#especially with the last question she asked because that's important for his character development

[ash-muses]

" Well I haven't done a play in years, since high school. I used to perform comedy, drama even romance. I believe I was 18 when I participated in Romeo &Juliet" she replied as her expression softened, remembering her childhood was a tricky subject. But as she was talking to loki she felt strangely comfortable around him,it was nice seeing this side of him. " my family was pretty strict with me and my sister growing up, well mostly me. I was sort of a trouble maker in my early years." Margo said as she was enjoying her food, which was very delicious. After realizing she mentioned her family she paused, thinking she may have said to much. Looking up from the table, she gazed at his gorgeous eyes for his reaction

"Ah, yes, 'Romeo and Juliet' - a classic," he nodded slightly, his mind flashing on the book he had read once while visiting Midgard. The God of Mischief shifted slightly in his chair, leaning back with a faint smirk at the mention of her family; it was one tinged with nostalgia, curiosity, and a conflicting sense of emotion he couldn't quite decipher, caused no less from his own tumultuous relationships with his family. "I know all about being a trouble maker," he mused, his head falling to the side a fraction, "Odin assumes the worst from me at every turn." His expression had faltered a little, just enough to show his inner turmoil for a mere second before his mask fell back into place.

He held her gaze as he listened to the rest of what she had to say, noting the way the dim lighting shone against her doe eyes. The God was pulled from his subtle admiration of her, however, when she mentioned his last name, a bit put off by the inquiry yet noticing her teasing tone. Loki knew that Midgardians tended to be intrigued by their surroundings, and this was no different; he steeled himself to form a response. "I prefer Loki of Asgard," he stated steadily, his voice low, "and as for having them kneel..." The God of Mischief shook his head slightly, trying to find the words. He had been under the influence of the Mind Stone at that point, images of Thanos flashing through his mind too quickly for him to grasp onto one. "Quite the opposite, actually," he finally murmured, holding her gaze once again.

[0lshadyl0]

Hi would it be alright to request yandere romantic hcs for Naruto please with a female reader if possible maybe she was part of his team in his younger days ; love to see what you come up with ^-^

I love this question, especially because of the concept of being a teammate, basically being the third member of team 7, since I think that another female character should have been the tri-lead and not Sakura (It's not that I dislike Sakura, in fact, I feel that she is a character with a lot of potential but undervalued by her author who only went out of her way to develop Sasuke. Sakura is a wasted potential like almost all the women in the series, which It makes me think that Kishi doesn't know how to write women… or he's lazy because they aren't Uchihas or Sasuke)

In fact, I am thinking in the future of making a fic with a team 7 made up of Sasuke, Naruto and Hinata, since they are the respective reincarnations of Indra, Asura and the descendant of Hamura, but that will be for another post

yandere Naruto Romantic Headcanons

Well, here I am going to develop Naruto in his early age, that is, Naruto from the first part of the series, it does not include shippuden, the last and I will pretend that Boruto does not exist (don't ask me questions about Boruto, I didn't see the series and I am not interested beyond the concept of Boruto's visual power but only because it would be a development of the byakugan not because I am interested in the character), so here we will see the child version of a twelve-year-old yandere Naruto (if I remember correctly, that's how old he was at that time) until he leaves the village with Jiraiya, keeping this in mind, let's continue

We all know the sad story of Naruto and how painful his childhood was, without parents, hated by the entire village, without friends and all that drama

The important thing is that from all that negligence and lack of human interaction, the need was born in him to attract attention in any way possible

basically what I want to say here is that he would turn yandere for literally anyone who pays him the slightest bit of attention and above all, this is key, who treats him well

I'm not talking about great charitable gestures or kindness, I'm talking about treating him with cordiality, basically the first principle of a decent human being (yes, that's how badly he's been treated)

He would trust you 100% if you approached and proposed to be his friend (let's remember part of a flashback in some filler chapter where he went into a dangerous forest to look for a kunai from an enemy ninja of the village just because some stupid and very bad-hearted children said that they would be his friends if he brought said weapon, basically sending him to die if it weren't for Iruka-sensei)

Another thing is that Naruto is tremendously obsessive, just look at how he behaves with his teammates, that will not compare to the obsession he developed with you.

and we must take into account, here Sakura does not exist in his head, you are the prettiest girl in the village and he has made his intentions very clear to you that in the future he wants to be your lover (boyfriend, in a innocent way since he is a kid)

He will not see mistakes or defects, he will fight with Sasuke or Kakashi if one of those two scolds you or disrespects you

he will not like your friends, not because he is jealous or that he thinks they are going to steal you from him, but it is more because of his insecurity and fear of being alone again, that is something you can repair If you make your friends also friends with him

He is clingy to the extreme but not very observant in the sense that he won't always remember your favorite color or food, but at least he remembers special dates.

your enemies are his enemies and he does hold grudges against people who hurt you

He will also see you as someone above him and everyone, he is like a worshiper (remember how he thought well of Sakura? It's the same but amplified) you are a being incapable of making mistakes in his eyes

His beloved's opinion is very important to him, so much so that it is above anyone else, above his teacher, Sasuke, Iruka, the ramen guy or even the Hokage.

At this stage he will be a little annoying, irritating and clingy, but nothing dangerous, a child in love, the most dangerous thing about his yandere side would come out later when his crush stops being childish.

[noodle-made-a-mistake]

A short list of things that bother me about the Magisterium canon:

Forgive me in advance for rambling, I have to get these thoughts out of my brain lmao (also it's been a couple years so correct me if I'm wrong! (I really hope I’m wrong on some of these :’) )) Spoilers ahead obviously!

● The lack of Calron :(

● Not taking the opportunity to develop Tamara's character and keeping her static until she's randomly just different. Strong female characters aren't just skilled and perfect until their one flaw (usually it's having feelings like any other human being) is revealed shockingly (that's just sloppy characterization), they should be crucial to the plot and not overlooked in favor of developing other characters (from what I remember she literally was my favorite while reading the series until she just got annoying (??) after a while, of course that could just be because the story is told through Call's perspective but still)

● The entire school system that I need more info on bc it sounds so unthought out and not like something that has existed for hundreds of years

● The forceful nature of making people serve as masters?? That makes no sense? Like, “Congratulations on not dying during your schooling or in the war(s), your prize is forced labor 👍.”

● Also THE COLLEGIUM WAS MENTIONED AND NEVER ELABORATED UPON

● TGT. Least favorite book. Get out. Tgt truthers how do you do it??

● The Maugris plot twist. It destroys the meaning behind the past four books. It's just so uncalled for and frankly just sloppy ig? I love the idea in a way, but only if it's foreshadowed from the beginning. Also I'm too attached to the complicated dynamic of Alastair raising his possible ex-bestie for it to end up like that

● The fact that the iron trio is out of school for half the series, I'd like to know what's normal, y'know??

● THE LACK OF ELABORATION ABOUT THE FIRST GEN I WANT TO KNOW MORE I HAVE TO KNOW MORE

● They did my man Constantine especially wrong, give him some ✨️character✨️ aside from E V I L and problematic (trademark) and charming (???)

● AND ALASTAIR GOD TELL ME MORE?? He's characterized as distant and obviously traumatized with his hate of his magic involved past but I just need to know what that past was like. Like who was he before his dead wife syndrome?? Idk but I'd of liked any excuse to know more about it just so I can understand him more??

● Please give me a single character trait of Declan's?? Like he was mentioned a handful of times and that's all we got. He was just some guy and I am hating it !!

● And Sarah. Like. She was a mom and liked peace as a concept but she also made a cool ass knife. That's a lot of things left up for interpretation. And I know Call wasn’t allowed to ask questions for plot reasons but god i wish he had more information about his own dead mother for Christ's sake

● Also other than a victim, who was Jericho? I need to know who this kid who drew scribbles in the margins of his very important journal while writing about how he was slowly being killed was. What was his relationship really like with his brother if he was so scared to say that he was dying or what gave him the impression that he didn't care?? It's fascinating and I need him under a microscope immediately

● Also the lack of queer representation until the last two books. AND THEN IT WASN'T EVEN ANY OF OUR MAIN CAST. Literally the saddest L ever :(

● AND AARON WAS NEVER CONFIRMED QUEER LIKE WHAT THE FUCK JUST L O O K AT HIS CHARACTER AND INFACT ALL OF OUR CORE CAST IS AT LEAST BI LIKE C O M E O N (ik they're like kids but even I knew I was not straight when I was like 11 and i lived in the most conservative non-LGBTQ-friendly town known to man)

● Low key, callmara was so bad, like I love them but not the way it happened, horrible set up. Tamara deserved so much better and to not have her entire character destroyed by becoming a love interest. I wish they thought about her as an independent character instead of the means to implement a romantic subplot in tgt, they did so good in the first books with that

● Also there's no elaboration on what chaos is. It's the mystical 5th element. Wow! Let's go girl, give us nothing! You'd think that if Makaris were so exceptionally rare and special that we'd get some explanation on how they come to be and what it is exactly that they can control but we're just left to assume it's the special "chosen one" type of thing. Idk it bothers me for some reason :/

That's just off the top of my head and it's been years since I read the series all the way through (I should do a reread soon). For the most part I adore this funky series and I hate to bash it but I felt the need to ramble about it's shortcomings because I'm not crazy, right?? It had so much potential! Anyway, I'm sort of glad for the blanks in the story despite complaining about them because it leaves room for fics and fan interpretations that I always love to see, but on the other hand, I'd like for the story to feel finished and not like a last minute science fair project.

Thanks for sticking around for my late night rambling lmao

[justeclotilde]

Thoughts on LEGO Monkie Kid, pacing, and season 5

I’m taking this from Twitter, but basically this thread about “Say something BAD about the show Monkie Kid” came up and my biggest gripe so far has been :  The show has way too short episodes. Like, 11min30. And tries to do SO MUCH in those 11min30 that either somethings get scrapped (DBFamily but not just that) or big important elements get solved way too fast (Samadhi fire and broken scroll among other things). And it steams I think from the fact that the show went from episodic to serialised while keeping the same amount of time. 

I ramble :  I see a lot of newcomers say that they jumped s1 and 2 and really started with s3/4, and while everyone has their reasons I think that’s silly Because that format is what made me love the characters and settings in the first place. The episodes are short, so the show can only focus on a tiny thing, but sprinkled LBD being a menace throughout the season, with the spider gang being a menace. And now ? lBD is still reveared as one of the best villains, and Spidergang is still very appreciated. Same thing for DBF : Red Son was slowly developed through s1, and returned on s3 Granted he wasn’t in s2, but since he was a major part of s1, and the spider queen special, we grew to care about him and the family to an extent. Because that’s what the show is good at ! Characters interactions, character personalities, CHARACTERS !! And now, the show is going for serialised, which is great and maintains attention, but it wants to do too much with the same amount of time: - In s2 : LBD took 10 ep to build her mech. MK started slowly to grow, and his relationships were explored one ep at a time. Slowly. - In s4 : we lose SWK, MK meets Azure, we learn about Tang, Pigsy and Sandy through their ancestors, we start to question MK’s existence, Monkey MK, the scroll is a menace, Azure betrays the group, MK loses his mentor and morale, DBF is important but scrolled, the JE is defeated and BAM world explodes we have to kill God in 4 episodes now. 

Granted for the characters as well it feels rushed. We don’t have to see everything either. Of course. They have a life outside the show. And overall they did a good job in those 11 bloody minutes 30.

But

But

But.

Now that we have a bit of breathing room, maybe it’s time to have that character moment by episode we’ve been asking for instead of cramming feelings and heartfelt conversations in an episode while the world is teared apart outside. Especially since we’ve seen the characters go through hell for a whole season. MK needs to breath but he isn’t the only one. We could have an episode on Red Son and his time in the scroll, an episode on MK going monkey a whole episode, an episode on SWK and Macaque in coloc, an episode on Tang Pigsy and Sandy trying to get back to their lives since they’re the most normal of the bunch - technically (cuz apparently having episodes focused on them in s4 wasn’t enough to have conversations about it but that’s a gripe i have with the community for LATER). We could have SWK and DBF reminisce on their time together, since DBK is one of the last friend that doesn’t QUITE hate him anymore, or an episode on how Nezha starts rebuilding Heaven by himself while keeping the JE power safe, or an episode on Mei just being awesome honestly, like just Mei observing MK going insane and being the girlboss she is, especially since she went through the whole “excess power that could kill everyone you love” and is still living with that, in a way. That could answer where the Samadhi fire business went. Cuz like in real life some things are tamed but don’t disappear, she might still be struggling but has learned to live with it. And MK is going through a similar path. We could also have Red Son in this one since he’s honestly the most controlled in a way.

And through all that… discretly… the world starts to break apart again ? Tears appear and with it new monsters and ghosts of the past maybe start seeping from the Underworld ? Maybe an unmasked man tries to prevent Mk’s attemps at coming back to some normal because as long as he’s confused and scared he stays the Harbinger of Chaos ? Idk ! TL:DR A lot of critics I see sum up as « They should show this more, why did THIS disappear out of nowhere, this is wasted potential », which seeps from the show not having time to show all that happens at once. Maybe it’s time to take a breather and tackle the problems one at a time again, ep by ep, like in season 2. And then go back to « We’re all gonna die in 4 episodes » to get the panic back on track.

Anyway Please come talk to me about the show and your theories, or headcanons about what the characters are doing now that the wreck of S4 has rolled past them. I wanna talk about my babies some more...

[noddytheornithopod]

Some more in-depth Tales of the Empire thoughts/questions

This is really nerdy and nitpicky of me to ask, but... what is Barriss' Inquisitor name? I can't help but wanna know. Then again, we don't know Marrok's name either, and also what the fuck up is with bird man (who until confirmed otherwise I'm treating as the the Sixth Brother being an edgelord dressing as a plague doctor, I will insist the only reason they aren't calling him Sixth Brother is because then the Lucasfilm Story Group would have to admit Tales of the Jedi overwrote published material in significant ways, and then they'd get more angry nerds than they already have to deal with, lol).

I do kind of wish we leaned a bit more into Barriss' established relationships a bit, Luminara Unduli is indirectly mentioned in the last short, and Barriss mentions having a "old friend" who would know more about the Imperials hunting after kids which I HAVE to imagine is Ahsoka... but we don't really explore these. Like, if she DID reconnect with Ahsoka, I kind of wish we got to see that? I do understand why Luminara didn't appear, with Barriss' characterisation I don't think she could've gone through with killing her if they had a test, but still. I don't know if we needed to see her react to her death, but part of me is curious about that anyway. I will say she seemed to sense something when Vader entered the room, though. Did she sense a familiar presence there? Also surprised they didn't even throw in a small nod to how the Grand Inquisitor became what he was because he heard Barriss' speech and that suddenly validated everything he thought already (if you follow the comics anyway). Not even a simple "pleased to see you as a candidate after your rousing speech" line (which was given to... see below). I wouldn't have called this necessary for the story itself, but I always found it annoying that we have to go off on so much of GI's backstory based on paratext instead of actual stories. Also, still don't know his original name even after a decade, RIP.

On a similar note, I'm not really sure how I feel about Lyn Rakish? Specifically, how her relationship was the central one to Barriss' here. I'm not opposed to Barriss knowing more people, it even helps make these characters' lives feel bigger, but I do kind of feel like there's stuff here that would be nice to know. Like, even when Lyn enters her cell, Barriss recognises her, and they way they interact throughout the shorts implies some kind of connection. Especially since...

...her stabbing Barriss was what made her snap out of being an Inquisitor. Okay, I'm not really sure how to feel about this. I love where Barriss ends up, but also... I'm not really sure how I feel about dying? If she's even dead? The scene was clearly mirroring the second short, where Barriss wanted to save that other Jedi, and nothing suggested that she never got to save her (I mean, she's known as "the healer" next short for crying out loud, also hey nice Legends callback), so even if Barriss looks far more dead, there is that part of me still in denial, lol. But thing is, it's kinda like they went "this is actually about Lyn, not Barriss". Sure, Barriss reclaimed her old self and her development was arguably "complete" in that sense, but that doesn't always have to mean death? Meanwhile, we only really get to know Lyn through these shorts, and while I'm very pro-villain redemption, I'm not sure if doing this through three shorts was enough to do it justice. So I'm kinda feeling like being asked to feel for a character finally returning to the light because she maybe killed her sorta protege while barely knowing anything about their actual relationship on a personal level is kinda eh.

That's something I felt in general. Maybe I'm just greedy, but I really wanted MORE of Barriss' story. Like, at least make it clear why Lyn is someone important in her life besides giving her a literal get out of jail card.

With Fortress Inquisitorius, I do think it's interesting they show it being built, but also not really alluding to how the headquarters is apparently on Coruscant, especially with Vader's throne and all. I don't think there's any real contradictions though, the Inquisitorius probably had several bases (I wonder if Stygeon Prime in Rebels was another?), and the main one just became Fortress Inquisitorius when Vader was given reign over the Mustafar System and therefore Nur, where FI is located.

Barriss' line about how she felt like she was lied to and deceived is actually pretty clever, because its placement is almost like an admission she was wrong. She's still clinging to the Inquisitorius by justifying it as "the Jedi failed because of their hubris, they deserved it, we're here to bring peace and order" but her heart was clearly never in it. Despite feeling like the Jedi betrayed their principles, she actually still followed them. In a way, I think it even kind of recontextualises the Temple Bombing, because it feels more like Barriss being panicked and desperate, basically having a breakdown. She did go to the Dark Side, but with the kind of person she is, those emotions aren't natural to her. We see she can certainly still go there, that other former Jedi basically saying "screw you, all for me" certainly evoked betrayal which would evoke those dark emotions, and of course she goes along with the Inquisitorius basically to survive, aka out of fear, and as mentioned justifying it to herself by saying this is justice for how the Jedi "fell" even if she's clearly hypocritical in that regard. We then see in the final short she's reconciled her past with the Jedi, talking fondly of her time as one, and regretting her turning to the Dark Side.

Huh, just noticed the Jedi is referred to with they/them pronouns.

Now for the other stuff

I don't have as much to say about Morgan, but I will say that Bo-Katan receiving the distress call kinda cleared up a contrivance in The Mandalorian for me. I was like "okay sure, even IF Bo-Katan still was in contact with Ahsoka, how would she know exactly where she is at this moment? what if she went off somewhere else?" But then this episode makes it clear Bo received the call, and thus would've figured out what was going on, and then actually tell Ahsoka to go to Corvus.

I hope the Eli Vanto fans are okay, especially since Pellaeon was shown as Thrawn's number 2 in the short. What I will say is - this was just a glimpse of one mission, this isn't retconning Eli out of existence. Thrawn and Eli wouldn't have been together on every single mission.

Morgan was the original person to pitch the TIE Defender? Huh, that is certainly a very random piece of lore. Also, surprised there's still Venator Star Destroyers instead of all Imperial Is at this point.

When Thrawn asks her the real reason she wants the Empire's favour and admits it's revenge, he accepts. He also shows interest in the Nightsisters even here. I do wonder if what made him receptive was he could kind of empathise on some level, if the threat of the Grysk made him open to Morgan's desire to avenge her sisters.

Mountain Clan appears in visual media, cool. Now people know there's even more witches on Dathomir. With the new lore about the Nightsisters, I do wonder if the other clans also have extragalactic origins in Peridea, or if they developed independently and it's specifically the Nightsister sect that was from there. Either way, it seems like the Nightsisters were the biggest and most powerful, apparently Talzin even united many witch clans. Also, I wonder if Morgan and her mother were originally from another clan but moved to the Nightsisters? Because obviously they look pretty different from the standard Nightsisters. Also was interesting to see the architecture resemble what we see in Jedi: Fallen Order, so that was cool.

Also thought it was a cool touch that the Separatists weren't done killing everyone on Dathomir. We only see the initial battle in one location in Massacre from The Clone Wars, but it does help make the genocide feel bigger, even showing that even other non-Nightsister clans weren't entirely safe. IDK if this makes the droid gunships appear earlier than implied to be their creation in TCW Season 5 (then again, chronologically the Dathomir and Onderon arcs are back to back), but also Grievous didn't have a cape in massacre, which is the REAL crime of this short. Hashtag remove his cape!!!!!!!!!!

[destinygoldenstar]

Human Pomni Was Evil? (TADC Theory)

Keep in mind this is a theory and is absolutely open to be totally wrong.

We know the Digital Circus characters, minus Caine, we’re once human and not from here.

And there might be a good chance the new characters shown in the recent trailer are also A.I. The reason I make this assumption is because some of them are similar in style and theming whereas the tent crew is unique from each other. And Jax asked Caine in the episode if Pomni was one of his NPCs.

Why would he ask that if every NPC looked the same and were all the mannequins? If that was the case he’d instantly recognize Pomni was a new character. But no. He had to ask the question.

Does that mean these new characters are one off? Probably not. I do think they’re gonna be important. But this might be the aspect that separates them from our main six.

But that’s not what I’m here to talk about and suggest an idea of.

What kind of people were these characters before the circus?

They have no memories. For we all know, they could’ve been completely different people in the real world than we see them as in the circus.

The sweet motherly Ragatha could’ve been a wicked stepmother or something.

The bully Jax could’ve been the victim of bullying in the real world.

The erratic and fragile Kinger could’ve been a mindful therapist.

The shy, anxious Pomni who seems all innocent and naive in the circus could’ve been a truly malicious evil being or a full on criminal.

Especially that last one is an interesting idea that came in my mind.

One of my biggest theories so far is that Pomni’s human self worked at C&A. Makes sense right? A lot of people have said this. She pauses at a desk as though she recognizes it and has a mental break as a reaction to it.

Just because you don’t remember anything consciously doesn’t mean your subconscious loses that memory entirely, especially if it sees something triggering.

But did she help make the game? Honestly, idk. She could very well not have.

Either way, what if C&A itself is a very shady company?

The ringmaster of the game, the main AI, is Caine.

C

What if this AI is a self insert by the game developer?

Here’s what I think happened, in my theory mind:

The real Caine, not the AI but the creator that made Caine as a self insert, tried to design the Digital Circus in the 1990s (the tech’s quality in the office) as a revolutionary innovation in gaming. So some employees back then became test subjects for it. One of them being Kinger. Cause he was here the longest according to the show. (So they didn’t all show up at once)

But it went horribly wrong, the test subjects are lost in the game forever, and the creator is wanted and charged for the losses.

But he got away and continued his operation, illegally distributing the game to anyone naive enough to not know what scams are. Thus making him a full on criminal with other criminals as his employees developing the game to perfect it. To make it the perfect escape from reality.

Also explains why their tech would have never been updated.

Fast forward to this keep going on till 2023. Which means we could safely assume human Pomni wasn’t even born yet when the disaster happened.

If she was an employee, she was also one of these shady people who knew exactly the harm they were doing, but did it anyway because selfish money and profit.

Especially if, say, Pomni was raised into this criminal setting her entire life.

Maybe she’s the creator’s daughter who had too much to drink with a co-worker one night. Idk.

That would probably be an interesting explanation for why Caine is often going to her for advertising purposes. (Other than her being the MC) Obviously Caine isn’t Pomni’s dad. But Caine being the AI self insert of the dad of human Pomni. Would make him a more familial figure.

Especially since I don’t think Caine himself is evil. He’s just being an AI and doing his job and trying to ensure the safety of the residents of the circus.

Human Pomni could’ve been born and raised into the shady life and became an employee when she was old enough and had the training. Making her be a helper on the circus.

“Well that doesn’t mean human Pomni was evil. She could’ve been different.”

I Doubt it. When you’re born in a life, you’re heavily influenced by that life. If you were born and raised in an evil nation, you will likely have the mindset of that evil nation because that’s how you were nurtured to see the world. You wouldn’t know anything else.

Plus that mental break Pomni had.

This could very well be the real Pomni slipping through.

She isn’t this shy sweet bean. She’s actually an evil maniac.

But how did she end up in the game if she knew what it did?

There’s multiple ways.

As punishment for doing something wrong in the company.

It was a sudoku-cide to get out of the real world.

She wanted to fix the mistakes the company made for some reason.

But does that mean her digital self has to be evil too? From the story this is based on ‘I have no mouth and I must scream’. Probably not. Maybe she’s actually the savior like Jesus or something. Idk.

I expect this theory to be completely wrong and contradicted when Episode 2 comes out.

[connoisseursdecomfort]

A mini character analysis on Twilight/Loid/[redacted]

As much as I am a tiny bit sad that Loid is still not having that reflection I want him to have after the last arc, I think I will have to remind myself something I posted somewhere else:

“The problem is, Twilight is inching towards his hidden self, [redacted], instead of running towards being ‘Loid’. As much as we want to believe that [redacted] is closer to ‘Loid’ in nature, and that he could have become ‘Loid’ if war didn’t happen, ‘Loid’ is still a work persona created by Twilight to complete Operation Strix. This persona allowed Twilight to ‘love’, but it is also a constant reminder that it is a facade. ‘Loid’ was a middle ground for Twilight to get back in touch with [redacted]. But now it has become a battleground where Twilight and [redacted] are having a standoff.”

I’ll be as patient as I can be.

(Manga spoilers ahead: and an analysis of ch.77)

I see people on twitter saying that everything we love about Loid has gone downhill since ch.62. I don’t necessarily think so because we have ch.68, but it is kinda true he doesn’t seem to get much development on the dad/husband department since the end of the cruise arc. To a point that people started to be angry at him and Endo since ch.75.

Loid has been in this utter confusion since the cruise arc. Before that, he doesn’t realise he has this confusion - he has been able to use the excuse, you know, Loid “for the mission” Forger, to justify everything. The cruise arc is really the first time he’s not on the mission. Basically it takes 50 chapters for Endo to finally ask Loid this important question, “What if it’s not for the mission?”

This poor man has been confused ever since, like in ch.76:

This is, of course, just this stupid man’s way of asking if he’s a good enough father for Anya for the mission. But it doesn’t go away easily. He has been a spy for more than a decade. And before that he was alone for years. Being a Forger for only three months is not going to reverse that many years of trauma.

But his true self is winning. Has been winning since ch.62. He still tries to rationalise everything using his spy radar, and somehow he ends up being absolutely genuine.

In ch. 62, right after this scene where he deliberately reminded himself that this is “Loid’s” house:

He somehow chose to be a real dad instead of being a good spy:

And the same thing happened again in ch.66:

Sandwiched between all the spy-talks he had in his head, there is this transparent bubble. This is also the bubble that convinces me that he knows she is keeping secrets, but somehow he doesn’t care. But this is for another day.

His head says spy, but his actions always speak otherwise.

Endo loves to play with the idea of misinformation. He blatantly said in the fanbook that the info Franky has on the Garden is an exaggerated version of it, and is not accurate. The more obvious example would be the Handler’s arc in Ch.63. This is a story about secrets and lies, but there is a grain of truth in all the lies these characters tell us. Especially Loid “for the mission” Forger. From day 1 we knew Twilight’s a liar and a very cool one. But somehow Endo also makes him to be this genuine and sincere man. And he also needs therapy.

So Endo shows us how much he really needs therapy, just look at all these similarities, like this:

Ch.77

Ch.62.3

Or this: Ch.77

Ch.22

Ch.67.1

But the real fear is always this: am I worthy for the family? Does she feel that I am worthy enough?

Ch. 77

For Loid “for the mission” Forger, this basically translates to, my wife and daughter are upset my mission is failing because I’m not good enough I’m a bad spy. He has hit himself with this “bad spy! bad spy!” mentality so many times, it’s basically a running gag now.

Ch.10

Ch.17.5

Ch.29

Okay I give up finding every single panel of him panicking because it’s too much. But I think you get it.

Mr. Austin is so obviously a foil for Loid. As the therapy unfolds, we were trying to figure Loid out just as Loid tried hard to figure Mr. Austin out.

Loid even asked the same question we want to ask him:

Isn’t that exactly why people are mad at him now? Is he lying to himself when he says for the mission, or is he just lying to us the whole damn time? 

I think the problem is that we are all expecting Loid to be his actual persona. And it could be. But Ch.62 is also reminding all of us that “Loid” is something invented by Twilight. Even Twilight is something invented. By [redacted]. We love Loid. We kinda like Twilight, mostly because he’s hot af. But do we like [redacted], the man with all the flaws and merits Loid and Twilight have?

You see, like father, like daughter. Anya and [redacted] really don’t know what normality is. In Ch. 76:

And in Ch. 77:

They really don’t know what it is like to be a normal family, although they are already in one, and they sure feel very loved.

Remember back in Ch.10/Ep.7, when he said this: “I wonder what it’d feel like to have a real family.” This really is Endo asking [redacted] the same question, “What if this is not for the mission? What if you are in a real family?”

And [redacted] still doesn’t know the answer, although the answer is really there right from the start. He is this stupid, stupid man, who’s also absolutely traumatised and utterly confused. But you know what? If this is a story about recovery and rediscovery, then:

[wondrouswendy]

My Control 2 Wishlist

I've had this on my mind the last few weeks after seeing Alan Wake 2 and what Remedy's really capable of when they push the limits of genre and storytelling. No one asked for this list, but I thought it would be fun to divulge some of my thoughts on the matter.

More Music

This list would be remiss if I didn't say I wanted a real musical number for Control. I want singing. I want choreography. Drama. Poets of the Fall jamming out even more. Maybe more of Ahti's dulcet singing voice. Maybe even Darling's too? A duet?

I want even more variety with the genres, too. Give us a love ballad. Give us more storytelling through music.

2. A Mixture of Enemies

I want Jesse to fight more monsters than just the Hiss. I want her to fight paracriminals, especially.

3. More Altered Items and OOPs

Mostly the latter. I would love to hear more about the OOPs Northmoor bound and used.

4. More Inter-Departmental Drama

I want to hear what people think about Jesse as Director following the Hiss invasion. Do people still feel as inspired by her?

5. A LITTLE More Tie-Ins with Alan Wake

I don't want this to swing too hard in the Alan Wake pendulum, but I think there's so many questions regarding the world at large through Alan Wake's story, I want to see some plot threads get tied up through Control.

I still want the story to focus on the Bureau and its agents, but I think it's fine to bring in characters from AW2, namely Anderson and Casey. I also want to know how the Oceanview ties into everything.

6. More Kiran Estevez, and an Update on the Bureau at Large

What it says on the tin. Agent Estevez was a badass. Give us more. Also tell us about her ex-wife and about her rebound relationship she definitely had (or have her get back with her wife).

What happened to the Bureau over the last few years? What's going on? We need an update.

7. More Darling, More Trench

This wouldn't be a wishlist without including them. I'm biased. I love them so much your honor and I want Trench to come back, either as a mentor or in the flesh because why not? Give us a chance to even play as either of these characters for a spell.

8. More Uh, Horniness?

Look, I'm not talking about outright explicit sexual content. But let's be honest. Alan Wake 2 was a bit more horny than it had any right to be. Explain yourself, Sam Lake. Explain yourself, Remedy. Keep bringing hot people doing hot things, especially with the use of FMV. Your fans will love it.

8. The Actual Number 8: More Slice of Life

What I'm genuinely alluding to, all joking aside, is more slice of life interjected into the Bureau's dynamics. More everyday banter. Maybe I just want to see people flirt with Jesse a little. Maybe some gentle nudging from Polaris for Jesse to let down her hair a little.

9. A Follow-Up With Dylan

I think for Jesse's character development, it will be important to address Dylan and what's his status. By extension, I would love to hear more about his potential connection to Mr. Door.

10. More FMV

Goes without saying, but this should become Remedy's signature cherry on top with their games. They have perfected the style and I hope to see more of it.

[sugar-grigri]

What is this primal demon ?

I see many people suspecting this new primary fear demon as the fourth knight of the apocalypse: the death demon. After all, death is a fear that transcends all humanity, but also all species on earth, it does not have to be contextualized like the car demon with accidents as Makima had explained. Obviously there are too few elements to already guess what will happen (we don't even know the motivations of the knights of the apocalypse). The fact that it is the demon of death is correlated by the fear of Yoru but also by the mention of Yoshida who is very informed when he asks Denji to "erase" the demon of death. But... I am suspicious. Why? Because I rarely predict Fujimoto's writing correctly. The more obvious something looks, the more I'm tempted to question it. Especially another theme seems more and more omnipresent in this part 2 but also in part 1 and may seem incongruous.

But it is the economic context.  To guess the primal fear that this demon embodies, I paid special attention to what this couple said before they committed suicide: their last conversation revolved around buying a new car. And the last thing this guy said was literally "nice car".

If we go back a bit further, the economic context around the characters is constantly reminded: whether it's Denji telling Yoshida he's broke when Yoshida invites him to a coffee, Denji ripping off homeless people to pay for Nayuta's education, Denji making the chair for an absurdly small amount of money, Asa not wanting an expensive date. Not to mention part 1 in which poverty was a very important feature for Denji's development.

In short, I throw it out there: but aren't we facing the demon of the economic crisis? This new chapter is literally called "Prophecies". What today can't be predicted better than economic crises? The beginning of the chapter opens with Fami ordering a multitude of dishes symbolizing opulence (surely more a nod to the fear she represents as a demon since making the demon of famine a glutton is particularly funny). 

But what I find most interesting is that Fujimoto relies on a French prophecy (which I am honhonhon), which may facilitate the exact understanding of his text. In the French imagination, Nostradamus is a thinker strongly associated with the apocalypse or the end of the world. The demon of the apocalypse could be this demon but... I don't think it's that simple. The demon of the apocalypse is already represented through the 4 figures we know: famine, war, conquest and death. It is the addition of these four demons that form the apocalypse. Moreover in this chapter, Yoshida mentions that this threat of Nostradamus is mostly used to amuse young people, and is not taken too seriously in the current context except for the anti-demon public agents. The future of a demon is correlated to the fear that humanity has towards it. In 1999, humanity is no more afraid of the apocalypse than in any other year. In fact, they rarely think about it, being more focused on the near future like buying a car. 

Anyway, Nostradamus is controversial and his predictions are more the source of speculation than of proven predictions. The most rational commentators have even seen in it the announcement of an eclipse rather than the apocalypse, others the already visionary materialization of this new millennium. But I am surely mistaken but even if everything coincides with the prophecy of Nostradamus with these 23 agents who will surely die soon... The fact remains that I have the impression of facing a Trojan horse. Even if the prophecy explicitly mentions the arrival from the heavens (sypmbolized by those people jumping out of the windows) of the demon of terror, therefore of fear (the fear of being afraid), it remains that it would be great to sweep away this medieval prophecy. 

First of all because I think it's too early to put the demon of fear in place, or else the fourth knight of the apocalypse (death). I repeat, for me the demon of death does not have as an objective to be a smuggler, since it will always scare humanity no matter what happens. The fear it generates is a fact. What tickles me more is the year 1999: a year of economic crisis for Japan (here we go again!!! you see that I know how to return to the subject). I speculate obviously but while the West gets out of its crises this year, Japan sinks, it is the fall of the real estate. I still speculate, but people who literally fall from a building? The real estate sector collapsing? One could very well say that the fear of an economic crisis is not primary, since it is in itself a product of civilization. But the definition of a demon representing a primary fear does not hold in this: a primary fear of an element exists when this element does not need to be re-contextualized to frighten. An economic crisis does not need to be recontextualized to scare? What is common to Nostradamus or to our heroes of the 1999 generation is the rise of capitalism, whether Nostradamus was at the beginning of the Renaissance era and mercantilism, or the 90's with the brutal loss of the former communist blocks, including alternative systems to capitalism, just before the second millennium. 

The prophecies of Nostradamus break down into four verses even though they are in old French, as a French speaker, I will translate them as follows "In July 1999, a great and terrifying leader will come through the air to revive the great conqueror of Angoumois. Before and after, war will reign happily". Everything has been read in these four verses, whether it be the announcement of a third world war, the arrival of extraterrestrials, the return of the monarchy in France, the end of the world in the year 2000… The more "strict" and less sensationalist interpretations reveal that Nostradamus did not aim at a particular date in his predictions. This may seem contradictory but these predictions are in fact enigmas to be deciphered. In his introduction, Nostradamus specifies two principles of reading:

"non eft noftrum nofcere tempora, nec momenta etc": "it is not possible for us to know the date, nor the moment" in other words, one cannot fix a date with certainty to a future event because of "free will": "le libre arbitre".

The second principle is stated by Nostradamus, who specifies having written everything "in a nebulous form" and who will remain faithful to his other warning: "Let those who will read these verses study them carefully, let the profane and ignorant crowd not manipulate them and let all (…) the fools and the barbarians stay away from them". In other words: if a date appears in clear, it is to mislead the less informed readers.

Above all, according to the commentators, Nostradamus speaks especially about his time: "This quatrain of the most famous has been commented a thousand times, and presented, wrongly, as announcing the end of the World for the Year 2000. Passing under silence of historical references, however clear, like this "king of Angoumois", which place it in a very precise time, one often misses the significance of the "king of fright" known by the ancient astrologers. It is Saturn, the god who ruled on Earth, according to legend, in Latium, but whose planet carries the most ominous omens. He is represented in the iconography as an old man armed with a scythe. He is thus opposed to Jupiter, god of the benefactor gods, and logical "scepter bearer" in the Centuries" - Jacques Grancher, 1998. What this author sees in this prophecy is actually the death of the king in 1559.

Thanks to these often misunderstood astronomical precisions, we can therefore give a date to the central events of this quatrain: the year 1559, and not 1999. That said, we can also reconcile the different points of view by considering that the quatrain evokes 1999, but reminds us of the time of Nostradamus, thus making a link between the two periods. Indeed, Mars is understood as the Greek god of war (hi Yoru!!). 1999 is a year rocked by it, whether for the Kosovo war or the resumption of the war by Russia in Chechnya.

In other words, what the prophecy of Nostramadus really symbolizes is above all the speculation, the fear that can be egendered by a collective imagination. I find that this lends itself extremely well to this part 2 which seems to put more and more at the center of its story: the parasocial relationships, what it is to symbolize a hero, a legend, both feared and glorified by humans and by demons, the relational impact. For a part 2, which opens that people who care about what people will say? Why not set up the demon of economic speculation…? Or at least a demon of a contemporary fear even transgenerational. Aim further!!! (I went too far though)

[space-mermaid-writing]

The witchling and the god [Loki x Witch!Reader] Epilogue

Summary: The Avengers were looking for someone to help Loki fit in with the team. To become socially acceptable, so to speak. He had been given the choice of sitting in a cell in Asgard or serving some sort of community service probation on Midgard. The Avengers and Shield both felt that as long as Loki was on Earth, he should be under supervision. This is now your job. Why? Because you’re a witch. You’re not sure why this qualifies you, but here you are, giving it a shot. What could possibly go wrong?

Tags: Witch!Reader, Magic, Witches, slow burn, everybody lives in the tower, character development, Loki‘s redemption, Stephen Strange is a friend, Loki and Stephen are frenemies, Tony Stark is a good bro, kids love Loki, Tony has stupid nicknames for everybody, eventual smut

Main Masterlist | Series Masterlist | Read it on AO3 | Previous

Chapter’s Note: Check out the Witchling Art tag |Beta by @zaria-04

Chapter 32: Epilogue

Rays of sunlight fall through a slit in the curtain, which is not properly closed, and pull you out of your sleep. Not yet fully awake, you feel something move next to you and turn to it. Reaching out, you touch cool skin and hum something.

A chuckle sounds next to you. "Good morning, my love."

Loki’s voice is low and your favorite thing to hear in the morning. You open one eye, finally being awake enough to do so, and come face to face with your lover.

"Morning, dear."

He wraps an arm around your waist and pulls you closer to him to steal a lazy kiss from your lips. Happy to comply, you bury your head in the crook of Loki’s neck and surrender to the sweet moment between sleep and fully awake. You are both naked and your legs are tangled together under the sheets.

Your muscles ache, especially the ones in your thighs. But it's a good kind of ache and you smile as you remember where it came from.

“We have to get up,” you murmur into Loki’s skin, not really in the mood to leave the comfort of your bed. “Or else we’re going to be late.” You feel his slender fingers under your chin, as he tilts your head so he can look at you.

“We can reschedule.” He rolls you over so that he is leaning over you. His naked torso feels cool against your hot skin. He leans down to you, but before his lips touch yours he stops. “You look ravishing and I am a starving man.”

You can't help but nibble from his lips, pulling his face fully down to you.

Loki's intentions are clear and it is a very tempting idea. It wouldn't be the first time you two would get distracted. But the matter is important enough that you are willing to be the voice of reason.

"We already postponed it last time."

Pressing another quick kiss to Loki's lips, you wriggle out of his grip and off the bed. Without bothering to pick up your yesterday's clothes from the floor, you walk naked as the day you were born towards the bathroom.

Loki's eyes follow your every move and he licks his lips.

You throw him a glance over your shoulder. "Join me in the shower." It's not a question.

A light comes into Loki's face, a sparkle that is reserved only for you, and with a wide smirk he is on his feet. "Temptress."

~~

Half an hour later you are standing in front of a house. It is cute, painted in red with white window frames – quite typical for this area in Norway.

The real estate agent greets the two of you in English, with an accent.

"It's a fifteen minute drive to the next town. They have everything you need for everyday use. For anything else you would need to go to the city that is about an hour away," the agent tells you as she leads you through the house. It's been empty for a while and needs a bit of work: some painting and minor repairs. Maybe a new kitchen, you think as you enter it.

But the house has the perfect size for a couple. And there’s quite a distance to any neighbors who would notice after a few years that you and Loki age differently.

"What do you think?" Loki asks you after the agent stepped aside for a moment to give you two some space.

"I like this more than the last one. But I still want to see the other two on the list."

One of them was located in Iceland. You agreed on a temperate climate, since Loki prefers it in the long run to the warmer areas of Earth.

"This one has a nice view," Loki agrees with you, looking out a window. The house is situated on a hill, giving a view of the town in the valley. On the south side of the property, there was enough space for a vegetable garden.

You don't have to make a decision right away, but you have a feeling this is the current favorite for both of you. Especially when the Asgardian adds, "How do you feel about brunch? There's a lovely restaurant in the town."

"Oh? Someone did his homework."

You say goodbye to the estate agent and Loki takes you to the promised brunch, which is more of a late lunch due to the time difference. The sun has already passed its zenith here.

But the both of you don't mind and take the time afterwards to explore the area until it's time for you to return to New York and get ready for the gala that will take place there in the late evening.

Pepper has organized the PR event for the Avengers. It’s the night where Loki will join the team officially.

In the media, of course, the Asgardian has already been seen alongside the heroes, but so far there has been no press conference about it. Just a few statements about his general stay on Earth.

This will change tonight.

Loki is quite popular on social media. There are numerous photos and short clips of him holding the flaming sword of 'Bloodweeper', saving the Sorcerer Supreme and fighting a demon from Hell.

Someone even looped a video of him wielding it and stabbing Mephisto. They added funny music to it and it went viral for a week.

"Midgardians are weird," was Loki's only comment on it when you showed the video to him. But he can't fool you. You know he saved it in his new phone Tony gifted him.

It will be good blackmail should he ever need a favor from Strange.

The Asgardian looks spotless as always for the event. He rocks a classic dark suit that shimmers green in the right light. A small brooch in the shape of a golden snake hangs from his lapel. No tie yet – it still lies over the back of a nearby chair, while Loki adjusts his cufflinks.

You take the tie – it's green and gold – and step up to him, placing it around his neck. With practiced movements, you form it into a classic knot.

You yourself are still in your dressing robe. Your hair and makeup are done but you haven't changed yet. With good reason, because you have a request for Loki.

"I couldn't decide on an outfit to match yours. Maybe you can help me out with your magic," you murmur against his lips, your fingers still gripping the tie so he can't move away.

As if he'd ever want to.

"With pleasure." Loki's eyes shine darkly, thinking about what exquisite things he could put you in. He slips the robe off your shoulders and kisses the exposed skin, up to your neck.

You allow it for a moment, basking in his affection before relenting. "We need to get ready or we will be late," you remind him for the second time today.

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

You chuckle, but still prevent him from pulling you to the bed. Instead, you whisper in his ear what you have in store for him after the event, if he keeps his good behavior up during the gala.

"I'll get back to you on that." The Asgardian loves a good challenge. "Now step back and let me work."

He considers for a moment, his gaze wandering over your body, before casting his magic. For a moment a green shimmer curls around you, and then you are wearing a stunning and very dramatic dress. It's not a mere illusion but actual tangible matter, as you feel it when you run your fingers over the fabric.

You move in front of the mirror and take a look at yourself. It’s very much the counterpart to Loki's suit, with a plunging but tasteful neckline.

"Wow." Thrilled, you do a little spin to admire the dress from all sides. "I should let you do my wardrobe more often."

Pleased with the praise, Loki steps behind you, his hands on your waist. Your eyes meet in the mirror.

"It's an easy task if the canvas is beautiful like this. However, there's just one thing missing." He conjures a necklace with a small golden snake as a pendant, just like his brooch.

You look at him, unsure. He knows necklaces are not your type of jewelry. Nothing that is too close to your throat is. But the gaze he gives you reassures you and you trust him enough to allow him to continue.

Brushing your hair aside, he puts it on you before placing another kiss in the crook of your neck. It's so light you don't even feel it on your skin, like it's not even there.

"Now, it's perfect."

Your fingers find the pendant and you feel a touch of magic.

"It contains a little spell," the Asgardian explains.

You turn in his arms. Your gaze is soft as you place one hand against his cheek and run the other through his hair. "I love it." Truly happy about the small gift, you thank him with a kiss.

Little does Loki know that you have a gift for him yourself. It is a letter that you keep hidden in your drawer. A reply from the Queen of Asgard, whom you have invited to tea in the near future. Loki and you can't go to Asgard for a visit, but no one is stopping you all from meeting here on Earth.

You plan to tell Loki about it later tonight.

Loki breaks away from you and holds out his arm. "Shall we?"

“Do you plan on using the elevators?” you ask back.

"How boring. What do you take me for? I plan to make an entrance." Loki's grin is wide and you mirror his face, taking his arm.

"We shall."

The gala is already in full swing. Tony has provided a hall for it on one of the lower floors of the tower. There is a buffet, an open bar, and additional waiters passing champagne on their trays among the guests. In one corner, a string quartet provides unobtrusive music that blends into the conversations as a lovely background noise.

The guests consist of all the active members of the Avengers, some influential political figures and selected people from the press.

This last group of people ensures that everything feels a bit put on. People's smiles often show too many teeth to be honest. Controversial opinions are only expressed quietly.

People are aware that this is an event to present themselves to the public – even if the actual public won't read about it until the next day.

Tony is talking to the mayor. Smiling politely while listening to boring stories is like second nature to him. He wears it like some kind of PR skin.

But after some time he grabs a new drink from one of the waiters before he clasps the mayor on the shoulder and uses an excuse to leave and find Pepper.

Suddenly, the lights flicker, go out completely for a moment, while the music also falls silent, as does every single conversation.

Then suddenly Loki and you are standing in the spotlight of the room.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen," the Asgardian announces. His voice carries through the room without any effort.

The light and the music both go back to normal. A few seconds pass, during which the guests are too surprised, perhaps even too startled, to react.

Then a flurry of flashbulbs from the journalists goes off. Everyone is reaching for their cameras and phones to snatch a photo. Loki enjoys the attention and smiles at them, like the prince he is raised to be. He raises his hand and gives them a short wave before leaning to you and giving you a kiss on your temple. More photos are snapped.

You don't mind, because you know that their attempts to find out more about you will be fruitless.

When he thinks it's enough, Loki leads you by his arm to the side of the hall and conjures the two of you some drinks. Tony is at your side almost instantly.

"Cute entrance." His voice was noticeably neutral, as if he himself hasn’t been known for his notorious extravagance in the past. "We should have made this a Halloween theme party to fit with the spooky flicker of the lights"

His gaze shifts over to you and he smiles. "You look stunning as always, Sabrina."

Taking your hand, he spins you around once to look at you from all sides.

You giggle, flattered by his words. "You're not bad yourself." As you stand next to Loki again, you don't miss the Asgardian's possessive arm sneaking around your waist.

But his voice is leveled when he asks, "So, what's the plan for tonight?" He knows Stark is no real threat or competition for him, but, still, he doesn't appreciate anyone touching what's his.

"We have fun, mingle with the commoners," Tony explains with a wink. "Then there's a speech where you get up on stage and after that more fun, and booze."

That sounds easy enough. Pepper and the PR team would issue a few more official statements, but you two have nothing further to do than to make a good impression tonight. And personally you are quite happy about that.

You're no longer holed up in your little cottage somewhere in the middle of nowhere, but all this public relations work isn't really your thing. It's enough for you to stand by Loki's side as his support. For him, of course, such appearances are nothing unusual. As the prince of a whole realm, he was raised for this.

Maybe he and Tony aren't so dissimilar in that regard, but you'd never dare to say that out loud.

You briefly stop listening to the conversation between the two men when you catch a glimpse of Thor. His tall figure is clearly visible over the heads of the other people, even with super soldiers and enhanced humans attending.

He waves at you and grins, presumably a comment on the entrance of Loki and you.

You reply with a shrug like, 'well, what did you expect?'. You see him laugh as he turns back to his conversation partners, and you turn back to Loki as well.

As you do so, you notice that Tony has left and the Asgardian is watching you with amusement.

"Having silent conversations now, are we?" he observes, amused.

“Only within the family.”

His eyes soften, because despite all his prior conflicts with Thor, he is still his brother, and he is glad you two get along so easily. And Loki with your siblings too. It was only last weekend when the two of you met Elizabeth and Gabriel for lunch.

For Loki, family has always been a two-sided dagger. Something that was familiar, and yet something he never dared to open up to completely.

Frigga was the only one who saw him – like really saw him – but even in her company, Loki had never fully let his walls down. And that was not because she was not his mother by birth.

With Thor, he shared a camaraderie that could only be built by fighting side by side for centuries. And yet they got along better on the battlefield than in the palace that used to be their home. Perhaps because children can only develop truly and freely when they are not overshadowed by their parents.

The stay on Midgard really did their brotherly relationship good in this respect.

In the presence of your siblings, Loki has been initially reserved, always the observer first, studying dynamics in order to react to them. But both Bell and Gabe had welcomed him into their midst with open arms – probably not least because he had helped save Gabriel’s life.

Whenever you met now, which was only moderately between your various duties, lives and the time difference between the US and Europe, a lot of quips and teasing were thrown around between you siblings, and Loki didn't hold back either.

He didn't, however, tell you about the shovel talk he had received from Gabriel the other day when you briefly left the room to help Elizabeth prepare the dessert. Your brother is still recovering, but moving fast with all the healing potions you brewed for him. Only the fading cross on his forehead testifies to what happened to him – at least outwardly. The mental scars in the form of a haunted look that sometimes takes over his eyes will last way longer. But he doesn't talk about that. Not yet.

Loki has to admit that the young man – still older than any normal Midgardian – can look rather intimidating when he puts his mind to it. Not that he can do anything really harmful against a god, but the curses Gabe threatened him with, should it come to his ears that Loki is not treating you well, would be a real inconvenience, even for Loki.

It’s fortunate that he has no such intentions.

"Would you do me the honor of a dance?" Formally, Loki holds out his hand to you and you put yours in with a smile.

"I'd love to."

He leads you to a space near the string quartet, which has been unofficially claimed as the dance floor.

It's a simple dance, swaying slowly, and it gives a sense of intimacy between the two of you, though you're sure you're still being watched by more than one pair of eyes. After all, Loki is the main attraction of the event.

"They will be furious when they find out about the cloaking spell I put on you," Loki says, as if he had been reading your thoughts.

It has been a condition of yours to accompany him to this event. While you want to support him in all his steps with the Avengers, you don't want to be in the public eye yourself – even though you know this will inevitably happen. But for now the trauma of what happens to witches who are exposed as such still roots too deep within you. You are still hunted, even in these 'modern' and 'enlightened' times.

The solution Loki offered for the problem was ridiculously simple.

"I would love to see their faces when they notice the blurry spot on every single photo you are in." Loki chuckles at the notion.

You can't help but grin as well. "Maybe they'll think I'm Bigfoot," you muse, wondering if the origin of the cryptid creature had a similar explanation after all.

Loki knits his brows. "Your feet are not that big," he states as he leads you into a swirling spin.

You don't correct him. The one time you told Thor about the Loch Ness Monster, he was about to go hunt it down to take credit for slaying a legendary beast.

You're not taking chances. After all, they are still brothers.

After another spin, you put your hand back on his shoulder and look up at him. He is still leading the dance, but his mind seems to have drifted away.

Sometimes you still have a hard time figuring out what's going on in his mind. It is much easier when the two of you are alone, but in company he involuntarily pulls up these old walls around him. You are fine with it, because you know that he will let you through regardless, that they don't apply to you. Not truly.

But every now and then he needs a little nudge in the right direction.

"What are you thinking about?" you ask him softly.

“You would look gorgeous with a crown.” With this, the Asgardian prince reveals more than he actually wanted to, but neither does he give an explanation, nor does he take his words back.

"One day at a time," you remind him, taken off guard by this sudden change of subject and somewhat flustered by the hidden meaning of it.

The smile on Loki's lips remains a mystery to you. "Indeed, my little Witchling."

You both have enough time without having to rush things. More time than you would even know. It's a secret of his own for now, but Loki knows that the day will come when he will go and find Idunn to ask her for one of the golden apples. She owes him a favor anyway.

Until then he will stay at your side, dancing the night away.

FIN

______________________

And with that we reached the end of the story and I almost got my goal: writing something that is as long as The Hobbit (~95k words)

A big thank you to everyone who joined this ride and made it to this point. To everyone who, liked, commented and reblogged it. It brought me much joy to read your reactions and thoughts to every chapter ♥

Every reader-insert story I write is deeply personal. There’s part of me in the Witchling, part of my siblings in hers. So whenever I publish a new chapter it feels a little bit like putting a small piece of myself out there.

That's it, I have no more to say. Just this: be nice to people! You never know who might be a witch.

And to the Witches: don’t play with forces you can’t fully comprehend or understand. You never know what you might provoke. Be careful.

Tag List: @lokisgoodgirl @lokixryss @itsybitchylittlewitchy @yokshi-unbeliebubble @fictional-hooman @elennair @all-envy-suyu @purplekitten30 @elisadmaggiore @nothing2113 @ceo-of-stfu @moonlightreader649 @ronipiamka @fluffybunnyu @ninjarose23 @ozymdias @huntress-artemiss @sofi786 @thedistractedagglomeration @rosaline-black @msrawog @moonlightreader649 @paetonnn @eldriidd @r4inlov3r @eleniblue @eleniblue @maeisonline @marvel-love24 @sinsandguilt @kalinaselennespeaks @ohtellmelove @eleniblue @hyojin-2579 @just-someone11 @marygoddessofmischief @fall-myriad @melavoris @baebeepeach

[neonscandal]

Hello, again, Neon...How are you? Sorry I have not log in tumblr for almost 2 month. I'm surprised you got quite a lot of interesting asks when I read your blog....

So, first thing first, now I'm in the middle of watching "Fushigi Yuugi", thanks to you. Now, I'm not really interested in the romance but I really love the story and worldbuilding. It's isekai but so good....Thanks for your rec, Neon....🌻🤩

I always love sorting characters to Hogwarts Houses, and because you said you don't mind, can I ask for : Miaka/Tamahome (classic trope done great), Narumi/Nifuji (cute couple), and Vash/Wolfwood (I'm depress after reading their story), Reki/Langa (just read BL that remind me of them)?

Last question (sorry for this long ask, feel free if you don't want to answer all), because you love Hermione, do you ship Hermione/Ron or Hermione/Draco or other? Why?

Hope you have a wonderful day, Neon. And sorry for late in saying this : Happy Belated Birthday, wish you all the good things in life 💐😄

Hello old friend, welcome back 🌻💛 Never a need to apologize! I dare say you and your many questions may have emboldened others to reach out haha so I suppose I should say thank you for that. And for your kind words always! 🥺❤️

For it to be an older series, I'm glad to hear the worldbuilding holds up! I always loved Tamahome, Chichiri and Nuriko because they were so funny to me when I was younger. I feel like I should revisit the series with you!

Of COURSE I'm gonna address your whole ask in one go. Just remember, fuck TERFs!

ROMIONE vs DRAMIONE

As a smooth brained child, I didn't really ship Hermione until there was more obvious signaling that she and Ron were end game. The books were coming out when I was literally the age of the characters and kids are easily influenced and don't think critically. Not even going into comphet shipping at that age. I also loved redheads or maybe just the Weasleys? As an adult, Ron kinda sucked as a partner for Hermione. He took Hermione for granted, wasn't really supportive of things that meant a lot to her (SPEW, though clearly she changed his mind based on his later concern for the elves), was generally harsh with his words regarding her until the cruft of their adolescence was really broken away but, in my opinion, Hermione outclassed Ron and Harry in a lot of ways. In this pairing, it feels like Hermione made Ron better but Ron didn't reciprocate that improvement where Hermione was concerned. We can say he made her more approachable but that was him and Harry and just general socialization. It's been awhile since I've read the books so I may be selling my boy Ron short here. But also, as an adult, I see brilliant, amazing women end up with mediocre (but somewhat earnest) men all the time so I guess we were adequately prepared in our childhood.

As an adult, I'm not going to say I ship Dramione but I definitely see the appeal more. Especially where fandom fills in the gap because, contextually, we see them at odds and how Hermione is bold enough to challenge Draco. She (similar to Ron in the above), isn't the only reason the Draco undergoes his necessary character development we see through the story but her audacity, I think, humbles him in a way that's different from Harry. This dynamic is also more aligned with ships I tend to gravitate toward where they're a little antagonistic with a soft underbelly. I'm not saying this question justifies sharing this beautiful animation by @lyrablack1883 but… an excuse is an excuse. 👀

Onto the neon Sorting Hat, I guess!

Bear in mind, I'm largely of the mind that where the other houses are fixed, Gryffindor is open to anyone brave enough to ask/insist so, if you don't agree, that's cool, too. I give the primary i think they'd be in otherwise.

Miaka Yuki (Fushigi Yuugi) - Gryffindor with Hufflepuff underpinnings. It's important to note that the tenderness that Miaka exhibits is not without an edge. She may not be strong but she isn't powerless. She is kind and accepting of others and fair with a sense of purpose when chosen to be a priestess and rises to the occasion. She's still stubborn and, in fact, the flaws that more prominently make her a Gryffindor is what endears her to others (and sets her at odds with Tamahome because she's a brat, let's be serious). Still, with the whole world on its head, Miaka doesn't shy away from her duty and grows a lot along the way.

Tamahome (Fushigi Yuugi) - okay this is a bit of a toss up but only because it's been so long since I've seen Fushigi Yuugi that I'm torn between Ravenclaw and Slytherin, for obvious reasons. Tamahome is loyal to a cause and is subsequently very logical about the means to satisfy that end. Character wise, I just can't determine (or recall, rather), whether he could justify any means to that end. I'm leaning toward Ravenclaw with the loyalty to his family and then the Suzaku Warriors but I'm open to your interpretation as someone who may have seen it more recently.

Narumi Momose (Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku) - Ravenclaw. Intuitively, Narumi had a goal in mind and creatively deduced camouflage would be the best means to be successful socially and at work. It's a little dishonest but with earnest intentions. But Narumi is a Ravenclaw in the daffy way the Luna Lovegood is a Ravenclaw. That's not to suggest neither lack intelligence but their focus tends to be elsewhere. Whatever the special interest, they know it all, you know? Good luck trying to be a normie, Narumi.

Hirotaka Nifuji (Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku) - Bear in mind I have one season of Wotakoi under my belt. But the biggest indicator for my determination is that Hirotaka managed to hide his crush on Narumi for the full duration of the season. Cool, and nonchalant but the frenzy when his brother almost blew his cover? Slytherin. Mans had a goal all along and while Narumi seemed to fall in line with that out of convenience, it suited his purposes all along and we only see an aberration in his behavior when that was potentially jeopardized. Harmless as the circumstances were, it's giving Slytherin.

Vash the Stampede (Trigun) - Hufflepuff to a fault with sympathy for the devil. He will do what is right, damn the consequences and the risk of personal injury to himself. He was given a life and seeks to protect the lives of others at all cost. This sunshine boy isn't without shadow, driven to offset his brothers' misdeeds, for sure. But Rem, I think, is a stronger guide in how Vash lives his life. He doesn't do it for the glory, it's simply what must be done. He certainly doesn't go looking for trouble the way a Gryffindor might. It just finds him and he tries to resolve it as amicably as possible with a moral compass always pointing due North.

Nicholas D. Wolfwood (Trigun) - SLYTHERIN. Hat's barely rested upon his head and definitively we know that Nicky D will do whatever's needed to get his desired end. Not saying Vash won't make him question himself but, ultimately, Nicholas will do what Vash can't. His morality rests upon a razor's edge and he's learned that the only way to protect the people he love's are by doing the dirty work necessary. With Vash's influence, he may be tortured about it, though.

Reki Kyan (SK8 the Infinity) - Gryffindor with a strong Hufflepuff alignment (is this why Miya warms up to him?). Not only is he earnestly hardworking and kind, the glue that brings everyone together. But he's also brave, punching well above his weight class to stand up to Adam and protect Miya and, ultimately, to triumph over him because of his own brilliance and ingenuity.

Langa Hasegawa (SK8 the Infinity) - Gryffindor with a spice of Ravenclaw. ✨ Naturally skilled and adept skater (after some serious hard work as a boarder), I think Langa wouldn't have wound up pursuing skating at all had he not gotten swept up into it through the series of events as outlined. But, in the new environment, he's able to leverage his previous expertise critically and playfully and ascend to awe inspiring heights. Doesn't mean he's not still a bit of a himbo. Affectionately, Reki and Langa at their core are idiot 🤝 idiot and we love them for it.

Anon, a BL that reminds you of Reki and Langa!? Drop the rec, bestie! How could you not include? Do I need to make a rules page? Pay the troll toll, guys!

[falsettos-tight-knit-family]

30 Falsettos Challenge in 2 Days (Part 2)

16) A Character You'd Want To Date: Whizzer. No questions asked. Next-

17) A Character You Want To Get To Know Better: As I said before, I'd love to know more about Charlotte as a character because I love the lesbians and I feel like even Cordelia got more fleshing out than she did.

18) Best Decision Someone Made In The Musical: Jason choosing to have his Bar Mitzvah in Whizzer's hospital room is something that still emotionally pains me every time I hear that song tbh

19) One Character You'd Want To Sing With: I'd take either part in any Whizzvin duet, especially if we're talking about Christian and Andrew's versions, they both have such good voices to harmonize with.

20) Favorite Cast Member: Andrew Rannells. I became immediately obsessed with other stuff he's done (I want to watch Black Monday and The New Normal so bad, but my family doesn't have Amazon Prime). Only when I watched the Thanksgiving side by side did I realize that the entire cast is incredibly chaotic in the best of ways and has such good chemistry together.

21) To Try To Convince Someone To Watch Falsettos, What Would You Show Them? I've already done this twice with my friends, the first thing I show them is a very specific compilation on youtube (Falsettos Act 1 Moments That Make Me Scream), because it's the same way I got into Falsettos to begin with

22) Which Act Did You Prefer? In terms of just music, probably Act 1 because I always lean towards more upbeat songs and it has less of a chance to make me burst out crying while watching/listening to it. But in terms of which I'd rather watch, I'd for sure say Act 2. The lesbians are there, you get to see Marvin and Whizzer get back together along with all of his and everyone else's character development, the story is absolutely heartbreaking, and I could go on-

23) Something That Makes You Passionately Rant: There's so many details between Unlikely Lovers through the end of What Would I Do that I feel the need to rant about. This is all stream of consciousness written at 2 am, so fair warning and I hope it all makes some kind of sense. So I talked briefly about Unlikely Lovers in another question, but ever since I saw someone point out how one of the reasons Whizzer probably wanted Marvin to go home was because he didn't want Marvin to have to wake up next to him if he died in his sleep, which I believe is true and the implication that he would rather spend what is hypothetically his last night alone, than for Marvin to have to go through that hurts me so bad- I already talked about the Cordelia part, but I will bring it up again because it is literally the first time we see her sad and it needs to be acknowledged more often. Jason praying to God and asking him for something for what appears to be the first time ("I don't think we've ever really spoken"). He doesn't know if God exists, but he's praying and hoping that if He does, He can somehow help Whizzer. In the Something Bad Reprise, when Charlotte says the line about AIDS being infectious, it feels like there's hardly a reaction on Marvin's end. As if he's already lost so much in the few weeks since learning Whizzer had it, that he's either numb/not surprised anymore or just doesn't care as much if he lives or dies if Whizzer will be gone by then anyway. I don't think there's much to be pointed out about You Gotta Die Sometime, but I do want to bring up how the end of that song immediately transitions into Jason's Bar Mitzvah. Whizzer finally let himself feel scared and just had an emotional breakdown over accepting the fact that he's about to die. He was sobbing by the time the transition happened and it's still noticeable as Jason starts singing. He's terrified that he's going to die, and now everyone he cares about is suddenly here. In his hospital room. All together here to celebrate one of the most important days in Jason's life, with Whizzer, who just two years ago was only known as Marvin's male lover. The one who broke up the family. Now he was part of the family, the one bringing them all together. Again, What Would I Do is just depressing even on surface level. I know everyone says they cry over "We're just gonna skip that stage" and i understand that, I'm much more emotionally damaged by Marvin's "I'd do it again. I'd like to believe that I'd do it again and again and again" which aside from showing how much he's grown since the beginning, he's not only saying he'd go through all that drama and heartache just to be with Whizzer every single time, but he also knows at this point that he is also most likely going to die directly because he was involved with Whizzer. And still, he'd do it all again for him (As I write this I am not okay-). Oh and also, in Days Like This, right before the song starts, Marvin very clearly puts on a fake smile to try and make Whizzer feel better and it really does need to be appreciated more-

24) A Character From Another Musical You'd Like To See In Falsettos: After that essay of pure sadness, I'm gonna go for the funny route and say Elder Price, not for anything story or even character related (because idk enough about the story or characters of BoM), but purely because it's Andrew Rannells² and I think the reactions to someone who looks just like Whizzer would be funny

25) A Character You Can Identify With: As much as I'd love to say Whizzer (and I do identify with him to an extent), it has to be Cordelia. Her general aura of happiness and energy, being the only one entertained by Marvin during The Baseball Game, and awkwardly laughing at Mendel's bad jokes, all are things I heavily relate to-

26) Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship: Whizzer and Jason's stepfather-son bond. I love them so so much, I wholeheartedly think that he was Jason's best dad of the 3. He came to his baseball game, despite being broken up with his father for 2 years and even when not part of the family, made it clear to everyone that he loves Jason ("I love baseball. I love Jason" "I love Jason, but this is not his venue"). He was the one who stood up and taught him how to swing the bat correctly and supported him fully, even though he knew as well as anyone that Jason wasn't great at the game. I will never be over this

--- 27) Favorite Quote/One Part Of A Song: Well the "kill your mother" line is taken from earlier so I'll say during Everyone Tells Jason To See a Psychiatrist, from when they introduced Whizzer like a Heather and through to the end of the song. The dramatic entrance, the head flick, Whizzer’s excited smile when Jason says he’ll go, Marvin mocking Trina’s hand movements during “they don’t make house calls” it’s all great

28) Something A Character Did That Pissed You Off: Marvin hitting Trina would be too obvious and the Chess Game was a metaphor, but Marvin in This Had Better Come to a Stop when he says Whizzer should "Always be here, making dinner, set to screw" and just being generally hypocritical (ex. "Whizzer screws too much to see what a joy's monogamy" sir you cheated on your wife and want to have both her and Whizzer at the same time. Idc if it's not sexual, it sure as hell isn't traditional monogamy)

29) A Photo/Edit/Manip That Makes You Happy: Here’s a couple of many behind the scenes pictures that make me smile (yes one is technically a gif)

Can you tell I love Andrew Rannells?

30) Something Else About The Musical You Want To Add (Wildcard): You know what I'm gonna simp in the wildcard- The way Andrew says a couple of his lines, specifically in the proshot, are randomly very attractive to me. I specifically mean "Hang up your clothes Marvin, breeding shows, Marvin" in TTOFL and "Sex and games in New York City" in A Day In Falsettoland. Also, idk if this is simp worthy or not, but the higher harmonies Christian hits in some of the songs (ex. Unlikely Lovers) are so pretty and super satisfying to listen to

[myfandomprompts]

Which of ewan's characters do you relate to the most?

Hi anon, I'm so sorry I took my sweet time to answer this one. With all that feast we had and things on the side, it was two last busy weeks indeed!

I gave it some thoughts, and it was hard to really put oneself out with characters that does not share your gender or are pretty diversified as way as play in dystopias for the most part. I also have issue talking about myself, so you'll pardon me if I don't linger, but for the sake of the question I tried, and it was fun delving into the character. So thank you for your question!

I think I would relate to Tom Bennett the most.

I think it's the most relatable characters to most of us first because he is part of our world and because we know his story, it affects all of us to some extent. (World War II)

First, the guy is kind of endearing. You have to admit it's hard not to find something in him you want to relate to. Just look at him.

He uses humour as a way to hide his emotions/protect them. The usual coping mechanism, and I relate to that a lot. And he does it pretty well! Especially for a character that had a total of 6 episodes and three quarter to develop and still managed to be written and as deep. I really love that. I think it works like a trigger, you are uncomfortable or need to deal with your emotions, not having them swirling in your brain like a storm? -> humour.

He is two faces of a coin, stuck in his blissful youth and then having to make choices because he has to manage new emotions that the current historical event brings. I think we can all relate to that.

He has a singular relationship with his father. Actually I think most of us do, but there are these "unsaid" things between Douglas and Tom we can feel in the show because we recognise them. There is a fear and a love at the same time, lingering between them, a fear to not be good enough, and a fear to disappoint. I have that dynamic with my father, we love each other, but there are so many unsaid things because there are so many expectations, and a father is often harsh with their children. But in the end, there is trust, and Tom comes to his father to ask for help, because he knows he will help (he doesn't, but it's not because he doesn't want to...). I really like that connection.

He trusts his skills. Tom thinks he can achieve anything by doing what he does best, apparently doing things with scraps of metal, but I guess he manages well to make money out of it? Figures. In consequence, he is confident enough to know that he will be okay, and could take on any challenge, even stupidly: the war. In the end, he will be smart enough to be confronted with reality and try to get out of it, but there is still that determination to do what he wants and be what he wants to be. I admire and relate to that.

I'll add something I'm not sure of: he looks up to his bigger sister/sibling. Lois can handle him, like his mother could, but because he likes how strong she is, how smart and handy. I relate to that, looking up to a sibling, admire them, and it's an important part of building your character. Tom's lucky in that.

Little things I also relate to (fun part): Climbing windows at night (check) ; getting caught in real life events unwillingly (check) ; being protective as hell (check) ; being a nuisance (check) ; and being a heavy smoker? (uncheck).

[variousqueerthings]

Vincent And The Doctor! an episode that is both bad and good! but the good outweighs the bad, because Vincent is just so good!

but there is in fact an alien in this story as well, sooo...

sexism rank objectification (female character is ogled/harassed/turned into a sex joke by the doctor and/or a lead we’re supposed to root for and/or the camera): 7/10

sexism rank plot-point (lead female character is only there to serve plot, not to have her emotional interiority explored): 6/10

interesting complex or pointlessly complex (does the complexity serve the narrative or does it just serve to be confusing as a stand-in for smart, this includes visually): 6/10

furthers character and/or lore and/or plot development (broader question that ties into the previous ones, at least two of these, ideally three should be fulfilled): 6/10

companion matters (the companion doesn’t always have to be there, but if the companion is there, can they function without the doctor– and overall per season how often is the companion the focus or POV of the story): 4/10

the doctor is more than just “godlike” (examines the doctor’s flaws and limitations, doesn’t solve a plot by having it revolve entirely around the doctor’s existence): 9/10

doesn’t look down on previous doctor who (by erasing or mocking its importance, by redoing and “bettering” previous beloved plotpoints or characters, etc.): 8/10

isn’t trying to insert hamfisted sexiness (m*ffat famously talked a lot about how dw should be sexier multiple times, he sucks at writing it): 8/10

internal world has consistency (characters have backgrounds, feel rooted in a place with other people, generally feel like they have Lives): 7/10

Politics (how conservative is the story): 8/10

FULL RATING: 69/100 (if I can count….)

this episode we watch Matt Smith as a British man very seriously say "Vincent van Goffff" over and over again, but Bill Nighy did it right so that's good

and Amy screams a lot and doesn't remember the past

OBJECTIFICATION: Amy is not wearing a miniskirt! yay! she is wearing short shorts under a long jacket and scarf, so idk. not shorts-weather I guess, but at least she can run in this (although she doesn't do much running on the whole this episode)

PLOT-POINT: Soooooo I rated this one quite high, which I think is a bit generous of me, but the thing is that in this episode the reason that Amy isn't exploring what happened to her last episode is because she doesn't remember it happening!

and the Doctor is trying very hard to protect her from those feelings. but Vincent recognises them. there's a bit of "the body remembers" happening here, and so I think this is acceptable. Especially the bit where the Doctor says "Amy- Rory" out of habit and she asks "who?"

I also like that she's excited to see more Van Gogh paintings and is someone who fails to consider how mental health can have good days and bad days. Prompting this quote of all time:

"the good things don't always soften the bad things, but vice versa the bad things don't necessarily spoil the good things or make them unimportant. and we definitely added to his pile of good things."

COMPLEXITY: the plot is kind of two things, one of which is obviously stronger (Vincent) than the other (the Krafayis). they never quite come together, or specifically the latter is underdeveloped. I guess it has that speech at the end where Vincent is saying that it lashed out because it was afraid, like people do (the people who are terrible to him for being different), but I'm not sure that's what it should be about. especially when they discover that the Krafayis is blind, which happens right before it's killed. the Krafayis is disabled, like Vincent is

it's kind of a messed up story. right before it dies it goes "I am afraid." They just killed this being, which was abandoned for being disabled. that is the failing side of the episode

However simply as a story about Vincent van Gogh it's pretty lovely, and what it's remembered for. I don't agree with the bit where he talks about being left utterly alone and that framing, because historically he had people who cared for him, and he wasn't anti-doctors either, but I understand why it works for some of what's being said -- Amy and the Doctor are there, and Vincent is still suffering from serious mental health issues and feels alone in that

So in that sense the complexity works -- complexity of emotion

CHARACTERS/LORE/PLOT: the underlying thing here is how Vincent recognises Amy's pain as someone who is also in pain, and Amy of course has no idea what he's on about

overall though it's meant to be -- and works as -- a standalone and doesn't need to be more than that. also as a character Thing, the Doctor's hyperactivity and of it all is a fun detail

COMPANIONS MATTER: Amy doesn't do much outside of her chat with Vincent, which isn't bad. She's ostensibly the emotional anchor to the Doctor's doing stuff. however, am noticing that this scores consistently a bit lower on most episodes and whether I should be getting harsher about it, because at this point Amy is apparently super With It, she knows time travel, she's confident, etc. So why is she still mostly just hanging around?

I do wish she had more... opinions on things. they lie there and see the night sky and she says nothing. the script struggles to make her anchoring Vincent have much to do with herself, or to tie it into the plot. Why is she not the person who suggests taking Vincent to the present, for example?

“GODLIKE” DOCTOR: the Doctor is there to admire Vincent van Gogh, as is right and good!

I do think it's bold that the Doctor is so bad at relating to Vincent's issues though, considering the Doctor is the posterboy for mental health issues

I kind of wish the Doctor had been more able in this episode, specifically with the Krafayis. he's so helpless until the end and then it dies, it seems kind of odd for him

PREVIOUS DOCTOR WHO: Hartnell and Troughton visuals! Nothing special in it, but again, it's a standalone

"SEXINESS": we almost don't have this, and it's frankly because the actor for Van Gogh is so good that he doesn't make it seem creepy that Vincent is just hitting on her from moment one. there's also some quite dorky flirting (Richard Curtis style) which is much more charming

INTERNAL WORLD: I guess this is fine. Again, some of the characterisation of what was happening around Van Gogh is shifted to suit the episode, and I don't think it needed to be, but it's suitable for purpose. also the casting is so good!

POLITICS: so the bad is as mentioned above, the alien portrayal, when we discover it's abandoned and disabled

On the flipside the things about Vincent's mental health, and how that's presented on the whole, famously, is considered pretty good

it's not about "fixing" him, or about mental illness as necessary for the sake of good art, or about covering up the fact that he committed suicide, it's simply presenting him as a man

and of course the famous scene at the end -- what if someone who wasn't convinced that they were any good or much worth in their lifetime got to experience how they were remembered? not everything is about legacy of course, but in this case it works precisely because it doesn't work as a "fixer," but it does provide some solace

so in the end it's really about moments of solace

FULL RATING: 69/100 (if I can count….)

I actually thought this story would rate higher, but where it lets us down is in everything around the admittedly wonderful portrayal of Vincent van Gogh. Especially, again... Amy doesn't do that much. And the quite unfortunate implications in the way the alien of the week is portrayed

on the flipside it's a wonderful little exploration of mental illness and a portrait of a wonderful painter!

[rozetheeuwu]

1, 2, 3, 8 for Saphira, Taka and Victoria for the chara ask game😄✨️

Thank youuuu lets go.

A long post so putting everything under read more The first three questions honestly kinda overlap with each other answer wise so sorry about that slkdgjdlgdf

1. Why do you like or dislike this character?

Saphira - I adore her entire character arc throughout the story in both main and post game (even if there's like one quest in the latter for her). Even if I don't agree with a lot of her views in main game I can obviously understand a 100% why she acts the way she does and has a certain mindset.

I can't really think of anything about her character I dislike personality wise at the top of my head, but I hate the dragon design on her outfit because it's a pain to draw for me if that counts.

Taka - Idk I do have a weakness for characters with daddy issues I suppose. Similar to Saphira I like his development (in both routes) throughout the story. I also do in post game, but I have some issues with how that's done in certain parts.

I'm just gonna continue on that last part by saying I don't like how in Reshiram route his personality just kinda does changes after being freed from the umbral state.

Like I don't mind the umbral part and how he acted during that regard, but from that point on he kinda felt different. I don't mind the change and I did enjoy him in that route, but I wish we had seen his character change into that after being freed from the umbral state and being like "Yeah, I guess I don't want to be like this anymore."

It just feels a little jarring, especially since the other characters that were also umbrals literally got nothing in that regard, like they spouted how they felt and when they were freed were like "Oopsie, let's never talk about this again theehee."

Victoria - I can't keep saying that I like the character's development throughout the story so I'll say something different for her.

I do love her immediate action to help others in need. She's caring person and genuinely wants the best for others.

Idk what I dislike about her, I guess the way she got almost nothing in postgame quest wise but that can be said for a lot of the characters.

2. Favorite canon thing about this character?

Saphira - Love that her ace is a Dragonite. Idk it's often seen as this cute dragon, so to see someone with her personality have one is really fun.

Taka - I love his color scheme! The greysih washed out colors, then his scarfs pop out with the red color.

Victoria - I love that her team slightly changes in main game after Kiki passes. Losing the Pangoro (panda's are often used to symbolize ying and yang) saying how she lost her balance/inner peace or whatever. Of course I could be looking way to into that.

3. Least favorite canon thing about this character?

I honestly kind of explained this already in the first answer kgjfdlgjfd

8. What's something the fandom does when it comes to this character that you despise?

Oh boy, that's a good question. I have some good answers.

Saphira - Honestly for her I don't have an opinion on any takes or whatever on her. I can understand why people don't like her, as long as they like understand why she does what she does it's not an issue to me?

Taka - I hate how people downplay Zekrom route Taka, in fact I prefer that version of him. I'm excluding the Tao Gauntlet team up battle, because I want to focus on his character.

The development of going from the son of the leader of Team Meteor who's bloodline is (was) important to the region to a man who just wants to live a normal life is so special to me and the fact he's not as loved in this route or even said that this version of him isn't good SUCKS.

Victoria - Okay (some) people hate how she acted after Kiki and saying 'that's not what Kiki taught her that's not what she would want her stude-' Yeah no SHIT. Too bad a traumatic experience changes people and forces us to not work on logic sometimes. Fuck she literally learns to accept what happens and learns in end game and to forgive herself in post game.

I'm gonna be honest, I bet if she was a male character people would dislike her less about the way she acts after Kiki died.

Okay yeah I'll stop there with that dfngfdlg

Thanks for the ask!!

[sideprince]

I want to hear your thoughts about the HP movies! So here go a number of asks, you of course don’t have to answer all of them (or any), but consider this an invitation to share!!

Which movie choice do you think…

-was the most pointless (there’s just nothing to be gained from the change and yet they did it anyway)?

-had the most outsized or lasting impact on how a character is viewed by the fandom?

-was actually a positive change?

-annoys you personally the most?

Thank you for this very excellent ask!! I will absolutely be answering all these questions.

Which movie choice do you think…

-was the most pointless (there’s just nothing to be gained from the change and yet they did it anyway)?

There are so many but the most obvious answer is casting Lavender Brown as white. Not only was there nothing to gain, but there was a lot to lose and it was just needlessly racist. I'm also not a fan of how Jessie Cave played her, but it's unclear how much of that was her choice and how much of it was the direction. She didn't play it like a 16 year old with a crush, but like she was a fangirl. Ron was just another kid in her class, it made no sense. When you have a crush at that age you might put the person on a pedestal, even idealize them without knowing them well, but the way she fawned over him was almost vaudevillian in how over the top it was. Her performance made the whole thing feel like a caricature, not an immature high school relationship. Knowing that she was given the role over a black actress only to give this performance feels like it was definitely a pointless change, but then, so many other choices in the films were too...

It also made that relationship and its effect on Ron too simplistic. It was part of his character to be awkward and inexperienced, and the main reason he went into that relationship was because these factors made him feel insecure and because it fed his ego. That's an important aspect of a character who's the youngest son in a family with 5 older brothers most of whom were high achievers, and whose best friend is famous. But then Ron's whole character arc of being fed up with being overlooked when Harry's name comes out of the goblet in GoF is shoved aside in that film as well, so why would HBP suddenly treat him as three dimensional? There was a lot of character development that Ron went through in HBP, in large part due to his relationship with Lavender, which was left out of the film completely as a result of how simplistically and cartoonishly Lavender herself was portrayed. It's one of many examples of ways in which the films didn't try to tell a story, but instead seemed like frantic efforts to check plot points off a list in order to get to the end.

Which movie choice do you think…

-had the most outsized or lasting impact on how a character is viewed by the fandom?

Hagrid. He's a complex and problematic character who doesn't seem to have formed friendships with students other than Harry, Ron, and Hermione. And if it weren't for his friendship with Harry, then Ron and Hermione wouldn't have spent time with him either, let alone formed a relationship (which Hermione did, at least, as we see in PoA). We see throughout the books that the other students are, at best, ambivalent about him, and at worst don't like his teaching style or his choice of creatures. We see this especially when Professor Grubbly-Plank subs for Hagrid and several students are vocally enthused about her, to the point of saying they hope she replaces Hagrid permanently after just one lesson.

Harry's connection with Hagrid is profound, because Hagrid was not only the one who welcomed him into the magical world and hand-delivered his Hogwarts letter, but also knew his parents and is a connection to them. Harry loves him not because he's big and cuddly and dumb, but because as a child looking for any kind of parental figures to latch onto, Hagrid was the first person he met who actively wanted to take care of him, did so when he took him to Diagon Alley, and continued to do so in welcoming him in his cabin and having him for tea regularly. Hagrid gives him advice at times, and is fiercely loyal. He also endangers Harry on several occasions and asks inappropriate favors of him, and these things altogether are what make Hagrid so complex. He plays a significant role in Harry's life, but not really in any of the other students'.

If you take the films on the whole, then by the end of the second film Hagrid is set up as this jolly giant beloved by the whole school (mostly because Steve Kloves/Chris Columbus didn't know how to end the film so they just focused on Hagrid's return from Azkaban - I can't even talk about Hagrid getting sent to prison with no proof or trial and that going completely unaddressed 👀JKR). Throughout the rest of the films we see Hagrid as someone who the trio have a relationship with only when it's relevant to the plot. They don't go to his for tea just to be social, and that's something that could have been fit in in ways that simultaneously offered plot development. I think it's a consistent problem in the films that moving the plot forward is prioritized without attention to developing relationships or understanding how that feeds into character and story development. In a franchise based on a book series that people latched onto because of their love for the characters, it's startling to see how little attention was paid to the thing that spoke to readers most.

Most of Hagrid's creatures like the skrewts or even nifflers are left out, as are many other elements that serve to color the wizarding world and make it feel more tangible. The only "monstrous" creature we see Hagrid teaching in the films is Buckbeak who is alone and not part of a flock and is left out of subsequent films. Care of Magical Creatures is left out of OOtP completely and it isn't even in class that Harry learns what thestrals are, but then Professor Grubbly-Plank isn't in the films at all. All the scenes where Hagrid is drunk around the kids are left out, as well as most of the ways he endangers them in various ways. If it weren't for Umbridge's bit in the forest, Grawp would have been left out of OOtP altogether (and tbh since she was carried off by centaurs anyway, he could have been).

Tl;dr the films exaggerated Hagrid into a big, cuddly, silly giant of a man who showed up when it was convenient for the narrative and didn't present any of the problems or challenges he did in the books.

(Runner up answer to this question is Hermione, who's portrayed as a two dimensional matriarchal harpy with consistent characteristics - like calling Ron "Ronald" which is... pointless and overly formal - that make her out to be an uptight school marm. Her personality is chopped at the knees and her main role is to be the voice of exposition, not a character unto herself with her own growth and development. Third place is the Dursleys who were an excellent bit of social commentary and contrast to Harry's world as well as a relevant example of abuse that informed Harry's character and emphasized parallels between him and Voldemort as well as him and Snape, but I'm trying to keep my answers to one thing. The general answer to this question is honestly just "omg everyone, everyone, every character was changed in pointless and terrible ways, help me understand why." The fact that Snape isn't even in the top three on this list tells you everything, because I could write a whole essay on that alone.)

Which movie choice do you think…

-was actually a positive change?

Leaving out Nearly Headless Nick and his Deathday Party in CoS. It added color to the book but not much else and it makes sense it was left out of the film. It would have added nothing to it. And that film was enough of a mess without it, let's be honest. I also don't mind that most of Rita Skeeter's bullshit was left out of GoF. I get that Rowling was making a comment on the press with her character, but I felt Skeeter was more of a result of Rowling having resentment after becoming famous by the time she sat down to write the book and GoF being the first one where her editor gave her free reign. It's uncomfortable the way this grown woman who's a successful journalist goes after literal children and has a petty feud with them. It's not even a reasonable parallel for how famous children are treated by the press because most of them either have a publicist or a parent who has one, they aren't expected to go up against journalists on their own. But then, Rowling's metaphors are often not fully thought through.

Which movie choice do you think…

-annoys you personally the most?

I'm lumping them as one choice but really it's the same choice made over and over and over again and I hate it so much it makes me want to throw hands:

"I know."

Character development is consistently choked by using this device of, "I know what you're thinking," "I know you're going to ask," and other variations of the same. Sometimes it's more subtle, like when Dumbledore takes Harry to meet Slughorn and Harry says, "I just apparated, didn't I?" but it's the same thing again and again. There's no reason Harry couldn't say, "what the?--" and Dumbledore couldn't answer, "I'm sorry, I forgot to ask if you had ever apparated before." Or, in a surprise plot twist, it could have been presented as it was in the book, with Dumbledore simply asking Harry if he'd done it before and Harry replying no and having a new experience. The change in the film offers nothing. It's boring. It deliberately prevents characters from being challenged and growing as a result. It's also often, but not always, Hermione who offers this kind of exposition, because that's her main purpose in the films and she needs a job, I guess? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I just don't see the point of it. It feels very much like soap opera writing. In terms of writing and meeting a studio production's expectations, you wouldn't gain page numbers or screen time if you had a character ask a question that another had to think about and answer. When Harry goes up to Katie Bell in HBP, there's no reason he can't ask her how she is and then what she remembers, instead of her saying "I know you're going to ask but I don't know." It would have used op the same amount of space on the page and the same length of time to film. (Actually, if HBP had spent less time having Slughorn narrate how and why he was taking acromantula venom and instead had him do so covertly as he did in the book, there would be enough screen time left to spread across adding a few lines of needed dialogue in several scenes. This is another frustrating thing about the films, and what I mean when I say they just try to check events off a list to get to the end: in the book, Slughorn's motivation to go to Hagrid's with Harry is to procure acromantula venom, which is rare and valuable. Once this motivation is taken away, as it is in the film, it's pointless to have him go through the motions of doing so, let alone doing it so overtly and with Hagrid's permission, which goes against the latter's character. It shows a profound lack of understanding of the story and its purpose that this moment received so much screen time when the point of that scene was for Harry to end up in a situation where he could get Slughorn into a vulnerable enough state to get the memory from him.)

The whole "I know" thing feels unnatural, forced, and pointless. It's clumsy and two-dimensional writing and if these films had to stand on their own and weren't based on a beloved book series, this kind of writing would have tanked them after the second one.

Thank you for this very fun ask! I have a lot of issues with the films, but I do enjoy them and still watch them often. I don't have high hopes for the HBO series (and I don't think it's necessary), but I do wish often that these films had been better done and by writers, producers, and directors more suited to the job.