#character study | muse

[mothtral]

when i think of stellaron hunter sunday, i picture someone who is so defeated, running on autopilot until something lights a match. very similar to blade. something he’s been working towards since childhood was ultimately ripped to shreds right in front of his eyes, and to add salt to the wound… even his dear sister told him to give up on their dream. that it’s over. what is a puppet to do when its strings are cut? let new strings hold his limbs in place and make him dance to a new master’s tune.

[spiritseeeker]

This singular frame was all it took to undo my very extreme hatred of Adam, Vivienne Medrano how dare you make me feel sympathy for this man-

Like, Adam before this scene? A blatant misogynist and a hypocrite who unabashedly revels in sinners' suffering. A guy who has no regard for anyone else, and who pisses pretty much every viewer off with patronizing jabs like "sorry sweetie" and "try to chillax, babe." Ugh, disgusting.

As the first man, it seems like he got an easy pass into Heaven. Maybe the angels were just saving face, given that their core pair of humans both took the fruit of knowledge of good and evil willingly, ordaining Adam on the technicality that "Eve did it first." But I think we can all agree that it was not on the merit of Adam's virtue.

And then Charlie draws blood during their fight in Episode 8, and, for the first time, Adam genuinely realizes he can be hurt. Like, for the first time in the duration of the show, in his entire fucking existence, someone shows him that he is not, in fact, an all-powerful symbol of power and superiority. He's just a guy with privilege who is just as vulnerable, just as flawed, just as human as the rest of them.

But once the mask is shattered, revealing the rather unexceptional man underneath, does Adam back down? Of course not—he doubles down. There's nothing worse than a narcissist who is virtually incapable of seeing the error of their ways, even when they're clearly backed into a corner. Bruised and bloody, he bellows that he's THE man; everybody should worship him.

For me, that pretty much hit the nail in the coffin. There was no redeeming a character like Adam (ironic, since he's one of the few characters in the show not in need of redemption).

So isn't it fitting, then, that his death didn't happen in some grand display requiring all of Lucifer or Charlie's might? Isn't it fitting that Adam falls to Niffty—not Lucifer, not an overlord, but a common sinner, who sees him as nothing more than a foot soldier that needs to be eliminated, a pest as easily squashed as a roach? For someone as self-aggrandizing as Adam, this has to be one of the most humiliating ways to die. The perfect end for an insufferable antagonist.

But nooo, Vivziepop didn't end it there.

Because INSTEAD, we hear Lute's heart-wrenching screams as she realizes that Adam has just been defeated; we see the look on her tear-streaked face when it registers just how badly he's been injured. The fear in her eyes at the prospect of living in a world without the angel she idolizes, the man she serves.

She's not concerned that she's just lost her arm, or that Vaggie is standing right there. In that moment, the only person in Hell is Adam, and all she wants is for him to stay with her.

Adam could have easily dismissed her feelings entirely. He could have spent his last breath hurling one last insult at Lucifer, getting the satisfaction of having the last word before his death. He could have thrown himself a pity party and cursed his fate.

Instead, this greedy, selfish, murderous fiend has the audacity to see Lute in his field of vision and flash her one last, tender smile.

We don't know for sure what Adam was thinking in this shot, but personally, I think it was something along the lines of I lost. Proud of you, Lute. I'll miss you. Goodbye.

Whatever his final thoughts are, we can surmise from his expression alone that he's accepted his fate, and that he's grateful his last seconds alive are locking eyes with someone who's important to him. Someone he cares about.

And THAT—that was enough to crack through that thick shell of hatred I'd developed for Adam and shatter it like the mask he wore for seven and a half episodes of the show. THAT 8-second moment was enough to make me reconsider my stance on Adam as an irredeemable villain.

(CURSE YOU, VIVIENNE!!!)

Does this scene cancel out all the heinous things Adam does throughout Season 1? All the lives he destroys, all the pain he causes to thousands upon thousands of souls? Absolutely not. But it does change my perception of Adam from "obnoxious egomaniac with no self-awareness" to "obnoxious egomaniac with no self-awareness that is a product of the flawed system he perpetuates."

And, I gotta wonder, what would Adam have been like if Heaven had been different?

[kurooscopy]

kuroo tetsurou - not a mama's boy, not a daddy's boy, but a third, secret thing (a grandma's boy)

he's 8 years old, just moved to tokyo. his dad is at work, and his mother is... he doesn't know where she is, really. wherever she is, his sister is too, and the house is quiet and lonely.

tetsu-kun, his grandmother calls through the empty house, and he follows her voice to the kitchen.

she peers down at him with kind eyes when he rounds the bench. she doesn't have to look far - even at his young age, he's nearly as tall as her. although, her short stature didn't make that much of an achievement.

she holds something silvery in her hands which she shows to him.

mackerel.

kuroo sits on the bench by the stove, watching as she grills it with practised skill. he's focused, intent on not missing a single step. so you can make it for yourself one day, his grandma tells him. she makes it look so easy.

the two of them sit by the window to eat, watching the odd person walk down their street. there's a slight chill to the house, courtesy of the crack under the new front door that lets in a small draught. his dad keeps promising to fix it sometime soon.

but the fish is warm, and pleasantly salty on his tongue; and his grandma sits beside him, letting him nestle into her side like he did when he was really young.

she presses a smacking kiss to his cheek that rings in his ears, and though he grumbles and wipes away the moisture it leaves behind, small chuckles escape them both that float away on the cool air.

and just like that, the house is no longer quiet, nor lonely.

[the-heros-sidekick]

❝ went looking for a creation myth, ended up with a pair of cracked lips. ❞

He feels it first at the back of his neck. A buzzing, like the crackling of electricity underneath his skin, reverberating against the hollow of his skull. Something is knocking, making its presence known: A particular kind of evil that had snuck into Stiles’ mind once already, stealing away control over his body. Condemning him to sit back, trapped in his own mind, rendering him powerless. Doomed to watch in horror as his  blood-stained hands wielded sharpened blades against those he loved. They’d gotten him out, though nearly at the cost of his own life—a sacrifice Stiles had been more than willing to make, so long as no one else would get hurt because of him. And yet something must have stayed behind, lodged into the membrane of his skull like a shard of glass. For the longest time he’d managed to keep the horrors contained to only haunt him in the dead of night, leaving him sleep deprived and wrung out, every nerve ending scraped thin. But now, even the light of day no longer offers refuge for Stiles to feel safe. Long gone is the once obnoxiously loud, carefree kid—left in its stead is a man carrying himself with caution, treading quietly across the space between other people’s reality and what lies beyond. He knows there are demons out there listening, waiting for an opportunity to exploit any sign of weakness—a door left slightly ajar, perhaps, much like the door to Stiles’ mind they’d never managed to close. The feeling of impending doom crescendos and Stiles, feeling sick to his stomach with fear, clings desperately to the words he repeats to himself like a mantra. "Nothing gets in unless you let it.” But the words turn to ash in his mouth, memories of past experiences proving him a liar. 

an exploration of Teen Wolf's 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐊𝐈—𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐄 who, after leaving Beacon Hills behind, settled down in New York where he's now considered the FBIs golden boy ― crafted for @fakevz. following canon events of the show with additional headcanons. low activity & very crossover friendly. minors dni. this blog operates in english only. est. 2014 ♗ ©

𝐀 𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐘 𝐈𝐍: loss of innocence ⊹ comedic sidekick ⊹ overcoming demonic possession ⊹ a morally gray world ⊹ undying loyalty ⊹ survivor's guilt ⊹ agent of chaos ⊹ deflecting with humor

✧  𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 ✧ 𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐓 ✧ 𝐌𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐒

I think I've loved you since I met you. I just mistook it for curiosity.

Ever since I first laid eyes on you, I felt this unquenchable need to know you. I blamed it on ulterior motives, justified it because I needed something from you, because you held the answers I was looking for, because no one else was able to help but you. Looking back on it now though, I'm starting to think that maybe some part of me knew right from the start, that first night I stumbled upon you in the woods, what took me years to see: Maybe my heart recognized that it was going to love you right away, and I spent the years to come catching up with what it knew right from the start. That it was always going to be you. How could it ever have been anyone else? Through mayhem and bloodshed, through fear and loss, through grief and sleepless nights, you were the one constant that remained. When I lost sight of everything—first myself, then reality, then hope—you were the one guiding my way like a beacon, or a north star. If I've ever known peace, it's in all the moments that your hand has touched mine and that your arms have held me tirelessly, putting your body like a shield between me and every inkling of danger. Of all the late-night wonderings of trying to make sense of the last decade (and failing), what remains is this singular thought: At least it was you. At least it was me. At least it was us, together. I'd bear it all a million times over if it meant I got to hold your hand at the end of it all. You are the moment of quiet at the end of a long day, you are breathless laughter, you're the patch of sunlight filtering in through the window that I stand in to warm myself. You are everything good in this world and living proof that there is hope despite it all, and I love you beyond measure.

[expectiations]

The Husbands of River Song is not and has never been about the Eleventh Doctor being a deadbeat, distant husband (gross mischaracterization by the way) and the Twelfth Doctor being the "better, more mature, affectionate" husband.

It was about River Song. It was about River and how the events in Manhattan took such a toll on her. It was about letting us see River dealing with grief the way The Snowmen showed us how the Doctor coped after losing believing he had used up all his time with River.

Looking at THORS now with The Ruby's Curse in mind, I get the instinct (for lack of a word that I cannot remember) that the Manhattan incident Blue Roach read from River's diary was not the Manhattan episode that we saw in series 7.

On that note, I'd also like to bring up the fact that the Doctor grounds River and River grounds the Doctor. As Tree talked about in one of her tags, River's empathy is more cognitive than emotional and after musing on it for a bit – considering that the Doctor can no longer go to Manhattan (which may have changed in later series but I wouldn't know at the moment because I have yet to overcome series 7b) and that River does spend time with her parents in Manhattan post-TATM, would the latest Manhattan incident in River's diary be the funeral for Amy? Amy's death? Perhaps even Anthony's? I mean, we already know Rory died five years earlier than Amy. So, knowing how deep River's love for her mother is, it's not too farfetched to say that River spent that time with them. River was by their bedsides as they drew their last breath.

Then Rory's gone, Amy's gone, Anthony's gone. Where does that leave River? Where is the Doctor? (sulking on a cloud on top of Victorian London? trying to figure out the mystery of his newest companion? all while constantly mentioning a certain Professor Song who actually turns out to be his dearly sort of departed absolutely beloved wife?)

Without her parents (and her husband) to ground her, she goes on this maddened, grieving space Robin Hood spree. She seeks fun to fill in the void and takes up marriage as a hobby/side quest. Does she look for the Doctor? Perhaps. Yes, actually. Considering she crashed her latest sort-of-husband's ship onto a planet where she purported the TARDIS to be.

But... she's stealing the TARDIS. She could have just called the Doctor, yeah? So, she doesn't want the Doctor to know then. Well... yeah, considering she has two sort-of-husbands in hand.

So, River would just have gone on from one space Robin Hood spree to the next had the TARDIS not sort-of-stranded herself on Mendorax Dellora to make sure her Water stopped being stubborn and reconcile(?) with her Thief?

Also taking note of how River has read stories about them and knows that Darillium is purported to be their last night together (I could also bring up the fact that this is why I find it easy to digest the "River meeting regenerations of the Doctor younger than the Tenth Doctor makes sense and doesn't break cannon nor ruin SITL/FOTD" but that would take a whole other post). Does this River believe her time with the Eleventh Doctor has ended? The same way series 7b Eleven believed his time with older versions of River has ended? Is this all part of some grand fuckup in communication all thanks to their tangled timelines?

Maybe. Maybe not.

But has River not just been running from her family's death? Has River been running from her supposed last night with the Doctor?

"But River doesn't run." Oh yes. Yes, she does. She knows when to stand her ground. She knows when to charge. And she knows when to run.

"That's out of character for her." No, it's not. She's not invincible. She's this well trained assassin, yes. But invincible? No.

Invincible from the tendency to be blinded by their emotions? Obviously not.

River lies. And River runs.

She is not afraid of her death. She is afraid of the day when her husband, her Doctor, looks into her eyes and looks right through her. And it shouldn't kill her but it does. It did.

So she ran and ran until her bigger-on-the-inside Mum gently reached out and put her back together with the only person left who could ground her. Who she didn't recognize at first but still fell in love with (and would have loved even if he hadn't been revealed to be her actual, long missing husband). Who finally found out their last night wasn't just any night – it was a twenty-four year long last night. Who finally gave her a breather from all the running she'd been doing.

And oh what a night that was (it was the talk of the universe).

[taralen]

Why I draw Spamton the way I do and in defense of the "Tumblr sexyman" Spamton G. Spamton. An ESSAY.

EDIT 2/3/24 - Fixed some grammatical errors, changed font colors to make them easier to read against a white background, and reframed some of my arguments, especially regarding the "Yaoi style" portion, as it came across as ignorant and spiteful.

I follow the #spamton tag here, and I hate to say it, but it's full of artists jabbing at other artists who so happen to draw Spamton handsome. I see comments like, "No, he's a middle-aged sleazeball who is grungy and dirty." Often, these depictions show him with graying hair, ratty clothes, and covered in filth and grime. While there is nothing inherently wrong about drawing him this way, I find it disingenuous that the same people who draw him this way criticize people who draw him more handsome and or clean-cut because this depiction is even less based on his canon appearance than someone simply drawing him more realistically proportioned and with a pleasing visage (the definition of what this is varies by artist, but they're all often reduced to just "tumblr sexyman.") I see similar comments by people who draw him in what they may describe as "disgusting" or a "dirty scammer."

If Toby intended for Spamton to look dirty and gross, he would have simply gone with a similar design route to this character as an NPC in Undertale.

Toby or other official arts never depict him with the following, even though I see it in fan art all the time:

Ball-jointed hands. Some artists draw them properly and make them look super cool. Simple lines aren't how they look in reality, but I get why people do that. Either way, it's not canon.

Dirty with tattered clothes. Spamton is only ever shown with a black blazer. It's debatable if he wears pants, but Toby has also drawn him with a collared shirt and tie.

Graying hair. Should be obvious. He's only ever seen with jet-black hair.

Overweight/Fat. While some fan depictions of this are cute, it's not canon. Spamton is always drawn thin but not necessarily in shape.

Buff. Same as the above. It looks really good in some fanart but is also not canon.

Tail. It can look really, really cute, but not canon for him or any of the Addisons.

Feathers. Only Swatch and the Swatchlings are depicted with feathers in Cyber World.

"40+ years old" - There is zero evidence of this in-game or in official merchandise or media. This assumption apparently comes from people assuming that his birthday would be the same as the first "spam email," which (at the time of this writing) was 46 years ago. This is a false equivalency since there is no indication that Spamton has any associations with our real-world history of spam emails. It should also be noted that this was not a true spam email. The only thing closest to Spamton in association with real spam email history may be his favorite year, 1997, in which spam marketing emails became frequent nuisances. However, actions to stop spam mail started in 1996, and it was by the 2000s that they became a serious concern because technology had since advanced. If he were truly born in 1978, he would only be 19 by 1997. While not impossible, it's not how most people see him in his Big Shot years of barely just entering adulthood. Also, as someone who has lived through most of the 90s, I can attest to a lot of this. Spam stuff existed, but news reports only heavily got into it by the 2000s.

100% Inorganic or Robot. While a cool idea, there is more evidence against this, like his ability to eat, sleep, and genuinely feel pain.

Boobs. I get most people who do this are doing it for fun, but it's not canon to his design, lol.

Tall. The most obvious one. Spamton is below average height, as made evident by his nearly 1:1 scale with Kris, a teenager.

Toddler-sized. Same as above. I won't lie that it can be drawn super cute, though. Haha!

With all that being said, why is it such a contention among his fans to depict him as handsome?

There is evidence to support that Spamton is at least, to some degree, good-looking but unconventionally attractive based on several sources. It should be noted that people often use his shop sprite as the best representation of his head, but this isn't accurate, either. In Undertale and Deltarune, because of its cartoonish sprites, it shouldn't surprise anyone that Spamton's are the most inaccurate and change frequently. Another user posted an entire comparison of all his sprites and how drastically inconsistent they are. I tried searching through my likes for this, but I can't find it. If anyone finds this, please link or reblog it to this post. Anyway, the intent of the post was to show artists that there are numerous different ways you can interpret Spamton's design with what's provided in the game, alone.

Stuff people often miss that is canon:

Lips. Believe it or not, this bastard's got kissable lips. Toby's recent art and his Neo attack are proof of this.

Eyes under the glasses. Seen in his sprite of going "BIG SHOT" the first time with Kris. It also hints at heterochromia because they contrast in color with yellow pupils under the pink and pink under the yellow.

NEO has no visible jaw hinge line. Only puppet Spamton does. Big Shot Spamton doesn't have one, either.

NEO's glasses' colors are reversed, and they are pince-nez style.

Androgynous sense of fashion. This is the least missed one, but it's worth mentioning. Spamton has no issues wearing pink, a color nowadays associated with women, and the NEO body has fabulous heels in addition to mostly being a magenta pink. The dress on the mannequin that greatly resembles him (and may hint at him being a white Addison before) shows a pretty dress that mirrors the one Mettaton wore in Undertale.

So then, WHY is he being depicted as handsome or unconventionally good-looking a BAD thing?

There really shouldn't be an issue with it at all. It's less offensive and technically more canon than many of the supposed depictions of him being a sleazebag who looks like he hasn't showered in a century and is hooked up on drugs or booze. You don't become a media darling without a charming personality. Mettaton only got successful in Undertale before he got his EX body because there was literally nothing else the people could watch. Spamton, on the other hand, was competing against many, so he had to stand out and look good even with the help of Mike (and possibly Tenna).

I often see people make this very reductive argument that it's a "yaoi style." This is by far one of the stupidest arguments I've ever seen. Drawing good-looking men is NOT equivalent to liking Yaoi. There are plenty of other genres of Asian-origin or Anime-styled media that feature pretty boys that have nothing to do with Boy's Love. Even Shounen anime has some bishies. Drawing bishounen-style male characters is a design choice and does not indicate someone's interest in Yaoi media. I swear, I have never seen this problem with Eastern fans. It's rude to lump people with similar art styles under something most people who make this claim don't even understand. I've seen people make upset comments about other people calling their style stuff like "Cal-Arts" even if they never went to Cal-Arts or like the media produced by them. It's the same principle. Stop lumping entire artists under one umbrella.

I draw him handsome because it's simply the way I see him. I love many other depictions of him, undoubtedly, and I even have a sticker set that depicts him with the graying hair, but it looks really good anyway. My point is, the fact that people who draw him dark and handsome shouldn't be scrutinized any more than people who draw him way more off base.

My personal contentions with the assumption he is a "dirty sleazebag old man."

I find this absolutely hilarious because this is a genuine stereotype and stock character of people similar to him. The douchebag salesman is a trope that's been around for a long time, but people don't seem to realize that this is a caricature and not representative of real salespeople.

Go to any @$%^ing department store or even an electronics one. Do you ever see anyone selling you stuff looking like they crawled out of the trash? Most are lower-class people who can't find any other job, meaning they are stuck with sales. It takes skill to be a good salesman, and I hate to brag, but I can probably sell you a #@$%ing soap bar and convince you that the extra $10 you're spending on it over a drugstore brand is better for your hands by deeply moisturizing them through herbal extracts and only "naturally" derived cleansing agents. Your hands are dry from the cold, drawing moisture out of them, so the investment would be worth it for the health of your skin during this harsh winter season. Why risk a drugstore brand that will only make your hands feel even rougher, flakier, and cracked? Stuff like this requires you to look someone in the eyes and observe who they are—their body language, way of carrying themselves, and the cadence of how they respond to your words. Does it always work? No. However, do you think anyone would $%^&ing buy ANY LEGAL PRODUCT if a salesperson looked like they were a shady crack dealer who was suspicious as %^&( to deal with? NO. It's a stereotype caricature for a REASON. It's meant to demean the reality of the salesperson who is forced to peddle a stupid product for a living. It's hard, and if anything, GET MAD at the people who are the ones making the crappy product! Yeah, some salesmen are bad at their jobs, but do you really believe that Cyber City's #1 RATED SALESMAN got there from being mediocre?! He may have gotten outside help for something that Toby never made clear, but he definitely does NOT lack the personality to make a great salesman. And believe it or not, there is plenty of evidence to prove he WASN'T bad at it! The other NPCs sell stuff that was once his goods but with his labels removed, and based on his statement of wanting to "make his own deals," this heavily implies he was NOT selling products he wanted to sell before he became a Big Shot. He has a strong sense of pride in the way he sees and presents himself, and I think this may be overlooked by people who make him look as ratty as possible.

I will also CLEARLY state this but this depiction overall does several of the following, which I KNOW many people will say is bad:

Ageism. Why do so many people, mostly Zoomers, assume that a man in his 40s is washed-up, gross, or even considered old? I've seen hotter men in their 40s than some young men in their early 20s.

Downplays his mental health struggles. One of the best things about Spamton is how he DOESN'T play into just the "sleazebag" stereotype. Once we go into his shop, we see that he is truly just a very broken man. His theme song is a FARCE to try and convince you that he's tougher than he really is.

Classist/Poor-Shaming. The assumption that a homeless person has to have no sense of cleanliness. Please, for the love of all that is good, meet actual homeless people. Not all of them are like this. Spamton clearly keeps himself rather clean for someone who dumpster dives. He is trying to stay true to himself, and his sense of self is one of pride. There is no dialogue or description to imply he smells or lacks proper hygiene.

Again, while there is nothing inherently wrong with drawing him this way, I just want people to be more aware of why they draw him this way. Think of it like a thought experiment to reflect on why you see him the way you do. How I draw Spamton comes from a place of deep empathy, love, and life experiences I've had in sales in addition to ALWAYS being customer-facing, meaning I know what works and what doesn't for over a DECADE. It's rather bizarre to me that people who claim to be big fans of him draw him in such a demeaning way that goes beyond the canon depiction and lowers him to absolute dirt, almost like beating this character with the ugly stick just because it's "funny." Is he a tragic character to you? Or is he simply a clown to laugh at for his failures and hardships? How we depict and see people is utterly fascinating because it reflects in real life, too.

You can take the exact same person and show them to different groups of people, and they will all see the same person differently. They don't have to be artists, but they tend to vary if you ask their opinions. For example, I think the actor Mads Mikkelsen is very attractive, but I know many who wouldn't understand why. A guy I've had a crush on for years is one of the hottest men ever to me, but a friend of mine called him "just a guy."

I fully understand that some people find the way I draw him stupid. It is what it is. I can't force you to like it.

I'm simply trying to point out my reasonings for why I draw him this way, and I would like others to think about their methods, too, and NOT to bash other people outright or go "ewww Yaoi tumblr sexyman" just because someone doesn't depict him with stereotypical traits or as "100% canon style" (which is mostly just copying the game's sprite style.)

[ipiutiminelle-ec]

Can we talk abt the new characters for a moment? I’m not talking about Maddie, but abt Voice of Reason number 1 and number 2.

When Vi met the Big Guy, he definitely heard her interaction with Maddie. How she beat Silco’s men. They zoomed on his face, and the fake sleeping was deliberate. That makes him SO interesting, especially considering he decided to stick around.

Then, when Cait becomes the new puppet fascist leader, we see him leaving. What will he do now? He’s obviously not loyal to the police force, or at least not hardcore (like Maddie) and unwilling to compromise his morals for topside. Will he join with Vi?

And then Tall and Brooding (Maddie’s friend? Colleague?). He seems to have so much common sense! Every time something happens and the camera pans to Maddie, with her slightly too enthusiastic reactions he makes a Face. But he never talks, which is a shame.

(Hell prob die before the season is out and I will mourn him)

[lynxfrost13]

To me Adler signalis is just genuinely oblivious to what the rest of sierpinski staff thinks about him. He’s just that kinda guy to me, easily bored, focused on his own things and just vibin while the kolibris talk shit about him

[cachu302]

Rinne is clingy.

“Rinne suddenly realizes she loves Houtaro! There’s no buildup!” seems like the main reason a lot of people dislike the current arc of Gotchard.

Okay, but take it back a second. Rinne is established to be an outsider amongst her peers. She focused on school and alchemy, and nothing else. Her relationship with her father became strained when he was revealed to have “betrayed” the alchemists’ union (thanks Gereyon). She can’t say anything, because she’s just a child against the masked whoevers in charge of the union. Rinne is the child of a traitor, and now she feels personally betrayed by her father. Because she can’t speak against the union, she bottles up her feelings, and thus, she becomes very cynical and aloof.

Rinne cannot let herself trust anyone, else she might get betrayed again.

Even in the alchemist academy, where she has Sabimaru and Renge (and Spanner, I guess), she doesn’t make a connection with them. She does her own business, they do theirs.

Then enters Houtaro. He quickly becomes a recurring presence in her life after joining the alchemist academy, and slowly manages to break down her barriers. He flips everything she’s perceived about friends and relationships on her head. Suddenly, she’s made a connection. Through Houtaro, she makes connections to the rest of the academy. Rinne becomes friends with Renge and Sabimaru, and the Chemies as well. She goes out to eat with Renge. She becomes comfortable enough with Houtaro (and Kajiki?) to show off her love of spooky things, a side that the old her would have likely hidden. She’s growing up. She may get annoyed with them, but they’re the first friends she’s made in a while, if ever. And Houtaro is the one who helped her build those bridges, supporting her, and she supports him right back. Rinne is happier than she’s ever been, now with friends and purpose in her life.

Aside from her father, Houtaro is her greatest connection and her best friend.

At the same time, however, Rinne is subconsciously relying on Houtaro to be an emotional support for herself. Even if she believes in him, she doesn’t fully believe in herself, even after gaining the power to become Majade. Rinne looks to Houtaro to reaffirm his belief in her and support for her; if he doesn’t do that, she doubts herself. And with Tsukumo suddenly taking up all of Houtaro’s attention, she’s not receiving that affirmation. Her first/best friend and largest connection is being cut off by someone else, and seems to have replaced her.

Subconsciously, Rinne is clingy. Mostly towards Houtaro, but also towards the rest of the squad. She feels like she, and socially awkward introvert, belongs with a group of friends.

She’s maybe a bit jealous, but now, she’s anxious that her connection to Houtaro is diminishing because of his childhood friend who literally came out of nowhere and inserted herself back into his life. And now that subconscious clinginess has become more prominent.

And now she’s doubting herself again.

If Rinne can’t be supported by Houtaro, or if she can’t support Houtaro, does her presence matter with Tsukumo around? Everyone, from Kajiki to Tamami, seems to gel well with Tsukumo hovering around Houtaro, trying to grab his attention with her big ol�� doe eyes. Suddenly she’s become the outsider again. Rinne isn’t questioning if she loves Houtaro, she’s questioning herself and her self-worth.

And Tsukumo, if unintentional, feeds into that doubt. Her declaration to be able to go after Houtaro without any worries feeds Rinne’s self-doubt.

And Atropos is really, really, REALLY, good at fueling that doubt even further.

What if Houtaro starts doubting her? What if her entire friend group suddenly doubts her? Suddenly she’s in her father’s shoes. Is she going to be branded a traitor as well?

(Okay, maybe that’s a stretch)

Houtaro is pure of heart and dumb of ass, so it’s unlikely he’ll turn on her. He’s able to recognize that she was hurting in episode 14, can see the good in humans and Chemies alike, and also seems to be better at socializing… save for recognizing when Tsukumo is flirting with him.

But the worry is still planted. Maybe that’s why Minato tells her to fight as herself in the preview? So she can believe in herself? Rinne has relied on Houtaro to help her believe in herself, but the what-if of if he doesn’t has been provoked.

The main writer of Gotchard is Hasegawa, who graciously gifted us with Yomogi and Yume from SSSS.DYNAZENON, a show that also featured a relationship between two high schoolers. The buildup between Yomogi and Yume versus Houtaro and Rinne is similar: two teenagers learning to support one another. What differs is that Yomogi and Yume are both emotionally scarred by their past, and they learn how to heal and bond as a result, while Rinne is relying of Houtaro to support her as she heals. Houtaro doesn’t seem to carry any kind of emotional baggage going into forming a connection with Rinne, aside from a missing father, so he’s not needing reassurance of himself. He needs reassurance from everyone equally to bring out Gotchard’s full strength. It’s doubtful he would recognize that he’s been christened as Rinne’s emotional support extrovert.

[thehopefulraincoat]

Decided to do some sketching just for fun and oops, my hand slipped and now I have another sketch of Vash.

[home-of-renn]

The Observants lack depth perception. They're estranged from human emotion and are partially responsible for overseeing the continuation of the time stream. They view everything as being very black-and-white, whereas Clockwork sees all the different shades of grey.

CW never actually foresaw Danny or his accident.

Ghostly Obsessions are tied to a ghost's soul/core and CW is an extension of the universe. He's always had this sense of anticipation that was always there but only become aware of it as time went on. He kinda had to shield the other Ancients and their conceptions but he never had to actually hide them like he did with Danny. He had to completely turn his face and focus his gaze elsewhere, and as the time of Danny's accident came closer he started to sense things rather than see them - kinda like a spider sitting in the middle of its web. While CW can see the future and all these possibilities and realities, he's literally a chunk of the universe and his powers aren't limited to just his sight. CW's feelings of protectiveness could be attributed to his Obsession or the fact that he's a sentient piece of the universe - the universe that brought about Danny's half-dead existence in the first place.

The matter of CW's free will is a little messy. He's sentient and has his own feeling and thoughts and can make his own decisions, but he's ruled by his Obsession and by extension the universe itself. His Obsession has more influence over him when compared to other ghosts, but that could also be because CW is way more aware of his Obsession and how it affects him. It's hard to tell where his Obsession ends and where it begins cause he's pretty much a reflection of the universe. He doesn't really follow the same rules as the other ghosts cause he isn't even a ghost to begin with - he's essentially whatever the universe needs him to be. Which he is very much at peace with.

The same way no one will ever be able to truly understand the state of the universe or the universe itself - CW is very much vast and unknowable.

As for Danny being an Ancient - what he represents is very complicated and hard to put into words (which is why CW and he are so much alike).

First off - all the other Ancients became Ancients after they died (not counting Life and Death, who - before Danny - were the beings most similar to CW and his existence). Danny died but is also still very much alive - which confuses the heck out of everyone who isn't CW. In a way, he is, but also isn't, an Ancient - much like CW. Danny (the ancient) was created from the portal - AKA the tear between life and death. An Ancient is created from the creation of a concept/idea/something important, and their creation essentially solidifies whatever concept they represent, in the universe. An Ancient brings about the creation of their concept - but the creation of their concept also beckons them - the Ancient - into being. It's kinda like a - which came first; the chicken or the egg? - kinda situation.

Everyone across the realms of the dead heard him scream - which is why so many powerful ghosts keep hanging around near the portal since a lot of the weaker ghosts got scared off and the stronger ones wanted to check it out. A Ghostly Wail is the last scream of a person before they die and only spirits that had truly horrifying deaths/lives have one. So it's safe to say that if someone's scream was loud enough to reach all corners of the realms (and they aren't even dead yet) then that means that something truly history-changing just happened.

Danny was created in order to stabilise the portal - which is the simplest most fundamental/naive way to explain it. Life and Death aren't meant to have a middle ground but Danny has created/become that middle ground as consequence of the tear between worlds. The portal didn't open up with Danny inside it - the portal opened up inside of Danny. It split his soul almost in two (his two halves are kinda holding onto each other by a few threads) and stabilised the bridge between the two realms. Danny is the middle ground.

He's also a lot more than that. He also encompasses the after-effects of the portal being created. Image what would happen IRL if ghosts, spirits and 'life after death' was confirmed. How many religions and beliefs would be reinforced or disproven? How many new fears and hopes would be born from it? He isn't necessarily the Ancient of balance - he is way more than that. He encompasses the shift and change that is required for balance to exist in the first place. Balance is hella fragile and can never truly be achieved and that is what Danny represents. Yes, he does try to keep the balance and the peace between the two realms - but he was born from that need for balance - those fleeting sensations that you can never quite hold onto before they disappear. But the thing is - all Ancients are created to keep the balance.

He's the Ancient of the not-quite-small things and the not-quite-big things. He's the dichotomy of everything and nothing and his existence is too vast to be truly put into words. He represents the clashing of two things that aren't meant to be. Which makes him the only being in existence that could truly be compared to CW.

CW encompasses the universe and everything that ties into the timelines - while Danny encompasses everything that exists within the timelines and everything that ties into the universe.

[asmidge]

It upsets me sm that there aren’t inaction figures for TS, Brandi, and Bethany when they’re the main characters of their movies

[konohagakurekakashi]

How does the Hatake clan white chakra work.

Hmm, I imagine much like normal chakra, sprinkled with a little bit of 'I can't divulge clan secrets/info to just anyone'.

Nice try.

[keischreiber]

A reminder that Reiner's main goal to be a hero was not to save the world necessarily, but to be accepted by his parents. It's just... if saving the world is what it took to be accepted, he'll gladly undertake hell or high water just to be the hero that he felt would grant him the love, acknowledgement, and acceptance of the people meant everything to him.

So, you know, as I rewatch his scene with Eren during the start of W. Tybur's speech, I can't help but think about this. And how this could have added why he mentioned that he was a bad person. That it wasn't about the environment he grew up in... but that he was just a bad person. Because, if I factor in his desire, I can feel that at the back of his mind... his own selfishness was the reason why they are where they are now. Why so many was killed, why so many innocent people had to die.

It's not just about being brainwashed.

Because remember, he tell Eren that he just wanted to be a hero, he wanted to be respected. Which is true. And while he didn't say it out loud, making it seem like he wanted to be seen as a hero and respected by the majority, he does want the to be a hero to earn the respect of his mother.

Who never once (at this point at least because it was never shown, and based from her personality, probably never did) told him that she was proud of him for any reason. For coming back, for winning the war, for surviving, etc. The most that Reiner probably had in terms of acknowledgment from Karina would be two things: Him becoming a warrior candidate, and him being chosen as a Warrior.

When I think about how Reiner would have felt during his first meeting with his mom after being extracted from Paradis, I feel like crying. (My tears are very shallow for this man. He gets hurt in any way, I cry.) Because if you look at how he was acting when he told Karina he no longer has the Armored Titan... he looked so scared, even apprehensive about telling her, looked so expectant of rejection, looked so expectant of his mom's disappointment... that he couldn't even look her in the eye. This literally screamed to me that during the time he returned to Marley, his mother could have given him a look of disappointment or a lecture on how they had achieved nothing in those six years, threw him a bit of slack because they at least managed to bring back the Jaw. How horrified she must have looked when Reiner mentions that he might be stripped of the Armor. And despite how, she would not lash out at him, she would give him a look that reflects disappointment.

I still remember that scene where they come back from Liberio and Reiner's looking on at how happy his uncle and auntie were when Gabi came home safe, expressed how proud of her they were.

I feel like... during his entire stay in Marley after the extraction from Paradis, he has never been hugged by his mother.

Which is why, as much as majority of the fanbase dislike Karina (god, even TV Tropes had nothing good to say about her), I'm glad she made it out alive. Because it's her acceptance that truly cements Reiner's happiness. It's the one goal he worked so hard to achieve. IF she had died, Reiner will eventually learn to be happy, but there's always going to be a gap there that no one would ever be able to fill.

[kurooscopy]

“kuroo tetsurou, son of zeus” “kuroo tetsurou, son of athena” SHUSH ✋✋✋

kuroo tetsurou, son of hermes.

hermes, god of travellers and crossroads; and his son, who guides his peers through their own journeys. a conduit for tsukishima, for kenma, for lev and shibayama to recognise for themselves their potential. hermes’ son, who makes it his life’s mission to inspire and lead as many people to volleyball as he can, enticing them down the path until they realise it’s not just the club they thought it was.

hermes, god of messengers and connection; and his son, captain of a nationally-ranked volleyball team that prides itself on a rock-solid defence based in communication. whose central principle is to be blood, and circulate oxygen so that their brain may function at his best. a team whose maxim is to connect.

smart, quick-thinking hermes, god of wit and cunning and trickery; and his smart, quick-thinking son, who can watch someone for two minutes and know just which buttons to press to rile them up. who can exchange banter with an easy, feline grin that, if you were to study for a bit too long, starts to look like bared teeth that could eat you alive if their owner so pleased. whose hazel eyes constantly flicker with mischief, and you wonder if what you’re really seeing is a flicker of his father.

kuroo tetsurou, son of hermes.

[lususnatura]

sooo... what if i told y'all that, when i say that one of blamore's powers is bone manipulation, that it could literally make a DRILL made out of bone through it's god damn hand / around it's whole arm and could summon bones from inside of it's skin? because it honestly is one heck of a superpower to have, though with this comes weaknesses like the more bones he summons, the more energy he depletes — and thus it can become physically exhausting rather quickly for it to use it's powers. so, it's got to use its powers very wisely and prefers to end fights as quickly as possible as a result.

but whenever it comes to adding bones to its tail + contorting it's ribcage then things get a little bit more complicated,, because these are simple things for it to do in comparison to literally pulling random bones OUT of it's skin and such. though if you were to break its ribs, then it would hurt and let me tell you, there is a reason why blamore NEVER let's people it doesn't trust touch its tail because if the person it is fighting is capable of breaking any of the bones in it... it is going to hurt with a capital ' H. ' but yeah, i just thought i'd share this little tidbit with y'all about its bone manipulation power. because once again; blamore isn't invincible, though he is stronger than some may give him credit for (':