#give me characters who you can understand why they did that even if it was awful

[gachagon]

Concerning your theory on Desmond protecting Eloise and knowing her from before the killing game, I think I found something that could be used as evidence for that.

During his introduction in chapter 0, Desmond phrases the fact he never killed anybody in a specific manner : he says

"I only practice on stationary targets. Moving targets are really outside my comfort zone. Believe me, I've never taken a human life."

He never denies having shot somebody, he only says that he never killed someone, and that he doesn't like moving targets.

That seems to be in accord with the theory that Desmond is protecting somebody from before the killing game, as a bodyguard might not have to do any murdering, simply incapacitating any threats.

As for who he protects, I think the scene where Desmond bring attention to the broken locks.

Eloise is quick to understand what Desmond is doing, defending his decision in front of everyone, saying

"I think I get what he's trying to say. You just want to everyone to be honest with each other... so we can cover all our bases... right?"

afterward, Eloise reacts to both Toshiko attempts to choose herself the pairs, and to Ingrid saying they should separate by gender.

While Desmond can keep his calm as it was already established that he was good staying composed, but Eloise, as is shown in her Free time events.

I would also like to hear your opinion on the theory that the organizers of the killing game are previous ultimates. I think we can prove two, and extrapolate two more.

I think Tozu is clearly the ultimate actor, or maybe playwright. He is quite theatrical, and he often makes literary references, from Horace to the bible. He also, in a Inner World (the scenes when Damon sleeps, taking the place of the monokuma theater), he said :

"that's what we in the industry like to call a "cliffhanger"."

Which implies he is from an industry that uses that term, so some form of media.

Mara is most likely an ultimate soldier, or similar, as she uses guns, and dresses similarly to Mukuro.

The two we can extrapolate don't have name, and one doesn't have any known talent.

The one we don't know anything about is the one mentioned in the Inner world about ships. Tozu mentions a "spindly boy with cream-colored hair". I think he is also part of the killing game organizer, even if we know nothing about him, simply because he is described physically.

The second we can extrapolate is the previous ultimate debater. In Wenona's Free time events, we learn that there was an ultimate debater before Damon, who was also more accomplished than him. I think he is part of the killing game organizers mainly because it would fit the theme, as a previous debater but with a more "important" or "real" talent than Damon.

Oh wow I did not think there'd be more evidence to support the idea of Desmond and Eloise being in some form of alliance, but the more clues people bring up the more I'm kind of convinced of it as well. I also noticed that when Desmond said he'd never "killed anyone", he didn't explicitly say he's never actually shot at a moving target, just that he's not that great at it (which I don't believe lol how could you be the Ultimate Marksman if you can't actually hit a moving target?)

However, I think the point in your second theory could have something to do with it. Damon mentions that nowadays the title of Ultimate is just "given to anyone" and has kind of lost it's meaning. And when you think about it, it makes sense when you really examine each character and how they use their talent. Damon is a debater, but he rarely uses it to argue for himself, choosing to instead use it to argue in favor of other people's points.

Eva was the Ultimate Mathlete, but she was clearly good at other things besides math. So if she wanted to, why didn't this Ultimate talent program give her a different title, or one that could encompass all of her actual talents?

Kai is the Ultimate Influencer, but a lot of the people there don't recognize him at all.

Ulysses is the Ultimate Historian but he doesn't even remember everything, and has to write most of it down.

They all are stuck with a talent but either aren't as great at it as you'd expect, or have something holding them back from really excelling in said talent. I wonder if this Killing Game is being put on by truly great Ultimates who lost their titles to the current cast of characters? Imagine you work hard for god knows how long to get recognition, but you lose it all because some kid who's not even that great at it becomes better anyways lol

And from the way Eva described it, being an Ultimate really dictates how people see you in this society. She wrote a lot of papers on other subjects but they were all ignored because "She's the Ultimate Mathlete" and that's all.

[burningcheese-merchant]

PLEASE MERCHANT LISTEN TO ME

I started watching Burning Spice Cookie's flashback in the game and suddenly I started thinking "is that all? How stupid" because there are characters older than him and who apparently haven't had this problem of "boredom from "same old thing" so he leaves the Burning Spice Cookie thing as childish. but then I started thinking, what if I developed this? You see, if a person doesn't have a proper childhood they can develop psychopathic traits (more or less what I've seen in Burning Spice Cookie) so what if he and the other Beasts didn't have childhoods? We are not given any clue that they have grown, which gives us to understand that they appeared among the common cookies as adults.

Imagine that you barely have time to know your own name and suddenly you are thrown into... (I don't know, a battle?) expecting you to help calm everything down. What if, as soon as Burning Spice Cookie was born, he began to be burdened with many responsibilities and having to fight to unify Beast-Yeast into one nation? It would be a good reason why he "got bored" with everything, since some psychopaths have that trait of enjoying causing harm or hating monotony and social rules (it could also be an explanation for your au's Burning Spice Cookie).

I am SO glad someone else sees the problem with Burning Spice's "boredom". We have a million immortal characters in this universe and not a single one has had this issue with their lives. The Ancients live forever thanks to the Soul Jam, and they don't seem bothered by it at all (hell, look at Golden Cheese. She is actively pursuing immortality, for herself and especially for her loved ones). The Elementals are immortal, and they have zero complaints about it. Millennial Tree and Sugar Swan are older than the world itself, do you see them crying about it? Nope. They live and carry out their duties happily. You don't even see this with the ones that actually WERE mortal once. Fire Spirit? He loves who he is now, he's said so out loud in cutscenes in Ovenbreak. Sherbet? Though he misses being with Cotton, he otherwise loves being free to travel and see the world almost entirely unburdened, the way he always dreamed. Frost Queen? She adopted her role and upholds the balance of nature with grace. Life and immortality are only what YOU make of them. The Beasts are a bunch of stupid, selfish babies. The end.

"Not having a childhood" IS an interesting point to raise, though. You're absolutely right: having a tumultuous youth can and often does lead to psychological issues of all kinds, big and small ask me how I know lol. And for all we really know, they WERE born adults right from the jump. How Cookies are born and how they age are SUPER weird in this series and neither is ever explained properly besides "baked in oven", so... What's keeping anyone from imagining characters just born fully grown right away?

With this in mind, and with the points you've raised, we can maybe look at the Beasts like this: people who were brought into the world without being asked (although no one is), and burdened with nigh-impossible responsibility right away. Immediately told to sacrifice themselves for people they do not know or care about, who do not know them or care about them. To uphold a balance they may not understand, nor did they create themselves. Never having been allowed the chance to live and grow as all sapient beings are entitled to; to go out and have fun and be foolish and make mistakes that they end up learning from. They were born abnormal, and they never never allowed to escape that abnormality once. They live only for others, never for themselves, not even for small things. One has to wonder if they even counted as people at all in the eyes of those they fought for, or if they were just archetypes whose faces and actions were used to placate and justify whatever anyone wanted them to.

... Yeah, that sounds pretty shitty when you put it that way lol. It just goes to show how the Ancients are the true rightful owners of the Soul Jam, in my opinion. They EARNED that power, it was not given to them on a silver platter. They were able to live life as regular mortals for a while, then actively sought out that power and proved themselves worthy of it. Hollyberry united an entire region of warring houses. Dark Cacao tamed dragons and brought peace to a long-devastated land. Pure Vanilla endured the many arduous trials of the Sugar-Free Road in pursuit of truth and enlightenment. These are all things that require hard work, dedication, humility, and a certain wisdom that you gain from experiencing life in general. Wisdom that the Beasts may or may not have possessed, because they may or may not have ever been able to attain it in the first place.

As for my Yandere AU Spice... Yandere Spice is well and truly a psychopath (all the Yandere Beasts are). It's the thing you see often with actual stalkers: he's more in love with the IDEA of Golden Cheese than the woman herself, as she actually exists. It's all about what HE wants, what HE needs, what HE expects from her. Pure, utter selfishness, projection and delusion, as psychopaths are fundamentally incapable of empathizing with others (that's what marks them as psychopaths in the first place). With the Accidental Yandere Golden Cheese one, he's the same, but A) leaning a bit more into his bloodlust/enjoyment of harming others (which is also common in psychopaths, like you said), and B) him actually being clever/manipulative enough (at least to some degree) to know how to play into Golden's wants and feed her ego in order to sway her (Golden in this AU is also just kind of a fucked up person on her own, independent of Spice, so it's an unlucky combination). She's not "boring" like everything and everyone else is. She captivates him, she surprises him, she keeps him on his toes. He "loves" her. Therefore, he owns her and vice versa, and he will do whatever it takes to have her all to himself, up to and including hurting and killing innocents (it's not like they mattered, anyway). What caused him to be this way ultimately does not matter; maybe it's that overwhelming burden of responsibility and lack of a choice or a chance to live life that we addressed earlier. Perhaps he was just born broken. Whatever it is, he's a bloodthirsty, selfish, uncaring monster and it is Golden Cheese that he has chosen to make pay for it, unfortunately.

TL;DR Not liking immortality is a skill issue. The Beasts are dumb little crybabies. Yandere Spice is disgusting and should face a wall. I like writing deranged people far too much. I enjoy engaging in meaningful conversation with others about things. Thank you for the ask, I vibe with your thoughts and ideas, I hope you find lots of money on the ground today

[swallowerofdharma]

Following the discussion from here. Hoping you don’t mind if I make a new post so that the other one doesn’t become too heavy. I’m answering some lingering questions, but I am also saying that I won’t be dissuaded from treating this manga differently. As said recently*, Yoneda takes such care to give details and context to the story, that it is intriguing to look into things with analytical eyes and I can’t see the problem with it. For those who maybe feel like “the story isn’t that deep”, that is more offensive to the author tbh than to me or others in fandom who write commentaries. * @dragomfry said: “It makes our analyses of her work hold extra weight because there are things that she wants us to look for and derive meaning from (rather than us trying to derive meaning from nothing to begin with)”.

So to clear this first.

I can’t quite see why this story would be distorted into something it’s not intended to be if we approach it under a romantic lens.

I am not debating people for approaching the story romantically, but - because some troubling arguments were made about the recent poll - I will say this. Rape culture takes some arguments from romantic and patriarcal views to defend the aggressors and blame the victims instead: this isn’t romanticism’s fault, but the very fact should be at least taken into consideration. [More on this below**]. So several of the reflections I was writing about framing the manga as romance rather than literary realism were prompted by this issue. And reading your thoughts about the story, I can understand where we differ so much: and that is in how we view Doumeki especially, rather than the rest. Maybe you are not romanticizing Yashiro and his trauma, but you are especially romanticizing Doumeki. For example:

I allow myself to indulge in the romanticism of it all; both of them falling in love at first sight, depressed Yashiro finally finding someone who truly cares about him, Doumeki who doesn’t back down when Yashiro rejects him, Doumeki still having feelings for Yashiro even after he shot him in the leg and pretended not to remember him, etc. There’s so much in this story that’s blatantly romantic, almost corny.

There are many aspects of the manga that I do find realistic in it’s portrayal, such as the CSA, what I don’t find realistic, however, is the portrayal of love, the romance. I find it very idealised and romanticised for the most part (i.e the falling in love at first sight (I’ll get to that), Doumeki being Yashiro’s exact type, Doumeki happens to be impotent which allows Yashiro to develop feelings for him, the fact that Doumeki is completely accepting of everything Yashiro does regardless of how Yashiro treats him, the fact that Doumeki is still in love with Yashiro after he shot him the leg, maybe he even stayed in the Yakuza world just to be near him (although who knows why exactly he did that?) Idk maybe it’s just me but I find it very unrealistic. It’s this romantic idea of „there is this perfect person out there who accepts you just the way you are and you don’t have to do anything to keep them happy, you can even shoot them in the leg and they’ll still love you, they’ll stick around no matter what it takes to be with you“.

I can’t pick and choose what I want to romanticize or not, I have chosen to look at things differently, and I am keeping the same approach when looking at characterizarion. When I look at Doumeki, I see as many problems as those Yashiro has. He is the one depressed imo, at the beginning of the story, he is in much worse shape than Yashiro. Yashiro has a support network, Doumeki was isolated in prison and kept family away when he was released. Doumeki isn’t this strong and stoic person who is in love with Yashiro and is therefore shouldering a burden or enduring abuse in the name of love. I have been misunderstood before on this, but I want to say that I look at these characters without romanticizing either of them. I am not so much interested in looking at who is right or wrong, or to paint one character in a better light and bashing another: I want to understand their differences and how they came to be, how the relationship is affected by those differences. This is why I don’t take a shipper’s approach either, I am not solely focused in their relationship, but in the story as a whole.

There are several posts where I talked at lenght about these characters, because Yoneda gave a lot of backstory, and I encourage who may be interested in checking further. Doumeki has trouble facing or recognizing reality, until reality kicks him in the face, and that is happening to him since the nurse and Aoi. So he is only observing when it suits him. Yashiro established his emotional boundaries plenty of times, and Nanahara is there to corroborate and reinforce Yashiro’s prefereces. Here are some examples, and these are from volume one alone. It is a pretty clear situation, and Doumeki understood it.

I know that people are objecting to the very idea of framing Doumeki as the aggressor in this case, but the power dynamics had already shifted at that point when things went down in ch 24-25. It is the result of an escalation that sees Doumeki hiding his feelings and his arousal, and becoming more aggressive and unhinged towards others during the investigation into who ordered the hit on Yashiro. Yoneda was painstakingly building towards that scene, while also painting a bigger picture and external plot, and there are so many details that I haven’t even touched upon yet, but nothing is filler. And the parallels between Doumeki’s arousal and his violent behavior can’t be easily ignored.

Again, I feel quite powerless and unequipped to persuade those who already formed their opinion. But when given arguments in favor of dismissing Yashiro’s right to object or arguments that shift the focus away from the simple topic of consent, then I have to ask myself why this is happening. **Rape culture does play a role, and as I said, rape culture can and does weaponize some romantic ideas about love. Or against the autonomy of the person, against choice and so on.

I find it very important that Yoneda chose to put those words in the mouth of an ex-policeman, while dressed up as a policeman, and of another abusive detective with the police. Or the fact that Inami commented on Doumeki’s father building a career to cover up his crimes. See these statements from the Wikipedia page on rape culture:

With how difficult has become to search on the web for unbiased results, I am just giving the Wikipedia page not as a source of authority, but as a peer reviewed summary that provides a starting point for research and some bibliography on the subject. For example:

I want to add that I don’t agree with the way the article frames “men” as perpetrators and “women” as victims. That should be corrected and can be misleading. Men have been historically and consistently discouraged to speak up about being victims of rape themselves and often the law didn’t even consider them. And the gendered approach contributed to make so many victims invisibile. There is so much we have to learn.

Again, this post is solely for the purpose of answering arguments or points made directly to me about how we interpret the story in Saezuru. These are my observations and reflections, the links I see, and it is possible because these things are in the manga. And last, I love love-stories. But romance - especially romantic tropes, often reinforced by fandom shipping culture - don’t always equal love to me.

[im-so-normal-iswear]

Amy Rose, Blaze The Cat and Sonic (separate) X Reader in:

where the characters are in the other room doing whatever until they suddenly hear the reader in another room saying stuff that sounds rather suggestive, so when they come over to check what the heck is he doing, turns out he is doing something mundane and not doing anything suggestive despite how it sounds out of context.

A/n: I couldn't think of like a name to put for this

TW: SUGGESTIVE

Amy:

Amy was reading a magazine, she was at your house currently in your living room, you being just the room over. She enjoys your company, even if you two didnt even really interact, you being in the vicinity was enough for her.

"Bleh, why is it so hard?"

Amys ears perked up. What? No. Thats bad, she shouldnt assume things just by one small thing heard.

"Im surprised it got so big"

W h a t.

She didn't see you walk into your room with you, what was happening? Seriously what?? Maybe its a coincidence, maybe right? After all, who would do that while someown is iver. No one right?

"This is so hard, can I even like eat this?"

...

She sat horrified for a moment. Gross! Seriously? SERIOUSLY?? How dare you, WHILE, shes over nonetheless??

She took a firm grip on her hammer, flustered as her ears pinned to her head. She stood up, marching over to your door.

She reached for the handle, hesitating amoment before shaking off said hesitantions and grabbing the knob and swinging it open.

"now just WHAT is going on here-..."

You looked up at her, crouched down, bowl in hand and a rice spoon in the other. A rice cooker was sat tight infront of you.

"..."

"..."

Amy lowered her hammer, taking a deep breath, still recovering.

"Y/n, what are you doing?"

You looked down to the rice cooker than up at her a few times.

"Making rice... I uh.. Got a new rice cooke-"

"I can see that" Amy sighed as she put a hand to her head. "What was with all that stuff earlier?"

"Oh, well, i messed the rice up, didnt add enough water, and now its all hard, im surprised it managed to rise at all because of how hard it is."

"..."

"Amy... You.. Okay?"

"Forget it."

Blaze:

She was over at your house, it was rare she visited your dimension, but when she did, she always wished to make a pit stop at uour house, she enjoyed your company.

When she stopped at your house, you gave brewed her tea, after all, shes a princess, and uh, princesses like tea right? While the tea you served her wasnt nearly as high quality as the one she usually drinks, she appreciated the effort.

Really, you were a very enjoyable person to be around. When you finished giving her tea, you excused yourself somewhere else, she nodded, understanding. Currently she was reading a book, while taking sips of her cup here and there.

"Gh- so... Tight.."

Your voice cracked through the air, it was breathy and light.

Immediately her ears twitched as she paused mid sip, wide eyed.

She hadn't meant to eaves drop, but now she is concerned.

No. It couldn't possibly.

"I cant, get. It. Out."

...

Blaze sat up, beelining toward the room you were in, whirling around the corner to see what in the world you were up to.

She saw you with a remote and screwdriver attempting to unscrew it to no avail.

She stood in silence for a couple moments before you glanced up.

"Oh, hi blaze, i was just trying to switch these batteries, ao we could watch a movie"

Blaze was silent for a moment before extending her hand. "Give it to me, I'll do it"

"You sure? I mean, its like really in there-"

"Im sure"

Sonic:

You’re in your room, trying to set up something that, to your misfortune, had proven way more complicated than expected. It’s a lazy day at home, and Sonic’s taken up a spot on your couch, sprawling out like he owns the place. He’s flipping through channels on the TV, a little bored but content to just chill in your company.

It’s peaceful until you let out an exasperated groan from the other room.

"Theres too much of it..."

Sonic’s ears twitch, but he doesn’t move. It’s not unusual for you to talk to yourself, and he’s gotten used to tuning it out. "What are they even doing in there?" he mutters to himself, shaking his head.

A beat passes, and then he hears your voice again.

"Why is it so sticky?"

The remote slips from Sonic’s hand, clattering onto the floor. His eyes widen as his brain processes what he just heard. Okay, that sounded… not great. He leans forward slightly, his spines bristling.

Another moment of silence. Sonic tells himself not to jump to conclusions, but his curiosity is getting the better of him.

Then you add, "Ugh, it’s getting everywhere!"

Sonic bolts upright, his mind running a mile a minute. What the heck is going on in there? He rubs the back of his neck, trying to play it cool even though his face is heating up. Surely you wouldn’t be- no, there’s no way. Right? But still, those noises and your weird comments are enough to make him suspicious.

"Y/N?" he calls out, his voice a little higher-pitched than usual. XEverything okay in there?"

You don’t respond immediately, too focused on whatever you’re doing, and Sonic’s imagination starts to spiral. The possibilities bounce around in his head, none of them remotely innocent. It’s driving him nuts. Finally, he can’t take it anymore.

"Alright, I’m coming in!" he announces, standing and darting toward your room before you can protest.

He skids to a stop at your doorframe, blue blur coming to an abrupt halt as he takes in the scene.

There you are, sitting cross-legged on the floor with a jar of honey, large bowl, and other small jars and bottles close to you. A spoon was in your hand. There was honey all over the jar

You glance up at him, blinking in confusion at his sudden entrance. "Hey, Sonic. What’s up?"

Sonic just stares at you, his brain trying to catch up.

"...Honey?" he finally asks, his voice flat.

"Yeah." You hold up the sticky jar. "I was trying to make this skincare mask i saw inline, so i bought honey for it, but when i brought it here, i severely underestimated how stucky it is, its just getting on everything"

There’s a long pause. Sonic presses his palm to his forehead, dragging it down his face as he exhales loudly.

"Seriously, Y/N?" he groans. "You had me thinking- ugh, never mind. Forget it."

You tilt your head, utterly baffled. "Thinking what?"

"Nothing! Forget I said anything!"

[pukanavis]

Kiroku Kinugawa SSR "Cosplaying With Love" Track 2

Location: Living Room

Sakujiro: Now then, may everyone who would like to be Shota Kashii, the protagonist, please raise their hand! Come now, the early bird gets the worm, as they say.

Akuta: You’ve gotta be mega overzealous to pull off Shota, so Teach has to be the perfect pick, right?

Momiji: Huh!?

Setting aside the overzealous part, but…

Isn’t Shota a male character? It might be weird if I did him.

Sakujiro: Chief, do not place a limit on your cosplay possibilites.

Ushio: There’s no rule that says girls can’t cosplay guys. Heaps of girls do it, in fact.

Sakujiro: Anyone is able to become whatever they wish, and there is no one who can say otherwise.

Momiji: I see…there’s so much freedom in cosplay…!

Ushio: Alright, go ahead and do Shota’s signature pose and quote.

Momiji: His signature quote…uh….

[Option 1] : It has to be...

Momiji: I-it’s about…to get heated… …get ready? Sakujiro & Ushio: … Momiji: T-That was a bit embarrassing.

[Option 2] : What was it again?

Momiji: What was it again…? Kiroku: ! Here. Momiji: (Oh, Kiroku-kun flicked to a page I can copy…!) Uhm, it’s about to get heated… Get ready!

Sakujiro & Ushio: Rejected.

Momiji: I understand!

Sakujiro: It simply won't suffice. You’re awkwardness cannot be overlooked.

Ushio: Are you even taking this seriously…?

Kiroku: Brutal…

Akuta: I think meeker protags have their place too~.

Muneuji: Now then…it would make sense to do Shota’s rival, Reito, next. Who would like to be him?

Kiroku: I think…Nanamegi…looks like him…

Momiji: Oh, I can definitely see it!

Ushio: Nope nope nope. Absolutely not.

Nanaki: Hmm, I’m not sure.

Kiroku: You’d…say his quotes well too.

Nanaki: “Bon appétit” ?

Ushio: Bgh—

Akuta: Woah!

Momiji: You nailed it! 

Kiroku: It’s…just like Reito.

Sakujiro: What is your verdict, Kurama-kun?

Ushio: Gh…gah…urgg…

Muneuji: U~chan, why’re you crouching on the floor?

Ushio: I-It’s barely passable…it doesn't compare at all to the original though!

Nanaki: I made the cut? I expected you to have more criticism to throw at me.

Ushio: Huff, huff…hhh….

Kiroku: (Why did he start gasping for breath…?)

Momiji: Who else is there… Oh, Ouji-kun! The pudding one!

Ushio: Ugh…all of you are rejected! Every one of you would mischaracterize him!

Akuta: Hmm, I think I’ll give that Kiyama guy a go then. He seems like he knows his stuff, and he makes for an awesome support character!

Muneuji: In that case, I’ll be Utawa, the one beside him. Who do you have your eye on, U~chan?

Ushio: …I’m going to be Tsukasa Kaido, the guy hosting the Patissier Battle. That lucky guy gets to watch the students at Framboise grow stronger in real time.

Nanaki: Looks like we’ve all gone with side characters. Shouldn’t Ushio be the main character?

Kiroku: He’s…the most particular one here…

Sakujiro: Now then, let your heart and soul become one with the character—Un, deux, trois.

Akuta & Ushio & Muneuji: *pose*

Momiji: Where's that pose from?

Ushio: It’s from this panel.

Nanaki: You can barely see him…

Sakujiro: The touch of a dedicated fan, I see. An absolutely impeccable recreation! Now then, Kinugawa-kun is all who remains.

Kiroku: Huh…!? But…I was just…going to draw…

Momiji: Why don't you try Hinomiya, the new character?

Ushio: Hmm, that’s not a bad idea.

Muneuji: You both share quiet and mysterious qualities.

Akuta: You should give it a go!

Kiroku: ah….

(But…Kurama and Karigane-sensei said that cosplay is an art form too.)

(I might not be able to do it…)

…

“I’ll show your tongue…the destruction of thawing ice.”

Everyone: !!

Akuta: CUUUUT!! We have a winner!

Nanaki: That’s the same sharp gaze Hinomiya has when he’s showing off his frozen dessert expertise…!

Muneuji: You really brought the character to life.

Ushio: …Not bad, Buddha Statue.

Kiroku: …!

Momiji: Ooh…if you got Ushio-kun’s approval, then that seals the deal.

Kiroku: I-I wasn’t…that good…

Sakujiro: It would be an absolute joy to see you try to cosplay at Comipara, Kinugawa-kun.

I can already picture all the photographers swarming to you!

Kiroku: Pho…tographers…?

Ushio: Yeah, people are going to want your picture.

Kiroku: Wh…strangers are going to…photograph me…?

Sakujiro: Yes. Beneath the blue sky, like a group of mages surrounding a summoning circle, they’ll form a ring around you as an incessant rain of camera flashes swallows your vision…

Momiji: That sounds more like a ritual…

Kiroku: I-I’d rather not…

Back

[deliciouscollectorcrusadestuff]

This is just me rambling, it's not a Ted talk are anything like that. It's just something I've been saying to myself after I open Twitter/ao3, Reddit and even here and see a lot of things that have been confusing me, it's just something I just want to get out the way. You can give your opinion I would highly appreciate it.

Something that I notice after seeing Jax fans on Twitter is that We exist in a timeline where fiction character who are well written terrible people like Jimmy from mouthwash, Griffith from berserk, AM from Ihamaim. Heck Micheal Myers from Halloween, William Afton from FNAF (there are evidence that I've seen that proves that William is not a broken character and I've seen it time and time again) and characters that are known to be pretty evil and have ignored the consequences of their actions being.

Having tons of fans that are against aus that a lot of terrible things that are happening to them even though in the original story, they deserve the things that are happening to them in a narrative bunch.

However when I go to check on these platform, I see a lot of people that hate the fact that these characters who know they did wrong are not suffering the consequences of their actions and prefer if they get of Scott free. Heck prefer if they seen a opposite/nice au of that said character.

However they are willing to draw the line with a character who is simply a middle school jerk. Ive pointed out aus where they treat Jax the opposite of how they treat these evil character, they are willing to lobotomize him, beat him up till he somehow dies, torture him until he does, heck find new creative ways to give him a fate worse then death because he was acting childish in the main show.

Is there something I'm not getting? Jax isn't the only one who is suffering a fate like this, there has been alot of characters who have suffered similar issues like Jax and use the same destructive outlet and to the surprise of no one has gotten that same taste from the fandom.

Here's another one, Jiji from dandandan has gotten recently a lot of hate... If you know the character and want to know why people hate him, it's because he's simply a corny teenager who happened to friends with one of the female protagonist as a child.

Thats it, thats why people hate him. It wasn't because he was a mass murder or anything evil. No he was being corny.

These are the same people that complain about not having a morally grey character over and over again on their fyp and when you present them with a morally grey character with a lot of nuisance and understandable reasoning, they get hated more than the characters that who have done evil and know the consequences of their actions and show no remorse.

And the curly situation with mouth washing... I'm not going to touch that yet with a 5 foot pole but

Why did you asked for it. Your asked for a character that you've shown to not be able to handle over and over again, I would recommend that you read other fictional novels to help understand morally grey character. Cause you know what's surprising? All typea of character archetypes, pure evil, morally questionable evil, morally grey character and saints of all kinds have been existing for over 60 years.

Getting on track.

You know. If you think about it, character like Jax, Jiji from dandandan and a lot of character that you can find similarities are all compatible to regular people. If you understand the full content of what your reading, the setting, the plot, the characters and why they are like that. They aren't saints, and they are not monsters, just people with insecurities who are trying to live their best life or make the most out of their situation.

If you ask me why people are like this? I would say that somewhere down the lines. Media litteracy is dwindling for fantasy that the author never intended. People who simply see the character desgin of Jax. Thinking that its a cute little humanized rubber hose rabbit, knowing full well that it's a human being trapped in a digital avatar with no way to go home and being surprised that he acts as a human being and not another helluva Boss/Hazbin hotel character.

(Personal note I do not associate Jax with one of those twinks you find there. His design/gimmick is based of a rubber hose/looney tune character you find in the golden age of animation. Heck he acts nearly one to one with daily duck, just a lot more nuisances and stuff)

Jiji got the same reputation for a lesser Miner degree of being a corny teenager. Season 2 isnt out yet and I don't feel like spoiling it for people who wanna watch it. I fear that it's going to get worse for Jiji. Which is why Im asking to please revive media litteracy and common sense when we talking about characters that are morally grey.

You are free to do what ever you want, I can't stop or change your choice. What I'm saying is something that I've been seeing time and time again and thinking about it, it makes no sense for it to be the case where theirs a lot of characters who do deserve that.

This is just me rambling

[trailmix-silent-old]

TDP: general thoughts about s7 (spoilers, duh)

Sooo I know it's been a week, but I wanted to get some of my thoughts about season 7 out. I'll be posting more TDP stuff for a while after this too. I haven't posted on tumblr in like 5 years (my old blog is @trailmixstar-blog) but the possible end of this show made me come out of hibernation.

So some general points I wanna make first:

AAAAAAAADHDKDKSFDJSKSK

I can't believe the arc is over omg

I've been following this show since the day it came out

I was such an early fan that I had a Rayllum fic on Wattpad that was top 10 in #thedragonprince

And now it may be over?????? FU-

Someone hold my hand

Now, some specific things I liked about this season:

Finally the Ruthari reunion 🥺

Kosmo and Wanda Astrid being relevant

Cute Rayllum moments

Also angsty Rayllum moments that almost gave me a heart attack

Ezran actually does something this season

It might be an unpopular opinion but I like what they did with Ezran's character, I might make a separate post about it later

Aanya is the queen we need but don't deserve

Human Aaravos is such a silly lil guy

Sorvus should've been canon but I enjoyed their banter nonetheless

The dry baguette is somehow still in the lodge

And so many other callbacks to earlier seasons

Terry finally joins the good side

Karim is still such a little bitch istg

(His death was gruesome but I still laughed)

Love how Callum still insists on using his elfsona even though the war is long over

Claudia's new armor? *chef's kiss*

Things I liked less:

Did- did they seriously confirm the Harrow bird theory in the last few minutes? Seriously?? Is this a joke to them? What's he been doing for over 2 years? Just eating worms while watching the potential end of the world?

Is it just me or was Aaravos dumbed down a little? Like him saying Callum's name while trying to give him the poisoned apple, like that's such an obvious mistake. And I didn't really understand why he killed the bird in front of Terry? He knew Terry would be upset, potentially leave and inform everyone about Aaravos returning. Was there a purpose?

I feel like the explosives could've been used more, but maybe if the series continues they'll be relevant then

Many things were left openended, many unanswered questions. What will happen to the novablade? And the evil coin? What about Miyana and her baby? And the self-eating to stay immortal they discovered? Was Harrow seriously the bird all this time?????

Overall, I really liked this finale. I especially loved all the callbacks to earlier in the show. When Aaravos said an archdragon's bite can kill a Startouch elf, I immediately thought of how Zym's bite was the only thing that could break Rayla's armband thingy in season 1. Was that subtle foreshadowing? Also, Runaan was the one who taught Rayla to sweep the leg!! And she used it against Soren, who said sweeping the leg wasn't a thing in swordfighting. Nice.

I think they tied up quite a few things in the plot, but left a bunch of unanswered questions for a potential continuation. I'm really curious about the self-eating, since I think it could be an important factor in a future arc.

That's it for now. Like I said, I'll make some more TDP posts for a while, but I'll probably mainly become a Hazbin Hotel/Helluva Boss focused blog after that.

If you read this far, thanks for the attention <3

[dykedvonte]

I hate the stretch lines in the front of Curly's uniform because that means the devs rushed to make a model in like a month or so and thought "They gotta at least know he has huge knockers, gotta know he's got back pain." Cause like what is the thematic importance of his tits having overhang?

What responsibility is that representing? Breast reduction? It shows an inherent greed in his character due to the excess and heshouldletmeholdone and that he clearly is blinded cause if he tries to look down his damn ladder all he's seeing is his own cleavage.

[necrotic-nephilim]

If you want to be bothered. Maybe this for dick and Bruce???

i ALWAYS want to be bothered these are always the highlight of my day tbh you're a delight for letting me just yap <3

Dick. For the canon isn't real square I am Specifically talking about the Tom Taylor Nightwing run. Usually I ignore bad runs but given this one is ongoing (though about to end THANK GOD and get replaced by Dan Watters who i have high hopes for since i adored his Sword of Azrael (2022) run but i digress) so I counted it. Especially since it's so debated if that run is bad or not, for some reason. I'm a 90s Nightwing truther. I love Dick so dearly and tbh recently I've been more enamored with him the more I read his Discowing era, I didn't used to be as big of a Dick stan as I am these days.

Bruce. Honestly where do you even start with Bruce. I want to fist fight him and also patch him up. He got me into comics and superheroes as a whole but I roll my eyes whenever he shows up in a story. He's a bastard and usually not a good father but also complex and should be dissected under a magnifying glass. I love him dearly. He's also just the worst. I think that's why I love him. I'm always a fan of unabashedly Complicated Asshole Bruce who's generally not always the best person, particularly not to the Batfamily and that being the driving force of his relationships with them, especially in shipping.

And for bonus points, Tim. Because know above all else, I'm a Tim Drake kinnie /deg. He's been my number one for a decade and I've yet to uproot him from my brain. He's literally the Worst half the time and I love him for it. And the canon isn't real refers to Tim Drake: Robin because... that sure was a comic. And that's about all I can say about it. Pre-Flashpoint Tim I miss you so dearly. I think it's fun that I want to put him in a blender and drink the juice but also want Nothing Ever to happen to him.

[spaciebabie]

As a certified Springtrap simp, which backstory for William do you prefer: one where he was a good dad driven mad maybe by jealousy or the loss of his youngest child, or one where he was always an abusive narcisist that cared for nobody but himself?

i feel like the, "im evil so i must also abuse my creations and/or children" has been really overdone. like idk im just tired of seeing it personally. and the whole "haha!!! im craaaazy!!" thing we get in the comics also rubs me the wrong way b/c. thats not. how he's portrayed in the games at all. esp hearing him in sister location he feels like he would be a calm sort of madness. he seems like a rational guy. he doesnt talk like that. he doesnt act like that. it seems really contradictory

i feel like him being a good dad (or at the least caring deeply for his children) gives him more urgency and like,,,,makes sense w/what we're given. it aligns the most w/the theories we have asta why he started killing etc. i also just enjoy the tragedy of it. he started out as a good guy w/good intentions and then was twisted inta something unrecognizable b/c he was so focused on tryin ta reach his goal. personally my hc is that he was jelly of henry and then the death of crying child tipped him over the edge and started his whole killing thing. imo its better than, "hee hoo i was evil FOREVER!! im PURE evil and have always been EVIL!!!" like. okay. wheres the subsistence?? give him depth dammit

why would he build a robot for his daughter if he didnt love her. why would he tell crying child he would put him back together if he didnt love him (not really cemented as something he said, but i mean who else would say it?? certainly not michael he was a boy. i think as a fandom we assume its heavily implied). it makes the afton kid's deaths so much more impactful. the prospect of this man losing pieces of his life bit by bit and being driven insane by it is enthralling

i love a good chaotic descent. i love thinking abt him being consumed w/a need ta revive his own son becoming obsessed w/life and death as a result. oh the irony of loving your own kid so much you would take others children away from them, knowing how losing your own felt. and the twisting of emotions as he sees his son michael someone who he would've died for, try ta stop him. b/c hes not understanding, they need ta b together again. thats all hes tryin ta do. get his family back tagether. and all these fucking obstacles are in the way of his only goal. and the manifestation of hatred of his own son b/c of this. b/c hes getting in his way. like, talk abt juicy. i want that man ruined. it just adds a layer of psychological torture that i just adore. william fucking ruined everything. he ruined his own happy family, he ruined his own life, and if he actually mourns that? chefs kiss.

my thought is, why even have him have a family in the first place if they're just there ta demonstrate he's evil? seeing the afton family purely as a plot device, we already know afton killed kids. one can assume a person who kills kids is a bad person (maybe? see this is where the juiciness comes in w/him caring for his children. is it really bad from his perspective if hes trying ta save his kid? or is it noble?) so we dont need ta b demonstrated ta that hes a bad person again. if hes just pure evil from the get go it doesnt make sense ta me ta have the afton kids be prominent in the story (besides michael, but even then he could probably be replaced by one of the victims family members) when you could illustrate the same point by focusing on the kids hes killed and their families. why do the afton kids matter if he treats all children the same. why are we focusing so much on the afton family and what appear ta b major story beats in their story, especially since the children he has killed do not get as fleshed out as the aftons do. i feel like if his family wasnt important ta him we wouldnt hear abt it at all. you could achieve the same message by making him single and childless.

do u kno how many stories there are of "Righteous Child Of A Horrible Guy Who Hates Everything, Even Their Own Family, Goes Out Ta Stop Their Parent And Save The Day" there are? its b/c its too easy!!! its too easy for u ta assume that a character is the worst and has been the worst forever!!! its too easy ta assume that an evil character would abuse their family!!! its too easy ta assume an evil character wouldn't have traits besides jealousy, hatred and narcissism!!!!

[crowlore]

no, dragon age 2 is not the best dragon age game. but it’s also not the worst. and most importantly, it is my favorite.

[pepprs]

idk how to reconcile my new self with my old self. also i fucking hate waiting. GRAGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

[ourceliumnetwork]

i'm remembering why i don't stay on dating apps for long and why i have a hard time making connections with folks in general. if i have to teach one more fucking person about polite conversation with people you do not know yet, i swear to GOD.

[salemwasnteverhere]

How the Hashira men react to your neighbor asking you to be quiet

Characters: Tengen, Sanemi, Rengoku, Obanai, Gyomei, Giyuu,

Additional shit: Swearing, Sanemi fighting said neighbor, Rengoku being blunt, mentions of sex, ooc mot likely :p

Tengen

He couldn't care less

His whole thing is being flashy and loud so he wants you to be loud

Like it's not his fault that dick is magical

After he shoos your neighbor away he makes sure to be as loud as possible that night

He's pounding into your cunt and you swear your gonna break when he whispers "okay now scream exactly how big my dick is. Don't forget the tip color-"

He gets cut off by you hitting him with the pillow

Way to ruin the mood

But that doesn't stop him and instead he goes harder, making sure the bed creaks loud ASF for your neighbor

"Not my fault he doesn't know how to please a woman." Is his main reason for doing so

He really wants you to scream his name so it's imbedded in your neighbors head

"Morning N/N!" Him to your neighbor from the balcony while your trying to get out of bed and failing

"Actually die." Both you and your neighbor to Tengen

Sanemi

Cares alot

Why the fuck is that limp dick biscuit talking to you and him? Who does he think he is?

You were the one who broke the news to him thankfully cause if Sanemi was the one who opened the door then you'd have to see your husband through glass in a prison

Just kidding. The Slayer corp would get him out of trouble if he didn't do it himself.

Anyways

Sanemi made it his goal to piss your neighbor off as much as possible

Your under him, practically creaming on his cock, and he's slamming the wall yelling "This loud enough yet?! Huh!?"

Not kidding I can see him doing that

He quite literally had you against a window where your neighbors could see him destroying you just to make them mad or uncomfortable, hopefully both.

But then he'd get pissed someone else would see you all naked and fucked out so he settled for the wall next to the window

One day your neighbor, finally having enough, bangs on your door yelling and guess who opens it...Sanemi!!

Good Lord was he waiting for this

It took one punch and the guy was out

Kinda what happens when you put a normal dude against a guy who kills demons for a living

Rengoku

He's a good neutral between caring and not caring

Like he doesn't wanna make your neighbors mad but he also loves hearing your screams

So he tries to keep you quiet during sex but fails since he gets to into it to give a fuck

The next days his loud ass voice wakes you up

"IM SORRY FOR MAKING INCREDIBLE LOVE TO MY WIFE!" He's not being sarcastic thats his genuine apology

Your facepalming and you want to die when you see your neighbor and she can't look at you

"PERHAPS SHES MAD BECAUSE HER HUSBAND CANNOT PLEASE HER!" Rengoku says casually and you know she can hear you from outside in her garden

"Inside voices!" You place your hands over his mouth to try and shut him up.

It works for a bit before he's yelling again

You love your husband but holy shit you wish he would speak normally sometimes

He's actually quiet in bed though

So your the problem (real)

Obanai

I'm not an Obanai fan so forgive me for how bad his section will be

Obanai is a quiet mf, and you're not even that loud

It's your neighbor who was the problem

A little old man whose hearing aids apparently had the power of 67 suns

You and Obanai found this out when he was outside training and your neighbor came over

He was so sweet and polite and even chuckled at Obanai's redness

Obanai cared at first but got over it

You? You make sure to not make a PEEP in bed

Okay that pisses Obanai off but he understands your reasons

At least make a gasp or sum cause he's over here like "Wait does this feel good? Can she feel it? Did I forget where the clit is?"

Brother is STRESSING

Then you cum and he's like "ah"

Then he's like "Did you take it?"

You have to keep yourself from murdering him cause how tf would you fake squirting

Gyomei

Babe I'm not gonna lie, you're a screamer

Gyomei is built like a house and your telling me your just gonna whine and whimper?

NO

Your over here crying and screaming into his chest, neck, the pillow, anything.

And Gyomei loves it!

He can't see your reactions so hearing and feeling them let's him know he's doing good

Gyomei isn't loud but he's not quiet

He'll grunt and moan and praise you, but he's not gonna cry out.

Well he'll cry but you can never tell from what

When the pussy so good you start crying 😭🙏

When your neighbor politely asked you to be a tad bit quieter Gyomei actually laughed

Not in a 'nah we'll keep being loud' way but more of a 'sorry we'll be quiet' way. He also found it hilarious how you actually died of embarrassment.

Don't worry he thinks its endearing

Yet it was kinda hard for him since he enjoyed hearing you

But your touches and now quieter moans made that better

And then there's also you literally drawing blood from his back you were scratching so hard

Giyuu

Holy shit you have never seen him so embarrassed

Like you could shade match his Haori to him and get the exact same color

He was the one your neighbor told and he stopped working when 'loud' and 'moaning' left their lips

If a demon doesn't kill him then his own actions will

Giyuu isn't loud, and he loves that he can make you feel so good that your loud for him.

But he didn't want your neighbor back over at your house so he tried to keep you quiet

You were super confused when he held his hand over your mouth in bed and he just pointed to your neighbors house. Then you got it.

So you nod and try to keep quiet.

You know in school when the teacher tells you and a friend to shut up but they look at you funny and you break?

Yeah that was you

You were riding Giyuu one night and you were loud so he was like "holy shit I love you but please- I can't look our neighbor in the eyes anymore."

And you couldn't help but laugh

Like howling

You calmed down obviously but sex was very giggle filled after that

You've never seen Giyuu so panicked

But give him a week and he'll stop caring

[hohuios]

Tag drop: 2/2

[innerfare]

You’re Jealous

 Summary: You get jealous of someone else in his life.

Characters: Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Ace, Sabo, Law, and Kid

Genre: Slight Angst // Fluff

CW: None // SFW

——— 

Luffy:

He never told you Boa Hancock was in love with him, and when you find out, you have to remove yourself from the situation before you have an emotional outburst and start something with the Pirate Empress. The problem is, you don’t even know which emotion will spill out of you. Finding out the world’s most beautiful woman, and a powerful Warlord, no less, is desperate to marry Luffy is a whirlwind, to say the least. Luffy can seem clueless at times, but his emotional intelligence is through the roof, and he picks up on what has you upset almost straight away. He knows to give you some space, and when he senses you’re ready, he approaches you with a handful of wildflowers he picked. He doesn’t really say much, just pulls you into a hug, presses a few kisses into your cheek and temple, and says in your ear, “you’re my girl.” 

Zoro:

He didn’t mention Perona was also at Mihawk’s castle for those two years until a few months after the crew gets together. He tells a story that features her, and you realize there was a woman keeping him company. Your heart drops into your stomach. Zoro insists he didn’t mention her because he didn’t think she was relevant; the only thing Perona did those two years was annoy him. He’s actually the one who won’t let it go, not you (even though you are pretty jealous). Whereas you’d prefer not to talk about it, Zoro is wracked with guilt because he’d never considered the whole thing in a relationship context. Him fretting constantly over it actually heals your jealousy because you realize you’ve never seen him panic over the prospect of hurting anyone else’s feelings. 

Sanji:

Even with a third eye, Pudding is stunning. And Sanji almost married her. It was before you two were together, but listening to the stories from Whole Cake, hearing how close he came to marrying another woman, knowing she really did fall in love with his kind heart and wonderful cooking, turns you into a little green monster. You know you shouldn’t feel jealous of a woman you’ve never met before, a woman Sanji chose not to marry, but you can’t help it. Sanji is completely shocked that you would feel jealous over his relationship (if it could even be called that) with Pudding, though after thinking about it some more, he does realize why you might be jealous that he had a fiancé. His solution is to bring you a bouquet of roses and walk you through the dark details of his life, telling you things he’s never outright told anyone, so you understand the special place you have in his life. 

Ace:

He collects people without trying, and often times, without realizing, either. Ace thinks he’s just making friends, but you see the way the women he laughs and shares drinks with are drawn to him like plants to the sun. He promises them freedom and adventure (and he has a very nice laugh), and you can see how it excites them. You don’t really mind it, knowing Ace well enough to see the way he holds those women at arm’s length, even if he seems close with them (such is the magic of Fire First Ace). But Yamato makes you jealous. It’s not hearing the way they laughed together but hearing the way they fought that gets to you. You know how Ace lives to fight and even just roughhouse, you know how he’s a rough and tumble guy, and you worry you’re not tough enough. Should you be punching his arm when he makes a joke? Should you be trying to trip him out on deck? What should you be doing? When you finally come clean with Ace about what’s been bothering you, he actually laughs. “If I wanted to be with someone who gives me hell, I’d be sleeping in Marco’s cabin every night. Besides,” he says, scooping you up in his arms, “I like being able to manhandle you.” 

Sabo:

Sabo is a flirt, and you knew that going into your relationship. It actually doesn’t bother you when he flashes that charming smile of his at someone else or swoops in to save a damsel in distress (a speciality of his) and even serves to entertain, especially on the rare occasions his flirtations are rebuked. What does bother you, though, is his tight relationship with Koala. You know it’s ridiculous to be envious, you know Koala would sooner saw off her arm than kiss the man she considers her irksome big brother, but they’ve known each other since they were little kids, and Koala has been through so much with Sabo that the pair have such a close bond. It’s not the angry kind of jealousy that bubbles up in you when Koala mentions something about Sabo’s past that she assumes you know but you don’t, just the sad kind that you try to keep to yourself. Surprisingly, Sabo notices, though you don’t realize until he hugs you from behind and mumbles in your ear that he’s glad you’re the only one who knows he has a skincare routine, his silly words diffusing your mood and acting as the exact affirmation you needed. If it’s not enough, though, he’ll happily prove his loyalty to you by challenging Koala to a karate match, though.  

Law:

Dr. Law and Dr. Robin sure do get along well- so well, in fact, you can’t help but wonder if they are better suited to each other than you and him. Even if they didn’t have such good chemistry, it would be impossible not to feel a touch of jealousy toward the archeologist. She’s intelligent, beautiful, fiercely loyal, a member of the Straw Hats, and has an impressive bounty that she earned even before she became a pirate. Needless to say, you find yourself brooding when the Robin brings him a beer and sits down beside him to discuss the immune systems of fishmen, a topic both are rather interested in. Of course, you’re interested in that, too, thus the reason Law realizes something is wrong when you don’t participate in the conversation. He ends up excusing the two of you and taking you to bed, worrying you had too much to drink, the thought you may be jealous never once occurring to him. You end up not saying anything (many thing in your relationship with Law being unspoken) and just sleeping it off, the fact that he excused the two of you proof enough of his loyalty. 

Kid:

He doesn’t ever talk about his first love, Victoria. In fact, you didn’t even know she existed until Killer got drunk one night and began speaking of his dearly departed. What he didn’t mention was that Kid, too, had been in love with her. It only comes up the next night when you mention it to Wire, who mentions it was the death of his first love, Victoria, that put Kid on the war path and united the first four members of the Kid Pirates. Realizing Wire messed up, Heat chimes in to say, “he’d do the same for you.” But you’re not convinced, mainly because Kid never told you any of this. It tears you apart, leaves you tossing and turning for nights on end, until you finally burst into Kid’s workshop one night ranting about how he doesn’t trust you and holds you at arm’s length. “Heat says you’d do the same for me, but-” Kid cuts you off and says, “I wouldn’t do the same, I’d do worse. Much, much worse.” And from the wicked gleam in his eye, you’re inclined to believe him. 

———

Hope you enjoyed it! If you want more, you can check out my masterlist here!