#but not the development we really deserved

[emmavakarian-theirin]

it just makes sense to me that lucanis would be the one to kill the venatori mage and he deserves it

[pegasussomnus]

timber is bad for tim's character:

A. There is no real good reason to have him paired with Tim. He only appeared in six issues and none of his interactions with Tim gave us insight into who Tim was as a character or lead to any meaningful developments. The whole 'he represents the War Games era of Tim in terms of uncertainity' or 'his civilian life before losing his dad' that was used by the author, is just untrue as we never see Tim seriously appreciate his friendship like he does with say Ives, or the people at Brentwood as something that keeps him grounded or as a distraction from the hero life/normaly he needs nor do his interactions with Tim show said uncertainty like the struggle of balancing the civilian/hero life that we saw his above friends do. All of his appearances are either comic relief or a springboard/exposition for more important developments such as Tim's relationship with Darla.

There is also how he wasn't a close friend of Tim and more often than not, Tim was shown to not like him too much. At best they were casual friends and none of their interactions went beyond that. The nicest thing Tim said about him is that he "THINKS he's going to END UP LIKING" him not that he actually does so which at best shows Tim is willing to give him a shot.

At worst? Well

Yeah. The first panel is his first impression of him while the last three are the LAST interactions/mentions Tim has with him and occur after saying he 'thinks he's going to end up liking him'.

It makes no sense why Tim would even want to reconnect with him let alone date him. Tim's opinion of Bernard went from "I guess we can be friends but this guy is sus to "maybe he's not so bad and deserves a shot" to "nah screw this guy". It's telling we keep getting sold a false meta history of them being super close friends and have Bernard essentially replace Ives to try and sell the pairing.

B. Like it really doesn't do anything for Tim at all.

Bernard doesn't help Tim grow as a character, or even as a person relationship wise as Tim is still doing the same faults he did in past relationships with civilians not telling them he is Robin, keeping secrets, cutting dates/missing them, etc). but they are "resolved" by just making Bernard some ultra perfect guy who knows Tim's identity

Aka the resolution he had with Stephanie in terms of the civilian/hero life balance of having someone who knows both, so Tim is getting a balance he already had and not to mention you can't even say Tim progressed in this manner or learned from his mistakes as he never revealed his ID in the first place, so it requires no growth on his end) (never explained how he does, not to mention watering down Tim's competence in keeping his ID) so it's all moot.

Tim also doesn't progress in his civilian life at all. Like he lives on a boat and (it is said that Bernard helped motivate him to do this but never shown/explained at all and all we see is Bernard saying he likes it and the people there)? Like he doesn't even meaningfuly develop a connection with the people there aside from friendly neighbors at best. As an example There was this "subplot" of them being in danger of being evicted but Tim just doesn't care at all or do anything. Like why not use some of his wealth from his dad or something to like buy people's boats and resell them at a cheaper price so the people can stay?

The people on the boat don't even offer him a meaningful civilian connection as like I said he just doesn't connect with them and even then that civilian connection is kind of moot in the last issue when they all know his identity as Robin so that balance or finding a solution is rendered moot for the same reasons as above as he already found that balance with the Batfamily/YJ friends who know both aspects of his life and again he didn't even it reveal it to them.

Like what do they offer him? People to chill in a non-vigilante way? Like he can already do that with the Batfam/YJ and not to mention that as the series showed the Marina got involved in a lot of Robin related stuff because of Tim's ID, so it's also moot.

Another point is how Bernard for a 'relationship for Tim beyond Robin' really is a relationship where the substance largely comes from Robin. Like aside from Robin is how they got together which Bernard even states in issue 3, in the beginning of issue 7 when Bernard list why he likes Tim all the things he likes about him are reflective of his role as Robin. Like his whole trusting Tim to keep him safe, Tim being special, and Tim being his lucky charm, the examples he uses are of Tim saving him as Robin/being Robin.

And issue 7 also shows like I said above that what saves the relationship is Bernard knowing that Tim is Robin. Not to mention how he really only opens up to Tim/confides in him seriously when Tim is Robin as shown in issue 3 and 9. Hell in issue 3 when he talks about wanting to help Tim, knowing that he knows his ID, when he talks about Tim 'taking too much on his own and not asking for help and loosing himself or whatever' we know it's about Robin.

And issue 10 the grand saving moment for their relationship after the 'falling out' in issue 9 was Bernard saving the day in a Robin related mission and getting the ID reveal (but not really)

Issue 7 highlights how Tim really doesn't do anything for Bernard as Tim. Like all he does is tell him that his parents suck, he's great to make him feel better, and tell us a bunch of stuff about Bernard we've never seen before.....twice and given how the issue kept emphasizing this point (to the point where villains commented on it) and how over the top his parents/with Bernards heroic it felt generic and like the bare minimum and Tim felt like an exposition device.

Tim never really talks to him about his issues with his parents or actually substantially helps him as after Tim does the above it immediately cuts back to their relationship for cute moments. Like Bernard giving him the necklace isn't even connected to Tim 'helping' as he was gonna do that anyway.

Tim as a civilain is just the BF and the real substance comes from Robin (as it was a Robin related mission and Tim saving civilians as Bernard which lead/inspired Bernard trying to save his parents and oh look Robin once again is tied to their relationship)

TLDR: Bernard doesn't make sense as a pairing, doesn't do anything for Tim as a character nor fulfill the purpose he was supposedly brought back for

The mental gymnastics people do to hate timber should be studied under a microscope.

The fuck you mean he is bad bisexual rep because he is dating a man… and how does that makes him gay???? Have you ever talked to a bisexual person???

“Oh it makes less of his past relationships” how?? How?!? Is he not allowed to be infatuated with his current partner? Should he continue pining after his past relationships even tho he is dating someone else???

[kylixyte]

request: a good version of the doctor who helps around safe haven

I've been putting off this request for a long time because I really liked it. I wanted to do something more than a sketch

In the original universe, or something like that, with the character of the doctor, this was hardly possible, so here are my thoughts on this. Think of it as an au (It probably already exists, but I haven't seen it)

In this case, we can consider a milder version of the doctor, who might not be completely firm in his intentions. Maybe he would periodically ask questions about how much the goal is worth other people's lives.

Pehaps! Perhaps in our case, he would have been turned into what he became, because he would have begun to doubt what he was doing. And then he has to face directly what he has done (or at some point something happened that made him radically change his views)

Maybe he and the Prototype didn't work together (maybe for a while), but eventually the Doctor would have found another way of redemption.

He deserves to be held accountable for his actions. The kids didn't deserve his company.

He would also only be accepted if absolutely necessary.

The kids would definitely not trust Harley. Obviously. Talking behind his back, not telling him about their immediate plans

It seems to me that Doey (At least one of them) reacted more positively to some of his actions (again, considering that he did not behave as badly during his work at the company as in the original)

I believe in a lot of sad dialogues with children who would ask him to "return everything as it was"

Also, by design, he would probably stop wearing clothes like… um…??? At first, he would have tried to "hide from everyone" by choosing more complete lab coats.

It seems to me that there would be no other copies of robots, for some reason. And his brain would have been in a different place initially, otherwise it wouldn't have been a problem to destroy it for the Prototype.

In any case, I really like the idea, although I'm not a fan of such plots, and I want to develop it more

Tell me what you think about it

(And tell me if everything you've written is bullshit

And if you want to see the continuation of something like that)

It would be more fun if they had to work together, of course, and everyone wasn't thrilled about it, but I can't imagine such an outcome

[leyenra8]

Can You Handle The Truth And Face The Facts?

USAID’s Shadow Operations Exposed

This video is about USAID (United States Agency For International Development), how they have REALLY been spending taxpayer dollars on "Foreign Aid", and how we are witnessing the dissolution of this government agency through shock and scandal.

President Trump’s Own Words – “Looks Like Billions Of Dollars Have Been Stolen At USAID, And Other Agencies, Much Of It Going To The Fake News Media As A “Payoff” For Creating Good Stories About The Democrats. The Democrats Can’t Hide From This One. Too Big, Too Dirty!”

Elon Musk – “The People Deserve The Truth!”

Agenda: Grinding America Down

The Fact-Based documentary detailing a COMMUNIST AGENDA for the last 70 years to corrupt American Institutions – from Education to Hollywood to Media – and sabotage America, and its values from within.

The main strategy is to Divide and Conquer – to turn Americans against each other.

After watching the documentary, at least you know why the DEMOCRATS Are COMMUNISTS.

The only way to DEFEAT the DEMOCRATS is to Call Them What They Are – DEMOCRATS Are COMMUNISTS.

Once the American people find out the Truth – DEMOCRATS Are COMMUNISTS, it could DESTROY the party forever.

Sharing Is Caring

Please Keep Reblogging

Agenda: Grinding America Down

[wilderhyperfoxations]

Chains of Eternity- my biased, terrible little review

This will include spoilers, so you've been warned. Although I like this game (my tumblr and even this post are a testament to that) sometimes things you like can fall short. So, let's get into my various critiques of COE. The start of the story felt pretty strong. I do wish we saw Valen, BECAUSE WHERE IS THAT MAN, but sure, right. I felt like there were too many side characters during the first few quests, and this trend continues through the whole arc. I really liked Faramor… so where the hell did he go? He sort of disappeared without much of an explanation. He had no character development, or it simply wasn't portrayed in a cohesive way. But his VA was very good. Also, controversial, but while I did enjoy Lorsan's cameo- it did not add anything. Same with half the characters this season, they really came out of nowhere, and could have been utilized in a more interesting way. The whole immortality talk also felt unconvincing- sure it's bad but if you're really afraid of death it's a small price to pay, and you'll watch people die even if you're mortal, so… weak argument there. Cyran. God, Cyran, they barely used him, too. Which I really wished they did. Also the King/Duke(?) was kind of barely there. They did nail Yolena and made the ending that much more WHAT THE FUCK. There were some bigger overarching issues, such as: Structural issues, Promise, payoff, Setup, Too much fluff, Pacing, Lore. Structural issues- the story structure did not feel sound nor satisfying due to the lack of promise at the start and the lack of payoff at the end (ex.- in WOI, it's "Merlin wants to leave Rustport, Sinbad wants to be a Captain, Sonja wants to kill her dad" and all of those things come true and make a satisfying story). This is pretty much the same as "setup"- there was not much of that. Too much fluff- too many characters and frivolous parts that I felt could be trimmed. Most characters could be cut out and the story would still work. Pacing- unlike WOI, which felt like it lasted ages, or even the first few storylines that were pretty even, this one was choppy. The start dragged and then the end sprinted. The whole thing whizzed past me and there I was, left befuddled. Lore- confusing! In the story not much is elaborated on, but then in some heart-to-heart's there are comments on why graveborns were made that… actually make no sense, or are unsupported by the wider narrative. How would they improve this? Honestly. Just more editing and more time. This one must've been rushed, or something, because WOI was stellar for any game (and again Sinbad's VA was FIRE, nothing stood out to me this time). And if I were to edit this story, I'd introduce Valka earlier, and give her some clearer goal than just "am sad, don't deserve your praise, blah". State it more clearly that she wishes she could make things right. And the villain, who I neglected to mention- all villains besides the WOI ones have been last-minute. Cryonaia was intimidating, but, she was… not setup. If the story spoke of her earlier, or incorporated her into some legend, her reveal would mean more. Otherwise she's just another hypogean. Also, what was her goal? What was she trying to do? Who the fuck knows. I found her vibe unclear. Tell me if I missed something, but I do doubt I missed anything major. Altogether, if this was a book, I'd give it a 2 or 3 stars for "you tried and you almost got here but your editor must've been drunk and passed out for months or something".

[natsuki208]

Mikasa Ackerman! Strongest Girl With That One Flaw

Today is that day when I can express once more of how much of a Mikasa defender I am! But despite all the good, I will acknowledge the major flaw that caused many to dislike her as well, and unfortunate ruined her character going onward.

(Plz, I don’t wanna see any of you haters here for this girl on her special day, thank you)

-

We all know of Mikasa’s strengths; figuratively and literally. She’s known as one of the manga/anime’s strongest fighters, due to her Ackerman blood and what she had to go through as a child. It was because of both her power and compassion is how she managed to save citizens of Trost to escape the city in S1. She showed signs of a dependable soldier.

One other noticeable side of her character that got explored a lot more within the story was her connection with Eren, and that divided a lot of the fans as the series went on. On one hand, it reflects back to when Eren saved her from being sold for profit and how much his kindness meant to her, but on the other hand, it slowly started to isolate her from other important aspects needed to keep her interesting.

But it wasn’t all that bad; to me that is. There have been times when Mikasa showed worry for her other closest friend Armin, protecting him and comforting him during hard times, swung in to save Historia and Sasha from titans, checked on Connie by asking if he’s okay, and even was concerned about Levi’s ankle.

So yeah. Mikasa grew connections with almost everyone around her, opening up to have more friends within her small circle since her childhood, however, her feelings for Eren started to overlap those friendships. Not that it is a bad thing, I love how the two grew closer as the series went on but it really shouldn’t be the only important part of her development. A healthy mixture of all her traits would’ve made a better experience.

Sadly, the concept of her undying love for Eren gets heavily exaggerated in the dreaded fourth season.

By that I mean for most of her screentime she spend worrying about Eren and only him. Sure there was… Sasha, but it didn’t really last for very long. In fact, she didn’t really speak much to anyone other than Armin afterwards, and I thought she’d be more open to help them out with their own struggles.

In fact, her love for Eren seemed to have made her more fragile to his own thoughts as well, like when he spoke his mind and pretended to admit he hated her, she got over emotional.

(this is the same girl who didn’t hesitate to punch him in the face when he went too far)

But at the end of the day, it didn’t really matter since she managed to save the world by killing Eren with her own hands but still has him at the front of her mind years later. Yes, it can be hard to move on but at least show some scenes of her bonding with her other friends, even leaving Armin in the dust.

-

Anyway, happy birthday, you poor girl. You deserved much better. Not as in Eren, but as in better writing to expand your character. I had a lot more to say but I don’t wanna make this too long. Maybe I’ll update this later on.

[dysfunctionalcryptid]

Also worth noting that while grasses were starting to become widespread by the late cretaceous, grasslands as we know them are actually a very recent development. We're talking sometime in the last ~5 million years for extensive grasslands to really start showing up. Grasslands may have existed before this, but on a much smaller scale. "Grasses" in the cretaceous would have grown in environments like we see bamboo and rice do, as forest and wetland plants.

Some other mesozoic plantlife that was pretty widespread throughout the majority of this time period that I think deserve a mention are cycads and horsetails. Seriously, these guys were everywhere. Their diversity was pretty crazy too, especially cycads.

Very sorry if you've talked about this before, but how much do you focus on/care about making the plantlife in your Dinosaur Project Thingy accurate for the time and place?

Asking both because I'm generally very curious, and because personally, every time I make it past my anxieties about not knowing enough about dinosaurs to be "allowed" to draw them, I run right up against "oh shoot, if I draw a grass in the background, people are going to kill me."

Having a cartoonier art style helps! If your style is photorealistic, the style is going to require more details that also make errors way more present and visible, but like, the way I draw trees for example you can't really tell if I'm drawing an aspen, an oak or a basswood, you know? It's just a leaf blob with a trunk in the middle. There's no identifying that.

Also, like 99% of my audience who follows my art follows it for creatures and characters, not plant life, and those more well versed on plants aren't as likely to care. At least nobody has come to bark at me because of it this far!

Considering the amount of actual, professional palaeoartists who basically use memes in their art, I think it's okay and fine for hobbyists and cartoonists to not know everything, right?

(Seriously, the amount of artists who draw theropods with no soft tissue around the jawline is wild! You know that classic look where the entire face splits along the skull all the way to the back of the jaw joint, and drawing that pink skin flap at the corner of the mouth? That's the jaw muscles. Why would a giant land apex predator not have skin protecting its jaw muscles? [Also, is that really what jaw muscles look like? A skin flap? Come on.] I've seen some Actual Professional Artists draw these giant cavities inside the cheek area of things like T. rex, that's where the muscles should be! Where do you think the legendary bite force -which this specific animal is known for- comes from? I mean, it works for animatronics, like in Jurassic Park, because it's hard to give soft tissue to robots that would hold up, but it's less of a thing for art, I think.)

I have a field guide book for Hell Creek formation that I'm gonna reference from when needed. Years ago I backed this kickstarter for a dinosaur video game, specifically so that I could get my hands on the book for this exact reason. It has plants section!

Few rules of thumb:

Trees Big. No, bigger!

No grass (if very late Cretaceous, then maybe grass? but research first!)

No flowers, unless Cretaceous. Might be worth googling "Cretaceous flowers" for specifics

When in doubt, ferns and/or conifers.

Also, finally, this is just me, but it can help to set yourself a "target audience" (with quotes). Personally, I'm making my project for myself and maybe a handful of people I know IRL. I only aim for the joy of these specific bunch of friends and family. Anyone beyond that is just bonus, and while I am very glad there are great many more people who do enjoy my work, it's less important than if my friends like it. And if there's one of the extra bonus people who thinks this one plant on the background of my art ruins their enjoyment of my work and me as a person, then that's a them-problem, not a me-problem, if my friend Satu still thinks the drawing is cool.

(Honestly, knowing these specific people, I wouldn't even have to be as accurate as I am, but unfortunately I did include "myself" in my target audience, so here I am.)

[litrallytyrus]

look i literally don’t go here but i peeked into the hsmtmts tag and you’re telling me ricky showed up to visit ej at his college? isn’t that a direct parallel to troy coming to see gabriella at stanford?

i’ve never even seen any of the high school musical movies but man that just speaks even more to the caswen tragedy ….. they have a fucking romcom set up every time they’re interacting with parallels to a canon couple and then disney still wants to slip in the ‘brother’ word ……… it’s like they’re making fun of us at this point

[gunstellations]

In the world I love

_

In a different world

[lloydfrontera]

'lloyd is very weak now and needs to marry so he'll have someone to protect him'- lloyd has the only grandmaster on the world following him around like a puppy. he has the most terrifying motherfucker on the world wrapped around his little finger. he has the one person in the world who can hit an absolute in the head and get away with it swearing in his heart to protect him no matter the cost over and over again.

lloyd made javier watch him die twice right in front of him just to keep him alive. there is no power on existence that could make javier allow anyone or anything to even think about harming lloyd again.

lloyd is fine

[valentinsylve]

Thank you for the tag, @wellntruly! Due to the fact that I lived my life as a fool, I didn't write down all the films I watched for the first time in 2024. However, I can post my top nine first watches with little blurbs <3

Hagazussa: A Heathen's Curse (Feigelfeld, 2017) Folk horror film, but the horror really figures most in the isolation of the main character amid the German Alps during the early modern era. Cruelty and ignorance are monsters. Salò, or the 120 Days of Sodom (Pasolini, 1975) The Girls, Guts, and Giallo podcast patreon tier I'm on has extra screenings, and we were treated to a small antifascist film fest on November 7th. I'd been a bit afraid to watch this, but now I can say that it's the best film I saw all year. Notorious for its relentless depiction of rape, forced coprophagia, and other tortures by a powerful few against a captive group who are systematically and brutally un-personed, it is equally beautiful and important. Quietest, most chilling Carmina Burana jumpscare. This will become a rewatch for me. Straight on till Morning (Collinson, 1972) I love a creepy connection between two deranged freaks who want to live out their childhood fairy tale power fantasies. Salvation! (Beth B, 1987) It's the 80s! Things are zany! Televangelism! Rampant sex! Trash maximalism! Obscure alternative tunes! Viggo Mortenson and Exene Cervenka! The cinematography and design are really fantastic. Ganja & Hess (Gunn, 1973) I watched this twice and it's the kind of material that takes multiple viewings, so we'll be back. Trying to describe this movie is a challenge for me. It is immersive, surreal, political, erotic, existential. Marlene Clark is an utter icon, glamorous, haughty, witty and daring, and when she shows a bit of vulnerability? All those qualities captured my heart completely. She deserved more roles and accolades. The Color Wheel (Ross Perry, 2011) This is a gem. Uncomfortable in many ways -- the brother and sister leads are both obnoxious characters. Their relationship is the point, though, and wow does it pay off. I was deeply moved. The incestuous romance develops with surprising tenderness given how abrasive the duo can be. American Fiction (Jefferson, 2023) I went into this film knowing nothing about it, and it was solidly amazing. Funny and bleak. You get the broken lovingness of families and a scathing satirical treatment of racism in the publishing industry. Design for Living (Lubitsch, 1933) What a romp! Everyone knows about this one on tumblr, because it's a Pre-Code throuple romcom. Delightful chemistry between Frederic March, Miriam Hopkins, and Gary Cooper. Everyone should watch Lubitsch romantic comedies. The Destroying Angel (De Rome, 1976) From the brief age of arthouse hardcore gay pornography, this is a lurid, trippy sex tragedy very loosely based on a tale of terror by Poe. A priest takes leave of his vows to explore his desire for abjection and transcendence through sex with men. He also tries some mushrooms, to varying effects. I found it unsettling and hot. I want a proper recording of it, but have had no luck finding one. If you get the pinklabel streaming service, you can watch it.

This was fun, and now I'm making sure to write down a list as I watch movies in 2025.

I'd love to know what everyone's favorite movies are, blurb or photos not necessary!

I was tagged by @memory-for-trifles for my top first-time watches in 2024 of movies not from 2024, and also by @door for my nine favorite movies of the year, which I am combining to nine non-recent releases. Thank you buddies!!

Also NOT thank you, as it seems I watched 190 new to me, pre-2024 movies last calendar year, and rated fully 45 of them five stars.

....so here is a representative nine categories (blood! tears!!), and then the whole list of older movies that fucking rule.

: :

Powell & Pressburger: A Matter of Life and Death (1946) Pre-Code: Trouble In Paradise (1932) Screwball: It Happened One Night (1934)

Western: Dead Man (1995) Marty: Mean Streets (1973) Agnès: Le Bonheur (1965)

Historical: The Leopard (1963) Satyajit Ray: Pather Panchali (1955) Noir: Out of the Past (1947)

: :

Top 45 Non-2024 Movies I Watched in 2024 [alphabetical]

A Matter of Life and Death (1946) Powell & Pressburger Ace In the Hole (1951), Billy Wilder All About Eve (1950), Joseph L. Mankiewicz Bad Day at Black Rock (1955) John Sturges Daisies (1966) Věra Chytilová Dead Man (1995) Jim Jarmusch Cat People (1942) Jacques Tourneur It Happened One Night (1934) Frank Capra Johnny Guitar (1954) Nicholas Ray La Ronde (1950) Max Ophüls Laura (1944) Otto Preminger Le Bonheur (1965) Agnès Varda Little Women (1994) Gillian Armstrong Mean Streets (1973) Martin Scorsese Metropolitan (1990) Whit Stillman Miracle on 34th Street (1947) George Seaton Nights of Cabiria (1957) Federico Fellini On the Beach (1959) Stanley Kramer Only Angels Have Wings (1939) Howard Hawks Out of the Past (1947) Jacques Tourneur Pather Panchali (1955) Satyajit Ray Queen Christina (1933) Rouben Mamoulian Sunset Boulevard (1950) Billy Wilder The Age of Innocence (1993) Martin Scorsese The Awful Truth (1937) Leo McCarey The Best Years of Our Lives (1946) William Wyler The Big City (1963) Satyajit Ray The Fabulous Baron Munchausen (1962) Karel Zeman The Heiress (1949) William Wyler The Lady Vanishes (1938) Alfred Hitchcock The Leopard (1963) Luchino Visconti The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog (1927) Alfred Hitchcock The Manchurian Candidate (1962) John Frankenheimer The Philadelphia Story (1940) George Cukor The Red Shoes (1948) Powell & Pressburger The Servant (1963) Joseph Losey The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) John Huston The Wind (1928) Victor Sjöström They Shoot Horses, Don’t They (1969) Sydney Pollack To Be or Not to Be (1942) Ernst Lubitsch Trouble in Paradise (1932) Ernst Lubitsch Ugetsu (1953) Kenji Mizoguchi Wait Until Dark (1967) Terence Young Wings of Desire (1987) Wim Wenders Zodiac (2007) David Fincher

Honorable Mentions

I had technically watched Casablanca (1942) and Brief Encounter (1945) many, many many many years earlier, but I rewatched both of them this past year as an adult, and guess what: five stars

Tagging @passingknightly, @knighthooded, @camestela, @bakingblues, @forshesajollygoodfellow, @alpineshepherdlass, @valentinsylve, and anyone else who enjoys a MOVIE

[ecoterrorist-katara]

Why I feel like Ka/taang is one-sided, despite textual evidence 

ATLA does try to convince us that Katara has romantic feelings for Aang. For example: she seems thoughtful when she realizes that Aang is a powerful bender; she’s offended that he didn’t want to kiss her in the Cave of Two Lovers; she gets jealous when Sokka says On Ji and Aang look good together.

So…what’s wrong with anti-Kataangers? Do we just lack media comprehension? 

To be clear, on their own, these gestures can indicate romantic interest. But at the same time, we have stuff like “Aang is a sweet little guy, like Momo.” We have her ambivalent facial expression after he kisses her before the eclipse, and her hedging during Ember Island Players, and her anger when he kisses her anyway. In the context of these conflicting cues, Katara’s possibly romantic reactions can absolutely be interpreted in a different way, because: 

Acknowledging a friend as a potential romantic interest is not the same as actually being romantically interested in them. (Imo this is something young women struggle with, due to a combination of romance-centrism and heteronormativity that make women feel like they should be in romantic relationships, and that boys and girls who share intimate and deep feelings for one another must be romantically into each other) 

Wanting someone to find you desirable is not the same as desiring that person. (Which is something a lot of women, especially young women, struggle with. Remember all the discourse around Cat Person back in 2017?) 

Being jealous when someone flirts with your friend is not the same as wanting to be with your friend. (Especially when you see your friends as family, or if you’re accustomed to a specific type of devotion from that friend. It is jealousy, and it is possessiveness, but it doesn’t always arise from romantic feelings) 

Growing up in a patriarchal society means that your desires are always filtered through what men want from you, sometimes in an abstract male gaze-y way, and sometimes in a very visceral and interpersonal way when a boy wants you specifically. And Katara’s reactions are just that — reactions. Reactions to what other people — including Aunt Wu, Sokka, Aang himself — have insinuated about her and Aang. She’s not really proactive in her interest in Aang: we don’t really see Aang, romantically, from Katara’s POV. Under the framework of “Katara is reacting to a romantic prospect she’s kind of uncertain about,” it is completely plausible — and indeed likely — that she would sometimes act in ways that indicate romantic interest, in addition to moments where she indicates the opposite. 

Ka/taang shippers often bring up other evidence, like Katara’s despair when Azula hits Aang with lightning, or how protective she is of him when Zuko joins the Gaang. The thing is, these pieces of evidence aren’t necessarily indicative of romantic love. The fact that Katara genuinely loves Aang makes the whole thing more complicated, not less, because — especially at that age, especially when Aang is twelve years old and grew up in a sex-segregated society of monks — it is really difficult to tell the difference between platonic love and romantic love. Their mutual devotion is layered and complex yet straightforward in its sincerity. What was not straightforward, until the last five minutes of the show, is whether this devotion on Katara’s end is romantic. The romantic arc for Katara and Aang is not really an arc, as Sneezy discusses in this classic ZK video. Katara actually becomes more conflicted over time and we never see an event that clarifies her feelings. She seems more interested in him in The Headband than on the Day of the Black Sun, and she has never been more hostile to his romantic overtures than in the penultimate episode. 

And in light of this, it’s pretty easy for fans to fill in the blanks with a different interpretation: maybe Katara’s weird expression after their kiss at the invasion means she didn’t enjoy it; maybe the kiss made her realize that she doesn’t actually feel that way about Aang; maybe against her will and her better judgement, she’s developing feelings for another person, a person who hurt her and whom she fervently tried to hate until he pulled off what is in my opinion the greatest grovel of all time in the form of a life-changing field trip. Maybe. Am I saying that Zutara has more romantic interactions than Ka/taang? Of course not. But ironically, the lack of romantic interactions means that it’s not inherently one-sided, the way Ka/taang became in the latter half of season 3.

I’m not arguing that Katara’s unequivocally not into Aang. Obviously the text declares that she is, because they get married and have kids. But I am saying that there’s a very good reason that so many people, especially women, see Katara’s interest in Aang as ambiguous. It’s not because we can’t pick up “subtle” hints of growing affection. It’s because we know not all affection is romantic, and it’s really easy for someone else’s insistent romantic intentions to muddle what you want.

P.S. I first started thinking about these topics (platonic vs romantic love, desiring someone vs wanting to be desired, etc) in the context of compulsory heterosexuality, a term describing how queer women contort themselves into relationships with men even if they’re not really into men. I saw a post a few days ago joking about why so many queer women seem to be into Zutara. I wonder if part of the reason is because as queer women, we are very sensitive to the ways in which we can talk ourselves into wanting things we don’t actually want, and Katara’s romantic interest in Aang can be easily seen that way. 

[uncanny-tranny]

Reminder for those who need it: fun is a human need - yes, you read right, a need. Fun as a concept will, of course, look different for everybody, but fun is a need. This is regardless of age. We conceptualize "fun" as something only children are allowed to do, that growing up is to ditch everything "fun" for practicality. Fuck that noise, you are alive. Fun is a need, you can (and should, even) treat "fun" as being just as important as sleep - so, something you build into your schedule wherever you want or can.

[ruvviks]

PLEASE DO NOT TAG AS YOUR OWN OC OR PAIRING.

Nathan and Ruben share a bond more powerful than most; mutual understanding through past experiences no one should ever have to go through, and through past actions so horrible they cannot be spoken of. Their grief and the blood on their hands binds them to the STEM technology they created, which has alienated them from the rest of the world— but they give each other the comfort they have both longed for so desperately for years, and that is all they need. They are each other's counterpart; you cannot imagine one without the other, like two sides of the same coin. Through their pain, their grief, their desire, and their regret, they have become one.

anna akhmatova, the guest // bones; equinox // 'i won't become' by kim jakobsson // agustín gómez-arcos, the carnivorous lamb // by oxy // achilles come down; gang of youths // czeslaw milosz, from 'new and collected poems: 1931-2001' // 'extended ambience portrait from a resonant biostructure' and 'migraine tenfold times ten' by daniel vega // a little death; the neighbourhood // marina tsvetaeva, from 'poem of the end' // by drummnist // katie maria, winter // 'nocturne in black and gold the falling rocket' by james abbott mcneill whistler // micah nemerever, these violent delights // body language; we are fury // 'the penitent' by emil melmoth // chelsea dingman, from 'of those who can't afford to be gentle'

taglist (opt in/out)

@shellibisshe, @florbelles, @ncytiri, @hibernationsuit, @stars-of-the-heart;

@lestatlioncunt, @katsigian, @radioactiveshitstorm, @estevnys, @adelaidedrubman;

@celticwoman, @rindemption, @carlosoliveiraa, @noirapocalypto, @dickytwister;

@killerspinal, @euryalex, @ri-a-rose, @velocitic, @thedeadthree

[kimabutch]

GMs! Anyone who’s ever been a game master! Say something nice about your own GMing!

Ideas:

Specific aspects of GMing that you’re really good at (ex. worldbuilding, RPing, puzzles, plot hooks, running combat, developing NPCs)

Something that went down in a game that you’re proud of (ex. pulling off a big reveal, an NPC character interaction that was fun)

Something that you think your players appreciate about playing with you (ex. you find cool ways to weave in their PCs’ backstories, you’re funny and always have people laughing in stressful moments)

[pockethep]

TADC Theory...One of the Characters could be an NPC.

Even before episode 2 dropped people were theorizing that one of the main cast could be an NPC. With episode 2 having come out yesterday a very specific line said by Caine only fuels that theory....

"I know you guys love your NPCs but if I start losing track of who's a human and who's an NPC, who knows what could happen..."

I LOVE this idea for the drama. If the main goal is everyone escaping from the circus, there’s a lot of potential for a scene where everyone leaves but one of them physically can’t make it out because they aren’t a real person. (Very Wreck It Ralph like.)

Just based off what we know from two episodes I'm trying to decide who is most and least likely.

We know it probably isn't Pomni or Ragatha, they both glitched out in the pilot plus Pomni has outside game knowledge. She's been saying "collision" and "glitch" and "we're somewhere under the map", these are video game specific terms. And although NPCs can glitch as well (The Gloinks glitched in the pilot) Kinger remembers Ragathas arrival and how hard it was.

Jax can be ruled out in a similar way for the same reason as Pomni. He referenced Augustus Gloop, the child from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, this episode. This is real world knowledge that would be a very specific reference for an NPC to know let alone make.

I can somewhat rule out Kinger just based on the fact that Queenie was a character who (presumably) abstracted. Based on naming conventions and design alone (weak defense but there's only two episodes out) they could have come to the digital circus together. With all the characters having such random designs it feels intentional for two characters look similar. If this is just a coincidence it would be cool for his erratic and paranoid personality to be a result of being an NPC. His spontaneity comes from the fact that he's in an area he isn't supposed to be in. Also he's been at he circus for so long and hasn't abstracted which is very very interesting.

My bets are on Zooble and Gangle. Although mainly because we don't know much about Zooble and the mask gimmick with Gangle is both something no other character has and feels like something from an actual game. Gangle is cheerful with the happy mask and more emotional and depressed with the tragedy mask while the other characters are more permitted to show emotion without something actively filtering them. Also my own bias thinks it would be cool for Gangle to snap, it'd be fun to watch the characters try to avoid getting grabbed by the ribbons while hiding around the circus.

HOWEVER we could look at what Caine said in a different way. Mainly the "who knows what could happen...". What if it was a warning about an actual event that happened? He actually couldn't tell the difference. What if him not being able to tell a human and an NPC apart led to the death of an actual character?

Gummigoo looked very distinct from all the other characters in the circus. He was more gelatinous, had an accent, and was very much from the candy world that Caine had created. It was easy to rule him out from the main group design-wise.

But Kinger and Queenie who look VERY similar...

It would be interesting if the real reason Queenie disappeared was because Caine mixed up the two because of similar designs and blasted the wrong one.

Probably more in tags but TL;DR someone in the main cast could be an NPC and Caine could have accidentally killed a human because he couldn't tell them apart from an NPC. RIP Gummigoo