#but also it may or may not be the worst written one. at least compared to the others. idk.

[mochinomnoms]

Please share the lewd interspecies romance.

Okay so mostly I have thoughts over the Octavinelle trio, especially the twins 🫣 but i wrote a lil something for most of them! also this was not meant to be so long idk what happened

[tags] - nsfw, AFAB-implied reader, but written gender-neutral, mentions of ruts/heats, breeding, etc

nsfw under read-more, minors DNI!

If you really compare humans to the nonhuman population of Twisted Wonderland, there's are some small physiological differences between species. Fae, surprisingly, don't differ from humans all too much. Land dwellers in general don't have anything too significant, though all of nonhuman species retain aspects of their animal counterparts.

Most of Savanaclaw goes through some sort of rut/heat during various times in the year, primarily early spring and summer. There's no logical reason for them to retain that aspect of their mating cycle anymore, not for a sentient species that have skills of logic and reasoning. Unfortunately, they didn't get to choose how their evolution worked, and so they have to deal with it in anyway they can.

They get a lot more irritable, they have throbbing headaches, their abdomen hurts, and the scent of their mate is a lot more enticing than normal. Jack probably has it the worst of them, as a wolf beastmen. Not only does he have to deal with a fever-inducing rut that will put him out of commission for a week, afterwards he has to deal with the a/b/o jokes from his classmates too, oh the horror. It is really a horror though when he's able to bend you over his bed, bite marks aligned your neck and back as his dick pounds into you till his knot swells and locks you in for at least an hour. Jack's incredibly embarrassed afterwards, though he manages to be incredibly sweet even after rearranging your guts. Wolf beastmen are one of the most affectionate partners to have with a reputation providing some of the best aftercare for their species. It's most likely to make up for their week-long copulation, stretching and tiring out their sweet little mates. Ooooh, but they'll so very sweet: cleaning up the sticky mess of fluids between your legs with their tongue, careful to not overstimulate you (unless you ask), tending to the mating mark they placed on the back of your neck with soft kisses and licks, and making sure to prop your lower half up to that your chances of taking their seed increases.

Lacking the annual rut/heat that other variants of beastmen have, lion and hyena beastmen are more similar is this regard, as they don't have the same issue of long copulations as wolf beastmen. Neither will initiate sex, rather they'll rely on their mates to do so. Ruggie, in particular, is rather reluctant initiating sex, as male hyenas are typically more submissive, so if you're shy you'll have to get over it. But once you do, Ruggie is ever so happy to service you if you're happy to give him praise. Run your hands through his hair and ears as he eats you out, he'll let out the cutest whimpers and groans as you do. Just, expect to be jellyboned by the time he's done with you, as a hyena he needs to make sure his mate won't snip back at him and you can't exactly do that if your fucked out. While he may not have the same stamina as Jack for week-long fuck session, he has a particularly short refractory period and can have several short sessions in a single night.

Leona also won't typically initiate sex on his own, it happens very sporadically, and he his the image of the lazy lion. While he never wants to do anything particularly extraneous, who is he to deny you needs? You'll have to do some preparing though, as while the barbs on his dick aren't as bad as they are in his animal variant, they will hurt if you're not wet and pliable enough. Be sure to sit on his face, don't worry you won't suffocate him and it's better you cum a few times first before taking him. Unless you want it to hurt? Once you've cum enough times, you can ride him to your heart's content. He only asks that you don't mention how he rubs his head into the crook of your neck, marking you so that if everyone couldn't tell by the sounds coming from his room, they'd know you're his from his scent. Lions are quite protective with their territory and pride after all.

Merfolk have the most extreme physiological differences between them and...any land dweller really. It comes with the territory of being suited for a completely different environment. They also behave a lot more similarly to their animal counterparts, which can be both delicious and exhausting for their humans.

Moray eels don't have a set time of the year they mate, but rather the water must be warm and plenty of food must be ready to provide to their mate. When the spring time weather above the sea starts transitioning from crisp to blazing, don't be too surprised when the twins start handfeeding you meals and snacks throughout the week, they want to make sure you're happy and full for them, getting you in the mood with a sweet, dizzying underwater dance to initiate until they get the okay from you. What's that 'okay' though? You know that yawning I mentioned before? You'll get your answer from them now, as they take your open mouth yawn as an invitation rather than a sign of tiredness. Floyd, in particular, is ready to drag you into the deep part of the pool before remembering that you need to breathe somehow. Not a problem. He'll keep your pretty head above water. You'll still have trouble breathing as his long tapered tongue worms his way in your mouth. No matter, you'll be gasping for breath as he bullies this cock into your hole, large enough that you can physically feel the bump on your stomach. Morays are awfully fond of wrapping themselves around their mates, seeing as Floyd will do his best to tangle his tail around your body and squeezing you as you squeeze down his dick. He loves the physical contact between you two, and is amused how your nails try to dig into his shoulders seeing as the mucus on his skin makes it near impossible to have a steady grasp. You're completely dependent on Floyd as you drool and cry out for relief from the overstimulation, which is oh so ever exciting.

Jade is equally as cruel when it comes to mating. Unlike the others, merfolk tend to mate with the intention to, well, mate. He prefers you to be soft and pliant for him, as well as wholly depending as you two fuck. So, he'll happily brew you a water-breathing potion so he can actually drag you into the deep, where he found a secluded, warm grotto that will allow him to keep you to himself for hours, but close enough to the surface that he can continuously grab you food to eat between sessions. Not that those sessions will be short either. Like his brother, Jade is content to wrap himself around your body as he cooed honeyed words into your ears about how you'll make a wet, warm, soft hole for breeding. It's not like he'll have to do much either, his dick is prehensile and he can wrap himself around you, swiping kisses and nuzzling into the crook of your very sensitive neck while his thick cock continuously pounds into you with a bruising pace. He's so mean!! He likes seeing you cry from overstimulation too, and Jade will continuously scoot down to clean you up with his tongue, only to claim that too much of his seed was gone and he needed to fill you up again for another few hours. He's truly quite incorrigible, especially when he bites into your neck and shoulders to make his claim on you. Don't worry, most morays' bites aren't venomous, and even if they are, you have him to care for you. You're going to be depending on him in the water anyway, so there's no need to worry about it too much.

Something that neither probably won't mention, probably because they won't realize it's something you should know, is that they can change their sex under the right conditions. If you're ever so inclined in the future to test the waters out, the twins might be so generous to let you eat them out instead.

Of the trio, Azul's the only one with an established mating season, two actually: one in the late spring and the other in the early fall. Respectively, one during finals and the other during orientation. He's already so incredibly stressed, and he has the need to breed too? Downright atrocious. It's wonderful that you're so kind that he can take refuge in you and use you like a new octopot, so tell him how pretty he is and how much you love him and only him, so that you have the privilege fucking his merform. The moment you're entering the water, he'll unconsciously display mating signals by flashing soft lilacs and blues, a beautiful display of his need for you. He's rather large, even bigger than the twins, in his merform, so you'll need preparation as well; have no fear, his tentacles are wrapping and kneading the squishiest parts of you. I mentioned before that he can taste the salt on your skin and pulse through your wrist via his suckers. He can taste the slick from your walls, too, without even having to use his mouth as the suckers massage you from the inside. If you'd like, he technically could give you a full flavor profile afterward, though he'll probably be a bit mortified to do so. The biggest difference is his dick, or lack thereof. Instead of a dick, Azul has a hectocotylus, which is a modified, slightly shorter arm of his with a thicker spade-shaped tip that he can practically rearrange your guts with, with little effort on his part really. Most octo-mer variants will keep their mate at a distance, eons of instinct hard to forget. Azul's variant, though, will keep you close, almost dancing with you in a sweet, sensual twirl as he places sweet kissing and bites on your neck, arms, and chest. Octopi are, in fact, venomous, however, so you will be feeling a bit of a lustful high, paralyzed, and a bit helpless to the whims of a needy octopus. He's quite good at aftercare though, making sure you get an antidote and handfeeding you calorie-rich snacks to energize you back up (again, he's aware that you won't eat him, but instinct dictates that he keeps you full with both food and cum to make you a happy mate).

*collapses into heap on floor* thoughts....full.....ahahaha breeding kink go burrrrr. i was not meant to write this much and then it escaped me. also i hate tagging

[kalashtars]

just got confirmation they really are in there YIPPEEE

but. now i have to decide if i'm going to read one of them aloud at the reception. and if so. which one.

forever and ever ago I submitted poems to my university's journal and they got accepted but there was some complications with sending the poems back after editing (my email sending them back was never responded to) and now im worried they're not even going to be in the journal :/

[stop-breaking-my-heart-telltale]

Y'know, it's unfortunate more people don't compare Louis and Violet in good faith.

Like, when I do see people compare them, it's usually through the lens of one is good, and the other bad. One is more canon than the other, and here's why. One is objectively better for Clementine, and the other is less impactful, worse written, didn't have chemistry with her, insert several insults here, etc.

I don't think it's inherently bad to express why you might not like one of them, or why you prefer one over the other. That's fine, that's a matter of opinion. It only gets to me when it becomes hostile, or passive aggressive... but even then, I've learned to just roll my eyes and move on. Some people make it very clear that they're not worth having a discussion with.

However, I wish I could read more nuanced comparisons of the two that didn't default to the "and that's why this one is better." At least some are kind enough to tack on a "for my Clementine" at the end.

You know how it goes: Louis is cute and he makes Clementine laugh, whereas Violet's boring, her love is shallow, she's still not over Minerva and she's using Clementine as a rebound. Violentine's a bad ship because Violet's actually a traitor, and they're practically the same person and that's bad.

Violet's loyal and reliable, whereas Louis is annoying, he never takes anything serious, he's a traitor for his vote, and he's nothing but a distraction. Clouis is a bad ship because how could any Clementine possibly like him after he voted her and AJ out? That's bad!

That's always the conclusion, right? One good, one bad.

This is incredibly limiting and it drives me nuts.

They're foils. They contrast one another, highlight each other's strengths and flaws, in such an interesting way that it makes Clementine's choice between them all the more meaningful.

One is not good and the other bad, they're different, and I think that's worth exploring.

Let's start with a common argument: Violet is the more impactful option due to her connection to Minerva.

Now, to be fair, I can understand why someone on Team Violet would believe this. Yes, it's true that the confrontation with Minerva is more impactful for a violentine shipper who has more investment in Violet as a character. Louis doesn't have as strong of a connection to her.

However, what they're failing to recognize is that Minerva isn't the only ghost to haunt this narrative. Violet may have Minerva, yes, but Louis has Marlon... and that doesn't just go away once Marlon's dead.

Violet's route has Minerva as her ex-girlfriend, and her bond with Tenn that all comes to a head on the bridge. Louis' route has Marlon's death and how that specifically impacts his relationship with AJ and Clementine, and the slow burn of forgiveness on all sides.

Marlon and Minerva are also reflective of Clementine's worst outcomes.

Clementine and Marlon were tied together through Brody's blood splattered on their hands and faces. They both killed a part of Brody, but only one of them lies about who killed her first.

After Marlon dies, Clementine gradually replaces him throughout the game; Rosie is her dog now, she uses his bow [which Louis gave her], she becomes the leader. Clementine gets them to fight back, and when three of her people are captured, she doesn't cut her losses. She does what Marlon couldn't; "we're getting them back."

When she chooses Louis, he does for her what he never did for Marlon: he steps up.

Clementine proves she won't become Marlon just as she proves she won't become Minerva.

After getting James to agree to help them, Clementine and AJ talk about what to do if she ever gets bit. AJ says he'd want her to bite him, too. He repeats this sentiment after she's actually bitten, telling her he wants to stay and they could turn together, peacefully.

When Minerva confronts them on the bridge, she's dying... and she wants Tenn to die with her. She doesn't care who she has to kill in the process. She's more monster than human at this point, and most times, she succeeds.

They're both bitten. Clementine could've become a monster like Minerva in the end. She could've killed AJ, and they could've become walkers together. But she didn't. Minerva wanted Tenn to die for her, and Clementine wanted AJ to live for her.

Also, I should mention she has Minerva's axe. She carries the key weapons associated with Marlon and Minerva throughout different points in the game, further solidifying these connections. She uses Marlon's bow to save her friends, and she uses Minerva's axe to save AJ, who in turn uses it to save her.

What's also so interesting about this is how Marlon's alive in episode one, and Minerva is thought to be dead. Louis has his best friend, and Violet's lost hers. But, at the end of the episode, Marlon's dead and Minerva's revealed to be alive.

Marlon becomes the ghost, and Minerva becomes the monster. Clementine becomes to Louis and Violet what Marlon and Minerva never could... how does that not drive anyone else insane?

So, no. One is not objectively better, or more impactful, because of a connection to Marlon or Minerva. They're different. It just depends on which storyline you personally find more compelling.

Actually, let's talk about that a little more.

In my opinion, the most intriguing point of comparison between Louis and Violet stems from their perceptions of survival, and how that impacts Clementine.

An argument I see made against violentine is that Violet's boring because she and Clementine are too similar. This usually comes from clouis shippers who prefer the "opposites attract" dynamic Clementine and Louis have.

On the flip side, there's the counter argument that Louis is reckless, that he doesn't take survival as seriously as he should and Clementine wouldn't want him because of that.

These are interesting to me because I get where they're coming from... but they ultimately miss the point.

The other day, I replayed TFS. Except this time, I did something a little bit differently. I played my usual clouis route, but then I had the violentine route pulled up on my laptop so that I could watch these scenes, comparing them side by side… and something occurred to me. 

Louis is about challenging Clementine's perception of survival, and Violet is about validating it.

Louis challenges Clementine from the very moment we meet him—he’s playing music. His initial philosophy on survival butts heads with Clementine’s. The fact that hunting with him and Aasim challenges your perception of “your choices have consequences.” These games have conditioned the player to think along the lines of, “Yeah, Louis is more fun��� but if I don’t hunt with Aasim, we won’t have any food.”

Except that’s just it. I hate to say it, Aasim, but in the grand scheme of things… hunting with you doesn’t matter. It's actually less rewarding. You know why? Because in the next section, we get food from the train station. It would’ve been more beneficial to spend time with Louis over hunting, hence how he challenges you.  

This then primes you for the choice between choosing to follow Louis or follow Violet. I know people complain about how this is presented with Violet doing something productive [checking the walls] and Louis playing piano… but that’s the point. If you’re going through with Louis’ full route, you need to meet him at his level, and in turn, he will meet you at yours. You need to accept the challenge, the idea that Clementine isn’t entirely right about the way she’s gone about survival.

Oh, and do I even need to mention the vote? The debate over Louis’ vote is exhausting. Often times, people tell on themselves in how they talk about it. It’s not actually about the fact that he voted against them. If it was, these people would have a bigger bone with pick with Mitch, Willy, Ruby, and Omar… and yet Louis is the one who takes all the blame as if he’s the only one personally kicking them out. 

Louis is reacting to the death of his best friend, and the complicated feelings that come with it being caused by AJ. He wants accountability, even if he knows something's wrong. You can either agree with him that it was murder, and set AJ on the path of atonement… or, you can double down and tell him to fuck off, AJ was justified. 

But here’s the thing… the vote adds to the appeal of Louis’ route. To someone who hates him, or at the very least is critical of his vote, that sounds mad or delusional.

Except it’s really not.

Ever heard of a thing called tension? Because there’s a lot of it in ep2 between clouis + AJ and it’s fantastic.

Yes, Louis voting them out is problematic because we need a problem to solve. We need something to feed the tension between him and Clementine. He stepped in front of a gun held by his best friend in order to protect her, forever changing their relationship… only for that to seemingly be taken away from us the moment AJ shoots Marlon. 

Yes, Louis’ route is about being challenged, but it’s also about challenging him. That he’s able to forgive them, that he’s able to question his own survival philosophy and understand theirs, that he’s able to apologize and actually change for the better… that right there is what makes clouis so damn good. 

He becomes hardened whereas Clementine softens. By the end of the game, they’re on a similar level now without neglecting their differences, and they can move forward together. 

That’s what makes Louis’ route appealing… and it’s also what makes it unappealing to people who prefer Violet. 

By contrast, Violet’s already on Clementine’s level when it comes to this perception of survival. She validates that Clementine’s on the right path.

They have other similarities in the way that they’re both female, queer, they both have a kid they look after, they’re not always great with other people, etc. 

People who prefer Louis might consider this boring, but I think to Team Violet, it’s comforting. It’s comforting to have a partner who takes this as seriously as you do, who wants to get shit done. They’re playing Clementine with a similar attitude, and don’t believe it needs to be challenged. It’s comforting to feel validated on something you already firmly believe in. 

We also see this if we compare the hunting and fishing scenes. You have to make an effort to choose Louis by choosing to neglect hunting, but the game makes you fish with Violet no matter what.

Violet’s prioritizing fishing because they need food. That’s what they’ve set out to do, so let’s do it. The game is letting you know that’s the case, and if you value that, continue pursuing her. 

While fishing, they discuss why things are weird with her and Brody. Violet doesn’t take well to Clementine’s blunt, “Because you make it weird. Brody tries and you just make fun of her."

That’s understandable because I think she already kind of knows why and is looking to have her feelings validated. She prefers it when Clementine suggests that it’s because Brody never said sorry for what happened to the twins. 

There’s also comfort and validation in the way Violet sides with Clementine and AJ after Marlon’s death. She votes for them to stay, vocalizing how much she disapproves of the results. There’s this feeling that I recognize from a lot of the sapphic romance I read; “it’s you and me against the world, I’ll always have your back, even if you’re in the wrong, I’ll fight for you.”

In our case, it’s violentine + AJ against the rest of Ericson, save Tenn and Aasim. Violet validates that AJ was justified because Marlon was a liar and murderer, claiming that AJ and Clementine did nothing wrong. Violet fights to keep them. 

The tension between violentine in ep2 is different because instead of one pushing the other away, they’re being forced apart by the vote and there’s nothing they can do about it. That tension is somewhat released when Clementine comes back and they’re reunited, working out a plan to best defend the school. 

It’s also why Violet’s presented as doing something productive when you follow her instead of Louis, and why she asks if you want to hang out after checking the defenses. 

All that being said, allow me to reiterate that one is not good and the other bad, they're different. These concepts of challenge and change/validation and comfort exist on a neutral road as diverging paths. It’s up to the player to pick what path they prefer, but that doesn’t mean the other path isn’t worth acknowledging or analyzing. 

I should also mention that they’re not exclusive; there is overlap with validation being present in Louis’ route and challenges in Violet’s. They’re just more present in episodes 3 and 4 after we’ve made our decision. 

There are several more examples of how this all fits together, buuuuut–

Ya’ll wanna compare some allegories?

Those familiar with my content might already know where I’m going with this as I’ve made a post about Louis and the piano in the past. 

You see, I believe that there are allegories for Louis and Violet’s hearts present in their routes: Louis’ piano, and Violet’s pin. 

I already have a thorough, in-depth analysis of Louis and the piano that you can read, so all I’ll say about it is that on the night of the raid, he asked Clementine to carve a piece of herself into his heart so that no matter what, their initials will be immortalized together in its wood…

And that makes me fucking feral. 

But I'm also so normal about it.

As for Violet, her heart is the star gazing pin she gives to Clementine. She gives it to her so she’ll always remember that night… but she doesn’t give it to her until after Clementine’s saved her, and that fascinates me in the context of it being allegory. 

Louis asks Clementine to carve herself into his heart right before the raid, cementing that from that moment on, he is utterly devoted to her. I believe this is part of the reason why Louis is still happy to see her if he’s the one who’s captured. Yes, yes, he’s also incredibly traumatized from having his tongue cut out and he’d be happy to see anyone, yada yada… but listen, if you romance Louis and he’s captured, his heart remains with her—that piano with their intitals is on full display. When he sees her, he’s still so devoted to her that he refuses to accept that it’s at all her fault. Even when she says it is, he shakes his head... and he so easily accepts her when they’re together in the end. From the moment Clementine puts knife to wood, he’s hers. 

Now, look… you might think I’m going somewhere not great with this but hear me out. 

I think after Clementine’s gone star gazing with her, Violet is fully ready to give her heart to her. Y’know, give her the pin. But, think about what Violet said about how people have left, but Clementine came back. Plus, with the impending raid to think about, maybe Violet should keep the pin until the right moment. 

I believe a key difference between her and Louis is that Violet needs one last thing to solidify that Clementine’s the one. 

Louis gives her his heart prior to the raid because of everything that’s already gone down between them following Marlon’s death. Violet needs to know that Clementine’s willing to fight for her the way she fought before. When Clementine saves her from the raiders, it’s solidified. Even after she sees Minerva again, it changes nothing.

It’s also worth noting that the pin is something Clementine wears. Like the piano carving, it’s a piece on display for everyone to see, to let them know whose heart Clementine has.

Violet literally handed Clementine her heart as a means of saying, “I’m yours. I’m devoted to you.” 

This is why romanced/captured Violet is devastating, and is why she behaves the way she does in the cells. She was so ready to give her heart away and then nope, sorry, Vi! You get knocked unconscious by raiders instead! 

If anything, you kind of deserve to be told to fuck off if you romanced her and then let her get captured. Just sayin’. 

Look, I have a lot of complicated feelings about the captured violentine route, mostly with Violet being as forgiving as she is after her eyes are burned—yes, yes, I know, her eyes are burned and Minerva messed with her head so of course now she’s not hostile, yada, yada. 

But I think it’s rather telling that you don’t get the pin in this route. Sure, Violet’s willing to forgive and possibly pursue this romance in the future… but she’s not ready to hand over her heart, not truly. Not after everything that’s happened. 

And if you want to get extra angsty about it, imagine that Violet made the pin right after they parted ways, but before the raiders came. Meaning that if she’s captured, it’s possibly still sitting somewhere, abandoned. 

Mmhmmm, very normal about this. I feel normal. My normalness about this continues... normally. I'm not losing my shit thinking about that. Nope. Why would I? I wouldn't! So normal.

Okay just let me talk about their reactions to Tenn's death and then I'll shut up.

This makes me want to gnaw my own foot off, I can barely handle it.

AJ shoots Tenn on the bridge because Clementine trusted him to make the hard calls. This saves Louis or Violet's life.

When Louis jumps across, he's completely silent as he watches Tenn die... and then he's pissed; "What the fuck?! How could you just shoot him like that?!"

AJ explains himself, that he did it for him, and Louis is so upset that he forces AJ to look at what he's done, to watch the walkers eat Tenn; "Tenn's dead. He's dead! Do you realize that?! Look! [...] He's... he's gone, because of you. Just fucking gone."

If Clementine says AJ saved his life, Louis says, "So what, we just cut him loose? Gun him down like he was nothing?"

If Clementine says nothing, Louis says, "Tenn was just a little boy!"

The reason Louis responds this way is because in this moment, he just relived Marlon's death all over again, but worse. So, SO much worse!

When Violet jumps across, she breaks down, begging, "Oh, my God! Oh, my God! No, no! No, no, no..." as she watches Tenn die... and then says to AJ, "No! What the fuck?! How could you do that?!"

AJ explains himself, that he did it for her, and Violet is faaaar from okay; "For me? I can't... Tenn is gone! That soft little boy who liked to draw, he's gone, because of you!"

If Clementine says AJ saved her life, Violet says, "You think that's okay?! Just gunning down one of our own?!"

And there it is.

Louis is hardened in this situation because he already went through this... Violet hasn't, not with AJ. She softened up throughout her route due to her relationships to him and Clementine... but this is the moment where she realizes that maybe AJ wasn't as justified as she believed, and this is the consequence.

This leads us to the ending where AJ asks if they're still mad about him killing Tenn, and I just... I'm biting my foot right now because the script has flipped.

Louis is forgiving and understanding. He's soft, he's sympathetic, he shakes AJ's hand to let him know that all is forgiven and they're okay; "I... AJ, I guess it's like... You saw something I didn't. About the situation, I mean. Minnie and the walkers and Tenn, it's just all this chaos in my head when I think back on it. [...] Clem says you saved my life? Well, then, that's exactly what you did. And how can I stay mad at anyone for doing that?"

Or, alternatively, "He was your friend, AJ. I know you are hurting just as much as I am."

As for Violet? She's understanding, too... but she's not quite ready to forgive yet; "The thing you said on the bridge...that he was messing up all the time. It wasn't something new, you know. Tenn got himself or other people into trouble all the time, long before you guys got here. He was always so lost. He lived in a world that just...isn't there, you know? And that's why I tried to look after him. But when I was pulling him away from the walkers, and Minnie, I could also see...he just wasn't there anymore."

"So you're mad, but sad."

"Can I be that for a while?"

And it's completely understandable that she's hurting and struggling with how she feels about AJ moving forward! She wants to be okay, she wants to forgive him, she just needs time.

Now, because I'm forever bitter, but I'm gonna mention this as well: whenever I see someone point at Violet's scene and say, "See!? This is how LOUIS should've acted in ep2!" like... they're telling on themselves again. Not just that they don't understand Louis as a character or his route, but that they don't fully grasp Violet's part in this either. Or time frames, for that matter.

Let me put it to you in simple terms... they react the same.

After Marlon and Tenn die, they're upset. They're pissed. They blame AJ and yell at him. After they've had time to process what happened [Louis after the two week time skip, Violet after time passes between the bridge and the ending] they share the same, "I'm still upset about Marlon/Tenn. Can I be that for a while and still be your friend?" sentiment.

The difference is that Louis is treated poorly for it because of the vote, and because we feel it first hand for longer... Violet got to grieve off screen and come back after she's sorted herself out.

It's a disservice to both of their characters because it's rooted in that same mentality that I criticized at the beginning: "This is why one is better than the other."

Do I need to say it again? I'm gonna say it again.

One is not good and the other bad. They're different.

There are so many fun discussions that could come from putting Louis and Violet side by side, and examining them. I haven't even covered the different ways they're introduced, or compared their ep3 dates to see what it says about them and the overall narratives! What about the cell scenes!? How they react when Dorian's about the cut off their fingers! The way they approach James upon meeting him!

That last one in particular is especially funny! They're all under stress about blending in with a herd of walkers to infiltrate a boat to save their friends, and yet Louis easily saunters up to the guy wearing walker skins with a smile, and makes him laugh by saying, "Functional and fashionable. I'll take two."

Violet approaches James like he's an injured wild animal that's going to bite her, and bless her heart, she tries with, "I, uh… hey. Hey there, James. Sorry about Willy." Then James gives her this judgmental side-eye, like buddy? She's not the weirdo here.

There is so much potential to dissect here, and I want to see people do it... but I want them to do it fairly, in good faith.

I want to get away from the idea of comparing them to "prove" which is better because there is no objective better. There isn't! That's a waste of time!

I'm so done with The Debate���; it's unhelpful, it's annoying, and it's boring as shit. I've heard it all before, and you probably have, too.

I want to put Louis and Violet under a microscope and study them with the thought process of, "one does this and the other does that... what does it mean!? what does it say about the narrative!? Oh my god, they have the same opinion on this thing, WRITE THAT DOWN!"

So yeah, that's my ramble for the night.

I'm gonna go replay TFS for further research.

[h50europe]

8.06 post mortem - Buck/Tommy - General - 9-1-1 Zombified

Many of us wondered why a cut emergency case from episode 7.04 was used. A novelty and if you look closely, you'll notice that the characters appeared very different from how they did in the rest of season 8, and the scenes felt erratic. This inconsistency is reminiscent of the writing from Andrew Meyers, who also wrote episode 7.04. However, in that episode, he had a co-writer who was clearly more talented. Episode 8.06 was poorly written compared to 7.04. Alone the scene in the beginning. Buck could have pointed out that this chick was interrupting the date he had with his boyfriend. Tommy then mentioned the Kinsey scale

Our walking encyclopedia had no idea what his boyfriend was talking about. Seriously? Also, Buck doesn't want to buy a present for their 6-month anniversary, and Tommy gives him 2 Lakers baseball cards and awkwardly mentions that Buck could go with Eddie? Is this dinner supposed to be romantic? Well, they could have gone to McDonalds. Meyers should have consulted his co-writer at this point; we're heading straight for disaster. Then Tim had this wonderful idea with Abby and thought it was hilarious. The guy's humour isn't just weird, it's kind of crude. Abby never mentioned that she went out with another guy from the 118. Isn't that weird? No one ever knew about it? Not Hen, not Chim? For two years? Did Tommy keep her locked in his basement? This plot is so poorly constructed that it's cringe-worthy at best. And that's when Himbo's jaw hit the floor… along with the audience.

The only good scene was Josh's GLEE speech. And I may be reading between the lines, but I felt that the way Josh talked about post and past GLEE and how Buck can't blame Tommy for his actions because times were different was a wink and a nod to the haters. I really had the impression that this was a cunning move to address why Tommy was who he was back then and why he has changed now.

But seconds later I nearly choked on my drink, and I can tell you it's orgasmic when a sip of Pepsi comes out of your nose, when Maddie said, "She wondered how many men Abby had turned gay." Because I was chatting to a friend before I watched the episode and I almost said the same thing. I live in Europe, so I watched it the next day, knowing what was coming, but nothing about that particular scene. Which, frankly, was terrible.

Forgive me for ignoring the emergencies in this episode. They were repetitive, to say the least, just with different protagonists.

So far we have a recycled episode, a recycled ex, a recycled emergency and a recycled scenario, Maddy is pregnant (hooray). It begins to reek of decay.

Brownie points to those who aren't already traumatised or bored to death. Now for the highlight: Tommy shows up at Buck's apartment in a great mood. He is looking forward to a date with his friend and hot sex as the icing on the cake (that's what I had in mind). Tommy gets suspicious when Buck asks him to sit down. It doesn't take long before he pulls out his phone and shows his friend photos of Abby and a younger Buck. This is followed by an awkward explanation of why he didn't share the news in the restaurant, and Tommy's reaction is a little awkward too. But this is only the overture to the worst retconning I have seen on television in a long time. The coincidence is swept under the carpet in the blink of an eye, and now it gets creepy.

Compare the scene in the coffee shop with this one. It has the same structure, bit by bit. Buck invites Tommy to the wedding in the coffee shop, and Tommy says, "What?" Here it is: "I want you to move in with me." We have a mashup of the first kiss and the coffee shop scene, and Oliver plays it similarly. The worst part is when Tommy turns into his zombie version. Excellently played by Lou. No doubt about it. He gave it his all. He maimed that shitty script, which felt like Meyers had raided AO3, picked the worst written fics and went for the most cringe-worthy insult he could find for a bisexual. "I was your first, but I won't be your last." Hello? This topic only comes to Tommy's mind after he is asked to move in together? I was expecting "I can't move in with you because I wouldn't know where to put my car lift and Muay Thai studio". No, it's because all the trust and love Tommy put in Buck is wiped out by the retconning of Tommy's personality. He succumbs to total chaos. This is not the Tommy we met in S7 and certainly not the one we met in 8.05. Fuck me! It didn't make sense. We would have needed a lot more background information ON SCREEN to make it believable. A scene from Tommy's past. Who hurt him so badly? It wasn't Abby. She only managed to traumatise Buck. Was it after he met Abby? Was it another guy?

Hello writers, are you still in your right mind? We have no clues. Neither the loyal fans and certainly not the new ones. You're reducing a character to a sad laughing stock. You rob him of all his merits, which you had Buck recite like a poem in school. And then you expect us to believe it? You steamroll over everything that's been painstakingly built up to this episode? It's actually convenient, I let the whole relationship run off screen. We don't see any flying lessons together, no training together, no cosy get-togethers in front of the TV, no exchange of affection, nothing. It's all headcanon. Guys, I've seen shows and movies where a sequence like this lasted five minutes and you knew where the couple stood. Maybe a flashback or two into Tommy's past would have helped. But no, instead the audience had to put up with the same old nonsense. A ridiculous story about an urn, a guy who sneezes and his intestines fall out, a kid who doesn't fall down a drain but slips down a pipe. They give us nothing, but we're supposed to believe everything, retconning is so great. If any of us wrote fanfiction like that, we'd be banned from AO3. And as if that wasn't enough, Tommy stands up and says, "Believe me, I didn't see this coming either. Tell me, were you on drugs when you were writing? There are a thousand ways to respond sensibly to "Let's move in together" without turning it into such a dumpster fire. The crowning glory of all this madness is when Tommy says "I'll see you around Buck" instead of Evan (the same words he said to Evan when he left him standing outside the restaurant on their first date). Where did that come from? It's as if Tommy had lost all respect for his lover, or as if he wanted to punch him in the face while he was already on the ground. We, the viewers, also had this feeling. And Tommy's behaviour was completely disturbed. I wonder if he checked himself into a mental facility right after that.

I won't say anything about the rest of the episode because I'm a polite person.

Conclusion: Please take the pen away from this lunatic and never let him write anything again or give him a co-writer like in 7.04. The guy is totally unhinged.

Extra brownies, you made it!

[tocomplainfriend]

WHERE ARE THE WOMEN!?

I came back to or HB and I got run over with the lack of Female character content. Specially in the queer area!

We got Millie, who gets the lowest attention. See doesn't have and actual episode about her as a person. Unhappy Campers it's not an actual episode about her- it's mainly Moxxie and her dealing with it. We don't get any flashbacks in comparison to Blitz, Moxxie, and Loona. Even when Chaz it's her ex, we only get the Moxxie's part of the story. We get an episode with full focus on Bllitz, Stolas and Moxxie perspective of things in an episode, but we never follow Millie alone her self.

What we got about Millie: Good at killing (Melee weapons), supportive, Country girl, anger? Moxxie's Wife

Unhappy campers tries to give her attention but not actually doing it. She gets everyone to love her and show she can do an endless amount of tricks. But the episode concentrates in Moxxie getting insecure again. The fact they barely want to write her shows in just giving her long fighting scenes instead.

What does she do? Like, does she have her group of friends outside of her job or no? How does that make her feel? Being in your mid 20's and not really having many friends, it's quite a thing to explore. Or does she have actual friends outside of Blitz, and her husband.

How does she feel about Blitz stalking them? Cause in the pilot she just laughs it off a lot! Why? She didn't say anything about Blitz coming to Ozzies to see them. Does she actually dislike Loona or the fact she is a hellhound? Does she feel like a normal Joe underlooked, cause maybe her family with multiple kids didn't give her top attention and recognition? Probably not because they didn't write that- I imagined that, just know. Apparently she just had a 'boring' good family and that's why we don't see anything of that.

I just fill in the spaces where the is nothing to say regarding Millie with Headcanons, basically...

Loona gets written kind of back and forward. She was so nice by the end of season 1- to then beat the shit off Blitz in season 2, episode 2. And She was given the reason of "blitz did something that hurt her" when she was in the wrong for being awful to the customers in the first place and try to guilt-trip her dad. In that same episode, we get Loona's backstory for getting adopted, but from Blitz Perspective. I loved how she was with Octavia. But she backtracks into being mean to everyone. Hopefully she gets to interact with her by the end of the season!

Verosika... Where is my girl? Haven't seen her! She gets to have genuine frustrations towards Blitz, I'm happy for that. I hope they don't write her into had being the bad one for blitz to look better.

Stella, she gets written as the worst to elevate Stolas as the least bad person to justify him and Stolitz. Her view of also getting forced to marry someone as a child is never given, she gets the least out of it to- she doesn't get any book or power- she sticks to her family. I think writing her as "stupid" and also the "I love tormenting you" is so shallow. Her power as an antagonist gets killed in order to put her brother as the main danger instead.

One thing in writting I don't think it's intentional is her treatment of Striker. It does call my attention that Stolas call Blitz an Imp, and imp based names- same with disregarding Millie and Moxxie- Meanwhile Stella treats her assistant like shit and says shit if "plebeian blabla" but when she gets in the Phone with Striker to cancel the killing. She is polite and calls him darling. Which is different!

I love that Octavia gets attention, but I know she is written to also elevate Stolas as a character. -And the writting fill force her into forgiving him. Also... her relationship with her Mom? Someone? Can we explore what she thinks of imps or hellhounds compared to her parents?

Sallie May? 2 Lines in 1 episode.

Barbie? Her story dealing with her mom dying got pushed in the BG due to her deleted content. uh... get drugs from being sexual as a +30 woman to a 19 yr human. Doesn't want to deal with Blitz cool! Fizz gets more backstory with Blitz than with her...

Glitz and Glam. They show up and act like assholes to Fizz (to make him seem more vunerable and dealing with a lot). For some reason, the concept of Mammon being abusive to Fizz only matter if it towards him. Because he just let Glitz and Glam take his place, even if they were being bitches to him- that doesn't make them have to endure Mammon's treatment too. They are also over villainized as if Blitz or wasn't an ass to everyone too.

Bee is there probably for one episode due to wall Kesha and shit. She is a contradiction on her self "gluttony - over indulgance" to then "Loona your dad is drinking to much and it worries me" ??? She is there to be a party girl and tell Loona what to do.

Overall she also only get Queer content out of the male characters. There is not a single WLW thing going on anywhere here. Meanwhile most the teasing of ships and jokes is MLM (blitzXmoxxie,blitzXstriker, blitzXstolas, blitzXchaz, blitzXfizz, moxxieXstriker, moxxieXchaz, fizzXasmodeous)

The only possible WLW joke is Bee and Loona. That's it!

For a show that gets to praised for representation of the trans woman character, It's less of a secondary character just yet. And no non-binary character anywhere.

(DO NOT SAY oh but in the BG, NO I'm TALKING ACTUAL CHARACTERS IN THE SHOW-not the bg succubus or the art team putting random stuff around!)

[mhsdatgo]

Hotd writers choosing to adapt Mushroom's records out of everything they had in hand is the worst decision they could've ever come up with btw.

It's been stated time and time again that while F&B is purely built on records and gossip and morphed retelling of events out of bias and propaganda, Mushroom is the LEAST reliable of all the sources. He's a fool at Rhaenyra's court, his job is make people gasp and laugh, not retell historical events.

We're talking about the same guy who said that he had a penis large enough to match the size of his head, mind you. Also, he's obsessed with little girls giving BJs to Targaryen men somewhere in Flea Bottom. It's happened twice according to him.

The writers' reasoning for this choice is basically that F&B was written by Maesters and Septons, who were all greedy men, apart from being Green supporters. So anything they say is false, anything they say is written with sexist intent. Writer's intention was to do the exact opposite.

Then tell me, for the love of God, tell me, why is every woman apart from Rhaenyra, who is clearly whitewashed and I can go into heavy detail about that, basically shunned?

The Maesters claim Alicent left Viserys' body to rot and swell for days preparing and LEADING Rhaenyra's usurpation. She's the leader of the Greens, she and she alone. Not Otto. The Green Council answers only to her orders, they are loyal to HER.

I've seen people argue that since Alicent is what Maesters view as an "ideal" woman, then they would try anything to paint her in the best light possible. While I agree that this may be true, I don't think this is the case. In history books, even in real life, women are rarely painted as leaders or important figures.

For Queen Alicent to be written as THE face of the Greens, you know this mama wasn't playing around.

Now, how is this:

In ANY WAY, even comparable to THIS?:

At the end of ep.8 and quite literally the entirety of ep.9, Alicent is shown as a lost woman who doesn't even seem to know what she's doing, pushed by Viserys' last words about prophecy rather than SHEER DESIRE to get her hands dirty for her children's safety (which by the way will always be superior imo). The Green Council conspires behind her back, and on top of it all, she's yelled at by one of her own men and is made to take it like a beaten dog.

Moreover, we had Helaena's ROAST (yes it was a roast, my Queen inherited cunty lines from her cunty mother) against Aegon and her coronation, the latter being addressed as something quite wholesome, if you ask me. Alicent places her own crown upon her daughter's head and calls her "my Queen" after kissing her cheeks and kneeling. Afterwards, her and Alicent are literally written to be the only ones who could get through Aegon II's thick skull when he wanted to start the war right then and there as a result of Rhaenyra crowning herself on Dragonstone.

You hear me??? Aegon sat down and fucking listened to the two women in his life. Not the Council, them. These two were dogwalking him, the KING, on the daily, how is that sexist writing on the Maesters' part????

Yet these things are nowhere to be seen in Ryan Condal and Sara Hess' "progressive" show. We got beaten dog Alicent and Helaena being nothing but a walking spoiler machine other than yet another instrument to paint Aegon as the big bad wolf and usurper. Not a single scene of them counseling Aegon.

Baela and Rhaena have nearly no lines or scenes that don't show them in the presence of the Strongs. They are seemingly okay with anything Rhae throws their way because it's Rhae. The one and only scene about Baela openly speaking to her grandma about her wish to fight for Rhaenyra was deleted.

Meanwhile, Rhaenyra is stripped of her rage and thirst for vengeance, and instead made to negotiate for peace while in the books she was the one pushing to go to war first.

Can you tell me, again, how the fanfiction that is Hotd supposed to prove that they want to be "progressive" in contrast to the Maesters' "sexist" work, when literally all they do is whitewash Rhaenyra and sideline any woman who isn't her?

[gascon-en-exil]

Considering the undeniable fact that Edelgard was written for men and not them, what do you think that says about her lesbian fans? Are they following the wrong character? Or better question, does she truly have a significant sapphic fandom to begin with?

This is a difficult question for me to answer directly, because I'm not a lesbian. I've gotten a variety of comments from queer women addressing issues related to this on my relevant videos, with the range of responses being overall mixed. Even those who can enjoy Edelgard as a bi option (and/or her other F/F prospects) are usually still aware of IS's blatant misogyny in the way they handle their female characters, and acknowledge that these conversations are useful to have.

I think Monica's writing in Hopes sums up very well just how little the writers of these games are thinking about lesbians when they craft these characters and situations. Monica's attraction to Edelgard is treated as one long joke at her own expense, one that Edelgard appears to humor at best but never really understands. It's especially galling because this is the same game that takes a remarkably sober approach to Shamir's attraction to women, both in general and to Catherine specifically. There's also the matter of the M/M subtext, which as ever exists in a blind spot of straight male writers. With Dimidue alone, we have a situation where men are saying stuff like "You are irreplaceable, cherished" and "I cannot know happiness without you by my side" and holding hands and each other's gazes for something like fifteen seconds in an animated cutscene...and still expect us to believe that that's only platonic devotion. (As far as lord + retainer ships go, hold up Monigard and Dimidue side-by-side, and it's very obvious that IS is laughing at the former and isn't aware that the latter could even have romantic dimensions.)

The majority of IS's sapphic material exists in a different, though comparable blind spot: that lesbians exist as profitable titillation for straight men, and are always subject to the male gaze and the potential interposition of a male proxy for the audience (the Avatar, usually) because women's attraction toward one another isn't something to be taken seriously. Out of the various examples of F/F subtext and text in the entirety of FE, I feel like I could claim Heather from Radiant Dawn as maybe the only instance where the writers were thinking of actual queer women - and even then Heather is still mostly mild comic relief.

(As far as "following the wrong character" goes re: the fandom faction wars, there's always been the consistent irony that Rhea is subject to much of the same open objectification, ex. her summer duo alt with F!Byleth, and even gets to be a same-sex S rank as well. Humorously, this parallel or its implications is pretty much never brought up whenever Rhea's getting roasted as the Worst Ever.)

It's difficult to tell exactly how much of Edelgard's fanbase is sapphic. Of course Tumblr and AO3 skew queer as a rule, but those are just two sites; there's also Twitter and Reddit and SF and GameFAQs and 4chan and art sites like Pixiv and DeviantArt. We also know for a fact that at least two of the most prominent and combative elements in the pro-Edelgard side of the fandom are straight/bi men producing F/F Edeleth fanwork...which I remark on only as a counter to the frequent accusation that Dimitri fans are all horny fujoshi. How that does or doesn't play into what you're asking is hard to say - although one of them tends to get rather pissed when anyone brings something like that up and may still be stalking my blog.

It'll be interesting to see what troll anons I get now.

[inkblackorchid]

Honestly, as someone who's mostly a Roseknightshipper, it's been a lot of fun to go through your stories and discover your decision to make Sherry the Shounen Homoerotic Tension Rival. Obviously it's a pipe dream for it to actually happen, since Faithshipping has been locked in since chapter 1, but I can nonetheless get a lot of enjoyment out of Sherry testing the limits of Aki's sexuality.

Weirdly, I find your writing of their dynamic a lot more appealing than a lot of actual Roseknight fics, since it plays on an aspect that they tend to skate over: that is to say, Sherry isn't a very good person. She's not evil, per se, and certainly nowhere near as bad as Divine, but compared to Yusei, she represents a much more dangerous option, while Yusei comes off as the safe boyfriend you could bring to meet your parents (which is deeply funny for a guy with a well-earned criminal record).

As you write her, Sherry plays into all of Aki's worst instincts and attitudes, but unlike Divine, she's not doing it for selfish reasons (at least, not entirely). She wants Aki to fuck shit up, not for the sake of using her as a tool, but because she genuinely thinks Aki is at her best when she's in fuck-shit-up mode. And unlike Divine, she actually has a point--Aki trying to outright bury that part of her is indeed unhealthy, even if Sherry's solution is hardly the correct one. At the same time, this means she has the capacity to take Aki's own jabs at her seriously, because despite it all, she does seem to have a real fondness for her.

Point being, it's a neat dynamic, and I'm interested in seeing where it goes.

Considering the faithshipping endgame in my fics is, as you said, telegraphed from miles away, I find it hilarious but also genuinely flattering that Aki and Sherry's dynamic is still compelling enough to appeal to Roseknight shippers. Because yeah, I did purposefully write Sherry as ye olde shonen rival who's a bit too up in Aki's business and a bit too close and personal not to send mixed signals. (And honestly I have a lot of fun doing it. The weird sexual tension is hilarious to write.)

And Sherry certainly isn't a great person, no! But that's part of what makes her so interesting to me. Sherry may be valiant and dashing, but while her motivations are certainly understandable... they're also selfish, to be honest. Like yes, Iliaster is evil (mostly). But Sherry isn't fighting them because they're evil, she's fighting them because they took something away from her. And the second they promise to give it back, she chooses to switch sides. Because ultimately, she's not in this for the world or for the Greater Good or for justice, she's in it for herself. Which makes her very interesting and me very sad that she wasn't written better. Sherry being the dangerous option VS Yusei being the boyfriend you can show off to your parents made me chuckle, ngl. (Also, not inaccurate, as ironic as that is.)

And your description of Sherry's motivations is pretty much spot on for what I had in mind when I wrote her for my adjusted canon. Her "guidance" for Aki isn't coming from a place of malice, but Sherry has a skewed view of the world, so her solutions are also skewed accordingly. What she thinks is good VS what would actually be good are two different things, even if she'snot wholly wrong to tell Aki not to put herself in a muzzle. But yes, the fondness is real and I love playing with the back and forth between these two biting each other, then going back to trading genuine wisdom and life advice. Mixed signals galore.

Thank you very much! I hope you'll enjoy the future encounters these two will get in my stories. The resolution is already planned out, I just gotta get to writing it, haha.

[fun-k-board]

What type of Cards Against Humanity players would the Mortal Kombat X Kast be?

Note(s) : I have not played this game fully and I also haven't written for these characters before, this is almost definitely inaccurate and cringe, but I'm free.

Kung Jin -

Goes the dark humor route, but plays it with a complete straight face, he does laugh, but purposefully never at his own cards because he thinks it'll be 'suspicious'. It becomes a tell to see what his card is. He never picks what the person choosing would find funny, which means he usually never gets any black cards.

He will absolutely rage quit, or just try and get others to rage quit by being snarky and incredibly salty about his losing odds.

Takeda Takahashi -

He's not extremely dark humored (?) in his cards, but one of his cards made Liu Kang faint once. He typically goes to dad humor, the ones where you laugh at them but don't actually pick them.

He's never actually angry when he loses, sure, he's a bit salty especially if he finds his cards funny, but, at the end of the day, it's just a game.

Cassie Cage -

It depends on a, the black card, and b, the person choosing. She can win easily if it's her parents or Jacqui, she knows their humor, but if it's someone like Kitana she's screwed. Very 50/50 with her win chances.

She'll only get angry if Kung Jin wins, they're wlw and mlm hostility.

Jacqui Briggs -

Her cards are always hit or miss, she either puts her best card down on a prompt but someone else has a better card, or she saves her good cards until it's too late. She tends to get little to no black cards.

Never gets angry at a loss, she's pretty competitive during it, but afterwards even if she loses, she's just happy to spend time with everybody.

Kitana -

Gets confused on the point of the game, she's trying to keep her dignity and plays the less Inappropriate cards, whenever a particularly dark humor one comes along, she sneaks it back into the pile and picks a different card. She never gets black cards.

Doesn't get angry, she finds the game a bit pointless anyway.

Mileena -

The amount of horror this lady thinks of on the daily can't compare to any cards in any deck, she somehow always brings the worst one out, hardly ever wins because people are too horrified to pick her cards.

Will attempt murder if she doesn't win every round.

Johnny Cage -

Always goes the outwardly dad humor route, he rarely ever picks dark humor cards to put down unless that's all he has. Usually people can tell it's him, so he only wins if the person choosing likes him.

He says that he's only pretending to be salty as a joke, but in reality? It definitely makes him lose pride for at least one evening. Everyone can tell. And they all make fun of him.

Sonya Blade -

She plays with dry yet witty humor, ones you'd expect to see in a teen drama series or something, she's always relying on what she thinks her friends will find funny, and gets black cards regularly.

Will only rage if someone gets a black card and she finds the card genuinely unfunny, she can get over losing if she has a laugh over the card they chose, but if not, she's holding that over that person's head for years.

Kenshi Takahashi -

He's more of a judge, makes sure nobody commits murder, and makes sure nobody cheats. He can't play for obvious reasons, but he does secretly root for certain players, and may or may not excuse cheating if it means someone he doesn't like will lose.

Hanzo Hasashi -

He's silent the entire time, doesn't pick dark humor cards, and doesn't pick any funny ones, either, it's always a deadpan and scorchingly dry card, he's never won a single black card, everyone can tell it's his card, and nobody will pick his.

He's treating it more like a game of chess, and so when he loses he sort of just goes 'welp, could've been smarter.' And moves on.

Liu Kang -

He doesn't find any cards funny to be honest, and he mostly relies on how other people react to see what they find funny, as such, he has no black cards until the end, where he makes a comeback so insane everybody fully believes he cheats.

Won't rage if the comeback fails and he loses, however, he will get annoyed if Kung Jin wins. ( No but why was this man so outraged in every intro like calm tf down )

Kung Lao -

He won't be too sour if he loses, he's past the point of being insecure at every loss, but he definitely does try too hard to be funny. It makes everybody cringe. He gets at least one or two black cards on a bad day, but he plays too much into his humor rather than the person choosing.

Jackson Briggs -

Plays a lot of dry and witty type humor cards down, or ones where it's an actual answer to the card that would make sense, he's a sort of mix of Hanzo and Johnny, so he typically gets a few black cards, and wins maybe.

Doesn't get angry at all, he's just happy to be here.

[newx-menfan]

X-Men: From the Ashes Ranked

Honestly as many know- I wasn’t a big Krakoa fan. 

The titles were such a “hit or miss”, I hated the Moira retcon, Laura and several other characters were just horribly written, and after Hickman left the show… the momentum kind of died as well…

Despite bringing dead and depowered X-Men back…Krakoa seemed like we were pretty much only getting the same set of characters featured….

There just WASN’T A LOT that appealed to me.

While I get people’s arguments that this era feels “lost”… many comparing it to Claremont’s “Revolution” era before Morrison; I actually feel better about this era than I have about X-books in a long time. People totally forget that for every good book during Krakoa like “X-Terminators” or “Mauraders”- there was some pretty big STINKERS like “Excalibur”, “X-Force”, “Fallen Angels”, ect…

Honestly as disjointed this era may feel, it at least FEELS like X-Men.

So, after reading several titles, I wanted to rank and briefly review them-

Uncanny- This books is definitely the best of the line! The first arc with Sarah Gaunt was spectacularly creepy and Simone really SHOWS just how much of a comic book pro she is on this book. There’s not a lot of books I would say gets the Claremontian voice right- but this one definitely does! I literally can’t stop singing its praises- if you love the original Claremont, this book is a must read!

2. NYX- While this book ISN’T by any means perfect, I still feel like it has a lot of promise. There really isn’t a book on the rest of the line that has the same young and fresh vibe this one has. The idea of the book is entertaining and when it’s good- it’s fun!…yet, when it’s bad- it’s majorly disappointing. Hopefully the next arc is a bit stronger, because I really DO want this book to succeed! This is the book most X-Men fans WANT.

3. X-Men - While this book definitely FEELS unique in its lineup and fresh… something about it just doesn’t quite work for me. I actually liked the rag-tag lineup but I often feel like it’s bogged down with nostalgia. Remember when Beast went evil? When QQ did kick? When Idie and QQ was at the Jean Grey school?…because this book will definitely remind you! While this book isn’t all bad, my other issue is that it often has the same vibe as Aaron’s “Wolverine and the X-Men” meets Cyclops “Utopia”. There’s a ridiculousness at this point in Scott fixing up another garden and trying to yet AGAIN create another mutant civilization. The book veers into corniness with the jokes and often feels too childish for a main title. While it’s definitely not the worst title… Uncanny is a much more solid book if you want A-List X-Men comic.

4. X-Factor- Is fine. It’s not as great as “Marauders” or some of the other Krakoa titles…but it’s fine as a comedy book darkly harpooning on the 1990’s run of mutants being part of a military force. It’s not anything you’ll deeply care about or even remember, but it’s fine for a quick read. I don’t HATE it…but it’s boring. Even the jokes are pretty outplayed and boring. Also…Lorna REALLY just needs to breakup with Havok and be DONE 😬

5. Exceptional X-Men - Again, I think this book has great PROMISE…Kitty falling from earth and working as a waitress after basically being a GOD... And yet- I don’t feel like Kitty works for this kind of story; it makes SENSE for Hellion to have a chip on his shoulder towards Krakoa and Emma and the X-Men and Anole wanting a “normal life”. Surge would have made sense. Hope would have made sense after being propped up as a “mutant messiah”. They basically did this storyline years ago with Sofia in “New Warriors”…and it made sense then. Kitty… just feels inauthentic and…kind of whiny. I think the biggest problem with this book is it seems like every other title…street title?- NYX is doing it. New students?- Uncanny is doing it. Character bitter after Krakoa is gone?- NYX is again doing it. All these other books are just doing these plot points BETTER. It’s sad because I think this book will survive the chopping  block where NYX might not…which is too bad because I think it’s definitely one of the weakest of the line.

6. X-Force - Oh X-Force. The bane of X-Men fans. I think the LAST time I really enjoyed an “X-Force” title was when KYOST was on the book. While definitely not AS BAD as Krakoa era Percy crackfic levels of crazy… the biggest problem with this book is- it’s boring. Nothing in this title feels greatly developed. Not the villains, not the plot, and not the characters. Everything is “Deus Ex Machina-ed” at the end of every issue. There’s no tension. There’s nothing to keep you in. While you don’t have to fear Beast making murderous Wolverine clones while flying away on a piece of an island or Domino being tortured by a man with a peacock tattoo… you also won’t really remember anything that happens in this book either. While I know sadly it won’t be the first to get cut…because X-Force is historically NEVER dropped no matter HOW bad the writing is…it definitely SHOULD BE.

Overall- I would say “Uncanny”, “NYX”, and “X-Men” were the big winners of “Ashes”…

“X-Factor”, “Exceptional”, and “X-Force” are the rougher titles…

Still I would say again- the biggest problem with most of these are that they’re boring and safe… yet even at their worst I would still say they’re more readable than say “Fallen Angels” or Duggan…

I probably won’t bother with “Phoenix” (honestly I am pretty sick of the Phoenix Force anymore and “Troia Jean” has zero appeal for me)…

Probably won’t bother with Wolverine or Hellverine, unless I hear good recommendations of it online…

I might try “Dazzler”, “Storm”, “Mystique” and “Magik”…

I will definitely read Laura’s solo and review it on here as well”.

But there you go- I really DON’T feel like “Ashes” is as big a failure as people are making it to be online….

[blackjackkent]

OC Codex Prompts: 3, 8 and 17 for Hector? c:

(OC Codex Prompts) for Hector Carlisle!

3. a report written by your OC’s teacher or mentor

Notes from the diary of Enric of Trielta, Silverlight Monastery, 1449 DR Gavin Carlisle's boy turns ten this week. I must confess, Moonmaiden forgive me, that I resented the responsibility of caring for the child when Gavin abandoned him on our doorstep, and certainly did not expect that, ten years on, I might take such pride to see his progress. Let this be yet another proof that no emotion need be given more credence than it warrants. Hector is, as always, an attentive student, calm and polite; he takes our guidance to heart regarding self-control and the introspection which worship of our Lady requires. He does begin to show a certain restlessness, as is perhaps to be expected at his age, when he has grown up with only a single set of four walls. In light of this, I think it best that we begin to expand his activities despite his youth. He has expressed interest in exploring the library and has been deeply excited during his chaperoned visits to pick out books; I believe that training as a scribe would serve his curiosity well - and the monastery, as well, for Brother Kendrick grows very old indeed and his sight is beginning to fail. Best he take an apprentice at once while the Moonmaiden's light still shines on him. Should he wish it, I will also recommend that he be allowed to join Brother Ventiss occasionally on his trips to the city market for supplies. While I would not generally wish Ventiss's company on anyone, I believe Hector would do well to experience a taste of the city air on occasion, that he may compare it with our own rarefied atmosphere and draw his own conclusions, whatever they might be.

8. your OC’s doctor/healer talking about their injuries

"He'll be fine," Shadowheart mutters. "You're sure?" Karlach shifts her weight restlessly from foot to foot. "Sorry. Fuck. I know you've got so much other shit on your mind, but I just-- you're sure, yeah? That bone motherfucker cut him up real bad..." Shadowheart lets out a long slow breath and, with visible effort, wrestles herself out of the swirl of dark thoughts consuming her. "Hector will be fine," she says more firmly. "Not that it wasn't touch and go there for a minute. Myrkul's attacks..." A pause. Gods, she's tired; the words come slowly, reluctantly. "It's called bone chill. A necromantic effect. It prevents healing by magical means, and it takes time to wear off." "Ah. Right. Okay." Karlach looks relieved. "Yeah - I felt that too, I think, when I got up too close. And when something makes this old girl feel cold--" she thumps at the glowing metal under her breastbone with one fist "--you know it's serious." She manages a slight, rueful smile. "You've seen it before, then?" Shadowheart hesitates. "It's... not unheard of as a tool among Sharran agents," she finally says carefully. Karlach squints at her thoughtfully. "Right," she says. "So he'll be fine?" Shadowheart can't help it - she smiles, very slightly. It's something; she'd been starting to feel like she was never going to be able to smile again. "Yes," she repeats gently. "He'll be fine, Karlach. I promise. His back will scar pretty badly, I suspect, since I couldn't heal him at once, but that's the worst of it." Karlach grins, her indomitable good humor reasserting itself at once. "Ah, well. Not so bad then," she says. "Thank the gods." "Some of them, at least," Shadowheart murmurs.

17. a description of your OC’s family by a future historian

The identity of Hector Carlisle's mother is still something of a mystery. His father, Gavin - a monk at the Silverlight Monastery northwest of Baldur's Gate - provided no information on her when he left his infant son on the monastery's doorstep in early 1439 DR and vanished into the night. The note attached to the basket holding the boy read simply, "I leave you the fruits of the peak of my folly. - G Carlisle" An unwanted fifth son of minor nobility in Baldur's Gate, Gavin Carlisle was summarily dispatched to a monastic life at the age of eighteen and never took to it particularly well. Records of his time at the monastery are fraught with reports of sneaking out, carousing, arrests in the city, and general debauchery; it is clear that the disciplinary practices of the monks had little effect on his tendency towards hedonism. Given the relatively wide casting of Gavin's proverbial net, it is impossible to make a precise assertion as to the identity of the mother of his child who would one day go on to save the city. The most pervasive theory, however, gives the role to Florence Beaumont, daughter of a milliner in the Lower City. No records exist that specifically connect Florence and Gavin romantically, but there is record of Florence dying of a nebulous "fever of the lungs" around the time of Hector's birth. She is also recorded in her father's diary as having striking bright blue-grey eyes, a feature which is also mentioned repeatedly among contemporaneous accounts of Hector's activities. Hector himself never expressed particular interest in learning of his family history. In his own eyes, the monks of the monastery - and, later, the adventuring party he became more directly associated with - were his true family.

[littlemisstfc]

So...No LAYERS For The Decepticons: How RID 2015 Fails At Critiquing The Prison Complex

Welcome back to this side of the Hundred Acre Woods. It’s been 84 years since I have written a blog post here, so forgive my absence. 😭 By the way, I will be at TFCon LA 2024 on both March 9th and March 10th. Feel free to say hi to me, I cannot wait to meet more of you there as well as meeting more voice actors and artists. Anyways, let’s get onto today’s topic. So…RID 2015, my dear friend. 

After making that compilation of the purple icon and the moment Fracture, I began to have thoughts about RID 2015. I will be coming out with a video retrospective that will hopefully come out later this year. My collaborator is dealing with a personal matter at the moment, so I’m respecting their space. Think of this as a preview to what we have here. I thought about doing a video, but I feel like my strongest strength has always been writing. 

RID 2015 is an interesting show in the sense that it has so much to say, yet never got the chance to fully explore what it wants to say. If you know me by now, you know that I am one of the most hardcore RID defenders in existence akskskskdjdkd. Let me make it clear: it’s a show that exists. However…it is MY show that exists. Like, compared to the very worst of the worst that Transformers has to offer, this show doesn’t even scratch at the surface. It’s a mid show that manages to keep me entertained and engaged at least. However, at the same time, its flaws are genuinely that egregious, and as much as the writers tried, I feel like they’re held back from fully exploring its potential. Like I said, I will go into the gritty nitty detail at a later day, so at the moment, let’s go discuss what’s perhaps the main issue I have with RID 2015…it fails at critiquing the prison complex.

The Prison Complex...BUT WITH FURRIES.

In case you don’t know what RID 2015 is about, let me summarize it really quickly. RID 2015 takes place three years later after Transformers Prime ended, and it focuses on Bumblebee now. After getting a sign from Optimus’s spirit to return to Earth, he does so, along with a cadet named Strongarm and a delinquent named Sideswipe accidentally joining him. Eventually, they all ended up at Crown City and they found out a Decepticon prison ship, the Alchemor, crash landed near here, courtesy of the caretaker Fixit. Then, after taking care of one escaped Decepticon, they were then joined by Grimlock and two humans named Russell and Denny. So, the entire series is focused on Bee and his team capturing the escaped Decepticon prisoners, while also having to deal with the shady behind the scenes of the Cybertronian government.

Now that we got the main premise out of the way, on the surface, it seems like it’s a harmless monster of the week type show. For most of the time, it’s just Bee and his team capturing Decepticons, who are also animals in this version. Okay, Beast Wars aksksksks. It seems like there’s not much issue. However…when you really think about the circumstances of these Decepticons, not to mention how oddly it portrays the police force in a mostly positive light (and I say that loosely), the show did not age in retrospect. It does not do a great job at critiquing what’s wrong with the prison industry.

Now that I brought it up, you may be asking why I did so. It’s important to bring it up, because it ties into how this show tackles the Decepticons and the Cybertronian police state. In a nutshell, the prison complex refers to the relationship between the prison system and various businesses, specifically how they benefit from incarceration being the end-all solution in tackling society’s problems. It relies heavily on the surveillance and policing of the population in order to make the quickest profit that really only serves as a bandaid to the elephant in the room. In case you want to learn more about the prison complex, I highly recommend doing your research by looking up sources, especially from those who work in prison reform.

Back to RID 2015, the show makes it seem like the Decepticons should be treated as menaces to society because the government says so. Now, let me make it clear: I am in no way justifying what these characters did. I mean, there are legit serial killers and legitimate dangers to society in there akksksksksa. It’s called nuance, folks. However, at the same time…these people should be getting help for their issues and/or get rehabilitation instead of being treated as animals (no pun intended). You look at characters like Springload and Filch, who are individuals that show severe signs of mental illness that heavily impact how they navigate the world. Then, you have Decepticons who only really committed minor offenses like Bisk. Now, I’m not saying that they’re justified in doing those crimes. I’m saying that the consequences should fit the crime, yet for some reason, the show likes to say that brutal incarceration is the answer. In the world of the Aligned Continuity post Prime, you get labeled a Decepticon for your crimes and you;re packed off to jail until you die or something. 

Then, we have the head bitch in charge himself, Steeljaw. Now, I’m saving my thoughts on his character and how he wouldn’t go away at a later date, so for now…Steeljaw may be a character that the show stubbornly refuses to let go, but I’m sorry, he brought up good points about the way things are runned. He is basically TFA Megatron if he was a furry aksksksks. While his intentions are ultimately a power grab and the way he treats his pack isn’t justified, at the same time, you do see where he’s coming from. The show portrays the premise in a very strict black and white sense, in which the Decepticons are all evil and the Autobots are justified in throwing all them into prison. Now, we do learn about the actual truth behind the Council and Strongarm is a genuinely good person, but still, the show is so committed to the anti Decepticon status quo that it makes the premise much worse. It lacks the nuance that Animated and Cyberverse to an extent had in portraying the two sides, so it’s insensitive at best and actually quite harmful at worst. 

So…you may be wondering, “wait, but what about Grimlock and Drift?” That’s where they both come into the discussion. To me, those two represent the nuance that the show desperately wanted to convey, but isn’t allowed to explore. They’re both reformed Decepticons who showed that they are not defined by their past, and they put in the work to change. Hell, there was even an entire ass episode dedicated to the team realizing that Grimlock did change for the better. In Drift’s case, when he was confronted by a figure from his past, he made it clear that he also changed for the better. So, if the show was willing to offer both Grimlock and Drift second chances, then why can’t it offer the same grace to the Alchemor prisoners?

This then leads to the character of Scowl, whom I honestly believe that he is capable of having a genuine heel face turn if the show GAVE HIM A FUCKING CHANCE. The instant chemistry he had with Grimlock reveals that he seems to be a cool guy. I think that once he’s taught to learn right from wrong and is given a support system, he can be redeemed. Yet frustratingly, the show goes, “nah bro, he’s 100% evil underneath his bro bro act.” It’s kind of hypocritical that it allows Grimlock to reform, but it puts Scowl and a majority of the Decepticons into a black and white box. They’re not allowed to be their own characters in the first place, so they received the short end of the stick even more. Just…UGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. Show, why do you test my patience sometimes? When I tweeted about this thought I had after I made the Fracture compilation, someone summarized it best right here:

"Legitimately, if RID15 wasn't aimed at kids, it would be a really nuanced show and likely would get recognized as better than Prime."

Kids are fucking smarter than we give them credit for. I was six years old when I watched Animated, and I noticed the deeper aspects of the show. I just didn’t have the words to articulate it until I became an adult. If RID 2015 was given the time and care it needs to explore this concept to its fullest potential, it would perhaps be the best well thought out show in the Aligned Continuity. I may get canceled for this, but it’s the LAYERS that Prime wants. However, because the higher ups wanted a toyetic approach and thought the kids are too dumb to pick up on LAYERS and nuance, we got this, and it honestly saddens me it turned out this way.

Conclusion: Even the most mid Transformers show deserves LAYERS.

Being a RID 2015 stan is the toughest battle God gives to his silliest little guys akskskskks. I criticize this show because I truly believe it deserves BETTER than what it was given to work with. You may look at me like I’m crazy for thinking about this way more than what a normal person would do…but I ain’t normal, lads. 

I'm saving my full thoughts for the retrospective like I said, but right now, the show has a lot to say, but it was sadly silenced. I honestly think it would've been one of those Transformers shows people will fondly look back on had it been given more time in the oven. This is why I appreciate fanfiction and fanon existing because they explore the LAYERS the show has underneath the silly vibes. I would do anything for this show to receive a comic book continuiation or a spinoff that explores its full potential.

Anyways, Pingu.

[nikrei]

May Comics Round Up!

I didn't think I got all that much read this month, but it looks like there's a decent amount!

Swamp Thing (71-90) (1988-1990)

Swamp Thing tells a good story as always, and is delightfully messed up in many ways. Intertwined a bit with the start of Hellblazer at this point, so read them together!

The Demon (1-4) (1987)

Missed this mini last month, so grabbed it this time around. A pretty good sequel to the 70s run, and ends with Etrigan kissing Blood on the mouth as they break up, so I think it's a success.

Invasion Event (1-8 + all tie-ins) (1989)

This is a fun event! It is also where the term 'meta-human' originates, so check it out if you wanna get that history.

New Guardians (6-12) (1989)

Sort of a mediocre run overall. Definitely groundbreaking, but you can tell that the guy with the vision left after the first couple of issues (because dc wouldn't let him be as progressive as he wanted to be with the story). Makes me wonder if Tom continues to be a fully enlightened being when he shows up in GL issues after this (if he doesn't they're all cowards)

Plastic Man (1-4) (1988-1989)

A fun gag comic mini. Good for an intro to the character, and it's neat how each issue starts with detailed "serious" comic art that then becomes v stylized and fun.

The Spectre (21-31) (1989)

Oh boy did this go places in the finish. The first half of this run has an entirely different vibe then the second half and neither of them really do it for me.

Dr. Fate (1-14) (1988-1989)

Look the new Dr Fate is sooo wierd, they are just wildly going places with this whole thing. Old Lord of Order Nabu is now a grumpy couch potato, the new Dr Fate duo have no idea what they're doing and consist of a kid that's been aged up to adulthood and his v young stepmom, and also they are soulmates. No idea where they at gonna go with this after they've killed Eric off.

Hellblazer (1-26) (1988-1990)

I like this one a lot, as serious titles go. It really is amusing the difference between Constantine in this title and in Swamp Thing. In his own title he struggles to travel around England, hitchhiking and train hopping and the like, compared to how he's jetsetting around the world in Swamp Thing.

The Question (Annual 2-33) (1989)

The Question is always quality, and also Shiva showed back up!! Many things happen, and also Hub City is literally the worst. Gotham and Bloodhaven think that they are the worst but it is 100% Hub City sorry guys.

Action Comics Weekly (609-641) (1988-1989)

Or at least the bits that were Black Canary/Dead Man/Phantom Stranger/Nightwing/Speedy/The Demon/Phantom Lady (i am not immune to the power of tits okay). These little stories were all really fun, and super easy to miss if you don't have a reading list to follow (I was following a Roy list, then backed up to catch the Dinah stories story) However, the Demon story there at the end had Jason and Etrigan back together already, so I looked up a reading list for him and discovered:

Cosmic Odyssey (1-4) (1988)

Read this to find out how Etrigan and Jason got back together. I love the fourth world. I have many things to say about it and I have written out some of that already. Jim Starlin is my enemy.

Secret Origins (26-38) (1988-1989)

Catching up on folks changed backstories for the post crisis era pretty much

Green Arrow (14-16) (1989)

Only just got started on Arrow at the end of the month! I'll read more now!

Bonus: weeks 5-9 of the Comic Kon superboy reading club! We've finally made it to the Superboy solo! But boy, does that start off getting caught in every big event around, the extra credit has to work hard!

[merrilark]

I don't want to sound like I'm hating on something before it's even had a chance to be released, but if the news is true, there's something a little amusing about the LA!A:TLA show supposedly watering down Sokka's arc because his sexism in the OG show "was iffy". A:TLA, the show with one of the most widely loved redemption arcs... The show most people think of when they think "well-written redemption arc"...

Like... are we going to water down Zuko, then, too? Or does he get a pass at being crappy because he's a "villain", while Sokka, a "hero", isn't allowed to be a little dislikable?

I'm too zonked today to put my thoughts together eloquently, sorry, but something about only allowing "bad" characters the room to do bad things and expecting them to grow, while assuming "good" characters must always be good and never make mistakes because duh, they're the GOOD guys seems... really ironic for a show that constantly pushed the thought that there is good and evil in everything, and what might look like acts of heroism to one person may look like acts of villainy to another. Villains will often see themselves as the heroes of their own story because they're doing what they believe is right according to their environment or circumstance. No one is perfect and everyone has the capability to evolve and change for the better (or the worst). Etc. etc.

Obviously Sokka's sexism is nothing compared to the harm Zuko does, but that makes the possible watering down of Sokka's arc worse, in my opinion. It creates this idea that badness is exclusive to identifiably "bad" people and that "good" people will always be right and just, and are above being influenced into bad ideas or beliefs. But that's just not true! Zuko and Sokka are both products of the places they came from, the culture they grew up in, and the trauma they endured. Sokka grew up in a tribe that had at least some heavy focus on traditional gender roles, enough that all the men were expected to go to war and the boys, like Sokka, left to defend the tribe. Being the oldest boy and carrying around the horror of losing his mother and potentially his father to the threat of the conquesting Fire Nation, it's no wonder Sokka carries some sexist notions. He's a young teen who feels he has to shoulder the weight of protecting the entire Southern Water Tribe alone. I'm shocked he's not more sexist, actually, because it's also a matter of pride, duty, and promise for him to protect the women and children around him. It makes just as much sense that he would believe in the rigidity of gender roles as much as Zuko, also a teen, also burdened by the weight his father placed on him, believes that his quest for finding the Avatar is important. Honor is important to both of them, because it's really all either of them has or have known.

But even if Sokka's sexism wasn't rooted in something as dramatic as his mother dying in a Fire Nation attack or all the other men going off to war, getting to see him grow through his experiences with Suki and the Kyoshi Warriors is so satisfying despite how quick it is. It's fun to see characters like Sokka get a little humbled, it's fun to see them change and grow and become more likable, because that's real.

Anyway. That's a lot of words for really just trying to say that I think "good" characters should be allowed flaws just like "bad" characters, because in the end, everyone is a person and what is A:TLA about if not the power of nuture vs. nature, and the ability to choose your own path?

[housewarningparty]

I am sorry for venting here but I watched the Buffy episode Into the Woods like an hour ago and I am still sat here in dismay I think it's the worst episode of the show so far, there may be episodes technically worse but none have triggered such a visceral reaction as the slowly dawning realisation that the show does actually think Riley is the one in the right (or at least that Buffy is the one who is more in the wrong) and Buffy should have just immediately forgiven him for cheating on her with vampires I think it was that incredibly awkwardly written Xander scene (I honestly thought he'd been replaced by some kind of doppelganger) towards the end that broke me. I thought the decision to have Riley cheat on her while Joyce was suffering from Brain Cancer was wild and audacious but I had no idea it would get this bad.

Yeah. Yeah, it's definitely a low point.

i'm not particularly a riley fan (I have yet to personally really meet any) but him effectively cheating on her while Joyce is ill and dying is basically a scenario crafted in a lab to turn the audience against him, right? like how much more wrong can you be in a situation? so the pivot to scolding buffy for dumping him and shaming her into trying to get him back is insane. ESPECIALLY having all this come from XANDER of all people.

it's kind of a shame bc i think there's some really interesting stuff going on in the buffy/riley s5 storyline. i love putting buffy's flaws under a microscope - the way she closes herself off, the way she chooses not to share her burdens, the fact that she's so overwhelmed that she does legitimately and painfully withdraw from riley is interesting to me. buffy struggling to balance her many responsibilities in that season (her mom, dawn, school, her calling, her relationship) and FAILING at some of them is very compelling! and i think it's also really interesting commentary on sexism - riley feeling emasculated by their power differential and how that's suddenly a bigger issue now that he's not a juiced on evil army demon drugs is interesting. riley's resentment and sense of entitlement over buffy keeping him at arm's length while she's overwhelmed is interesting. the cheating/blood den angle is dark and fucked up and makes an interesting counterpoint to spike's increasingly intense pursuit of buffy. but ultimately i think the story of the 'good guy' who swore he'd be patient and be what buffy needed hurting her badly because she wasn't able to do things on his timetable is surprisingly mature, especially compared to buffy's usual romantic dramas.

too bad into the woods happens and the character who represents her metaphorical heart gets to bash her over the head with how much she should feel bad over making a guy cheat on her. a lot. while she was distracted by her mom dying. this is probably all because she had a crummy boyfriend in high school, right?

UGH it sucks, for sure.

[thecoramaria]

I would like to ask your opinion on what might constitute a mature rating in ao3 that isn’t necessarily more extreme instances of violence/sexual references (compared to teen).

My example is I would like to write a “descent into madness” arc but I’m unsure where it falls on the scale. I sense that the worst of the depiction will be extremely harmful words to others and mild injury from disorientation.

I would first ask myself "If a 13-year-old asked me if it would be okay to read this, what would I say?" If the answer is no, its going under Mature rather than Teen and Up Audiences. You might be fine with a 16-year-old reading it, but there are teens younger than them, after all. Now, however you answer that question isn't the end of it. You might not even know what to answer. The thing is that ratings aren't just about mature subject matter or how "graphically" they're depicted, but the level of maturity/life experience you as the author would expect from the reader for them to understand the story.

A story can have not even the mention of violence, swearing, sex, and the like, and still warrant an M rating, because it's written in such a way that only someone with a certain level of reading comprehension or understanding of the world/subject matter would get. For example, if you were writing a story about office politics and drama with all these underhanded comments and such, that would still be rated as mature, because a teenager would be unlikely to have the life experience to fully understand the sheer anxiety of reading a sentence like "As per my last several emails," and even if they do, it's less likely to engage them because it doesn't resemble what their own life looks like at that point. Does that make sense? If you rate that kind of story as 'Teen and Up Audiences' because it as no age-inappropriate content, the teens who see or read it are still going to be unhappy because it doesn't relate to them, and adults may skip over it because they think it's an "immature" interpretation of their experiences.

For a "downward spiral" arc (I'm using this instead of "descent into madness" because I think it's a less ableist term), those have been done in kid's media before, with Azula from ATLA as a pretty famous one, but it also wasn't the centre of the story. ATLA's target audience is also younger than teens as well. The thing is though, the watcher can still enjoy ATLA whether they sympathise with Azula or not, since they have other characters to be invested in and root for, and they can always come to understand her nuances better as they grow older.

If Azula's downward spiral was the main storyline though, it would have to be marked as being for older audiences, because seeing the protagonist -the character you as the reader are likely to be the most attached to- go through these difficult emotions and reach a point of no return is going to be an emotionally and morally challenging read. You'd expect your audience to have a certain level of maturity where they're able to understand where the character is coming from but also how their downfall is also, at least partially, their own doing. If you're using this story to raise questions, you'd expect the readers to be able to sit with and think about them rather than demanding answers. However much of that maturity you expect from your readers will ultimately decide if your story should be rated 'Mature' or lower. Well, this answer got away from me. I hope it all makes sense! Def typed this up through a raging headache lol