#dex's discussions

[ihavedonenothingright]

Captive Prince: Historical References and Naming Conventions

Hi all! I've had this idea in my head for a while now, and I finally had some time (and an Ancient Greek dictionary), so I figured I'd give it a shot. I've always been fascinated by Pacat's worldbuilding, particularly the naming conventions, and as a classicist myself, I wanted to dissect them. So that's what this is. My focus is mainly going to be on Akielos since I don't have as in-depth a knowledge of French, but I'll go through some Veretian names too (je n'ai pas étudié le français depuis deux années, mais Arles… je voudrais parler d'Arles…)

I'm not approaching this with any kind of formal, academic structure, so if something wonky gets through, please let me know! And lastly, I have no idea how many of these are intentional on Pacat's part. This analysis is less about authorial intent and more about how the associations inherent in these names can lend to our interpretation of the work. I'll also be doing this analysis over a few different posts since there is a lot I want to cover. For post #1:

Country Names

This post will solely feature Vere and Akielos since that's already a lot, but I will tackle Patras et. al. later on. There's some very interesting stuff there that I would be remiss not to look at. Of our subjects for today, Vere is the simpler, and the one I am absolutely certain Pacat intended, so I'll start with it.

Vere

Disclaimer: I am in love with this choice. The word itself is actually a Classical Latin adverb derived from the adjective "vērus," meaning "true," and in Latin it's spelled "vērē" (though you will not see those macrons in extant texts, those are a modern pronunciation and differentiation aid). Vērē can be translated a handful of ways; often it's used for emphasis, and in that case it's usually translated as "indeed," but "truly," "rightly," "exactly," and "truthfully" all work in different contexts. Extrapolate vērus and its derivatives for around a thousand years and you get the Old French word "verai" (ouah c'est vrai !) which means, well, "true."

It's also close in spelling and pronunciation to the modern French "verre," which means "glass," which isn't entirely relevant, but is cool. It makes me think of shiny, fragile displays of opulence like the Galerie des Glaces in Versailles. 

The first reason I really like this name is that it calls back to Artes, the Roman-inspired kingdom that we're told once encompassed all of Vere and Akielos, while still fitting current Veretian (aka half-old-half-modern French) grammar and pronunciation. The second is, naturally, that it fits so well into the series' themes of truth, deception, and verisimilitude. The second we're introduced to Vere, and by extension Laurent, there's a subtle hint there that both he and his country are, at their core, more real, genuine, and truthful than Damen and Akielos. We're already building towards Damen's Kings Rising line, "I have never known a truer man." Even if you don't recognize the Latin, your brain will make the connection between Vere and verisimilitude later. It's perfect, 10/10 Pacat, could not have done it better.

And just for fun: a Latin example!

Commentarii de Bello Civili, 2:27. Latin and English available here. 

Hi, sive vere quam habuerant opinionem ad eum perferunt, sive etiam auribus Vari serviunt…

Loeb Translation: "Whether they convey to him the opinion that they really held, or whether they only flatter his ears…" (165)

Slightly more literal translation (by me): "Whether these ones truly convey to him the opinion as they held it, or rather are subservient to Varius' ears…"

Akielos

The name "Akielos" is a lot more… nebulous. I don't know if there is a Greek print of Captive Prince, but my guess is it would be spelled Άκιελος (modern Greek speakers please weigh in, I'm only a year or so into Ancient Greek so I haven't really touched accent marks). That doesn't map neatly to any modern or ancient greek word—at least that I know of. What is does remind me of is Ἀχιλῆος (Achileos) from Ἀχιλλεύς (Achilleus), aka, Achilles. They're so close that I actually realized lately I had unconsciously been pronouncing Akielos as "Akileos" for a while; and in fact, this makes the Veretian spelling "Achelos" make a bit more sense. English and French both use a hard "ch" to represent χ in Greek words; so I imagine, in universe, that the word might actually be spelled Άχιελος. It wouldn't even surprise me if this was the way Pacat originally wanted to spell it, but had to change it for ease of comprehension.

I did have some other interpretations of the name, but I think this is the strongest. Because in addition to the obvious association, the name Ἀχιλλεύς is thought to be derived from the words ἄχος, "distress/grief" and λαός, "people," making it either "the grief" or "grief of/to the people" depending on who you ask (you rely on cases for that sort of distinction in Greek and they're not exactly present here. iykyk).

I really like the idea of Akielos being associated with grief; we're first introduced to it as a country in mourning, and then later on, as the cause of grief in Delfeur. And then you have the association with Achilles, himself a prolific brother killer, who Pacat references later in 'The Fall of Inachtos,' our in-universe Iliad. Insane levels of grief on grief on grief. Plus, because it looks closer to the genitive form, I automatically associate it with the opening line of the Iliad:

μῆνιν ἄειδε θεὰ Πηληϊάδεω Ἀχιλῆος

menin aeide thea Peleiadeo Achileos

Sing, goddess, the anger of Achilles, Peleus' son

So we can throw a little rage into the equation. As a treat. 

Also important to note that the -os there is a masculine ending. It doesn't have the most bearing, but it does mean that if we want to be strictly accurate to Ancient (and modern!) Greek grammar, I have to throw a quick article in front of it, making our final "how do the Akielons spell Akielos?" answer: ὁ Άχιελος ("ho Achielos"). The ὁ here is equivalent to le in French, with the major distinction being that in French, you don't typically need an article in front of a proper noun, whereas you do in Greek.

That's it for today's analysis! See you guys next time around for Patras, Artes, and (maybe) Arles, Ios, and Delfeur/Delpha.

Part 2 >>

[sga-owns-my-soul]

jeannie: this is my brother

rodney: hi

jeannie: and this is my brothers emotional support team

ar1: hello!

[bitegore]

if your ocs were bosses in a video game, what do you think their boss fight would be like?

[whoredmode]

warmup doodle of vice kings anteros since i think i promised i’d draw him. outfit based on early VK concept art and john galliano menswear f/w 2004 lol

like i said in my other post about VK anteros, i think they’d be the gang he’d most likely end up affiliated with had the saints not found him first because the VK (more specifically tanya) already owned the hood where TnA was at. since anteros worked there for several years prior to the start of sr1, he probably already knew of tanya. i imagine in the universe where he is a VK, he’s probably more or less tanya’s assistant. honestly i don’t think they’d get along, but that contention makes things interesting right

[constantvariations]

My scavenge for screenshots that I might use in an upcoming video essay led me to Lilith Fairen’s blog where, lo and behold, she apparently saw this post of mine and decided she had to talk about it

That’s an interesting way to say “the blog has me blocked, so I can’t reblog the OG post.” Fairen, you know what a block means, right? It means I don’t consent to you being on my damn blog. So either you don’t understand what boundaries are or you think it’s okay to ignore them so long as it’s the right kind of person you’re invading. Neither of which reflect well on you

[burned-lariat]

The adult Benson children use trauma as an aphrodisiac and a manipulation tool to pull their partner into it. In this essay I will-

[anobodynameddex]

Fuck Wilbur soot.

[sodrippy]

truly abhor how going to a new doctor is just like "wowee i hope they don't dismiss my concerns and requests bc im not actively bleeding out in their office !"

[bklynmusicnerd]

As much as it pains me to admit it, this is just gonna have to be one of those Trina and Spencer arguments where I don't side with Trina (devastating, I know).

I get that supporting the little guy or the underdog is Trina's thing. So from her perspective, Spencer is basically weaponizing his privilege over someone who is less powerful than him. The problem is, they really don't know Dex and her bestie dating Dex does not mean he's worth advocating for like this.

Especially when said bestie is going behind her back and telling her boyfriend to leave the country. There's a certain irony in Trina taking an issue with Spencer picking a fight with Dex because I'd argue that she's picking a fight with Spencer. It makes me wonder if there's a bit of projection going on here, and she's more annoyed about the fact that she can sense Spencer is hiding something from her.

She's not wrong about it not making sense for Spencer to fight Dex on behalf of Cam when Cam gave up and peaced out to Stanford anyways. But pushing him to apologize is way too much. Trina has always encouraged Spencer to do better and she's always advised him, but ordering him to do something is not her style.

She also knew Spencer was not going to agree to that shit. It's like she just wanted to keep the argument going which makes me think she's sensing his turn to the dark side but using the stupid Dex argument to talk it out.

[i-drop-level-one-loot]

Yandere!Monster X Barbarian!Reader

❤️ Barbarian Reader who seems to have put all their stat points into Strength/Dex, and completely forgot Intelligence

💀 thembo.exe

❤️ A huge sweetheart, and I mean huge

💀 Was always the tallest in their village, towering over both women and men alike

❤️ Due to their height (Reader) had a lot more placed on their shoulders from a very early age

💀 Some internal reflection could have led to a deeper understanding of their secret yearning to rely on another person, but that sounds like a lot of work... And thinking...

❤️ Happy to be sent as part of their tribe's representation when meeting with a tribe of monsters despite knowing nothing about politics

💀 While the presence of the monster people caused visible discomfort in their fellow warriors, (Reader) was too busy being star struck to think about how easily this new species could kill them

Xyleth emerges from his tent, unimpressed with the shivering smooth skins before him. His form was only vaguely human in the front, with a gun metal blue chest and face, sparkling in the sun like his skin was dusted in finely crushed gems. However, his backside and limbs were armored in an inky black shell, spiked for protection along his joints and down his long tail, with bone colored claws adorning his claw like appendages. His eyes seemed black in the shade, but held a universe of stars in the light. Xyleth was born to be a leader, only the strongest of his species developed this coloring, separating him from the rest of his tribe whose shells were a sandy brown to hide in the desert of their home.

❤️ (Reader) didn't notice the congregation were speaking, still taking in the sights about them, before they finally looked forward, witnessing the tallest of the monsters

💀 (gasps) "Damn, you're huge!"

❤️ The barbarians gasp in horror, and flinch away from (Reader)

💀 Was this some sort of joke?

❤️ A tight smile formed on Xyleth's chiseled face. "Yes?"

💀 "Yeah, I thought I was big, but damn, you could crush me without breaking a sweat, huh big guy?"

❤️ What's this? Was this human attempting to flatter him? A war lord of a different species?

💀 No, (Reader) was genuinely impressed.

❤️ "And the point of you bringing this up, small one?" He asked, his on edge grin softening into an amused smile. Although he would have no interest in something not his own species, it was adorable how this human flirted with him so confidently (that's not what's happening)

💀 "Ah, no point. I'd love to wrestle you though!" (Reader) knocked their fists together, pumped at the idea of testing their strength against the beast

❤️ Xyleth and his guards were taken aback, Xyleth's tail smacking the ground with surprise. No one had ever been so brave, so brazen. Unknown to the barbarians, the armored monsters had a very unique mating ritual, similar to scorpions dancing while pressing up against each other to test the male's strength

💀 Despite (Reader) being taller than their fellow barbarians, they were still several feet shorter than Xyleth's shortest villager

❤️ But your personality... None of the women or men had ever approached Xyleth like (Reader) had (again, not what's going on..)

💀 Perhaps Xyleth would actually listen to the barbarians, instead of slaughtering them for having the audacity to request a conference with him like he originally planned

❤️ The barbarians were invited to stay with the rival tribe for a week as they discussed various topics (Reader) had no interest in

💀 (Reader) quickly became loved by the local children, the children adoring (Reader) as a human loves their pet puppy, allowing (Reader) to rough house with them and feeding them snacks like a stray

❤️ (Reader) did not find this insulting, and was enjoying the affection and attention they were receiving

Xyleth was bored in his meetings with the soft skins, upset that (Reader) wasn't involved. He had learned that (Reader) was brought in as the muscle, which irked him. Did they not research how giant his species were before arriving? What did they think someone as small and sweet and adora- Xyleth thumped his tail loudly, frightening the barbarians. Why couldn't he get (Reader) out of his head? "Let's continue this after lunch."

💀 Xyleth roamed his streets in search for (Reader). Although they weren't there as part of the 'debate team' it was a little upsetting that (Reader) wasn't at least waiting for Xyleth near the meeting tent seeing how enamored they were with him

❤️ (Reader) was found in a circle of chuckling adults, struggling with all their might to lift two children at the same time

💀 The sight immediately filled Xyleth's heart with warmth, seeing the children as their own for a split second, and picturing an entire future with the barbarian

❤️ He knew (Reader) would have no objections to becoming his mate, however their people might argue

💀 It didn't matter if he had to kill the other barbarians staying in his town, he had initially planned on slaughtering them anyhow, but it would be better if they enthusiastically supported their love

❤️ And they did support his proposal, especially since it was either trade (Reader) for their protection (from Xyleth's own tribe) on their hunting paths, or die right there and have their entire tribe extinguished

💀 What a supportive family (Reader) has~!

(Reader) didn't notice when the rest of their people left the village, still having the time of their life with creatures that more matched their strength and height. One of the kids gasped and wiggled his way out of (Reader's) arms, running away as his parents also turned back towards their homes. A large shadow approached the confused human, who got up, patting the dirt off their legs.

"Play fighting with young boys? Are you trying to make me jealous, little one?" Xyleth joked with a smile.

(Reader) felt their heart soar being called "Little One", relishing in the friendliness they experienced from the citizens the barbarians called monsters.

"Bwahahaha!!! Jealous? If I was as imposing as you, the only one who could make me jealous would be a god!"

Xyleth couldn't control his tail, whacking the ground in embarrassment over his love's honesty flirtatiousness.

"If it wouldn't be too inconveniencing, I would be honored to take you up on that wrestling proposition now.." He could hardly speak with how excited he was, fearful the adorable little human could hear his two hearts rapid beating.

"Really? Right now? I'm a little worn out, but I'll never turn down a challenge! Just don't be too disappointed!"

Xyleth picked (Reader) up in his arms, fighting every urge to take them right then and there in the center of his village.

"I could never be disappointed in you~" his deep voice vibrated against (Reader's) body, as he carried them to his tent, the poor human completely unaware of what he was about to do to them.

[where-dreams-dwell]

*spoilers for One Day*

For people saying ‘it’s tragic, Dex and Em only got 3 years together’ no. They got 15 years together.

Glossing over the span of their life together to sum it up as ‘only 3 years together’ misses all the love and time they had together that wasn’t solely romantic.

Why is their relationship only ‘important’ or ‘counts’ when it’s a romantic one? Maybe there was always romantic love buried in there or growing steadily but there was a whole lot of platonic love there too.

For 15 years they were the most important person in the world to one another, they described each other as their ‘best friend’ and the person they reached out to at every high and low moment. And for the last 3 of those years they were also a couple.

There are loads of examples of Dex reaching out to Em when he’s at his lowest: the last birthday with his mum, then he’s reeling from his divorce, when he’s scared people will hate him on TV. And you *could* read that as pathetic and Em being his emotional crutch, with Dex latching into her. But you could *also* see that as when you’re struggling and low, you just want your best friend. Because they *get* you. And part of being a best friend is being there in those low moments.

And Em has done the same with Dex, just in different ways. That first year out of uni Em had no idea what she was doing; in a job she couldn’t wait to leave, a relationship that didn’t make her happy, not sure where she was going in life or what she was doing. Em writes to Dex often, and doesn’t need him to reply to her, just to read her letters and be *her* emotional crutch and person to vent to.

Even at that breakup-dinner, Em has things she ‘needs to talk about’ and she’s reached out to Dex to do it. We don’t see her discussing it with Tilly, we see her trying to talk about it with Dex. She’s at arguably her lowest moment (hates her job, hates her partner, hates her home) and she wants her best friend to listen to her. Just like he did when she was 24 and thinking about giving up and leaving London, and Dex convinced her to stay and keep going.

So they are emotional crutches *to one another*. That’s also part of being someone’s best friend.

And for all the low moments Dex also wanted to share his best moments with her too: when he’s excited about the TV pilot he calls Em to say ‘the only person I want to share this with is you’, and begs Em to find a way to be there. Yes this is also him dismissing and ignoring her achievements, yes this is self absorbed and rude and at the height of his egomania, but in that moment of triumph he only wants his best friend there with him.

When they see one another again at Tilly’s wedding Em is brave and self assured when she reveals she’s ‘thought of you every day, missed you every day’, and that even though they are friends again now the fact that Dex will have a wife and child ‘feels a bit like loosing you all over again. Because people with families have different priorities…’ That’s how close they were before.

The sentiment that ‘we grew up together’ is really true, for the both of them. They were very different people throughout their lives, and if they had tried to be a romantic couple earlier there is no guarantee that version of them would have lasted the course.

Would Emma have stayed with a peak-of-his-tv-fame Dex, partying and living life ‘to the full’? Or would they have explosively ended and decided they were too different for one another for it to ever work?

Would Dex have even tried for a career in TV or a full year of travelling if he’d become a couple with Emma after Uni? Or would he have done something else but grown resentful of what-could-have-been?

If they had sorted out their issues and apologised after their fight and Em had left Ian, would Em have found the strength to turn rock bottom into a spring board and finally write her book? Would she have even hit that bottom at all? Or would the hook have remained a pipe dream while she continued as a teacher, happy with Dex but professionally unfulfilled?

We will never know what could have been, and that doesn’t necessarily make those alternatives the ‘better’ option that they ‘missed out on’.

Maybe they would only ever have had 3 years together as a couple and getting it in their mid 30’s the way they did was their most mature and peaceful version.

So yes at times their relationship feels like it’s moving toward the inevitable conclusion of a romantic partnership. But the time before they get there wasn’t wasted or unimportant or unnecessary. And they were always together.

[varlysca]

ok the fuck keeps happening to my tags; they get all jumbled up???? I should maybe just not tag on my phone.

Anyway for more comprehensiveness, this is what I meant:

I was also thinking of that exact same lines bc everytime Ronon faces the wraith, he opens his arms like an invitation "come at me".

And we can see from his interactions with the team, he likes being social, he likes being part of a team. He goes golfing with Sheppard even though it sounds like the most boring thing to him (Queen Teyla for dipping on that, I'm sure Ronon had a bone to pick with you after). After the first scene where Elizabeth joins him for food, I can't remember a time where Ronon actually does the 'solitary "lone wolf" eating' thing. And he isn't a hero, he doesn't see himself as a hero (especially not after killing his CO), but he also isn't made of stone because he felt rightly furious that Kell would sacrifice people to save himself and he also cared enough to not endanger innocent civilians when his Runner collagues killed them on the slight suspicion of snitching them to the wraith.

I wonder how Ronon feels about the happenings on Atlantis (re: warcrimes which fits so well with "right or wrong, I can hardly tell") but I know he condems Kell's actions of slaughtering civilains (righteous side of hell, something something sacrificing people for the greater good) and the Atlantis expedition gave him a new hope and start and they freed him from his solitary life as a Runner.

I totally feel you on the John-coding thing though, because John went through a similar thing. He also killed his CO, in the line of duty, but still. He also knows damn well that some things they do on Atlantis wouldn't hold up to the Geneva convention, (which, in a Watsonian explanation explains Woolsey, when the IOA gets high blood pressure from Weir's leading style.) John knows they're not heroes, especially with the Michael debacle (de-wraithifying him twice!!), but on the other side they do have to defend themselves, which is justifiable and therefore righteous. It involves killing and losing people though, so yeah. And especially when it comes to John and uh, emotions TM, I bet he feels alone sometime. Especially when it comes to his role as military lead.

Haha

Not me getting into the John Sheppard game

But “Wrong Side of Heaven” by Five Finger Death Punch is v John coded

[whoopsie-daisie]

Something that's been on my mind since last night is the dialogue in One Day - I feel like shows and movies nowadays treat their audience like they're stupid and over-explain the most simple things rather than just showing us. What I like about One Day is that the subtext is there but they don't force it into the light, they let it linger. This is clearly noticed in the dialogue: in the episode where Em and Dex are arguing in Em's flat in Paris, Em's says something along the lines of "well isn't this ironic" and moves on with the discussion. Another show probably would have had Dexter ask "what" and then have Em go into a whole spiel about their decade-long friendship but that's not how normal people talk! They've known eachother for nearly twenty years, at that point in their relationship they have their own inside jokes, their own shorthand, and they know what the other person means without them having to spell it out. In this instance, I appreciate that as a viewer I have to stop and reflect on what she means and everything they've been through together in the last 11 episodes, but generally I appreciate that they kept the expositional dialogue to a minimum and so you get these moments that are that much more authentic and real-feeling!

[yujeong]

The Score of 4 Minutes - Episode 3

Alright, folks. Before I proceed to lose my mind and write a fucking THESIS about my beautiful baby boy Tonkla and his whole fucking deal this episode, I'll proceed to give you the OST I managed to find, as I did before for episode 1 and episode 2. So, let's go (YouTube links, as per usual): - The Throne Is Mine by Ruiqi Zhao: When Dome wakes up - Flesh and Bone by Jon Björk: When Korn is in the bathroom, checking his phone to see Tonkla's calls + the beginning of the scene with Great, before he calls Korn to ask the time - Walkin' on Dreams by Headlund: When Tyme and Great speak by the basketball court (before the rewind) - Sub Twin by Jay Varton: When Great tells Tyme about seeing 4 minutes into the future - I Found The Answers In You (feat. Mia Niles) by Loving Caliber: When Great tells Tyme to go grab something to eat - The Consequences by Marten Moses: When Tyme and Den are discussing Great's condition - Beneath the Bushes by Raymond Grouse: When Great takes Tyme to the claw machine - Spying on the Neighbours by The Fly Guy Five: When Tyme is teaching Great how to catch the plushies - Are You Having Fun by Alek Bluntz: When Tyme caught the first plushie, then the rest - Rest in His Love by Joyspring: When Tyme and Great almost kissed - By the Lighthouse by Miles Avida: When Nan is getting dressed and steals the key to check the documents - Face On by Wendel Scherer: When she gets caught and chased outside - Where Does It End by Max Anson: When Korn appears and learns about what happened with Nan + when Win gets taken off the case - Roseé du matin by DEX 1200: When Tonkla is breaking stuff in his room and then does drugs - The Four Seasons, Violin Concerto in G Minor, Op. 8 No. 2, RV 315 "Summer": I. Allegro non molto: When Win and Tonkla fuck (before Win goes inside Tonkla) - The Four Seasons - Winter - Allegro Non Molto: When Win and Tonkla fuck (after Win goes inside Tonkla) - Eternum Nocturne by Gavin Luke: When Win and Tonkla talk post-sex - Down the Alleyway by Damon Greene: When Win goes to talk to Mod about her message on social media - I Wanna Fall by King Sis: When Great is smoking on the balcony - Obstruction by Bonnie Grace: When Great is making his (murder)board - Thermonuclear by Craft Case: When Korn and Great talk at the bar - Cluster One by Hampus Naeselius: When Tyme fights Korn and later Great

[crymeariveronceagain]

Biana: I bet you’re wondering why I gathered you here today. It’s because we need to have a discussion about how some people in this room aren’t getting along with other people in this room. Dex : Why did you say that so vaguely? Stina and I are literally the only people you called in here.

[blortch]

No you can say it. I’ve heard Space Cop being described as “mean-spirited“ before and I think they’re kinda right

every day i think about a gorilla interrupted sequel that is sincere and silly and kind to its characters and still has that quality of "we had one camera and no money" to it. and then i remember