#francesco's answers

[mastersoftheair]

and more behind the scenes pics (from natasha vincent's instagram)

[all-that-is-gold-is-now-gone]

Hii, i would be very happy to hear your opinion about this

in medici ep5 of s2 it was implied that giuliano was mad that lorenzo didn't ask him to be his son's godfather, it's natural that giuliano is hurt since he's the baby's uncle while Francesco is a random outsider but then idk if he would be a good godfather since we saw he was quite carefree. He was literally late for piero's christening and we also didn't see him bother to come to see the baby while we saw both bianca and Francesco on screen with the baby after the christening. So i doubt if he was choosen to be the godfather would he be a responsible one? Given how carefree he was i doubt if situation was reversed, he would have raised piero as responsibly and affectionately as lorenzo has raised guilio. But then he actually in a way sacrificed his life for lorenzo so maybe he would be worthy if given a chance but i am not sure. What do you think?

Sorry this took me so long to answer lol, I had a lot of thoughts about this and had to make sure not to go off on a tangent lol

Okay, so yes, in ep 5 of season 2, its implied that Giuliano is hurt, and feeling left out, although I don't think it is specifically about Francesco being Piero's godfather and not him. I think that is probably a part of it, but I think it is more, that Lorenzo brought Francesco into the Medici family and wanted to work closely with him and the Pazzi bank to ensure everyone got along, and I imagine that kinda of made Giuliano feel left out, Lorenzo can also be an idjit and probably treated Francesco more like a brother than a working partner, and didn't work very hard to keep Giuliano in the fold, but I don't think that small fall out between Giuliano and Lorenzo was completely Lorenzo's fault. Giuliano probably felt left out and went off to sulk and pulled away instead of trying to fix things.

Nah, I don't think Giuliano would have been a responsible Godfather, he was the younger son, and liked to enjoy himself and indulge, but he was never ready to be in charge of a child. Francesco on the other hand, wanted kids, and I think if things had gone differently Francesco would have been very involved in Piero's life. He would have taken the role of godfather seriously, whereas Giuliano might have just seen it as a title since he is Piero's uncle.

I also think Lorenzo wanted the making of Francesco, Piero's Godfather to be something to make Francesco feel more like family, and I don't think he did it to snub Giuliano. At this point in the series, Guliano had pulled away and wasn't really present.

I think if something had happened to Lorenzo and Clarice and Giuliano was left with Piero, Giuliano would rise to the occasion. Neither of the Medici sons is one to shrink from duties or responsibility. So Giuliano would have had some growing up to do and learning, but he would have raised Piero as his own like Lorenzo did for Giulo.

I also think, maybe on some level Lorenzo knew that Giuliano was younger, he wanted his freedom, he is the younger brother. Francesco is the older brother, he practically already was a father to Gugielmo, so yeah Francesco might have been a more obvious choice in that area.

But I don't think Lorenzo's choice to make Francesco godfather was supposed to snub Giuliano. It was to bring the families closer together, especially since Jacopo was a wild card, and I think Lorenzo genuinely wanted Francesco to be a part of their family. Francesco never had a core family growing up and I think Lorenzo knew that. And like I said, at this point Giuliano had pulled away so maybe there was some distance between the brothers and they were both going about that the wrong way. The Medici brothers are pretty but at times they can be pretty dumb lol

Hope that answered your question! Thanks for the ask! 🙂 🩶

[mochiwei]

IS THAT ZELINK ART BASED OFF “THE KISS” by FRANCESO HAYEZ?! I literally adore that painting 😭 I was lucky enough to see it in person this past summer because a friend of mine studies at Brera Academy, which is owned by the museum that has it. And now it's Zelink I CRY?!?! okay, gushing over, have a nice day 😤

Yes it is!! I’ll be revealing the whole piece later this week!! I had so much fun interpreting the painting with Ocarina of Time Zelink 🥰💕

Thank you so much!! If you like this piece I think you’ll love the other amazing master studies in @atelierhylia volume 2!

[pavedinashes-if]

If MC and Francesc(o/a) were just casual friends/acquaintances through N, why did MC follow F instead of N at the party after their fight? Was it their crush acting or MC going "Well, we have friends here that can handle N but F has no one, and I feel bad so I should go after them"?

I try to answer with as little spoiler as possible.

Still the next part contains spoilers - so beware if you want to avoid those!

Fr enjoyed doing drugs sometimes and it was not any different this night. they celebrated excessively and with all the alcohol and other stuff consumed Fr gets... tiring. N hates it if Fr is like that. They get in an ugly fight, it's getting loud, there's even some insults and they split up. N sitting with a beer in a lounge chair and Fr storming off. Both are fuming and mad at each other. When MC mentions that they should be going after FR because they are in no state to be alone, N just says that they are fine and they can handle it on their own, as it is not the first time. But MC worries and sees pretty clearly that FR is nowhere near a state to be left alone...

[enter-the-phantom]

the hottest esc contestant of all time will always be Francesco Gabbani from 2017. Italian mfers hit diff 🤤

No but see the name of the game is not who is the hottest Eurovision contestant. It’s who is the hottest unhinged Eurovision contestant.

Now one could argue that the dancing gorilla thing was unhinged, but it’s also in reference to the music video and the lyric “the naked ape is dancing”. I would counter with the song and performance being serious enough that this one does not count. Also I don’t know anything but the one song but Gabbani does not strike me as being on the chaotic part of the spectrum so he doesn’t count in my book.

If it’s not at least as chaotic as Käärijä, at the bare minimum, I do not want it.

I respect your vision though. Kind of.

[microwavetoaster-selfships]

Fun silly headcanons post about how well I imagine my F/Os can cook<3 and I get a little carried away with some other related stuff as well :)

Going under a read more cause I list several F/Os and it gets a wee lengthy teehee

I think I've mentioned some of these a little bit before, particularly Finn and Francesco's, perhappsss maybe Axlerod's a little bit? But if you've been around here for a long time and maybe have a fair memory, you probably remember me talking about Francesco's a bit.

Whew. Big read. Did NOT intend for it to be this long, had no clue I had this much to say on it😅😅 was considering doing more F/Os but figured it was long enough as is for now :)

Lightning: I don't think he'd be an AWFUL cook per se, but I think he'd just have such little cooking experience that he'd be (respectfully)below a novice level. He probably got the usual treatment of his parents always cooking for him before he moved out(which absolutely isn't a bad thing one bit), but he probably never had a strong enough curiosity/interest to question what they're cooking or how they're making it or anything. He definitely gets less time to explore cooking with being on the road a lot for racing stuff, but that's probably a benefit if anything because he'd probably have far too little interest in doing it anyway. He practically runs off of whether something is stimulating him at the moment, and if he gets too bored with it or impatient, then it just becomes a pain for him. He probably hardly survives preheating the oven if there's no prep-work to pass the time or someone to help the time go by. Probably survived the off-season of racing via delivery food or going out to eat places.

Francesco: please please PLEASE don't let him in the kitchen, I'd barely even let him use a microwave. He'd probably mistake 6:00(minutes) for 60:00 and wouldn't realize until some fire alarm went off and he burnt and cracked a plate(+smokey smell). His mama was an excellent cook, truly a fantastic one, the definition of homemade comfort food that was basically a source of love, but that was inevitably his downfall as well, because he didn't have to ever be considered about making anything. Don't get me wrong, regaurdless of his age no matter how young or old he was, he absolutely was eager to help his mama out with things and that included cooking, but something about it just does not click for him, it simply isn't there. He probably gets too excited from all the smells and memories that anything and everything is just in one ear and out the other. He'd probably had to have a task repeated to him about three different times and I question if I'd let him do anything more challenging than chopping vegetables or cracking an egg. Don't get me wrong, if he offers to lend a hand I won't turn it down(he'd probably get a bit upset/offended if I did), but he's getting the busywork tasks whether he knows it or not. To sum it up simply, gotta handle him like he's the newbie on a construction site.

Finn: He can absolutely cook and he's astounding at it, too. I don't know if he just has an incredible knowledge of Every Recipe EverTM or if he just as some wonderful secret cookbook that has Every Recipe EverTM but wow, you ask him to make whatever you want and he is making it astoundingly, and if it's not to your taste he will tweak it until it's idealized just for your personal tastebuds. Only time I thought I mightve stumped him was when I asked him about making biscuits and gravy cause I love that stuff and was craving it but, yknow, not very much a UK thing... at all.. for a multitude of reasons. But some how some way he managed to make something that only a madman would doubt it wasn't his first time making it. Don't know how he does it, where he gets his recipes from, or if he just knows enough that he can make whatever he pleases with just a general knowledge, but there are no bounds that hold him. DOES not help that he insists on cooking my every meal and is such a big stickler for frozen meals and things, because now I have to be subjected to delicious homemade meals for the rest of my life, great. I do get some kicks of amusement from trying to watch the gears in his brain turn when I sometimes tell him I miss a certain frozen food or frozen food brand.

Axlerod: His cooking level is mostly just a combination of not really ever having any experience with it and not really having a great interest in much of it either. I mean, he's incredibly wealthy, and he doesn't have a very complex palate, so it's rather simple for him to just buy whatever he wants to eat. He also is in a fairly dense dense area, so walking to places to grab something isn't entirely out of the ballpark. I wouldn't say he's BAD at cooking, maybe mediocre, but that's just cause of his lack of interest in exploring it. But there's zero worry about him burning down the kitchen or anything. Can confirm that he does make good sandwiches though, if that accounts for anything. And box cake mix, can't forget that one, unironically very important.

Grem: eeehmm.... I mean... he makes pizza, right? So,, I definitely can't say he's BAD at cooking or anything. It's just, I mean, I've never really SEEN him cooking. Heck, The mental image of him cooking makes me giggle a little, if that's a testimony to anything! Though I think that might also partly be because it's such a domestic soft thing in my mind aaaanndd he is.... normally far more gruff. Pretty sure him and Acer thrive off of quick ready to eat things or things that can be thrown together verryyyy simply, like canned/frozen foods or packs of Ramen, microwave food, etc.. Pretty much your 'average' person I would assume when it comes to cooking stuff, give or take a few things. He probably knows a little extra advanced cooking stuff just for the small occasions where he has to make/get something special for Acer that they don't already have.

Acer: He's a bit of a selective eater, but lucky for him most his comfort/safe foods are things that can be thrown in microwaves and paired with fruitcups. Not very good at cooking, and I'd keep a close eye on him in the kitchen. I'd let him poor his own cereal and probably let him fix a thing a box pasta and canned sauce by himself(given someone was close by..just in case..), but anything too further complex I'm not so sure about. He just gets a little too hasty about it all and skips a few steps and it quickly takes a turn of the outcome. He means well though, he just gets so excited about doing something with someone he loves; I highly doubt you'll ever catch him cooking by himself very much, if at all.

Jackson: Abbbsolutetly not, you would have to bribe him to even cook anything that wasn't like instant cup of noodles or something. He's very selective about foods and different tastes/textures, so he normally gets his stuff from the same place over and over again, and this makes him want to cook less because he doesn't want to have to go through the understandably, to him, frustrating process of trying to make something and it being off and then he's got to dispose of it all now. Local pizza place is the only place he'll get pizza and such from, Cafe up the street is where he goes for sweets, it's all laid out in his mind. Heck, if you asked him, he'd probably argue if cooking was a necessity or not. Though, he is in a position where can afford practically living off of buying delivery. Believe it or not, but he normally leans towards getting more higher-end stuff as well. It's only once a month or more that he considered stopping by like a Wendy's or such for something to eat. It's honestly kinda intriguing that depending on what he wants to eat entirely changes where he's going to be getting it from, even the most minute seeming sort of things. That place he gets pizza from is now the ONLY place he will take it from, no where else will due. It starts to take a bit of a toll on him though when he has to be on the road for traveling and racing stuff, and he has to go to new places for foods and such.

[markantonys]

is this character bingo for just wot characters or can i request one outside of that bc i would love to see a chart for mr. francesco pazzi (who i recognize is a Real Man in History but still)

yes absolutely let us talk about The King Blorbo, francesco pazzi!!!! (the fictional version from medici s2, not the Real Man in History)

so close to bingo in so many places! first, i need to put a picture of him so that everybody can understand why i chose both "they are so cool looking" and "why do they look like that"

look at his gay ass little pinky rings and the hair gel he somehow acquired in 1400s florence. i love him.

i did partial ones for "didn't get enough screentime" only because i wanted him to be in every second of all 3 seasons of the show and "wasted potential" because, while he has an excellent and shakespearean-ly tragic character arc, he should have either married lorenzo and co-run florence with him or killed lorenzo and become the sexy new tyrant of florence.

[inprometheanfire]

@all-is-fair-in-love-and-war​ sent: ✍️ : What is your muse’s handwriting like? Is it neat? Sloppy? Fancy? / ⌚️ : Is your muse good with keeping on schedule for meetings, appointments, or events or are they always late? Or are they always a bit early? For Francesco ☺️

random headcanon meme

I do believe we get a glimpse of Francesco’s handwriting in the episode where he goes through the Pazzi books for Lorenzo, but I can’t find a gif or screencap of it so I’ll do my best to describe it. It’s practiced and neat, in significant cursive with rounded loops and sharp crosses over the t’s. It’s straight, even, and yes very fancy. As for whether or not he’s good with time management, I’d say he’s somewhere in the middle. He’s quite laid-back, at heart. However, his uncle ensures that meetings are kept on time and schedules are upheld when their date arrives. It’s not that Francesco is terrible at keeping time or is often late. Rather, he doesn’t truly prioritize certain meetings or scheduled appointments despite his efforts to prove otherwise. In any case, he’s never late, especially if he says he’ll be there at a certain time. Instead, he’s right on time.

[all-is-fair-in-love-and-war]

9. does your muse think violence is ever warranted? - for novella

Okay, so this question is very very interesting and to made me think a lot. Because with Novella, in the show, we didn’t get a lot of her sadly, and we didn’t get to see a lot of her relationship with Francesco (which we deserved more of. We were robbed). Now, I think Novella is a very sweet, kind and caring soul. I think she is quiet and has a want to understand everything deeply.

So it took me a while to think over this, cause I think it would be an important part of who Novella is. The answer didn’t jump right into my head, like it would have for other muses, for example, Clarice. I think we all know she doesn’t like violence in any capacity except when it is truly truly unavoidable (hitting Francesco in the head with a statue for one). But no, Clarice would never think or want violence to be warranted.

But when it comes to Novella, I think there would be situations in which, yes, she would think violence would be warranted. Now this view of hers, is also essential in her understanding to who Francesco is, and who he was. But it is also essential to who understanding who Novella is. Clarice and Novella I think are quiet similar in their own ways, but Clarice was very sheltered, perhaps even more so than other women of the time period in which she lived because of her and her families piety. This shelteredness is very apparent especially when she comes to Florence.

Novella, albeit was no doubt sheltered as well, she was of course a woman in such a time period. But she was not as sheltered to the extent that Clarice was.

Novella was a daughter of the Renaissance.

She knew more of the world, and I imagine her education was more akin to that of Bianca de Medici’s than to Clarice’s. Novella is grounded in the world she lives in and knows that despite her not agreeing with violence and not wanting to condone it, there are some situations when it is necessary. For example, in the defense of her children, her husband or her family, she would condone violence. If someone threatened her children she would of course defend them, do whatever she had to do to protect them.

Violence is never Novella’s first choice, and she condemns pointless act of cruelty and violence. But she understands that in some circumstances, there is no other way out. Novella also knows that her husband has a much more open view of violence, and she does not condemn him for that. But she does try to pull him away from all the things that Jacopo pounded into his head as a child, she tries to lead Francesco away from the thinking that violence should be an option and warranted for everything.

[thedragonemperess]

Backstory of your profile pic (I should’ve asked this forever ago)

Something something Pixar Cars Gravity Falls AU something something Chick Hicks would be Bill Cipher something something I drew it.

Here's the link to a Human Version I drew and posted on my Cars Side Blog.

[thewritingofspencerrose]

Mamma Masterlist

yay quinn on a well deserved norris trophy win!

"Oh my God," Is all I can say as Quinn's name gets called for the Norris Trophy. Jack standing to my left prompts my legs to do the same, trying my hardest to take a wiggling Ellie from Quinn while Cohen sleeps on my hip, just five months old.

My face nearly splits open from the smile I'm wearing, Quinn ducking in to kiss my lips as he places Ellie on my other hip, kissing the top of her head and the top of Cohens. He moves down the line, hugging Luke and Jack and his parents before moving to the stage.

"Here, Elle Belle, come sit with Uncle Jack," Jack offers, her running over as soon as she's on the ground to take a seat with her 'favorite' uncle.

Thank you, I mouth, Jack just smiling as Luke takes my hand that's not holding the baby to my lap, offering me a smile as the tears trail down my cheeks in joy.

Tears are in my eyes as Quinn makes it up, standing in a room of legends to take his trophy and the microphone.

"First off," He begins, smile bright as day. "I'd like to thank my teammates. It's a great group of guys, and - um -" He pauses, and although I've caught him on more than one occasion practicing for this moment in our bathroom mirror, he needs this moment to think through the next minute and a half.

"The reality of winning an award like this is you can't do it alone, and you really need good players around you. And I certainly have that, so thanks fellas."

"Um- to my coaching staff, great group of people, love playing for you guys. Um- Patrik Allvin and Jim Rutherford, thank you for your continued mentorship and trust. To the Aquilini family, Roberto and Francesco, for being here, nobody cares about the city and the fans more than you guys, so thank you."

"Momma," Ellie tries to whisper, stealing my attention, "Daddy got his award?"

"Yes, baby, Daddy won," I answer, Jack and Luke smiling the brightest.

"And to my family more than anything-" I can't help but look to the Hughes beside me, people who have been in my life for years, and be eternally grateful that I was accepted into it. "My brothers, its surreal to be able to go through the same profession as you guys, and my parents, for your continued support and love."

"And to my wonderful fiance," Oh God I'm not prepared for this. His eyes meet mine, smile growing impossibly larger. "This has been the first season I've been blessed enough to be a father, and truly I feel that's what drove me to be the best captain I could be. I love you and thank you for bringing our gorgeous kids into the world."

I blow him a kiss, tears still streaming as Lu squeezes my hand, chuckling.

"He was nicer to you than he was to us," He mumbles, entirely a joke, but it does earn a small laugh.

"And most importantly and lastly," Quinn continues, eyes on the trophy in hand, "to Roman Josi, congrats on a great season, wherever you are-" His eyes scan the crowd, chuckling when he finds the man in question. "There you are, when I think Nashville Predators, I think you, and you're a fantastic player and they're lucky to have you."

He turns, eyes landing on their next target.

"And Cale, I probably love watching my brothers play most, but I'd say you're next on that list, and I've learned a lot from you, so um, congrats on another great season, and appreciate you guys. Thank you."

His eyes meet mine, smile wide and eyes wrinkled at the corner in joy.

This is my boy, the father of my children and the man I love.

I could not be more proud.

[agatharkn3ss]

AAA is retelling the story of Macbeth

Note: Yes, this is a very long post.

I believe Jac Schaeffer is telling us a version of Macbeth. The ballad lyrics use a quote from the play “Fair is foul and foul is fair”. There is also the painting in Agatha’s living room – “Macbeth and the three witches" by Francesco Zuccarelli. The painting clearly meant something to Agatha’s consciousness and it feels like it was meant to be seen, whether foreshadowing or reflecting emotional state (I wrote more about it here). Yet, Jac herself has not mentioned Macbeth in her interviews even once, which is interesting.

A huge question explored (but not answered) in Macbeth has always been about who is in control of our actions. Do we have free will or is already written for us by someone else? Can only one person be held responsible, and if so – is it the doer or the enabler who is to blame?

A quick play summary: Macbeth is a play written by William Shakespeare. It starts with Three witches telling the Scottish general Macbeth three prophecies: that he will be the Thane of Cawdor, that he will become a King of Scotland and that children of Banquo (his friend) will become kings. Shortly after, Macbeth really is appointed the Thane. Encouraged by his wife, Macbeth kills the king and becomes the new king. But he descends into paranoia, worried about the third prophecy, so he kills Banquo too. He seeks the witches out again, looking for reassurance. They show him 3 apparitions, which he interprets in his favour, giving him false sense of security. Civil war erupts to overthrow him and Macbeth is eventually killed.

When you compare the play with what we’ve seen in the show, the parallels become more and more obvious, and I think we can even identify who the characters are meant to be. My interpretation is:

Teen = William Shakespeare, the author

Agatha = Macbeth

Rio, Lady Death = Lady Macbeth (or Lady Macdeath?)

Banquo = Jen (but also Wanda)

The three witches = Alice, Evanora and Lilia (Maiden, Mother, Crone)

Detailed analysis:

Teen = William Shakespeare

The first obvious connection is the shared name and the fact that Vision actually said he wanted to name his son after William Shakespeare quoting “All the world’s a stage. All the men and women are merely players.”

This goes well with the implication that Billy has indeed “written” the Witches Road. I don’t think he is deliberately controlling it though – I believe his intentions are just so strong that the Road reflects everything we see in his room. He set the frame but he is not in charge. In fact, it feels more like the influence comes from William Kaplan rather than Billy Maximoff.

It is worth noting that the Macbeth play is set in a morally ambiguous society that judges others in black and white, while allowing shades of grey for themselves – very reminiscent of Billy’s attitude about witches in ep.5 when he said he is not like them at all – immediately followed by him lashing out. Lilia also reminds him in ep.7 of how much in common he has with this idea of a witch that he so vehemently rejects. I think in the end, when he realises that he is both Billy and William, he will also understand that he is not just a “writer”, but also a “player” of the story.

It is also interesting how there is no sun in the painting – similar to the perpetual night we see on the Road. The painting’s interpretations often suggest that the dark sky represents the theme of death lurking around (fitting that Jen calls Rio a “creepy lurker”). So I do believe that just as we have the symbolism of the Moon, there is also meaning to the Sun and the lack of it. This is why during Billy’s tarot reading, his card for “what’s missing?” is the Sun. At his bar mitzvah William Kaplan is in a white shirt. But when Billy returns home from the hospital, he’s wearing a stripy black and white top – but the white stripes are thin – only glimpses of William. Eventually Teen becomes this goth kid – suggesting that darkness has overtaken him. But in a promo we see him wearing a different top – again with black and white stripes but they are more equal and uniform. I think this symbolises that he realises he is both, Billy and William and it’s no longer murky to him. The Sun and the Moon are in balance. (And to that point – in ep.1 in Nicky’s bedroom we see wallpaper prominently showing both Sun and Moon elements. And the child’s drawing has the Sun at its centre)

Three Witches = Alice, Evanora and Lilia

This one is a more loose interpretation, but I think it ties well with the ongoing theme of “Maiden, Mother, Crone”. In Macbeth, it’s the witches that open the play, portraying them as those mysterious but powerful witches, controlling the events. But throughout the play, the audience realises they might not be as powerful – in fact, it is questioned whether they actually have the power to make things happen, or they merely have the ability to see the future. Eventually, they have less and less presence, and are not even there when the prophecies are fulfilled – suggesting that they were merely an illusion of control.

The fact remains that the witches are literal harbingers of doom – with their symbolism of number three (that is also heavily explored in this show, post here). They did share the prophecies, giving Macbeth the information he didn’t ask for. And later, when he comes for reassurance, they show him 3 more apparitions (well, 4, but he doesn’t take the last one in). The significance here was that the message here was so vague and deceptive that it could have one of two completely opposite meanings – and their interpretation proves crucial to the final outcome. The apparitions were telling Macbeth to be afraid, but instead he read what he wanted to see. He left feeling reassured, secure and justified in his actions. Again, the witches could be represented here as being deceptive, driving Macbeth’s demise. It feels like they had this insider knowledge that should’ve shared with Macbeth that would completely change the context of the message. But they didn’t and it’s a question if they ever even could.

Interestingly, in Act 3, Scene 5, the witches behave very differently to how they were before and it is believed that this is because this particular scene was not actually written by Shakespeare but by the actors themselves – if true, this would be an excellent parallel to episode 5 (and Agatha’s wearing a jersey with no.3). I believe Agatha’s trial was hijacked by Vertigo from Salem Seven. There were many inconsistencies with the previous trials, but I think the biggest tell was that the aspect ratio didn’t change – thus Vertigo taking over Billy’s story.

So, with all this in mind, I think that the show’s Three Witches are not active messengers to Macbeth/Agatha. It’s more about her interpretation of what they each represent in terms of her own destiny. I linked this with the Mother, Maiden, Crone - i.e. the Triple Goddess Hecate because in the play she us actually the “boss” of the Three Witches.  

Let’s start with the obvious – the Mother element is Evanora, Agatha’s own mother who has always prophesised her that she will be evil. Then we have the Maiden. I think it makes sense that this is Alice. Not just because she is the youngest, but also because she serves as a fresh reminder to Agatha that she is actually evil, because she is the one who killed her. However, there is duality in here, because it is also an example that Alice protected Agatha BECAUSE Agatha was worthy of saving. That she didn’t actually think of her as evil, especially when recognising Alice’s own complicated history with her mother. Finally, we have the Crone – this Lilia, always complaining at how Agatha is the embodiment of the evil witch stereotype. And yet, in ep.7 Lilia gives Agatha an advice for her future – akin to a prophecy. Whether Agatha follows it or not, we don’t know yet, but it’s important to show that Lilia chose to help Agatha in the end, showing her she accepted her.

Banquo = Jen (also Wanda)

In Macbeth, the character of Banquo is Macbeth’s friend as is meant to serve as his foil – i.e. a person or thing that contrasts with and so emphasizes and enhances the qualities of another. Banquo has a lot of parallels with Macbeth and he is also present for the prophecies. Yet, he reacts differently to them as ultimately he is not interested in power.

So I think in the show, the foil is Jen – she is shown to be just as snarky and selfish as Agatha. She is also an exceptional witch that is at least a century old. But in the past she used her powers for the good before she became bound. She said she tried everything possible to unbind, but it seems she eventually accepted her fate, though she is still very much angry about it. Her business is false and people are harmed as a result, yet she knowingly continues that path.

This is parallel to Agatha, as we can predict that the myth of the witches road is her own fraud business, perpetuating it so she can steal power from the “undeserving” witches, not caring she causes harm. She probably could’ve ended up similarly to Jen or worse, had it not been for Billy pushing them both down the Witches Road.

It is interesting that they both seemingly passed their trials and yet neither of them recovered their powers. They both believe someone else is responsible for this (and to be fair, I think in Agatha’s case she is right – Vertigo stole her trial). There are many more similarities we can notice, but I wonder what this means for the future. I wonder if there will be confrontation between the two of them. I think Jen will be able to resolve her inner conflict and exit the Road, and she will become the literal High Priestess (i.e. head of her own coven) – similar to Banquo’s character, whose children became the kings, not Macbeth.

An honourable mention to another foil couple from the past – Wanda.

Both Agatha and Wanda were powerful witches, misunderstood by the society (“there will always be torches and pitchforks for ladies like us”). Both lost their children, but dealt with them differently. Both are told they were destined to be bad – Evanora calls Agatha evil and Wanda is prophesised as the Scarlet Witch who will destroy the world. It is interesting to debate who’s Macbeth and who’s Banquo in this pairing – while Agatha didn’t seem to be entirely under Darkhold influence, it was Wanda who eventually claimed Agatha’s power and the Darkhold, then become corrupted before her ultimate demise (and redemption).

Lady Macbeth = Lady Death

Lady Macbeth is the figure that often gets the full blame for Macbeth’s crimes – people even going as far as absolving Macbeth from any fault (which I think in itself is a demonstration of internalised misogyny but hey ho). She is also seen practicing witchcraft, which served as another suggestion that she was the baddie in control.

She has this line that could be a nod to Rio’s dagger - “that my keen knife see not the wound it makes”. Perhaps a reflection that Rio doesn’t want to see the pain that her actions as Death bring, that’s why she’s heavily dissociating with her powers, calling them “her job”.

When Macbeth is torn by the prophecies, he eventually decides that he will not kill the king. That very second, Lady Macbeth enters and very quickly manages to change his resolve. Later on, whenever he wavered, she was the one who would take over control. She was the ultimate enabler to his crimes, even getting the servants drunk, unlocking the King’s door, preparing the daggers etc.

She is seen as powerful but also completely loyal to Macbeth. She is devoted to the point that when she pleads with the spirits for his success, she offers them her own femininity (“unsex me”) in return, i.e. the one thing that makes her her. She doesn’t seek the power directly for herself  (though she would have it through his actions), immediately accepted Macbeth’s prophecy, understood that’s what he desired and supported him throughout. I think this probably reflects Agatha and Rio’s relationship really well. In ep.4 it is Rio who is impatient to “do some damage”.

However, despite his early signs of deep affection, as Macbeth descends into his downward spiral, he is less and less bothered by his wife. Eventually, he is the one to continue all the killings, and Lady Macbeth fades into a background. To the point where she eventually commits suicide from all the shame, yet Macbeth barely notices it. Perhaps that disconnection happened for Agatha and Rio too. Agatha was lost to Rio when she hid behind the dark magic and it was painful to her, after all these centuries.

Agatha = Macbeth

Finally, Agatha, just like in the show, represents the titular character. Even when committing murders, Hecate describes Macbeth as “a wayward son, spiteful and wrathful, who, as others do, loves for his own ends, not for you”, which I think really represents what the creators are showing us here. The setting of the play is in a world where your rights don’t matter – but instead it is the strongest that holds the power.  

Macbeth’s demise doesn’t so much come from knowing the prophecies (because Banquo heard the same), but from his fatal flaw of ambition. He read the prophecies and apparitions how he wanted them to read. They were his imaginary permission to do the killings to reach the goal. After initial doubts, he convinced himself it was the right thing to do, he became “wicked” and drove to his self-destruction.

(side note: there is also this ambiguity in the play, where there is mention of Macebth’s child, yet people think him childless, suggesting there is a story of child loss behind it – link with Nicholas Scratch?)

As explained above, the Three Witches serve as Agatha’s ingrained belief about her role. She is surrounded by number three, showing her as the harbinger of doom. She might not think this is who she is, but it is still the role she chose to play, and eventually it became self-fulfilling. Her fatal flaw is her addiction to power and she believes in that “might, not right” world. So she has this wall around her and pursues that quest for power, because what else is there left? She is unapologetic about this, but we also start seeing the layers coming off.

I think the story in the show will ultimately come down to whether Agatha understands that she is the one standing in her own way and that she is not above the rules. That no matter the circumstances and the reputation and people enabling her, she is the one ultimately responsible for her own actions.

I think she will drive herself to self-destruction and will be willing to die to gain back her powers. I think she will be left on the Road so it is “Agatha all Alone”. However, there must be some growth from her Witches Road journey, so I think in her process, she will have some meaningful resolutions with others and actually help them escape the Road. And maybe this time she will even follow the rules.

I think this will make a mark on the others so that they will actually try to bring her back somehow. She might feel alone, but the power of the coven will be the one to save her.

EDIT: Just wanted to add, yes, there is also the character of Macduff. He is meant to be this incorruptible, noble character, serving as a complete opposite to Macbeth. He is always very clear on abiding by what's right and wrong, but after Macbeth kills his family, he swears revenge. To the point that he ultimately sacrifices his own morality to restore order to the country by killing Macbeth, thus committing regicide (an act he despised Macbeth for).

While it does sound like it could point to Billy, I just don't think it fits. While Billy certainly saw himself as this "good" character, we see in the later episodes that he does actually have some darkness in him - to the point where is very happy to be Maleficent. He is more similar to Agatha than he thinks. He doesn't mind breaking the rules when it suits him ("stealing" William's body, breaking into Agatha's house, drowning Jen and Lilia) and his internal struggle seems more around finding his own identity rather than revenging a family he hardly remembers (and it isn't really Agatha's fault that they were gone). And if he truly wanted revenge, all he had to do was leave Agatha in her Agnes spell forever.

I do wonder though, if maybe to some extent we are getting William Kaplan as Shakespeare and Billy Maximoff as Macduff?

In the show there is also this ongoing theme where each of the witches are self-sabotaging and are actually their own enemies when it comes to getting "what's missing".

But if I had to choose anyone for Macduff, I think it would be Vertigo - revenging both the Salem mothers and her Salem Seven coven and seeing Agatha as the threat to the witches world, especially because she experienced it first hand. I have a theory that Salem Seven were originally Agatha's own coven that she formed after she killed their mothers, but through her cowardice, she betrayed them and left them on their own Witches Road. After that, Agatha kept conning other "undeserving" witches pretending she'd take them to the Road, while the Salem Seven became trapped and have gone "feral", thus losing their morality.

[mochiwei]

ok fuck it. i've been noticing for a while but haven't asked bc of procrastination ig. In the kiss, (gorgeous painting btw) in the bottom left corner, down the (hallway?) there is a door thing and what looks like a silhouette. was that on purpose? did everyone notice that already and just haven't talked about it? if it is a person, who is it and are they about to walk in on link and zelda smooching?

Hey Anon!

I did a cropped recreation of “Il Bacio” by Francesco Hayez with Link and Zelda but I kept the background mostly the same!

In the original version you see a shadowy figure. According to the Wikipedia article about this painting, “in the left part of the canvas shadowy forms lurk in the corner to give an impression of conspiracy and danger,” which is pretty cool!

If you’re interested in art and art history I would highly recommend reading about this painting and other works you like! The history behind art is so interesting and layered, I think you’d enjoy it! Thanks for the ask!

[italian-lit-tournament]

The participating authors for the Italian Lit(erature) Tournament: the general list + a google form to add other proposals

Podesti Francesco - Torquato Tasso reading Jerusalem Delivered to the Estensi court

The start of the Italian Lit(erature) Tournament (first edition) is getting closer, but first I want to post the general list of the authors partecipants.

The principal issue is that every literary canon is constantly changing, with more critical studies over the years. I've thought about it, read and searched, and the solution I found has two parts:

I will take the principal authors from this list, which in turn is based from the studies of Gianfranco Contini and Asor Rosa. The list is too long and many names are only chronicles and essayists, so I'll chose the principal ones, trying to balance between north/south Italy and male/female authors (taking into account that many authors that we study are men). As you will see below under the cut, the list is already pretty long, doing some math the challenge will be 2/3 months long.

Still, I recognise that this isn't 100% unbiased and fair, so I opened a free and quick google form when you can add a maximum of two authors that you don't see in the list. This considerable limit is to avoid having too many names - if in some answers I see more than 2 names, I'll take into account only the first 2 listed.

IMPORTANT! 👇

After much thoughts, I also chose to don't include living authors or authors death only recently (before January 2023). The reason is simply to avoid potential issues in the community, like bashing between fandom or admirers of some specific author, or going too far like offending some people near the author still alive or recently deceased. Maybe if this tournament will end well, a second edition could be made next year and maybe with the addition of living authors! (I'm already thinking to do an italian or european cinema tournament in the future but this is still in the draft).

Under the cut, you will find the list of the authors already part of the challenge, name-surname with the surname in alphabetical order. If you don't see a name that you want to see, use the form to add it!

edit: I added the ones from the surbey so far, all in italics. There are names that have been sent but already on the list.

Dante Alighieri

Sibilla Aleramo

Vittorio Alfieri

Cecco Angiolieri

Pietro Aretino

Ludovico Ariosto

Matteo Bandello

Anna Banti

Giambattista Basile

Giorgio Bassani

Cesare Beccaria

Maria Bellonci

Pietro Bembo

Matteo Maria Boiardo

Giovanni Boccaccio

Giordano Bruno

Dino Buzzati

Italo Calvino

Andrea Camilleri

Giosuè Carducci

Guido Cavalcanti

Carlo Collodi

Vittoria Colonna

Gabriele D'Annunzio

Giacomo da Lentini

Caterina da Siena

Alba de Céspedes

Cielo (Ciullo) d'Alcamo

Edoardo De Filippo

Federico de Roberto

Grazia Deledda

Umberto Eco

Beppe Fenoglio

Marsilio Ficino

Dario Fo

Ugo Foscolo

Veronica Franco

Carlo Emilio Gadda

Natalia Ginzburg

Carlo Goldoni

Antonio Gramsci

Francesco Guicciardini

Tommaso Landolfi

Giacomo Leopardi

Carlo Levi

Primo Levi

Carla Lonzi

Niccolò Machiavelli

Alessandro Manzoni

Giovanbattista Marino

Giovanni Meli

Pietro Metastasio

Eugenio Montale

Elsa Morante

Alberto Moravia

Anna Maria Ortese

Giuseppe Parini

Goffredo Parise

Giovanni Pascoli

Pier Paolo Pasolini

Cesare Pavese

Francesco Petrarca

Luigi Pirandello

Angelo Poliziano

Luigi Pulci

Salvator Quasimodo

Gianni Rodari

Lalla Romano

Amelia Rosselli

Umberto Saba

Emilio Salgari

Jacopo Sannazaro

Goliarda Sapienza

Leonardo Sciascia

Matilde Serao

Gaspara Stampa

Mario Rigoni Stern

Italo Svevo

Antonio Tabucchi

Torquato Tasso

Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa

Pier Vittorio Tondelli

Giovanni Verga

Giambattista Vico

Renata Viganò

Elio Vittorini

Giuseppe Ungaretti

[inprometheanfire]

@ofimaginarybeings​​ sent: clarice + francesco

send me a ship and i’ll tell you...

Who’s the cuddler? Both, though Francesco does it more often than he realizes. Who makes the bed? Clarice, even though she has housekeepers to do this. She probably does it with them. Who wakes up first? I’m sure that they get up at the same time. They both have a lot of things to do in the day. Who has the weird taste in music? Neither. He listens to various genres from indie rock to hip hop. Who is more protective? Both in their own way. Clarice is very loyal and will always stand up for that person. Francesco, too... but he might take it a step too far. Who sings in the shower? Clarice probably hums softly. Who cries during movies? Clarice. And Francesco always has to comfort her lmao Who spends the most while out shopping? Francesco. He likes the finer things in life and always wants to show off. Whereas Clarice is always using the money to help people. Who kisses more roughly? Francesco, but he tries to remember himself and to stop so that it’s not too much for her. Who is more dominant? Francesco. She’s not easy to push around though, not that he tries. My rating of the ship from 1-10. 10000000000000000

[all-is-fair-in-love-and-war]

Ⓐ - francesco & novella

This was so fun to answer!! Novella rating Francesco

Send me Ⓐ and my muse will rate yours:

Attractiveness:

repulsive || hideous || ugly || not attractive || unappealing || not unattractive || meh || no preference || ok || mildly attractive || nice looking || cute || adorable || attractive || pleasant on the eyes || good looking || hot || sexy || beautiful || gorgeous || hot damn || would tap that || perfect || godlike || holy fuck there are no words

Personality:

grating || irritating || frustrating || boring || confusing at best || awkward || unreasonable || psychotic || disturbing || interesting || engaging || affectionate || aggressive || ambitious || anxious || artistic || bad tempered || bossy || charismatic || appealing || unappealing || creative || courageous || dependable || unreliable || unpredictable || predictable || devious || dim || extroverted || introverted ||  egotistical || gregarious || fabulous || impulsive || intelligent || sympathetic || talkative || up beat || peaceful || calming || badass || flexible

How likely they would have sex with them:

not if they were the last person on earth and the world was ending || fuck no! || never || no way || not likely || not sure || indifferent || I’m asexual || maybe || probably || it depends || fairly likely || likely || yeah sure || yes || would tap that || hell yes || fuck yes! || wishing that could happen right now || as many times as possible || we are already having sex

Level of Friendship:

never in a million years || worst of enemies || enemies || rivals || indifferent || neutral || acquaintance || friendly toward each other || casual friends || friends || good friends || best friends || fuck buddies || bosom buddies || practically the same person (eventually) || would die for them || true friends || my only friend ||

First impression of them:

I hate them so much || I don’t like them || I don’t trust them || they annoy me || they’re weird || I’m indifferent || meh || they seem alright || they’re growing on me || truce || I think I like them || I like them || I’m not sure if I trust them || I trust them || they’re cool || they’re genuine || I think we’re going to get along || I really like them || I think I’m in love || oh fuck they’re hot || I love them

Current impression of them:

I hate them so much || I don’t like them || I don’t trust them || they annoy me || they’re weird || I’m indifferent || meh || they seem alright || they’re growing on me || truce || I think I like them || I like them || I’m not sure if I trust them || I trust them || they’re cool || they’re genuine || I think we’re going to get along || I really like them || I think I’m in love || oh fuck they’re hot || I love them

How good of a kisser:

worst kisser ever || terrible || bad || awkward || just okay || alright || pretty good || good || makes me moan || excellent || exciting || oh god they’re good || I dream about it || fucking amazing || absolute perfection || we haven’t kissed

It's now canon that Novella literally cannot stop talking about how hot her husband is.

"You know who is married to the hottest guy in Florence? Me."