#he's literally the character who has had the biggest impact on me out of any fictional character besides maybe rose tyler

[the-mpreg-guy]

Off anon I haven't seen Supernatural I just know about it from years on tumblr and that post about how letting him down is like letting down like good kind loving masculinity and I was like. Ah he's like the Virgin Mary but a fucked up bisexual man. I get wh I people like him

I KNOW WHAT POST YOURE TALKING ABOUT AND YES YES YES YES YES OKAY YES I SEE WHAT YOU'RE SAYING AND YOU ALSO SEE THE VISION THIS IS DEAN WINCHESTER STUDIES!!!

Supernatural's core tenant is that everyone is in love with Dean like sorry I don't make the rules thats literally all 15 seasons of Supernatural and he's so integral to so many peoples redemption arcs in that show and his pretty little face has started actual wars between heaven and hell and he's a mother and a father and brother and a daughter and a son and a slut and a virgin and a metaphor for jesus but also for the adversary and also for!!! the virgin mary!!! so true!!! and to love him is to love all things good and to hate him is to hate things good and also he's bisexual

[mossy-green-aka-ferrythem]

I like. Have not played a single Hoyo game so it is quite shocking to see people take deeper looks into the games and their themes to uncover just how DEEPLY racist Hoyoverse is.

When I say racist I mean like. Painting this fantasy, ideal, "aesthetic" world that only wears the face of multiculturalism, while explicitly making it so all the heroes and good characters are white, while making the enemy characters typically with a darker shade of skin. Like just. In fucking Genshin. Look at the Hilichurls. They've literally got pitch black skin and masks, and despite having their own culture, are constantly and consistently treated nothing more as "pests". Like just. I swear to god there are so many "Hilichurl" like examples of weaving weird racism into video game enemies in the wider media sphere, but I digress.

What really gets me is like. I saw some shit from fucking Honkai or whatever where there is an entire character who was born black, but bleached her skin out of shame. Like. What. Also this is all second hand, so forgive me for getting details wrong, but doesn't she just. Keep hating herself for her skin color and her heritage? Also the way her mother is drawn is just like. Somehow both a racist and transphobic caricature rolled into one. Like they illustrated her in a way that doesn't feel done in good taste. It fees like they want to evoke a sense of confusion and maybe disdain. Perhaps they wish for you to sympathize with the girl who bleached her own skin (???) and like. What the fuck is this writing HOW DO PEOPLE JUST NOT GIVE A FUCK ABOUT THIS??????

Also. There is of course ZZZ. The issue here is more what people have already mentioned and something I don't feel like fully relaying. Which is the sort of heavy emphasis and inspiration from Hip-Hop and Rap culture, but without any black characters actually in the setting. Ben Bigger is like. Legit the blackest character there, problem is that he ISN'T HUMAN. Like it shows that they would sooner create an anthropomorphic bear, a fantasy character, than a black character that actually displays their culture in a proud way. Not really my place to say all of this, since others have said it much better than I ever could. Last thing I would say is that the Black edits of the characters (especially Ellen Joe), make the character designs leagues better.

To cap off this messily organized tumblr post and rant, it brings me to my biggest issue: erasure. The fact that when you search up Tighnari, you only get that dogshit anime boy, hell, the issue even still persists somewhat when you specify for Al-Tighnari. I am not well read on who Tighnari is, but even skimming past a description of that man is truly breathtaking. He sounds like a very well traveled, very wise man who likely had a sizable impact on the world. Thing is. When you search up Tighnari you don't see this man anywhere. When you bring up Tighnari, it is unlikely people actually recognize who the man himself was. Instead you have this character, who's skin is as white as a sheet, actively acting like a shroud being thrown over an old cultural icon. His design has been criticized endlessly for how little it lines up, but that's not the point. The point being is that Tighnari in Genshin has uprooted knowledge of the original in the public eye. This is but one example, and doesn't even BEGIN to touch upon the absolute shitshow that is Natlan. However, people have already exhaustively described what is wrong with it so I digress there. Oh and I said I would close this out but like. Fucking Star Rail or whatever has a character with Dark Skin who has "shacklebreaker" as one of their main skills and like. This is some J.K. Rowling type racism. Like what. What the fuck?

Look what's really important here is that I am just so fucking taken aback by learning the extent of it. I always bore a minor grudge against Genshin, but the clarification, and the knowledge of how deep this shit goes... just makes me realize this. There is no longer any confusion about how this got so popular, because racism is excusable in general fandom spaces. Racism isn't considered a dealbreaker to many people, and that is the root of the issue I believe. How general online fandom communities and people as consumers are just so unbothered by racism that they will just not criticize it, pass it off as normal, and will actively engage in racist tendencies, rather than making any effort to better themselves and to be more tasteful in what they choose to support financially, and what they choose to consume.

[zorlovinghue]

Hiii just discovered your blog (because of TCF/LCF) and just had to ask - where is your profile pic from? And do you have any other recs like ‘The Malicious Member is Back’ because I started reading it after seeing it in your posts and am loving it so far :D

Hallooo! My profile picture is Do Seojoon from [I Became the Youngest Member of Top Idol]/[My Comeback as the Youngest Member]! He is the older brother of the MC, Do SeohanXD

If you're interested with this one, get ready to face how strikingly different the novel and manhwa is, but overall it's all good!

Other recommendations you might want to give a try to:

In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe

I'm a Genius Idol But My Passive is a Sunfish

Debut or Die

The Trashy PD has to Survive as an Idol

You might already know Debut or Die since it is the biggest in fandom too, plot-wise all of these have more progression while not very heavy to follow. With [I'm a Genius Idol but My Passive is a Sunfish] and [I Became the Youngest Member of Top Idol] being the lighter ones. I love all of them. Very much. If you're looking for a character with typical krs!Cale or Cale!krs morally grey tendency, then Seo Hoyun from [The Trashy PD has to Survive as an Idol] will be a good start to familiarize yourself. (personal feeling but this one actually got the best of me from how similarly coded he is, even the 'blackmailing'/'scamming' and 'taking advantage of someone but actually cares for them along the way' is strikingly more pronounced:D)

Surprisingly, [Debut or Die], [The Malicious Member is Back], [I Became The Youngest Member of Top Idol] are the three where the group is build up through Idol competition. While the others are making a comeback after trouble or more agency-focus debut-trainee if you did not want to go through another musings for who would likely debut in the end. Which is, fun and engaging either way!

[Debut or Die]'s Park Moondae is literally Kim Rok Soo in some unique ways.... But, hmm, maybe more of a reliable narrator in comparison? As reliable as it can be with his personality.

If you want different characterization, as in cute and adorable MC instead of the genius and cynical characters, [I Became the Youngest Member of Top Idol]'s Do Seohan and [I'm a Genius Idol but My Passive is a Sunfish]'s Han Baekya are remarkably some refreshing change! Where as [In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe]'s MC Sun Woo-Joo is more heartwarming. I think these three are actually the most mentally sounds and healthy out of others, which is sparsely seen these days.

Each of these recommendations is refreshing and is impactful in their approaches. And I personally eager to tell you that all of them are worth reading for!

[Debut or Die], [I Became the Youngest Member of Top Idol], and [In This Life, The Greatest Star in the Universe] already got manhwa adaptation, so if you need more visuals feel free to give it a long shot to go!

It's most likely that I'll missed many points considering it's been a while since I catch up, I strongly advised to take my words with a grain of salt and take a look yourself for a better judgement<3

p.s. If you want to have the Coughing Up Blood shenanigans, [The Trashy PD has to Survive as an Idol] and [I'm a Genius Idol but My Passive is a Sunfish] will give you exactly that! I'm not sure about the latter since I haven't read much but the probability is high! >///< if you want a character who's constantly in the danger of death then [Debut or Die] took it seriously with its premise lmaooo

[alliwantistowearcomfypants]

I'm not gonna lie, I think mandalorian should have ended at season 2. It just buttoned up so well, and the message was incredible. It was touching and sad. And then, like a month later, it didn't matter. Season 3 was so disappointing to me, and I think a big reason for that is because it lacked that simplicity the first 2 seasons had. The show was just about a damaged man finding his humanity and helping various people along the way. I know that not everyone loved the simplicity, but I think it was the best thing the show had going for it. Star Wars often suffers from stuffing so much crap in the story that it forgets to add character arcs.

The first 2 seasons are super character focused. The plot is so intertwined with Dins' character growth that it doesn't focus on the big picture. But in s3, Din barely has any growth as a character. There's stuff happening left and right, but Din doesn't really have any emotional stakes in it. Him trying to get his mandalorian status back feels hallow because we literally just watched 2 whole seasons of him breaking away from it. One of the biggest character moments for him was taking off his helmet for grogu. He's telling grogu that he matters more. That he would give it all up for him. It's so touching and feels like his character's natural progression. And then we're supposed to care when all of a sudden he wants back into the morally questionable pseudo cult he broke away from for his baby? I don't care! That plot point also resolves itself in like 3 episodes with little to no confluct, so now what. He wants to help Bo Katan. Ok. Why. No idea. He's kinda just there, watching things happen around him. There's no inner conflict or tough decisions he needs to make. His character arc is over, and you can tell the writers didn't know what to do with him.

The show is honestly focused more on bo katan than din. Which, no hate to her, but I'm not here for her. She's treated like a wronged princess, not like a deeply flawed terrorist who saw the error of her ways way too late. She literally aided in getting her planet overrun by crime leaders and sith. And the show just brushes past that. They don't even mention Satine, which could have been a great way to humanize Bo. Have her struggle with the fact that she got her sister killed. Have her wanting to restore mandalor for her sister, who died trying to protect it. It would have been so much more impactful if Bo Katan's motivation was out of guilt for getting her sister killed and planet overrun. She could have slowly opened up about her complicated relationship with her sister. She could have had an obi wan kenobi type arc. Learning the only thing she can do is move forward. Try to right her wrongs. Restore Mandalore in the name of her flawed but deeply devoted sister. I do not understand why they didn't at least touch on Bo's personal ties to the planet. She feels so one dimensional, and they could have easily made her more interesting. Or at least motivating.

My biggest problem with the show is that I didn't really care. I didn't care about Bo Katan's goals or Din's. And I think the biggest reason is because the show forgot to add character moments that tied them to the things they want in a personal way. Also, Din's baptism thing was stupid. Just cut that out entirely. No one wanted that.

[mywitchcultblr]

Saw your posts abt the shadow of the erdtree writing and wanted to say thank you for being open abt your opinions on it because I feel largely the same but everyone I've encountered has an tantrum if you critique the writing. Like lets be honest radahn came out of nowhere & I wouldn't even be that disappointed abt it being him instead of godwyn if there was any build up to it in the base game but there isn't.

Miquella feels like they legitimately didn't know what they wanted to do with his character which is a shame bc hes was probably my favorite demigod before hand.

His motivations are wack as fuck. He wants to make the world a gentler place but his consort is a war monger and simps for godfrey, who, mind you, led a genocidal campaign against the giants on markia's behalf??

I swear even the tarnished would have been a better choice for consort. And why imply he was torrents former master if that wasn't the case? It would make sense, melina literally tells you '' torrent has CHOSEN YOU'' so if miquella needed a consort, why not pick the tarnished who has the ability to kill actual fucking gods and isn't inherently a blood thirsty warrior.

biggest disappointment for me is mesmer, hes so cool and his lore is super interesting but he feels like his presence and relevance is side lined or just diminished. Idk. Felt like he had so much potential only to be forgotten in the wake of radahn somehow being alive and back again.

Sorry for rambling but really thank you, your posts really said what i couldn't articulate before.

Also the fact that Radahn being Miquella's consort doesnt make sense because THEY ARE VERY DIFFERENT.

Miquella desired a world of peace, so peaceful there wont be any war or conflict while Radahn is a man of action who relished in bloodshed, he's a relentless warrior who idolized Godfrey.

Him wanted a glorious battle against Malenia before settling down with Miquella, turned Radahn into NOTHING BUT GODFREY'S CLONE. Its one thing for him to idolized the first elden lord, its another thing for him to just become another carbon copy of his idol.

A cheap replica, first elden lord from wish dot com...

This weird arrangement with Miquella is detrimental to not only his Caelid arc (the whole festival thing, letting go, and putting him to rest) but also for Radahn as a person. Also if Radahn became Elden Lord (and marry Marika? Or Ranni? Or Malenia?) his age wouldn't be an age of eternal/total piece that Miquella desired, it has to be a world where warriors could not only survive but also thrive.

A world that Miquella would never approve.

"Oh but its about the symbolism of repeating Godfrey and Marika-" Symbolism for the sake of symbolism that ruined Radahn? Yeah its still shit... And yeah I dont get why Miquella would insist on marrying Radahn, while the STRONGER LORD AKA THE TARNISHED WHO BESTED COUNTLESS ENEMIES IS RIGHT THERE!

True, Mesmer should have been the main big bad, I dont care what anybody said, its such a waste that he was so hyped as this living embodiment of heresy and just ending up as not that relevant in the grand scheme of thing, like this guy has 0 impact on the main title.

I really dont want to see this DLC as canon :(

"Mr. Stark I dont feel so good."

[emiliosandozsequence]

okay i'm gonna be very frustrated and angry probably but none of this is directed at you guys i promise!!! i'm just!!!! upset!!!!!!!!!! (tagging you so you see this emily!! 💕 @thesparrow1996 )

let me start off by saying i am not a book purist by any means, but when visual media is being made from a book, i would like it to, at the very least, be telling the same story and that isn't what happened here. it wasn't even telling the same story as the first film in the series.

in the last film, it seemed pretty apparent that paul's visions were going to become a reality and then in this one they Sort Of did that, but Not Really but that isn't even my biggest gripe with it. my biggest gripe is that the last film was telling the story of the book and this film was telling a different story altogether.

my other issue is how chani's character was completely changed. and think is probably because i've been obsessed with her character and the lovestory between her and paul (which is CENTRAL TO THE PLOT OF THE WHOLE SERIES BTW) since i first discovered dune when i was in high school.

in the book, she's supporting paul. she agrees with everything he's doing. she and the fremen all support him because the fact that the bene gesserit are controlling things from the shadows is NOT!!!!! a well known thing!! in fact no one knows that except the bene gesserit!!! OF WHICH CHANI IS CANONICALLY ONE!!!!!! (and even then the bene gesserit are very much a 'knowledge divided' kind of people so no one knows everything about the society) she and irulan are literally narrative foils!!!! like the entire reason i made this web weave was because of how much i fucking LOVE chani's storyline, and because i really love how it shows even the most well meaning of people can fall into the trap of doing the wrong thing for the right reasons. but i suppose it makes less sense to anyone else who hasn't read the book because they also entirely erased the existence of paul's first son.

in the books, paul has a son before he has his twins and that son is murdered by the very last of the harkonnens in a last ditch effort to erase the atreides bloodline. before this, paul is refusing to take the water of life because he has a family and he doesn't want to jeopardize that!! after his son is murdered, he takes the water of life, so he can enact revenge on the harkonnens and start his holy war. by then, he his so distraught that he really doesn't care if his visions become a reality and, while they tried to do this with the destruction of sietch tabr in this film, it does not have anywhere NEAR the same emotional impact because of how it was done (without paul really ever spending any significant time among the people there).

also, as you can imagine, i've got an issue with how they leave this film especially since this isn't even really the full first book and chani and paul's lovestory seems to not be anywhere near as central to the main plot as it is in the books.

all of this is an issue if they want to make further films because they've literally wrecked the storyline with this film. as i said: paul and chani's lovestory is central to the plot. everything happens the way that it does because paul is in love with her and treasures her above everything and, without the existence of his son, without him really seeming to truly care about her, the rest of the story is just going to come across as cheap by comparison.

i wouldn't have had as much of a problem with this if they'd started out the last film by steering it in this direction, but they so very much did not do that. this film really feels like denis villenueve was writing his own fix-it fanfic and that's what i hate about it most.

as for things i did enjoy:

everything on geidi prime; the black sun was so fucking cool. i completely forgot that was a thing from the books. i also loved how the fireworks looked like ink blots

stilgar!!! he's not really like that in the books, but i didn't even care bc it was genuinely funny and i had a good time whenever he was onscreen.

the way chani refused to bow to paul because they're supposed to be equals (you deserve so much better, babygirl, i'm so so sorry for what they've done to your story)

florence pugh did exactly what i thought she would and made me like irulan a WHOLE lot more than i do in the books and the miniseries.

crazy paul and jessica and alia!!! deeply obsessed with their evil family slay

also all the weird family stuff in general, including when feyd and harkonnen made out in front of the whole population of geidi prime

the whole bit with paul learning to ride the sandworm!! that was so fucking good

the part where paul is walking toward rabban out of the fog of the sand on arrakis after he tells muad'dib to come face him. that literally was my fav scene and it was only a few seconds long.

[icedragonlizard]

Marx will always be the most hilarious Kirby villain to me.

He has by far the funniest motivation out of any villain. Most other villains are either big bad conquerors, or are barely sapient as they're just embodiments of hatred/evil, or are minions of greater baddies, or have tragic backstories that led to them being villains, or a combination of the listed criteria there.

But Marx is literally none of that. He just did what he did for the hell of it. He had no real reason to do what he did other than just for kicks and giggles. He did it because he thought it was funny.

Magolor pulled a similar stunt, but he counts as a "big bad conqueror" as he attempted universal conquest. Marx however didn't even care to conquer. He asked Nova to give him enough power to be capable of causing all the mischief he wanted, which is what he literally outright says after making that wish. He just wanted to turn Popstar into his personal stomping ground where he can run rampant with mischief.

This guy is literally the biggest troll of the franchise. I love him for it.

And the funniness doesn't stop there. After defeating him in his boss fight, when you punt him to make him crash onto Nova, you'd think that impact would've been more than enough to kill him....

... But nah, he suddenly comes back out of nowhere in Star Allies! And the lore does even not bother explaining how he survived the Nova impact, LOL. How in the world did he survive that? Unless you're someone that doesn't actually regard dream friends in Star Allies being canon and interpret Marx staying dead. I get that. I personally see it as canon, though.

Another hilarious thing is that he acts as a boss in the credits of the good ending of Heroes in Another Dimension. Basically, after the important stuff is over, Marx then goes right back to being a little shit that causes problems on purpose. Showing that he's still the biggest troll of the franchise.

It's also funny how enigmatic Marx is in the lore. It's unclear whether he actually legitimately redeemed himself or not. I'd say it's valid to headcanon him as either being redeemed or still being a bad guy. Interpretations of Marx vary. They range from being just a silly little dude to still being a literal bastard that's still up to something sinister.

As much as I'd love to see Marx get used in Kirby games more, I actually hope they don't give him a backstory. Or at least, don't give him a tragic one. I think he stands out if he were to stay as just a troll without a sob story, as opposed to many other villains who are more tragic. I bet he'd lie about his origins, too, which would also be funny.

Marx is truly one of the characters of all time, in my opinion. He might not have as much substance behind him as many of the later villains in Kirby, but with the material that we do have, he's truly something.

[snazzyscarf]

the thing about me is that I will absolutely shamelessly give my favorite little minor character who has cubed me a disproportionate amount of narrative significance than he actually has, BUT THE PROBLEM WITH THAT is that he (Clockblocker) actually honestly and truly DOES have one of the biggest impacts of any character.

like i know they were not giving out medals for the sake of preventing infighting after the leviathan fight, but Clockblocker damn well deserves one because quite literally everyone would have died had he not frozen the Titanic Waterbending Godzilla in time for several whole minutes allowing the remaining capes critical time to re-strategize and hold out for Scion. Additionally. everyone Also would have died had Skitter not been able to utilize his power to slice That Thang (Echidna) in twain. Two (2) S-Class threats within months of each other and he turned the tides on both of them.

it’s like. it’s honestly a testament to what Tattletale was saying about how a lot of parahumans never really get the chance to understand the full extent of their powers because they’re never under the right circumstances to do so. because if you think about it purely in situations like the bank heist or party crash early on in the book, Clockblocker’s power really isn’t anything to write home about. and if they lived in a reality where things like that were the biggest threats around he would probably stay that way!

but they don’t live in that reality. they DO live in a world with towering kaiju endbringers that threaten the planet every three months and they DO live in a world where monstrous parahuman accidents like echidna are likely to pop up, and it’s because of this product of circumstance that you can make a legitimate case for Clockblocker having one of the strongest powers in terms of utility. he lives in a reality where his niche is allowed to shine!

and it’s this kinda thinking that makes the fact that he is—at the end of the day—Just A Minor Character, so incredibly compelling because it further illustrates the idea that This Could Be Anybody. under the right circumstances, any parahuman could find their otherwise mid-level power suddenly become the most pivotal role in a survival setting. or the most dangerous! it opens up the floor to a wealth of possibilities.

like say what you want, and i do concede that of course my darling boy Dennis doesn’t hold the same narrative significance that any of the major characters do, but when you look at his role in the story from this perspective, He Really Is Kind Of A Big Deal.

[steveharrington]

what’s your fav feminist film? like something you like and think is more meaningful than the substance. would love some recs

though it is complicated considering its director, rosemary’s baby was mind blowing for me discovering the intersection between horror and feminism! obviously the horror genre features women at its very core, for better or for worse sometimes, but rosemary’s baby was the first horror movie i watched where the horror was misogyny and rosemary’s complete loss of autonomy. the scene where she thinks she’s had a private, safe conversation with her doctor only to discover that he called her husband to come get her is genuinely scarier to me than most big Horror Moments i’ve seen. and to me, rosemary’s baby deals with subject matter that has more to say and more bearing on women’s actual safety and wellbeing like having their physical pain dismissed or downplayed, having no medical autonomy or privacy, or being isolated from other women who they can seek safety with vs. commentary about beauty standards. and that’s not to say that it isn’t important to discuss beauty standards, because it absolutely is a pervasive issue that greatly impacts women, but To Me discussing the threat misogyny poses to women’s physical safety will always be more impactful

i also think there’s something to be said for movies that just treat women like real and complex people. perhaps my biggest issue with the substance is that we don’t really know anything about elisabeth’s personality beyond her fixation on her fame and physical appearance. we don’t know literally any detail about her life or what her personality is like. in fact, she doesn’t seem to have a fixed personality—it seems to wildly fluctuate depending on what works best for the given scene. if a movie doesn’t even have overtly feminist commentary, but provides female characters that are fleshed out and complex and genuinely feel like real people, to me they will stand out as decidedly feminist Because they have characters that real women and girls in the audience can see themselves in. women watching the substance may definitely identify with elisabeth’s struggle with self image (i did!!) but i can’t say i can identify with literally any aspect of Elisabeth herself beyond the situation she finds herself in. whereas when i watch movies like the descent or even scream, i find myself very drawn to characters like gale weathers or juno whose personalities are so strong that you can identify their thought patterns, the motivation behind their behaviors, their negative traits that usually only male characters are allowed to have and still be taken seriously. the very recent american remake of speak no evil had a character i related to probably more than any character in recent memory, louise, who genuinely made me feel Seen because her anxieties and reservations felt so real and match mine so perfectly. i felt like i’ve never seen a character like that, like me, in a horror setting!

this makes it sound like i disliked the substance and its themes, which i didnt! i do think the subject of beauty standards and the treatment of women as they age is very relevant and important. i just dooooo get a bit tired of the rave reviews insisting a movie is the First to say something that i’ve seen several times before, to the point where it’s no longer brave and compelling. and not every movie needs to say something entirely new, but it shouldn’t be lauded for being cutting edge and groundbreaking in that case. it feels truly unearned. the substance was also so heavy handed with it, making you watch a flashback like 3 times of dennis quaid saying “pretty girls should always smile!” as if we the audience really need to have our hands held as they explain to us why that sentiment is bad. like we know. trust me we know.

[whumpy-wyrms]

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

here’s some wholesome Dew art because he deserves to be happy :3 (also his sweater is supposed to look like colorful firework explosions)

now here i go getting all sentimental under the read more…

first off, thanks @mottinthemainpot and @toyybox for requesting New Years art because i wouldn’t have drawn this otherwise!! it was fun and i love how colorful it turned out :D

also here’s the version without the background

anyway, i have to say that making this blog was one of the biggest highlights of my year. i did so many things that i thought i’d never do! like show my writing to people, post oc stuff… make actual friends. seriously, just creating something that makes other people happy is what i’ve always wanted to do, and i did it! writing and drawing are my favorite hobbies and i’m so so happy that i’m making other people happy by doing what i love more than anything.

i know TLLR may not matter all that much to other people, but it had a huge impact on my life. it caused me to start sharing my stories instead of keeping them in my head, it caused me to come out of my shell and actually talk to people online, and make so many amazing friends that i never would have met otherwise. it made it easier for me to be myself and interact with people, instead of hiding or being too shy like i’ve been doing my whole life. i used to be soo scared of talking to people online, because i thought nobody would like me or i’d be too awkward. but all of your amazing support made me able to do that, made me able to express myself and find a friend group that i can relate to and who likes me for me. that’s something i’ve always wanted, so thank you all!!

ever since i was 12, it was my dream to make something- a series and characters- that inspired others and made people happy (aka the same impact that Gravity Falls had on me). i know TLLR isn’t much, and it’s not super popular or anything, but i’m so unbelievably happy that i created something that makes people excited to read and think about and make art for. i’m so happy i created something that inspires people and makes people happy (even just a little bit). that is honestly all i’ve ever wanted and it makes me excited for all the amazing things i’ll do in the future.

to all of you invested in my silly little story, THANK YOU!!!! without any of your support or kind messages or reactions or art, i literally wouldn’t have made it this far. i remember the first ask i ever got (you know who you are :)) and i just wanna talk about how that affected me. because holy shit, back then, that was the nicest thing anyone had ever said about something i made. i can’t even describe how happy i was when i first read it, like it literally made my entire month. it made me realize that i’m capable of making something that makes people happy. and to everyone who has ever left nice messages about my series, thank you so much again!! because wow, it’s just so surreal that people like my creations. thank you

this is super rambly and completely unplanned, but yeah i just wanted to say thanks for the amazing past few months. i’m so happy i joined this community, everyone here is so nice and it’s led me to make amazing things. even if you don’t read TLLR (i recommend it ehehehe /nf), thanks for following me and supporting me with my art. drawing all those tllr drawings definitely made me improve a lot (this year was also a huge year for my art in general. i’m so proud of myself for how much i’ve improved with my art).

ALSO WRITING!!! my writing has definitely improved thanks to tllr. before this, i just wrote for fun about my other ocs and never showed ANYONE. it wasn’t in chronological order and i didn’t care much for mistakes or perfect grammar or anything. don’t get me wrong, i love the other stuff i wrote for myself, but tllr is by far the best in my opinion. it challenged me to write something not only for myself, but something other people would read. it put me out of my comfort zone at first, when i posted the first chapter. my writing has improved so much because of that and i’m so fucking excited for what i’ll be able to accomplish in the future.

oh yeah! thanks to the whump community for inspiring me to post my stuff in the first place! tllr specifically is something very important and personal to me, but something that i’m able to share with other people so easily. tllr isn’t just mine anymore, it’s everyone’s who’s ever read it (don’t take that too literally)

anyway, i know i’m forgetting something but yeah i just wanted to say thanks!! you are all so amazing! i’m not gonna tag all of the friends i made but you all know who you are, thank you!!! 2023 was amazing for me and i’m so excited for what 2024 will bring (besides me literally graduating high school this year)! big things are coming up with tllr too, new characters, twists and turns, crazy stuff. i’m so fucking excited

OH YEAH! i usually don’t make new year’s resolutions but this year i definitely want to draw more of my friends/mutuals’ characters. all of you are so creative and drawing art for other people is something i realized i love to do!!

i don’t know how to end this, it got longer than i planned loll. thank you all for the amazing year!! thanks for all the support!! :DDD

[itsclydebitches]

nah, bit the fact old!jaune of all characters watches bees kiss and is like "I've waited so long for this to happen" it's like, bro, please leave. get out of here.

Finally watched the episode!

That line makes absolutely no sense to me. Last interaction Jaune had that was bees related was him (understandably) assuming that Yang would be worried about Ruby being mad at her and he notably doesn't realize that she actually meant Blake. Then he goes into survival mode when Yang falls, having no time to reflect on Blake's reaction because he's off collecting the civilians, and then he spends literal years, likely decades, living in the Ever After, entirely removed from his friends' lives and, frankly, with bigger things to worry about than another team's romance. Jaune has to confirm that this is really Team RWBY, a moment which to me read as both hesitance that what he's waited so long for has really come to pass and ensuring that his mind isn't playing tricks on him. That's really what Team RWBY looks like, right? That's what they sounded like back when I was a teenager?

So you're telling me that Jaune, who to my recollection has NEVER shown that he knows what's up with Blake and Yang (that was his role with Ren and Nora) and who has now spent half a lifetime away from these girls to the point where he needs to reassure himself that he can even properly recognize them... was waiting "so long" for them to kiss?

Agreed: nah.

This is just another version of Weiss' earlier comment. As much as I liked it at the time for being the closest thing to confirmation in a then unconfirmed tale, Weiss likewise hasn't expressed any impatience, knowing looks, or other background hints to tell the audience, "I know they like each other and am waiting for them to overcome their fear and just SAY IT already." RWBY consistently tries to retcon things via dialogue. What do you mean Blake/Yang wasn't an established slow-burn the whole cast was aware of? Here are Weiss and Jaune saying just that!

Don't get me wrong, I'm ECSTATIC that they're finally canon, both because fuck yeah queer rep and, frankly, because I'd long grown sick of having my guard up in regards to this ship. But reaching this point doesn't erase the tumultuous journey getting there. Already I'm seeing a lot of folks going, "Of course RWDE is unhappy. They're homophobic 🙄" but the reality is that none of our criticisms have changed. We've said for years that RWBY needs to confirm the bees, but that confirming them won't suddenly free the writing of its long-term problems. Waiting this long was one of the biggest problems, so of course it's a bittersweet moment. You finally did the thing fans wanted you to do years ago and you did it with a number of pitfalls, not the least of which was scaring a good chunk of your fanbase into thinking we might end this series by being told we'd just been 'reading into things.' That's... a lot to unpack. I feel like I ordered takeout and it arrived five hours late. It's now stone cold, the food was only meh to begin with, and waiting in annoyance all night has now put me off my appetite. The response to that isn't usually a, "Why are you whining when you got your food??" Like yeah... I got my food... but damn, can you really not see how the experience of getting it impacts my feelings towards the food itself?

[the-ninja-legacy-whip]

How would you rank each season and why? What did you like and dislike about them?(Including wildbrain if you want to)

ooooooooooh okaaaaaaaay fiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine

*cracks knuckles* Just remember you asked for this

Buckle up bastards and bitches, we're tearing this shit apart!!! Going from worst to best so we can end on good taste!!! *loads my opinions into a bazooka like Lloyd with an Ice Cannon*

Rebooted- *drags hands down face* ....I really don't actually hate NS3, but as I mentioned on another post, a lot of things this season tried to pull off (read: practically everything) at least one other season did better. And I know it's not really this season's fault that it's such a mess, since it was whipped up in a whirlwind of unexpected serendipity, and it had less time to explore its ideas, but when people only truly remember and constantly bring up the worst parts about it, rather than few (if not far inbetween) good things that it brought to the table? Or people consistently straight up forget other things about it (primary shoutouts to Techno!Wu and the ninja going to literal space???) Yeah, probably not a great season overall.

Pros: Fun aesthetic, wasn't afraid to try new things, attempted to expand and build on previously introduced ideas, did well with the emotions and aftermath generated by Zane's sacrifice, Pixal, killer music, X-1 Ninja Charger, Sensei Garmadon, had the agenda of getting people back into Ninjago after it supposedly hit its grand finale and did succeed in that if nothing else Cons: Absolutely breakneck pacing to the point that its hard to recall what happens where, when, and even why, you could literally take out like 3-4 of the episodes (half the season!!!) and very little would be ultimately impacted, poor execution of: the established character arcs, dynamics, and motivations within the season (with exception of Garmadon); the attempts at further world building; and the ultimate impact of the antagonists (...people rave about Cryptor but he doesn't even really do anything!! And why did they need to bring the Overlord back at ALL—if this was really something of a Zane-centric season, Cryptor would've already been the perfect foil for him!! AND WHY PYTHOR. I AIN'T ACTUALLY MAD ABOUT THAT TBH BUT WHY THEN)

Hands of Time- This season's biggest issue is that it's...boring. Technically doesn't even do anything wrong, but even when trying to follow a mystery as big as what the heck happened to Nya and Kai's parents, or watching Lloyd begin to come into his own as a future master, or exploring the downfall of two ex-Elemental Masters who turned to evil...it comes off so...stilted and stale. Literally an episode is called 'The Attack'. The whole show is full of attacks, this gives me nothing!!! (But, to be fair, most of the other ep titles this season are pretty kickass). It's like NS6 in the way that a bunch of things happen (and not even nearly as incoherently) but 85% of it doesn't have any lasting or satisfying pay off, and most of it doesn't really mesh in a natural way either. A lot of it feels very contrived, with events happening just for the sake of it happening, and that probably contributes to why it's not quite as compelling as other seasons, despite absolutely having the foundation to be.

Pros: Has an interesting way of drawing parallels between several characters, added a good chunk of lore that generated fresh interest, Kai and Nya Sibling duo, introduced villains with unique motivations and complex history with the main character (directly or indirectly), Jay got that cool bike moment, getting to meet Ray and Maya, actually mention of Skylor being a "bad guy" previously and exploring some of her insight of that, previous EM info + flashbacks, Cons: ...executes a lot of the best things about it in such bland and unsatisfying ways, and could have been much tighter with tying its events all together–would've helped the ending (whether it was a "cliffhanger" or not) feel a lot more deserved and less....empty.

(Also not a real con for the season itself and its literally just a nitpick but I hate those outfits. How are they simultaneously overly-detailed yet so monotone??? There's no pleasing contrast nor a place for the eye to comfortably rest! How are my eyes to last beholding a season with THAT fashion?? This is literally the only time where the gi are a distraction to me because they're...clunky, in a way? But...y'know, given that impression, I suppose they do fit the season to a t, then— *bricked*)

March of the Oni- This season is like a collections of puzzle pieces for a good finale season...but, someone lost a few pieces from the box. Or a lot of them. Isolated, there's a lot of good bits that could've really thrived in a normal season format...but, once again, the limited number of episodes strangled the potential out of its own plotline, SO. Plus, it feels extra weak following off the heels of Hunted's already high stakes, and with these stakes supposed to be even higher, it just doesn't quite hit in the way it's supposed to. That being said, there's a lot of fun and/or intense character dynamics and moments interspersed throughout, and the ending was so cozy and bittersweet but lovely that I can't be too upset with it. It stuck the landing it wanted to, and I can respect that!

Pros: Very strong character moments, (mostly) well-placed use of nostalgia, beautiful music, and overall a suitable little wrap up to "Masters of Spinjitzu" Cons: Not enough room/time to let some plot points breathe (a problem common to a few other seasons as well), and the antagonists could have done more, especially given their previous build up.

The Island- I don't even really count it as a season but it's going here. It was just...okay. Not actually all that bad, but not out-of-this-world great either. Laid the foundation for lore expansion for Seabound which is appreciated, utilized the characters well (EXCEPT RONIN WHAT THE FUCK NO), and again, I can respect it for what it was trying to do. Just didn't do anything that really stuck with me in a mind-blowingly positive way.

Secrets of the Forbidden Spinjitzu- Kiiiiinda wish this season was strictly about "Forbidden Spinjitzu and it's secrets", rather than the "Forbidden Spinjitzu" leading to...assorted shenanigans. Could've made for a good Wu season, honestly. Also kinda wish they'd taken the concepts for the Fire and Ice Chapters and made them into more focused stories on Kai and Zane (especially if they were going to go on and do or attempt that exact thing for Jay, Cole, Nya, and Lloyd properly). Wishing aside, while there was a bit of a lull getting things started, the excitement did pick up soon enough. This season did eventually introduce some fun twists, (mostly) enjoyable character dynamics, and having a little lighter of an adventure until it wasn't after MotO was a refreshing change of pace.

Pros: Lots of individual moments to dig into and get invested in, a nice expansion on the lore of Wu's past + other realms beyond Ninjago, Cons: A little hard to initially get into, and can be even harder to keep wanting to push through and watch to the end. Both the Fire and Ice Chapter have points where they feel a bit "aimless" in their middle portions of their acts, and the season as a whole simultaneously feels like it's longer than it needed to be + didn't always use the time it had efficiently.

Legacy of the Green Ninja- Fellas as I've been finishing up my planning for Legacy!S2, I have to confess this Season isn't quite the masterpiece we remember it as snksnksnksnk. There's literally 2-3 episodes that are ENTIRELY pointless, and none of them are even the """"filler"""" ones. It felt like it was trying to be a wacky shenanigan-of-the-week thing and a "dramatic world-ending thriller adventure" at the same time in both halves of the season, and that didn't always pan out in its favor, giving this season a bit of a lost/confused identity—especially one that so explicitly implicates Lloyd as being important, and yet most of the episodes are spent following the escapades of the Core Four still (which is not inherently a bad thing, but WHERE'S THE SO-CALLED LEGACY?!?! WHERE'S THE GREEN NINJA?!) ........anywho, negativity-fueled-by-recency-bias aside, even its short-comings still make for a highly enjoyable watch and rewatch, which isn't something that can be easily said for the previously mentioned seasons. And, there is still a LOT of funny, heartwarming, heartbreaking, and downright epic moments! But, not always immediately memorable ones.

(but also like please you have to UNDERSTAND there's literally a scene during the final battle where Wu, Misako, and Julien are on the ultra dragon and one of em's like "WE HAVE TO HELP" and, i swear i timed this this is legitimately accurate, TWO SECONDS LATER they make like two wing flaps going nowhere and Wu or Misako's like "THIS AS FAR AS WE GO" LIKE WHAAAAAAT?!?!?!!?! HELP LMAO)

Pros: Easy to get into, easy to keep watching, god-level music, and the simple ass humor still makes me laugh like a lunatic all these years later ("O'GRANDMA???" "I can make a little extra if I do the human piñata." "BEQUEATH! BEQUEATH!" *wordlessly using Zane as a battering ram* *the entire absurdity of Wrong Place, Wrong Time* *Dareth's existence*) Cons: The inconsistency of its overall direction still gives me whiplash all these years later, and I wish it had better embraced a singular identity, as that probably would've helped immensely both with character focus and the at times odd pacing of the plot.

Prime Empire- Finally, some good food! Similar to SotFS, this season took a while to kickstart and find its groove and keep it, but by the end it was sooooo much off-the-walls fun that it's hard to actually hate it. Lots of missed opportunities to expand on Jay's character though, especially when those Prime Empire shorts primarily focused on Jay released alongside the season would've been GREAT to see in actual episodes, and probably could've been what tipped it higher onto this list. While what we did get towards the end was super cool, it would've have MUCH more impact if it had better prior buildup. But, this season is incredibly solid in ways that may not be immediately obvious, though does still a bit to be desires at times too.

Pros: Fun and glorious setting for adventure, some very potent and very memorable character moments, SUPERSTAR ROCKIN' JAY, and a very strong finish that still gets me buzzed when it think about it. Cons: Slow start, many missed opportunities, left me wanting just a bit more (in the not-good way) despite the satisfying finish.

Crystalized- *folds hands in front of face* I probably should put this lower than Prime Empire overall quality-wise, but idk man, Crystalized scratched a lot of my personal itches...and also sent me banging my head into a wall, so. While I genuinely, honestly did enjoy my time with this season (I laughed, I cried, I "what the fuck"ed), there's the other half of my mind that just couldn't stop questioning sooooooo many decisions for the direction of the main characters, and constantly doing so did take me out of it way, way too often. For something that was going to serve as (another) big, grand send off...this one may have stuck the landing better than Hands of Time, but. IDK. Something still felt off at the end of everything.

Pros: (Mostly) incredible fight scenes, and action moments, we got to see perspectives of certain character dynamics that hadn't been explored before or not as often, there really is a lot of cool shit in here, loved the return of so many old faces, honestly very enjoyable if you're able to turn your brain off just a bit Cons: WHAT THE HELL DID THEY DO TO NYA, WHY ARE Y'ALL SLEEPING SO HARD ON THE PERFECT OPPORTUNITY TO FINALLY GIVE LLOYD SOME REAL ACTUAL DEVELOPMENT THAT MADE SENSE, IF YOU WERE REALLY PLANNING ON "REDEEMING" HARUMI WHY DIDN'T YOU PACE IT OUT BETTER, WHY ARE THE CORE FOUR NEAR USELESS, DID WE REALLY HAVE TO SPEND A FOURTH OF THE SEASON IN A PRISON WAS THERE NO BETTER WAY TO GET OLD VILLAINS INVOLVED OR FOR RUMI TO INTIMIDATE LLOYD FROM THE SHADOWS, WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THE NEW NINJA, THERE'S SOOOO MUCH MISSED STUFF SURROUNDING NYA'S SACRIFICE/RETURN, AND WHY DID THEY SCRAP SO MANY ACTUALLY NEAT IDEAS FOR THISSSSSSS *dies*

Hunted- Gonna be honest, it's been a hot second since I've watched NS9 because everyone being in such distress stresses ME out just thinking about it (I'm apparently the people Jay was worried about lmao) and I haven't quite brought myself to subject myself to it again. However, I do remember it being an incredible watch and every episode bringing something epic to the table, and honestly I just see it as a sequel or a part 2 to SoG. Good music, strong character beats, satisfying in pacing all the way through; a great and surprisingly introspective season, just got outshined a bit by some of the pure spectacle and overall enjoyment of other seasons.

Not gonna give Pros/Cons here because I genuinely don't remember specifics—not because any of it was "Forgettable"; I literally just technically only watched it once snksnksnk. I know it's mostly nothing but good stuff with maybe a few snags here or there, but a superbly solid season.

Sons of Garmadon- Ah yes, one of two fan favorites. And a favorite of mine as well! Just...well, it's not really a Season I ever have the urge to go back to often, which is something the following seasons to come are about to have in common. It's got a rock solid plot, delicious twists, always kept me on the edge of my seat, had a lot fascinating locations and new lore...all wrapped up in a gripping entertaining time to be had. Though, it's kind of a season where you watch it once, are completely satisfied with, and then maybe only come back to it if and when you're rewatching the whole series (at least for me—that being said, I've watched season 8 waaay more than I've watch season 9 snksnk).

Pros: Well-thoughtout plot, fully compelling antagonists, another shout out to the music, dared to take some risks as the show entered a new era, and for once everyone felt like they were contributing as a single group, which was nice to see until they weren't Cons: As stated, already a very solid season; it's just a few scenes that probably could've used some polish for extra impact in hindsight.

Way of the Ninja- Well, if I'm including the Island, might as well include the Pilots! It's only above Hunted/SOG here because *I* happen to like it more and have rewatched it a great many times haha. Honestly the only cons are that I wished we'd had some little adventures in the Ice Fortress/Floating Ruins, and that the ninja themselves had more of a presence in the ultimate confrontation with Garmadon. Otherwise the Pilots did an absolutely fantastic job of laying the groundwork for the show to come, and using witchcraft to hook many of us into adoring these characters with insane chemistry from the get-go with nothing but the bare minimum. Nothing but love and respect for my pilots! <3

Skybound- Only reason this is higher than the previous three on this list is because *I* personally enjoyed it more, that's all. For overall quality and consistency, Hunted, Pilots, and SoG clear it easily. ANYWAY I LOVE SKYBOUND. It's probably actually my second favorite season these days but I'm already about to be crucified for putting it this high on the list rip. Oh there's plenty of things wrong with this season: out of character moments including but not limited to misogyny, contradictory statements, contradictory actions, saying things they would never say prior to this season; the antagonist has wildly changing motivations almost every episode along with uncomfy tendencies, every episode feels wildly different and/or disconnected from the others, the things are happening all over the place at any given time...it's chaotic, messy, and I LOVE IT. It's a mess but it's my mess and if you dig deep enough there's a lot to love buried in the muck that I, as an individual, feel that makes the season worth it all <3

Pros: PIRATES, everything about Jay, Watching Jaya develop over the course of the season for better or worse, getting some insight into the other characters via the wishes they make, watching Jay get his moments to be the absolute badass and even Nadakhan acknowledging that (just with some horribly misguided but well-meaning intentions of the heart but he's HUMAN), the HUMOR, the Ninja Replacements and Jay getting to show off some leadership FINALLY, Jay whump, Lloyd's pirate impression, Lil Nelson!!!, Jay with an eyepatch, crashing a wedding, Echo Zane!, a commentary on how people perceive us and how we perceive ourselves can lead to great inner and outer conflict, pretty ass animation scenes esp for being in the earlier era, we got the greatest gi to ever grace our unworthy presence despite being folded the wrong way, did I mention Jay— Cons: Literally everything stated previously and probably more I'm sure you already know. But also why did they randomly MAKE DARETH LIKE THAT GOOD LORD WHY this is on par with Ronin in the Island IS2G

Rise of the Snakes- The vintage classic!!! Not ~perfect~ by any means BUT it told a cohesive story while giving everyone (even including Nya!) a little bit of spotlight and some significance and brought it all together so neatly with emotion and FUN that of course it had the power to reshape our childhoods (or teenhoods. Or adulthoods. Or nowhoods). Really its biggest flaw is simply that it was first, thus of course having a little less polish and therefore had to pave the way for better seasons to follow, but it was still a mighty tough act to follow.

Pros: Many establishing moments for the main crew for their adventures to come, antagonists that were funny, threatening, and had some pretty convincing motivations, Lloyd, highly memorable overall, easy to jump back into, gave us the legendary Weekend Whip (unless that was in the credits to the pilots too i don't remember) Cons: A bit dated nowadays, and rough around the edges, but doesn't do anything inherently wrong either. I'd say the pacing is a little quick, but in this season in particular its masked so well that you really only notice if you're looking for it (which I had been)

Master of the Mountain- And now, the truly cream of the crop. NS13 was the thing we've always wanted and always knew we needed and finally the powers that be delivered. I could rave day in and day out about Cole finally getting some much deserved focus, but for as strong and heavy-hitting as his whole arc was, the stories of the other ninja pale a bit in comparison, leaving this season unable to break the top three. Otherwise a masterclass in storytelling. And Cole.

Pros: COLE SEASON, HYPE AF FIGHT SCENES, COLE'S MOMMY, VANIA, THE UPPLY, WU AND COLE DYNAMIC, ZANE THROWING ROCKS AT KAI, THE VOICE DIRECTION (esp Lloyd, Cole, and Kai), THE SUBTLE MYSTERY OF IT ALL, THE MUSIC, THE INTRIGUE, AAAAAAA Cons: NOT ENOUGH COLE, antagonist was a bit bleh (though those fight scenes he had SERVED), could have had a little better utilization of the characters outside of "Cole's crew"

Seabound- MMMMMMM EVERY SINGLE EPISODE HIT SO GOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!! NYA EATING FOR REAL!!! THE GODDAMN INSANE FIGHT CHOREOGRAPHY!!!! THE PEAK VILLAIN!!! THE MUSIC! THE EMOTIONS! THE PAPERGIRL! THE BENTHO! THE PILLOW MINT! THE CRUMBLING COOKIE! THE JAY ALMOST DYING FOR HIS FRIENDS! THE NYA BASICALLY DYING FOR HER FRIENDS! THE SILENT I LOVE YOU!!! THE UTTERLY GUTTING WAY IT ENDED AND LEFT ME COMATOSE FOR THREE DAYS!!!!! IT WAS SO BEAUTIFULLLLLLLL WHO GAVE THEM PERMISSION TO POP THIS HARD

Pros: *gestures wildly* Cons: It made me sad

Possession- Here we have the other fan favorite season, the bible for all people Morro-obsessed. Essentially the Seabound of the older era but with significantly less emotional devastation snksnksnk. Top-notch characterization—the Core Four have never been better with their dynamics, humor, and teamwork, it's the first real time Nya (and if we wanna be picky, Cole) get some dedicated introspective time, Lloyd is truly put to a very personal test, Ronin is there, and Morro serves as both a fantastic antagonist and a foil for all those he opposes. Simply isn't the top spot strictly because when I think of my favorite season...this ain't it, though it absolutely deserves to be.

Pros: THE CHARACTERIZATION FOR ALL, AMAZING ANTAGONIST, ALSO BEAUTIFUL ANIMATIONS, HUMOR AND HORRORS IN ONE GO, EXTREMELY REWATCHABLE, MOAR MUSIC, ENDED BITTERSWEET BUT WITH HOPE AND A SICKASS QUOTE Cons: Perhaps a touch overhyped but that's not actually the season's fault nor is it actually a con I just needed to put something here this thing is honestly airtight perfect when it comes to seasons gfgsfddfdhfkls

Tournament of Elements- yes. Yes. YEEEEEEES. To be fair this should be #3 or #4 overall quality wise MMMMMBUT I THINK ITS POTENCY CLEARS THE GAP! Season 4 ran so Season 5 could fly!!!! THE RECIPE FOR A PERFECT STORY, just, perhaps a touch undercooked, BUT THE INTENTIONS WERE FELT AND I VIBE WITH THEM H A R D

Pros: IN A SEASON WHERE THE VILLAIN DIVIDES PEOPLE WE LEARN THAT THERE IS STRENGTH IN KEEPING AND MAINTAINING MANY DIFFERENT KIND OF RELATIONSHIPS EVEN IF IT SEEMS HARD AND IMPOSSIBLE AND IN SPITE OF OUR DIFFERENCES AND EVEN IF WE DO FIND OURSELVES DIVIDED, WE SEE WE ARE STRONGER WHEN WE ARE ABLE TO COME TOGETHER AS ONE. THESE THEMES ARE SUPPORTED BY THE CHARACTERS, MUSIC, PLOT, THE ANIMATION OF THE EXPRESSIONS, AND I THINK THIS IMPORTANT OVERARCHING MESSAGE TRIUMPHS OVER EVERYTHING ELSE AS IT TRULY RESTS AT THE HEART OF NINJAGO AS A WHOLE *mic drop* Cons: Wish it delved just a bit more into the other EMs–what in the world have they all been up to??? Also wish the season ran with the tournament theme throughout the whole season rather than suddenly bouncing around in like the last three or so episodes–that kind of killed its momentum when it needed it the most. But, it still definitely stuck the landing!

[wndaswife]

Love how the general consensus has been “Agatha trial was so weird it has to be someone else’s + the group missed something bc they focused on the wrong person” bc I thought the trial was so weird. Like I’m the others there was this forced situation. They had to drink the wine (Agatha’s glass refilling), they had to gain the curse, they had to place cards (which isn’t as obvious at the start of the trial but near the middle it’s confirmed), then for Agatha’s they didn’t have anything that they started that would’ve opened the door/gate. Like I guess you could say summoning her mother to open the door was all they HAD to do but….compared to the others there’s some missing link. Like something got cut out, and they decided to give the watchers amnesia too. But also, I think Agatha got pretty light work until when the trial tech ended but that didn’t have to do with the road (Alice my girl I love you) so???? I could accept that it was one of the other twos though. Like Rio sure? Though I feel like death coudl have a very interesting trial given this is Agatha’s true trial. But Billy’s would also be fair. Bc he’s a magic fanatic (even before his day of becoming an Agatha fan) but I don’t understand why then so much of the trials focus was on Agatha’s mother. but also the trials have very much beeen about community (I know hear me out) so to have a trial that is very single minded and not impacting the other characters could be said is because it’s Agatha’s trial. She doesn’t and hasn’t had a true community so as someone not in a coven she can’t share her blessings and burdens.

So sorry I just started typing this is such adhd word dump but thanks for reading!!!!!

dude the idea of the trial giving the viewer’s amnesia is just wild i can’t even imagine how a show could carry that out that’s so creative!!!!! it reminds me of the credits scene on wandavision

the thing is it could be possible that agatha’s mother was just coincidentally summoned because they did remove their hands from the board and release a spirit, but also wtf does nicholas scratch have to do with any of that 😭😭😭

and all the trials have been about some kind of self growth, agatha’s was literally just pain and torture and betrayal lmfaooo EXCEPT for billy, who actually ended up evolving a lot by using his powers like that for the first time and showing his true self to everyone

rio and billy and that trial r the biggest mysteries at the moment i think

[swoomoo]

I usually am not one to get anxious about TTRPG games because I feel they are an outlet for me but have been feeling so with us coming back to our VTM game. It isn't the game itself that is causing it but the circumstances that others find themselves in. We have Vesper and Niccolo on the chopping block. Usually this would just be business as usual since the world is basically ending in our game but Amare is in a position that feels like her actions will be directly impact if either of them make it out.

Obviously she will do everything in her power to help Vesper, who is in a much, much trickier situation than Niccolo. She is, at this point, Cammie through and through, but helping Vesper is causing her to work increasingly with the Anarchs and basically break the rules of her working with a Scourge (in hopes to become one). This is a lot of fun though because she gets to hang out with characters and make connections she normally wouldn't. She is even starting to, dare I say like the girl who likely has a thing for Vesper (she is hot and I'm punching the air that I made Amare probably straight). On the other side of things is Niccolo. I know the Giovanni are very popular on here and I am sure they are usually lovely, but I've come to hate everything they touch in our game. We ended our first season with Amare and Niccolo, once again, getting into an argument. They have done this several times but this one was different. Usually Niccolo has issues with Amare questioning his judgement but this time they got into an argument about his family. Niccolo's (embrace) sister is his enemy. He has refused to accept this until very recently. Niccolo and Amare were together when he had a premonition uncovering a plot where she is teaming up with a Tzimisce to create possessed szlachta that have a fun gimmick of rapid regeneration. In the vision this "army" was marching through the streets, while seemingly obfuscated attacking those that needed to be dealt with. They marched into the court and no matter how many times these things were destroyed, they kept coming back.

The Camarilla was basically going to crumble and the Giovanni's would replace them. Niccolo told Amare of his vision and she questioned if the family would support his sister going rogue. He said they would only if she succeeded and would cut her out if she failed as to save their own ass. Amare then asks Niccolo two questions, "Would you do the same thing as her for the family?" and "Are we (your coterie) expendable to you". His answers were "Only if I knew I would succeed" and "No, those who are close to me deserve not to suffer" (said with a bit less spark). Remember, Amare has a daughter in the city and shutters to imagine a large-scale attack of any type happening in the city. She said the Hecata were no better than the Sabbat and were practically the same but with an Italian mobster flair and were equally if not worse when dealing with humanity. She said she fled from the Sabbat for that reason yet he stays and talks about how "Peace is profitable" when it goes against everything the clan of death stands for.

At his point he had to leave to pick up a Lamia to judge if he is guilty or not. Upon leaving Amare was just screaming at the door. Now go to last session. Niccolo has already contradicted himself multiple times and was caught lying to the Gorgon. He is definitely going to be executed unless he is helped. Vesper is sadly getting mind fucked by the biggest creep in London and Owen literally so new, the Camarilla doesn't even truly know who or what they are.

Imagine this now, when Niccolo was giving a tour to the Gorgon of his museum she stepped away to view some artwork. Niccolo grabs Amare's hand and starts shaking and looks to her with fear in his eyes knowing what is happening to him. He doesn't want to outright ask for help, but has shown that he wants it. He expects his coterie to run behind the Gorgon's back and fix all of his necromancy issues when, none of us are necromancers.

This being said, Amare is going to speak to him next session when Vesper talks to the Lamia privately. Amare is going to cut him a deal, his entire, extensive knowledge on necromancy for her help in dealing with his family issue. It is a big ask, I know and would get a lot of people pissed but frankly Amare doesn't care. He may say no but if he does she is going to wipe her hands from his mess and not lift a finger to help him from the pit he willingly jumped into it.

I have made a plan on how to deal with his business already but that might go in trash after next session. We shall see.

[beyondboy]

My biggest criticism with death note is that people tend to act like it's this super genius story, when really it's not, it's got a really interesting premise that's actually really thought provoking if you've never been exposed to similar topics before but like it doesn't really do anything with that, most of the conclusions and analysis about the story are drawn my people simply imposing their own views onto the story, like death note doesn't actually say anything, it starts off a bit like a moral story but when it ends we get nothing from it, like the question it effectively asks at the start is "is it ok to kill 'bad' people in the name of making a better society" But then it just ignores it's question for the rest of the story, don't get me wrong I think how it portrays power is quite interesting, like I think it's most interesting message that you can derive from it is that "people are more inclined/will only follow the idea of God due out of fear" or that "people on mass can only agree on one moral thing due to fear and control" as we can when the state of the world drastically changes after L dies. But even when Light does finally die in the end we've learned nothing about the first question asked, the most it ever really says is that "if you kill all the bad people then you will be the only bad person left" but we're LITERALLY TOLD THIS AT THE START BY RYUK.

You could argue that the mind battle between the two L and Light is clever and as with most of the criticisms here I'd say "yeah, at the start" in my opinion, everything after when L first tricks Light on live television is heavily convoluted.

The story of Death note in many ways has the same problems as BBC Sherlock, it implies a lot of really clever things are happening when they really aren't and it poses a lot of ideas that are never explored, you've been told that both of these guys are really smart and you should just run with that, I mean least death note doesn't try to pose itself as a detective story at least. Death note certainly has a very promising start it really starts to decline around after the second volume.

In a way maybe the problem is that it has too many themes or that it can't stick to what it's trying to say, Ohba has a habit of just laying out the characters and themes without any narrative, which can be good in a way because it allows you to draw your own opinions from it completely, but that's not exactly good writing and it's how you get such vastly different opinions within it's audience, which again is not necessarily a bad thing but Ohba doesn't present both sides of the argument for us, like L and Light and just two sides of the same coin, they fundamentally are the same, hell L is a character who's entire thing is solve crime and getting rid of bad people, he's also in the highest position of power that transcends all countries and governments, narratively he's already their world's God, and he too represents what this amount of power can do to a person as he is stripped of a lot of human qualities and is effectively shown to be a human machine, L's not against Light's morals, he's just mad someone else is playing God.

If Ohba really wanted to explore his themes of power and morality then he would've had two characters with two opposing world views on his themes, so you could actually get a more rounded opinion at the end. An advantage Ohba has by not committing to a message or narrative is that we never know what he actually thinks, like does he pose L and Light as opposites because in his mind they are?? What does that say about his politics? how does that impact the rest of the story? Or is the point of this for you to realize that they aren't that different?

Like this isn't something ever even hinted at or recognized by the story, also the stuff with Wammy's house like is wrong but it never talked about or explored either, like we can see what the place does to these children yet you never really feel like it adds any depth to the story, like yeah this could completely change the story but it doesn't, perhaps this is because the story is told from Light's POV but it isn't always, like he never finds out about Wammy's, like I think most people can easily see that Light is not a good character and that none of the characters in death note are really good people, but if that's true then why are there bad people!? Where's the line? WHY DOES NO ONE MAKE ANY ARGUMENTS FOR WHY IT'S NOT OK TO KILL BAD PEOPLE!?

I guess I kinda lied at the beginning, you do get an answer at the end, it's just the same one that you started with. Ohba starts out by portraying a character who single handedly decides (well his father is a police officer so that probably informs his view) that criminals are the root of all the problems in the world, oh, and that he's going to become God of the new world (you see how these two things aren't really related and are actually two separate points, perhaps DN would've benefited by not having Light want to become God so we could instead talk about the first point!?) he then goes up against the world famous mysterious detective who believes that not one man should play God (even though that's what he does) (he also kills criminals btw, not by his own hands but like he does, remember that death row prisoner!? Remember!? the narrative thinks it's completely ok for L to sacrifice that man, yk, because he's on death row that means he's definitely the pinnacle of all evil and his life is worthless) THIS IS THE SAME MENTALITY OHBA, THIS ISN'T EVEN CLEVER OR SOMETHING, THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THAT ONE OF THESE REPRESENTS STATE POWER AND THE OTHER VIGILANTE JUSTICE, WHAT!? (NOT TO MENTION THAT THE WHOLE WAMMY'S THING TECHNICALLY IMPLIES THAT L IS PRIVATELY FUNDED) LIKE GUYS I REALLY HATE TO BREAK IT TO YOU BUT DEATH NOTE IS NOT AS PROGRESSIVE AS YOU WOULD LIKE TO THINK, IT DOESN'T REALLY DO ANYTHING EXCEPT REGURGITATE THE SAME SORT OF POINTS WE'VE ALREADY HEARD BEFORE

[pilotheather]

LOL

not to rant about it further. cuz this is pointless bc lol itds not even what he did. but im still seeing ppl so angry at it cuz "SHE SHOULD HAVE BEEN RIVERRRRR" and again its not just the fact its so cheap and overdone, but... like agan. in the firstplace, i do not like it when a companion is meant to be some special little enigma. so many reasons why thats fucking annoying. but like the fact that theyre a special little enigma becAUSE they MIGHT BE the CHILD of ... another character we already know! like its everything i find most irritating fucking coalescing. like i fucking hate the implications it has just in general that theres some sort of birthright and that blood and relation is what makes someone special. i dont ufcking get it. and its like i feel like the new character, whoever they are, just end up livingin their other familial relation's shadow. like theyre always the daughter of x or the sister of y or fuckin whatever. and yes you can break out of that mould you can. but when, like, the entire MYSTERY OF YOU and who you are is like OOOOOHHH LOOKY LOOK, AN OLD FAN FAVOURITE POPPED ONE OUT ... like Ok. and its like. everyones likie "BUT THERE WAS SO MUCH POTENTIAL" - LIKE, TO DO WHAT? CUZ EVEN IF YOU DONT MIND ALL THAT STUFF... THIS IS LITERALLY SO OVERDONE. ITS SO FUCKING BORING. ARE YOU NOT SICK OF IT. DO YOU NOT WANT A SHOW TO LOOK TOWARDS THE FUTURE. DO YOU NOT WANT A MYSTERY THAT'S MORE THAN A BIG "LETS SEE WHICH OF OUR FAVOURITE TOY THIS IS!! xD"

AND ITS LIKE. IM ABSOLUTELY NOT GOING TO PRETEND RTD DID A GOOD FUCKING JOB OF EXECUTION. I ABSOLUTELY SHANT. i dont think he should have even faked out with it. but i am absolutely relieved thatshes just a normal woman even if it just falls flat. and that the whole POINT is shes normalbut we fucking hype shit up to deaht when its literally not that or anyhting like that. god. anwyays.

oh and. AND NOT TO MENTION. FULLY RESPECT IT COULD GO DIFFERENTLY THIS TIME. BUT LIKE... WHAT HAPPENS AFTER THE REVEAL. IF IT WAS RIVER, OR 13, OR WHO KNOWS WHO WHAT HAPPENS THEN. THIS IS WHAT I FUCKING LOATHE ABOUT S6. I FUCKING HATE AMY SO BADLY BUT ALSO JSUT... moffats whole take on her being pregnant and horribly violated (i wouldgenuinely. think this akin to something like rape because god knows WHAT they did to her body) whilst she was unconscious for months for a shock horror woohoo! she's pregnant and wow! shock again! it's river! when like once the payoff was said and done its like... never really mentioned or reflected on at all aside from silly jokes. like haha hi mummmmm. like we see rory and amys relationship break down for an episode cuz she cant have kids any more. fantastic. but like theyjust had a whole fucking child that ... JESUS CHRIST. and i jsut have to fucking sit there and wonder what was all that mysteryt even for what did you fucking do with it in the end. you dragged it on and on for a reveal and bang now what. cuz look im not saying season long mysteries have to have any sort of impact. and this is what happens with MOST doctor who mysteries- hell its what happened here. but once youre bringing in crzy dynamics with that amongst characters......are you not gonna sAYYYY ANYTHING. HELLO? HELP ME? LIKE . I JSUT DONT THINK DOCTOR WHO CAN DO IT JUSTICE, SORRY. I DONT THINK IT CAN. ESPECIALLY NOT WITH THE CURRENT WAY ITS HANDLING THINGS. AND I LOVE THE SHOW, I DO. but like 8 episodes long with scant development and lots of ... really superficial relationships and dynamics right now.... which is such a shame because the cast has chemistry but its barely COOKED ENOUGH to handle even THAT nevermind whatever heavt shit people supposedly wanna bring in

like i feel like when ppl beg for twists in tv shows they dont sdit there and think they just want the biggest craziest twist ever. why dont we all wake up and its just a dream. stfu