fast, too much. What if you weren’t ready? What if it scared you off?

So he kept that admission locked away, consoling himself with the fact that you hadn’t pressed him for big declarations yet—though you often looked at him with such tender warmth that he thought, maybe you already know.

The following morning, you greeted Bucky with your usual bright smile, eyes shining like you’d never seen a single hardship in your life. He knew that wasn’t true—you’d told him your share of Asgardian struggles and complicated family drama—but somehow, you still managed to see the world with a hopeful gaze.

“Good morning, Bucky!” you chirped, bounding into the common area. “Did you sleep well?”

He offered a small, affectionate smile. “Yeah,” he fibbed—well, half-fibbed, because seeing you now made every lost hour of rest worth it. “Ready for training?”

“Absolutely.” You picked up a spare towel. “But how about we grab coffee after? There’s this new flavor—mint mocha, I think? Wanda says it’s oddly refreshing.”

Bucky’s heart did that little flip it always did around you. “Sure,” he said softly. “I’d like that.”

You never made it to the gym—or to the coffee shop. Halfway to the training room, the shrill wail of the Compound’s alarm cut through the corridors. Overhead lights flickered ominously, and Tony’s voice crackled through the intercom: “All hands on deck—Loki’s back, and he’s making a huge mess downtown. We need everyone. Now.”

Your face fell, a complicated mix of worry and anger. The last time Loki caused chaos, it ended poorly for Earth and for your family. “I’m sorry,” you murmured to Bucky, already moving to join the others. “I know you’ve had enough of these battles…”

He shook his head, grabbing his gear. “Not your fault.”

Together, you raced to the Quinjet, where Thor and the rest of the team were quickly assembling. Thor’s jaw was set, eyes stormy with concern. He muttered something about Loki “never learning,” while Tony, Sam, and Natasha readied themselves for battle. Bucky checked his weapon, heart thudding. He threw you a sidelong glance—he hated seeing the anxious tension in your posture. I’ll keep you safe, he vowed silently, one way or another.

New York’s skyline was tinged green in patches—every illusion Loki summoned seemed designed to confuse both civilians and the team. Tony soared overhead, blasting illusions and trying to pinpoint the real Loki, while Bruce (in Hulk form) tore through illusions that tried to tangle him. Thor, you, and Wanda worked together to dispel the biggest illusions, your combined powers punching holes in Loki’s illusions wherever you could.

Bucky fired round after round at illusory beasts, his sharpened instincts helping him sense the flicker of what was real and what wasn’t. He kept an eye on you, too—whenever you paused to catch your breath, or pressed a hand to your temple from overusing your Asgardian abilities, he felt the urge to run to your side.

He didn’t see the sudden swirl of green magic until it was too late. A shimmering barrier snapped into place around him, cutting him off from the rest of the fight. Bucky spun around, rifle at the ready, but the illusions outside the barrier went oddly silent. The world beyond turned hazy, muffled, leaving him alone in a translucent dome of Loki’s making.

“Sergeant Barnes,” came a sardonic voice behind him. Bucky spun, rifle raised, to find Loki standing there, tall and regal in his horned headpiece, green robes swaying. His gaze was cold, but there was a particular glint in those eyes—like a predator toying with its prey.

“Loki,” Bucky growled, finger hovering over the trigger.

“Oh, please,” Loki drawled, waving a dismissive hand. “Drop your useless weapon. If I wanted to kill you, I would’ve done so long ago.”

Bucky hesitated, jaw set tight. He didn’t lower his rifle, but he didn’t fire either. Around them, the city echoed with chaos—screams, blasts of magic, and the roar of rampaging illusions. Yet here they stood in a strange, still corner, as if Loki’s mere presence had carved out a pocket of calm in the madness.

“What do you want?” Bucky demanded, striving to keep the tremor from his voice. He’d been in fights far worse than this—yet something about Loki’s eerie composure sparked a sense of dread.

“What I want…” Loki repeated, tipping his head in mock consideration. “Hardly matters. I’m only here because it has come to my attention that you’ve taken an interest in my dear brother.”

Bucky blinked, confusion warring with anger. “Thor? I’m not—”

Loki let out a theatrical sigh. “Not that lughead, no.” He narrowed his eyes, smirk twisting. “I speak of my younger brother. The gentler one—(Y/N). The one you’ve been courting.”

At those words, Bucky’s grip on his rifle loosened involuntarily, surprise flickering across his features. “That’s between me and him. Stay out of it.”

Loki’s predatory grin only widened. “Oh, how adorable. A mortal telling me where I can and cannot interfere.” Magic crackled around his fingertips, illuminating the sinister shape of his horns. “Let’s make something clear, Sergeant Barnes: I may indulge in chaos, but I do not tolerate anyone trifling with my brother’s heart.”

Bucky felt a surge of protectiveness over you, matching Loki’s venom in a different way. “I’d never hurt him. Don’t act like you know me.”

“But I do know you,” Loki countered, taking a step forward, voice dropping to a chilling hush. “You’re a man of ghosts, of nightmares. You wear your sins on that metal arm for the world to see. Don’t assume I haven’t researched your past. The Winter Soldier…” He let the words linger. “You have a trail of blood behind you, mortal.”

Bucky’s pulse pounded in his ears. He refused to look away. “That’s over. He sees me for who I am now, and I’d do anything to protect him.”

A pause, and Loki’s lips curled in something close to a sneer—though a flicker of surprise glinted in his eyes. “Oh, I believe you think that,” he said. “But let me be perfectly clear: I might make sport of realms; I might sow chaos when it amuses me. However, if you ever harm my brother—if you break his heart or drag him into your darkness—I will ensure your suffering is something legends are written about.”

A chill coursed down Bucky’s spine, but he refused to flinch. “I—care about him,” he said softly, fighting to keep his voice steady. “I’d never do anything to hurt him.”

“Good,” Loki whispered, eyes glinting dangerously. “Then we understand each other.” He paused, scanning Bucky’s features as though searching for lies. “He has always been different. Too kind for Asgard. My father often overlooked him, but I—” Loki’s lips curled in faint distaste, “I won’t.”

Bucky shifted, uneasy at this glimpse of Loki’s protective side. “If you really care,” he said carefully, “then let this go. Stop this chaos you’re creating.”

Loki rolled his eyes, giving a dismissive wave of his hand. “I’m not here to debate my plans with you, mortal. I’m here to warn you. Do right by him, or face consequences far worse than any Hydra program.”

Bucky’s hand tightened around his weapon. He hated being cornered like this, but a flicker of understanding—of pity, even—touched him. Loki’s brand of protectiveness was twisted, but it was rooted in genuine concern for his younger brother. “Message received,” Bucky said, voice gruff. Loki’s eyes narrowed one last time, as if to emphasize his threat. Then, with a theatrical swirl of his cape, he vanished in a burst of green light. Instantly, the barrier separating Bucky from the rest of the fight melted away, sound and motion crashing back in.

He stumbled slightly, adrenaline hammering in his veins. Looking up, he saw you rushing toward him over the rubble-strewn street, worry etched in your features. Behind you, illusions flickered and dissipated as Thor and Wanda worked together to dismantle Loki’s hold on the city. “Bucky!” you shouted, reaching him in a few quick strides. “Are you okay? Loki’s illusions—what happened?”

Bucky exhaled a shaky breath, lowering his rifle all the way. “He just wanted to talk. Threatened me if I ever—” He hesitated, mind flicking to the exact words Loki used. “If I ever hurt you.”

Your eyes widened, and you let out a short, disbelieving laugh. “He trapped you in the middle of a battle to warn you about me?”

Bucky nodded, swallowing a knot in his throat. He forced a small, wry smile. “Yeah. Guess big brothers come in all shapes and sizes.”

“Gods,” you muttered, pressing a hand to your temple. “I’m sorry he did that to you.”

“Don’t be,” Bucky said quietly. He reached out, resting a tentative hand on your shoulder. “I told him I wouldn’t hurt you. And I meant it.”

Something in your gaze softened. Around you, the remaining illusions fell away with shattering bursts of green energy. The Avengers closed in, readying for Loki’s next move—but for a moment, it was just you and Bucky standing there amid the debris, an unspoken promise shining between you. “Come on,” you said softly, covering his hand with yours. “We should help the others.”

Bucky squeezed your shoulder, nodding. “Right behind you.” And as the two of you headed off to rejoin the fray, Bucky felt a fierce protectiveness surge within him—one that matched Loki’s, if not in cruelty, then in devotion. Because no trickster god, no illusions, and no ghosts of his past would stop him from doing right by you.

[lightninginhersoul]

Okay some nuance on the Robby/Langdon/Santos mess now that i have had some time to reflect but before my second viewing of episode 9:

Robby was right to call Langdon out of the room and give him a lecture. Just because it is EXTREMELY common for interns and residents to be yelled at (at least once, by both residents and attendings according to at least 5 very close friends who are/have been residents) does not mean it should be. If Robby is trying to build an ED where that doesn't happen, that's great!! He is doing the right thing to address it right away. I wish someone had done that for my friends when they were in situations like that. The real point of contention is probably the "I've seen you riding her all day" thing where yes, Robby doesn't want Santos to become a punching bag (correct action) or for Langdon to be only effectively teaching others but not her (again, correct thing to step in for, he saw Langdon not praise her for getting a question right when he should have).

However, Robby doesn't have all the information, that this is at least the third time Santos has disregarded her senior resident (who is in fact responsible for what the intern does and depending on whose patient it is, the medical outcome) and that as a response to lighter criticism done correctly earlier, Santos has become even more resistent to listening to Langdon. He absolutely should have spoken to her in private about it, but he isn't wrong to be concerned that she will continue cutting him out and genuinely kill a patient. ALSO Robby, buddy, you just did a little bit of the same thing!!!! I get you wanted Langdon to listen to you but the WHOLE ED FROZE because you shouted to shut the fuck up. You ALSO need a break! Recognize it.

For Langdon, it is absolutely his responsibility to know when he needs a break. Clearly Amber made him upset - he had to call and hear his son in the middle of the shift. He was triggered, upset that his patient had been seizing for three whole minutes without someone even calling for him, and overwhelmed. Totally get him being in a bad space to then when he asks what happened, for Santos to cut off Mohan and say she messed up and Mohan saved the patient! But he is the teacher and he needs to find his calm now that the patient isn't actively in danger, take a minute to self regulate, and then talk to Santos. He also can't stop teaching her because he is upset with earlier actions - every case must be a chance to teach, and trying a new teaching style on her would be a better call. It is his job to teach, and he doesn't get to shut down or critque her answers when we have seen him be more encouraging with every other younger doctor and med student (although she also keeps answering questions wrong and he does in fact get to say those are wrong - this is expected behavior)

However, like I said, this is super risky of Santos. The reson July 1st isn't actually dangerous to go to the hospital is because new interns are supposed to run basically everything by a resident until everyone is sure they can handle some procedures by themselves. The safeguards are not currently working in the Pitt and Langdon needs to know that he won't lose a patient because his intern didn't check what to do next or even call him into the room. Langdon has every right to call her out for her now repeated actions. She almost killed a patient a few hours ago after not checking in with him! He doesn't want to let it slide that she is trying to circumvent him - they still have hours to go and this is becoming a dangerous pattern. He also doesn't have all the information about what just happened - he genuinely thinks that Santos has now tried to override Mohan, ANOTHER resident! This is now a serious concern if it isn't just him because that means they have an intern who isn't trying to learn. He doesn't know that Mohan took actions to regulate jumping ahead with treatment - he wasn't in the room (when he should have been).

Mohan did a great job, no notes there other than needing to have someone call Langdon in earlier. She was right that he shouldn't have treated Santos like that, she was right to listen and try something according to logic from another doctor, and she was absolutely right to not give all the saline at once but do some of it, wait for lab confirmations, and then commit to the rest of the action. Good job queen!

But this is still a problem, and Santos doesn't seem to acknowledge the actual root of the issue. Sure, her saying that Langdon doesn't think she has what it takes might just be to help further win over Mohan, but it could also be her projecting and not actually listening to Langdon! There are rules and protocols for a reason, and you can't just skip over them on day 1. Robby said it earlier to Collins! Residents can't override attendings, and interns can't override residents. There are reasons for this. Santos has potential but she has threatened a patient with harm, made a serious medical error, and made other incorrect judgement calls. She isn't perfect, and I won't even focus on the scalpel because that was obviously a mistake but that can happen - it isn't a judgement issue. She is running around making assumptions and everyone she has spoken to has said the same thing - slow down, learn, do your job, get a feel for the place. She very much gives me gunner energy, especially with how she's been acting with the med students. It's in fact almost more dangerous that she was right this time because it will make her feel like she can continue to act independently even when she has years to go.

Santos was right this time! She judged the situation and came up with an idea and the logic was sound and based on experience. She's smart, creative, she has self-confidence and speaks up, all good things. She also is clearly still triggered from earlier and she is behaving as such. (Again she shouldn't even threaten a patient like she did with the yikes guy but that's a different post). She doesn't want Langdon to go off at anyone else perhaps, to keep the target on herself because she's done that before maybe? Or maybe she wanted to see if Langdon would praise the actions if someone else did it, as proof that she's not being treated fairly. Or maybe something else we don't know yet!

She is clearly good at finding allies (although equally good at losing them, as we have seen throughout the day) and she wants to help patients so badly that she lets her eagerness override protocol which has come back to bite her. She lost Garcia as an ally after accusing Langdon of benzo abuse, and she needs another one. In this one moment, she got Langdon to lose his cool which is maybe evidence for her drug use theory (i seriously doubt it, but this is for her perception of the situation), got proof that the same actions would be trusted by someone else (a resident with experience who still altered the verbal orders because Mohan has the experience to know not to jump in headfirst if you can avoid it), won herself a solid ally in Mohan, and helped a patient. A very solid read of the situation or very good instincts to get her what she wants. If it was instinctual, it was likely informed by her still being in a headspace to focus the attention and anger on herself, a common trauma response.

Most of her actions so far have all come from good places but they are still leading to incorrect actions. Worried about drugs going missing/vials having an issue? Good place, worried about patient care. But coming on so strong without a documented pattern (more than two incidents that could be coincidental) reads more like picking a fight that has serious consequences in order to make herself look good. I think she is worried! But she isn't thinking it through. Same as giving bipap - worried about the patient and wanting to help, but resulting in severe consequences. And threatening a patient - good place, worried about the daughter (and the show is VERY WRONG about mandatory reporting so i get that she feels like someone needs to do something), but that is a serious abuse of power. This is all ramping up and I'm worried about everyone involved!

Okay now that I have written WAY too many words on the situation, I think I'm done for now unless someone caught something else I didn't here or we get more coming up. I don't want Santos to have it all blow up in her face, I don't want Langdon to lose his fellowship, and I don't want Robby to continue to get further strung out (although that is DEFINTELY going to happen, this man is in a Bad Place today and then gave a whole lecture on burying your feelings). I am most of all worried about Dana! And Pittfest! And all of the concerning plot threads!

[aceoflights]

Lucas Johnson

Saw an other post and wanted to write down my own thoughts and feelings. I haven't read tgr yet, because I'm waiting for the physical book to come out, so I'm only working on information from tsc.

I've seen some people say they hate Lucas. And I suppose I get it. I get why Jean would hate him for sure.

But as someone who loves complex characters and relationships, I really can't hate him. Because everything he does is very understandable (I wanna use the German word nachvollziehbar. Which means something like understandable, but feels less weighted. It feels less like you're justifying someone's actions) imo.

Like, put yourself in his shoes. His brother, who he was pretty close to, goes of to college. On a sports scholarship. Of a sport they both play and love. Very exciting. Lucas probably can't wait for him to come back and tell him all about it. But he doesn't. Grayson doesn't come back. For years. Lucas has essentially lost his brother. He doesn't even know what's going on. Probably thinks Grayson abandoned him. Doesn't care about him anymore (sort of correct).

I have a brother (although younger). We're not very close. Never really have been. But I love him so dearly. If my brother went of to college and just didn't come back, I would be heartbroken. I would honestly probably try to go there and get him. Because what the fuck?

Then he is back. His cult collapsed and he's finally home. Lucas thinks he finally has his brother back. But he won't even acknowledge him. The only thing he ever has a reaction to is Jean. So of course when he says he wants to talk to Jean, Lucas says okay. Lucas thinks this might be the only way he could possibly get his brother back. Maybe him having a talk with Jean could be a first step for something. Or Lucas' foot in the door to be able to talk to his brother.

Of course he should've at least told Jean in advance. Probably shouldn't have even agreed to it in the first place, if he paid attention to how Jean acts every time Grayson is mentioned. But despite the fact that he feels like he doesn't really know him anymore, Lucas still feels like his brother is in there. Like he could get him back. And the Grayson he knows would never harm someone in that way. Would never attack someone like that. Would keep his promise of "I only want to talk to him". He doesn't want to believe that his brother could ever do things like that. And obviously when it happens he tries to intervene. He obviously didn't want this to happen. He thought this could be a way to get his brother back. Obviously it was selfish, because he knew that Grayson hated Jean. And he knew Jean implied some not great things. But he's heard bad rumours about Jean for months, and that's his brother. His priority is to get his brother back. Now that he probably feels closer to the possibility of that than he has in years. Now that Grayson is at least physically there.

And then of course it goes horribly wrong. In a way Jean and we, the readers, immediately saw coming. But Lucas couldn't have. I think even in his worst case scenario, he wouldn't have guessed it would happen like that. Because Lucas knows essentially nothing about what went on in the Nest. he has no idea what kind of violence was common place. And he would never think that his brother could be part of that.

I understand why people are mad at him, but I just can't be (and I don't want to be. Because my heart just absolutely breaks for him. This boy who lost his brother in so many ways. First physically, then emotionally, and then the image he had of him. It is all completely shattered. And now Lucas is going to loose him in the most finite of ways. I don't even know yet, if he will be able to talk to him before he dies (as i said, haven't read tgr yet).

[softness-and-shattering]

@cellobotomy

Oh thats important context, I skimmed the word because it was meaningless to me and didnt seem relevant like maybe oomf is a particular friend.

Yeah a friend and a follower are different. A moot too tbh, theres definitely a level of friendship but if we barely talk back and forth, I might think you're great company but I dont know you well enough to trust you with my house while I am not there, and absolutely not 3 bonus friends of yours - or followers of yours? How well do you know them?

Ive also had fairly close friends I wouldnt trust with my stuff.

Mm its that 2 question friendship metric,

1. Would you have a beer with them?

2. Would you leave your dog with them?

(Good friends are one or the other, great friends tend to be both.)

Theres no moral judgement re how good you are as a person, or how good of a friend, people have different personalities and we relate to every individual person and a little differently to everyone else and trust them differently too. Thats normal because we're all different and relationships do not fit neat boxes, they are strange and complex things.

I dont even know if Id let 3-4 close trusted friends to stay at my place while Im absent. In an absolute emergency for sure, but if there are other reasonable options?

Usually Im pro deeper friendship, tell your friends you love them, be brave and hang out with people you think are cool etc. But this isnt really that. Its not let a single friend sleep on your couch awhile. Help your homeless friend. Have a sleepover. Host someone for an important weekend. No this is one follower and 3 strangers and you are not present.

Saying no to that isnt bad friendship, there is no base friendship. Saying no to that is common sense protecting yourself. There are some extremely generous people who would say yes, I know those people exist and I dont fundamentally understand them or what their supports are that let them be so free with their things and, to me, their basic survival needs. You could come back to your place trashed, everything broken and destroyed and ruined, having very little functional. Or you show up and they were so polite youd never know theyd been and gone except they left you a gift basket on the kitchen table. But youre taking that risk. You dont know them and they dont know you, theyd face very little consequences and they have little reason to care about your stuff. Id hope theyd be grateful to your hospitality and respectful to your space but I wouldnt be able to extend that trust to four strangers.

[parasolladyansy]

So uh.

GUYS.

I LOVE COOKING ISEKAI / FANTASY.

Like “Delicious in Dungeon”, “Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill” (isekai-ed me would’ve liked that skill lol), “Isekai Izakaya Nobu”, etc. I LOVE THEM ALL.

ALSO LIKE. So much of the food in BotW / TotK look SO GOOD. I’ve made & tried some of it as I’ve mentioned. But things like the “Crab Omelet with Rice” (which I’m 99.9% sure is a dish called “tenshinhan” in our world) is something I’d love to try!

(For comparison — second image is from Just One Cookbook, one of my go-to’s for Japanese home cooking. Might have to try her tenshinhan someday! I can’t wait to make her oyakodon tonight - it’s one of our favorites!)

I swear. Food in anime & games. Like all the recipes in BotW / TotK, PKMN Sword / Shield’s curries (playing that game makes me crave curry rice so bad!), Legends Arceus’ potato mochi (still gotta make that!), & so much more!

If I ever make that cozy witchy RPG someday (aka when I take that leap & also recruit people who know how to do all the technical stuff lol), I SWEAR: I am putting all the delicious-looking, cozy foods that’d make anyone want to run to their kitchens to make them, too!

AHHHH!

Okay. Just wanted to geek. Thanks for letting me geek 🤣

Basically, isekai-ed me is gonna be okay in Hyrule lol (even with the monsters & stuff). Good company (I mean, Link & Ingo, c’mon), cool magic rods, & all these wonderful dishes to cook. & ride out these next few years lol 🩵

[blimbo-buddy]

Sorry to put you all through my diseased ramblings of this listerine game but I also want to add that I think if you make Jimmy look all dirty and scary and greasy you gotta make the other crew member's designs follow in the same aesthetic pattern. To help Jimmy blend in more

[halcyon-deluxe]

what do you value most in someone?

At *least* a 2x resistance to ground type attacks. My last partner died due to a 4x weakness to earthquake and it gave me SUCH an ick :/ likeeeee I haaaaate it when my partner gets one-shot by earthquake spammers. its such a turn off.

[kindaorangey]

recently i've been thinking about rowan omondi in terms of the "supportive black best friend" trope. i've had this idea for a while that it would be interesting to see a story that deals specifically with the psychological effects of being the designated "support friend", especially in cases where that character addressing/expressing their own emotions and advocating for themself would be stigmatised because of their race... and obviously, rowan fits into this neatly, actively repressing and refusing to talk about his feelings because he isn't usually given this sort of support by his friends, it's usually him who's supporting them. and i guess on a metatextual level, once he begins to address his own emotional repression and step down from that support role, you could view it as him becoming cognisant of his own role as the "supportive black best friend".

[lesbiansanemi]

I think my favorite self destructive urge I get is when I almost convince myself to download a bunch of dating apps and say I’m interested in men on there and respond to literally all of them who express interest and perhaps even go on a date or two with them before effectively ghosting them can someone explain this to me I don’t even think it’s cuz I want attention and that’s an easy way to get it I think I just want to toy around with and fuck with people or something and have complete control of a situation involving others

[systlin]

You know I have repeatedly seen people in the forums of the hellpits of the Interwebs I have crawled through on this cursed quest for knowledge be like 'oh yeah the early ones are just planetary swords and sorcery fantasy they aren't that bad for the first five books'.

This, my friends, is a filthy fuckass lie.

Book THREE is this

And everything in this book is batshit

Go ahead if you don't believe me.

To summarize a lot of shit more succinctly;

Tarl ends up on Gor again for Reasons. He in the last book found that his city of Ko Ro Ba was burnt to the ground by the Flame Death for Reasons, and swore revenge upon the Priest Kings.

(No, it is never answered what the Priest Kings are priests OF. Themselves, I assume?)

So, he goes to the Sardar, where they're supposed to live. The Sardar is a mountain range that is entirely walled off with a log palisade. I will let y'all do the mental math on how absolutely bugfuck wild it would be to build a wall around an entire mountain range. He's told a few times that anyone who goes into the mountains dies, but goes anyway because He's A Speshul Boy.

He of course finds the door to the underground high tech ant nest that the Priest Kings call the Nest. It is guarded by two saber toothed tigers on chains. I would think giant two million year old ant wasp praying mantids could get a better security system but I guess not. He does some Manly Posturing but is about to get mauled to death when, unfortunately, a dude lets him in.

The dude who is like the butler or secretary or whatever for the Priest Kings is named Parp.

Fucking

Parp

Anyway Tarl is put in a room with a hot lady named Vika who is a slave. She insists she hates him because Norm seems to think that showing scorn and hatred is how women flirt (this is a common thread through all his books.) Tarl finds her disagreeable because she doesn't beg to suck his dick immediately. If I were her I would have killed him with a straight razor but whatever.

So THEN there's like fifty pages of bullshit about slavery and how it's totally great for women and they love it it makes their hot love oils just GUSH, and yes I am sorry for writing that sentence. Eventually Tarl escapes the little room and sees an actual Priest King, and goes, predictably, 'what the hell is this thing'

The Priest King introduces itself as Misk. Misk says that Priest Kings have no genders save for the Queen and her mate, but Tarl insists on calling the genderless alien bug 'him' through the whole book. Now, you will remember that Tarl came to this place in the first fucking place because he wanted to kill the Priest Kings for destroying his city, which is a fine motivation!

It goes out the window here. Misk tells Tarl that Tarl is a Good Special Friend Boy and Tarl is immediately like we are friends and I would die for you. Misk immediately shows friendship by putting Tarl in a Contraption that gives him a forced medical examination and cleaning and laxative. This is not the last time this happens to Tarl and you can really map out some of Norm's kinks by following such threads.

SO IT TURNS OUT that the Priest Kings and MISK SPECIFICALLY leveled Tarl's city to get his attention so that Misk could send Tarl on a quest for the last queen egg of the Priest Kings. Because, see, the old mother is, well, old. She isn't laying eggs any longer, and the priest kings are all, minimum, thousands of years old. Misk is two million years old. Process that for a sec.

Okay.

Anyway there has been an ongoing power struggle in the nest because a lot of the Priest Kings don't want to give up power, and power is determined by birth order from the current Mother. So several Priest Kings have been killing queen eggs for several million years. Misk smuggled out the last one and now wants it back to hatch a new mother. You will know where it is if you read my hatefic.

Leave aside the fact that there is no fucking way that egg is still viable. This is apparently A Threat, so Sarm...the main egg killing PK...and Misk now engage in a power struggle, each trying to use Tarl to kill the other. There is a scene involving gollums with suction cup feet milking the priest kings that is the weirdest fucking thing I've ever read, and I've read some weird shit.

Oh. Also there is a golden beetle that eats PK's. It exudes a pheremone that makes them nut so far as I can tell? And then it slurps their innards out like a spider. It also reproduces in the most horrible way. If you've read Bloodchild by Octavia Butler you know what I mean. It's sacred to the Priest Kings for some fucking reason. They offer Vika to it for this purpose, but Tarl saves her and now she loves him.

Also the PK's have thousands of slaves in the nest. They shave them utterly bare, make them wear plastic, and make them shower six times a day. Any who misbehave are sent to the Dissection Room. They theoretically all eat a kind of bland white fungus and vitamin pellets but I call horseshit. Slave Pellets Are People, folks.

SO. There's a big war in the Nest over who gets to be in charge. Norm manages to make a laser gun battle over a glowing probably nuclear reactor boring. They almost explode the planet but don't, and Misk's side eventually wins. Tarl sets out to retrieve the last queen egg for Misk, having utterly forgotten his fury at his actual whole city being leveled, with presumably his Free Companion and his father among the dead. But well, Misk gave him headpats and a literal gerbil cage to live in, so I guess that's enough for him.

The book ends there. It's. It's absolute fucking batshittery, every word of it. And I'm cutting out all the nonsense about slavery and how Men Are Natural Masters and women are Natural Slaves and a solid 50% of the more mundane but still absolutely wild shit here.

THIS IS BOOK THREE. THIS STILL HAD AN EDITOR

you know, as you are the resident Tumblr expert on the gor books, I for one would love it if you were to write a summary/essay/rant for some of the books so the rest of us can know what's going on without actually having to read it. I'm morbidly curious but not subjecting myself to that. I'm certain that you would to a wonderful entirely objective not at all opinionated job. So if you ever feel like bashing the books publicly some more, please do

oh, god

I should actually. I should. But god damn there's so many and every one of them has new heinous shit

For now, I'll drop this knowledge; in the most recent, published only last year, the protag is Agnes, an astrophysicist working at a small radio observatory.

This is important because she notes some weird shit in the orbit of Jupiter. As in, radio signals that are clearly of intelligent origin. She does the thing you would do, which is check to see if there are any probes there. There are not.

So she pokes her nose in further, and finds the Kurii planetoid ships. Thinking 'this can't be right' she sends. She sends the data. She sends the data to fucking. Colleagues to verify it.

Colleagues working at the VLA with SETI

The Kurii then 'vanish' her to gor, where the regular 'oh I love being a slave actually' shit plays out. She's told that this will be shut down on earth by one (1) senior scientist in Kurii pay saying it's nonsense no shut up don't look there again.

Me; dude. DUDE. IF SHE SENT THAT DATA TO SETI THEY ARE COUNTING HULL RIVETS ON THOSE THINGS WITH THE VLA AND EVERY ASTROPHYCISIST ON THE PLANET KNOWS NOW. IT'S GAME OVER BRO. CAT OUT OF BAG AND YOU WROTE IT YOURSELF.

THE ASTROPHYSICISTS SMELL UNLIMITED GRANT FUNDING DUDE. THEY ARE SEEING THEIR NAME IN TEXTBOOKS. IT'S OVER MAN.

EARTH IS GONNA BE LANDING SHIPS WITHIN A YEAR, DUDE

[uncanny-tranny]

You know... it's okay to trust your body. If you are separated from your body to such an extent you feel you cannot trust it, I truly from the bottom of my heart empathize and feel grief for you, but you can trust your body.

It's okay to listen to your body and to heed what it is telling you. I wish you (and your body) well wherever you go. You deserve the peace of mind to feel able to do what you want.

[batsplat]

i don’t know too much about motogp in depth enough to send specific asks but please know that i am ALWAYS seated for your class! i really enjoy reading your takes + essays

man this is so so kind, I am always a little lost for stuff to say when I just get like. people being lovely in my inbox - trust I do read and appreciate it, just get very hung up on the responding bit

anyway, this ask I think was sent the day after this long post about the similarities between casey and valentino was dropped, which has kinda been where this blog has been living for the past month,, so. in my head. I'm choosing to believe this was specifically about that essay. and I just wanted to quickly toss in one more thing - y'know the bit about sachsenring 2010, right, where valentino shows up way way ahead of schedule from the whole broken leg situation and also jorge and casey have kinda been engaging in a teensy bit of trash talk in his absence and the vibes are. off

so then casey and valentino had a very tight very cool battle for the last podium position, 10/10 would recommend, low key one of the top 3-4 races that season. valentino's fighting his demons (leg recently broken), casey's fighting his demons (bike sucks), you can tell how badly they want to beat each other... and casey manages to take the shine off valentino's return by snatching the final podium place in what you just like. know. was extremely satisfying to him. you just know it!! he won't say it because he's so hung up on the 'ooh I don't get obsessed with my rivals' shtick (lol) but it's very obvious how badly he wants to beat valentino! and then after the race when they're talking to the press, casey's like,, valentino's comeback is really not that serious, the leg's fine he's just lost a bit of muscle mass,, idk why everyone's making such a big deal,, and then valentino starts throwing jibes in his direction about how CASEY would have complained if VALENTINO had ridden like CASEY had, but of course VALENTINO would never do such a thing,,, and in the timeline of the rivalry this is very much when we start descending to kindergarten level

anyway given the tone of the on-track battle and how much shit they talk about each other in the immediate aftermath, you simply have to be deeply endeared by how they behave post-race when they're actually on the bike. classic hand grab and thumbs up situation, valentino recognising casey's performance in all its viciousness:

but then what really prompted this whole thing was. this photo..? where valentino has managed to straight up reach into casey's helmet:

like is he trying to poke casey's eyes out what's happening here. looks like he's doing finger guns in his face. why's he getting so close. isn't this a lovely quirky little photo... casey's doing an insincere thumbs up at him and valentino's attempting to stroke his cheek. fascinating. they're about to say some out of pocket shit about each other to the press btw

[philosophicalparadox]

You are right 👍

And honestly it is SO refreshing to see someone explain this better than I ever could. Zabuza/Haku gave me the HC about Wakashudo-esque relationships being a Thing in Kiri, (as opposed to just being a thing between them) which when looking at the presented culture overall makes complete sense.

And honestly it’s one of the things that reallly frustrates me about not only Naruto, but anime/manga in the west in general. WE ARE NOT THE INTENDED AUDIENCE. At best we are a by-catch, except in some rare exceptions.

As someone in the Berserk fandom where there is an absolutely terrible deficit of people who have any cross-cultural understanding of the work at all, (maybe because it’s taking place in a pseudo-1420’s Europe, reasonably reliably at that, and DOES include references to a lot of western history and media, because Miura was a global literature professor) it’s just sooooooooooo frustrating to see western centric takes that completely ignore the fact that these series were not made for a western audience and don’t draw from the same well most of the time.

Mind, Shonen over the years has definitely made alterations to its tropes and modality to be more western-receptive, which is how we got My Hero and other very americanised “baby Shonen”, but Naruto ain’t one of them.

It’s also refreshing to see the authors own frustration, which is palpable in the work itself — Naruto really SHOULD have been a seinen, and it comes SO close at times that it blurs the lines a little. (Tree of death anyone?) But because of how media laws and other media related things work in Japan it’s not actually that easy to just dive in from one to the other; plus manga that have, in precedent, made that dramatic shift in genre don’t tend to do well, JoJo’s notwithstanding. In general, switching up your target audience is not a wise decision and no publisher will back you unless you’ve got serious clout. JoJo’s is such a long running manga/light novel series that there was less pushback on that, plus Araki just flat out didn’t give a shit.

Kishi couldn’t have been that flexible if he tried.

But besides that, Naruto came out right at the beginning of a counterculture movement in Japan, a renewed “westernization” that sought to bring feminism and equality notions into Japan which hadn’t been there prior. Social justice progress wise, Japan is about 20-30 years behind the US, which puts it about 50 years behind most other “developed” western nations. (See, Western Europe).

Unfortunately homosexuality is not very accepted in Japan; yes their attitude is different, but that’s not acceptance, just a different kind of prejudice. Japan is exceptionally xenophobic (racist) especially towards other Asians, but their idea of treating others differently looks more like indifference to a westerner, and indifference looks a lot like tolerance when violence is your primary frame of reference. Homophobia is the same.

(It’s not indifference at all, just a kind of passive aggression, which is really common in Asia at large, because of how the Shame/Honour culture thing works).

Don’t get me wrong, I would have loved for Kishi to go whole hog in a more modernish way, but as OP said 1. That’s not the reference material he was using and 2. He would almost certainly have been eaten alive by his fans and publisher for trying anything too obviously “Gay”.

I mean ffs have y’all ever looked in on the Japanese forums around this show? Or twitter? (Back when it existed in Japan). There’s always the Japanese version of a pearl clutcher in there whenever Naruto and Sasuke do anything remotely gay, and I remember perusing the internet after the anime added a filler arc in which Naruto and Sasuke end up “accidentally” kissing Again, (and get stuck to each other while needing to pee, which was arguably the worse infraction because “omg they have to look at each other’s peens????” ) and the Japanese fans went insane. Some in a good way, but man, some of those people were just mean. Homophobia on full display in there.

Nowadays it seems to be not as bad, but Japan still has a long ways to go before they’ll be as accepting as some of the 2020’s west. (Though with America running backwards that notion of overall western tolerance probably won’t last too long).

I get annoyed with the series and Kishimoto too, mainly because the worldbuilding in Naruto is objectively a hot dumpster fire of contradictions, but I also acknowledge that part of the reason for that is because Kishimoto got stuck trying to continue making a shonen series about some VERY not shonen topics, which limited his ability to be expansive, and that he was also working between the culture he grew up in (the 70’s-80’s) and the culture he was making the series in, AND trying to incorporate references that made a lot more sense to use in the 80’s when he was developing, which is when TV came to Japan as a household commodity and EVERYONE was working historical fiction and memoirs into TV dramas, making the entire notion of Samurai very popular, which additionally makes those references more obscure to a western audience, AND also trying to “disguise”, sort of, behind an acceptable, if slightly homophonic lens, the homosexual tendencies so his publishers could stay happy. (Which is why gay shenanigans are usually a source of comedic effect in Japanese media if they happen at all, because it’s safe as long as you’re making fun of it. Or they go the typical US route and only make the villains gay. Kishi arguably does this to Itachi and definitely presents that vibe with Orochimaru, though he comes across significantly more deranged and perverse, as does Kabuto, who is implied to be somewhat necrophilic, and even gets a ��ew, but you do you” look from orochimaru himself about his habit of collecting bodies)

Point being, as I’ve said before, it’s very disingenuous to ignore the background and context behind the media you are consuming if you’re going to criticize or even analyze it. Mind you, I accept that not everyone had access to references to help understand any of this (I didn’t know about the references to Saikaku, though now that I see them presented like this it should have hit me in the face because I’m familiar with his works!), plus Naruto as a series looks VERY different to someone in its intended age audience than it does to adults with more experience and context for its contents, but still. Consider the angles. I see that crap ALL the time in the Berserk fandom, even the good non-dudebro side that acknowledges exactly how gay it actually is, because they miss the fact it was written in the 80’s by a man who grew up in the postwar period of the 50’s and 60’s, where attitudes towards homosexuality, women, war and other things I’ve seen fans tie themselves in knots about was very different than today.

(Not an excuse for the blatant sexism, but for its time berserk was actually quite progressive in a lot of ways.)

Thank you for the insight and letting me rant lol.

https://www.tumblr.com/weepingnightmarenaruto/775649233787387904/the-way-kishimoto-handles-narutos-trauma-is-so

What are your thoughts on this?

Hello anon!

Ngl this is one of my favorite ask I've ever received because it allows me to discuss something I've been meaning to for quite some time now.

Before I get into the topic that interests me the most, I'll give my observations on this:

Honestly Narutos childhood before the start of the manga needed to be explored more and Kishimoto should’ve given a bigger focus to how Naruto is because of it.

It was explored. Since chapter 1 and throughout flashbacks over the next chapters of the series, Kishimoto efficiently established and explored Naruto's childhood which explained why Naruto behaves the way he does. Kishimoto does not need to grab the readers hand and explain exhaustively so people understand Naruto's character. This manga is not hard to get to need all that.

But the way Kishimoto constantly shows how okay Naruto is with being mistreated as long as he feels they acknowledged him, is so sad. And I wish Kishimoto awknowledged how unhealthy this is.

This is where it gets interesting. It is true that Naruto isn't allowed to get angry at Konoha and is quickly resolved in the manga (although that particular paragraph was in reference to Sasuke). However, this has more to do w/ the fact that Naruto is a shonen and the power of friendship and loyalty overcomes everything, even Kishimoto himself expressed frustration at how naive the resolution of problems in shonen manga is, maybe if the series was a seinen he would've written with more nuanced about Konoha as a political and military entity that also happens to be the home of the child soldiers.

This is also part of the reason why the Kage summit arc pisses me off so much. Naruto lets himself be beat up by Karui over Sasuke, has a panick attack, rejects Gaara, gets on his knees to beg the raikage to pardon Sasuke etc. Like he should be able to emphatize with the Kumo ninjas over what happened to Killer Bee and he should value his friendship with Gaara more. Honestly Sasuke joining the akatsuki and trying to capture Killer Bee should have been a deal breaker to Naruto. And to top that off Naruto witnessing Sasuke trying to Murder Sakura should at least be one. Naruto forgiving people who mistreats him makes sense, but people mistreating the people he cares for should not be. The way Naruto treats so many of his friends over his obsession with Sasuke is so disappointing.

And this is what I wanted to tackle the most. Naruto fans do not understand Kishimoto's writing AT ALL. Idk if the op of that post is Asian or not, but it's become clear to me that Naruto fans don't know and have shown zero interest in getting to know Kishimoto's writing influences. And no, I'm not talking about Dragon Ball.

Kishimoto has shared with fans his interest in Samurai and the Edo period Japan several times, to the point the first manga he wanted to write when he was a highschooler, before he even won an award at Shonen Jump, was about Samurai but scrapped the idea because at the time mangas like Rurouni Kenshin and Blade of the Immortal came out and he felt there was no longer space for him in the highly popular sub-genre and also that he's own writing wasn't as good compared to the aforementioned works.

But that does not mean that we don't see Kishimoto's nerdy side come out in Naruto about Samurai even if it's a manga about ninjas. There's the obvious, we see during the 4th war arc an actual battle between two samurai warriors, we also know Naruto is established in a fantasy universe of feudal Japan with damyos (feudal lords) and all. The themes of honor and loyalty, quests for revenge, the overall kinship is present as well.

But for those who have read Japanese literature works from the 17th century, you would have noticed that Kishimoto borrows A LOT from them when he's writing his manga, especially for Naruto and Sasuke.

It's funny because SS and NH shippers, as well as Naruto stans who hate Sasuke and Sasuke stans who hate Naruto and even fujoshis who are used to cookie-cutter stories where seme and uke do nothing but fuck after a couple of meetings in a corporate setting or high school or whatever boring shit they like to read, use the following examples to show how toxic and unhealthy Naruto and Sasuke's relationship is, not caring about Kishimoto's literary references as usual.

Kishimoto writes a love story the way they used to be written centuries ago. He draws a lot of inspiration from at least two writers from this period Ihara Saikaku and Chikamatsu Monzaemon.

The first example is Haku and Zabuza's relationship, I'll speak about them before moving to Naruto and Sasuke to give more context on how homosexual love stories were written around the time. Although Zabuza is not a samurai but rather a ninja on the run, the relationship is clearly inspired on the wakashudo practices where an older man would take a child from ages 11-16 as his protégé to train him, feed him, give him shelter and take him as his lover until the child came of age and became a warrior at the service of the lord of the land himself. Those young boys must be of great beauty, Saikaku is constantly writing about how their beauty is what grants them the better masters over the ugly boys.

This is what Zabuza and Haku do. Zabuza takes Haku as an apprentice and they swear loyalty to each other till the death, because that's the other thing, if the circumstance presented, both master and apprentice would fight alongside each other, kill for each other and if necessary die for each other.

Many Naruto fans feel uncomfortable about the real nature of Zabuza and Haku's relationship and delude themselves into believing their relationship is actually one of father and son, lol how stupid.

Because Naruto is a shonen, we never see sexual acts being performed so Kishimoto instead shows us the attraction these characters feel for one another through suggestive dialogue and flushed faces.

Even Haku's sacrifice and Zabuza's final words are totally inspired in the works of Saikaku, where both lovers hope to meet each other in another world. Foer exambple, in one of Saikaku's stories The Boy who Sacrificed his Life in the Robes of his lover, the boy, Senjuro, who had pledged to love Sazen in this world and the next and knowing his lover was at risk of being ambushed and killed, disguises himself as Sazen sacrificing his life for him getting slashed from the back, after learning about Senjuro's death Sazen kills himself as well.

Very dramatic right? This other post also discusses briefly Haku and Zabuza and Kishimoto drawing inspiration from literary works from the Edo period [LINK]

Let's move onto Naruto and Sasuke. Is their relationship toxic and unhealthy? By today's standards it sure is. But by the standards of the 17th century is one of the greatest stories of male love ever told, I'm certain if Saikaku could read Naruto he would commend Kishimoto on his work. But this is something Naruto fans don't know and quite frankly most don't care about.

In the post you linked, OP expresses the arc that pisses them off the most (and most Naruto fans hate as well) is the Kage Summit arc where Naruto states his fierce loyalty to Sasuke no matter what, and I must laugh because if there's any arc that resembles the male love stories of the Edo period the most, it's that one.

It bothers most fans Naruto wanted to commit double suicide so he and Sasuke escape the burdens of their world and be free of them in the next one. This is a common theme in literature of 17th century Japan. Two lovers making up for their Confucian failings in this world seeking redemption in a Buddhist paradise (at the time Buddhism had made its way into Japan and it was very different from China and India's Buddhism, you can read more about it here).

Kishimoto has referenced Chikamatsu in Naruto, so he is familiar with his plays where lovers commit double suicide as the ultimate showcase of love. I believe Kishimoto felt more comfortable and had more freedom to reference Chikamatsu and not Saikaku because the former wrote heterosexual romances whereas the latter focused more in homosexual romances and Kishimoto was already walking on a fine line by this point.

These other blogs have written great posts on how Kishimoto incorporated the double suicide trope for Naruto and Sasuke [LINK], [LINK], [LINK]. So I don't think I need to delve any deeper into it, they did a great job themselves.

But this is what OP doesn't understand. Kishimoto is writing an epic, a love story for the ancient times. Sasuke doing all that and all this is kind of like a test, Naruto's devotion is being put through highs and lows and they must overcome them. It'd be good fanservice to some if Naruto would give up on Sasuke but that'd be pretty boring and writers of the Edo period would be rolling over their graves if Kishimoto did that, HA!

Another element Kishimoto borrowed from Saikaku's literary works is the willingness to commit seppuku for your loved one. We see this with Madara and Hashirama.

In Saikaku's story Nightingale in the Snow two young boys, Naiki and Dannosuke, seek to become the lovers of the samurai Tonai. When Tonai demands proof of their love for him the boys show themselves willing to commit seppuku in front of him, Tonai shocked by their devotion accepts them as lovers.

The scene is similar to Hashirama also being willing to kill himself in front of Madara per his request, hoping Madara would accept him and trust him and his clan. Madara just like Tonai, is shocked by Hashirama's actions and stops him just in time, accepting him and joining his clan with Hashirama's, just like Tonai accepted the boys.

Which leads me to Kishimoto's *actual* finale for the Naruto series, the chapter he had planned and envisioned for 15 years, chapter 698. It's also been discussed by another blog how the theme of the battle Love vs. Power and the panels are a homage to Devilman's own final battle [LINK]. But what interests me in particular about chapter 698 in relation to Saikaku's work is how mutilation of your own body has also been a common trope in Japanese male love literature as proof your devotion.

Kinda like Naruto willing to lose his arm to Sasuke hoping to finally reach his heart (and did!). Sasuke would also go on to refuse a new arm, keeping himself mutilated as a reminder of Naruto's devotion for him.

Something that surprised me at first but then it made total sense to me is the brotherly troth found in Saikaku's works. Usually when a Samurai took a young apprentice, the samurai was old as shit (40-60 years old) and the young boy would be anything between 11-17 years. But there were times when a younger man would engage in a relationship with another man close in age, (although for us in modern times a lot of them would still be considerable age-gaps).

Saikaku for example, wrote the love story between Sazen, a 28 year old and Senjuro, a 17 year old, because of their not so big age-gap, these two lovers considered each other "brothers". They formalize their relationship by having sex, considering it the consummation of their brotherly troth.

When Sazen believes Senjuro had betrayed him for another man he's heartbroken Senjuro might had broken his vows of brotherly love.

So in Edo Japan homosexual relationships between two men close in age were considered similar to that of brothers, or at least brought the men so close they would consider one another brothers. Something very important to keep in mind is that none of these men are actually blood related.

In another of Saikaku's stories They Waited Three Years to Die, Kikui the younger man, considers his lover, Uhei to be his elder brother.

It seems that in this period of time there wasn't a clear divide in the type of love a man might profess another man with whom he is in love and has sex with, and the type of love two blood-related brothers felt for each other. Again, this is not condoning incest, it's more so how they saw male-male romantic relationships as deeply intimate they rivaled the bonds of blood-related people.

I had already made a post on what I believed Kishimoto meant with his whole "more brothers than blood-brothers" deal he has going on with Naruto and Sasuke [LINK]. But now I understand where it comes from. It really has nothing to do with actual incest (or pseudo-incest or spiritual-incest or whatever the fuck antis come up with) but him drawing inspiration from centuries old literary works on homosexual relationships. After all Naruto being set in what's clearly fantasy Edo feudal Japan, it makes sense Naruto the character would have a similar view on his feelings for Sasuke.

Finally, another thing I found very interesting is how in Saikaku's works he always makes sure to let the readers know how beautiful a man (usually the bottom of the relationship) is by comparing his looks to those of a girl. For example, in his story Implicated by his Diamond Crest, Saikaku writes Tannosuke is so beautiful people thought he was a girl when he was seven years old.

So funny how Kishimoto does the same with Haku and Sasuke, such pretty beautiful boys people think they're girls.

Kishimoto is so insane, this old man really thought he could get away with all this, uh? or maybe he was hoping people would notice.

So going back to OP's post linked, what they and most Naruto fans complain about is that Kishimoto writes seeking to emulate the writing of 17th century authors rather than a 21st century one. So a lot of things that for us are toxic and unhealthy, were symbols of passion and loyalty back then and that's how Kishimoto sees them and seeks to express them in his own work. This is why it's so important to keep in mind author's intentionality when engaging with some art or media work. What is Kishimoto trying to say with his manga? what are his references, influences and inspiration? which works parallel his own? There's a reason why every creative is always telling us the media they consume and their favorite art, because we are seeing pieces of them reimagined in their own new work.

I'm really proud that I managed to make this post only considering Japanese works and not adding Western ones for direct parallels between Naruto and other pieces of literature. But this sentiment of wanting to fight alongside your loved one, killing for them and dying by their side is pretty much universal in homosexual literature, especially from the ancient times. You can also find this celebration of homosexual love in Ancient Greek and Roman literature too, Achilles and Patroclus being the most famous example.

The lyrics of Taylor Swift's song You Are In Love, fit pretty well this same sentiment those men centuries ago were trying to describe as well.

Like yeah, imagine you've been sent off war, women stayed in the city and you're left with nothing but the company of the men you're gonna fight alongside and quite possibly die alongside too. Of course you'd love them, in every way a person could possibly love another one, because those men are your brothers.

The screenshots I used for this post are from Ihara Saikaku's book The Great Mirror of Male Love.

[moonchild-in-blue]

Can someone please either validate me or send me to the Corner of Shame? This is very silly but I'm wondering.

So. I was talking to my sister the other day about movies and such, and she told me of one she recently watched with this one actor. And I casually mentioned how much I hated him. Not in a "he's a bad actor" or "he's a bad person" way. Nothing to do with whether I find him attractive or not. Just in a "he looks the most punchable guy on earth and I have this irrational rage against him" way, to the point that I just can't watch movies with him without being annoyed.

My sister looked at me like I was crazy because, "what do you mean you hate the guy". And I told her yeah? That's normal? Don't you have at least one person you can't stand for no reason?

Sister was like 😬😬😬 No??? Which is wild to me, because I could easily name 50 (which I did - not 50 but we were getting close to 20 before i got too annoyed lmao).

Now she thinks I'm slightly insane (/j) (I made myself angry and may have referred to a few individuals as "stupid" and "obnoxious"), and I kinda don't believe I am the only person alive who feels this way. But also she's an incredibly empathetic extrovert, while I'm a very low empath socially anxious creechur so. There's that?? I guess ?? Idk.

Can anyone relate to this? Or am I the weird one?

Also wait. Little disclaimer: I am not generally a violent person AT ALL. Do i get annoyed and angry easily? Yeah. Do I feel like bitch slapping someone right across their stupid face? Yeah, sometimes, sure. Do I do something about it? Not really.

I can be real bitchy and extra sarcastic and petty SURE, but that's the most I'll do if I am legitimately angry. Mostly I just go to my room and cry 🥺 (crying when angry yes it me). So yeah. Before yall think I have unsolved anger issues.