#but its a fucking object show! no one wants to read a comic about that! id be letting my closest friends down if i chose that over jsab:hh

[irrelevaantidiot]

You know the disinterest is bad when the only reason you feel tied to a project is only so you can draw a scene where ur fav oc only appears like once and it's near the end so the drag feels worth it

[quasi-normalcy]

Star Trek series rated by horniness (as rated by me, an asexual, so you know its objective):

Star Trek: The Original Series - what is there to say for the series that invented slashfic, fuck-or-die, and Thiess's theory of titillation in costuming? The universe is full of greased-up pecs and scantily clad women wondering what is this thing you call...love? It's easier to mention the episodes that *aren't* horny. 10/10, for how could it be otherwise?

Star Trek: The Animated Series - It's a Saturday morning cartoon series from the 70s, and yet... 3/10, for the surprising number of scantily clad muscular guys

Star Trek: The Next Generation - Oh, we *start* quite horny; Roddenberry is keen to let us know that the android has a penis in the second episode; but then Roddenberry dies, and by the final season even Troi is wearing a sensible duty uniform. 6/10 for Will Riker, though

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - We've got Quark's, where the women are scantily clad, the holosuites are for fucking, and the waiters give themselves ear infections from doing too much oo-mox on themselves. We've got Jadzia Dax, who has three hundred years worth of sexcapades in two genders and will tell you about them at the drop of a hat. We've got Bashir and his sad blue balls for the first two seasons. We've got Klingons breaking each other's clavicles to initiate coitus. And we've got an enemy power led by the perpetual mind-melting gangbang that canonically is the Great Link. 9/10

Star Trek: Voyager - Weirdly conservative in its sexual politics. I mean, it goes out of its way to stick poor Jeri Ryan in that body condom, and there's a whole episode about space whales wanting to fuck the ship, and another one about Janeway wanting to fuck an Irishman, and *two* episodes about Pon Farr...actually, you know what? 6/10.

Star Trek: Enterprise - You know what, let me tell you about this series; this series is like a 14-year-old asexual boy boasting about his supposed sexual conquests in the hopes that it will endear him to the cool kids. It doesn't work; there's nothing genuine about it and everyone knows it; no matter how many innuendos he throws in, it's clear that there's no joy in it for him and he'd be happier if he could just go off and read comic books. Secretly, he wishes his friends still wanted to play with action figures. -1/10

Star Trek: Discovery - The show presents us with wall-to-wall gays who just...never seem to shtup each other. Like, I of all people know that sex doesn't define queerness, but...really? I guess maybe they're afraid of being less than wholesome? Anyways, 2/10 for that time that the Emperor went off to fuck a couple of Orions in the middle of a dangerous secret mission on the Klingon homeworld.

Star Trek: Picard - A series so sexless that it can't even show its main canonical couple enjoying each other's company for more than 5 seconds each season. And yet the chaste Jurati/Borg Queen pairing manages to be the hottest thing ever in the history of fiction. Anyway, I guess they technically had Agnes sleep with Rios in the first season, so 1/10.

Star Trek: Lower Decks - Oooh boy, we're at the heavy hitter now, my god. Completely, unashamedly horny. Gene Roddenberry *wishes* he could have done that orgy scene that people on Twitter were freaking out about. 11/10

Star Trek: Prodigy- They're *kids*. 0/10

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - Not really a lot, surprisingly given their TOS pastiche. Still, we get some stuff with Spock. 3/10.

[seeminglydark]

1. since john tries to stay away from tech as much as possible, i think it would be funny to see what would happen if he got his hands on like a secondhand e-reader or laptop and what it would look like if he tried to use it. it would also be cool to see if or what kind of stickers he would use to decorate it.

2. i know it’s kind of a difficult topic. but since i’ve been reading your comic, I think the “Creaky” storyline is one of my favorites. Being able to escape a difficult upbringing and being able to find solace and comfort in found family. I’ve imagined that with the help of his newfound friends, John would go back to his father’s house and take back some of his most prized possessions because I think John would be the type of person that would value things and attach those objects to memories of people. I think it would be fun to see how John adapted to a new environment and being able to live freely (full-time) and thrift for clothes and other things. I think it would be interesting to see his thoughts of when he entered his first apartment and see how he decorated it and see how it has evolved into the glimpses that we’ve seen.

hahaha while i understand what you're asking here, he would of course one hundred percent fumble it, the last thing he had was a flip phone from the early 2000's when he was in highschool, so of course he wouldnt be good with laptops or anything. as far as an e-reader goes, john is severely dyslexic (undiagnosed, so untreated) and reading is already a huge struggle, which is why he uses the walkman and listens to audio books. the truth is, were he to get his hands on these things, he simply wouldnt use them. but its fun to imagine him like my 80 year old dad doing the ol' point and shoot typing style with two fingers! Caro and Maddie show him things on their phone and on the internet all the time anyway, so hes not missing the good memes ha! Creaky is also my fave storyline, I'm so glad you're enjoying it! To answer your first question, no, he wouldn't actually go to his dads at any point, and even if he did, none of his stuff would still exist sadly. on a brighter note, he DOES get to retrieve some of his old things, either after hooking back up with Caro (who has his battle jacket, fuck belt and a few other things) and because his Highschool pals Georgie and Dee would totally have a ton of his stuff in the back of Dee's van, so he'd get his walkman, some clothes, his cross earrings that belonged to his mom, and a few other precious things, and you are right, he does connect objects to people. His biggest problem is not remembering much about what some of those connections were. Another factor here is the fact that there is a protection order between he and his ad put in place by Maddie's stepdad Dr Parker, John's dad isnt allowed within a certain amount of distance to John so, going to his house wouldnt be allowed. Even with his friends (in Seemingly Dark, the Fenris chapter) facing down with his father is almost impossible because of his fear and trauma. There will be more about that in the future! on the second note, im actually in process of turning Creaky into a stand-alone book! Which is why I haven't drawn anything here in reply to Johns reactions to new places, new friends and new environments, its all things I want to explore more in depth in the new version of my fave story line. <3 Heres links to some of the progress on the New Creaky! and here!

[meraki-yao]

That question was super serious im trying to figure out what's going on, love that taylor got all that exposure but it was a bit surprising, Im from a super homophobic country (illegal/death penalty type homophobic) and china is probably more progressive from where i stand but by western standards its still a lot conservative. So it was odd that an actor who's only popular in certain groups for playing a queer character is getting hyped up there.

Heads up, I went on a rant lmao

I agree. And I was really freaking anxious the whole time he was there because of it.

Okay, for those who don't know, here's the thing about LGBT+ in China. And I'm only gonna talk about the sexuality aspect because the gender aspect is a whole other topic and a lot less progressive than the sexuality side (that being said trans lives matter)

The official stance promoted by the government, ergo the public, is condemning it. Thankfully not in an illegal/death penalty type, but more in a "if we ignore it and don't talk about it, it will go away" type.

There were a couple of years I think in the mid-2010s where significant progress was being made in terms of both representation (see shows like Guardian, the Untamed, Word of Honor) and pride organizations and support (see Shanghai Pride)

But starting in mid-2021 the government suddenly cracked down on queer representation. "Effeminate" men were publicly condemned and called "sissy" BY THE OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT NOTICE (I was fucking fuming when I read it). Dangai (BL, or simply, adapted from gay novels) shows were banned. Multiple LGBT+ organizations were shut down without explanation. And just this year, when a singer with a famous song about being an LGBT ally supporting the community held a concert in Beijing, anyone with anything remotely resembling a rainbow was banned from entry and had to hand in the rainbow object, even if it was their clothing. And those stuff were never returned. The older generation, such as my parents' generation, condemn it. It's not an optimistic sight.

But here's the fucking truth: queer people, have always existed, and always will. So actually, younger people, I'd say 30 years old and younger, the vast majority accept queerness. Gay couples are sharing their lives on Bilibili. Danmei (explicitly gay) radio dramas, novels, and comics are still being produced and consumed. There are so many people watching Western gay shows and movies such as RWRB as well as producing gay fan content. And honestly, part of it is due to the shipping culture here (which is a whole other topic I can write a dissertation on).

Either way, what I'm trying to say is regardless of whatever the "official stance" is, the demographic that's active on social media is accepting of it. Which is why RWRB could gain such popularity in China.

As per my last ask, I think the main reason for inviting Taylor is his willingness to try things the local way. A lot of times Chinese capitalists/executives don't really care where the star got their fame from, they just care that they are famous.

The difference with Taylor is that actors in China of a similar level of status locally to Taylor and who have been in queer productions don't talk about it after the promo period is over. If anything, gaining fame from being in a Dangai is kind of considered shameful. In fact, they actively avoid it. Taylor is of course, more than willing to talk about RWRB. In fact, during the videos, live streams and stuff, I was actively observing if RWRB would be brought up by the Chinese side/host. It wasn't. During the Little Red Book livestream, despite basically everyone in the live chat spamming RWRB comments, Taylor was the one who said "Oh I see talk about RWRB, what do you want to know?" And I understand that there are several potential reasons why RWRB wasn't brought up by the host, including time constraints, pre-set questions, pre-set agendas etc, but latent homophobia is also a potential reason.

Either way, yeah. I don't really know what the conclusion of this ramble is but here you go 😅

[symbiotic-slime]

here to maybe will the universe (tumblr dash) to show me my mutuals posts. maybe once. ever. Augh

anyway since I havent scrolled and tumblr hates me, have you read the most recent Venom War teaser stuff... I'm. Scared. (who im assuming is) Flash is on the cover so I'm but I know there's gonna be tomfoolery.

I don't know how I feel about Dylan and Eddie being pitted against eachother. Thoughts?

honestly I do not know much about Venom War but I am not excited for it 😭 I have not read the most recent teasers, I just vaguely know the concept of it lol

I think the concept is a bit dumb tbh, like why is Eddie beefing with his son??? I mean I could be wrong, but the whole “there can only be one” Venom host thing being paired with a massive fight feels kinda wrong to me? it feels like they’re ignoring Symby’s agency and turning it into an object that can be fought over instead of its own being with its own thoughts and emotions? like maybe instead of fighting your son you guys should talk with Symby about what it wants.

also I saw an article headline talking about how other marvel characters like Black Widow were going to get involved which is very weird to me??

I’m assuming that means they’re hinting that the main fight isn’t going to be between Eddie and Dylan because why would a bunch of other characters need to join that. I mean, unless they’re all on Dylan’s side because like… Eddie I love you but you should not fucking duke it out with your son holy shit.

I mean, I want to say I’m excited to see Flash and Eddie together in a comic again but I’m honestly so scared for what the rest of the plot will do to them 😭 I’m trying to be cautiously optimistic that maybe Venom War won’t go in the direction I think it will but… yeah I’m not holding out too much hope

[hadesbullshit]

hi hades! i have a lot of strong opinions on a couple specific spn episodes, and id love to hear your thoughts!! i will not judge for your answers, because this show fucking sucks but also its the greatest piece of media ever so any opinion is correct objectively. ok anyways

what do you think about: faith (season 1 episode 13) , roadkill (season 2 episode 16) , and playthings (season 2 episode 11)?

I'm gonna rewatch them to ansure this (bc y be normal about media when u can go ferral) but pre rewatch: Roadkill is one of my fav eps ever.

1x12 (faith is 1x12. 1x13 is Route 666 (also a very good ep as a dean charaitor study if u do want my thoughts it)):

i forgot how much i love this ep. I'm really into religious imagery in any media. dean on deaths door in the singlar reazon I'm gay /j. Sam's desperation to save Dean was always hinted at but this ep really does the "show not tell" thing right in a way most of the show doesn't. john not coming to help dean is one of the reasons i fucking hate the guy. Dean refuses to believe there is a God pre s4 because what god would put him though everything he's been though, i love him so much. the parrales between john and god with Dean's faith in an absent father.

Quotes:"i didn't pick you dean, the lord did" "why do you deserve to live more than my daughter" "it must be ruff. to belive in somerthing so much and have it disappoint you"

2x11:

of the 3 eps this is my least favourite I'm going to be honest but i still love it so much. The twist is so good. the sibling devotion, they would rather be dead together then one of them leave (Sam and Dean prrallels). "what do you mean we look the type" is iconic (Dean vs people knowing he's bi before he does). Sam's break down, begging Dean to be the one who kills him is so well done.

2x16 (this will be looooong):

when the audience learns things after Sam and Dean/the narrative isn't chronological but we think it is, it makes the twists better. Sam wanting to ease Molly into the fact she is dead vs Dean wanting to tell her straight up bc in Sam's life knowing about monsters has only ever been a burden wear as Dean (Has not met Mary yet and doesn't know she knew about deamons) thinks, as John thinks, that he would still have his family if more people knew how to protect themselves. (i might be reading to much into that part but i am a lit & media student). then after the half way point Sam wants to tell her because she thinks David is dead and that is the worst thing in the world for her whereas Dean wants to comic to lying because telling someone the truth this far in would be hard and he cant have emotional convocations to save his life (see also; Gadreel arc).

This ep is so good for rewatching it and putting into context the things Dean says. The resolution of her letting go of the loop AAAAAA.

Every motw ep in spn has a little twist in it and using the different graves to fulfil the audience expectations only to pull the rug out from underneath with the "Molly is ALSO a ghost" .

The enphisis on the idea people are not born monsters especially in relation to Sam. "what ever it is, they just hold on too tight. caught in the same loop" (sam talking about the ghost but also him and Jessica (among others)) and "something happened to them. something they couldn't control" (sam with his whole being a deamon & yellow eyes' army in s2) bc Sam in the early seasons is insane and so full of self loathing.

The question of what happens to monsters after they die (and people) being uninsurable, beng afraid of death and the unknown feels like a nod towards s3 with dean waiting to die having no idea what will happen. "hope is kinda the whole point" them pre hell, and pre knowning just how fucked up every is AAAAAA

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Tuesday, February 27

Buffy: Um, you know, a girl died here last night. Willow: How? Buffy: Well, the flu. Xander: Flu doesn't exactly sound monsterrific. Buffy: I know. But there's this Dr. Backer, and he's been giving them these experimental treatments. I-I'm not sure what he's up to, but he's a little creepy. A-and then there was this kid, Ryan. He said he saw something. Giles: Saw what? Buffy: Death.

~~Buffy Episode #30: "Killed by Death"~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Twisted Fairytale (Xander, T, Assassin‛s Creed xover) by madimpossibledreamer

The Battle's Done, and We Kinda Won (Buffy/Angel/Spike, T) by MadeInGold

If not, winter (Willow/Tara, T) by firemanwhenthefloodsrollback

She Has Nice Silk Knickers, Too (Buffy/Spike, T) by afteriwake

Hard Times! (Buffy/Spike, G) by EmilytheSlayer

Vermin (Angel, G) by LudditeRobot

How Bad You Want It (Angel/Riley/Spike, E) by CoffeeHunt

Practice Makes Perfect (Buffy/Spike, E) by MaggieLaFey

Dynamics and Why (Buffy, Willow, Xander, T, Twilight xover) by AlexanderMcpherson

[Chaptered Fiction]

Dirty Memories Ch. 1-7/7 (COMPLETE) (Multiple Spike pairings, E) by MaggieLaFey

Demons, With Death on Their Minds Ch. 1/4 (Angel/Spike, M) by DragonsPhoenix

Shadow Over Hellmouth Ch. 105/257 (Ensemble, E) by Tuxedo_Mark

Staying Afloat Ch. 10 (Ensemble, T) by dwinchester

Goodbye to Everything That I Knew Ch. 22 (Buffy/Spike, M) by

Perfect Demons Ch. 6 (Buffy/Spike, T) by EmilytheSlayer

Switch Ch. 7/10 (Buffy/Spike, E) by sunalso

Out For A Walk... Bitch Ch. 11/20 (Buffy/Spike, E) by MaggieLaFey

Lil' Ripper Makes a Friend, Chapter 39 (Buffy/Spike, E) by Soulburnt

The Neighbor's Point of View, Chapter 89 (Buffy/Spike, G) by the_big_bad

Transformed By Love Ch. 4 (Fred, Illyria, T) by Buffyworldbuilder

[Images, Audio & Video]

Artwork:Buffy/Goodomens crossover comic by gleafer

Artwork:Spike by isevery0nehereverystoned

Artwork:Buffy by thegothicalice

Artwork:Spike by isevery0nehereverystoned

Artwork:Spike by isevery0nehereverystoned

Artwork:Spike by isevery0nehereverystoned

Artwork:The Hero of Three Faces BtVS Comic by paulgadzikowski

Artwork:Buffy & Giles by mscolorhead

[Reviews & Recaps]

Mothman’s Buffy Rewatch: Season 2, Episode 16, “Bewitched, Bothered, and Bewildered" by mothmans-wedding-photographer

[Fandom Discussions]

Can you fucking imagine if Xander had ever found out about Angel and Cordelia. by ammoniteflesh

Fic rec time! by fluffyspuffy

In season 3 Spike awkwardly cried on Willow’s shoulder by aphony-cree

i think the kind of traditionalist/hyperliteral read of buffy not catching feelings for spike until late s5/s6 just misses the level of iron grip buffy keeps on her feelings. by baltears

I'm rewatching Buffy the Vampire Slayer, so you wanna hear my Controversial Buffy Boyfriend Opinions? by penandpage

Really hate BtVS time-travel fix-its that completely remove all of Buffy’s agency in the narrative. by lierdumoa

the thing about Buffy and Faith’s relationship that just KILLS me by nunyabznsbabes

I HAVE to talk about Buffy the Vampire Slayer. by creatchie8

Buffy and Willow both spend the series wanting to be “normal” in ways they are not. by aingeal98

we’re hitting early s2 by jennycalendar

What impact would Jonathan not being in The Trio have? by Stoney

If Spike didn’t get made solid and stayed kinda a ghost by wtffu006

This was one of the absolute saddest moments in either show. by Mavakor

What physical releases of Buffy existed in the 90s? by WarrenJVR

TIL when SMG hosted Saturday Night Live, she did a sketch combining Buffy and Seinfeld. by ErrForceOnes

Almost finished the series by gareth2099

a soul is slippier than a greased weasel. that's why I sold mine by WanderlingInker

Which ONE episode to watch with students by Dull-Investigator-17

Work smarter not harder! by RegisterAfraid

IMO, Buffy is one of the most well-written characters of all the time by Strong_Window7623

Objects that remind you of Buffy? by Sudden-Star-7190

Rewatching as I’m meeting Charisma Carpenter in a few months by ukcountrylover

How do others feel about this decision in the AtS series finale? by Usernamelesses

The best and worst death scenes in Angel and buffy? by ukcountrylover

Her mum/mom was sick! by annoyingpanda9704

Buffy (the character) is annoying, irrational, and emotional. And that's part of what makes this show good. by

Thoughts after finishing the series for the first time! Spoilers, obviously. by MasterGanache2012

The reason why the audio spin-offs Slayer was cancelled by M2yvesthegamer

people’s attitudes towards btvs soul lore by hersterical

Faith is really the only character I don’t think Spike had any chemistry with. by lilatara

Submit a link to be included in the newsletter!

Join the editor team :)

[eldritchmochi]

b m u y ! letter ask game

B - A pairing–platonic, romantic or sexual–that you initially didn’t consider, but someone changed your mind.

i fully blame seize and gem for getting me on the shadowidomauk train, regardless of the teif personality. seize especially has me in a chokehold re: their lucien and essek combo in one of their fics, which i have not read nor do i even know if its been posted but they keep sending me snippets like MOCHI YOU WILL LOVE THIS IT HAS ALL* YOUR KINKS and by dog they're right (*it is not actually "all" this is impossible as i have Too Many Kinks but)

also gem's essek-owns-a-boujie-coffee-shop au that has shadowidomauk as end game is cute as shit im sorry gem that i haven't had the spoons to edit more (its so good aaa)

M - Name a character that you’d like to have for a friend.

i answered M with "ashton" over here in this post the other day but another character i would want to be friends withhhhhhhh hmmm lets say asterion. no i have not played the game but from the lore i have absorbed via cherry he is very much the kind of gay i would have fun having catty gossip with while also being the sort of rock for him to lean on and like..... not therapy him i hate being peoples therapist but the immovable object he can bounce trauma off and figure out How 2 People again. i think he would appreciate my bluntness and the way i set clear, explicit boundaries but am otherwise unflappable, and i would certainly appreciate his humour, and we can bond!! over the whole being ace as a result of trauma!! :D

U - Three favorite characters from three different fandoms, and why they’re your favorites.

answered U over here with ashton, kylo, and bucky over here but lets do it again!!

lets kick it off by going Old School with the Original Husbando ^TM: vash the stampede. you have no idea how jazzed i am about the new trigun anime (no i have not watched it i merely enjoy the smut on twitter) because vash is like, my og blorbo. did i have blorbos before? yes, kind of, but my Wants in a man* (*fictional character) had not yet developed so they were but proto-blorbos. vash tho... he has it all: tall pretty boy happy go lucky twink who is secretly Full Of Trauma but shoves it down super hard by being just so upbeat and goofy, and just really wants..... love and peace lmao. a lot of my blorbos historically have similar vibes in the "puts on an act to cover deep severe trauma" way lmao

next up: more anime i guess, but modern: i honestly super fucking love all might???? like SO MUCH he is such an interesting character and i desperately want to read fic of him grappling with his severe health issues alongside his image as a hero AND his mentoring of midoriya (preferably with that guud guud smut, but i have no clue who i'd ship him with, i only got two seasons in lmao). unfortunately, everything i like about him isnt even in cannon its just stuff that i, a cripple, can extrapolate from the worldbuilding and lil snippets we get of him but MAN i am o b s e s s e d

third!!! more comics: loki, specifically the agents of asgard loki. i am 100000% planning to cosplay that loki (i have the hair after all) and i am very excited because he is just so very Gender. it was the first time i saw a genderfluid character in mainstream media and his "i AM gender queer, i IDENTIFY as a bitch" like is something i quote constantly to describe my gender. also hes just such a dick who is obviously trying to do better and unlearn bad habits and god, i dont remember specifically what its about but he has a big fight with his earthside contact roommate buddy helper person over something and then comes crawling back and does this big speech where he talks about how he knows hes a fuck up but he's trying and he values her friendship so much even if he's been shit about showing it and it is chefs kiss

Y - What are your secondhand fandoms (i.e., fandoms you aren’t in personally but are tangentially familiar with because your friends/people on your dash are in them)?

dragon age. just... i know so much vague dragon age lore from listening to cherry talk about it because it is their BIG love for video games (pending bg3..... not sure if itll overtake da but theyre very sad they cannot play it again til monday lmao). i absolutely instigated a convo with someone on okc asking if xyz thing was a da reference and i was rIGHT it secured me a date lmao

similarly, mass effect, batfam stuff, haunted mansion, nbc hannibal (dont ask me why its a fandom in law still i cannot explain), s8 infinity (???? i only know matcha blossom), the final fantasy mmo, taz......

you can ask me more of these letter questions!! i have much time to spare!! maybe!!!

[knackeredforever]

Legend of Korra is a very interesting show to me because yeah it’s a very flawed show there’s no denying that korra isn’t that great in season 1 and genuinely unlikable in season 2 the love triangle plot line throughout the first half of the show is nauseatingly awful some characters like mako have the personality of drywall certain writing choices are very weird and season 2 in general is bleh. On the other hand other elements of this show are so fucking cool the animation is beautiful the fight scenes are great the concepts presented in the show while not always executed perfectly are really interesting regardless some characters like tenzin and varrick are absolutely hilarious. After season 2 korra becomes a genuinely super interesting protagonist and her struggles with depression and self doubt are done to great effect especially in korra alone. The villains (mostly) are incredible Amon,zaheer,kuvira are all incredible yes I’m aware people have problems with them for the ideologies they represent but this never bothered me when I watched the show for the first time so it’s not a big deal for me season 3 is a masterpiece in my opinion and no one can convince me otherwise the ending of the season still gives me chills. Even certain elements of the show I know a lot of people don’t like such as the mechs I really like (not the colossus though that one doesn’t work for me) I love the little details such as the mechs getting noticeably more advanced over the course of the show going from tank treads to full robot legs in season 4 yes I know it’s weird to have mechs in a 1920’s based setting but it kinda gives me bio shock vibes with the big robots in an art deco setting. Sadly I can’t really personally get into korrasami because they are only cannon for like the last 5 seconds of the entire show and korra and Asami really don’t interact that much before that point but the interactions they do have together are pretty cool and I appreciate how big of an impact korrasami was at the time (no I haven’t read the Lok comics but I probably should at some point). So while yeah objectively atla is better in almost every single way that doesn’t mean that lok doesn’t have any merit on its own and criticise Lok all you want but it never tried to directly copy what came before it and always tried to be different (even if that didn’t always work out “cough” “cough” season 2 “cough” “cough”) so if you’ve watched atla and you’re on the fence about watching Lok just do it I’m sure you’ll find something you like about it and if you don’t you can call me a stupid fucking moron who doesn’t know what they are talking about that’s fine by me.

Oh and one more thing if I here another person try to compare the quality of Lok to the Star Wars sequel trilogy I am going to kill them cause Lok for all its blemishes is still a million times better than j.j. Abrams bizarrely written clusterfuck didn’t plan out your trilogy before writing it adventure.

[ethernetmeep]

i seem to sometimes forget others hadn’t had interactions as a child like i did, hence why my discussion of childhood during lunch today was somewhat awkward.. because of my own faults, it seems. i had forgotten to realize my subject matter was socially inappropriate for the area. i, uh.. feel really bad about this. like, i am so fucking sorry bad. im still thinking about it, both the memories from young age & the cafeteria interaction, although primarily the memories..

i will, uh, separate this, because it’s definitely needed. don’t read this, it isn’t worth it. move along now, unless you crave to know about my adolescence and its awful properties

a wooden house, wooden bedroom. big bed, body pillow with various emotions on it. glow in the dark star stickers, various planets in the solar system hung from the ceiling. various items. a computer, colored pencils, comic of choice being worked on. most of them��. uhm… very.. explicit in nature.

i remember a character of theirs. a little girl. sunflower dress, horrible family. sent to an orphanage. feel sick at saying anything more. cute characters i liked, all eviscerated. its not their fault, inherently; they had a lot of things going on. definite abuse, at some point. still, the memories make me somewhat sick.

this was a person i cared about, swam at the beach with, drew art with. grew up with. we would play the recorder & be grimy & silly together.

yet, this person simultaneously showed me a jarring amount of sexual topics, nothing a young child should see to that extent— neither them, or me. they were two years or so older. we played on the playground and roleplayed about a fucking sex shop, for gods sake. i just now resurfaced the memory of [being shown something that should not be shown at age ten]. it makes me deeply, deeply uncomfortable.

i still remember sharing a cold miniature pizza & chicken tenders as a lunch with them. juice with water added to lessen the sweetness. adventure time in the background on the television. the fact their door lock got broken once because of our stupidity. an old dog they had.

i wonder if, by any extent, this friendship caused me to subconsciously be revulsed and uncomfortable by so many of these things. it probably did.. ever since knowing them, i haven’t looked at certain childhood objects the same. a certain pillow pet comes to mind, so do pillows in general…. would explain my distain for the items, when they aren’t the ones i know. would also explain the long time discomfort in the following things: taking a shower at someone elses place, changing at someone elses place, staying overnight in general at a friends house, sharing any kind of clothes, feeling as if in my sleep i’d be….

….oh.

……..oh.

...damn it. having this realization as of writing this makes it all the more horrible. it seems to explain my distinct hatred of touch with those who discomfort me, my lack of touch even with close friends unless its a hug, my distain for… so many things. my stunted growth in regards to relationships. ive been afraid, so afraid, terrified of the concept, not wanting to be hurt and to be helpless again; subconsciously, without even realizing it

it would also explain why i am so preferable to the concept of plushies instead of human people as things to hold. inanimate objects can’t hurt me, they can’t reach out of the shadows and hold you in a way you don’t want. would explain my dislike of quote, cuddling.

god, i’m… hahaha, [nervous laughter, not that of amusement.. i am very much not amused.] i did not realize id be having this epiphany today. or anytime soon. At all. god damn it.

well… if someone did read this, then they experienced a cruel read. im sorry. why am i sorry? i put a ‘dont read this’ sign! doesn’t matter, i’m sorry regardless.

[WHAT NOW? do i just go on with my day? i can’t, that feels odd. i need to make my friend their birthday piece.. i need to do so many things. i have so much to do, but i just got the biggest epiphany dropped like an anvil on my head… maybe thinking of people who were once nice to me will make me feel better…. think of friends & acquaintances & old friends & whatnot, to make me feel safe… peruse the archive i have of photos…]

[edit: i just did that. i feel significantly better. thank you, uhm… um…. what do i say….. ah, i will say friend, i like saying friend… even if its quite foolish, its trivial anyway…]

[kendrixtermina]

Now im not familiar with the comic at all (maybe I'll go read it) but seeing your various essays about it is a reminder of how the world was better before all the irony poisoning & neo-puritanism & makes me miss the 00s.

Not all of 3rd wave feminism was bad, certainly its a good thing that ppl have been sensibilized re:consent education - rapists gonna rape cause if you threaten someone you ovsly dobt care, but what it does help prevent miscommunication scenario where one person just kinda goes along with it & ends up feeling shitty about it etc.

But what I can't stand is this sense that purpose of life is to talk like you want to get a good grade in therapy. You can't have any complex dark feelings stuff or even young & stupid syndrome

I wonder how much of it is a mix of helicopter parenting, suburban atomisatiin & social media leaving ppl to grow up in a panopticon & not get independence at all or just the usual human tendency their time & values are objectively correct despite just one blib in time with an understanding based on dubious theories. I dont want to sound like some old witch oversimplifying ppls problems or blanket distrusting the new at all.

But like another example is how you can't have an unrequited love tragedy anymore without someone crying "friendzone" or "incel" izs all been politicized or reified or turned into some shibboleth about showing allegiance & I dont care for that shit at all cause its so parochial

Kinda why I HATED the vaunted Barbie movie. It's just marvel for girls and none of the things that make it a shitty movie become good if you give it a pink pseudo leftist paintcoat. Ppl praise it like its a good essay but a movie has to also be a story

If it had like picked any one of the subplots or tones & comitted to that bit it might have been good but as it is it can't pick if we're supposed to feel for the characters or laugh about them so it didnt work as either, cue blanket abomination accusation if you didn't like it. It's like Christmas everyone is forced to love it ir else & i just instantly hate anything im forced to love

Its the ssme tendency as ppl acting like theyre too good to love a tropey vomic ir anime & bend over backward to justify how its all a "deconstruction" & youre supposed to hate everyone.

"Don't you dare have a sincere emotion" - dudebros & neopuritans agree on this & are just two sides of the same fucking horseshoe

If that makes sense.

Maybe I should add "history of Scott Pilgrim discourse" to the projects list. Virtually no one would have (or did) describe Scott as a 'bad person' in 2004 the way its done today, that was not a thing, and now its the Kotaku headlines, its the frikkin author's own comments (he is lying!! Its so funny, I don't know if he knows he is lying a bit or if he just internalized his own changing views). How SP intersected the Nerd Culture wave, Film Bros discourse, Gamergate & the Third Wave Feminism Wars, queer culture, etc. I don't think its a long story, most of those interactions are shallow? But I think its a complex one, and illustrative.

Guess I will just throw it on the pile, groan.

[quietwingsinthesky]

Pssst! I sent an ask about this a while back, and I'm not sure if you haven't gotten to it, or the ask got eaten. If you haven't gotten to it, I'm sorry for the repeat ask and I understand, take your time :) But in case it got eaten, I'm curious: what are your fave parts of the star wars franchise? Like, which movie, characters, ships, etc?

alsofjfkfk im not gonna lie, anon, i saw it and went ‘oh cool i’ll answer that in a minute’ and the second i closed my inbox, my lack of object permanence kicked in and i forgot it existed. and then i repeated that process. many, many times.

but i will not allow it to happen again. we’re answering this now, damnit.

okay, see, the thing about me is i am an extremely basic star wars bitch. i have seen all of the movies. i have not read any books or comics. my friend in high school made me watch 1 episode of the mandalorian, and i went ‘haha cool! baby yoda!’ and then never watched more of it. (the fact that i don’t have disney+ contributed to this, but really, if i had tried, i’m sure i could have made do. i did not try.) i tried very very hard at one point to get into the clone wars show, and i remember only that there was some sort of small jabba the hutt and yoda telling some clones that their lives were meaningful in the force or something, so i have no idea how far i made it but probably not very. i have played exactly one game, jedi: fallen order, which my playstation tells me i 100%, but for the life of me, i can’t remember a single thing about it other than ‘robot buddy cute’ and ‘fun 👍’, which either is my incredibly small brain showing off its inability to store information or really doesn’t bode well for the quality of whatever story was in there lmao.

BUT. i love the movies. i’m a stupid sucker for the joy and hope of the original trilogy. i think the prequels are so fun and people are mean to them for no reason, like yes, they’re a mess, but you know how sometimes you look at a product and go ‘oh this is so corporate and soulless that nothing about it is worth seeing with my eyeballs?’ the prequels are not that. people cared about making these movies, and i can always be charmed when i can tell that there was love there, even if it didn’t work as perfectly as it wanted to.

which is probably why i’m so fond of the force awakens despite it all, because watching it feels like everyone there cared so so much about the new potential star wars. i remember watching behind-the-scenes when it first came out and seeing them talk about how they mixed practical and cgi effects for a bunch of the aliens, and i fell in love with finn because his character was basically catnip for me. my traumatized cat who was abducted and brainwashed and raised a soldier and still his heart was too big to be destroyed by the first order. poe was fun for the little screentime he had, and rey was aloof and fierce and hurt underneath it all, and kylo ren had so much fucking potential as the villain and foil for rey & finn that it actually causes me physical pain knowing what happened next. and han was there! until he died! i was heartbroken about it! it was a well-executed death! leia was there, and i could never shake the tragedy that this war she’d fought so hard to win in her youth had never really ended, that now she had to fight it alone again when luke left and han ran away. luke was not there, but this was pre-the last jedi, so i could actually be excited about what he might do when he showed up! the force awakens is a good movie.

the last jedi is a very pretty movie. the rise of skywalker feels like what everyone thinks the prequels are like. i do not watch those movies. i just mentally replace them with the utterly fantastic fic have you heard by peradi and pretend that we did get a stormtrooper rebellion <3 (if you haven’t read it, you should.)

what else, what else. i am incredibly boring when it comes to favorite characters in each trilogy, it’s just The Main Guy. i already talked about finn, but. anakin and luke. my little dudes. anakin has everything ever wrong with him, and i do not blame him for going of the rails. i mean, he did kill a lot of children and help install space facism but have we considered that the jedi were mean to him. and also that palpatine’s been grooming him since he was nine. and also that there is actual literal slavery happening in star wars and the response of everyone around him was to go ‘oh well anakin, guess u gotta let go of the fact that your mother will never be free. and if you can’t, that’s your fault.’ sorry. nope. feeling emotional about how one of the first things baby anakin asks qui-gon when they meet is if qui-gon is here to free them all, because that’s what jedi are supposed to do, they’re supposed to be heroes, and qui-gon tells him they aren’t. and then he does free anakin, and he’s got a fucking lazer sword and magic powers so who the hell would have been able to stop him from at least bringing shmi too, but instead he just takes anakin away. insane choices. george lucas im at your doorstep explain yourself.

and anyone who says they don’t love luke skywalker is a liar. u don’t like luke? luke who wants to see so much more of the universe than his little farm? luke who wants to believe in the force so strongly, his only connection to his father and soon, to obi-wan? luke who blows up the death star because he feels the force so strongly? luke who is such a shining star of hope and goodness and loyalty that han freaking solo turned around and came back to save his ass? and all that just in one movie. luke is so powerfully good, you know? and it had to be that way, the movies just wouldn’t work without him at the core of it. i love him so so much.

ships. well obviously im a c3po/r2d2 stan. as we all know, tragic love story for the ages. im a believer that r2d2 is unmemorywipeable, that trash can is too stubborn to let anything he stores be deleted, so really, we’re looking at the world’s shortest and rudest rebel spy and his overly polite amnesiac husband. im joking but im not.

taking it more seriously, i’m very easily convinced to see main character trios as poly ships. number 1 proponent of padme/anakin/obi-wan over here, a fate sealed by many good fics that i’ve read confirming this. if i may suggest one of my favorites, Queen’s Gambit by bedlamsbard, truly a fantastic star wars au work and it has an incredible podfic by reena_jenkins that inspired me to begin podficcing in the first place. following that, i also love han/leia/luke, in whatever configuration that comes, if it’s just han getting two skywalkers on his arms or if it’s luke and leia also following up on their kiss in empire strikes back. (‘i knew all along’ my ass, girl, either you didn’t or you did and you went straight for the lips alsjfjlssjkf.) From Orbit by gh0strobin is a favorite of mine for them, as well as a bed of daysided gold by lotesse.

and finally, most obviously, i was onboard with finn/poe/rey from day one of the force awakens. the reylos never got me. i was too busy thinking about the main trio kissing. (and i was a ‘rey & ben solo are cousins at least or somethjng’ truther back during force awakens, which for once, meant i had zero interest in shipping them and far more interest in using their possible backstories to explore this fascinating dynamic they had vis a vis the legacy and/or lack of one they inherited, what they were owed as children of legends. and well. i mean, i was kind of right by the end but by god i wish i wasn’t!!!) (and terrible news, i’m realizing that the majority of my post-force awakens reading on ao3 happened before i was bookmarking fics, so i don’t even have recs!!! >:( i need to rectify this immediately. but know that there are many fantastic fics for that trio and you should go looking for them.)

okay, one last round of fic reccing and i’ll leave it be, but there’s some great ones I’d be remiss not to mention. Double Agent Vader is a brilliant Vader character exploration series and it will hurt you and make u love him so so much. The Fires is a Mustafar groundhog day loop that Hurts (and fun fact, was the second fic i ever podficced for myself :( but the files are long gone. still have my first ever podfic though.) And The Force Breathes Once Again is a short and interesting fic about the force being Weird And Fucked Up. And Intertwine is a Padme Lives AU that’s just lovely. so many brilliant fics in this fandom, i swear.

[fullonfandomindulgence]

dimple is a great fucking character and i will fight anyone who says otherwise. specifically i will fight them by making them read this masterpiece client-crashing god-tackle effortpost about dimple

ive deliberately put off watching the telepathy arc episodes so i could finish this. i like tome So Much. you have no idea how much willpower it took. but it is done and its abt dimples like whole story and purpose and life and i think its a real good thing for you to read and enjoy

im so serious about this that I'm gonna capitalize and punctuate. My sorta thesis here is that Dimple's goals of manipulation are an expression of the basic act of choice that Mob Psycho 100 defines as living, but caring for Mob freaks him out because it distracts him from that purpose, and that contradiction and desperation to choose to live through control is tragically what ends him. Dimple is a friend. Strap in, motherfuckers, we're going for a ride.

Dimple's Goals (Dimpoals)

This is kinda an easy one.

I'm gonna be using images from the show and the comics but I'm not talking about anything past season three, episode six, so no worries anime-onlys. I describe all relevant visual info for each image, though there are also extra IDs in the alt text--I try not to repeat information.

Dimple wants to be a god, "the ultimate being in all creation," "the greatest power in the whole world," and "an object of devotion for all humanity." This dovetails with ideas about superiority and idealism in other parts of the comic but this post ain't about that. It's important that he never says what he'd actually do as a god. Like what is the power for? This comes up in his final confrontation with Mob, too.

Dimple claims that Psycho Helmet leads "people onto the right path," but the second Mob interrogates that he admits he has no plan, "no codex of any kind" from the comic. I don't think that's entirely true, though. Clearly Dimple doesn't care about ruling, because he doesn't actually know what he'd do with the power. But he does want to be revered--he wants positive attention!

Dimple's LOL cult is all about people laughing, and in this panel he says he chose that so he could gain a following without violence. Dimple's attempt with the divine tree is the same, he's trying to keep people the same besides their worship of the tree, make them feel happy in togetherness, help them "find peace at heart." I think there is a reading where making people happy is just a means to an end for Dimple. He for sure tries to kill Mob the first time they meet. But he doesn't have any logic for why he's not, like, using his powers to threaten people and demand tribute. He wants to become a god by making people feel good.

All this said--he's not gonna do it by being himself.

Identifying as evil

When Dimple meets Reigen he identifies himself as an evil spirit. Obviously this is sort of a joke. Like the idea that Mob's pet/mascot is actually an ancient malevolent ghost is pretty funny. But it's meaningful for Dimple's character too, so let's talk about what "evil" looks like. First, obviously the possession thing. How good is it that among all the people trying to manipulate Mob, one of them wants to literally control his every move? Second, here's a bunch of bad stuff Dimple did that Mob thinks about right after Teru tries to exorcise him:

Bro! She's like fourteen! (Dimple makes a lecherous comment about Tsubomi in this image.) He threatens Reigen, he tells Mob the body improvement club is a waste of his time, he straight up asks Mob if he can possess him... He's vindictive, pushy, mocking, and transparently manipulative.

Now to be fair lots of Mob Psycho characters are Like That. But there are some other things more specific to Dimple. Third, he tries to possess Ritsu, taking advantage of his fear of Mob. Fourth, again, the attempting-to-kill-Mob thing. Fifth, here's a bit from a recent side story:

My god. Dimple is terrifying in this. If you haven't read it, Uu is a little dog spirit that Reigen's been keeping around as a pet. Dimple notices that it's feeding on Reigen's energy so he gets rid of it. In these panels he waits until Reigen asks him where Uu is before telling him that he ate it. He has all these lines on his face and this expression of like hostile delight. There are creepy effects blobs behind him. He burps! He does a thing he knows will hurt Reigen and then rubs it in his face, acting like he takes pleasure in it. And finally from one of my favorite scenes in season 2:

I love love love this scene, when Mob is asked to exorcise the ghost family and he refuses. It takes the existing tropes in the story and introduces this like moral complexity and thoughtfulness, it communicates a change in stakes... "They won't have to exorcise you if the clients are dead." Again Dimple is smiling maliciously. He tries to manipulate ghost dad into attacking the college assholes, which is the one hand, for the purpose of getting him exorcised by Mob, which is the other hand. Harm in both directions. There is a third hand! We'll get to it.

But I want to summarize this section first: Dimple's default tool for dealing with adversity is manipulation. He, unlike, say, Reigen, is very comfortable looking like the bad guy, and to some extent he believes he is one. He wants to reach godhood by making people feel good, and he's going to do that not through bloodshed or by being a paragon of virtue but by using other people's flaws to control them.

The Living Spirit

Sorry, I want to do some more stuff before I get to the third hand.

I'd like to think I've been helpfully analytical up to this point, though probably not too novel. But I haven't seen anyone talk about this. Dimple is the liveliest dead guy in the comic, by a wide margin. He has multiple genuine relationships with people, he gets embarrassed, he gets happy, he fears things, he fully laughs. Sure in-canon this might be a proximity thing but in a narrative context I think it's significant that he's so much more of a character than other spirits. Here, in essentially his introduction as a significant character, he says, "I don't want to spend the rest of my life as a ghost!" There's also a great pun he makes in the Dark Horse translation when Reigen questions the existence of urban legend spirits--"Look, pal, just because you're a fake, don't disrespect the lived experience of the dead!" He thinks about living a lot.

Dimple comes back from apparent evaporation more than once, first when Mob exorcises him at the LOL meeting, second when Teru exorcises him in their first encounter. He really really wants to live.

Then there's the brief conversation between him and Reigen about the woman being stalked by what appears to be a spirit, but ends up being a neighbor astral-projecting himself. In this panel Dimple denies that spirits get horny. "It's not like we can do anything about it." He doesn't even think about like romantic love. So most importantly, canon aroace Dimple. But also Dimple believes that being a ghost reduces your existence. It's not even a possibility to do certain things, whether you want to or not. There's a tension here, Dimple craves life but knows that as-is he can't have it.

And then there's this six-page omake at the end of volume five. Please please read it if you can, it's not in the anime and it's such a good little story. When Dimple is almost exorcised by Teru, he only just manages to pull together an ant-sized form, and is rescued from being eaten by a pig ghost by a tiny human spirit called Stubble. The above image is an abandoned house in the woods, with Stubble, off-screen, monologuing, "I simply don't want to perish. I don't hold any grudge against this world. Neither do I have any dreams. Years have passed, without a clear goal." Stubble lives an extremely reduced existence, figuratively and literally. He rides around on the back of the ghost of flea, i.e., he is dependent on the echo of a thing that needs to latch onto something else to exist. He has no agency at all.

It's disconcerting, how Dimple starts at Stubble's size and slowly grows--or, reframed, Stubble slowly shrinks. Here Dimple accuses Stubble, "You died, even before your death. But I on the other hand..." Stubble gets angry. "You're dead too!" Again you should read the story, the way it concludes really blows me away.

Remember in the first episode of season three the S&S crew help the bald guy out of his funk, and at one point he says, "Am I doomed to just repeat these meaningless days until my death?" And then, soon after, "Wait, is my life already over?"

This is about the desperation of agency. Because like, Stubble is right. Dimple has been dead for a long time. His goal is ridiculous. His existence is scraps, yet he's clinging to them with everything he has. What's the point? Lay down alone among the insects, shrink and fade.

Dimple doesn't have a counterargument to Stubble. He doesn't justify "why." But the last sentence he says in the omake is, "I want to stay alive." Dimple, and by extension this omake, and if I may be so bold all of Mob Psycho 100, identifies agency with life. It's not even that life is about making choices, it's that life is literally the act of choosing. You have to choose to live. And Dimple does.

He likes control. He likes choice. He may not be alive but he chooses to live every day. Why? Because he has a purpose: he's going to become a god. And he's going to take Mob there with him.

The Third Hand

Are you good? You're like 1500 words in, feel free to take a break, drink some water.

Maybe you're starting to sense where this is heading. On the third hand, Dimple manipulates ghost dad to help Mob. He attempts to take away both of their autonomy in order to ease Mob's obvious distress. Let's talk about Dimple's evolving relationship with Mob.

I say this a third time, Dimple tries to kill Mob when they meet. Then, despite a positive spin on his initial pitch to Mob, he's pretty transparently evil about it.

These frames of the show are from that introduction, the first with Dimple surrounded in stars and bright colors saying "Let's shoot for the top of the world together," the second with Dimple thinking, face lit from below and body language full of menace, "I'll just wait for my chance to possess him." To be fair again, lots of Mob Psycho characters are Like That. Compare this to the first episode of season two: when Mob tells Dimple the story about Emi, Dimple, excited, assures him that they should keep sticking together so Dimple can help him out with these things. The animators even use the same image of Dimple with the stars and colors:

"Looks like you'll always need an advisor like me!" But this time he doesn't have the sinister turn he did when they first met. This is how Dimple keeps acting throughout season two. He helps Mob, apparently so that Mob trusts him so that in turn Mob can help him reach godhood. But he goes so far above and beyond without any malice: he keeps Banshomaru safe, he possesses one of the high school kids bullying Mob, he eats the curse off Reigen's back, he tries to defend Mob against fucking Toichiro.

Here's a great couple panels: after Dimple explains the deal with urban legends becoming real, he reiterates that he wants to be a god. Then Mob asks Dimple to "make sure [Banshomaru] won't get hurt," and little surprise lines come off Dimple. He agrees but says, "You gotta do me a favor sometime too." Dimple is a little struck by Mob's trust, but maybe more importantly this is the first time in a while, and I think the last time in season two, that Dimple suggests Mob do something for him. It only comes after he reiterates exactly what his purpose is. Dimple's priorities are a little unstable.

Yeah this is just a full comic page from the encounter with Mogami but it's meaningful as shit. Dimple has just suggested taking over Mob's body to protect it. The first panel is Dimple looking away and down, deflated, ashamed. A few sweat drops come down his face. He says, "but something like that..." And to his surprise (action lines, closeup, wide eyes) Mob agrees. Dimple puts on an evil affect when he responds: a horizontally squashed panel shows his backlit face. He smiles unpleasantly and laughs a little, "Kuku..." But his heart clearly isn't in it! His eyebrows are worried, not hostile. There's no pleasure in his smile. He's covered in sweatdrops, eyes wide. When Mob assures Reigen, "It'll be okay," there's another panel of Dimple where the remnants of that affect slide off him. The backlighting is still present but not as severe, the echo of that smile is on his cheek. He's openly worried and covered in sweatdrops. Mob's speech bubble covers a large portion of his face.

Points about this. First, by now Dimple has given up on possessing Mob. This thing that seemed like the main path to his goal is not an option. Second, while both Dimple and Reigen believe that this is a bad idea for Mob, Mob disagrees. Dimple identifies as evil. Reigen identifies him as evil. Mob no longer does. This is classic Shigeo Kageyama behavior, being generous to people even when no one including themselves thinks they deserve it. And the worst part for Dimple is he's starting to agree with Mob. When the option he'd dropped is handed to him on a silver platter, he finds he doesn't want to take advantage of this kid that way. He's a different person than he was.

I don't even know how relevant this is but. Look how much fucking fun Dimple has when he's possessing Mob to protect him. He's doing all these flips and kicks. His smile when he's fighting Mogami!Asagiri is so funny. He does the wildest mid-air combo I ever did see when he attacks the Claw guy as Mob.

Mob becomes such a top priority for Dimple that in the first episode of season three he realizes he forgot that he wanted to become a god. Not only that, but when he comes to Mob to convince him to lead the cult together he's immediately distracted by Mob and what's going on in his life. Mob has to prompt him for him to remember that he's there about the cult.

All this is why Mob's mistrust of Dimple in this conversation is so tragic. Dimple has helped Mob so much, and been so much of a genuine friend, because he knew that Mob trusted him. Where did it go? What happened? Mob's parting words to him are, "Why don't you give your schemes a rest already?" What schemes?? This is the first he's had in months. The translation in the comic, though, is so much more brutal:

"Why don't you stop doing bad things?"

Dimple is

Dimple is terrified of Mob. When Mob wonders if Dimple is scared of him, he's right, of course he is. He has lots of reasons. Mob almost evaporates Dimple when they first meet, threatens him multiple times. Dimple saw him at 100% rage, Mob's first on-screen. He watched Mob hit ???% without being knocked unconscious. This is all especially threatening given Dimple's drive to live. He's terrified when Ritsu tries to fight Mob, he's terrified when Mob asks him if he had anything to do with Ritsu's kidnapping, he's terrified when he thinks Reigen is about to tell Mob that they don't know what happened to his family. But I also read his fear as a symbol of how important Mob is. Dimple attached himself to Mob as the way to achieve his goal. Dimple helps Mob out in so many ways, putting off his goal, so that eventually they can fulfill his purpose together. Then he starts caring about this kid so much that he forgets his purpose! Of course Dimple fears Mob, because their relationship threatens what drives him to live. As much as Dimple is a manipulator, Mob is the one who ultimately has power over him.

Dimple so easily reverts to an evil persona once he leaves Mob because without Mob that's all he can be. If he can't get to the top with Mob, then he has to do it the old way, by using people's flaws to manipulate them. He's able use the broccoli to become a physical presence and get around the "amazing power" problem--though the broccoli's presence and power are still kinda Mob's! But why does he need to become a god at all? Because that's all he is. If he doesn't have Mob and he doesn't have his purpose, then he has nothing.

"Don't go casually denying the thing I've been wanting so badly!" Dimple gets so angry when Mob tells him he's being fake because first, Mob is denying Dimple's manipulative tendencies, which are really important to Dimple right here because he feels his identity is so precarious. And because second, Mob is denying Dimple's purpose. Dimple is in equal danger from Mob's physical attacks and Mob's denial of what he wants. What he wants, what he chooses, is what living is. Dimple doesn't want to die.

Here's a lot of a comic page again, from the final confrontation. Dimple tells Mob that he's just been using him the whole time they've known each other. Mob says, "I'm sad... Does that mean it's time to say goodbye to Dimple?" He steps towards Dimple, who screams in fear and anticipation. I think this is basically the worst thing ever, because god, Dimple is so afraid. Mob is justified in what he's doing but Dimple's desperation is what stands out to me, how hard he's tried to cling to agency and life and how sincerely he believes Mob is about to take it all away from him anyway, to disappear forever and ever.

And then Dimple insults Mob's shirt.

Dimple insults Mob's shirt

Fucking kills me. These are two frames from episode six, Dimple sees how much Mob suddenly trusts him and his reaction is anger, "You okay with leaving me like this?" His eyes are wide, brow down in anger. And then what he says next, "I'm... a dangerous evil spirit!" Here the anger is present but has softened with worry on his brow. The lines by his nose and his pouty lower lip make him look scared and sad. This fight has made it important to Dimple's identity that Mob try to stop him, because he's evil, and Mob stops evil spirits.

Panels from the comic where Mob tells Dimple, "You weren't doing bad things. You were just doing what you wanted to do. Together with me. You trusted me before I trusted you, Dimple. Thank you." Mob doesn't think Dimple is evil, but he identifies how important Dimple acting on his wants is, and he tells him that he still values their relationship. He denies that he has to hurt dimple but affirms his power to choose.

I maybe could've skipped a lot of BS if I put this page further up but I wanted this to get felt, what Dimple's admitting to himself here. It's another section of a page. Panel one, a white splotch in darkness with Dimple's thoughts, "It felt like my ambitions would fade away. Did spending time with unselfish Shigeo cause even me to lose sight of my goals?" Panel two, Dimple is the white splotch. He's scared. "...eh? Wait, that's a problem...!! I'll lose my reason for existing!" So Dimple tells Mob, angry, "No, not yet... I'm not done yet! Even now... I've still got... plenty of things I want to do! And ambitions!" Mob agrees, with that tired, frank look. "I'll hear you out for real. As your friend." Accepting Mob's friendship like this is terrifying, because it means what it always has, forgetting about this purpose. What if Mob stops trusting him again? If he really, consciously abandons his purpose, will he still have agency? He wanted a friend, always wanted a friend. Will it be enough? Will he disappear?

Dimple takes Mob's hand anyway. This was such an amazing shot, I've reproduced its animated glory here, Mob and Dimple reach towards each other, Mob weakly, so Dimple closes the gap and grabs him. The hand grasp of all time. I'm not gonna talk about how this fits into all the other Mob Psycho hand symbolism, that's another 4000-word megapost.

It's worth it. I'm convinced that by involving yourself in a network of people and creating some sense of obligation to others you can actually give yourself an even deeper kind of agency than you could achieve alone. And this is awful, terrifying. Because it involves giving yourself up a little bit. You have to give up some control. Dimple wants to be a god, to have ultimate power and control, so much of him is his manipulation, but he has to give that up for this. Goals that may have guided you for a long time can become irrelevant--and then who are you? If you've defined your life by something for years, and at the end of the decade you realize you don't fit your definition anymore, where do you go? Dimple tells Mob, "Let's go home." But...

Panels from the comic, where Dimple carries a sleeping Mob and thinks, "I said 'let's go home,' but I don't really have any place to 'go home' to... And I don't have anything to aim for from here... I wonder what I should do now." That Dimple is allowing himself to think this is really powerful. I don't think this has to be a sad moment. Like obviously Mob thinks that Dimple's home is his house. He just asked him to stay away until he reverts to his smaller form, as in, he otherwise would've expected Dimple to stay with him. I appreciate the larger point that now Dimple feels unmoored, and deciding on a new purpose is existential. But I think Mob also has a larger point that he believes he can help moor Dimple. I think allowing yourself to wonder where to go next is so important. Dimple is where Mob was a few months back when he decided he wanted to join the body improvement club! He has a future, even if he can't see it very well.

Or, um.

I keep fucking crying while I'm writing this. I love the translation in the comic here. Dimple kneels before a prone Mob and, finger touching his forehead, says, "Listen well... I'm giving you orders for the first and last time. First, wake up. Stand up, Shigeo." Mob is still for a moment and then says, "...it's no use. I can't put any strength into my legs. I can't move my arms either." Dimple is very serious now as he relays, "Your body may complain, but still... stand up. Even if you cannot stand... you must stand." God damn it, god fucking dammit.

Sometimes it's not so easy to change. Your actions have consequences. Your history follows you. Dimple's desperate attempt to keep his old wants comes back to kill his new ones.

Dimple's final act is the same thing he always does, he manipulates Mob to protect him. And it is good and kind. Suddenly his reason for existence is paradoxical: he's going to have to die to fulfill it. Who exists to die? But that's not what it is. Because he's making a choice. He denies death, he says, no, you can swallow me whole, you can annihilate me, but even then you can't take my agency away from me. And I will use this final choice to protect someone I love.

Dimple was a friend.

[mirajane-strauss]

How I would have written Gruvia

Disclaimer: if you are passionate about the ship you may not like some criticisms of the canon, but it made no sense to use the anti gruvia tag since I’m talking about the ship, its potential and the things I like. Read at your discretion.

Intro is perfect, Juvia having a crush on Gray at first sight despite being her enemy is funny, and her falling in love with him when Gray shows her the sun for the first time is really touching, so yeah, perfect.

Juvia trying to get closer to Gray was good. While I understand that some people might be bothered by Juvia's "stalker", I also think they misunderstand her. I recognize that Juvia has questionable behaviors, but this is not one of them. It's not about her spying on Gray, it's about her trying to get close to Gray, but due to her insecurity she can't. It makes sense for her to do this since she was an enemy of Fairy Tail. And their second meeting at the tower of heaven is perfect. Finally, she can talk with him, Gray is glad to hear that she will join Fairy Tail, and Juvia saves him. I also think Juvia’s jealousy of Lucy isn’t bad, but it would have been more interesting to see the inner conflict of Juvia who on the one hand wants to get close to Fairy Tail and be accepted by everyone, and on the other she’s jealous of Lucy. Also, I would have avoided the scene of her shrinking Lucy's bubble, not for a matter of 'Juvia is a bitch' (objectively if Juvia wanted to hurt Lucy, she would have done it without difficulty) more because that scene sounded OOC, given that Juvia wanted to get into Fairy Tail at any cost, it would have made more sense for her to do anything to please them. But it doesn't matter.

Juvia finally entering Fairy Tail and approaching Gray is so good, the little initial moments between them are super cute, they eating together and starting to go on a mission together were nice panels, even if they are small and few moments, I think that here we are at the most beautiful point of Gruvia.

Tenrou Arc. Here Juvia started acting weird, I find it a bit demeaning that she wanted to leave the S-class promotion trial just for Gray. She is a powerful wizard, she must have been happy to have that position, as if she had extra recognition from her guildmates. It's okay that she was worried about fighting Gray, but not so worried as to abandon the evidence. Luckily it was a cheap comedy scene.

GMG. Ok here there are many things that bothered me.

One, what is that naval battle, Juvia should have won or not take part in it.

Two, what is the triangle Lyon Gray and Juvia. It doesn't make any sense.

Three, what is that ridiculous battle between Juvia and Chelia.

Four, what is that scene where Gray dies because Juvia is distracted during a battle (look, I usually ignore comic scenes, because they're usually just blatantly OOC for the writer's amusement. But in this case, I can't, since it had an effect on the plot).

Five, above all, what the fuck is that ridiculous version of Juvia at the ball and Gray rejecting her.

Okay, I would have done:

Juvia does not participate in the naval battle at all. So, we avoid that ridiculous scene that debases Juvia. Then, during the Juvia vs Chelia battle, Juvia fights and wins. That’s all, there’s nothing else. She just wins. And after, in case, we can see her already tired fighting against Lyon (who doesn't have a crush on her), and Juvia is in trouble because she has already fought against Chelia. Gray arrives and they do a great teamwork.

Then, during the battle against the dragons, ok, let's put in that scene that pisses me off. Juvia gets distracted and Gray dies. AFTER that scene it would have been nice to see a change in Juvia, and a decrease in her comic scenes. It would have been nice to see her feel guilty, even though Gray is still alive. It would have been nice to see Juvia grow, she realizing that her adoration of Gray has gone too far. Instead of that ridiculous scene at the ball, Juvia should have been worried about Gray, and he should have assured her that it wasn't her fault. And Juvia should have said that she doesn't deserve Gray's love and that she won't bother him anymore. And here instead of that rejection from Gray (which made no sense at all and made it seem like he really wasn't interested in her), it would have been nice to see him wrestling with his words to tell her that she didn't annoy him. Juvia thus realizes that Gray likes her but that he’s not yet ready to reciprocate her feelings, and in the end, things remain the same (with fewer comic scenes and with zero jealousy because now Juvia is sure of Gray's feelings, and so also Juvia would have a character growth).

(Oh, and let's eliminate that Juvia scene full of Gray puppets, as I said the comic scenes are mostly OOC but there is a limit to everything. Honestly, a poster was enough).

Tartaros. So much potential misused. Juvia fighting Keyes? Yes! Juvia having an inner struggle about killing the necromancer or not? Yes! Gray using Iced Shell and seeing Juvia? Yes! Final scene of Gray and Juvia meeting at their father's grave? Yes, But. The scene was sweet, I liked the fact that Juvia was ready to give up everything permanently, but I would have liked to have seen it developed better. Like, Juvia who seriously turns away from Gray thinking she doesn't deserve him, Juvia who at the same time cares about him and wants to help him, and therefore she has contradictory behaviors. Gray sees that she is acting weird and tells her he needs her (because he's not fine of course), and Juvia says that's not what he wants, since she's the one who killed her father. So, she finally admits it, and here is the sweet moment of the manga.

Avatar and Alvarez. At this point, my versions of Gray and Juvia would be different. The two here would already have a kind of unspoken relationship, they would constantly take care of each other, they would both have matured. Gray would have understood that he deserves to be loved, Juvia would have learned not to behave like a fan anymore.

Basically, I mainly want Juvia with more personality and growth, since what I see of her is just 'she simp around Gray', which in the long run is boring and heavy, and very static for her character. I also want to see that Gray shows before Alvarez that he romantically cares about her. The scene on the terrace where Gray tells her that after the battle he will tell her how he feels didn't even make sense, especially since Gray didn't do it afterwards. It would have been better to see him telling her that he loved her (in a more or less subtle way) and that after the battle he would finally give her the love story she deserves. In this way, even the impact of her death would have been greater.

[jercythesiscrying]

the above reblog is a great start!

i personally have really enjoyed zatanna & the ripper! i know some people got bored in the middle bc it dragged some of the filler a bit, but the story itself was pretty good for a stand-alone series! it's only one season long and is self-contained so no context is necessary, but the easter eggs/cameos are still fun

i have Many Thoughts about red hood: outlaws.............if you're not too much of a jason fan it's an okay read on its own. it's not my favourite and i personally like zatr better than rho ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

otherwise here are your requests below the cut!

tim-centred:

#12: Escalation -- tim and damian brotherly love LMAAAOOO

#29: Hangout -- core four in wfa!!

#36-37: Belonging (pts.1-2) -- steph-centred but shows a lovely convo between her and tim 🥺

#39: Secret Identity -- more duke-centred but timmy's doing his best LOL

#40-41: Better and Brighter (pts.1-2) -- BERNARD MY BELOVED

#44: Ransom + #89: Stick Up -- jason to the rescue 😂😂

#64-64: The Choices We Make (pts.1-2) -- tim-centred + includes the tim and damian i deserve in my comics

cass-centred:

#15-16: Family Ties (pts.1-2) -- bruce centred but does include some very sweet cass moments 🥺

#32-33: All Seeing (pts.1-2) -- a fantastic look into how she navigates the world and also shows her relationship with babs 🥺

#48: Shovel Talk -- more cass-adjacent but shows how much the batfam loves her (and it's still really funny imo LOOOL)

#66: No Doors Allowed -- cass and jason showing duke the ropes

#82: Sneak Attack -- cass takes on a ~mission for bruce

#90-91: What I Want -- grounded more in her backstory as orphan/in rebirth but still really valuable cass insight nonetheless

babs-centred:

#3: Eyes and Ears -- oracle introduction

#49-50: One More (pts.1-2) -- awesome insight into babs as oracle

#53: Online -- babs clowning on jason LOL

#69-70: Hunted (pts.1-2) -- more incredible insight on babs' character

#95-96: Win or Lose (pts.1-2) -- jason-centred but features a more touching side of his relationship with babs

includes helena:

#63: Opposite Day -- mentioned above and includes gr8 dick and helena shenanigans where they just fuck around on patrol LOOOL

#68: Thankful -- she's literally just a cameo at the end but she's there!!

#88: Birds of Prey -- babs, helena, and dinah ft. selina

personal faves that include Tomfoolery and Hijinks LMAO:

#2: Last Cookie

#6: Favoritism

#11: Not It -- rip dickie you would've never won my dude 😔😂

#7: Vigilante Bingo -- includes references to canon comics in a fun way 😂😂

#17: Top Chef

#25: Front Seat

#35: GCPD -- ft. all 5 robins during their respective tenures!

#72-73: Snowfall (pts.1-2) -- aka "THEY'RE HAVING FUN AS A FAMILY I COULD SOB 😭❤️😭❤️"

#77: Suit Up

#83: Utility Belt -- ft. hal jordan and bat-shark repellent LMAO

#87: Objects in Mirrors -- aka "Superman: Kent Family Adventures"

#94: A Little Help From Friends -- ft. arthur curry Experiencing gotham LOOOL

#98: Power Outage

these eps are all free to read as of aug 26/2023. the current season isn't done yet and i can already see more eps featuring all of these characters, so i'd recommend checking back on webtoon to see what's new in the future~!

iight cool this got away from me so i hope this isn't overwhelming and actually helps lol 😅😂

I’m not a fluff person so I got bored of Wayne family adventures pretty early on but if there’s any really good episodes could y’all please let me know which ones 🙏

[makeste]

but I just feel too tired to be fighting

this is a follow-up post to what I said in my recap the other day about this arc being the Deku Angst arc, as opposed to the Villain Hunt arc or the Deku SIXQUIRKS Exhibition arc. I feel like the fandom discussion tends to focus on the flashier parts of the chapters -- the sexy villains and the new quirk reveals and the Shindous -- each week, and so the quieter emotional beats sometimes get overlooked, especially since the character arc here is playing out in little bits and pieces over time rather than all at once.

this has always been a very reactionary fandom, and there’s a tendency to judge the chapters week to week without ever going back to look at how they all fit into the big picture. so I figured I would try to attempt that, and basically go chapter by chapter here to look at what exactly Horikoshi is setting up and how it all fits together.

so let’s start with the end of chapter 306, which is when the arc officially kicks off. specifically with the very last page:

this is imo one of the best pages Horikoshi has ever drawn. I got the sense that this was a scene he’d had in his mind’s eye for quite a long time, and that he was excited to finally get to this part of the story. it’s extremely effective as both a chapter-ender, and an arc-opener. like, look at this:

it establishes the initial premise of the new arc -- the world is in chaos, and Deku is now seemingly on his own

it leaves the readers with a number of questions. why did Deku leave U.A.?? is he really on his own now?? why does he look so beat-up and exhausted?? what is he up to?? what is the world like now that all these villains have been unleashed and the heroes have been decimated?? and most importantly of all, what the fuck is going to happen next??

it pays homage to some of Horikoshi’s comic book influences -- Batman in particular

it dramatically hits us with that “THE FINAL ACT BEGINS” and lets us know that shit is getting real now

that’s some good shit. so much so that I think people tended to overlook the other notable thing about this page amidst all of the initial excitement and discussion and speculation about where the series was headed. and that is the fact that the final panel in this chapter is NOT the panel of Deku standing above the city. the very last panel, the one that this chapter actually ends on, is instead the close-up of Deku’s face. his face, which is covered in shadow; and his eyes, which have dark circles under them and are prominently missing the usual flecks of light that give him his signature “sunny optimistic shounen protagonist” look.

not to mention this last line here, which is a call back to the very first time we saw the 14-year-old Deku way back in chapter one.

I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Horikoshi chose to throw this reference in. nor is it a coincidence that THIS is the scene he actually chose to end the chapter on. what this does is show us the drastic shift in Deku’s emotional state of mind, and his attitude towards being a hero. he’s gone from being thrilled and excited to being jaded and exhausted. he’s matured, but at a great cost. it’s always been his dream to be a hero, but “be careful what you wish for” is a popular adage for a reason. and right now he looks the furthest thing from happy.

and this is the emotional beat that Horikoshi chooses to end the chapter on. this is the panel that closes out the War arc, and begins the final act. to me the message could not be clearer -- this arc will be about the exploration of Deku’s character, and his struggle as he tries to live up to the expectations that have been placed on him as the Last Holder of OFA and quite possibly the World’s Only Hope.

it’s a character arc that builds on a lot of the things we’ve already learned about Deku over the course of the series, such as the fact that he is reckless, and that he focuses on others often at the expense of himself. but more importantly, it’s an arc that finally expands on the dark side of what has up until now been a net positive for Deku -- the power of OFA. up until this point, despite its ups and downs, it’s been a boon for Deku overall and has allowed him to pursue his dream. but now we’re finally reaching the point where the monkey’s paw part of the OFA blessing/curse finally starts to come into play. OFA gives Deku more power than he could have ever dreamed of, but it also comes with a built-in destiny that he can’t opt out of whether he likes it or not. AFO is on the loose and out there trying to destroy the world. and now everyone has pinned their hopes on this sixteen-year-old kid, and the question of whether or not the sixteen-year-old kid is ready is apparently not one that anyone feels inclined to ask (possibly because they’re afraid that the answer might be “no”).

he doesn’t have a choice in the matter. he has to do it, because there’s no one else who can. that’s the kind of pressure that is on Deku now.

and on that note, we begin the Deku Angst arc.

chapter 307

this in hindsight was mostly just a set-up chapter to better establish the current state of the BnHA world at large (spoilers: it’s not good), while also providing an answer for one of the big initial questions of the arc -- namely, “what happened to all of those villains that AFO released from Tartarus?” these are important things to touch on, but the pacing could definitely have been better, and the bulk of the chapter was dedicated to providing fanservice to all of the Shindou fans who spammed the most recent popularity poll (which, whatever lol). anyway, so this was the sole chapter thus far with absolutely no Deku development. thankfully the arc picks up from there.

chapter 308

on to the next one! this was the one and only chapter thus far which I think actually qualifies as an “exhibition fight.” this was definitely all about showing off Deku’s current powerset, as well as introducing us to another of the SIXQUIRKS. however, there was Deku development here as well, most notably in this scene:

this is the scene that got a lot of people speculating that this arc was going to focus on Deku hunting down all of the old villains. but I think people got so caught up in that speculation that they overlooked what this scene tells us about Deku’s mindset. and yes, there is new information being revealed here, and it’s not just a rehash of the stuff we already knew. like yes, we know that Deku was shaken up by the recent encounters with Dabi and Tomura, and we know that made him start questioning why villains become villains in the first place, and all that good stuff, and that’s great. however, there are two additional important things that this scene helps establish for us.

the upcoming battle with TomurAFO is weighing heavily on Deku’s mind. this is something that will become a recurring theme in this arc. Deku is thinking about this constantly. the question of what to do when he finally encounters TomurAFO again is knocking incessantly at the back of his mind, and this won’t be the last time it comes up.

Deku is using these villain encounters as test runs. can Tomura be redeemed?? is he just being stupid and naïve?? or is this really something worth attempting?? the interesting thing about this is that Deku’s resolve to save people is usually so strong and unwavering that it’s more than enough to overcome any doubts that he might have. but this time it seems like the repeated objections posed by the Vestiges and Gran Torino have really gotten to him. it’s possible I’m just reading way too much into things, but to me it really feels like Deku’s recent attempts at Talk no Jutsu were meant to do more than just show his growing awareness that the line between heroes and villains is thinner than he once imagined. they’re also serving as trial runs for the real test, when it finally comes. if he can “save” even a villain like Muscular, there’s hope for him being able to save Tomura as well. and so that moment when Muscular rejects him out of hand is all the more disappointing to him, even if it wasn’t really unexpected. basically it wasn’t the answer that he had been hoping for.

aside from those little notes though, like I said, this was unquestionably an exhibition fight first and foremost. which is fine; we needed to establish where Deku is currently in terms of strength, and it was also just fun to see him kick some ass, ngl. in terms of story purpose this chapter was similar to 219, which showed us how Shouto and Katsuki had powered up after getting their provisional licenses. people who don’t care about those characters might argue that these fights weren’t necessary, but as someone who stans all three characters hard, I would disagree! but anyways, moving on.

chapter 309

in contrast to the previous chapter, this chapter focuses more on establishing Deku’s current mental state, as opposed to his physical state. and this is what we learn:

(1) Deku is ~technically~ being shadowed/accompanied by All Might and the Hawksquad (but in practice he’s avoiding them).

(2) it was Deku’s own decision to leave U.A., and he did it because he didn’t want anyone else getting hurt in order to protect him.

and finally, (3) Deku’s game plan is to stop Tomura and All for One before they reach full power.

this last part is very important, because it means there’s a countdown in effect. as far as Deku is concerned, there’s only a finite amount of time before TomurAFO becomes unstoppable. which means that he’s not only under “gotta get stronger” pressure, but time pressure as well. he doesn’t have the luxury of taking his time and training in safety. he’s being rushed now; this is do-or-die.

this chapter is also the first in this arc in which we get to see Deku’s expressions without the hood covering up his face, and what we see is very telling. as previously stated, the light is gone from Deku’s eyes. he keeps his expressions very neutral, and the only time we even see a hint of a smile is when he hugs his mom in the flashback, and it’s clear from the dialogue (“it’s okay, I’ll come home to you”) that he’s doing it for her sake in order to comfort her.

but aside from that, this is very much not the Deku we’ve grown accustomed to. this is the chapter that really establishes his current mental state imo. above all else, he’s afraid that more people will get hurt because of him, and so he’s distancing himself from everyone around him. and he’s also morbidly preoccupied with the inevitability of having to face TomurAFO again, and soon. the chapter ends on the flashback of Gran giving him his cape, and telling Deku that “killing can be another way to save someone.” there’s a lot on this kid’s mind, to say the least.

chapter 310

this chapter opens with a gang of civilians who are trying to open fire on a nice fox lady whose only crime was walking around in the rain at night. Deku intervenes to save her, and it’s the first time in this arc that we see anything close to the “old” Deku, who just wanted to save people with a smile.

but it’s bittersweet, because all the lady can talk about is how scared she was, and how horrible everything is right now. and so Deku, who feels responsible in a lot of ways for everything that’s happened, just feels that much more pressure to somehow make things right again.

there’s also this extra throwaway line which is especially heartbreaking:

“I can’t afford to be around anyone.” fucking ouch. just reinforcing once more how incredibly isolated Deku is right now -- not by choice, but because he feels like it’s not safe to let anyone else get close to him. and so he’s out here running around this dystopian cityscape in the middle of the night in the pouring rain all on his own, and neglecting himself to the point where All Might practically has to force a bento on him.

but does he complain? of course not. because his focus is never on himself. instead, when he settles down to eat, his thoughts immediately drift back to, guess who...

it’s that time pressure once again. “unless I draw out One for All’s full power, I can’t stop any of this.” it’s just nonstop, I have to get stronger, I’m running out of time, I have to do better, and constantly thinking about that inevitable confrontation.

Deku is a thinker, you guys. and when left to his own devices he will overthink, every time. his mind will run in endless loops while he mentally works his way through all of the possibilities. and that’s one of his greatest strengths, don’t get me wrong, but at a time like this it’s also one of his greatest weaknesses. it’s just so fucking easy for him to get stuck in his own head, in his endless rambling thoughts and analyses. and without anyone else there to help distract him, or help him focus, he’s become fixated on his mission, and it’s slowly consuming him.

this, incidentally, is also the chapter in which we finally see Two and Three’s faces, and learn why Two in particular is so reluctant to lend his power to Deku. he appears to be the lone holdout at this point, so stay tuned on that, because I don’t doubt this will wind up being crucial to Deku’s future development, however it winds up playing out.

chapter 311

this chapter flips back to the Hawksquad for the first half, so we get a brief respite from the ongoing Dekuangst. right before we switch back though, we do get confirmation of something we had pretty much already guessed:

like, that much was already apparent based on what we’d seen (the bags under his eyes; the fact that he refused to sit still in any one place for very long even at night), but it’s always nice to get the official confirmation so that people can’t dispute it lol. so yeah, Deku isn’t sleeping much. and not eating much either, if all he’s getting is the occasional bento from Dadmight. so basically not taking care of himself at all, huge shocker there. but this is something that’s important enough to the story that Horikoshi took the time to point it out in the dialogue, in addition to all of the visual clues we’d already gotten.

and just in case we needed to drive that point in any further, this chapter ends with the appearance of Lady Nagant! like yeah, no shit Deku isn’t getting much sleep, what with him having to fend off racist civilians and hired assassins every five fucking minutes. smdh. can he live??

chapter 312

so this is the chapter that properly introduces Lady Nagant, who maaaay or may not be one of the primary antagonists of this arc?? like, it’s really unclear right now tbh, but she gets hyped up by Hawks and AFO, and has a flashback and a mysterious past and a weird trump card (where did you go, Overhaul) and all that good shit, so yeah? one can hope at any rate.

but anyway. so to his credit, Deku’s first thought is to retreat, but he quickly abandons that plan once he figures out Nagant’s location. this is played off like a logical strategic decision at first, but the subsequent chapter quickly makes it clear that Deku’s decision to take the fight to Nagant is less rational than he might have you think.

chapter 313

so yeah. last but not least, the most recent chapter, in which Deku’s real reason for targeting Lady soon becomes apparent:

what’s more, it quickly becomes clear that he miscalculated and probably would have been better off following Hawks’s advice, seeing as he promptly gets himself shot, and subsequently realizes that AFO gave Nagant an extra quirk, something he hadn’t taken into account. but instead of cutting his losses and running at this point, he doubles down instead and not only breaks out Smokescreen, but also the Third’s quirk which he has never even used before.

it’s worth noting that both En and the Third start telling him to chill at this point, and warn him that what he’s attempting is too dangerous. but tbh if they were expecting him to listen, they haven’t been reading the same arc I’ve been reading. once again, Horikoshi makes it clear that Deku has one thing and one thing only on his mind right now.

of course. once again it all comes back to this. hunt down AFO. it doesn’t matter that he’s exhausted. it doesn’t matter that he’s just been shot twice. it doesn’t matter that Hawks, despite knowing what Deku was capable of with his OFA abilities, specifically warned him away from this one person only. it doesn’t matter that even the Vestiges are trying to tell him you’re going too fast and you’re trying to do too much and it’s too dangerous.

he just doesn’t care. long story short, the only thing that matters to Deku right now is tracking down and defeating TomurAFO. and as the person who knows him best once so aptly put it, “he doesn’t take himself into account.” and therein lies the major challenge of this arc.

and so this is where we’re currently at now. and this has been a very long post, but if nothing else, I hope I was able to get this one point across: there is absolutely no way that Deku will be able to defeat TomurAFO as he is now. not a chance in hell. somehow he’s managed the uncommon feat of waging a war of attrition against himself, which is really quite an accomplishment. he’s not taking care of himself, and he’s refusing to listen to sound advice from the people surrounding him, and is trying to skip ahead to the final boss battle before he’s ready, because the guilt and pressure from feeling responsible for the current situation are eating him up. the only way that the world can go back to normal is if he can defeat AFO; therefore he has to do it as soon as possible, because time is running out and everyone is counting on him. this is who Deku is. and this is what inevitably happens when his saving mentality is taken to extremes, and left unchecked.

anyway so to wrap up this post now, I do think this arc is a lot more cohesive than it’s gotten credit for thus far, and Deku is the glue holding it all together. I for one am loving the exploration of his character and all the subtle little angsty touches as we build up to the big moment, whenever it finally comes. just keep in mind though that if his decisions right now seem reckless and short-sighted, it’s because they’re supposed to seem that way, because Deku is not in a good mental state right now. the cracks are finally showing in our perfect protagonist, just like everyone has been wanting this whole time. he is just a kid. he is doing his best. he is trying far too hard to do his best, and it is hurting him so badly, but he doesn’t even realize. this arc is not an endorsement of the Angsty Nomad Hero lifestyle, lol. it’s the exact fucking opposite, and I think it’s being wildly misinterpreted with all of the emphasis on “oh look at that, he mastered another quirk with no effort”, as opposed to “oh look at that, he is shutting down emotionally and is a few more missed nights of sleep away from a complete and total breakdown.”

tl;dr the overarching storyline of this arc is all about Deku slowly falling apart due to his trauma from Jakku, and the subsequent pressure that was put on him by the Vestiges with their whole “GUESS WHAT, YOU’RE THE LAST USER OF OFA, THAT’S RIGHT, IT’S ALL ON YOU BUDDY” pep talk. and mark my words, things are not going to go according to plan. something is going to go terribly wrong here. whether it’s something happening to All Might, or AFO setting up a trap for him, either way Deku is being set up to fail in a major way. unless of course, someone (or a group of someones) manages to intervene first, and possibly stage an intervention or something. it’s what he needs right now, but idk if Horikoshi is going to make it that easy.

anyway, but in other words, the point of this arc is not to show how much stronger Deku has gotten and how he doesn’t even need his friends anymore. it’s the exact opposite -- the point of this arc is to show that Deku needs his friends now more than ever. that in spite of OFA and all of its mystical trappings and fancy SIXQUIRKS, Deku can’t do this alone. he needs his friends. that’s the core message. and right now, we are at the “I can get by on my own” part of the story. and the part we are all waiting for, but which is coming -- I guarantee it is coming, you guys -- is “the thing is, you don’t have to.”

and that shit is going to slap hard you guys. and I for one can’t wait. but until then, enjoy the angst.