#but not before she gets to see ha ra destroyed first

[tropicalcryptid]

Ok so She-Ra pulled such a great hat trick with Hordak's characterization, and I LOVE it

One of my favorite things about 2018 She-Ra is Hordak's story and development (and Entrapdak cough but that's not the point of this particular post), and the cleverest thing is that so much of it is actually being set up and told to us in seasons 1 and 2 before we even realize that that's what's happening.

When we first see Hordak in the show, he's giving "generic evil overlord" vibes. Garden-variety baddie. Maybe a little more reasonable than some and clearly capable of long-term thinking, but that just serves to make him intimidating. Everything about him--the way he runs his empire, his armor, his color scheme, his minion, his Villainous Eye Makeup(TM), even his name--are all projecting to the audience "yup, Acme Bad Guy here. Move right along."

But then, backstory. And everything snaps into focus. Not only is it one of the first big oh SHIT moments of the show, where we suddenly zoom out and realize that there is SO much more going on than we realized--it's also the start of the audience seeing Hordak as a character rather than an archetype. Suddenly we realize that he's not conquering Etheria because he wants power, or hates happiness and sparkles, or whatever--he's doing it out of a desperate attempt to prove his worth to his brother/creator/god. This moment where Hordak lets Entrapta in is also the moment the show lets us in on what makes our favorite spacebat tick.

On top of that, we've also seen him bonding with Entrapta and opening up to this person that he respects and trusts...probably the only person he's ever respected or trusted apart from Prime. And she's Etherian--someone of a lower species, someone he's supposed to subjugate, someone who he has been raised and trained and programmed and mind-controlled into believing is below him in every way.

But instead she's brilliant and creative and mesmerizing. She's not afraid of him, and she's fascinated with his work. For the first time since being abandoned by Prime, Hordak finally has someone that he can talk to, who is on his level and both understands and cares about the science! (because he is a giant nerd). She's kind to him, a mere defect. And it just sends his whole worldview into a spin, and that's all before--

Bam, mans is a goner. Entrapta's "Imperfections are beautiful" comment punches right through all the toxic bs that Hordak has been steeped in his entire life. You can see on his face here--I think it's the moment Hordak fell in love with Entrapta, but this is also the face of a spacebat reevaluating his entire worldview. If Entrapta, who is amazing, believes something different from Prime...what does that mean? If Entrapta, who is brilliant, believes that he is worth something, and that she herself is a failure...

Well. We know what happens after that, and how Hordak begins to doubt, and eventually fights back against Prime (and remembers his love for Entrapta after TWO mind wipes help my heart ack). But we also get to see what life in the Galactic Horde looks like: the only life Hordak ever knew before coming to Etheria.

It's not nice.

It's really not nice.

Prime operates in a very specific way, and we learn a lot about it in season 5. Prime expects complete obedience, devotion and worship from his clones. He allows no individuality from his subjects, not even a name. Failure or deviations are punished, mind-wiped, or destroyed. We even learn from Wrong Hordak that facial expressions are considered a privilege reserved for Prime (apart from, presumably, expressions of rapture caused by being around Prime).

And once we learn all of this, suddenly thinking about season 1 Hordak becomes very interesting indeed. The time we spend with the Galactic Horde and Prime throws absolutely everything that we know about Hordak into a whole new context. Now all those traits that made him a generic villain are actually hugely effective characterization! And what that characterization is telling us is that Hordak had already moved much farther away from Prime than we (or, probably, he) had realized, even long before he met Entrapta.

Horde Prime does not allow his underlings to have names, personalities, or any differences of appearance. Not only does Hordak allow this among his own troops, he chose a name for himself as well! Season 5 tells us that his very name is an act of blasphemy against his god. And yet Hordak took one for himself, and that name is part of the core identity he is able to hold on to when rebelling against Prime.

Horde Prime cast Hordak out when he showed signs of physical imperfections. Hordak not only keeps Imp (who is by all appearances a failed clone or similar experiment) around, he treats Imp more gently than we see him treat anybody or anything before Entrapta. Imp is not simply "generic evil guy's minion," he is proof of Hordak's capacity for compassion, and evidence that Hordak cannot bring himself to cast aside "defects" as easily as Prime. Considering where Hordak came from, Imp's existence is a huge, flashing neon sign telling the audience this guy here is better than the hell that molded him, and we don't even realize it until 4 seasons after it's been shown to us!

Very cool, ND.

There's more, though. Hordak's red and black color scheme? His dark eye makeup and lipstick? Very Evil Overlord chic. But nope! Actually these are actually expressions of individuality on a level that Hordak knows would be abhorrent to Prime!

Reading between the lines, I see this as Hordak desperately trying to reconcile two diametrically opposed beliefs in his head: (1) devotion to Prime, whose approval he desperately craves, and (2) maintaining some degree of unique personhood, of Hordak, from which to draw strength. Because a failed, defective clone cannot survive on a hostile world, cut off from the hivemind and from Prime's light. A failed clone cannot create an empire to offer Prime as tribute, nor build a spacetime portal from scraps and memory to call Prime back. A failed clone cannot create cybernetic armor to keep his hurting, weakened body alive; to force himself to keep going no matter what, to fight through the pain and the doubt by sheer force of will.

But maybe Hordak can.

And so there it is. Hordak had plenty of time to gain and explore his individuality while separated from Prime, but I think the reason he did it so effectively (while still deluding himself that Prime would forgive him for these little sins, if only Hordak could prove his value) is because he had to.

Wrong Hordak gained his individuality surrounded by kind, quirky people who took care of him; Hordak was ripped from the hivemind by Prime himself and had to fight for his survival against all odds. And that produced a dangerous and damaging foe for Etheria. But it also produced the one clone with the strength of will to defy Prime himself.

This is long and rambling, but ultimately my point is that 1) I love Hordak, and 2) I love love love love that the show was so clever about his characterization. We learn so much about him and how much progress he's already made in breaking from his psycho abusive cult upbringing, and we don't even recognize it until the show wants us to. Hordak had come so far, all on his own, before he met Entrapta. She just helped push him over the edge and finally realize (at least consciously) that Prime's worldview might not be the correct one.

Idk, I just don't know if I've ever seen all the trappings of Basic 80's Villain(TM) so successfully subverted, where looking back 4 seasons later is actually a smack in the face with the "effective character building" stick. Amazing.

[caffeinatedvigilantewriter]

Soulmark AU again

So in this AU, Dani was born to look 8 (I never understood why she looked 12 but whatever. Danny was 14 in this AU) and Damian arrived at Gotham when he was 10.

Dani traveled the world for around a year before she meet Damian when they were 9. Damian is with the League at that time

Obviously, they are soulmates. You can decide their mark.

As per League custom, any heir must kill or destroy any distractions.

And that includes Soulmates (because Ra’s is an ass)

So, Damian’s first solo mission, he has to track down his soulmate and kill her.

But when it was time, he couldn’t do it.

He let her go, telling her to never contact or try to find him, and he would do the same. Dani leave, very angry (Poor Baby bat didn’t think he had another option)

He burned the body of a dead deer, and told his mother that he scattered Danielle’s ashes in the river.

Years go by, Damian moves to Gotham, and never mentions Danielle to his family. He didn’t even tell them that he knew who they were. He was ashamed 9f what he tried to do. Even if he didn’t manage to succeed.

When they’re both 16-17, Damian comes across Danielle in Gotham (she doesn’t know he was there. She never tried to look for him)

And because she was left dry by her soulmate when she was 9, she’s kind of bitter.

So she leaves, but she told him he would have to deal with her presence because she and her older brother are in Gotham for the foreseeable future.

Damian sees this as a golden chance to get her forgiveness and gain her trust.

The only way for that to happen is if his family doesn’t meddle. The only ways that’ll happen is if they doing know.

So Damian never tells them.

Dani doesn’t tell Damian she’s a ghost, nor why she and Dante are in Gotham (GIW got a hold on Danny and he’s healing in the GZ)

Dani attends Gotham Academy with Valds money. And she and Damian share a couple of classes. Meanwhile, the GIW is in Gotham searching for the High Princess and High Prince. Siblings of the King.

Shenanigans include

-Damian and Jason becoming a regular at the bookstore Dani works at, but they come at different times.

-Steph and Cass are on a date when they run into Damian and Dani, also on a date. It quickly becomes a double date.

-Alfred and Clockwork are old friends and Alfred is either a ghost or extremely liminal.

-Titus and Cujo friendship.

-Wiggles the dragon. I recently found out he existed and live him already

-Bruce getting shot while on Patrol and the closest place was Dani’s and Dante’s apartment

-Peopel can sense when their soulmate is about to die/get extremely hurt. Dani senses Damian is in danger and kills(?) (at least gravely injured) his attacker

-Sam visiting Gotham and strangling the Joker with Undergrowth powers

BONUS!!

Each member of the Royal family needs their own Knight (typically their soulmate/lover of choosing. Sometimes not)

Dante decides to have Fright Knight as his Knight (as soulmates or friends you chose)

Danny has Sam and Tucker, so he’s extra safe.

Dani has Damian.

The reason this is funny is maybe there’s a trademark summoning scene and maybe the knight shows up with the royal member, or maybe they show up first to scout if it’s safe.

So there’s a summoning and Damian pops in the middle of the circle looking confused

If he didn’t know he was Dani’s knight, even better.

[dclovesdanny]

DC XDP prompt

OK, I made a similar prompt to this one for dead on Main earlier, but I want to slightly change it up

Demon twins AU where Danny was sent to the Fenton by Talia, so that Ra’s could not kill him. He and Damian both believed the other two be dead until about age 16, when they meet due to the justice league summoning Danny.

They did the whole reconciliation thing, but the world ended up going into chaos. The GIW destroyed part of the portal, damaging Danny’s grave, and causing him to go into something similar to shock, severely weakening his powers. The league of assassins also made a mess of things, and now Danny and Damian are the only members of the family who are still able to fight. Damian has just sustained a massive injury on his side, and Danny is getting sick the longer he goes without good ectoplasm, becoming almost feral.

Clockwork offers them a deal to go back, but their bodies will carry over all injuries, including Danny being half dead. They will also have to destroy the Lazarus pits, (in this AU, the pits are a natural portal that was forcibly anchored, making it very toxic ectoplasm, similar to mold and poison.) 

They accept, and Danny and Damian wake up. Danny wakes up alone in his room at 10 years old, and Damian wakes up in his bedroom first tonight he ever spent with the Wayne’s.

The problem, is that Jazz finds her brother crying in his bedroom, with lots of scars, and his eyes glowing green. She is trying to calm her adoptive brother down as he cries in her arms, but she can hear her parents downstairs talking about the portal flickering, and has a sinking feeling in her chest.

In Manor, Alfred has gone to wake up the new master Damian, only to find him staring out the window as he bandages an injury on his side that seems to have not been treated before. The angry boy from last night seems to be gone, and his place is a scared child, one who immediately goes into a defensive position when he notices someone entering, before calming when seeing it was only him.

[roses-and-revolutions]

I have another idea for a story, but I once again don't know what to write, so I'm building a skeleton.

It's a DC x DP x ML crossover. Damien, Marinette, and Danny are triplets born into the LoA. From birth, they were taught to not see each other as siblings but as rivals for Ra's attention. When they were five, they were dipped (more like dropped) into the pits for the first time. Danny never comes back out. The second time was when they were six. Damien and Marinette came back from a mission gravely injured. Marinette doesn't come back out. Damien becomes the sole heir.

As one can imagine, Danny and Marinette aren't dead but simply taken to where they were needed at the time. That being said, things for these two characters go mostly according to their respective shows after they integrate into society. With the exception that the two of them are more competent and don't fight like rabid raccoons. But things take a dark turn when they turn sixteen.

Marinette

. After finding out that his father is Hawkmoth, Adrien is unable to carry the weight of being the holder of the cat Miraculous, as he doesn't want to fight his father and gives it to Ladybug. He promptly moves to the States to further his modeling career. Marinette, unable to find someone else worthy to be the holder of the cat Miraculous, stores it away and becomes the sole hero of Paris (with occasional helpers). But because of this, her two lives get more intertwined, and she is forced into a corner where she has to choose between being Ladybuy or Marinette.

. But she doesn't get a chance as Hawkmoth is dethroned and replaced by an even greater threat. She is forced to take on the persona of LadyNoir. Her life crumbles as she tries her hardest to balance her life as a hero and a person. She tries to save everyone but someone always ends up getting hurt. Whether it be her as Marinette, clinging to what little of her life is left. Or her as LadyNoir, with no choice but to watch innocent civilians die because she couldn't think of a better plan that could've saved everyone.

. It gets to the point where she makes an unforgivable wish. But every wish has a cost. She only finds out the price when she is forced to stand behind an invisible wall and watch as her life replays before her eyes, the film slowly burning away till there's nothing left. She cries as she falls into an ocean of familiar Lazarus green.

Danny

. Danny's life is also crumbling around him as he struggles to separate his human life from his ghost half. But after becoming the Ghost King, things only became more complicated and even more dangerous as more ghosts started coming through the portal to challenge him for the crown. And while he would really love to give it away, the guys that kept fighting him for it are very clearly evil. So he has to keep fighting, winning, and solidifying his position as the King of the Infinite Realms. But with every win comes a newfound power. Power he doesn't want. Power that scares him.

. It gets to the point when Danny has to drop out of school. He wasn't even scoring double digits anymore so what was the sense of keeping him? But Danny couldn't stay home either, it was too dangerous as his ghost and human halves were slowly becoming one. And his parents' obsession was slowly becoming a threat to him. He thought he had the solution. He was going to shut down the portal and leave Amity Park.

. It was perfect really, as no ghost portal meant no ghost. And he couldn't be vivisected if neither the GIW nor his parents could catch him. He talked the plan over with team phantom and they reluctantly agreed. The ghost portal is destroyed, and Danny leaves Amity and files over Elmerton and a few other towns. But after flying for a while, Danny gets to a sort of border where nothing meets... NOTHING. On the other side was just an infinite void. Nothing.

. Danny slowly realizes that in this world, all he knew was Amity Park. He never actually traveled or went on field trips. Never went to visit extended family nor did any visit. No one 'new' ever came to Amity Park because they were all just nearby. He learned no relevant history besides Amity Park because there was nothing outside of Amity Park. When the realization had finally set in the world began to crumble into the void and it became a race against him and the void.

. Danny knew that he was fast but the void was faster, and before he knew it he was back in Amity. He was going to warn them and try to save as many people as he could. But saw something in their eyes. They already knew. Danny watched how teary eyes and big smiles, everyone and everything he loved crumbled into the void, fading into nothingness.

Scientists across the galaxy, the universe even, often theorize about how everything came to be. Well, it didn't start with a bang, that's for sure. 'Well then how did it start?' you might ask.

Well..., it started with some tears and a scream.

[lunalouli]

How I think reverse robin au would go:

_ damian being the oldest sibling who came first he and bruce don't talk so much but they start to fight each time they do he would love his sibling but he doesn't know how to show them he's bad a communication cause he live with b and Alfred and he doesn't stop talking formally. His vigilante name would be "shadow" and he would leave the Manor at the age of 17 to the sister city Blüdhaven he tries to be a good brother to his sibling even thought he doesn't know how to show it and he has a protective side, I 100% sur he would kill the joker after he know about tim death then he killed ra for manipulating his younger brother and those killing were also part of the fall of his relationship with his father.

_duke was the second to came to the Manor at the age of 7, damian and him didn't get a long at first cause damian keep distance but they turn to be the beautiful, he didn't know about his power fist but them when he did bruce made sur to make him feel welcome duke was younger than tim but he stayed in the Manor the most he was athe good sunshine brother who maintained a good relationship with his sibling and bruce, he became vigilant after turning 9 goes by "spoiler". Batman listened to him the most.

_Stephanie was already a vigilant when bruce took her in, she was a the sister that camed but never really adopted she stayed in the Manor alot and loved to annoyed bruce who she started calling him B she had a healthy sibling relationship with her brothers even if damin did look weird and mysterious she loved to annoyed but he never snaped at here, she become batgirl. Tim death destroyed here and Jason coming home did bring here some joy but she couldn't forget her BFF death.

_tim camed next at the age of 12 he was adopted after discovery batman and spoiler, he and damian didn't get a long at fist but after tim talking with duke and understanding damian personality he looked up on him and somehow they started get along . joker captured tim to make him joker Jr but tim ended dead due to the experience, when he woke up he find himself in the hand of the demon head who manipulated him to the perfect puppet until damian came and saved him, there he learnt about his older brother past them damian bring him back to Blüdhaven tim was mentally investable but damian did all he could to help him recover then he want back to Gotham and reunited with his family and met his new brother,

_rev!Jason and Jason joined the same way to the batfamily after tim death he bring joy to bruce and duke, he didn't meet damian when he camed to the Manor he just find out about him by asking whoms room in the end turn out he had an older brother who he didn't know about he was excited to meet him, he looked and strong cool in jason eyes, he was more them bruce and he got along with him with book where he first met him , then he met Tim who he used to looked up and he did all he could do to enter the Jr heart ♥

_cass arrived is the same, she camed and stayed, she stayed close to bruce at first then duke, she got along with here sibling quick and here brother cheried here, they know her past. Damian looked at his sibling care to cass he didn't understand but he didn't hated it it was nice seeing how they care to the little girl who she remained him of his past, she also choose to become a vigilante under the name of orphan she started speaking but preferred to use sight language.

_dick camed last at the age of 8 same as the original version he was the lovely beautiful sunshine Little brother who was dear to the batfam but his favorite was damian who he looked up to he was like a father to him he become robin.

_bruce in this rev had a good relationship with duke cass Jay and dick, steph and him used to be close befor Tim's death but after that she made a distance with him and started to get along a little but not as before, him and tim didn't get along after his return because of tim killing problems and tim refusing to come close. But him and damian relationship was too far from a good relationship he didn't trust damian to change and always scolded him for small mistake until damian left the Manor they Don't talk and after killing joker there was ni room off talking only yelling, they Don't talk when damian visit the Manor even in the diner table and bruce always tell damian to stay away from his sibling cause he scared that damian would hurt them

[didherodown]

Didherodown's Official Danny Phantom episode recommendations

(for the fan who has never seen the series but is in the phandom)

Ordered in sequence of release (taken from imdb, so take that as you will)

Very Important episodes will be noted like this Episodes I think are fun and kinda important like this

enjoy!

Season 1: Has a lot of groundwork for the show, lots of introductions to our cast of Ghosts

Mystery Meat - E1

Where it all started, establishes Sam and Tuckers rivalry over food, our first encounter with the Lunch Lady, and Danny’s first outing as a hero in general

Episodes 2-6 : feature introductions to Dora, Skulker, Technus, Point Dexter, and Desiree 

Bitter Reunions - E7

Our introduction to Vlad! Establishes Vlad vs Danny dynamic, Vlad's hate of Jack and his obsession with Maddie

Prisoners of Love - E8 is our intro to Walker

My Brothers Keeper - E9

Spectra makes her appearance! Shows a lot of Danny’s insecurities he has about being different, an outsider, ect.  And Jazz finds out Danny's identity!

Shades of Gray - E10 

Our first meeting of Valerie, and where her life gets ruined by Cujo!

Fanning the Flames - E11 is our intro to Ember

Maternal Instincts - E17 

Vlad is up to his scheming and tries to get both Danny and Maddie to join him and abandon Jack. (Introduces the Specter Deflector gadget, as well the the Plasmius Maximus)

The Million Dollar Ghost - E19

Vlad puts a bounty on Danny Phantom, making lots and lots of ghost hunters show up- including the GIW

Control Freaks - E20

Circus Gothica! The ringmaster- Freakshow- has a staff that he uses to control ghosts and Danny of course falls victim 

Season 2: Has a lot of bangers- and is very heavy in the Danny Lore AND where a lot of fannon comes from (ghost king, trans danny, pharaoh tuck, ect)

Reign Storm - E4

In which Pariah Dark is awoken and goes on a rampage, sucking Amity Park into the Ghost zone. With the other ghosts also terrified of the Ghost King, Danny might be the only who has a chance to stop him (ghost king danny anyone????)

The Ultimate Enemy - E6

Danny cheats on a test, which we find out actually will end the world. Our introduction to Clockwork and the Eyeball Guys(™). And of course, Danny’s future evil self- Dan !!

King Tuck - E7

Where Tucker gets influenced by Hotep-Ra (origin of the Pharaoh Tucker fannon)

Identity Crisis - E8

Where we learn that simply splitting Danny from his ghost half is not an option, his ghost half is indeed half of him

Flirting with Disaster - E11

Where Danny and Valerie are dating. In this episode her original ghost fighting suit is destroyed and Technus makes her a new version- leading to lots of fannon about Valerie being a little more ghost than she thought

Kindred Spirits - E14

Cloning! Danielle! AHHHHHHH!!!! (trans Danny? All but confirmed /hj)

Reality Trip - E17

Where Freakshow is searching for the stones of the Reality Gauntlet (very reminiscent of the Infinity Gauntlet from Marvel)

Season 3: Often the most criticized of the three seasons, the show was canceled in this season. BUT THERE IS SO MUCH IMPORTANT LORE IN THIS ONE LETS GO

Infinite Realms - E2

Our first meeting with Frostbite! Also tells us a lot about how natural portals work AND the introduction of blood blossoms

Torrent of Terror - E4

Introduces Vortex, also Danny's mood affects the weather for a good part of this episode

Urban Jungle - E6

Undergrowth has taken over amity, making Sam his “Queen” because of her love and care of plants. THIS IS WHERE WE FIRST SEE DANNY’S ICE POWERS! AND WE LEARN ABOUT CORES! YES REALLY ONLY 6 EPISODES FROM THE END

Boxed Up Fury - E8

The Box ghost, upset at not being taken seriously- steals Pandora's Box, and well, that goes about as good as you imagine it going

D-Stablized - E11

Dani is literally dissolving into ectoplasm, and Danny has to find a way to save her before she destabilizes all the way. (Introduces Ecto Dejecto- a fanfic staple)

Now this is just my personal list- based on 20 years of being in this fandom (holy shit how can it be that long????)

Thanks for reading :)

[aalghul]

read boywonder and exploded died (in a bad way)

talia... what have they done to you... what do they always do to you... ‘there is no honour in assassin’s work’ talia... where are u... the apple of my eye, i adore her sm very close to sending pipebombs to GM everyday waow...

watching people talk about how good this was for talia feels like chewing glass. boy wonder was clearly written by someone who has not read anything involving talia prior to grant morrison and doesn't care about her outside of whatever can justify her becoming an abusive backstory for damian.

boy wonder completely disrespects her struggle during the time when she was so conflicted because she wanted to be loyal to her father but wasn't sure if she believed in him entirely anymore. the struggle existed because talia knew she would not abide by nor aid him if she did not agree with him. because talia has her own moral compass and beliefs that she follows. juni ba disregards this very important part of her journey to instead make her an entirely different character apparently did not disagree with ra's at any point before her own son was threatened (going as far as making her uncaring towards damian's former caretaker to show us how twisted her way of thinking is. mind you, this is supposedly the same talia who cried the first time she accidentally killed someone and has risked her life to help strangers, the JLA, jason todd, etc). she has to be turned into a different person just because boy wonder needs her to be framed as a somewhat sympathetic villain who gets what she deserves by having her son leave her for a better family. her "happy ending" is knowing that damian's other family is making him happy, which she never could because the story deems her incapable of that.

along these lines is another thing i found insulting: juni ba insinuating that talia's love for bruce may have been caused by talia wanting to please her father, who wanted bruce as an heir. when in reality, ra's only took notice of bruce after talia fell in love with bruce. it was because talia was outspoken enough in front of her father to bring up bruce that ra's cared about him at all. it was because talia had been off in cairo studying medicine that she had been caught up in a scheme that took her to bruce. all of those were her own choices, and juni ba wants us to question whether any of it was real because he doesn't believe talia has ever had agency. all because he himself clearly has never read talia outside of recent comics.

related to the above: juni ba insists talia wanted to be the heir to the league of assassins. pre-GM talia has never expressed this. she's never even implied it. from everything we've seen, it's pretty clear she would never want to nor would she able to stomach so much death. because it's canon that talia's heart hurts for everyone she sees killed. but, again, juni ba does not care about this whatsoever because his story is about damian and the bats. talia's characterization is always acceptable collateral damage when it comes to damian and the bats.

the more I think about it, the more I hate juni ba's misinterpretation of her. people so readily accept things like boy wonder and WFA when it comes to talia because they know so little about the most foundational parts of her character and it's really upsetting that big projects will continue to give such ooc stories as the best case scenario for talia. this is equivalent to someone writing a story where bruce decided to not take in dick or jason because the mission's more important than one kid. that would make bruce a different and less compelling character, right? that's exactly what happened to talia here (and in wfa and in everything GM wrote and in pretty much every story written since then). these are very integral parts of her character. if boy wonder as a story can't function without talia being so thoroughly destroyed? it was never a story worth telling (and it really isn't. because it's truly not a good story at all, which makes talia being wrecked for it even worse).

it makes me so angry because things like this are exactly why people don't see talia the same way they see selina or bruce or any other character ever! she continues to be pushed into the role of the harmful past who can only atone for her mistakes by now becoming an obsolete observer.

[spop-romanticizes-abuse]

so i was rereading the transcript to Launch (the episode where the princesses are trying to locate glimmer) and i want to talk about two things i hated about this episode (apart from.. the obvious):

1. i don’t like that the crew’s idea of an autistic person is “has a special interest” and “doesn’t value human life”.

now i get it. neurodivergent people can have trouble reading the room or responding in a way that people expect us to. but we can still recognize a serious situation (especially one where someone is hurt or in need of help) when we see it.

entrapta has always been kind of absentminded, but i feel like in this episode, they made her act like too much of an airhead. she seems to be on the high-functioning end of the spectrum, so i don’t understand the point of making it seem like she can never take anything seriously. she’s rambling about science and space, she’s climbing over tents, knocking shit over, it’s just strange to add in “comedic” bits like this in an episode that’s supposed to be serious. in general, this episode was far too lighthearted than it had any right to be, but entrapta was the worst part of it.

i just feel like she’s portrayed as more of a silly caricature of an autistic person, rather than an actual autistic person. a lot of this is played for laughs as well like “haha look at entrapta, she’s such an idiot, she only cares about science!” and it just feels insulting. we’ve seen entrapta show concern and compassion before, albeit in her own way, like when hordak wasn’t feeling well. so why would she act like this in a situation where someone’s life is at stake?

my problem lies with the writers and not entrapta herself, because it seems like they pick and choose when to make entrapta more empathetic and relatable, and when to make her act like a robot who doesn’t value human life. it’s just weird.

(this is all based on my general knowledge about neurodivergent people and my own personal experience with autism, so if i said something wrong here, feel free to correct me!)

2. the princesses aren’t mad at entrapta because she joined the horde and built weapons that were used to hurt thousands of innocent people, no no no, they were mad that she betrayed them specifically.

it’s all about “us”. not “our people” or “innocent civilians”, just.. “us”. because they’re the only ones affected by the ongoing war, right? everyone else on etheria is completely safe and sound, the princesses suffered the most because their ego was a bit damaged by what entrapta did. sure.

and let’s not forget this:

fucking rich of perfuma to say that they’re supposed to be entrapta’s friends, when SHE’S the one who leashed entrapta and dehumanized her.

and this is the first and only time they mention the kingdoms. which, btw, i may be nitpicking but “destroyed kingdoms” is a very light way to put it. it makes it seem like the horde was just destroying lands and buildings and not, you know, killing or grievously harming very real people. and again, this is all about THEM in the end, they’re acting like the kingdoms were their property, and not a civilisation of real people with real lives.

it’s a subtle way to avoid addressing the real impact of war, because how would we redeem our beloved catra if we acknowledge that she probably slaughtered hundreds of innocent civilians who were just trying to live their lives?

(also i find it funny that the 12 year old is the only one who even attempts to acknowledge the civilians, while the “adults” of the group whine about themselves.)

i’ve said this a million times before but i just don’t understand the idea of writing about war, and then acting like it only affects the people who are fighting it. this was a show written by adults, right? i’m seriously beginning to question it.

and like i said in a previous post, they did not have to make a she-ra reboot. they did not have to write about war. no one forced them to. if you’re choosing to write about a specific topic in a show that is marketed to the general public, especially children, it is your duty to do your research on it and address it accordingly. you don’t even have to do research to understand that war impacts everyone, not just the oppressors and the royalty. that’s just common knowledge. or did these people skip their history classes?

[haemosexuality]

im rewatching she-ra and naturally im gonna want to write about it a lot. starting by breaking down the catradora conflict origin story scene from s01e02 the sword part 2

people have said this before but the most important thing to keep in mind here is how different their understanding of whats going on is. theyre both approaching this with completely different views and so they misunderstand what the other means.

Adora: There's no time. We have to put a stop this.

Catra: What? Why?

Adora: Because this is a civilian town. Look around! These aren't insurgents. They're innocent people.

Catra: Yeah, sure. Innocent people who kidnapped a Horde officer. Now come on, let's get you back to the Fright Zone. Shadow Weaver is freaking out. [laughing] It'd be funny if she weren't such a terrible person.

so immediately theres two things i wanna say about this part, about how catra reacts to stuff. first off, something we learn about catra throughout the whole show and especially in the portal-alternative-reality, is that shes big on Pretending Nothing Is Wrong. whenever shes feeling upset or angry about something, she will start joking around and acting like shes just totally super chill guys, dw ("Ugh, whatever. It's not like I even care. I just wanna get out of this dump at some point before I dieee of boredom). Shes acting like that in this scene. Adora was missing for hours, shadow weaver was breathing down her neck and threatening her, she was already worried adora might have left at this point. she cant let adora know how worried she was tho, so shes all jokes and fast paced conversation. To Adora, tho, it just looks like catra doesnt care, like she doesnt understand the gravity of the situation.

and the other thing is that honestly? I dont think catra does care. about the town, i mean. i think catra was ready for war in a way adora never was. theyre both seeing combat for the first time here, and adora hates it. training for war is completely different than being in the battlefield, and adora couldnt handle it. face to face with it she couldnt tolerate seeing people suffering and dying, houses being burned down, a whole village destroyed. when the horde brainwashed adora into thinking they were only doing the necessary to save etheria, she completely and fully believed it, and when faced with the reality of the horde she immediately realized how wrong that was. Catra, tho, could not care less. she never believed in what the horde said, she knew full well what the horde did, so this isnt a surprise for her. and i do think shes naturally a bit sadistic, or at least growing up among the violence of the horde made her so. either way, shes seeing battle here for the first time and shes completely fine with it. doesnt even spare it all a second glance. why would she care about these people she never met if the most important thing in the world is right here in front of her? (i think even if adora hadnt left that night and went into the battlefield as a force captain, she wouldve ended up deserting. she cant stand seeing people suffer and she cant stand not saving them. shes too good, too selfless for that. catra isnt.) (also she is so ready to kill at all times. she loves violence. i once saw someone say how shadow weaver thought adora was the "cutthroat, ruthless warrior" when that was actually catra and they were totally right)

adora is also trying something futile here, she doesnt need to explain to catra that the horde is bad and hurts innocent ppl because catra has known that all her life

Adora: Catra, no. I can't go back. Not until the Horde leaves this town alone. You have to help me.

Catra: What are you saying?

Adora: I’m saying, this is wrong. They've been lying to us, manipulating us. Hordak, Shadow Weaver, all of them.

Catra: Duh! Did ya just figure that out? Manipulation is Shadow Weaver's whole thing. She's been messing with our heads since we were kids.

(the captions in the pics are slightly wrong, nvm that.) everything i said before. adora just realized all of this, while catra has always known, probably because the abuse adora suffered was more manipulation-and-brainwashing, while shadow weaver always made clear to catra that she didnt give a shit about her, so she suffered physical abuse with little attempt to convince her this was fine.

the "what are you saying?" is one of the things that show how different their perspective is. adora is talking about going against the horde and helping the town, while catra immediately gets more personal. what do you mean? are you saying that you might leave the horde? leave me?

Adora: How could you possibly be okay with that?

adora means, how could you be ok with the horde lying about its actions, and killing innocent people? how could you be ok with the horde raising us to do the same? and catra hears, how could you be ok with shadow weaver and hordak abusing us?

Catra: Because, it doesn't matter what they do. The two of us look out for each other. And soon we'll be calling the shots. Now come on, can we go home already?

catra replies: because, i love you. because you have my back and i have yours. because nothing really bad can happen as long as we have each other, remember? and soon enough, we'll be powerful enough that they cant hurt us anymore. Adora hears, because i dont care about these people dying, the only thing thats important is you and i. and anyways, soon its gonna be Us killing them, isnt that good? lets go back home to the evil murder place.

Adora: I'm not going home, Catra. I can't. Not after everything I've seen. Come with me. You don't have to go back there. We can fix this.

adora says: im starting to realize now how wrong i was about everything. we're not the good guys, and i cant stand for that. i cant stand around and watch people get hurt. i cant stand around and watch you get hurt. lets leave, together, and have a better life, please. lets do the right thing.

Catra: Are you kidding? You've known these people for, what, a couple of hours? And now you're just gonna throw everything away for them?

catra hears, shes willing to leave me. after everything i did for her, all that i took, all of these years of us being together, she would still leave me. she would break our promise. she would leave me behind.

and then she straight up electrocutes adora. ok

she says it was a reflex, but i dont know if i believe her. i dont think she likes hurting adora (not physically. not by this point, anyways), but i do think that shes the type to lash out when upset and immediately regret it, then feel guily about it. which just makes her more upset. :(

Catra: Oh, man. That was a lot stronger than I thought. Are you okay?

Adora: Why are you doing this?

Catra: Because you left me! And if I don't bring you back, Shadow Weaver’s gonna have my head. So, enough with your weird little identity crisis and let's go home already. Or do I need to zap you again?

thats the last time they talk. adora gets teleported away by glimmer, and when they see each other again, its clear that they both made their choice.

the moment adora showed catra she was willing to leave her, there was no coming back for them. because catra would never get over that. she'd spend all her life in that hellscape, putting up with abuse and bullying and probably so much more we dont get to see, because of the promise adora made her. and, in her eyes, adora was ready to leave her on the first opportunity that came up. that hurt. that broke her. and that released something really ugly inside of her.

cue in 2,5 years of homoerotic rivalry and trauma. ok post over if you read this i hope you liked it <3 bye

[taddymason]

Hi, I'm huge fan of your creations, and I have a bunch of questions, but for now, I just have a question about your Dad Jay AU, that just crossed my mind. (You can ignore this, if you want to)

If, completely hypothetically, Jay got all his memories back, would his behavior change in any way? If so, would his personality that we know right now, change completely? Would he have different humor and a different way of handling things? And would his behavior towards Kaida change, if so, how would this affect their father-daughter relationship? Would Kaida or Jay distance themselves from the other? (Okay, that one goes way too far, but still.) I'm just pretty curious of how Jay, hypothetically, regaining his memories, would change the relationships and opinions he currently has and the general story.

I love this question so much, thanks for asking

So, what's important is that yes, getting all his memories back would affect him but it would still be impossible for him to go back to being the person he was before the merge. In the same way that none of the ninjas are exactly who they were before the merge, but since they believe that all of Jay's changes are from his amnesia, they think that getting his memories back would basically be a reset to who he was pre-merge. It's a mix of a lot of factors like living in the administration, becoming a father, everything that happened with Ras, destroying his soul, that have changed his attitude and how he handles things now.

I think that getting all his memories back, actually being aware of everything that he and the ninjas have been through together, what he and Nya have been through together would not completely eliminate the tension that exists between them because if anything it would make him feel even more guilty about everything that happened. The fight with them in the first arc, shooting Cole and almost killing him, etc, if Jay is already having problems with that, having their memories of them would make him feel terrible.

I can imagine him having a complete breakdown in an attempt to reconcile all his actions as he starts to remember things.

Like even if he apologized to them for that, he still wouldn't feel entirely safe to return to the team, much less get close to Nya. Yes, of course, it would make him less distrustful about their intentions because at this point he still believes that they might want him just for his powers (aka, again just as a weapon) and having their memories would make him know that's not true.

And in general as a person I do see him being less prone to make the most explosive decision although that would still happen anyway. Being aware of his past mistakes would not completely prevent him from repeating them but he would be more willing to try to reconcile with the ninjas eventually and to solve the consequences of his actions.

While I don't think he and Kaida would grow apart, it would change their relationship because he would actually, yk, strive to be a role model for being a better person instead of sticking to his "moral compass" of only worrying about things that make him feel guilty and then doing the same thing again. Overall, his worst mistake as a parent is that he doesn't teach Kaida any meaningful ways to be a better person but instead just sticks to "do as I say, not as I do" and expects her to actually do it while they're still in an environment where that behavior just doesn't work. So, that would certainly change, something that would be weird for Kaida to adjust to at first.

I also see Jay being more open with her than he was before, even when he would still have a hard time talking about his past. Other than that, I don't think there would be much of a change other than that and that this moral shift would be something Kaida would be conflicted about at first, because even with his memories she would still be his first priority. Just that he would be aware that he has another base of support to count on and they can start to get out of this "them against the others" mentality.

And additionally; I don't think his humor changes much tbh. That guy would still be making dad jokes anyway. I DO think a lot of the other changes, like the way he chooses to dress, aren't so much related to amnesia as they are to Jay changing as a person after several years as well as his tastes.

[starres-stuff]

Day 27: Memory FFXIV Write 2024

Memory: something remembered from the past; a recollection.

An entry from the journal of Viviane Jienuex-Vimaroix

Someone asked me today at the bakery as I was packaging their order if I had a favorite memory. It is not a question that a stranger normally asks to make small talk and at the time I was not certain how I would answer it. So I told them I did not. The customer was an Au Ra, who grew up in Thavnair, her Father one of the Radiant Hosts, she shook her head at me and insisted we all have a favorite memory, to recall it we have to tap into life's flow. 

It was not a strange concept for me, I had been told before that time and memory flowed like a river both moving to one point where it became part of something else, and that would become part of something else. The eternal passage of life. That was what it was called or as Doshaine had called it one night, The Way. 

Still, I could not think of one singular memory that I would deem my all-time favorite, and even after this mysterious Raen left my bakery I could not get the question out of my head. It lingered there as I packaged other orders and was there as we did the baking for the morning. It followed me home as I walked through the Beds and into the garden Kovalt has cultivated with love and understanding. Through dinner, I heard that question again and eventually, it begged me to sit with my journal to think. Still, there was no favorite to find there were just so many that I had recalled since I was asked the question. 

After our visitor was gone, Xixa had turned to me and told me that the Spinner sent the Raen to test my growth, that she was a voice who knew well the tapestry and how it flowed into the next chapter of life. It was not the first time I had been tested on my faith and growth but it has been the hardest to date. The longer that I sit with these thoughts and this question, I come to the realization that no, I do not have a single favorite memory, it is not that simple and it is quite impossible as memories are forged with every person we know and every place we had ever been. 

Our memories are special to us whether they are good or bad. They let us monitor our growth and see our changes. They remind us of what did not work for us and what we should do more of. Every significant event in our lives, large or not, becomes part of our flow and for me, I had no singular favorite memory as they were all special to me. They helped shape who I have become today. 

There are more dangerous things that dwell in the flow as well and fight to keep us from going forward. Stagnation, lack of trust, and anger just to name a few. They are the traps left in our memories to halt our growth. They become lenses we look through when we look at others and as soon as we see them that is when we push people away. We use those things to build walls around our hearts and minds to stay safe. We were fooled once and never again. Then slowly we begin to treat that person as we were treated until the day comes that we have transformed them into ourselves at the height of our hurt. 

It is such a complex thing, memory. It can build hopes or destroy our dreams depending on what we do with it. We can seek tomorrow with an open heart and mind, or we can become trapped in the past and relive it with people who do not deserve our scorn but do deserve our love. They deserve that place in the flow uninterrupted by our fears. 

If I see the Raen again, I will have an answer for her. No, I don't have a singular favorite memory, I have many. This includes meeting her for she brought to my mind all these rich thoughts, and through doing so pointed out to me my flaws. To go forward I can no longer look back to the darkness behind me or worry about what the future has in store. I must dwell here in the present and now. It is where the adventure truly is after all. 

V.J.V

[mymoviefaves]

So I was thinking. I think the Genshin Impact fandom (and a lot of fandoms tbh) need to learn that there’s a difference between redemption, and humanization.

Tl;Dr None of the antagonists in Genshin have been redeemed, even if they have backstories and they’re playable.

Spoilers for Genshin, She-Ra, Steven Universe, and AtLA ahead

A complaint I see about some story lines in Genshin is that the game keeps “redeeming” evil characters, and doesn’t just let them be evil, with the exception of La Signora who died before we could get much screen time at all, and will never be playable. But the characters most everyone would call “evil” who are playable, (Childe, Raiden Shogun, and Scaramouche) get quickly redeemed with no consequences for their actions, and are no longer evil characters. And there’s a worry that other evil characters that will be playable are going to get the same treatment.

Here’s my thing, I feel like they will get the same treatment, but none of those characters have been redeemed. At any point. (You could make an argument for Scaramouche but we’ll get there). None of them are even asking for redemption. All of them have been humanized though.

So I feel like the easiest way to do this would be to give examples of redemption and examples of humanization.

Redemption:

The first characters to come to mind are Zuko in AtLA, and Catra in She-Ra.

Zuko did horrible things throughout the first two seasons of AtLA, including a lot of attempted murder/capture, lying, betraying people closest to him, being a general dick even. We know that the reason he’s like this is entirely because of his abusive father, but just having that information doesn’t redeem him as a person. He has to earn that, and he does. He gains the trust of the gang, he shows kindness without expecting anything in return, he throws himself into this fight whole heartedly against the fire nation and the only family/friends he’s ever had aside from his uncle. I feel like I don’t have to go too deep into detail, but you get it right? He actively tries to be a better person and to make good on everyone he’s wronged. The gang and Iroh don’t have to forgive him, but they do, because he earned it. And it’s a “kids” show where forgiveness is kind of a big theme.

It’s a similar situation with Catra in She-Ra. She’s a horrible person. She’s selfish, manipulative, violent, and she tried to destroy the universe for attention. We know why she’s like this, she was horribly abused and manipulated by Shadow Weaver and the Horde. She’s sad, scared, and lonely, but obviously none of this is an excuse or makes her a good person automatically. She doesn’t get a redemption arc until the last season where she sacrifices herself for Glimmer, having absolutely nothing to gain from it. She has to literally become reborn, and much like Zuko she completely devoted herself to fighting the opposite side of this fight she’s been in her whole life because it’s the right thing to do. At no point did she just trauma dump and get the best friends squad and the princesses to immediately forgive her, it took weeks of earning their trust expecting nothing in return. Again, hard work.

Humanization:

I feel like this is where a lot of confusion lies. Especially with the black and white thinking found all over the Internet. “If bad person, than horrible evil monster who kicks puppies” “If good person, than perfect saint of a person has never done anything bad in their life”. That’s just not how reality works, and that’s not how good writing works. If your antagonist is just Satan incarnate, sure that could be interesting to play around, but that has to be the main conflict. Trying to overcome this force of nature.

Great bad guys tend to have interesting motivations, and are fully fleshed out three dimensional characters.

I’ll use a controversial example, but the Diamonds in Steven Universe. They. Are. Not. Good. People. Rebecca Sugar was never trying to make them good people. They do not get redeemed at the end of the show. They do not earn Steven’s or the Gem’s forgiveness. They come to a peaceful solution (because Steven is a pacifist and it’s a kids show) but they’re at no point redeemed.

They are three dimensional though. We find out that all of them are still reeling over the “loss” of Pink, and while their actions have always been hurtful they were always meant to be in best interest for the family. Does that excuse them? No. Impact is always more important than intent, and that’s why they’re the bad guys. At the end of the day and the end of the series, they’re still not welcome in Steven’s life even if they try to be better. The audience can see them as more than just evil cartoon villains, and that makes them interesting as characters, but they’re still bad people.

Another evil antagonist who is humanized and becomes a more interesting and well rounded character, Darth Vader. Stay with me.

Obviously Anakin Skywalker gets “redeemed” at the end of the original trilogy, but it’s obviously very bare bones. It was 1985, and not a great example of a bad guy getting redeemed. However, in the prequels we can see how this literal cartoon villain, dark castle on the side of a volcano, evil character, started as an optimistic, brave, and kind hearted little boy.

Say what you want about the prequels and their writing, but the way they portrayed the downward spiral of Anakin Skywalker was fantastically done if you pay attention and don’t zone out during all the political speeches. We know Darth Vader already, but at the start of the prequels we’re introduced to a literal innocent child. We watch him literally being manipulated and groomed to the dark side by Palpatine, have no outlet to talk through his trauma so the only solution he has is violence, and when he’s at the most scared and desperate he’s ever been, he fully falls into the role of Darth Vader and goes out to murder a bunch of little kids. Little kids the same age and with the same mindset he had at the beginning of the series. Does any of this backstory, trauma, and being a victim of Palpatine’s manipulation make him a good person? No. He’s fucking Darth Vader. He kills babies and tries to drag his own son down the same path as him. It does make him into a more rounded and interesting character though. It makes him human. A terrible human, but still human.

ANYWAY BACK TO GENSHIN IMPACT

Childe, Raiden Shogun, and Scaramouche have all been humanized by the story so far, not redeemed.

Childe is a Fatui harbinger. He actively tried to kill the traveler, and while he felt bad about it (there was a translation error in the English version) tried to kill an entire city of innocent people. He only half heartedly apologized for the attempted murder and just laughed it off. He still doesn’t see what he did as wrong, or anything he does working as a harbinger as wrong. He’s by all standards a bad guy. But, he’s genuinely a kind person. We learn that he’s a loving and sweet big brother who’d do anything for his family. We’re probably going to learn about whatever traumatized the light out of his eyes soon in Fontaine, but he’s never been redeemed of being a murder happy mafia caporegime. He’s still very evil, and probably will be until either he dies trying to save the traveler/Tucer, or realizes that the Fatui are just using him and that taking care of his family is more of a threat than a favor. I have a lot of feelings about this man. But that’s the thing, he’s an interesting, well rounded character even without redemption.

Raiden Shogun has never once apologized or even asked for forgiveness for what she’s done to Inazuma. She doesn’t see her actions as evil, she just sees them as an over correction. She’s barely even able to see her citizens as people because she locked herself away from humanity for 400 years. When we get to know her and her backstory we learn that she has horrible trauma, and everything she’s done has been what she thought was best for Inazuma as a whole. We learn that she’s actually a very kind person who loves sweets and thinks the best solution to a love triangle is everyone dating each other. Does any of this redeem her and make her a good person? No. Very few Inazuma characters forgive her for what she did and the war that came from it. Kokomi is willing to be diplomatic with her, because she knows that’s what’s best for her people, but the second there’s a reason to, her and the rest of the characters effected by Raiden’s actions are ready and willing to throw hands. Will she ever ask for forgiveness or seek redemption? Probably not. But her being more than just the cartoon villain evil robot dictator that the Shogun puppet is, makes her an interesting and well rounded character.

Scaramouche/The Balladeer/Wanderer/Kabukimono/Kunikuzushi/Kuronoshi/Shouki no Kami/Babygirl is the only character so far that I feel like is in his “hey, Zuko here” era. Obviously he’s done plenty of evil things in his life. He murdered several entire families to wipe out a cultural art form because he was petty and hurt. He tried to murder the traveler several times, he helped set the vision hunt decree and war that came from it in motion, oversaw the delusion factory getting even more people killed, tried to become a god, attempting to murder the traveler again and attempting deicide on a toddler. Not to mention, overall, kind of a dick to just about everyone. He even asks “Am I evil?” And Nahida says “Yes.”

Throughout all of 3.1-3.3 we learn his tragic backstory, and how he was lied to and manipulated, and traumatized into going from “sweet and innocent puppet” Kabukimono to the Scaramouche we meet in the beginning of the game. Does any of that abstain him from everything he’s done in the past 400 years? No. But I think where we see the beginnings of a genuine redemption arc is when he decides to help the traveler and Nahida when he has no reason to. The next part of his redemption comes from when he found out the reason everyone he loved died, and the reason he became evil to begin with, was all based on a lie and decided that everyone he’s ever cared about might be saved if he never existed. And of course, after accepting all of his mistakes and the worst most evil parts of himself and still deciding to save the traveler’s life just before getting his vision.

Now, is he a fully redeemed and forgiven character even after all of that? No. Not even after all of that. The traveler is still suspicious of his motives, and doesn’t forgive him for anything. But at the same time, he told them to tell everyone effected by his actions who he is and what he’s done. He’s expecting them to come after him and he’s ready and willing to accept anything coming at him. He’s also been actively being helpful and kind to the rest of the Sumeru cast even when he has nothing to gain from it. Sure, his main reasoning for not hurting people anymore is that he has no reason to, but even if he’d never admit it he’s actively being a better person. He’s still a brat and an asshole to everyone in his life, but that’s just his charm.

Anyway, as far as I’m concerned about future playable antagonists and evil characters (Arlecchino, Dottore, honestly the rest of the Harbingers) I feel like we’re going to get their backstories, and they’ll become fully fleshed out, rounded, humanized characters, but they definitely won’t be redeemed of their evil actions by any means.

[aingeal98]

It's interesting to me that Jason and Damian are the two with a lot of angst about how Bruce is projecting on them and yet out of all six siblings the only one he projects on less than them is Duke. (Perks of being the last and also not actually adopted. You just get a pretty decent mentor who actually helps your issues)

Bruce does project Robin Jason on Red Hood Jason and Talia/Ra's on Damian (only at first). But there's really not many comics that show him projecting the past Robins or Batman on Jason or Damian during their time. Not to say that Jason and Damian don't have understandable reasons for feeling that way but it's just not what Bruce is shown doing.

After that it's like a scale with Cass at the top (He projects so so hard onto her and unlike Dick she has no team to help her find an identity outside of Gotham and Babs tries but she's also Gotham and any time Cass goes outside of Gotham it's either destroyed or not actually given enough screen time to count. She is the Bat but looking at each of the siblings individual comic storylines, she's trapped in Bruce's shadow more than any of them because she never had a real lasting chance to build anything outside of it)

And Tim at the bottom (Bruce definitely projects and it's miserable for Tim (16th birthday example number one) but unlike Cass and Dick, Tim sort of came built in with that projection? Like Tim dove headfirst into the job of emotional support Robin willingly aware of the dead Robin before him and calling Bruce out anytime he felt he was projecting Jason too hard on him. Bruce looks at Dick and sees the hero better than Batman and looks at Cass and sees his own unhealthy ideal for Batman but he looks at Tim and he's like "Tim's great :) Tim's a great Robin he's talented he's got what it takes." And sometimes he goes too far but like. Compared to Dick and Cass and Steph (not a sibling so I didn't include her but considering Bruce's projection of Jason and Tim was part of the reason she died she'd definitely be just under Cass for me) Tim just isn't quite as bogged down by projection issues. Partly due to being a bit of an insane 13 year old who willingly offered themselves up as random child sidekick for Mr Batman to project on. And also partly due to how the original hero Tim worshipped was Dick, not Bruce. He's Schrodinger's Robin, both the most normal and the most not. But to me Bruce's projecting isn't the driving force behind a lot of his issues compared to the eldest two.

Which says a lot about Bruce's relationship Dick and Cass because even with his team of friends to rely on, Tim's mentality towards Batman and Robin and how he reacts to all Bruce's projecting is uhhhh not the most normal. But the oldest two just have him beat in terms of how huge Bruce's shadow deliberately looms over and swallows them whole. And also by how much it hurts them, in my opinion.

It's a sliding scale from Duke and Damian who he doesn't consistently choose to push harmful expectations onto outside of one or two storylines, to Jason who only gets it due to everything Red Hood, to Tim who he sometimes treats badly due to harmful expectations, to Dick who he consistently has on this pedestal and expects too much of, to Cass who is just. This father daughter duo can fit so much toxic but interesting projection into them.

[aprillikesthings]

I ONLY HAVE FOUR EPISODES LEFT oh god oh god I'm full of adrenaline ngl

okay

s5 ep10 return to the fright zone

before we start I just want you to know I posted another short fic, it's explicit, thank you

Also Saer made the pattern for the ears and tail of my Catra cosplay :D :D :D

okay

I'm so weirdly antsy and anxious about this

So this is why, last episode, I had trouble recognizing this as the spot where Glimmer and Catra had fought ages ago. The way Netossa was standing in front of it made it look TINY. With Sea Hawk and Swift Wind standing there right in front of the entrance it's clearer to me.

Netossa is explaining everyone's weakness, and I'm lol'ing because the illustrations in the notebook are so obviously Nate's art style

(I also roll my ankle sometimes, that hurts like A MOTHERFUCKER)

those drawings are so fucking cute help i can't

"whoa whoa whoa, that's like, really personal compared to fire" lolol

yeah this is just for my "accidentally inappropriate screenshots" collection

every possible screenshot I could take of this is perfection AHAHAHAHA

anyway roll intro

Scorpia apparently wreaked havoc on some town and then went back to the Fright Zone.

Perfuma: bc it's her home Catra: that pile of fucking trash isn't anyone's HOME Perfuma: okay but she could probably resist Horde Prime's programming

oof

but also: true

Anyway Catra points out: the chip is the important thing, not WHO is chipped

omg

Catra: "The only reason Adora, y'know....saved me or whatever....is that the chip got damaged first!"

look at how smug she is

Perfuma: "I know all about how you treated Scorpia back in the Horde!" Catra:

yeah that's not nice to think about huh

(I talk about finding Mean!Catra hot but the scenes where she's just viciously cruel to Scorpia are just...not. They're hard to watch.)

Perfuma: "Things are different now! Scorpia knows the kindness of a true friend."

bb has some regrets

(bb has a LOT of regrets)

look at poor Melog ;_;

Bow's dads haven't responded to Bow since they got back, shit. Glimmer offers to teleport them there to check on them.

I can't help thinking of the moment in Nate's fic where Adora runs into the bunk room to get some clothes for Catra and these two are cuddling and are startled, and Adora apparently just smirks at them before leaving the room again lol

Anyway, everyone else is off to see if they can save Scorpia

They use Melog to sneak into the Fright Zone

Man I wish it wasn't a pain in the ass to gif this stuff, because their faces are so good, but:

Adora: "It's weird, isn't it? Being back. So many memories here." Catra: "Most of them bad."

Catra: "Hey, I bet I can still beat you to the forge." Adora: "Uh, yeah, because you always cheat!"

look at them *sobs*

But yeah there's still destroyed stuff all over the place

"before we were taken by Horde Prime." LOL

Perfuma just starts shouting Scorpia's name to everyone else's horror, but electricity starts sparking everywhere before something blows up

and there she is!

Perfuma is still convinced Scorpia won't hurt her...and is v v wrong, and Adora has to tackle her out of the way

oh god

Catra starts apologizing but Scorpia just zaps her and she goes flying

Adora's "Catraaaa!" is very satisfying

She transforms to She-Ra in record time to keep a big chunk of machinery (that Scorpia threw) from crushing her.

Netossa: "Pretty sure she can tell it's us." Perfuma: "Yes, but I mean, it's Catra. Can we really blame her?"

LOLOL

Back at the library, Bow's dads are nowhere to be seen

There's a great line of Bow saying "They can't protect themselves! They're dads!"

PFFT they find a note left specifically for Bow. It has a dad-joke-level pun.

How smart is Melog? Is it like having a cat that can talk? Or is it like, A Person. Because Melog is clearly fine playing the role of Therapy Cat Who Can Also Make Things Invisible. But Catra and Melog are clearly having a conversation where Melog has some things to say!

One of Catra's ears twitches. It's so cute. Help.

OH SHIT (there's water aggressively leaking from nearby pipes)

wait wrong cartoon XD

but I'm glad I was able to find that exact gif because:

yeah

Adora in general is a Golden Retriever Girlfriend but this is so funny

"We don't throw tanks at our friends!" I mean she's got a point, they don't want to actually hurt Scorpia

Spinerella shows up and Netossa runs to chase after her

PFFT LOL

YAY

Anyway the Dads say they found something that might help things. I think I know what. Oh god.

Catra and Mermista get in a fight, and Catra realizes she can't just slash the chip out of Mermista because it's clearly like, putting tendrils/connections into the rest of her body. The moment of hesitation means Mermista gets the upper hand, and Catra barely escapes (riding on Melog!)

She-Ra and Perfuma are still trying to deal with Scorpia, and She-Ra gets banged into a wall and is just Adora again. She looks confused and unhappy about it.

Perfuma: "What happened to She-Ra?"

they end up running into Hordak's little throne room and OH SHIT FUCK

see this is why I made myself stop reading the synopses I forgot

Scorpia ties up Perfuma and Adora's hands with electrical cable things

Adora: well you still can't have She-Ra

Horde Prime: "Not anymore. My little brother's research has given me everything I need to know. The technology of this planet is familiar to me. Ancient, crude, outdated. It will be child's play to bypass its defenses and take the weapon at its heart for myself, with...or without you."

shit

y'know it's been a while since a random line in this show made me think of a song

and...oh no the lyrics kind of work for Catradora, in any case the vibes definitely do, and now I'm hella distracted, FUCK

🎵My hands are tied My body bruised, she got me with Nothing to win and Nothing left to lose And you give yourself away And you give yourself away And you give And you give And you give yourself away With or without you With or without you, oh I can't live With or without you🎶

*resentfully adds it to my spop rewatch spotify playlist*

(it's still a really great song tho, just saying)

OKAY back to Bow's dads

George: "We unearthed an ancient secret, long forgotten. A rebellion from the time of the First Ones, fighting against a powerful tyrant, just like we are. Watch. Eternia."

Anyway they bring up a huge globe kind of map thing?

Lance: "But then we remembered that message on your tracker pad and how it used coded language based on the star formations of the distant past."

George: "Friend of..."

"Mara wasn't alone!"

Hologram: "There is one recording available. Would you like to review?" Lance: "Play it." Serenia: "This is our last transmission. If anyone's hearing this, you need to listen."

AND I'VE HIT THE IMAGE LIMIT I'm surprised it took this long lol lemme reblob

[askthepsychic]

A few moments later, Rey arrives in Canterlot and goes directly to the palace. She lands before the grand doors and addresses the royal guards “sirs, I’m sorry for coming so early in the morning, but I have this past night been gifted with knowledge of the location of a persona of great importance. However, though I know where they are, I don’t know where that location is in this world. I believe the quickest way to find them would be to seek the aid of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.”

The guards nod, one of them saying “understood your highness. They should be partaking of their morning meal at this time. Do you need any guidance to find the dining hall?”

Rey shakes her head “no, thank you. I’ve dined with them before.”

The guards nod, then resume their duties as Rey enters the palace to find the royal sisters. A moment later Rey enters the dining hall, Celestia and Luna blinking at her entrance. Celestia swallows the bite she just took and dabs a napkin at her lips before saying “Rey? What brings you to us this early?”

Rey’s response is simple, but impactful enough that Celestia and Luna are instantly brought to full attention “I know where Vitalia is.”

“WHAT!?”

Rey nods, then proceeds to tell the two of the shared memory dream she experienced the previous night, ending with “after Spike was made to forget who he was and left the throne room with Scorpan, Majesty foretold Tireks four defeats before he imprisoned her in his Rainbow of Darkness. That’s everything I witnessed.” Rey, having tilted her head back and closed her eyes at some point, opens her eyes and looks directly at Celestia and Luna again only to find both of them staring at her. No. Not at her. At her chest? Then she remembers what’s currently resting on her chest. “Um… why are you two staring at the Rainbow of Light?”

Celestia blinks, then looks at Luna before looking back at Rey. “The reason our attention was drawn to the Rainbow of Light, Rey, is because, well, at this point in time, Majesty’s Rainbow of Light and Tirek’s Rainbow of Darkness are actually… one and the same.”

Rey blinks “what? But didn’t Majesty create the Rainbow of Light to challenge Tirek’s Rainbow of Darkness?”

Luna nods “yes, but as you witnessed via shared memory, she couldn’t complete it. When Megan eventually was first brought here, she collected the Rainbow, still incomplete, on her way to challenge Tirek. A struggle ensued, the objective being to claim the Rainbow of Darkness, but it ultimately ended up back in Tirek’s control. It was at that point that Megan recalled her possession of the Rainbow of Light and tried to unleash it to challenge him, but it was as Majesty predicted in the memory you saw. A docile timid thing with no will to fight. Tirek scorned the Rainbow of Light and unleashed the Rainbow of Darkness to try to destroy it, and it was at that point, when hope seemed lost, that the Rainbow of Light completed itself by devouring the Rainbow of Darkness from within. Majesty’s masterpiece was finally complete, and its first act was to banish Tirek for millennia. So you see, Rey, it is as Celestia has said. The two opposing Rainbows became one indomitable force.”

Rey is stunned by this revelation, reaching up to grasp the Rainbow of Light with a new reverence. “Majesty. Vitalia. She’s been with me ever since Megan passed this on to me?”

Celestia nods “based on what you have told us, there is a very good chance of that. But we can find out for certain. The Rainbow has a form of consciousness itself. Release it and let us see what it might say.”

Rey nods, opening the locket. Immediately after the locket is opened, the Rainbow of Light emerges from it, twisting through the air as it searches for a threat. Finding none, it seems to settle down, flying above the three princesses.

Celestia looks upon the Rainbow, reverence in her gaze. “As magnificent as I’d ever imagined, if not more so. But let’s get down to business, shall we. Mighty Rainbow of Light, we have just learned there is a possibility that your creator is trapped within you. Can you confirm?” At this, the Rainbow contorts itself to take the shape of a checkmark. Celestia nods, then looks at Luna. “Luna, you are better at reading spells than I.”

Luna nods “I shall attempt to divine the specifics of the spell trapping her within.” She looks to the Rainbow as her horn begins to glow, the Rainbow doing the same. After a moment, both glows cease as Luna’s expression turns to frustration and anger “it is locked in place via password. We must discover the key phrase if we are to have any hope of releasing her. On top of that our opportunity to do so is rapidly dwindling. We have now spent half the day in this room, and the spell will become eternally set at sundown. We have only a few short hours left before we lose her forever.”

Rey can scarcely believe what she’s hearing. It simply can’t be that bad. “Hours?! We only have hours?! To discern a particular word or set of words that is the key to releasing the Divine of Life from a potential eternal prison?! No! I can’t accept that! Luna, please say you’re exaggerating!”

Luna sighs “I desperately wish I was. Tirek has played all of us who have been searching for her all this time for fools. I… I can see no hope of success in this moment. We have truly lost the Divine of Life.”

Rey glares, tail lashing as she crosses her arms, trying to think of some way to solve this puzzle. “I understand why you’re losing hope, but I’m not ready to give up. I’m almost as smart as mom, I just have to think. … Think? Thought. Psychic. Hmmm. Celestia, Luna, tell me, how many times has Tirek been defeated thus far?”

Celestia blinks “his most recent defeat was the third. His first was against Megan, Luna and I took part in the second, and your mother and her dearest friends were instrumental in the most recent, the third.”

Rey smiles. “So the fourth hasn’t happened yet? Good. That means he still exists here. I have an idea. The person in this world who is most likely to know the hidden password would be the one who set it in place to begin with. I’ll tear it from his mind if I have to. Where is he? It’ll help if I have a direction to search in.”

Luna smiles “last we knew, he was locked away in the deepest depths of Tartarus. Can your psychic powers reach there?”

Rey grins “Luna, I won’t even have to leave this room.” With that, her eyes, then her body begin to glow as she reaches out with her mind.

Deep in the depths of Tartarus, Tirek is lying in his cell when he blinks, then grins “do you think it will be that easy? My mind won’t be that easy to read.”

In the palace dining hall Rey increases her focus, the glow around her intensifying “then I’ll just have to try harder!”

Tirek holds up his hand, watching as it begins to glow while he feels the assault on his mind intensifying. “Not bad. You’re definitely a powerful psychic, whoever you are, but still not good enough.”

Rey increases her focus again, psychic power beginning to create the appearance of waves of energy on her body “give me the password to Majesty’s prison now!”

Tirek feels the psychic assault on his mind go up a notch again and laughs “if this is the best you can do, you should submit to the inevitable. The prison will stay locked, and you will lose your one chance to free her.”

Rey pushes her power to its limit, causing a point on her chest to begin to glow even more brightly than the rest of her. “The password, NOW!”

Tirek chuckles and simply says “no.”

Rey’s anger at Tirek erupts as what looks like a white flame engulfs her body, spreading out from the glowing point on her chest. Celestia and Luna can only gape in awe at what is to be seen when the flame passes.

(Word from the mod, the picture above used Rey’s normal appearance and thus the mewtwo base from https://mewtwoandme.tumblr.com/ is also used. In order to get the image presented above, I ran Rey through an AI art generator a few times and chose the result I liked best.)

In Tartarus, Tirek’s smile falls when he feels a sudden expansion in the power behind the assault on his mind. “What? Where did this come from?!”

Rey, feeling her power increase dramatically, pushes harder “give me the password NOW, Tirek! I’ll tear your mind apart to find it if I have to!”

Tirek groans from the latest increase in the strength of the attack. Worse, he feels fear as he realizes that might have been a small increase due to the new power he can feel from the attacker. Rather than risk the threat made being acted on, he chooses the smart move. The password to Majesty’s prison freely relinquished to the attacker.

In the throne room, Rey blinks, then nods, looking at the Rainbow of Light as the glow around her faded, but doesn’t vanish completely. “MAJESTY BE FREE FOREVERMORE, FOR VITALIA I OPEN THE DOOR!”

The Rainbow of Light flashes before beginning to spin in a circle, streams of light flowing into the center of the circle until it forms a portal. A gasp is heard followed by rapid hoofbeats, and the lost queen of Dream Valley, the long lost Divine of Life, Majesty leaps out of the portal to stand among the three princesses.

Majesty blinks, looking around, then looking at the floor, tapping her hoof on it. “Is… is this real? Please, someone tell me I’m not having another dream! If I must awaken to find it was all a lie one more time, I…”

Celestia strides forward “you are awake, Vitalia. It’s not a dream this time. Welcome back.”

Majesty blinks, then groans, raising her hoof to her head, holding it just under her horn as if she has a sudden headache.

Rey blinks, approaching as her form reverts to her usual appearance “Majesty, are you alright?”

Majesty sighs “my temporal vision is returning in force. I have spent years without it, and now all that I have missed is rushing through me. But… strange. I thought I’d been imprisoned for a shorter time than I am being presented with. What could cause such an increasingly vast irregularity?”

Luna steps forward now “the Rainbow of Light, which swallowed your prison to complete itself, was removed from this space time and lost to a comparably temporally delayed universe. We experienced a great many times the amount of years you experienced. By your reckoning you were imprisoned no more than 50 years. 42 of which you were imprisoned within your own creation. But for us, more than six millennia passed.”

Majesty nods. “I see. That explains it then. Huh?” Tears suddenly start streaming down Majesty’s cheeks. Celestia looks away, as she can guess what event the lost queen has just learned of. Majesty begins trembling in sorrow as she says “Dream Valley… gone?”

“Vitalia!”

Everyone turns to see Hades approaching. Majesty turns and rushes into his embrace, tears still flowing “Hades, please tell me my vision is wrong. My temporal sight is catching up with the present, and I just saw…”

Hades sighs, holding Majesty close “the fall of Dream Valley. I fear your vision is accurate as ever, Vitalia. The pony tribes of Dream Valley began to feud with each other, eventually drawing the attention of wendigos. Though many did escape in the end, Dream Valley was lost, buried in a wendigos curse. I am sorry, Vitalia, but… it is gone.”

Majesty sobs “my descendants. My land. She sent me to try to build a paradise, but now it’s all gone!”

Celestia takes a deep breath, then gains a determined expression and approaches the two Divines “not all, Vitalia. I bid you, please walk to the balcony with me.”

Majesty blinks, looking at Celestia and nodding. The two of them go to the balcony, and Majesty looks out at the city before them. She sees countless ponies and other creatures walking through the streets, and looks at Celestia with a confused expression “I beg your pardon, but what exactly am I meant to see?” Just as she finishes asking that question, her eyes suddenly widen and she turns back to look out over the city, looking around wildly before her eyes settle on a tan unicorn with a pink mane and a cauldron cutie mark. Then she starts looking around again, finding an earth pony foal kicking a soccer ball down the street. A pegasus pushing a cloud to the perfect spot for a midday snooze. Another pony carrying a bag of groceries. And another. Another. More and more. Finally she looks back at Celestia again. “Those ponies. The magic within them. I know it’s source. I… am its source.”

Celestia nods. “The land may be gone, but your descendants are not. More than three quarters of the population of Equestria can trace their lineage back to those you created with the Life magic flowing through you. Majesty, this… is your kingdom.” The crown levitates off Celestia’s head and floats before Majesty.

Majesty blinks, almost reaching out to accept, before her vision begins to show Celestia’s history. The more she sees, the more serene and calm her growing smile gets. Finally, she changes her hoof’s position and pushes the crown back towards Celestia. “No, Celestia, it is yours. Your history is now known to me. The greatness, the wisdom, the… sacrifice. I know you now, and I know without a shadow of a doubt which of us is the better leader. It’s not me. I shall retire the throne and redevote myself to my role as the Divine of Life. I shall begin by helping Hades with the issues regarding reincarnation. In the meantime, you continue to lead the citizens of Equestria to greater prosperity. That is the role you are meant for.”

Celestia smiles and nods, returning the crown to her head. Then she looks at Majesty again after adjusting it to her satisfaction and says “what of your descendants? What shall you do regarding them?”

Majesty sighs, looking back towards the balcony. “You have lead my descendants to unimaginable prosperity, Celestia. I shall be content to see them enjoying it. I do have questions regarding particular individuals though. Given the wisdom you display, I feel confident you can answer. The Moochik?”

Celestia smiles. “Completed his task and left this world alongside the other humanoids. He wanted to explore the worlds they call home, but it is said he promised to return one day when his curiosity is satisfied.”

Majesty nods. “Good. I’m glad that all ended as intended. A story of great triumph that I can’t wait to hear. Moving on. The flutter ponies?”

Celestia sighs “Flutter Valley and the flutter ponies with it succumbed to the same curse that took Dream Valley. It is said that one of the flutter ponies managed to deliver the sun stone to the last caravan to escape the curse, but no creature has ever presented it for safe keeping.”

Majesty nods, “likely wishful thinking then. Still, there could be benefits in either case. Hmm. I shall have to think further on this subject later. I shall now ask after the sea ponies.”

Celestia sighs. “The sea ponies broke ties with the land tribes when the feuding began. They then followed the rivers down to their natural habitat, that which they are named for. The sea. Currently there are cities of sea ponies beneath the ocean. Diplomacy has begun, but it is slow at best, since we land dwellers must wait for them to initiate contact in most cases.”

Majesty nods “at least an effort is being made. Perhaps I might be able to help. So few creatures realize the close relationship between water and life. I could use the ocean currents to send messages, Oceana permitting.”

Celestia nods “please ask as soon as possible. I think we all would like diplomacy to be accelerated. Sea ponies included.”

Majesty nods. Then sighs.

Celestia smiles gently, then nuzzles Majesty comfortingly “you can’t avoid asking about him forever, and the answer may be better than you fear.”

Majesty nods, then takes a deep breath before looking Celestia square in the eyes. “Spike?”

Celestia smiles “by which you mean the great dragon, formerly known as dragon lord Spikoran the Great.” Majesty chuckles at the thought of her son being ruler of the dragons for a time, then gasps and covers her mouth with her hoof at Celestia’s next words. “He remembered.” When Majesty looks up for further confirmation, Celestia nods “he did. And he asked to be informed the moment anything new happened regarding you. He misses his mother.”

Majesty is again teary eyed as she replies “his mother misses him. Please notify him that I shall take the earliest opportunity to go see him.”

Celestia nods “I shall.”

Majesty smiles, then looks at Rey. “You are the one who walked through memory with me, correct?”

Rey nods. “That’s correct Majesty. I hope you don’t mind if I continue to use your mortal name.”

Majesty smiles “it makes no difference to me. I accept either of my names, whichever another prefers to use. Hmm. If I’m recalling correctly, when I looked around after emerging from my prison, you looked different.”

Rey blinks “what? I looked different? How could that be. I don’t think I used transform.”

Celestia goes to stand before Rey “nevertheless, your appearance did change. I’m not sure exactly what happened. I can only say that Luna and I witnessed some sort of metamorphosis. You seemed to grow vastly more powerful than you normally are after said metamorphosis. Now, however, you have returned to your original form.”

Rey hmms. “A metamorphosis that increased my power? That sounds like Pokemon evolution. But there are numerous problems with that theory. The most obvious ones being that Pokemon evolution is usually a permanent change. Along with that, the other obvious issue is that to my knowledge, neither of my progenitors, mew and mewtwo, have the ability to evolve. Mew can use the technique transform as I can, but it’s not even close to being the same thing. I can’t think of any way to explain what you witnessed, but I don’t doubt that you saw what you say you saw. Hmmm.” she shakes her head. “Not a clue. I’ll have to investigate this in depth. But for now, I must confess I’m starving. Figuring out how to help Majesty took so much of my focus that I skipped breakfast and lunch.”

Celestia and Luna blink bemusedly, then turn to look when a rumbling sound comes from Majesty.

“Food? You mean actual real food? Yes please. My divinity born immortality is more than enough to keep me alive, but food is still something I’ve missed.”

The two elder princesses look at each other and smile. “Then a late lunch it is. For now, the rest can wait.”

This is met by a cheer from Rey and Majesty.

[aroacegod]

I need to rant so I’m doing it here (kinda long, She-ra spoilers)

She-ra could do so much with a season 6. There were so many things that needed to be worked out in the characters. Catra still had a lot of leftover trauma she never got to properly deal with, like her abandonment issues and the nightmares and flashes she gets because of Horde Prime’s mind control. She also never got to really apologize to Scorpia for everything that happened. It would have been nice to see them work through everything and become genuine friends. I just feel like her redemption arc was too short. Then there’s Adora’s “I have to fix this” mindset. She constantly felt like she had to sacrifice herself for the good of everyone else, and I feel like it was never properly worked through. Throughout the show, she felt like people always needed She-ra, but not Adora. And now that Etheria has been saved, she doesn’t have to be She-ra anymore. She might feel like she’s useless now that nobody “needs” her anymore. A 6th season could show us her trying to overcome her need to be useful to everyone else and realizing that she is deserving of love too.

Season 6 could also show us the Best Friend Squad bringing magic back to all the other planets, since that was mentioned in the very last episode. We could also get some lesbian fluff between Catra and Adora, which is always nice. It’d be great to see their relationship develop and help each other overcome their struggles. Maybe we could see them become friends with Lonnie, Kyle and Rogelio again. Maybe some Glimmer and Bow stuff too. I’d also love to see Glimmer and her dad’s relationship grow. After thinking he was dead for so long, it would’ve be awesome to see them get to know each other and form a bond. I also think it’d be funny to watch him get used to living normally again—sleeping in a bed, not eating bugs—and just learning to be a dad. And then there’s Hordak. He defied Horde Prime and returned to Etheria with Entrapta. I’d like to see how he and Catra adjust to life in a world without a constant war against the princesses. It would take a long time for him to fully be accepted by everyone, especially the Princess Alliance. And he also wouldn’t be able to get over his prejudices against the princesses immediately. Sure, Entrapta was his friend, but he was trying for so long to crush the princesses that he might still have some kind of urge to do so. Maybe Entrapta could help him live among them and even find some hobbies to keep him busy. I also want to see more of Double Trouble and Wrong Hordak. They’re both such funny characters. And I just love DT; they’re just here to cause problems and I live for it. We could even see more of the Star siblings. They were interesting characters, and it would be cool to learn more about them.

Something that I’ve been wondering about was what the First Ones were really doing with the Heart of Etheria. Sure, they were using it as a weapon of mass destruction to destroy their enemies, but who were their enemies really? Horde Prime? Were there other enemies? And were there underlying motives for mining the planet’s magic? Who did they want to destroy? I just feel like there’s so much more to the story that we didn’t see. And according to Madame Razz, She-ra was on Etheria long before the First Ones got there. What was She-ra like before the sword was made to control her? Were there settlers of Etheria before the First Ones? If so, who were they? We also didn’t learn much (or anything) about Adora’s background. Since Adora is a First One, there must be some kind of First Ones colony on whatever planet she was from. What planet did she come from? Did Adora have a family before she was brought to Etheria? Are they still alive? Are they looking for her? And what about Queen Angella? She technically isn’t dead; she’s just trapped between dimensions, which means she’s alive and alone. I’m not saying we should bring her back; I’m just curious as to what she’s up to. Can she do anything, or is she just stuck floating between time and space? Regardless, there are so many things that could be covered in another season that would be so great to see. Unfortunately, I don’t think we’re ever getting one 😔

Thank you for coming to my tedtalk