#does that make sense? maybe the parallel is a bit of a reach. I could write an essay about it tbh

[soo-won]

About the shoulder wound parallel I have so many thoughts about it but to reach the suwon/zeno part of it I first need to make it about Suwon and Hak I swear it makes sense stay with me. I've been obsessing over Suwon's shoulder wound ever since ch249 and I think it can be symbolically connected to the wound Hak caused in chapter 2, which is the Suwon I drew here. Like, the thing is, Kusanagi gave Suwon a wound in chapter 249 on the same shoulder as at the start of the story, a few chapters before giving Zeno another wound on the opposite shoulder and said wound became plot relevant in a chapter that makes direct parallel between Suwon and Zeno in ch256... So much to unpack here, right? Maybe it's all coincidence, but even if so it's fun to think about it so here I am!!

So first, Suwon's shoulder and the development of his relationship with Hak. It's always hard to tell if Kusanagi completely forgot about Hak slashing Suwon's right shoulder in chapter 2 since it's never mentioned again and we never know if Suwon even has any scar left of it, but, Suwon's right shoulder comes into play a few times later in the story sooo...it could be... In chapter 259 when Zeno fights against Hak and Yona, Hak tells him that he would never use his weapon against him. In a set up that is very similar to the night of the coup (with this time Yona protecting Hak against the Betrayer(tm)), to me it resonates strongly with Hak's actions that night. Unlike back then with Suwon, Hak refuses to use his weapon against a friend, even if said friend betrayed him, is threatening them and hurt people he cares for. Hak refuses to treat Zeno as his enemy like he did with Suwon then. (The circumstances are a bit different of course, but this scene makes me think Kusanagi does remember well how things happened that night, and Hak hurting Suwon.) This obviously surprises and moves Zeno.

I don't really want to interpret Hak's thoughts and feelings here. It could be interpreted as him regretting doing things this way with Suwon before, or it could not... But the thing is, he is doing things differently. To be fair in chapter 2 Hak could only do what he could in an high risk and unexpected situation to avoid Yona being killed and then to escape together. But when facing a similar situation again he now has the conviction he wants to do things differently and that's the meaningful part that feels important to me here.

And that new conviction was already already seen with Suwon before.

Hak giving Suwon the senjusou in chapter 224 is already a parallel to many other Suwon/Hak scenes before, and I want to argue it's also a parallel to chapter 2. On the same shoulder Hak afflicted a wound in the past, he now rests and falls asleep in his act of trying to save Suwon and heal him. Like with Zeno, he's not treating Suwon as an enemy here, but like an old friend he wants to help. Suwon, the one person Hak has always be in extreme alert around since the coup, becomes a person Hak lets himself be vulnerable with and finally rests on. Actually, the parallel with chapter 2 hits even more when you realize that chapter 224 is the very first time Suwon and Hak have a physical contact ever since...chapter 2 and their swordfight.

On top of that, we know that Suwon remembers the very feeling of Hak on his shoulder so much he gets lost in thoughts about it before Minsu bursts his bubble in ch225. As Suwon also thinks to himself, "at that moment, I forgot the pain". A feeling so intense he feels no pain at all for a second, in contrast to an act that physically hurt him in chapter 2...I could go on like that for hours. In a way, Hak becomes a bandage on Suwon's symbolic scar. Suwon still carries the pain of discarding Yona and Hak for his goal, convinced he doesn't need nor deserve their help and support, yet longing for their presence by his side, and then here is Hak and he can feel his warmth. Also making a parallel between his freezing hands a few chapter earlier and the comforting warmth he feels from Hak. It's healing, as much if not more than the senjusou itself.

Suwon until now was in a way indulging in the pain of Hak hating him and trying to kill him, of Yona killing him one of these days. It's easy, it's to be expected, it's what he thinks he deserves, it's fate in a way. It hurts but he will accept it and endure, like his illness. Yet Yona and Hak actually both resisted against this fate and went against the tides.

So the events of this arc were totally unexpected for Suwon. It started to make him rely on them more, but it sadly didn't change Suwon's convinction that this is "not even", that he still deserves a punishment and to be in pain. Chapter 249 in many ways is when everything the characters tried to maintain until now breaks apart. Shinah losing against his powers, the ropes to tie him down tearing apart, the alliance between yona and suwon's sides seeming to break apart too... They couldn't hold it together against fate and the gods, even after getting over everything together as humans until now.

But as Suwon says himself in chapter 262 about his wound, it wasn't so much Shinah or the gods then but him. He offered himself up to Shinah. As if to erase the comfort of Hak on his shoulder, it's now replaced by a new wound on that very same shoulder. It's his punishment. He believes he doesn't deserve the former. He has to pay a price for Yona and Hak helping him despite betraying them, and using them for his goals even now, and he ends up finding that solace in the Heavens' intervention. They validate Suwon's most self destructive thoughts. These ideologies go hand in hand.

That Hak in chapter 262 questions Suwon about his wound, that Suwon tries to brush it off and endure the pain like he always does, and that Hak insists and makes him ask for help himself is extremely moving because of all of this of course. Suwon was the receiver until now. He received his wound by Hak, then he received the senjusou by Hak too, and Hak's warmth and protection. Then he received Shinah's attack, and he received Minsu and Yun's treatment etc... Suwon stays passive and in the expectation when it comes to his own body. Suwon doesn't hurt himself directly, he lets others do it for him. His own self guilt is a reality in many people around him. He's the object of most people's gaze, we see him a lot of time through how others view him and what they think of him. To Suwon, Shinah's furious gaze at him in the castle and then in ch249 are the symbol of this. So when he couldn't find and get this retribution from Hak or Yona directly anymore, here was Shinah in his monstrous dragon form. (Suwon not moving in ch249 is very similar to Suwon not moving in front of Hak in ch91 too).

This is where I finally arrive to Zeno. Zeno in opposition to Suwon very much hurts himself directly, he's the main perpretator of his own injuries. That's exactly why the idea that to be killed he has to be the receiver and have Yona do it for him is torture, I think. To me, this is the horror of his realization when he looks at his shoulder wound in chapter 256.

Even after coming to the realization that only Yona can kill him, he still says nothing to her and tries to make her kill him by his own hands. The cruel thing in the situation with Zeno is him realizing how little agency he has, even less than the little he thought he could possibly get. The way he interpreted the prophecy, made a plan on his own without telling his friends and causing the end of the dragons himself...it's all part of Zeno trying to have any sort of agency. But he doesn't. It's all the gods and Yona in this case.

Again it's ironic. Zeno who wants to die more than anyone else has to force it again and again for it to happen, whereas Suwon has it coming for him from every direction. Yet, neither are dying in the end. All they have is that open scar on their shoulder.

To be honest, I'm still not sure what it could symbolize for Zeno as Yona inflicted it to him on accident. But just like Suwon, it's an open wound. And just like Suwon, Zeno lives with the idea of "even" exchange. After all, his power activates only if he gets hurt. Unlike Yona who learns to protect others together while protecting and defending herself too, Zeno keeps hurting himself to protect others without hesitation. He and Yona share the same desperation over their powerlessness to protect the people suffering around them, but act on it differently. Zeno's power encourages him to do so, it ingrained in him that he should and has to suffer to use a power that shouldn't exist in the human world. Unlike Suwon who first acts in a certain way and then wait for the payback(retribution), Zeno gets hurt first then waits for the payback(sacrifice). I think that's why Zeno's shoulder wound actually come before his real betrayal to Yona, it works in a different logic than Suwon's. Being hurt by Yona isn't a consequence of betraying her, it's a condition.

And it fits very well with how Zeno did things to try to die: He made a sacrifice with the dragon warriors and then waited for the Gods to pay him back after he completed their supposed requirements. He naturally did things just like when he wants to use his power. First hurt yourself, sacrifice something, and then the Gods should give you what you want.

From experience he thought he had control here. He's used to it after all. But he soon had had to realize that he actually has no agency over this system at all and is not in a so much different position than the other dragon warriors. Neither in relation to his power nor the conditions for him to die.

Zeno ended up thinking that he deserved to be hurt as condition for his powers, just like the dragons can only get short lifespan for theirs, erasing in a way how none of them ever decided for things to function this way. He rationalized it when the truth is there is nothing rational about the God's rules and how they make decisions. The fact he gets so frustrated when the DDHHB stops him from hurting himself shows this well. He normalized it. The truth is the dragon warriors were always only exploited. He didn't actually want to hurt the dragons or to ask Yona to kill him, but he accepted and normalized that it was the only way for him to achieve his goal, even though it's this whole system that needs to change. Against this cruel reality, Zeno can only make himself numb to the pain and convince himself he's okay with all of this. That it's all logical and set in stones. That it's fate. Ah- just like Suwon.

I went a bit on a tangent and we're not talking much about the shoulder wounds themselves anymore, but as for everything with Suwon and Zeno, their differences are always two sides of the same coin that join together, if that makes sense. In the end, I see these mirroring wounds as the symbol of how they're objectified by the Heavens and how it's ingrained in them, literally on their body. Their bodies receive the mark of trying to get something themselves inside this system ruled by the Gods and the Heavens, this determination also symbolized by Yuhon and Hiryuu's swords.

For Suwon, it's the belief that if he makes the decision to judge others and hurt them for his goals, it's only logical and fair he will be judged in return, and that it's fine this way. If that's how things work and that's the system, he won't change it, he will just pragmatically exploit it to the best of its capacities and then accept the consequences too. Once he takes a place in it and holds the reins as a King, he believes that's just how things should be. He can't conceive there is value in fighting against it and trying to change it. And he loses all reason to do so once he kills Il and discards Yona and Hak. It's too late after all, he accepted to corrupt himself in this machine to get what he wishes for. That's his illusion of control. Suwon is responsible for his own choices, beliefs and actions, and he's extremely self aware of the consequences of his own choices: he will be judged, hated, attacked and killed someday in return gods or not.

But even if he chooses this path full aware, is that really empowering? Is accepting and letting it happen really give him control when deep down what he wants is to live and to not discard the people that he hurts? Suwon thinks that's just how it is, but who truly decided that and why can't it be changed? Is it really himself, or was it heavely influenced by his environment and the people around him?

I don't mean to say that Suwon is not responsible for anything because We Live In A Society(tm), though. That'd be even more disempowering than it is. Suwon's choices were undeniably influenced by his environment and the people around him but that's how it is for everyone, and I wouldn't want Suwon to regret what he did. That's his life, and he still accomplished and experienced many good things and they're all meaningful and his too. That's why I find this very good that he says he doesn't regret killing Il because that's something he chooses. It's not so black and white. What is harmful though, is the resignation in repeating this pattern despite how it hurts him, the idea that things are fine like this if he's hurt and punished in the end. That he's never allowed to be healed and loved and happy and refusing it when he gets anything good. How that doesn't leave any room for reparation, change and hope.

And painfully, both Suwon and Zeno were progressively forced to accept how little agency and choice they truly have and to adapt, submit, to the system of the Heavens despite taking a strong stance against them. In a way, in their very declaration of rebellion against the Heavens, they were already influenced by them, as it still exists, and they position themselves in relation to them. By trying to take back control and agency from the gods (which is more than fair like, they deserve this agency!) they still mold themselves in the gears of this system, they don't truly change it, they negociate with it. Suwon by leaving it alone in the hopes of it leaving him alone too, and Zeno by walking alongside it.

Whether it's Suwon carrying on Yuhon's sword and his legacy and striking down others for his goals even if he will never be allowed to live happily in consequence, or whether it's Zeno taking Hiryuu's sword to kill himself after bringing an end to the other dragons too, it's the same. It's still taking and being taken from. Giving and being given back. It dooms them, it's self-fulfilling prophecies.

That's why even after Suwon was forced to acknowledge that the Gods have more influence than he thought and he was saved by the dragon warriors and Yona, it still very compatible with his way of thinking and the path he always followed. Even if Yona and Hak won't punish him directly anymore, ch249 with Shinah attacking him shows that the Gods will. Even without it, Suwon was still resolved to return to war and die for it. Whether it's from Yuhon, from Il, or from the Gods it's not so different in the end. Like this, the Gods validates and reaffirms the very ideology personified by Yuhon that Yona and Hak were resisting against when they tried to help and save Suwon.

For Suwon and Zeno, resisting against the Gods is still equal with accepting using a weapon that gives them a similar form of power attached to a legacy. And even if they're different, they're bound by their laws and ideologies the same.

Zeno's case is still a bit unique because he started from a very different place. His journey started with him accepting the yellow dragon's blood and powers. Even if he was later ready to go against the Gods to have his wish realized, he was still very aware of the reality of their existence and power, and how they bind him and every dragon warrior. Because of this, Zeno always tried to still get some agency. His whole quest to find a way to die is a quest to cling to humanity and free will, to be more than an empty husk living forever, not caring about anyone or anything. Yet little by little, without him realizing, they still made him compromise more and more. When he tried to assemble the dragon warriors before Hiryuu was reborn, he had to face the truth that it cannot happen without Hiryuu. He had to wait for Yona. As Zeno says in chapter 208, even with eternal time it doesn't mean it makes things happen like he thinks at all, but by accepting passively all of it and going with the tides, he waits for the one chance he can finally act and end it all for good. But even then, when he made a whole plan around it to end things himself, without Hiryuu/Yona again, it failed. Because it has to be Yona. She is the one with the authority needed.

In a way, at the point Suwon and Zeno accept/try to die, it was maybe also them trying to bring an end themselves to these cycles of taking and giving and how it burdened Yona. After all, if Suwon dies not by Yona's hand, then there's nothing Yona will have to take from him directly and she will be innocent, there is no revenge anymore, Suwon will die from an "unrelated" cause and things will be "even". Suwon seems to feel guilt over "pushing" Yona to her limits and hurting her by her being forced to support him. Whether this is also influenced by the time Il told him he's unpleasant and Suwon fearing this might be true for Yona too, in the south kai arc this was definitely his vision of it. So when Yona is conflicted between her promise to Suwon and saving her friends in ch242, Suwon "frees" her from it and gives her the chance to leave and to never return again. He pushes her away, not burdening her with his own situation anymore. If she doesn't plan to return he will even give up on making her his successor. Again, he unconsciously repeats the same pattern of not involving Yona at all, separating her from the rest.

Zeno always felt like the dragon warriors were a burden to Hiryuu, a symbol of the Gods' overwhelming love to him, giving Hiryuu too much and pushing him to give back. If he dies, this will put an end to this as well. They saw their death as the ultimate solution, their life having become an uneedeed burden and source of potential conflict. But by trying to do so they both stripped Yona of what she really wants. I would say the conflict between them and her in this arc is exactly this tension between first trying to get Yona uninvolved and ending things themselves in their latest and most tragic attempt to have one crumb of agency against the Heavens and their obsessive love for Hiryuu, and then how this has repercussions on the human Yona in how that strips /her/ of her agency. Again, Yona is fatally a victim of the consequences of a battle that shouldn't involve her, yet very much does.

Despite this attempt and all their resistance against it, Suwon and Zeno are both made to depend on Yona/Hiryuu for their most important wish. These things were also due to their very human and personal relationships with Yona, and them feeling like they can trust and rely on her more should be a positive thing to be happy about, but it tragically aligns with the Heavens' agenda, so something about it feels fundamentally wrong. After all, Suwon is made to rely on Yona this way because of how the Crimson illness weakens him, and Zeno because that's his only hope to die. This is the tragedy of Yona's fate: everything was moving forward because of her growth and positive accomplishments as Yona and her efforts to gain her own agency, but her position and the authority she always owned as Hiryuu validated even more so all the Heavens' harmful ideology. Her will and actions can't be dissociated from the higher narrative with the prophecy and the Heavens. This against shows how the conflict between her identity as Yona and Hiryuu is the source of all the tensions in this arc and the core of the entire story.

Yona always wanted more power and agency, but here it disgusts her. She doesn't want to have to kill Zeno. She doesn't want Suwon to die and to have all his responsibilities as ruler be pushed on her. She doesn't want to stain her hands herself with those maybe, but I think it upsets her also because it is against the very things she was trying to achieve for both of them so far. Her promise to Suwon was to support him until the end of the war and then they would both go back to their separate life; her goal was to get all the four dragons back and then they'll be forever together, not this either. Suwon was the one person she wanted to regain a sense of agency with, yet in consequence it's stripped away from her again because his upcoming death doesn't leave him a better choice but to make her his successor; Zeno is the person Yona wants to help regain agency and justice on his own fate, yet is made to have the authority over Zeno's entire existence however she likes. Her and Hak were trying to break these cycles of even exchange but it is maintained with a firm grip by the Heavens, and it's then all placed on Yona.

But Yona never asked for all these irrational things. These developments are what progressively made her face that there is something insidious, deeper, that needs to be changed, triggering her decision to enter the chalice and face the Gods in chapter 261. Chapter 258 also suggests that Yona wants Suwon to still be there and she makes sure Hyoori is still here for this sake. I don't know what she thinks about the Suwon situation since the illness matter is not a thing for now, but at least it makes her stance clear : she is against this fate with both of them gone and against them leaving her behind without letting her have a say in any of this.

I deviated a bit from the wounds and swords topic again, but they're all things connected to Yona too after all. They exist in relation to Yona/Hiryuu. Suwon was hurt for being an "enemy" who hurt Yona first and Zeno can only be killed by her. After all this, Yona, Hak, Suwon and Zeno all had to let go of their weapons. Yona threw Hiryuu's sword away when the Gods imposed it to her to kill Zeno in chapter 264, Hak refuses to use a weapon on Zeno like he did on Suwon when he caused his shoulder wound in chapter 2, Suwon leaves Yuhon's sword in chapter 262 as a symbol of him leaving this legacy behind to try another, different path for the very first time. But what of Hiryuu's sword now?

I wrote 90% of this before chapter 269, so the truth is now I have even more things to add because of it, except this post is already so long I'm embarassed. Maybe someday I'll add a part with developments of chapter 269. That being said what I mean with all that (that I'm afraid makes no sense and it's totally disorganized), is that their wounds and stories are connected in how whether they're related to Yona personally or her as Hiryuu, it's intertwined and the result of the same harmful ideology based on punishment and sacrifice. However, there is hope. Because Yona and Hak learned and then kept resisting against those things. They're still all struggling against the authority of the Heavens right now and there are still the issues surrounding Yona/Hiryuu's identity, but with their efforts they at least prevented these wounds from being a symbol of Suwon and Zeno's capital punishment and now they're still living to face the Gods another way. Suwon is still ill and Zeno is still immortal, but they're going beyond already, they're not submitting to legacies harming them anymore. All these parallels have an infinity of layers to them and they add so much to the story right now, but I think were truly all for what is happening now, and far more than simply being cool parallels for the sake of it. They have meaning.

Also I'm not sure if writing this under my own fanart is a good move, I feel a bit selfconscious so just to make it clear I very honestly didn't think about all that at all when I drew it. I went with the vibes and it's only afterwards that I started to try to organize my thoughts so hmm...please keep enjoying the fanart as it is :)

The price for our ambitions

[otaku553]

Procrastination doodles of sabo for the king sabo au :)

[sepublic]

            Really, these other portraits in the Collector’s archives intrigue me. It’s a fun parallel to Belos’ mindscape because these two are the main antagonists of the show and represent a parallel and an opposite to Luz respectively, but seriously…

            Do they mean anything? It could just be general aesthetic. But we see the repeated imagery of the same design of star falling to the Demon Realm, as seen when the Titan Trapper giant faces off against a Titan. We also see the Moon, Sun, and a meteor(?) with faces on them, more or less.

            Are these each supposed to be the three Archivists? Why did one portrait portray four, was it just a bit of discrepancy between the background designers and the writers? We have blue, yellow, and orange stars. The four Archivists are a blue moon, a yellow star, an orange planet, and a red star; I suspect one of these stars is meant to be the sun. And it seems that some of these portraits depict these celestial bodies, with the others in the background; The purple meteor as the moon, the moon has yellow stars, we can see the moon in the background of this orange comet?

            Are the Archivists just celestial bodies, given life? Is the Demon Realm Moon’s “face” meant to indicate something? Are Archivists born when some celestial bodies reach a certain level of power or life? At least one Archivist is shown to be composed of this viscous dark matter that can entangle prey, almost resembling the void of space, plus there’s Matthieu Cousin’s Bloblector concept art.

            What if this dark matter touches celestial bodies, and infuses in them a new being known as an Archivist? And their archiving is just a reflection of their primordial, all-consuming nature; Do they defy the entrophy this dark matter represents, or just embody it? Perhaps both.

            And what does the alignment of the planets mean? Are these the circumstances in which all the celestial bodies, aligned, lead to a new Archivist? The portrait of the Collector with the four Archivists intrigues me; There’s another colored star of the same shape elsewhere. But the framing of the yellow shape, alongside the other tassels of the Archivists… It almost seems as if this is their offer to the Collector to be one of them, to take that little symbol and add it to their hat. Is archiving a world a rite of passage for them? Did they create each other, who was the eldest?

            The Demon Realm has a sun, a skull-faced moon, and there was the Wailing Star that could bring stories to life, which feels very Collector-themed, and really it’s the opposite of what the Archivists do; They turn real things into stories, while the Wailing Star turns stories into real things. I remember some making connections back in the day, even OCs based on the Wailing Star as another Collector… Could it legitimately have a connection? Even its depiction in the poster seems infantile; Like a baby freshly born, or ready to be.

            Could the Wailing Star be what Archivists come from, or another example of what they come from? And they simply learned how to reverse their power, just as I speculated that the Draining Spell is just a reversed Moonlight Conjuring? The Collector taught it to Belos, after all…

            Maybe the aligned planets are worlds the Archivists archived and/or razed. If King will eventually spawn other Titans, will the Collector spawn other Archivists, and/or adopt the Wailing Star as an older brother, after having his own older sibling to inspire him? If all celestial bodies have magic, it makes sense that it’s another source for witches to make use of with the Moonlight Conjuring.

            Could the Titans cancel out Archivist magic because they’re grounded with planets instead? Even the stars, some of them at least, are implied to be light orbs that the Titan cast into the sky, given the glyph can be seen among them. And that mysterious symbol that hides people from the Archivists’ sight, would it not be a fifth glyph? One devised specifically to fight off a genocide…

[rosescries]

Excuse me while I scream a bit about The Rehabilitation of Death by @bamsara for a bit, about something I think I picked up but haven't been able to put into words. Some of it they've clearly talked about before, and the rest I may be completely wrong about.

Maybe this is some of my interpretation of the Lamb and Narinder, but Bam's influenced a lot of that for me when they dragged me kicking and screaming into this fandom, but shh!

They've talked about love between Narinder and Lamb before. Their devotion to and respect for each other, and just how much they care for each other. I think Trod Bad End says a lot about that. With how Narinder is ready to burn the world down just to bring the Lamb back, and I'm sure the Lamb shares some of, if not all, the same feelings.

But their love has claws and teeth, I think it hurts them just as much as it uplifts them. It's blooded and a gaping wound, aching and there's nothing they can really do about it. Not that they'd probably be willing to do anything about it. And I think some of that hurt is just caused by their grief.

Narinder's already been betrayed by his siblings, siblings which he did love. Dearly, in fact, and still does no matter how much he denies it and how angry he is. He would've killed them, if not for the Lamb, but he's still keeping them. Hurting them, but they're in his reach. He's not letting them go, keeping them close and alive in some way. I don't think he could kill them for real, or would be happy if he did. They loved him too, I'm sure. As proven by Shamura sending him gifts and the offerings left on his alter. There is love lost here, whether Narinder or any of the Bishops are willing to admit it or not.

He loves the Lamb just as much, which is why the betrayal hurt so much. I think he's lashing out at the Lamb just like he did with his siblings. A fresh wound left to fester ripped open all over again. It hurts, and makes it seem like everyone in his life is eventually going to turn around and stab him in the back. He lost his family, and it seems like he's loosing the one he loves too. Even if it's not true, that's probably how it seems.

And the Lamb is the last of their kind. There's no one else like them anymore, their loved ones are gone. They lost their family, and isn't even really able to grieve them before they're sent on this mission to kill their tormentors. But that does give them an outlet, something to quell the rage for a little bit at least. And a bit motivator after a while. Along with a new family.

The Lamb loves Narinder, there's no real question about that. But their love asks them to kneel and sacrifice themselves to him, and they can't. They can't do that. They don't know what Narinder had planned for them, they couldn't have known. But the person they love is asking for something the Lamb just can't give him. They love him, but this isn't something they can bend on.

I'm running out of words and I don't know how to put my thoughts on Lambert down. But I think they parallel Narinder in a certain way, and grief is some kind of motivator for both of them. I hope I made some kind of sense here, and may just be reiterating something that is glaringly clear or talking out of my ass.

Anyway, if you haven't read Trod, go read it right now. It's really good.

[theroundbartable]

(sending hugs)

what are your thoughts about aithusa? personally i love her way to much, but she rarely comes up in fandom discourse

HEY :D Thoughts about AIthusa, huh? I have many of those. Thoughts, I mean. In my brain. They like to swim around and create a whole mess of things sometimes.

I think the reason why Aithusa doesn't come up in fandom discourse often is because there isn't very much to say. Aithusa was born, then color coded as a sign for the golden future of Camelot and was then abandoned by Merlin. Tortured by a crazy guy. Then raised by Morgana and used to create the sword that later killed Arthur. Whenever they come up in fandom discouse, it's mostly about Merlin doing his job as Dragon Lord right or wrong. But you wanted my thoughts, so I'm gonna allow my head to spin weird shit around the ungendered Dragon. (That is why I will use they/them pronouns for Aithusa.) When it comes to Aithusa's name, not the canon translation, I mean what it literally means, it's hard to find, since they used old English for the language of magic, and I think Greek for the language of the Dragon Lords (which doesn't necessarily have to apply to the Dragon names) and I haven't seen anyone make a post about it. All I get from Google translate is "Hey you" in Gaelic and that's a bit useless. Or well, this:

The automatic language recognition in Google would let me interpret Aithusa as a gift to the world. Or Arthur, depending on your shipping interests. Or, you know, if I could make up the Old English maybe pseudo-parts of the word (the writers were very lazy in BBC Merlin, they are literally quoting Beowulf when Merlin magics the blue ball in the poisoned chalice.). Something fitting I found in my old English dictionary is agan, meaning to possess, and to own, and thus (spelled with a thorn which my keyboard doesn't have) meaning as follows. So, in my absolutely amateurish and interpretational, and way too far reaching ways, I would say Aithusa could mean: A(gan) thus (a): To own the future.

(Again, you asked for my thoughts, this is not canon and probably pointless, I just needed to go down this route first.)

In the fandom wiki, we find THESE informations on Aithusa.

So, things we do know are very few

Aithusa is a baby

Aithusa was tortured and is therefore crippled

Aithusa cannot talk

Aithusa probably has Stockholm Syndrom because of Morgana

But you know, I think it's very interesting to know that Aithusa is the Light of the Sun, the literal sign for a Golden Future and that very sign can be hurt by a mere human. Not only does this mean that humans can kill Dragons (the Dragon lore doesn't make any sense, I swear to god) but it's also meant to be symbolism. Merlin, just like Arthur, is shown to be his own doom through Aithusa. They are hidden, tortured, kept from living their truth, abandoned by everyone who should be leading and protecting them.

With Aithusa being born it means that at that point, Merlin had already fulfilled his destiny. At this point in time, the golden age is already there and it should have been a sign for Merlin to speak up about his magic. He never did, that's why Aithusa remains mute. And just like magic itself, when harmed or in danger, Aithusa can easily be used for evil.

Apart from the symbolism and their part in Arthur's death, Aithusa doesn't contribute much to the story, I think. Yes, they console Morgana and they are like the continuation of the Dragon lineage, but that's ultimately pointless. Aithusa will be, inevitably, be the last Dragon. Which is honestly really cruel, but again, parallel to Merlin himself. That's where Aithusa's arc ends, unfortuntaley. Personally, knowing all that, I find Aithusa hard to use as the character they are in canon. With what little defines their character, you have to ultimately change everything about them to use them in fun fics and comics and stuff. That's why they end up as a little dog creature so often.

Don't get me wrong, I love Aithusa. But I love FANON Aithusa, just like I prefer fanon Sir Leon over canon Sir Leon. Because fanon Aithusa is like a domesticated chicken that Merlin keeps in his rooms or fights custody over with Morgana while Arthur is either oblivious, supportive, or being gaslit. But maybe I am overlooking a lot of things. So, if any of you like to disagree or add anything to my points, feel free to engage ^^

[verdantlights]

YOUR TILL ART IS FRIKIN AMAZING!? HOW DID YOU GET THE POSING SO ON POINT, THE ANGLE OF THE FACE, THE TEEEEETH

Amazing

I'm also here to ramble about something arguably meta oops

What if Mizi's hair is a connection for Ivan and Till? This isn't just Ivantill narrative, but rather, her role in their lives!

We see several arts of Till holding the strand of Mizi's long hair, and the new Vivinos instagram image has Ivan brush a similar strand of hair over his lips/nose.

But in one of the alnst Friday arts, we see Ivan practicing/copying Till's guitar notes in the air while Mizi is sleeping on him. Her hair notably is splayed out, but Ivan isn't touching it.

Before I make the connections, let's also look at WHEN Mizi's hair gets shorter.

That happens in All-In, during the infiltration mission into Alnst, right before Round 6.

Now! With all the pieces set, here's the theory:

Mizi's hair signifies life itself. In round 1, her hair was tinted blue at the tips, almost eerily similar to Luka's fingers. In round 1, Sua sacrificed herself for Mizi.

Her hair remains tinted blue at the edges in Round 5, when she comes dangerously close to death herself, since she's at the whims of Luka there.

To note: Her hair had no blue tips during her time in Anakt Garden, from what I've noticed.

Till is notable holding onto Mizi's hair, like his red string of fate and yet hope too. It's his will to live. He grasps onto it the way he had idolized Mizi in part, yet he would never do that if she's next to him (see the flashback in FINAL).

How is Ivan involved in all this? I feel that Mizi's hair shows us memories of both Ivan and Till (I hope this will make sense, trying to explain the connection my art brain already did is hard).

Since Mizi's hair was cut in All-In, the link has been broken. Till will now no longer have anything left to hold onto, because the hair is no longer connected to Mizi. We see his resignation in Round 6.

And just the way Ivan was like a best friend to Mizi, and the way he was always more than willing to tease Till and her through his own ways (see the "What does this mean" comic with the whispering in ears and all), the connection to Ivan that connected the three is also broken. Ivan was more of a stand-byer and protector even to Mizi, never too close and never too far, hence the "Mizi sleeps on him while he copies Tills guitar practice".

In round 6, Ivan sacrifices himself for Till. Till is left pulling at strands, literally, because the hair he held onto is connected to nothing.

In round 7, Mizi and Till try to reunite, but the connection was already broken. Till was still pulling at strands, and when he reached the end of them... There was nothing.

Till looses round 7, and Mizi is left to watch.

Both her friends, maybe everyone she knew, was doomed, metaphorically, because she has moved onto a different life.

The short hair is, in the narrative of All-In, meant to represent change, moving forward from the past. This is why it's significant that she had her hair cut off, the hair that held memories of Sua... And her friends. By removing her grief, even if briefly, Mizi as a character has moved on from her past.

This is also meant to represent why you shouldn't dwell on the past. Again, this isn't intentional on Mizi's part, and she's allowed to move on, but now, her past will destroy her.

It's a very interesting deconstruction of grief, and I know a story that represents this just as impactfully! But yes, Vivimeng's work is a deconstruction as it is for the idol industry, and one moment even for AI (only briefly in FINAL, I could go into that if anyone's interested 😭), so I thought these parallels were more than coincidence 😅

now sorry this took me so long to respond to, it was a bit daunting seeing a whole analysis in my inbox, but rereading it just now reminded me that... sua was braiding mizis hair in the new comic. tills comic with Io.

its as if they all clung to mizi and that yeah, her hair was a representation of life itself. its a really interesting view on grief and how its applied in alien stage.

also thank you, and im glad you liked my till usseewa so much!! it was heavily referenced from the original, but i changed a lot and redid the background so that it wouldnt look weird. i just think a song about going against an oppressive controlling system is very tillcore... yaknow?? hehehehe

[bibibbon]

I don't know what I felt about Bakugo, like I see that I don't really hate him, I just find him annoying at times, there are times when I agree that there are times when the hate he receives is a bit exaggerated, like when you relate him to Endeavor, like you're relating him to someone who committed human trafficking. Like I think he has potential, but first he should face the consequences and then maybe he could start to improve as a person. I even like to see him being a good friend to Izuku, but I don't know. What do you think about the hate that Bakugou receives from a part of the fandom?

I can see where you're coming from, but honestly, it doesn't seem harsh to me to compare bakugo and enji depending on the circumstances.

Yes, bakugo and enji share characteristics. Whether those are good or bad is up to the reader to interpert.

I say this because when Canon points out the similarities between enji and bakugo, it paints it out as a good thing, so having people twist it around and interpret it in a different manner makes complete sense to me (as I have done it before).

However, I personally haven't said that bakugo did do the same things as enji or is just as bad as enji. I also haven't seen multiple posts say that as well. Most of the posts that talk about bakugo and enji point out the fact that if bakugo continues down the path he is going, he will end up like enji desperate to win and ultimately throw his life away.

I make my opinion clear on one of my other posts, and the asker themselves also acknowledges that it's people LIKE bakugo and enji that are shown to create abusive and rather fuel societies corruptions (in the end they are alone effected by it)

Yes, in the end, bakugo hasn't reached enji's level, and he has the chance to have a proper redemption arc, but Canon never gives him that. He has potential, yet it's never achieved.

The bakugo and enji comparisons are in a way crucial to bakugo's character to truly paint him as who he is, and then having bakugo and enji become contrasts would ultimately show bakugo's change, breaking the cycle and trying to become a better person. I think ignoring and trying not to point out these parallels within the series does more harm than good (as shown in Canon).

We share similar views when it comes to bakugo. I think that if he was written well and actually got proper consequences, he could have gone down a slow but steady road of redemption where he changes and becomes a better version of himself. I have talked about the wasted potential of bakugo 👇 and I still stand by these ideas. I just don't like the execution of his redemption arc in Canon at all

To answer your question, tumblr is literally the only site I actually see bakugo hate and criticism, which, to me, says a lot. Bakugo hate isn't something huge in other platforms such as Twitter, reddit, or tiktok maybe it is but honestly iam not exposed to bakugo hate it's mostly bakugo die hard stans I see which can get annoying sometimes as they deny certain things their favourite character has done.

While it is few, I have seen times in tumblr where I think the bakugo hate just got petty. This is usually when you have people misspell bakugo's name as "bakuhoe" or some other cringey variation, which ruins the point that the person had to say about bakugo. I think that wishing the character would die can also be a bit extreme (yet bakugo isn't a living, breathing human, so i dont find myself caring about such hate)

In the end, it is a vocal minority specifically seen here on tumblr that hates bakugo or actively points out his flaws, which is a shame because I think he is quite overrated and just has wasted potential.

[yuseirra]

(Final speculation before 163 comes up) Could the story really wrap up within 4 episodes if Kamiki isn’t a god?

I don’t think so;; There are too many things that can be explained with this way but make no sense if it's not. I'm serious. This must be it. This CAN explain EVERYTHING about that particular character quite smoothly!! To the extent it almost can't be otherwise!

Ahh I jotted this down on the spot (used machine translate.. Sorry if the phrasings are a bit off because if it) please, take this into consideration yeah I can be SO off, already proven off but?? This though just keeps coming to me.

I’ve made a lot of guesses about gods, haven’t I? But no one really seems to take it so seriously.

But didn’t they mention there are “gods” who don’t know they’re gods in the piece itself? Why bring that up? They’re going to use it, right? After hearing the lyrics of *Fatal*, I started to seriously think that Ruby and Kamiki actually have some kind of divine power.

For Kamiki… everything he’s done makes way more sense if we consider him to be the earthly god Sarutahiko Okami. It's just impossible for him to just be a regular person with this little time left in the story but if you take him as a reincarnation of that particular god that's started to reawaken his divinity, everything starts to click!!!

Sarutahiko is considered a "noble" god,

And the way he met Ai is really similar to how he met his wife, Ame-no-Uzume, leading to their marriage (his wife came to his domain as part of a mission, and he led the way, they developed feelings and connected—this parallels how Ai came to meet Kamiki while pursuing acting, with him having guided her. The descendants of the god Sarutahiko bear the name that means "woman who dances well" That's like Ruby). They fell in love immediately, just like Ai seems to have taken a liking to him from the moment she saw him. Ame-no-Uzume approached him first and the relationship blossomed from there.

Sarutahiko is also a god of light (Hikaru has “light” in his name, and “Kamiki” relates to gods).

He governs land (isn’t it strange how people keep dying in the mountains?).

That shrine in Miyazaki where the main cast went to, Aratate Shrine, is dedicated to Sarutahiko and his wife, but they didn’t mention Sarutahiko explicitly. Together, these gods bless the entertainment world and grant people’s wishes. Remember when Ruby and Kamiki met and that whole talk about gods and wishes? He listened to what she really wished for, and Kamiki also congratulated Aqua, saying his wish was fulfilled. All the wishes that were mentioned there, indeed, did come true. In *Mephisto*, the line “I forgot who I lived as” refers to Kamiki, I'm sure of it. He’s a god who didn’t realize it but is now somewhat aware and using his power.

Aqua tried to drown him. Sarutahiko governs the earth, so it makes sense that Aqua, who’s aligned with Susanoo (the sea god), would have an advantage over him in water. That’s why he could kill him that way.

Sarutahiko is also the “guiding god.” He leads people toward good futures, that's what he is supposed to do. So, if Aqua says, “I have to stop you from ruining Ruby’s future,” it makes sense that Kamiki, as Sarutahiko’s reincarnation, might actually have the power to affect her future.

In *Mephisto* and *Fatal*, there’s a narrator desperately longing for a “star,” with Ai being compared to a star and Kamiki to a gem. Gems are from the earth, and Sarutahiko is an earth god (Kunitsukami), while his wife Ame-no-Uzume belongs to the celestial gods (Amatsukami). This all fits perfectly, doesn’t it? Kamiki wanted to reach Ai, and as the songs imply, he tried to gather "light" (the star eyes) as a means to do so. He couldn't get to her by his own powers because he doesn't originate from the skies the way she does, perhaps that could be why he needed the "stars" in order to "fill in what's missing" as mentioned in Fatal! As he originally blessed the entertainment world. Maybe he’s been going around finding people with star eyes to reclaim his blessings.

Actually, if we follow the mythology, Ruby is the one connected to Kamiki out of the twins. Sarutahiko’s essence is solar, and Amaterasu, who corresponds to Ruby, took over his place in the native religion. But even though Sarutahiko gave up his place, (getting married with Ame-no-Uzume in the process.. He did get a beautiful wife out of it all), he’s still honored as a powerful god with the title Okami. His story is more closely tied to Amaterasu and Ame-no-Uzume than to Susanoo. The three of them weren’t on bad terms either. Sarutahiko ended up working with his wife for Amaterasu. So when Kamiki treated Ruby with kindness, maybe it was because they share a deep connection. To add, since they overlap in their domains, so perhaps Kamiki posed a threat to her because of that.

Sarutahiko was said to have a strong, loving relationship with his wife. When they blessed people, they did it together, even offering marriage blessings. The song Mephisto and Fatal just scream that the speaker cannot bear to go on without their loved one and they'd give their life away if only they could be back. I feel that's how Sarutahiko would feel if he lost Ame-no-Uzume, they seemed so loving towards each other to me.

Kamiki’s character really seems to make sense if you consider him a god. There are so many things that would instantly click into place. But if he’s not a god, I honestly have no idea who he is. Everything about him points to that conclusion. Both he and Ai were gods. It makes sense then, that it's Ruby and Kamiki who could say that Ai was just a regular person. Because they think they really are just normal people and wish to be taken that way the way Ai is. They're the ones who can talk from those same shoes.

In reality, they were gods who wanted to live as humans and chose to live as such. Kamiki constantly says that he and Ai were the same, and that they could have overcome anything together. That’s probably because, as gods, they were each other’s counterparts, worshiped together at shrines. That's not just him being clingy, it REALLY was how things were. They were drawn to each other, unconsciously recognizing their similarities, and reunited as humans.

But after Ai’s death, Kamiki was fully corrupted, leading to his downfall.

Honestly, I can’t interpret it any other way anymore. If not this, then I really don’t know who Kamiki is. Too many unnatural things have happened surrounding him, and when you piece together the songs, it becomes clear: he’s a fallen god who lost someone precious and was consumed by darkness. This darkness probably didn’t originate from him; something external caused his fall. Even the scene where his eyes change—like paint dripping from outside—suggests that something seeped in from the outside.

In the anime, Kamiki’s eye color is lighter and more washed-out compared to Ai’s vibrant purple. It really seems like his original eye color was different and was later tainted. He might have been a god of light with orange or yellow eyes. His children’s eye colors might have split because of his original bright color.

Ai, as Ame-no-Uzume, is a goddess of entertainment and the dawn. Her colors align with this. Even if her personality was a façade, she shares a lot of traits with Ame-no-Uzume. If she had grown up without trauma, she might have truly been like her. The “morning/first star(in IDOL's lyric)” refers to the brightest star at dawn. If Ai is Ame-no-Uzume, and Kamiki is her husband, then their relationship with Ruby fits perfectly too. Even in the novel, Ai said she might become a god with her own religion.

I think this should be it. If not, nothing else would make sense. With only 4 episodes left, they’ll likely use this storyline to tie everything up. Otherwise, they’d need a lot more episodes. But since there’s an overarching mythology at play, I think they’ll be able to compress the narrative. No one could deny that these gods loved each other, and because Kamiki is falling into corruption, it'd make sense for there to be divine intervention- the resurrection of the twins. Ai wanted to experience true love, and she did find her match as Kamiki. She wouldn’t have found anyone better because they are meant to be. She wanted to save him from the depravity of the entertainment world.

I wanted to write this down since there won’t be many more chances to talk about these theories.

I’ve been thinking this since *Fatal* came out in July. The more I watch, the more these ideas seem to fit perfectly. The thought only strengthened;; Kamiki and Ai are probably incarnations of gods. The entire Hoshino family is likely divine.

[saltyb0ba]

im soooo normal about ezran callum sibling relationship

the little kid who had to grow up too fast, leaving stolen jelly tarts behind for clean hands on the throne and the big kid who never got a chance to play house with his younger brother before worries took the place of imagination. the kid king who seems to be handling things well, but no longer laughs at jokes with his kind of humor, and would rather get to the point than have a bit of fun with finding out the answer.

ezran luckily has a strong support system and a brother that will be there for him no matter what, putting himself in danger just to ensure ezran's safety. he's bonded with zym on a psychic and emotional level, and can talk to animals with relative ease. making the burden of the crown just a bit lighter. he knows he has people he can reach out to and lean on, and takes advantage of that when the offer is handed to him. growing up hurts, but with loved ones surrounding him, it was okay. as okay as it could be.

callum is his own support system. soren's called him step-prince for as long as he could remember, and though it was never explicitly shown, it's not hard to infer the amount of damage that can inflict on someone's mind. he already was second in line to the throne despite being the older sibling, and to just have it drilled in your head again and again that someone doesn't want you there just hurts. and it forms an unhealthy mindset that sticks with him for a while.

soren's insisted that it was a joke, but it's not wrong for callum to take it personally. especially with how many times soren's repeated it. claudia lost his respect a long time ago. callum isn't really shown to have the same amount of familiarity with the royal court as ezran does, and his office is a bit isolated from the rest of the castle. it isn't where he sleeps (though sometimes falls asleep in), but even in his own quarters he's separated from ezran. that bed's either filled by rayla or just empty moonlight at this point.

callum's always taken his own path whereas ezran followed in his father's footsteps.

that's naturally led to callum exploring a new future alone (or at least, with minimal support) vs ezran having the entire castle staff to rely upon with centuries' worth of experience in handling the rule of a king.

and proven in the series, it's caused ezran to detach from callum a bit himself. how he thought callum's upset post-possession was about rayla and not the literal puppeting that had been going on. he was never able to see through his brother the way callum could see through ezran and that's likely intentional.

bait and zym are also like parallels to their relationship in a sense; ezran had accidentally batted bait away in his sleep and bait left, upset and a little angry -- until callum saw him and invited him to hang out with him. they don't have a connection like ezran and zym have (unless you wanna get super meta, since bait's sounds are made by jack desena), but they understand each other just as much as the king and dragon prince do. before that happened, however, bait was very clingy with ezran. see the connection?

they haven't abandoned each other, far from it. they've gotten more aggressive in their love, especially with the stakes raising and callum extremely prone to becoming a weapon. ezran would prefer to talk things out, though something tells me aaravos would rather have fun with his toys instead of discussing things. maybe the way they show brotherly love is different now, but callum knows what sacrifice he would have to make to protect his family, his brother. ezran doesn't want to lose callum, and is determined to find a solution that doesn't involve the loss of his brother. his only brother.

thank you for coming to my ted talk this was a massive brain dump that i just needed to get out haha! i'm a sucker for sibling relationships and theirs draws me in like no other.

[atopvisenyashill]

Ok, so, there's a lot of pushback in this fandom against Northern and Dornish independence. And a lot of the time, people go the "But what about unity!" route. I was curious as to what you think of that? Because that kind of reaction seems, to me, like people are ignoring the fact that it's possible for people to stand united without being directly ruled over by each other. Maybe it's a lack of imagination or a straight up refusal to look at things from a different - perhaps foreign - angle, I don't know, but people can get really stubborn and holier-than-thou about this whole thing.

Well I would definitely say I'm up in the air about it happening or not but I agree I think people ignore that they could have an alliance that more or less continues to stand strong without being under one crown. First of all, like, this is fictional history, and I think if he just wants to handwave a bit so they stay friendly but under different crowns, that's like, fine. And secondly, I mean I guess maybe this is a more modern take, but I was picturing like an EU situation where there are different crowns with slightly different laws but all ultimately very aligned and in tune with each other. I think that's not out of the realm of possibility considering The Bran Hivemind Of It All - makes for long distance communication made easy.

And anyways, I think people often imagine that they'll break up into the petty kingdoms but that's not it at all. For my own theorizing, I think there would be two (and a half) major differences in a post game break up and the pre series petty kingdoms.

They'll split up into less kingdoms

They'll properly work out alliances amongst each other to keep peace (rather than, again, the petty alliances of before)

Potential geographic changes

Let's go to a map. Basically I think it'll be three (ish) kingdoms-

The pink line is around where the Dornish border would be. This is why I suggested Bran marrying someone of Dornish heritage - it's a way to get Dorne into the middle kingdom, a sort of opening so that the Marches don't get too violent again. Then you have that yellow section - I've talked about this before a little bit but basically I think the Neck is going to be flooded like the arm of dorne was. So the same way the Arm of Dorne was "broken" the Others are going to "Break the Neck" and flood most of it - and just like the disputed lands distance themselves from everyone because of that new geographic barrier, I think it's not unlikely that the North will want their own kingdom because of that (and all the other reasons).

But note all that in the middle kingdom? I think that's going to stay together. The geographic barriers aren't really big enough or as difficult to traverse there - the riverlands has no real geographic barriers for one thing, and the hills and mountains that separate the Reach from the Westerlands have never been particularly difficult to cross either - Robb does it during a war.

I think people tend to feel like any sort of breakup goes against the themes but I don't know about that. I know people picture like, nationalistic movements like the quebec thing or confederacy esque stuff, and certainly I'm not advocating for balkanization here. Rather just like, borders that make a little more sense when you factor in the cultures and geography and the day to day use of the land by the people living there. And I think all the parallels between the North and Dorne are here for several reasons but when you think of the way neither was ever truly conquered, both experience some level of prejudicial behavior from the mostly Andal + Faith worshipping middle kingdoms, both have a Main Character Heiress who is clearly getting ready to start moving and shaking politically, the Lyanna/Elia parallels, and in general the parallels between the RR era Martells and Starks, I think that maybe this means both of them are going to push for their own crowns but will be willing to talk about caveats to that independence because they have at last seen the similarities that exist between their peoples. But again, I'm not totally firm on this - I honestly think it's a toss up right now.

[bunnakit]

my stand in ep 2 thoughts, feelings, etc.

alright i wanted to write this up nicely but it took me... two hours to get through the episode bc i kept stopping to write notes, so i'll do my best i guess.

weird thing about me is when i watch shows and write notes for these posts i always write the notes on napkins? i have like 5 different notebooks in arms reach at all times but i really like scribbling on a napkin for the true unhinged effect.

anyway blah blah reminder i'm just a silly dude on the internet, idk shit about dick, i just like to say shit, don't take me too seriously.

also please DO NOT leave novel spoilers in my reblogs, tags, or replies without some kind of warning label. please? it seems to happen with every show i write meta for and i LOVE that people get hyped but there's no way for me to avoid it when it's in my notifications like that.

some before the actual episode stuff; after learning last week that some of the kinnporsche people worked on this it really becomes apparent, especially in the style of the intro.

the music choices also seem a bit reminiscent of kinnporsche (and a little bit of not me) which i really enjoy. it feels kind of familiar and comforting.

immediately i loved how soft this episode started, the slight stubble on each of them, the way joe speaks so softly as if afraid to shatter their little bubble of peace, etc. i also love that the show doesn't skirt around the topic of sex and the fact that sometimes sex is awkward and clumsy, especially with a new partner and doubly so when it's your first queer partner.

and then the peace was shattered with ming kissing his back yet again. ouchies.

"will tong be at the set?" he's just not even trying to hide it. he basically said 'yeah ur great and all but tong????' but DAMN if poom isn't the absolute king of microexpressions.

at this point i can't really tell if tong is being a spoiled prince (derogatory) or if he's tired of acting in general? judgement withheld until a later date.

and then we jump into this actress being a parallel to ming and OOF OUCHIES MY ORGANS. she's a fan of tong but has to "settle" for joe - just like ming. and yet joe takes the time to be kind, to soothe her worries and put her at ease, because he has a heart of absolute gold. "it's her first movie but she was left to drown by the male lead." it's ming's first love and he has been left to drown in it.

mek's acting is really endearing. this is my first exposure to him (ive seen some of his social media and really like what he stands for as a person) and i'm instantly drawn to his performance. he also pulls off a great balance of adorable/sexy.

OOH THE SHOW SAID BISEXUAL OUT LOUD. A WIN FOR THE BI'S WE LOVE TO SEE IT.

i personally find ming's jealously hilarious. what a little caricature of toxicity.

anyway, it seems to me that if ming could get over his feelings and enjoy what he has in front of him he could be part of and enjoy a very sweet family, as it does seem tong IS giving him love, just not the exact flavor he craves.

the cut to joe's training made me laugh. little oat lore dump but my bio dad was actually a stunt man for movies (which is another part of why i was so excited for this show) and i can promise you nothing like this was part of it. what do i know, though, maybe things have changed since the early 2000s lol.

(no, they're probably not any movies you know, aside from maybe wild wild west [1999]. he mostly did westerns, historical docudramas, and historical fiction.)

ANYWAY AGAIN. with this little glimpse into ming's home life we get to see that he's very accustomed to doing what he wants and getting what he wants, which makes a lot of sense when applied to his almost obsessive behavior regarding tong - and now joe. i did absolutely LOVE linin and her sassy independence (minus the 'i can buy anything i need'.)

but... girl... did you just spray perfume in your mouth?

your actions are strange and unsettling. i like that in a woman.

ugh getting into ming venting his frustrations on joe's body. listen. liiiisten. while toxic without prior discussion... i'm into it. it may or may not be one of my favorite tropes in fanfic. toxic and unhealthy as fuck and i'm here for it.

AND THEN DAMN POOM THOSE NOISES. ACTING FOR YOUR LIFE BBY -- and the SNEEZE AT ORGASM LMAAAO oh i hope that's a running bit for some comedic relief.

because we then make a SHARP pivot into "then stop me" and there's so much potential for pain and self loathing there, for joe to think "i can't blame ming, i didn't stop any of it." i'm sat.

a little side bar, but i'm enjoying the fact that while there is discussion of topping and bottoming as a narrative device there really aren't any stereotypes here. i think on a surface level people would think "oh joe is the top" (pit babe style) and the show said no actually he isn't. love that for us.

"you can even move in haha jk" but the thing is, not jk, because joe would do that for ming - for anyone - bc that's the type of person he is.

[i had to stop and have a lil snack here]

hold up is this wut out drinking with them? OH SHIT IT IS. OKAY. it didn't give us much but at least it's a little connection to him finally. we knew joe knew him from his first life, just didn't really know how.

"i missed you" and when was the last time someone missed joe? not who he's replacing or the space he's filling, but HIM?

love ming's goofy ass locking the door and going inside just so he can make a dramatic ass appearance like he's 'the other woman' or some shit LMAO.

"what's in you to make me jealous?" quite possibly the worst dialogue tree choice ming could've picked.

[joe's emotional well being -45]

[everyone hated that]

"don't be so full of yourself" something joe has never been a day in his life. "you're just a stand-in." he knows. it's not something he ever forgets.

but after all that toxicity we have ming back home, seeking out joe's food for comfort, and we finally get to see him interact with his sister. i LOVE that she knows the importance of being a little silly as a treat, one of my biggest life mottos. we also get to see more of how ming is surrounded by love that he misses out on bc of his own wallowing and self sabotage.

oh, the homoeroticism of sparring with your bestie.

[everyone liked that]

oop- joe is wearing the shirt ming borrowed while sol is wearing a shirt with the word 'fantasy.' i'm good, i'm fine, gwenchana, gwenchana.

ough. sol with too many eyes on him and none of them sincere and joe with nothing but sincerity to offer but remains invisible. oof ouch.

enter ming with more religious imagery to match last week's cross scene. something something the sin of greed? confessing your sins? coveting - idk man, i don't have any religious trauma, my family let me just do my own thing.

but with ming knowing joe's true feeling every toxic thing he does is going to be 1000x more painful and i'm here for it. bring it you fucked up little guy.

"we can't mess with each other's privacy" don't mess with MY privacy. "you can't mess around with anyone else" emphasis on YOU, not we.

and then it's driven home what a romantic joe is, both with his workout heartbreak poetry and this little lady and the tramp noodle moment. this man, again much like pit babe, wants to be domesticated so bad.

and i know we all have hated on ming, that's the point, he's been a caricature of a toxic relationship spelled out in neon letters --

but when was the last time ming laughed with someone like this?

ok im exhausted, i'm falling into bed to read fanfic, but i'm absolutely in love with everything this is doing so far. i haven't written anything as in depth as this since last twilight (pre-betrayal) so it's really nice to feel insane again.

[kikizoshi]

Hello, Kizo! you've also mentioned some of the interesting aspects of Gogol's personality I haven't thought about before. Like his pessimism. He is so constantly and desperately wants to seem excited, amused, thrilled, that he's managed to fool me. But it makes sense. "The only salvation from emotions is mine or smn else's death". He is quite pessimistic, just like Dost. And he's a perfectionist. He wants an absolute perfect freedom and nothing in between. Why is he like this, maybe trauma?

Thanks for the interesting asks!

It's neat to me that Nikolai manages to fool you. What I love especially there is that, like you said, while putting on that act he's so energetic, vivacious, and drawn very enthusiastic and animated. But when he breaks character, there's a stillness to him. His shrill tone softens into a meditative tenor; his grand gesticulations withdraw into intimate gestures; his stretched mouth and squinted eyes relax into the visage of a quiet, thoughtful, introspective young man. Harukawa expresses all of this beautifully with their drawings, and I just love it so much. The glimpses we see of the Nikolai under his mask are what made me fall in love with him in the first place--it's what makes his character for me.

One thing I really love expressed in characters like Nikolai is the 'sad clown paradox', which I think fits him pretty well. It's the playful jester character who's internally cynical. Nikolai creates a persona of a spontaneous, silly, horrifically brutal psychopath, but the scant few glimpses we get of him, we see a thoughtful and caring person, so much more and so much opposite just under the surface. I absolutely adore that duality.

I'm not gonna talk about potential backstories for Nikolai; I feel like speculation there is kinda pointless for me, since it could be literally anything. But, I can talk about Gogol's influence on him a bit.

Regarding this:

"The only salvation from emotions is mine or smn else's death". He is quite pessimistic, just like Dost. And he's a perfectionist. He wants an absolute perfect freedom and nothing in between. Why is he like this, maybe trauma?

I see a lot of Gogol's influence here. I'm not sure how much you know about Gogol as a person, so sorry if this is reiterative, but it's important context (and please take my cliffs notes version with a teaspoon of salt; I'm by no means a Gogol scholar). Gogol, at the end of his life--though probably during too--was very concerned with the purity of his soul. Why isn't something I can really comment on, but it seems to have culminated in him going to a radical priest, who advised him to undertake an extreme fast (meant for monks, I believe). Gogol then burned his manuscript for the second part of 'Dead Souls', and starved himself to death over the course of about twelve days (whether or not he meant to die isn't agreed-upon as far as I can tell, but that he died as a result of this fast is). All to reach a purity of soul he felt he didn't have, and couldn't get without drastic actions.

I genuinely have no idea if this story inspired Nikolai's, but I wouldn't be surprised if it did. There are a lot of parallels, and if you replace Gogol's 'religious purity' with Nikolai's 'freedom', you get a similar tragedy. Both seem based on the belief "my mortal/inherent failures/limitations are holding me back from what I need". And rather than go inwards and seek clarity through introspection, both externalise their problems and try to "fix" themselves via grand--and painful--proofs of their "faith/conviction".

There's also the parallel with Gogol's priest and Fyodor, though I'm not sure how much it tracks. Fyodor does seem to have some influence on Nikolai, but it sounds like Nikolai was already on his path when they met... that's all backstory stuff though, so who knows.

Then there's still the missing piece of 'why', with Nikolai. Why does he feel he needs to free himself from his emotions? Gogol's motive makes sense several ways: fear of Hell, self-hatred, a deep, spiraling depression. It's understandable, it's human, it's relatable. But Nikolai's freedom?

That Asagiri chose 'freedom from emotions' to be Nikolai's pursuit isn't something I've ever managed to understand. I just don't get it. I can't connect it to anything. You hear about people wanting to be numb, sure, but Nikolai's wants seem more about being capable of doing anything, or proving that he can... And he said (paraphrasing) "in spite of happiness I choose free will," so at the very least Nikolai thinks he's capable of happiness, and it's just not as important to him as his "freedom."

Yeah, idk. There's definitely something interesting there, though, that Nikolai's Ability gives him the freedom to do pretty much whatever (as Atsushi said in Sunday Tragedy), but he's so wrapped up in his own mind that he either can't see the freedom he has, or physical freedom is ultimately meaningless to him--which would make him seeking freedom through external actions an interesting failure to understand himself.

Then again, I don't know how honest Nikolai's being with himself, honestly. His whole "freedom" thing is an ever-moving goalpost. First it was torture people to death and kill himself. Then it was kill his best friend. Then it got so convoluted I won't even try to summarise it. And now he just seems lost. Giving Asagiri the benefit of the doubt and assuming this is intentional characterisation (and not just giving him plot-convenient reasons to take certain actions), Nikolai seems at best very confused (and trying to appear like he very much isn't). And, well, I'm confused too.

So yeah, all that's very interesting. Not sure how much of it was intended. Hard to tell with a character that gets like one scene every two years. And hard to tell where he'll go, considering how rarely BSD characters stay true to who they were past their debut.

Regarding the pessimism thing: ironically, I'd say Fyodor's pessimism is more optimistic in nature than Nikolai's. Because Fyodor believes in a world that can change. Fyodor believes he can make the world a better place, and is doing everything he can to achieve that. Nikolai, however, in his best case scenario, proves that it's technically true that complete freedom exists. But his world is still comprised of people in cages. It's cynical and oppressive, and his grandest hopes don't come close to changing anything for the better. I think that fits mostly very well with some differences I've observed between Dostoyevsky and Gogol.

[raccoonsonice]

Birdcage Vessel Ramblings

The reception to my first post about the birdcage vessel was overwhelmingly positive (which I'm extremely grateful for) so I'm going to talk a bit more about the ideas I had for this concept.

This post is a bit long, so more under the cut.

To start off, being a player OC, their pronouns would just be whatever the player's are. So, any pronouns are fine for them, but in this post I'm going to refer to them with they/them pronouns for convenience.

Now, I want to discuss some of the smaller sketches I put in that first post. These are what they were if you've forgotten.

What weapon the vessel would wield is something I pondered for a bit. In two of these sketches we see them wielding a red sword, which is glowing with red flames in one of them. The reason for it being a sword is obvious. The player's vessel is often a parallel to Kris, what with the discarded vessel from the game essentially resembling a monochromatic version of them. So it would make sense for them to wield the same weapon. The question then remains, where does this sword come from?

Dark world weapons need a light world counterpart as well, such as how Kris's sword is a pencil in the dark world. But the vessel doesn't seem like it would have much of anything to work with in that regard, the only object that would reasonably be transported into the dark world with them would probably be the wagon the cage is in. While I've had some ideas about the wagon, which I'll address later in this post, I have some alternate ideas on how the sword could work.

So let's say the Vessel has the ability to sort of "will" their sword into existence. How would they be capable of this? I have two possible ideas. The first being determination. They do have a human soul after all, so they'd have no absence of it. And while in Undertale determination's main ability seems to be SAVEing and LOADing, in Deltarune the Queen reveals that determination is what allows lightners to create dark fountains. If one is determined enough to essentially conjure an entire world, could they also create a sword with it? Maybe.

In this scenario I also imagine them reaching through the bars of the cage and pulling the sword directly out of their soul, Scott Pilgrim style. That would be pretty cool. (This is also why the sword was red, it being the same color as their soul/soul power)

My other explanation on how they could manifest their sword is magic. Now in the Deltarune universe, just like Undertale's, humans do not seem to possess magic, unlike monsters and darkners. However, in the case of the birdcage vessel, while their soul is human, the fact that the body they are inhabiting was given form through the dark world might technically make it count as a darkner body? While this is a stretch, It would make sense for some kind of human/darkner hybrid to be able to use at least some magic. Hence, they would be able to summon a sword to fight with the same way other darkners summon bullet patterns.

Besides the sword, the other weapon I depicted the vessel with in the sketches was a red chain. This would still be summoned in the same way as the sword, but I think it could make a viable alternative to the sword due to chains being an excellent symbol for a character who's body is a cage. After all, despite it now being ambulatory in the dark world, this body is still ultimately a prison. A prison that they could now turn into a weapon. Hence chains, a tool used to bind and constrain but can also be used to whip and attack. This could be also be extended to weapons that contain a chain as part of their design, like a chained mace/flail.

Now, like I mentioned earlier, there were a few things I pondered using the wagon the cage sits in for. While I ultimately decided it was too big to become just a held weapon in the dark world, I did briefly consider it. I thought about making it become a sword, (mostly for the pun of being able to call a sword with wheels a "roller blade") or a mace/flail (with the wagon's handle being analogous to the chain/handle and the wagon itself being the spiked object on the end).

When I posted the image on Reddit, (thread here if you wish to see it) some of the ideas commented on the post were for the wagon to become a Chariot or a Carriage, both of which I think are wonderful ideas, and that I may end up drawing in the future.

Besides weaponry, two of the sketches showcase the Vessel with a wing-like cape that did not appear in the initial image's main colored drawing. While I have included it in the image headlining this post, I feel divided on whether it should be part of the design or not. While it does fit the "bird" half of the birdcage theme much like the bird shaped helmet and talonesque gauntlets/boots, I don't know if the light, flowy, nature of a wing cape fits the harsh metallic nature of the rest of the design.

Additionally, the motif of wings might imply a parallel or connection to The Angel, which would have been unintentional on my part, but perhaps worthy of embracing? (related is the fact that them being a suit of armor could imply connections to the knight, which again was unintentional, and adding wings might further complicate that.) In any case, anyone who wants to draw the vessel can decide whether they wish to include the cape or not.

That's all about I wanted to elaborate on from that first post. Again, thank you for the warm reception to it. If you have any more questions about the vessel, feel free to drop a comment or shoot me an ask!

[moshieee]

Hello it is I, random anon who does not know you and has never interacted with you before, what is your opinion of your mutuals?

Oh hi @bixell-pixell I'll include you even if we're not mutuals I think you're pretty chill all things considered

That's kinda it idk you that well

Anyways

You didn't specify so I'm going to list all my mutuals in the order of oldest to newest on my following page that I remember sorry of I missed anyone and for the @ s

*inhales*

@e-the-village-cryptid (I don't have a tag for e yet but it would probably just be E)

Not only the first person who I became friends with here but also the first one I ever started sharing my stories with, even if we don't talk too much I'm glad Every time we do and I see them on my dash, (they bring some of my favorite posts and when I do send posts sometimes I mix up and send them their own reblogs) I'm so glad we're still friends, thanks for letting me ramble about stuff for 6 hours hehe

@jaqofallgenders (no tag for jaq yet either)

my in person friend and the longest friendship I've ever had with someone, love you 🫶. I'll be more specific on Monday if our ADHD doesn't kick in and make us both forget

@strawberry-seal77 (seal-berry!!!)

Hi hi hi yellows my friend 👋 the person I consider to be the second ever friend I made on here, a lovely person as well and wait waaa and an amazing artist too 👀??? Love you silly goofball and the amazing posts and jokes you have we should chat more often I thinkith.

@rabid-mercenary16 (Rabid jumpscare)

Hey hey hey .... BWAMP! Hope you feel better soon

I probably have the most to say about Rabid but all try to make it a bit shorter. besides being the first artist to do art jokes and include me, with we also became mutuals and interacting around a time when my life started to get a lot better. Even if she's not the only factor in that I definitely associate her with stuff improving, and she did play a big factor in it (I already explained a lot on my Valentine's Day gift to her and the others). Also she's just an awesome person to spend time with and be goofy, amazing sense of humor and I just love being friends with such an awesome person and artist.

@dia-smthidk (Dia fren)

I'm assuming you don't want a bowl of soup

I also said a lot about them in my Valentine's Day gift, but we've become closer friends sense then even if we don't get to chat as much as I'd like to. I relate a lot and am surprised how we have so much in common. Amazing artist and person as well and I wish we could hang out more, idc if they think they're bringing down the mood when/if they bring stuff up about irl, and maybe I won't figure out their timezone but oh well, please take care of yourself gender sibling.

@bunnybunnsowo (BUN BUN BROTHER!!)

little brother 🫶🫶💝💞🫶✨👋❤️!!!

(I could have sworn we became mutuals before Dia?)

another person I shared a lot about with the Valentine's Day gift, I love you my little brother! Seriously one of the kindest people I've met and I'm so glad they have bug in his life. Bun deserves the world and they keep sending me opposum images!!! Gona die from cuteness and his kindness one of these days istg

@spookykittyzzz (greaah why don't I have a tag for you???)

A very kind person and artist I don't know too much sense we're not that close yet but love the few chats we have had so far. Hope we get to hang out more even if I'm awful at reaching out to others and saying hi.

@glitchyk (goop buddies)!!

Nooo the parallels

One of the first people who was interested to deep dive into my creations and ask about my stories and worlds They're probably competing with Rabid with how much I have to say about her/silly. Seriously it's incredible how much we have in common and now I get to share and collaborate our sonas stories together it's amazing. And as someone once said "you can yap for hours". I love how creative and clever they are, I just wish they would be kinder to herself. One day I'll make glichy see how awesome she is.

@unfunnyaceartist (Floridian disadvantage) I feel like I should change that

When I say I was shookith when ace asked to be friends I mean I was shookith first person so show up and ask that (the others kinda just happened). Amazing artist and don't believe her lies she is funny. I'm so heckn glad we're friends., love the goofy and silly idc if she's a bit of a simp they've helped me a lot start to understand slang and references I'm supposed to understand shhshsh (such is the curse of how I grew up) we need to make our mafia sonas interact at some point I can already imagine the chaos /silly

@neptunestoast (plushy slime)

Hugs hugs hugs*

Trying my best not to baby talk I swear. amazing person first person to show up and be like "hey I Wana do something for you and your friends". Love their humor and another gender sibling!!! Hugs for ever for as long as they're ok with it. I love their creativity as well and Noodle is so adorable. I just want to pick them up in a hug so much. Kibbity/silly

@ner5y (no tag woops ill figure something out)

What are you doing here??? How are we friends???

I was absolutely confused and startled when they followed me especially since it was during a spoons argument . Amazing artist like holy heck I wish I was allowed to curse on this blog. Their humor also took me by surprise when I got invited to the discord, and even if they doubt how well they're running it I think they're doing amazing. And I love our silly interactions like this one

@vexation-816 (chaotic ADHD buddy!!!)

Why did it take me so long to follow you istg

ADHD ADHD ADHD my buddy oh pal we both got that and it's driving us insane/silly. Love how creative he is and the ideas for his sona and character lore. Also one of the first people who shared a character they added to my nightlight au. This is getting twords the end and I'm tired of whiting so much and am on a timer oh no. But your amazing dude don't ever forget thag

@butlerbugbunny (anxiety bunny buddy)

This is why I didn't respond to the DM yet hshsh

New friend who I feel anxious talking to sometimes but a wonderful kind bunny who I'm also incredibly happy to be friends with. Love his art so much it's amazing (shoot shoot timer is going off) I'm glad he's their for bun and wish them the best I possibly can 🫶.

@lilithloves-you (lillith my be-loathed?) need to change that

Don't you dare bring up grilled cheese

Glitchys friendo who I'm also friends with now. We don't interact too much but I've sent her on missions to go hug glitchy (to help both of them feel better but shhh). I hope we become closer friends in the future.

[darkest-fantasy]

Ive got a 2 part question. 💜

1. Do you think SJM will exand on the syphons/invoking stones? If so, how do you think she’ll try them in?

I’m thinking we may have a bit more, but most likely be used to parallel Azriel & Gwyn

If she uses the syphons/stones in more depth, maybe the syphons could be connected to the asteri or the Illyrian’s true deity? Maybe their true deity is the mother too & she imbued their syphons with the opposing power to the stones?

2. Do you think Bryce released the Pegasi and/or Prisoners in Prythian?

My brain is telling me the answer is yes, to at least the pegasi. Nesta didn’t seem to be acting like there were prisoners or Pegasi on the loose & there could be a few explanations for that.

It’s obviously not instantaneous for Midgard, so I don’t think it’s far fetched to think there may be a delay for them in Prythian.

Or Nesta wasn’t allowed to go on the hunt & ion like that idea so I won’t expand on that.

So for 1.) I have two parts for this answer. First, symbolically and second, literally.

1. Symbolically, I think the invoking stone will be a huge part in Gwyn’s character development. Currently, she is still living in the library after she won the rite. And even Nesta said, despise everything, Gwyn still went back. This means that Gwyn’s story is just starting. I think this stone will be used as a symbol for her gaining true confidence in herself. I can see Azriel even encouraging her to wear it.

2. Literally, I think it’s very interesting that Azriel’s siphons are the same colour as the stone. I think his siphons and her stone are compatible with eachother and could even be stronger once they accept their mating bond (it’s a reach but I could see that happening)

I also have a theory that Gwyn is Tamlin’s daughter. The quote is in chapter 29, how her mother participated in the spring court calanmai ritual to conceive Gwyn and her twin. So Gwyn has blood ties to spring, autumn, and even the nymphs. She possesses more power than anyone really knows.

And it’s so interesting that you brought up the Asteri because I actually had a theory when the HOFAS first two chapters were uploaded. Rhys said to Bryce and Armen that they only knew of the Asteri through old ancient songs. When I looked back at the scene where Nesta is hearing gwyn sing for the first time with the priestesses, she is singing these ancient songs about the mother and cauldron. I truly believe that Gwyn is going to be important in the long run. I think she will be called to sing, and I think Azriel is going to help her. I don’t know if this really answered the question

But for your second question…

All I can say is that sjm definitely has another plan for the multiverse. It just does not make sense for there not to be this endgame type finale. Honestly, my brain is also telling me that Bryce released the Pegasi. And as for Nestas reactions, I feel like we were really cut off to so many major things happening in the ACOTAR universe during this important time. Again, for Rhys to take so long to make it to Nestas room was also so suspicious to me. You’re telling me he couldn’t winnow in and out in two seconds? I dunno, there’s definitely something happening that Sjm has placed a lense over. But again these are all just my assumption. I don’t know if I answered this well either, I feel like we as a collective don’t have enough information.

[goodnight-bloodsucker]

So, Edgar being transmasc has a lot more canon backing than him being Genderfluid:

The deep voice and headband is an obvious homage to Rambo, who was one of the beacons of masculinity at the time. Makes sense that a young trans kid would try and replicate that.

Him and Alan are clearly named after Edgar Allan Poe. But our Alan is spelled differently than Poe's "Allan". Their parents cared enough to give them gimmicky names but not spell it right? Maybe Edgar had a different name and changed it to match his brother.

Anger. This guy is furious 24/7, if not furious then grumpy and rugged. This could be a clear example of exaggerating typically "Masculine" emotions because he just wants to be seen as male.

Layers. His outfits almost always include a jacket or an undershirt or both, even in the sequels. Layering is a common tip for Transmasc men to seem more masculine.

He's always trying to be in control. Another example of emulating "Masculine" features, he's always in charge and pretending he knows more than he does.

We never see his bare chest. To be clear I'm talking abt the sequels. We got loads of nudity in the sequels for no reason, but when he got stabbed and his shirt was taken off, his chest was bandaged and hidden away from the camera. This is such a reach but from a headcanon stance we could see it as him just not wanting people to see his chest, either because of top surgery scars or because he hasn't gotten the surgery.

Now, admittedly, him being Genderfluid is just me trying to make my favorite characters more like me, but I can squeeze out some backing:

Some of his outfits just seem more feminine, maybe it's just because he has longer hair and when he was younger he had a Babyface which is perceived as more feminine. But a lot of my friends say that he dresses like a butch lesbian so 👀

In one of the sequels, our protagonist calls them "Eddie" for no reason. Why would you call somebody you just met by a nickname? Could be because they were presenting as something else that day and wanted a different name to reflect that.

Him keeping his hair long despite trying to seem masculine just screams "neutral" to me, I'm also a Genderfluid person that likes their hair long, it can feel gender affirming no matter what I'm presenting as.

Idk man I love Edgar and since I'm Genderfluid I want him to be too and since most people headcanon Marko to also be Transmasc and Genderfluid this could be a sad parallel.

Now nobody asked for this but I also have a lot of canon evidence to him being Asexual, this is all In the sequels by the way:

He has an implied love Interest. Her name is Zoe, she's clearly in into him and trying to hint at it. But he...just doesn't get it. It doesn't seem like he's ignoring her, he just doesn't understand what she's hinting at.

Some lady that asked for his help, Gwen, just strips in front of him (Yeah these sequels are wild) and he gives zero fucks whatsoever. He also shows disgust for the romance/erotic novels she writes, granted he says its because she makes being a vampire look sexy, but it could be because he's a bit sex repulsed.

It's probably just me but it feels like everybody has some chemistry with him. Zoe, Gwen, several random unimportant characters that are weirdly touchy with him. And he just, does not care. If anything, he seems uncomfortable.

This is the back of the DVD for one of the sequels:

@evilrobot-bill