#his isolation is a direct result of others actions

[disniq]

Oh I misread that last post actually. While Jason's loneliness definitely resonates, I don't think it's self made in the slightest.

If anything he's guilty of reaching out at any cost - originally by using violence and antagonism to force interaction (UTRH and BiB, arguably the titans tower thing), and later by consistently showing up when called no matter how badly he's been treated, doing Bruce's bidding, and being 110% willing to sacrifice himself for the cause in the hopes that it'll finally be enough, even though it never is.

[marmett]

the trend of ppl dismissing "good" characters as boring is so annoying. and like, i know the primary reason ppl dismiss wyll for it is the racism. but theyre also missing out on the complexities of how and why wyll is good.

protecting the weak is a classic trait of hero characters. wyll does this. but theres also this element of isolation to it. wyll is the protector, but hes also an outsider to the people he protects. w/ mizora hanging over him, the potential that hes turned into a devil, theres this sense that hes been socially isolated for some time. before joining ur group, he probably hadnt had stable relationships in years. other than mizora, his abuser who intentionally isolates him.

and this isolation is a direct result of him choosing to protect other people. he was exiled because he made his pact to save baldur's gate. he was turned into a devil because he chose to defy mizora to save karlach. actions that did material good for other people, but doomed him.

theres also this element where wyll is both less than his image as the blade of frontiers, and more than the legend. wyll is a warlock who made a deal with a devil, he is occasionally forced to kill targets at the behest of a devil. he potentially kills an innocent, and theres no guarantee he hasnt been mislead before. but wyll is also just as selfless and heroic as the stories say. he can easily choose to spare karlach, and face his punishment despite the fear and the cost. he willingly sacrificed his soul for baldur's gate, and possibly for a father who rejected him.

wyll primarily hunts monsters, but he also expresses empathy for them, and is willing to give anyone a chance to prove that they can be good. he isnt hostile to astarion for being a vampire spawn, he only asks that astarion not harm innocents. he gives a dark urge character another chance if they express any kind of regret after killing alfira. he even argues against astarion wanting to kill 7000 vampire spawn. he knows the dangers, but he cant see the justice in killing 7000 people who were victimized and transformed against their will.

wyll offers grace, mercy, and forgiveness to almost anyone who shows even a hint that they could be better. but not himself. he holds himself to impossible standards, and denies himself any sort of grace. when astarion compares what cazador did to him to what mizora did to wyll, wyll rejects it outright. astarion was a victim, but wyll does not view himself as a victim. the pact was his choice, and the consequences are his to bear.

ANYWAY. being good is far more complex than just being a "goody two shoes". theres so much depth and contradiction in how wyll is a good aligned character. and i wish ppl would stop seeing being good as boring and lacking complexity. insert ursula k le guin quote here.

[cemeteryspider]

A Feathered Destiny

Nightcrawler! Kurt Wagner x Winged! Reader

Summary: Your world and Kurt's faith collide when you join the X-Men.

There are religious themes in this because Nightcrawler is canonically Catholic. I used to be a practicing member of the Catholic Church but I no longer practice this religion. I hope not to offend religious and non-religious people. There is no mention of reader's faith.

Trigger Warnings: Violence, Injury, Blood, Emotional Distress, Religious and Supernatural Themes

Word Count: 1514

When Charles Xavier introduced you to his team of X-Men, shock coursed through you. One moment, you were a nobody, burdened by a painfully obvious mutation that had isolated you from human society. In an instant, you found yourself surrounded by mutants like yourself, each with their own unique abilities and histories.

Some of the X-Men were unsettled by your resemblance to the original X-Men member, Angel. However, Beast quickly dismissed any concerns of familial ties and after verifying your carbon dating matched your age, ruling out the possibility of you being a clone.

One member of the X-Men, however, greeted you without hesitation. Nightcrawler's eyes widened and his mouth fell agape at the sight of your pure white wings, immediately drawn to the divine aura you seemed to exude.

To him you were perfect in every way, a divine gift from god himself.

During your first mission you were sent to stop sentinel activity in Los Angeles. You soared past the sentinels nose-diving into their heads and soaring out the back unscathed.

You worked fast and effectively, working with the other X-Men to keep people on the ground safe. Once the sentinels were taken down and your feet touched the ground once more you could sense the despair of the people around you.

A deep emotional crowd of sadness nearly suffocated you. You scanned the crowd looking for people you could help.

One espeacially strong emotional response coming from not too far away. A little girl hovering over her mother, who was weakly trying to consol her daughter despite the blood leaking from the left side of her mouth and the stone crushing her chest.

You approached the little girl cautiously, kneeling beside her. With a gentle touch, you retrieved a small dagger from your suit's waistband and carefully snipped a lock of your hair. Placing it in the girl's hand, you whispered softly, "What do you wish for the most right now?"

A suprised look crossed the girl's face when the hair in her hand disappeared into a golden light, and the rock on her mom's chest disappeared along with the blood on her mouth.

You heard two small gasps as the mom's once concave chest returned to it's usual position.

The girl launched herself into her mom's arms, and you just smiled at the sight in front of you.

"Thank you," The mom said in your direction.

A team of medics carefully loaded the woman onto a stretcher, their movements precise and urgent. Deep down you knew their tests were going to come back with positive results. The miracle you seemed to have preformed would do the trick. Her daughter ran into the ambulance to follow.

People around you stared standing still, some with their jaw slack others with their eyes wide. You smiled as you brushed the rubble off of your suit and stood up walking past Kurt who looked baffled at the scene he just witnessed, "My God, Samson's hair."

To him, he had just witnessed a miracle of god.

~~~

Later that week you stood across from Kurt in the Danger Room. You watched as Wolverine typed into a tablet changing some of the hologram enemies around the room.

"Alright, let's see if you've got what it takes. Get ready for some action," You almost rolled your eyes. Wolverine was obviously not used to setting up training for others, but you decided that he was trying his best.

Kurt looked over to you, "Let's show them what we've got, ja?"

A smiled crossed your face, "I'm ready when you are."

With a quick glance over to Logan he smirked, "Begin."

The holographic enemies shot into action around the two of you. You allowed your wings to spread and soon you lifted off the ground.

"I'll take the high ground," You shouted down to Kurt.

He disappeared and reappeared behind an enemy in a cloud of smoke and brimstone. He delivered a swift kick to the back of its skull, "Und I will keep them occupied down here."

You knocked a bunch of holograms down with your spread wings, and Kurt teleported rapidly, dodging attacks and taking down enemies with an acrobatic prowess.

You weaved through the various obstecales put in your flying path. You took down an archer that was silently aiming for Kurt in a tree.

"They cannot hit what they cannot see," He shouted up to you, and you smiled. He couldn't help but smirk when he saw your white teeth.

The last few enemies standing Kurt stood straight with a serene look settling across his features as he fought. His lips tumbling out whispers, "Thank you, Lord, for this strength."

You land next to Kurt, with the last enemy defeated. The land evened out with a few taps on Wolverine's tablet.

"Great job, Kurt!" You smiled at him again.

He smiled back, "Danke, We make a good team, don't we?"

When his eyes met yours he took your hand in his, "You are a gift from God, you know."

Your eyes left his to look at the ground, "I really appreaciate that Kurt, but I'm not an angel. I am a mutant, just like you."

He tucked a piece of hair behind your ear and you looked back up at him, "Mutant... Angel. It does not matter to me. You are still a blessing."

You tight shoulders loosened, "Thank you Kurt, that means a lot."

"Alright, enough chit-chat you two. Let's see if you can handle the next level," Logan said rapidly typing into the tablet once more.

~~~

In the evening, you found solace on a weathered bench in the campus garden. The night sky twinkled with distant stars, casting a gentle glow over the blooming peonies. The faint scent of sulfur wafted through the air, drawing your attention to Nightcrawler, who appeared beside you

"Mind if I join you?"

A small smile crosses your face, "Not at all"

He looked at your face as the moon cast a gentle glow on your face.

"It is beautiful out here. Peaceful," His eyes quickly darting to the sky, "Do you ever wonder if there is more to this world than the things we see?"

A subtle crease in your brow formed, "I do. Sometimes I think about where we come from and where we're going."

Kurts arms rested on his theighs, "My faith has always guided me. Even in the darkest of times. I believe there is a high purpose, and that it has guided you to me."

"I admire your faith in a higher power, Kurt."

He turns his body to look at you, "It has not been easy. I have faced hatred and fear for how I look. Through it all, I have always held onto my faith."

You put your hand over Kurt's, "You've been through so much Kurt, I understand why you hold onto your faith so tightly."

"And you? What keeps you going, Angel?" His eyes lit up.

You took a deep breath, "There's something I need to tell you. It's about why I came here."

A gentle concern crosses his face and he leans it a little bit close to you, "Whatever it is, you can trust me."

You scrunch your eyes closed, "I came here because I felt lost. Once my powers manifested my parents kicked me out of the house. My old friends wanted nothing to do with me. When the Professor found me I was completley alone. No one to help me, everyone shutting me out. When I met you I felt like I finally found a place to belong, with the X-Men."

He smiled warmly at you, wrapping his arm around your shoulders, "You are always welcome here. The X-Men is a family, and we support each other."

Your eyes shone with unshed tears, "Thank you Kurt. That means more than you know."

Your head rested on his shoulder and you continued to watch the night sky. His head came to rest atop yours as well.

~~~

You stood beside Kurt as Rogue and Gambit animatedly recounted their globe-trotting escapades. Kurt subtly wrapped his arm around your waist, eliciting a chuckle from Rogue.

"Took you two long enough," she teased with a grin.

A blush crossed your face with a shy smile, and Kurt could only grin at his sister's comment.

Soon Scott and Jean walked over congratulating the two of you on getting together, saying it felt like it would never happen despite Kurt following you around like a lost puppy.

"They're just jealous of the two of ya, sugah," Rogue whispered to you when she gave you a hug. You couldn't help but smile looking at the team surrounding you.

You finally found the warmth of friendship among these extraordinary individuals. Perhaps, in time, they would become your family.

From his wheelchair in the hallway, Professor Xavier watched his team with a smile that held both pride and hope. As laughter and camaraderie filled the air, he felt a deep-seated conviction that every obstacle overcome brought them closer to realizing his dream of unity and acceptance.

[mania-sama]

A Look into Mental Health: Jujutsu Kaisen Analysis

"Being a child is not a sin." (Nanami Kento, Jujutsu Kaisen)

With the release of Chapter 251, I've seen many horrible takes from dudebros saying that Megumi has "sold" the team. This makes me unreasonably angry because of course it does, so obviously my next plan of action is to take all of my hour-long rants about the mental health of JJK characters and put it here, where said dudebros will never see my (correct) analysis in their entire life. Oh well.

One thing Gege is really, really good at is creating believable, undeniably human, and complex characters. Every character has a different set of motivations, beliefs, ideals, and especially mental states. The constant theme of Jujutsu Kiasen has been "Strength vs Weakness". While the clearest interpretation can be seen through the physical attributes of the characters (Gojo being the strongest sorcerer of his time due to his abilities, and Miwa being one of the weakest, again, due to her abilities), it is also directly applied to the mental strength of characters. No two characters are able to withstand the same trauma and come out the exact same, just as no two real people can process the same trauma. Not only is it a result of nature, as people are genetically different and therefore process information differently, but a product of nurture - in other words, character motivation and environment.

This is where we come to the current state of the manga, Chapter 251. The fated Yuuji vs Megumi debate. I keep seeing people wildly misunderstanding these two, and why it's so important that Megumi isn't standing up to fight, why he isn't able to handle his trauma, when Yuuji can.

Gege writes phenomenal characters. And I want to express just how well done they are, making Jujutsu Kaisen actually kind of deserve its popularity, because some people only care about power scaling. I'm going to touch on Megumi last, because understanding all of the other characters' makes his visible struggle that much more impactful.

1. Geto Suguru

I want to start this mental health analysis with Geto. He is the best representation of depression I've ever seen in Shonen. It doesn't take a hundred chapters to showcase a character's downfall. It doesn't take a hundred significant events to cause a character to break down. Gege shows the best, realistic mental breakdown using only a handful of chapters, and still makes it slow and painful.

Depression can start because of a big event, but it doesn't take more for it to worsen. Untreated, depression runs a vicious course that eats a person through slowly but effectively. It isn't one screaming session, hands clutched over the head and cursing God and the world. It's everything piled onto each other. It's coming to the end of that pile and realizing that nothing will ever change.

This is Geto Suguru's story. He has a big event: the fight with Toji and the failure to save Riko. But his mental health journey was fated to decline, even without the fight and failure. The root issue of his depression came from his ability: Cursed Spirit Manipulation. As long as he kept devouring the embodiment of every vile, human emotion, the more he would lose himself to that vileness. He wasn't changing anything; he couldn't help but continue to swim in negativity because that's all he could do.

Gege wasn't making a commentary on Geto's ability. He was talking about people, as they are, and how staying in a bad situation will not always make you stronger. It can, and most likely will, make you worse. A direct comparison to the sixteen-year-old Geto would be a sixteen-year-old at school, surrounded by people who bully and pick on them with harsh words. The kid will eventually consume all of that bullying, all of that negativity, into their being, because there is simply nowhere else to go. School is mandatory; they can't just leave. They eventually feel isolated, with all that vileness piled on. Even if they have friends, those people could never understand what it's like to put up with humiliation and cruelty day after day.

It's not rational to push away a support system, but who said human beings are always rational? People make mistakes. They don't make the right decisions. Geto didn't. He saw someone offer him a chance at change, a possible light at the top of his pile and twisted it to match his overwhelming negativity. He left and swore to destroy the world that made him the way he is, just as that bullied child may turn away from school and society in whatever form that may take.

I want to touch on the physical aspects of Geto's depression, too. I noted this in a previous analysis I did on him (his character is just that amazing, what can I say?), but Gege knew that the mind can't be affected alone. Geto was drawn with deep eyebags, a nod to an inability to sleep or needing to sleep all the time. Depression makes you tired all the time. Everything becomes difficult. He sits with his back hunched, resting his weight on his knees, like sitting upright is too hard. When someone speaks to him, he blinks and takes a second too long to look over or respond, like speaking takes too much energy. To me, it even looked like he was becoming thinner. It's extremely difficult to maintain a schedule of exercise and mealtimes when your mind is fighting an active war against itself.

Again, a beautiful representation of depression. Geto means a lot to me in this aspect.

2. Gojo Satoru

In comparison to Geto, Gojo's horrible mental health is a lot subtler. Depression isn't the correct term, but you don't have to be depressed to be sad. Sadness is his stagnant state; he has moments of bliss, goals to work towards, a reason to keep going, to continue living, to continue chasing the sun over the horizon, but he does return to the same place he is always at when the lights turn off and he's painfully reminded of this one fact: he is isolated.

All of Gojo's problems start and end with isolation. From the moment he was born, everyone knew he was different. He knew he was different. Through glimpses of his childhood and honestly reading between the lines, it's obvious he never played with kids his age. People don't just develop a superiority complex with their only drive to be better than literally everyone else for no other reason than to get better. It comes from somewhere, and in Gojo's case, it's from his young childhood. It seriously messed him up; even now, he can't shake the lesson that "Strength is the only way to success and happiness".

This is what made Geto so important. Geto was somebody who could share the burden of being the strongest. Geto was someone his age who understood him in a way Shoko could not, though they both were able to see Gojo beyond his capabilities as a Jujutsu sorcerer. Gojo then had somebody to base his moral principles on. Because he couldn't connect with anybody else, he had no basis other than strength. Geto taught him why it was important for the strong to protect the weak.

Then everything went wrong. Gojo became isolated again in his strength and lost the only person who could plausibly stand with him. "Are you the strongest because you're Gojo Satoru, or are you Gojo Satoru because you're the strongest?" Gojo was young, then, and fresh-faced into his newfound godhood. He didn't kill Geto in that moment because he wanted to deny the claim that he is nothing without his strength, that he isn't as shallow as he was raised to be.

But he knew better. He grew older, he killed his best friend, and he realized that he was nothing without his strength. He never got over Geto. In order to cope with the guilt of being unable to save him when he left, he adopted a whole kid, thinking that if he wasn't strong enough to save Geto, maybe he could save Megumi. But there it is all over again - he never broke from the cycle of strength defining his worth. Saving Megumi would define his strength, right? It would prove Geto wrong, right? He raised Megumi under the same logic (that the only way to save his sister is to be strong), only ridding the boy of the crushing isolation.

In this way, Gojo isn't mentally weak. He didn't abandon society and everyone who loved him, instead choosing to hone the trauma of his isolated childhood into a weapon and teach the next generation to be better than himself. He isn't depressed, but he isn't happy. You can't be happy if you're alone all of the time. He hoped Megumi could be someone to stand by him, but in the end, he failed to save Megumi. His strength couldn't save him, just as it couldn't save Geto.

He isn't mentally strong. He isn't weak, either. He is horribly, painfully average. He's not weak enough to be saved, but not strong enough to save others. His childhood plagues him, but not to the point where it prevents him from living. He killed Geto but was unable to bury the body. Gojo is everything he never wanted to be.

As it turns out, strength can't buy you happiness. Gojo may have understood that, but he couldn't abandon it, even to the bitter end. Just as a human struggles to shed their conditioning. Not everyone can break the cycle, but we are always trying our best to work with what we've been dealt.

3. Okkotsu Yuuta

I'm putting Yuuta in between Gojo & Geto and Itadori & Megumi because he is, in a way, a bridge between the two. Geto and Gojo have lived their lives; their stories are complete and ended in tragedy. Itadori and Megumi's are not. They are still actively struggling and fighting their physical and mental battles; their stories have yet to be completed.

Yuuta's story isn't technically completed (ignoring everything that happened in the recent chapter with him for the sake of MY mental health), he is still a success story. He is the average protagonist who started from the bottom and ended up at the top. Only he, as Gege has done time and time again, has a slightly stronger focus on mental health than most other Shonen. He is success where Gojo & Geto failed, and the success that Itadori & Megumi are narratively striving for.

At the beginning, Yuuta was depressed and suicidal. He was bullied at school and involuntarily hurting others. Instead of becoming resentful of the world, he pushed all of the vileness inward. His guilt caused him to try to take his life, presumably multiple times, but Rika stopped him before he could succeed. His life was effectively out of his hands; he felt powerless with all of the bodies stacking around him, and he couldn't atone for "his" actions.

His mental health, as it was, was in shambles. Gojo then offered him a way forward. Yuuta's mental health did not improve overnight. It was when he made friends at Jujutsu High, and developed a support system, that he was able to relieve his anxiety and realize that life is not so bad after all. That all of this pain and suffering and loss - it will pass.

The most important thing to acknowledge when it comes to Yuuta is the sheer fact that he was not alone, nor did he allow himself to be alone. Unlike Gojo, who still had Shoko and Nanami after Geto left but refused to connect with them, Yuuta allowed himself to get close to those around him. They didn't know the suffering he'd undergone for so many years. They didn't know what it was like to be him, but that was okay. He knew that they had empathy, that even though they could never experience his life, they could still be there for him now when he falls.

When given the opportunity to surrender, Yuuta stands in the face of one Geto Suguru and swears to protect his friends and fight with Rika. He's so far removed from the boy who tried to kill himself at the beginning of the manga, and that's because he let himself be changed. He did not succumb. He had friends, he knew. People that would miss him if he left, and people whom he would regret leaving.

This stays consistent with his character. He doesn't let himself become isolated in his strength or his experiences. He's much stronger than everyone else in the room, he's a special grade and he knows that, but he still treats everyone like they are equals. Like they are his friends, like they are people who could share this burden of existence with him. This is something that Gojo couldn't accomplish, which lends to the fact that Gojo had a very off-hand teaching method when it came to mentoring Yuuta. Instead of influencing him under this idea of strength conquers all, he let Yuuta develop far away from the ideals of the Japanese Jujutsu Society.

And, in the end, the fact of him being physically strong - a special-grade sorcerer from the get-go - never helped him in his mental health. In fact, it made him miserable until he learned to get a handle on Rika. His winning or losing that fight with Geto wasn't the point of his character, it was reckoning with the fact that he is okay now. That he can embrace the ugly part of him with dignity instead of guilt.

4. Itadori Yuuji

Itadori's entire character is that he has an unbreakable spirit. As the only one who can bear the soul of Sukuna, he started off like Yuuta, only on the opposite end of the mental health spectrum. When we first see him, he's happy, spending his afternoons with the Occult Club and watching movies.

... What happened?

Like Geto, everything piled on very slowly. So slow that I'm not even sure he felt the true effects of everything he experienced up until the fall of Shibuya. It starts with the death of grandfather, whose parting words "Just save as many people as you can" haunt him even now during the final fight with Sukuna. He was never given time to properly grieve his grandfather, just as he never had time to grieve the brother curses, Junpei, Nanami, Nobara, Gojo, Higurama. At the end of it all, when the fighting is over, I have to wonder what will become of the boy that realizes he's lost most of the people he loved.

The one time he did try to process it, when he realized that he couldn't control Sukuna, was when he broke down in Shibuya. Sukuna leveled an entire city. For the boy who never wanted to kill another human being for fear of devaluing life, the weight of his weakness killing thousands was crushing. Then Nanami died. Nobara died (still hanging onto that unknown status but I digress). Both are right in front of him, and powerless to prevent Mahito from disintegrating their bodies. So, obviously, Itadori broke down. The boy with the unshakeable spirit, the only person who could contain the King of Curses, has his psyche completely shattered.

He laid on the ground, and he wouldn't have gotten back up if there wasn't somebody to help him, to be there with him. Todo pulled him back together, stitched back up the broken into somebody who has allies and people to fight for. Itadori has the success that Yuuta had, only Itadori did not come out of it with better mental health.

After the breakdown, his unshakeable spirit was nothing more than the will to keep fighting. He cares little for himself, and he tries to distance himself from people to prevent them from dying from his cursed hands. He is jumping, quickly, down the same rabbit hole that Geto fell down. One big event, and they realize just how tall the pile already is, and that it will never stop growing. Unlike Geto, however, he continues to get overbearing support from those around him. Against his will. He can't push them away, for they refuse to leave his side. Yuuta, Choso, Megumi, even Higurama. They won't let him fall. This makes him better off than someone alone, in a sense. He can withstand his trauma when others may not.

Even so, even so, there is only so much support, the lack of self-isolation, can do when the traumas keep actively repeating. When he says that he will gladly die to defeat Sukuna, it is not said with the same tone that another Shonen protagonist would say it. Take Naruto for example. If he were to go into a battle to protect, say, Sasuke, he would scream, "I'll die to protect him." We understand that his willpower is stronger than his self-preservation, but we don't get the idea that he actively wants to die. He'll die if he has to. Now, Itadori says the same thing, but about saving Megumi. He says, "I'll gladly die." There is something different. His willpower is leaps and bounds stronger than his self-preservation, but that's not only it. There is an undercurrent of severe suicidal ideation prevalent in Itadori's tone. It's not that he will die to win, it's that a part of him wants for this to be his final fight. For it all to be over. To save Megumi, then atone for the sin of being too weak to save Shibuya, or being unable to stop the Culling Games, or letting Megumi get hurt when all he wanted was to keep him safe.

I'd call it more along the lines of passive suicidal ideation. He doesn't plan to kill himself, but what would it mean for him to go into dangerous situations without protection? What would it mean for him to succumb to his wounds after he wakes Megumi's soul and kills Sukuna? To not even try to seek medical attention? He's guilty. He believes everything that happened in Shibuya and after is his fault. When faced with the executioner's sword, he was ready to die for his sins, if not for the goal of ending the Games. There is a fine line between willing to die for those you love versus wanting to die for those you love.

Right now, Itadori is fighting to save one person, like his grandfather said. He is not fighting to survive. And that's what people fail to understand about Itadori when they compare him to the other members of the cast. These power-scaling dudebros don't understand that their favorite OP main character has fallen apart at the seams, that his unshakeable spirit to save people doesn't include himself.

5. Fushiguro Megumi

Here we finally come to the question: Why can Itadori take it when Megumi can't? There is a very similar quote that you probably think of whenever you hear this question asked. It's from The Outsiders: "Dally is tougher than I am. Why can I take it when Dally can't?" The answer to this question that Ponyboy gives is the same we can attribute to Megumi. "And then I knew. Johnny was the only thing Dally loved. And now Johnny was gone."

The entire reason Megumi became a Jujutsu sorcerer was to protect his sister. When he was five years old and probably too young to understand most of the words Gojo said, he accepted the offer of training to become a sorcerer in exchange for Tsumiki's happiness. Every day, he fought to protect her. He only had one goal in entering the Culling Games: to prevent Tsumiki from having to participate.

It's easy to attribute Megumi's constant attempts at summoning Mahoraga to a lack of will to live - suicidal ideation, the same that Itadori now experiences. On one hand, I do understand that he has a fundamental lack of care for his own life, but on the other, I don't think that he intends to throw it all away every single time. He just didn't know any better. Ignorance can lead to death as easily as intentionally seeking it out. That's why he changes his habit after Gojo gives him a lesson in risking death versus dying to win; Megumi still has someone to live for, after all.

Megumi's mental health was already rocky from the start. Not that it was in shambles like Yuuta, but he wasn't fully stable. Like a lot of teenagers, he's moody, somewhat reclusive, and only really likes one or two people maximum. Teenagers aren't known for their sunshine mental health anyway.

Megumi was given time to grieve Itadori after he first died. This trauma of losing him in front of his eyes stuck with him, but he was allowed a grace period of two months to grieve with Nobara. He experienced Shibuya, too, but he still had that one important person to protect. His mental health was alright at this point, all things considered. As long as his sister was alive, he would be fine.

Sukuna knew this. So Sukuna killed Tsumiki using only the Ten Shadows Teqchnique. The one person Megumi spent his whole life dedicated to, was killed by his own cursed technique, his own failure to suppress Sukuna.

In the void of his soul, Megumi was alone. Truly, utterly alone. The only person nearby was Sukuna, the murderer of his sister, the murderer of thousands upon thousands of people. He drowned in the ceremonial bath of crushed curses to hold his soul down in the depths of despair, literally drenched in all of the vileness the world has to offer. Sukuna killed Gojo using Mahoraga's adaption ability, and before that, Megumi was forced to take several of Gojo's mind-altering domain expansions.

Already, he had given up. He gave up when his sister died, but the rest ground a pointed spur into his neck. When Itadori shakes his soul, Megumi is repeating, "That's enough." He was at the end of his rope a long time ago. What more is there to keep living for? He doesn't want to live with the blood of his sister, the blood of the man who practically raised him, and the blood of countless others drenching his hands.

Sukuna killed all of these people, not Megumi. But then, Sukuna killed of those people in Shibuya, not Itadori. Why can Itadori take it? Why can he keep fighting when Megumi lays broken on the ground? Itadori wasn't alone. And Megumi has never been known for his unshakeable spirit. That is the one thing that Itadori can hold over everybody else, the one trait that everyone admires. He was born to shoulder the burden of the world. Megumi wasn't. Megumi wants to die. He is not passively suicidal, for he has no goals left to complete, a plan to die within the body no longer inhabited alone. He is suicidal. He would drive a stake through his heart if it meant relieving his pain. He doesn't want to do it anymore. He's had enough.

And Itadori was in this position once, too? Perhaps not as directly, but he was there. Here is the moment that the protagonist gives the motivating speech to will someone to keep fighting, that life is worth living. I realized today that this is not something Itadori has done yet. He hasn't had a grand speech that's not been about his own willpower. He's never encouraged someone else to keep living in the way that you would expect from the main character. This is his moment, I suppose. He needs to be the person for Megumi that Todo was for him. He has to show Megumi that he isn't alone.

He needs to save Megumi when, all those years ago, Gojo couldn't save Geto.

I don't think some of this fanbase understands how horrible Gege has to be at writing if he just. Let Megumi get up to fight in Chapter 251. All this time, he has shown how Megumi has been defeated. He showed him crumbled on the ground, unmoving. It shouldn't be a surprise that all of the measures Sukuna took to ensnare Megumi's soul worked. Megumi is suicidal after the people he loves have all died because of his technique. God forbid a sixteen-year-old is unable to cope with his trauma alone.

Honorable Mentions:

There are a lot more characters in this story that represent/show mental illness that I didn't go into depth on but are worth mentioning. It was easier to only talk about the major characters since we spend so much time with them and I can fully flesh out everything that should/can be said about them. Anyway, here are a few more that are notably well-written in their mental struggles:

Yoshino Junpei. His story arc follows very similarly to Geto, except he is the bullied student I was making a reference to. Depressed, alone with a mother whose habits he can't stand, he turned to someone he thought could provide him a better life. Interestingly, he is a good representation of the type of children that tend to be groomed. That's surely what happened to him. Mahito used him, then discarded him for his own gains.

Ieiri Shoko. Her main struggle can be seen through her smoking habits. She's been through a lot, lost so many people, and has to keep healing sorcerers only for them to die. Eventually, she was able to come to terms with this. She kicked her smoking habit at the same time she kicked the vicious mental cycle of caring too much about the patient on her table. It's no wonder she picked up a cigarette, for the first time in a while, when Geto led the phantom parade.

Zenin Maki. She works as a very good contrast to Megumi. They both lost their sisters, the people they loved the most, but she turned all of her grief to killing the Zenin clan and gaining Heavenly Restriction. But this, this is because she could do so. There is simply nothing Megumi can do as a soul trapped in his own body. Her grief made her stronger, while for most, it made them weaker.

Inumaki Toge. He isn't seen a lot, but his story is ultimately quite compelling. A boy who hurt many when he was young. He turned his guilt into kindness, a will to protect. He tends a garden to raise plants healthily, for God's sake. He's one of the examples that shows Yuuta that your past actions don't define you, but instead, what you choose to do going forward.

I am not proofreading any of this before I post it. Sorry if it is borderline unreadable with spelling / grammatical errors.

[aventurineswife]

Stages of Shadows: Contestant No.2

Name:

Sunday

Height without shoes:

5'7" (170 cm)

Occupation:

Leader of the Oak Family, Charmony Festival Organizer, Representative of The Family of Penacony.

Background:

Sunday is the respected leader of the Oak Family, a title that carries great influence and responsibility. As the organizer of the Charmony Festival and representative of The Family of Penacony, he has earned a reputation for being just, rational, and dignified. Many look to him for guidance, captivated by his calm wisdom and composed demeanor. Despite his outward poise, Sunday harbors a deep-seated disillusionment with the world’s cruelty, shaped by a tragic past that separated him from his beloved family, particularly his younger sister, Robin, whom he believed lost. This loss fueled his desire to shield people from life’s pain, inspiring his dream of Sweetdream Paradise—a place where people can live free from suffering, though forever removed from reality. With an unwavering belief in this vision, he now views it as the solution to humanity’s struggles, one that prioritizes comfort over growth.

His entry into the Stages of Shadows—a deadly performance competition where failing a duet results in execution—places him in direct opposition to his ideals. This brutal contest forces Sunday into a reality far removed from his dreams of peace, putting him face-to-face with rivals who embody the harshness he despises. To his shock, he also finds his sister, Robin, among the contestants. This reunion, though bittersweet, becomes a turning point in Sunday’s journey, awakening long-dormant emotions he’d tried to bury in his pursuit of an idealized world.

Personality:

Sunday is dignified, calm, and emanates a quiet intensity that draws people to him. He has a benevolent yet detached air, often viewed as rational and morally steadfast. His heart holds genuine compassion, but his twisted outlook on happiness leaves him willing to sacrifice reality for the sake of peace. Sunday’s calm demeanor masks an undercurrent of melancholy and protectiveness, shaped by his pessimistic view of human nature. He believes that people instinctively seek to escape from suffering, and he does not shame them for it. However, his tendency to retreat into his ideals sometimes blinds him to the real-world consequences of his actions, making him prone to overestimating his perspective and underestimating the resilience of those around him.

Strengths:

Leadership: Sunday is naturally composed under pressure and can command respect effortlessly, a key trait for rallying those around him.

Resilience of Belief: His firm conviction in protecting people from pain gives him an almost unbreakable mental fortitude, allowing him to keep his composure.

Emotional Reserve: His ability to mask emotions and stay focused on his purpose makes him difficult to read, a useful advantage in a high-stakes environment.

Weaknesses:

Overattachment to Ideals: Sunday’s unwavering belief in a peaceful escape can make him inflexible and blind to alternatives, a limitation in a cutthroat contest where adaptability is vital.

Isolation: His distance from reality and tendency to keep others at arm’s length make him reluctant to truly trust, which can hinder his ability to form alliances.

Emotional Blindspot for Loved Ones: Though he normally keeps people at a distance, his love for his sister Robin and complex feelings about [Name] make him vulnerable in ways he struggles to control.

The Revelation of His Sister, Robin:

Sunday’s world shifts dramatically upon discovering his sister, Robin, is also trapped in the Stages of Shadows. For years, he believed his family lost, and in that void, he crafted his dream of a peaceful world. But seeing her again stirs emotions he’d locked away, reigniting his drive to protect those he loves. Robin’s presence becomes both a source of strength and an unsettling distraction, forcing Sunday to confront a deeper truth: his dream of escaping pain is as much a desire to protect her as it is a philosophical belief.In reuniting with his sister, Sunday gains a new resolve, but the stakes of the Stages of Shadows challenge him in unexpected ways. The possibility of her being used against him becomes a shadow hanging over every performance, forcing him to reconcile his ideals with the brutal reality of survival. He finds himself torn between his belief in peaceful escape and the need to fight for their freedom. His carefully constructed world is now at odds with a fierce, personal need to save his sister, revealing that his philosophy might not withstand the ultimate test—when the lives of those he cherishes are on the line.

Motivation:

Sunday is driven by a complex desire to create a world without pain, a vision rooted in both compassion and a deep-seated pessimism about human nature. He believes that most people, when faced with suffering, would choose escape over struggle—a belief that has led him to see Sweetdream Paradise as humanity’s best hope. For him, protecting people from pain, even at the cost of reality, is an act of mercy, and he feels it is his duty to uphold this vision, regardless of the sacrifices involved.

However, the discovery of his sister Robin within the Stages of Shadows introduces a new layer to his motivation. Her presence stirs a fierce protective instinct within him, challenging his notion that peace through detachment is the answer. Torn between his philosophy and his love for his sister, Sunday is now forced to confront the limits of his ideals. The competition becomes a test of his beliefs, pushing him to navigate between his desire to shelter humanity from pain and the painful reality that, to protect his sister and himself, he may need to embrace the very struggle he has always sought to escape.

[Navigation]

[various-things]

garak: best ending and worst ending

Thank you for the ask!!

As an ASIT-enjoyer, Andy's writing influences my strongest post-canon opinions (and is also always a strong influence on my general feelings about Garak as a character re: various motivations but! I don't think that conflicts with or undermines canon discussion). I suppose in the long fic I'll eventually finish I'll explore my take on a "best ending" of sorts for Garak within that additional non-canon series of events, but in my answer here I'm going to stick to the show's events as what's "known."

In the show itself, I'm pretty satisfied with Garak's ending. He gets multiple things he has wanted for years at immense personal cost. Threads of his story are closed off and new questions are raised, more recent trauma is created, possible futures are inferable. Surely, after he leaves us in that control room, he'll be trying to help Cardassia in some way; being useful is something he understands as such a core need for himself. When I think of a worst ending for Garak in some After beyond the closing of the show, I see some degree of continuation of what we saw in the final season: his actions directly leading to immense loss. In the show, his code-breaking leads to attacks on Cardassian planets. He loses his last family member because he came to her for shelter. Two million people were murdered in Lakarian City in a direct retaliation for acts of sabotage carried out by a rebellion he was involved in leading. All of it visibly devastates him. The Dominion is ultimately stopped and he knew the cost to Cardassia could/would be great, but how he processes that trauma in the future is yet to be determined. In a worst ending, I see him trying to help Cardassia recover in some way and his actions continually resulting in more death, more harm, more suffering, without accomplishing the things he is trying for. He wants so badly to help. He thinks he has skills and knowledge to offer, but his presence only seems to result in more horrible things. Maybe sometimes it couldn't have been predicted—some awful bit of bad luck or chance that didn't work out. Maybe sometimes he made a genuine mistake with a horrible cost. What does he do then? Has this series of tragedies alienated him from other Cardassians even further? More isolation but where now he feels it is profoundly and fundamentally because of himself? But I think the continued loss he'd caused, the harm he'd done, would be the worst thing to live with—even if the potential solace of revenge may no longer be an avenue he could explore, not with this. In a best ending, I'd hope he'd be far removed from the potential to do so much damage, if he could let himself have a life like that. I think he would need to know of other leaders that he believed in. He'd need to become aware of others he felt some degree of trust in as far as their ability to help a people (because Cardassia really is the people and romanticized culture for him) he loves so much. I'd hope he could lead a life where he felt useful, and where he could help others, where the stakes are not so dire and the fulfillment would remain profound. I think he has a great (insufficiently self-acknowledged) need for a lot of healing ahead of him. He would get time and space for that, a life with comfort and softness, and small frequent pleasures. And of course, Julian would be there. The person Garak loves so much and who has played the biggest role in the ways he's changed. For Julian, I think something other than a life with Garak would need to unblock Julian on pursuing that. We've seen various stuff get them together in fic as far as something like that—him staying on Cardassia because he's a doctor and he can't leave the hurt people who need help now, or ways his relationship with Ezri doesn't work out, etc. But in Garak's best ending, Julian is also there. I really enjoyed answering this, thank you again for the prompt! <3

[rivkae-winters]

Zack Fair, Violence, and Tragedy

Over the last month or two I’ve seen several posts about the nature of Zack Fair’s tragedy and his seeming heel-toe-turn and thought I’d chime in. 

Also like last time: this is only my interpretation of canon, there is no one true analysis to take as gospel. If you disagree/differ in opinion/even just want to talk please reblog or dm! I enjoy talking to other people about this sort of thing, fandom is all about discussion after all!

While I agree with the sentiment I’ve seen going around that Zack’s relationship to violence plays a role there are other nuances and factors at play here. I’d argue that it’s more accurate to say that Zack is becoming more aware of personal and professional culture outside of SOLDIER and outside of both ShinRa’s constraining grip and Angeal’s attempts at protection. Even then it takes great personal tragedy caused by the inherent contradictions of ShinRa’s reality for him to realize that he has functionally been on the wrong side.  

Sure he’s not callous like Cloud is in the beginning of original and Remake, but he certainly isn’t horrified at his actions just because there is violence. I’d argue the violence of his actions isn’t the main horror to him in isolation. I’d argue that even the death that results from violence isn’t what the core of the issue is either. 

Zack’s hinging point is more his loyalty and his pride. What he does for other people and what he believes in and of himself. Specifically these things in conjunction with his desire to be a good person. 

The language of Pride, the non-localized direct translation of the word hokori or 誇り(JP CC Script), is what’s going to be used here rather than Honor. 

誇り | Hokori - To take pride in; To boast of

Definition Sources: 1, 2, 3

Just keep in mind that I’ve written this from as neutral a point of view as possible on the matter of pride since the Western perception definitively does not apply. To be proud is not a crime and it is not foolish it simply is. 

Zack initially places his pride in SOLDIER- in what being a SOLDIER means to him. In how being a SOLDIER is his and that they are his people and thus he lets ShinRa policies define how he frames his morality. Thus ShinRa defines good in Zack Fair’s life. 

Zack wants to be a hero. He wants to help people. He is trusting and kind and respectful to people consistently outside of the conflict of the mass desertion. Zack genuinely wants to be a good person and help other people, good or otherwise. He is led to believe by ShinRa propaganda that the best way to help people or to be anything meaningful in this world is through them. This is a baited trap that he falls into, Zack is prime prey this trap was intended to catch. 

He is angry at Genesis and horrified by Angeal, especially at the beginning, not for cruelty or violence or even really death… He is angry at them for their betrayal. Sure he is violent and angry in the instance he thinks Angeal has murdered his own mother, as with Genesis and his parents, but that does not define his antagonism, his hatred, his regret, his sense of justice with them at all. 

 Zack does not raise his sword at Genesis for the people of Banora, he raises his sword for SOLDIER. 

Zack understandably feels, and has been, betrayed. 

He is hurt and angry and alone in a way he’s never been since he got into the SOLDIER program. He falls deeper into the illusions of ShinRa for that reason, angry and hurting and grieving the life he had with people in it who will never return. There is a deep sense of nostalgia throughout Crisis Core in the sense of the word’s initial meaning: the pain of missing home. Specifically the homes we find in people.

Even as he believes in ShinRa's twisted reality Zack wants to help. He wants to protect those he cares for. Zack wants to be good. Unfortunately in Zack Fair’s life the undisputed definition of good is now written by the ShinRa Electric Power Corporation alone.

Then he meets Aerith. 

Suddenly ShinRa’s version of right and wrong have opposition but the control that ShinRa has over his life, total and complete as it is, prevents that from sinking in. Zack is perceptive though, around Aerith he is her version of good and then he has to go back to what equates to his phase of reality. A sanctuary is not safe, not truly, when watchers are peering in through the back door ready to drag you out by your feet if you misstep. 

Zack wants to be a man Aerith or anyone won’t be scared of. He wants to do that not because he is suddenly horrified at his own violence but rather in consideration of others. Zack is highly empathetic after all once he can see someone else’s perspective. He wants to be what Aerith wants, even if he doesn’t really and truly understand it yet, because he cares about her and cares about her opinion. He cares about her comfort. Zack still puts most of his pride within SOLDIER though. That means that Aerith’s morals cannot sink through his skin to his center, not like Angeal’s had. She makes him think but she is not shaping his mind, he is left to do that himself.

 Zack spends a lot of time questioning Angeal and being upset at and about him off screen even more than on screen. We don’t get a front row seat for all of it. The big takeaway is that Zack doesn’t shed Angeal’s morals that he’s taken on himself. He can’t after all, not with ShinRa only just seeming tarnished. ShinRa would need to rust and crumble fully before he actually can let them go. Before he can be free in his own mind.

ShinRa chips and rusts in an instant under Sephiroth’s hand. The last holdout crumbled in the fight of two victims of ShinRa and someone who will become one soon. ShinRa is no longer the defined of good, not after what Zack sees is the response to the Nibelheim Incident.

ShinRa not being good, worse even ShinRa being bad breaks the entire morality system. The illusions crack and Zack is forced to examine himself, his actions, and his biases in ways Aerith made him want to but that he couldn’t afford to truly indulge in. Even more that he was scared of self introspection in a sense, of the paradigm of his reality shifting even further. 

He eventually truly reframes his actions and has to reckon with them (and himself) at the end of the game, chapter 9 and onwards. It is only then that he actually LOOKS and is fully horrified by what he sees of himself. That horror only progresses as he fights for both his and Cloud’s lives. That horror only builds as he realizes he’s exactly the person who his girlfriend SHOULD be terrified of despite his best attempts- that he’s everything she was talking about. He’s everything she was talking about even after trying to change the way he acts around her. 

To abuse the innate metaphors: Zack Fair goes to Nibelheim, a well trained attack dog, still seeing relatively little wrong with fulfilling ShinRa’s orders. Zack is only then on the cusp of figuring out that he does not want to be there, that he is the antagonist of the planet’s (and Aerith’s) story unwittingly. 

Zack Fair leaves Nibelheim beaten. He tries to go back to the safety of what was once his home prior to ShinRa only to be waylaid. 

Zack Fair leaves Banora free and irrevocably changed. 

He is free in the sense that the illusions he held himself too are crumbling even more with knowledge that his demons are men too. He is free through the knowledge that he is one of those demons. , that he has been shaped to be one, and that good intentions pave a terribly walkable path to hell. 

Zack leaves with the knowledge that he was the monster in the closet. The knowledge that his sword was not just the executioner’s blade but the enforcer’s. The sword kept clean in favor of bloody hands and higher risks is now drowning in pools of it. Zack leaves with the knowledge that he never would have been truly free. 

Yet he is in the sense that he can choose- actually choose- what he wants, what he values. He chooses Aerith and he chooses Cloud as he has each time before. He chooses violence. It is something he knows and among what he is good at. It is not all he is but it is a tool he can use. 

He chooses to pay the price of freedom. 

Crisis Core is a tragedy and Zack and Genesis both are tragic figures at its center. Zack’s arc is angled to the viewer for maximum effect but Genesis’s does mirror it in a way just on an offset path already initiated. Sephiroth is also a tragic character, undeniably so. However structure wise his role is more murky given the way he has the ability to be the god waiting in the machine, a guaranteed victory or unavoidable altered trajectory should he choose to act, for most of the story. 

And that’s a large part of why I love Zack as a character, aside from things I’ve said before about what makes him such a good narrator. Zack is the unlucky prodigy at the center of a story about wars, abusers, connections, and perspectives. He wants to be good, he wants to be a person that helps. 

He can’t, not really, not in the way he wants. 

Crisis Core is a cautionary tale about exactly that going wrong and how anyone can be taken advantage of. 

[unserenedreaming]

on the "Sansa being the true loner of the Starks"

I just saw a post saying that Sansa is the 'odd one out' amongst the Starks because she's surrounded by her brothers and a tomboyish sister (Arya). It is true that she is surrounded by brothers and a sister who rejects the patriarchal roles of a woman (Arya) but she is by no means a loner.

The two other named young noblewomen in Winterfell are Jeyne Poole and Beth Cassel. Jeyne is the closest thing to a best friend for Sansa, while Beth is described more as a hanger-on than an actual friend. Jeyne strived to make Sansa happy, often at Arya's expense: Jeyne would often whinny like a horse or call Arya Horseface when Arya would walk by. When Mycah is unjustly killed by the Hound, Jeyne taunts Arya by telling her the Hound cut Mycah into so many little pieces that his own father assumed it was a bag of meat to eat. Jeyne Poole was the daughter of Winterfell's steward. Arya was the daughter of Lord Eddard Stark, Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North. In my opinion, it is only by her close friendship with the other daughter of Lord Stark that Jeyne feels emboldened enough to make such a comment.

And then let's talk about Catelyn. There is no denying that Catelyn Stark loved each and every one of her children with the fury of a thousand suns. In fact, the older I get, the more I understand her (excluding her treatment of Jon which deserves an essay all on its own) She saw Sansa as the perfect daughter:

"Sansa was a lady at 3, always so courteous and eager to please. She will grow into a woman far more beautiful than I ever was, you can see that." These are words from Catelyn Stark about her elder daughter.

"Arya was a trial, it must be said. Half a boy and half a wolf pup. Forbid her anything and it became her heart’s desire. She had Ned’s long face, and brown hair that always looked as though a bird had been nesting in it. I despaired of ever making a lady of her. She collected scabs as other girls collected dolls, and would say anything that came into her head." These thoughts from Catelyn Stark about her younger daughter.

Sansa fit into the traditional patriarchal view of what a noble woman was supposed to be, which made her easier to manage for Catelyn. Arya does not.

The only person that Arya truly, honestly and deeply feels akin to is Jon. This is not me saying that the only person who loved Arya was Jon. Her family loved her deeply. But I am examining the POV of Arya and Sansa.

Arya loves and gets along with her siblings, but she is an outsider compared to them: they all have the red hair and blue eyes of the Tully's. Only Jon shares the looks of the Starks. This to me has always been the most obvious divide; the physical differences between Robb, Sansa, Bran, & Rickon and Jon & Arya. Jon and Arya have always relied on each other more than anyone else, pre-canon or into ADWD.

To wrap this rambling post up, I disagree that Sansa was considered an outsider/the odd one out in the Stark family. In truth, that position doesn't even belong to Arya, though she is the odd one out amongst the trueborn Starks. It belongs to Jon and Theon. Both are boys who desperately want to be Stark children but can never be, and their subsequent actions, both positive (Jon) and negative (Theon) are direct results of that desire and lack of result.

AND AGAIN, THIS IS NOT AN ATTACK ON SANSA. This is a response to a comment I saw from a (presumed by me) Stansa. Sansa absolutely deals with isolation in the series as the books goes on as a captive in Kings Landing. All the Starlkings do as they are separated across the continent and eventually Essos (Arya).

Anyways, hope this wasn't too much of a pain to read, I'm buzzed right now. Love Y'all.

[neeahtao]

Do you hc any part time jobs for john and dirk in the roommates au?

I wish I could just respond to this like a normal person :D

here’s some background information before I start rambling

So taking place after the credits, we know that Jane has already established Crocker Corp and Jake has founded Skaia Net Enterprises on Earth C. I assume Crocker Corp is a technology, military, and baked goods? production company, while Skaia Net could focus on Jake’s expedition work, battleship production, and television network.

From the credits and epilogues, we know that Dirk played a major role in both Jane and Jake’s ventures on Earth C. At this point in the timeline, he is likely designing and prototyping most of the tech and robotics.

Meanwhile, John is depressed, spending his early 20s isolated in his house, watching old movies and probably eating junk food. He tries to recreate the happiness he felt as a kid, relying on nostalgia-driven dopamine hits to distract him from the grief of losing his father.

I think what contributes to this is that John’s self-worth is deeply tied to how others perceive him, playing into his subconscious insecurities. He relies entirely on external motivation—when someone tells him what to do or validates his actions, he follows through. This worked in a high-stakes environment like the game, where there was always a clear goal and people guiding him. But once that structure is gone, and no one is there to push him forward, he stagnates.

He doesn’t place much value on self-improvement or internal motivation. While he struggles with insecurity and low self-esteem, he is also stubborn—if there’s no external force compelling him to change, he resists the idea that he should.

Dirk on the other hand, he is motivate by self-improvement. Growing up entirely self-reliant, he never waited for direction—if he had, he wouldn’t have survived. Providing for himself was a necessity, and that mindset shaped him into someone who constantly pushes himself. Whether it’s achieving his own goals or helping the people he cares about reach theirs, he puts immense pressure on himself to always be productive.

John doesn’t necessarily need a job or some greater purpose to be happy, but he does need motivation to take better care of himself, spend more time with friends, and find something to keep him productive. Since he ties much of his self-worth to what he can do for others he is susceptible to getting caught in a cycle, isolating himself, avoiding friends, and not contributing anything being both the cause and result of his depression. The longer he stays in this rut, the more reluctant he becomes to reach out, fearing he’ll be seen as a disappointment.

Both of their relationships with external validation are ultimately self-destructive. However, Dirk internalizes it more intensely than John. When things go wrong, John can separate his actions from his character—he sees the issue as something he did wrong, not something inherently wrong with him. Dirk, however, is much more personal in his perception of failure. He doesn’t just see mistakes as things to fix—he sees them as flaws within himself that he must constantly work to correct.

[tribow]

So I watched Natsume Yuujinchou

or "Natsume's Book of Friends" for the English title.

I was pleasantly surprised by this one. It's a real nice slice of life anime. I'm writing this as of watching season 1 and I'm absolutely going to continue watching this one.

Anyway what's it about? Youkai! Easy way to hook me in immediately. If you involve youkai (or similar folklore creatures) in a story I'm immediately interested. Even so, despite my strong bias on the subject matter, I promise it's done very well.

The titular character, Natsume, is a highschooler born with the ability to see and interact with youkai. Growing up while being able to see supernatural phenomena while everyone else can't was rough for him. (If you don't know what youkai are, think of Natsume's situation like being able to see ghosts.) His parent's weren't even sure how to deal with him and sent him off to their relatives instead of raising the child themselves.

Natsume's character is defined by his isolation, but also by the few people he has met that has shown him real kindness. His current family earnestly cares about him, but he hides the fact that he can see youkai from them, as he does with everyone. He has learned that doing so will lead to isolation, but ironically hiding what he can see isolates him from other people as well.

However, Natsume's ability isn't unique to himself. His grandmother could also see youkai, and she's infamous for creating the "Book of Friends." This book contains the names of tons of youkai, and with that book, you can essentially control any youkai whose name is written in it. For a long time Natsume would have to deal with some youkai targeting him, and this was why. Having now learned that he has his grandmother's book, Natsume resolves to return the names of youkai.

Why?

Well watch the show. I could sit here and summarize it, but that doesn't make for a good review. The story....or at least season one of the story....focuses on that theme: isolation. It's not just Natsume, but many of the youkai he encounters that deal with it in their own ways. As a result, each episode ends on a pretty bittersweet note.

Isolation comes in many forms; loss, rejection, protection, selfishness, resentment, and much more. People, and in this case, youkai experience it in many ways, but instead of wallowing in its own despair, this anime focuses heavily dealing with it positively.

I appreciate this anime's willingness to show very sad situations and the characters involved are pretty mature about it. I can imagine this anime helping actual people deal with their own struggles with isolation.

Now, that's not this anime's only theme. It would be fairly shallow if that's all it had to say. You got some action, comedy, and drama here or there. There's some nice character development going on as well. I really like how the show is written overall.

I wouldn't say its at a "masterpiece" quality since there are definitely some jumps in logic that happens sometimes. It definitely makes some poor excuses to set up certain scenes, but I can't complain too much. These issues only show up for a few episodes.

Speaking of the episodes, they're all self-contained. There's a linear narrative of course, but every episodes concludes itself and does not inform what happens in the next episode. This made it strangely hard to binge for me since there isn't a hook to keep you watching. I loved the show, but each episodes ends on such a satisfying note I want to do something else and come back to it later. Weird.

Anyway, Brain's Base was animating this one! Y'know these guys really take on a wide variety of stuff huh? Natsume is an interesting one since it's both very laid back and has some action. I wouldn't say Brain's Base went particularly crazy here, but you can see the effort put into a lot of shots. The animation looks good, but it's humble. Nothin real fancy going on, but the visual direction does a great job at conveying this story.

I have a feeling this is one of the shows Brain's Base is proud of, and it's successful too! This anime goes on for several more seasons and I'm pretty excited to keep going with it.

What's real crazy is that I've never heard anyone talk about this anime before. This is good! Real good! I highly recommend this to anybody, even if you have never seen anime before. It's rare that I get to say that because there's usually some caveat to an anime that makes it hard to recommend to anybody, but there's nothing to worry about here! It's good, great even.

Maybe it just couldn't reach a large western audience. It is dealing with youkai after all. That's a shame, but hey, it doesn't mean you can't watch it now! Give it a try!

[mot-hesbian]

Marina Crane, Nuance, Human Decency, and Differing Opinions

Let's talk about things that might make people mad on the name of addressing important issues

Let's start with some facts

Facts:

The hate Ruby Barker got is inexcusable. She's a human being and deserves to be treated as such. She has no control over her character and her character's actions overall.

Marina is a nuanced character with an interesting and tragic story. You can hate her and acknowledge this.

Marina is a flawed character who does bad things. You can love her and acknowledge this.

You can love or hate her without taking it out on other people or being disgusting about it. Loving her doesn't give you some moral superiority OR justify her actions. Hating her doesn't give you some moral superiority OR edge.

Some of the hate directed her away is because she's black and if you're one of those people you need to do some introspection.

Now, let's get into the opinion portion of this

Personally, I hate Marina. I don't wish a horrible death on her because that's horrible. I wish her circumstances were better. In fact, had her actions been slightly to the left I'd probably like her. My hate towards her also has nothing to do with racism, unlike some people.

I hate her because I've been on the receiving end of her actions. She's emotionally abusive and does not feel the need to apologize for it. She uses actual abuse tactics, many of which I have been the target of.

I see my abusers in her in those moments, outside of those moments I enjoy her story and character. I would have loved to see her play some Lord looking for a match of convenience. Instead I got to see some scenes that are extremely triggering to me. Marina is a traumatized characters, that doesn't give her the right to add to Colin's trauma.

So many of his actions in s2 and s3 are direct results from this, she traumatized him. This pain and hurt doesn't go away easily, I've been trying for 7 years to move on and I'm still a work in progress.

I don't hate her because she got in the way of my ship (I'm a hardcore polin fan), I don't hate her for existing, or for her situation. I hate Marina because of her actions. She had other choices in gentlemen who were close to her age and might look the other way with regards to a child that wasn't their own. Let's not discuss that topic today, I only mention this in regards to her treatment of Colin and how that choice led to it.

Colin was a romantic and felt an attraction to her, she saw that and took advantage. She singled him out, she was desperate and thought the love of her life had deserted her. Part of her draw to him was his family, both connection wise and, likely, in terms of family dynamic.

She love bombed him. It's that simple. The compliments, laughing at jokes she clearly finds unamusing, and the constant attention.

She manipulated him and his feelings, she's good at playing his thoughts and feelings against him. He wants to be seen as a man and taken seriously. What better way than for him to take a wife? In her obviously. She lets him think it's all his idea. He has a hero-complex so she mentions how horrible the Featheringtons are to her. It's calculated. (Again, if she did this to someone who didn't have feelings for her, I'd be cheering for her to get that bag.)

She isolates him from his family. With a tinge of gaslighting regarding his mother's feelings as Violet wouldn't have opposed their marriage if it made Colin happy. She creates this “us against them" mentality to separate him from his family. The Featheringtons are cruel to her and his family does not approve, there is no way this could work.

Does any of this justify hating on people who love her character? No.

Does this justify hating on the actress who played her? Absolutely not, she's not her character.

Until next time 🫡

[communist-manifesto-daily]

Socialism: Utopian and Scientific - Part 31

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We have seen that the capitalistic mode of production thrust its way into a society of commodity-producers, of individual producers, whose social bond was the exchange of their products. But every society based upon the production of commodities has this peculiarity: that the producers have lost control over their own social inter-relations. Each man produces for himself with such means of production as he may happen to have, and for such exchange as he may require to satisfy his remaining wants. No one knows how much of his particular article is coming on the market, nor how much of it will be wanted. No one knows whether his individual product will meet an actual demand, whether he will be able to make good his costs of production or even to sell his commodity at all. Anarchy reigns in socialized production.

But the production of commodities, like every other form of production, has it peculiar, inherent laws inseparable from it; and these laws work, despite anarchy, in and through anarchy. They reveal themselves in the only persistent form of social inter-relations — i.e., in exchange — and here they affect the individual producers as compulsory laws of competition. They are, at first, unknown to these producers themselves, and have to be discovered by them gradually and as the result of experience. They work themselves out, therefore, independently of the producers, and in antagonism to them, as inexorable natural laws of their particular form of production. The product governs the producers.

In mediaeval society, especially in the earlier centuries, production was essentially directed toward satisfying the wants of the individual. It satisfied, in the main, only the wants of the producer and his family. Where relations of personal dependence existed, as in the country, it also helped to satisfy the wants of the feudal lord. In all this there was, therefore, no exchange; the products, consequently, did not assume the character of commodities. The family of the peasant produced almost everything they wanted: clothes and furniture, as well as the means of subsistence. Only when it began to produce more than was sufficient to supply its own wants and the payments in kind to the feudal lords, only then did it also produce commodities. This surplus, thrown into socialized exchange and offered for sale, became commodities.

The artisan in the towns, it is true, had from the first to produce for exchange. But they, also, themselves supplied the greatest part of their individual wants. They had gardens and plots of land. They turned their cattle out into the communal forest, which, also, yielded them timber and firing. The women spun flax, wool, and so forth. Production for the purpose of exchange, production of commodities, was only in its infancy. Hence, exchange was restricted, the market narrow, the methods of production stable; there was local exclusiveness without, local unity within; the mark in the country; in the town, the guild.

But with the extension of the production of commodities, and especially with the introduction of the capitalist mode of production, the laws of commodity-production, hitherto latent, came into action more openly and with greater force. The old bonds were loosened, the old exclusive limits broken through, the producers were more and more turned into independent, isolated producers of commodities. It became apparent that the production of society at large was ruled by absence of plan, by accident, by anarchy; and this anarchy grew to greater and greater height. But the chief means by aid of which the capitalist mode of production intensified this anarchy of socialized production was the exact opposite of anarchy. It was the increasing organization of production, upon a social basis, in every individual productive establishment. By this, the old, peaceful, stable condition of things was ended. Wherever this organization of production was introduced into a branch of industry, it brooked no other method of production by its side. The field of labor became a battle-ground. The great geographical discoveries, and the colonization following them, multiplied markets and quickened the transformation of handicraft into manufacture. The war did not simply break out between the individual producers of particular localities. The local struggles begat, in their turn, national conflicts, the commercial wars of the 17th and 18th centuries.

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[website-enjoyer]

Hey I read your post about stuff like UBI still relying on imperialist resource extraction, do you have any resources specifically related to what a healthcare system that isn't imperialist might look like? I've been trying to find some kind of resource about this for two days and haven't come up with anything.

At a certain point it started to feel like maybe there isn't a solution and due to the current Empirical Collapse Era, everyone living in the core is just Fucked and we're about to be sent back to the stone age once infrastructure collapses and we won't have any food, medicine, electricity, etc. And there's nothing we can do to meaningfully stop it.

So I really hope you can at least point me in the right direction cuz I'm really scared about everything happening lately

hi anon, sorry my little screed against social democracy was your wake-up call re: the blood soaking everything in society. it’s understandable to feel distress. yes, things might keep getting worse before they get better. that being said, let’s unpack this worry that there’s nothing we can do to prevent a total collapse of organized society.

there would be a dark comfort in this being the case, right? we wouldn’t have any responsibility to each other, to humanity, to our environment. no need to take action, to organize, to have a political project. nothing left to do but choose how to individually distract yourself as the world ends. doomsday prepping, apocalypse prophecies, noble savage tropes, brunch and cartoons as an act of resistance, getting high, etcetera. convenient, no? i’m not trying to ascribe this viewpoint to you, just pointing out where it leads in practice. it’s self-fulfilling. think for a minute about how people being oppressed by imperialism around the world right now might feel about this outlook amongst people in the core.

so what are the other options? for one, consider that capitalism could survive. food, medicine, electricity, and infrastructure could all continue to exist but in a society with much harsher conditions for the working class, deprived of imperialism’s bribery. this isn’t a question of infrastructure decay, it’s about the system of private property, wage labour, and commodity exchange. never underestimate capitalism’s ability to sustain itself. it’s crucial that in recognizing this possibility we find solidarity with the global working classes, rather than resorting to racist politics in reaction to “falling to their level”. this is what my original post was about. personally, the possibility of capitalist civilization continuing, being reformed, scares me more than any potential break from it.

global working class solidarity brings me to the second option: socialist revolution. when a society is organized around meeting working people’s needs rather than maximizing profits, things are possible that seem unfathomable to those who have only ever known capitalism. countries like cuba and north korea, despite constant imperialist violence in the form of sanctions, isolation, and military threats—and despite the many other contradictions arising from trying to survive in a global capitalist system—maintain universal healthcare systems which result in vastly better health outcomes compared to other countries at similar economic scales. socialized ownership of the means of production is a different game entirely than reformist forms of redistribution like UBI that leave society’s productive forces under the ownership of capitalists.

this requires a revolution. if we recognize revolution as a possibility, as our historical responsibility, what does that lead to in practice? organizing. this is how people under siege by the most powerful countries in the world have been able to build some of the most advanced healthcare systems ever to exist. this is how at the height of the cold war, the ussr was still able to play a primary role in eradicating smallpox globally. i leave you with a few very short reads: che guevara’s on revolutionary medicine, n.a. semashko’s the work of the public health authorities in soviet russia, and wu chieh-ping’s medicine and health: for workers, peasants, and soldiers.

[mageknight14]

I think an interesting thing about both TWEWY games after replaying them is that, when you look back at them, Neku isn’t really punished for his flaws in comparison to Rindo and when he does suffer, it’s mainly through external factors that’s tied to his development as a person. On paper, it's pretty clear that Rindo is punished more heavily for his flaws (or at least more severely near the climax): his bouts of insecurity and fear of accountability made him the perfect candidate to be Kubo's puppet, and as such, he relies heavily on the Replay to the point where he basically assists in creating an all-powerful noise that is beyond their ability to erase, all but guaranteeing Shibuya's doom sans Haz's interference. Neku’s flaw of being tactiturn isn't something constantly producing conflict for him throughout the game; he overcomes a significant portion of his flaw by week 1; and the rest of the punishment he receives mostly comes from the reapers being unfair dicks to him. Neku does struggle emotionally during week 2 and 3, but it has less to do with his flaws and more to do with him having legitimate reason to doubt whether or not he can trust Joshua and Hanekoma. Throughout the game, his doubts are articulated very well through narrative action, but these doubts aren't a result of his own isolation and delusions, you know?

The closest it gets to that point is where Neku heavily blames himself for not trusting Joshua more when he chooses to "sacrifice" himself for Neku’s sake, but that whole instance actually makes Neku more retroactively justified when he finds out the truth about Joshua’s true nature. Not to mention Joshua was giving him plenty of reasons NOT to trust him so mistrust wasn't really a product of Neku's loner demeanor; Joshua was legitimately gaslighting him throughout the entire second week.

But I actually don’t think that’s a flaw within the narrative. Quite the opposite, in fact. The thing to keep in mind about Neku was that he was essentially having his character arc in both directions. He was both having to learn to be a better person and directly confront his propensity to shut people out and refuse to rely on external help, while also trying to piece together who he even was before the Reaper's Game. He’s not given enough of a foundation to lay out who he was and what his deal is to the same degree as Rindo because for both Neku and the player, things start in medias res. He literally has no idea about who he even is as a person besides his name at that point of the story.

I don’t think Neku’s flaws not really affecting him is a problem with the narrative itself considering how people do call him out on his behavior and he does change immensely throughout the game. One could argue Neku becomes nicer a little too quickly given his few days with Shiki, or that in week 2 onwards, his distrusting personality isn't as prevalent; but on the other hand, Neku's growth from week 1 is challenged and put to good narrative use, because now he has to be willing to exercise patience and understanding with other people, especially since he has something worth fighting for that isn't just himself. W2 with Joshua is meant to teach Neku that not everyone is going to be sweet like Shiki, but regardless, you should at least make an attempt to understand such people, even if you end up never really liking them. Expand your world to include people, even if they think or act differently from you. By W3, Neku is now put in a position where he has to learn that caring about people isn't just about being nice to them or trying to understand them; it's also about being dependable enough to support others in need, which he develops into with his time with Beat. From that sense, OG TWEWY doesn't present Neku's flaws as a constant force he has to battle throughout the game, but flips this concept on its head and instead presents his arc as having to learn how to practice being an empathetic human being; something he shut himself from trying to do after the trauma of his best friend’s death.

Neku doesn’t really hate people like he claims that he does at the beginning. He actually loves people. And he fucking hates that because it just leads to him getting emotionally hurt. He doesn't want to get hurt more than he already has and that’s the reason he pushes people away because he's scared he'll end up caring about them and getting hurt again and it’s why he’s heartbroken after Rhyme’s erasure and when he finds out the truth about Joshua.

I think that's really interesting in itself. By the rules that the Reaper's Game is supposed to usually operate by, Neku won with flying colours in week one, but because of circumstances being what they were, Kitaniji had to cheat and keep players from getting their resurrection wish. So Shiki is whisked into reaper-jail as a new entry fee, and Neku is forced into yet another game, even though he should have qualified for another chance at life as he was. The development of his character from amnesiac misanthrope into someone who actually trusts another person is so stark that it feels like you're playing as a completely different guy... but then week 2 rolls around and Neku's partnered with Joshua, who very intentionally pushes his buttons ceaselessly and tests him further.

Rindo on the other hand, has his flaw presented as a constant force throughout the narrative, and presents his growth through it more organically. Everytime he does Replay, he’s essentially forced to take charge of his life and grows more confident and assured in his capabilities as a leader while also becoming more and more heavily reliant on his time-travel abilities to carry him throughout the journey, acting as a double-edged sword in that sense.

He also begins to grow out of his paranoia in regards to other people, having a habit of riding others' coattails and seeing them for their performance value first, personality second (Minamimoto, Beat, Neku when he was seeking him), especially if it's something he's heard about them (Neku the 'Legendary Player', Nagi having a 'bunch of pins') AKA, again, others' opinions.

He slowly gets better with his willingness to take accountability for his choices, but even in the final week, you still see that while he's made strides, he hasn't quite nailed the confidence just yet, and he even still relapses from time-to-time. Some people seem to look at this as a flaw of the game but I actually quite like this and I think it makes Rindo an interesting contrast to Neku as a protag.

His arc shows that you even if you are changing, change isn't like a switch; you don't just all of a sudden stop making mistakes tied to your flaw and it shows when he starts to delegate towards Beat and Neku’s judgement when they come by to start taking a load off of his back. He basically falls into a cycle of:

>improves

>falls into old habits

>improves

>does bullshit again

>improves

Until it culminates into Neku officially joining the team and unofficially taking Rindo’s role as the leader, telling him not to time-travel since it might cause more Dissonance only for Rindo to actually break this cycle and go against what Neku says in order to not fall for Susukichi’s trap.

It’s why his convo with Haz and his final choice is so impactful for his growth; with no outside influences, he has to make one of the hardest decisions of his life and he works his ass off towards making the second chance he got count.

Rindo isn’t the easiest protag to like as a person even in spite of how seemingly more well-adjusted he looks to be compared to Neku. He constantly fucks up, acts really passive-aggressive when confronted on his flaws, and said flaws don’t immediately jump out like Neku’s did. The last part might seem confusing but people tend to attach themselves more to a character when they let you know what they’re about upfront, which is what Neku did quite bluntly at the beginning of the game ("all the world needs is me.") And if you’re not reading into Rindo’s actions and his head, a lot of his characterization can fly over your own head.

It even plays into the themes of both games. Even when Neku got screwed over by the machinations of the game, he was at least able to make some semblance of a difference throughout each week such as taking down the respective Game Master. But with Rindo and the gang, almost every victory they earn gets taken away from them due to another factor out of their control.

"Oh, you took down Susukichi? Too bad, Shiba says fuck you, start the Game over. Oh, and Sho is gone too."

"You took down Motoi? Congrats but he was actually a victim of the same system that you’re all a part of and is basically a desperate man on the brink of despair, which Rindo is forced to acknowledge, especially after Motoi himself passes away the next day."

"Speaking of the next day, you’re starting to form a counterattack and actually fight back against the system but oops, Shiba is here yet again to say, fuck you, do it again. Oh, and Susukichi was just playing pretend the entire time."

Not even taking down Shiba himself is enough to give them a reprieve because Kubo shows up to immediately undercut that sense of relief by revealing himself as the true villain and having Rindo’s very own powers kill his friends. Ain’t that a bitch?

But I think that in itself makes Rindo an interesting protag, at least to me. He’s the epitome of an NPC who got stuck with the protag role that he wants absolutely nothing to do with in spite of the world itself telling him to get his shit together. Hanekoma even initially writes off him at first due to only having average Imagination. But, after everything he’s been through and his character development, he’s finally able to find his own footing in the world and stand tall as the leader of the Wicked Twisters, ultimately saving both his friends and the city.

The main point I’m getting at here is how both games play with each protag’s arc in a way that neatly contrast one another and show off their respective writing styles quite well. TWEWY as a duology is fascinating to dig through and I really appreciate how multi-layered the games are.

[yandere-toons]

Aaaaaah I'm sorry but I developed some sort of obsession with the live action Alice in Wonderland (2010), especially with Cheshire cat, and I decided to make some heacannons or whatever you could call these-

•I see Cheshire as a yandere who would charm his darling before they knew what they would get themselves in to

•after they do realize the cats obsession with them, it is far late to do anything

• Cheshire cat would stalk their darling from afar, before deciding he wants to announce his presence, that is if he even wants to.

•Just like the way he has a weird liking to the Mad Hatters hat, he would like some sort of object from his darling, something to borrow/steal for whatever reasons he has.

•Maybe if you'd like that item back, he would trick his darling in to some sort of game to get it back. Maybe even ask you to solve a riddle for the wanted item.

•He would definitely take it back.

•This obsession will be hardly ever noticed by the people living there, especially Mad Hatters and March hare, as they are just too mad to see anything wrong about it.

•I can imagine a tea party, havoc everywhere, Dormouse throwing whatever at March as Mad Hatter laughs with them, a quite weird and maybe even uncomfortable 'tea party' to be in.

•Even if you live with the people there, the eyes of the Cheshire cat gawking at you from across the table makes it hard not to try finding excuses to leave the feast.

•Yet escaping the cat is hard as he evaporates and reappears at his will, making it impossible to know if he is following or not.

•Confronting the cat will only lead to denying of any kind of stalking, saying that he is simply tagging along with his darling, even if they are unknown to him creeping behind them.

•They better expect a lot of scares and strange disappearances from him as he can come and go unexpectedly.

•I also see Cheshire as a yandere who would want to isolate his darling, or at least make them somewhat dependent on him, especially by giving them either wrong or confusing directions and getting them lost in the deep, dark, woods.

•Its fine though, he was tagging along with you. And, Surprise! He's coincidentally there to help you get out of it.

•He can't make any promises to take the shortest path though.

•And can't seem to promise himself to leave when he bids you goodbye.

Cheshire Cat: If I were looking for an exit, I would go that way.

Reader: This way?

Cheshire Cat: Which way?

Reader: That way. The way you just pointed!

Cheshire Cat: Where did I point?

Reader: This way!

Cheshire Cat: What way?

Reader:

Excellent ideas by the way! No need to apologise for having good taste. Write about whoever comes to mind! Plus, I'm always happy to see this cat.

There's little a dreamer could do to ward off the Cheshire Cat, and no one else cares to listen when asked for help. Staying with others results in the Cheshire Cat either watching from a distance or materialising in the middle of the conversation.

He implies that you could be in danger at any time in the company of anyone, saying you never know what lurks in Wonderland. Thus, no one is necessarily a "safer" choice than he is.

[taraljc]

One thing that always struck me in WandaVision was how Wanda used her powers in ways she hadn't since Age Of Ultron. Once she joined the Avengers, we never see her in Civil War or Infinity War use her powers to control anyone else's minds and bodies, or to induce hallucinations / nightmares.

I think that it is a part of her powers that she rejected--that she herself felt ashamed for using them against the people who would later become her peers. Particularly Steve, who was the first she formed a bond with and who trusted her when she told him the truth about how Tony Stark was incapable of seeing reason vis à vis Ultron.

The only time we ever see her use her ability to control others by imposing her will upon them was when she had the soldiers retrain their guns on Director Hayward. and the only time we see her induce an hallucination again was with Agatha. Hayward and Agatha were the villains of the piece in the traditional sense and she felt justified in her behaviour, but that doesn't mean that it was right and moral.

But I do think that was the moment when she stopped hating that part of herself and recognised that she had been closing parts of herself off because she was uncomfortable with them. And it was in a way her accepting culpability for her prior actions as well as recognising that power is neither innately good nor evil but merely a tool that can be put to any purpose and it's the intention that matters.

I don't think Teen has processed yet what truly happened with Agatha, Jen, and Lilia when his powers manifested. I think he feels deep regret and shame, coupled by remorse and guilt about what he in that moment believes to be his culpability in their deaths. obviously this will be short-lived, and I think it will be very interesting to see their reactions once they catch up to Agatha and Teen.

One of the parallels that I am really enjoying them exploring are the parallels between both Agatha and Wanda, and Wanda and Teen. I actually hope that Agatha is able to help Teen understand and accept his power in all the ways she wasn't able to help Wanda, not because she wants to siphon his magic but because she genuinely cares no matter how much she hides it behind the various masks that she wears.

Part of the reason I was so angry about Multiverse of Madness is that it completely ignored the fact that no-one knew Wanda was a witch prior to the events in Westview and even then, only Wanda knew any of that. None of the public did. So far as the Avengers and the wider world understood, her powers were the result of a science experiment by Hydra exactly the same way Steve Rogers had been during World War II.

Only she knew what had happened in Westview, and she had to process that information in complete isolation while being corrupted by the Darkhold, but with no knowledge whatsoever of the history of witchcraft or its place in the world when compared to sorcery.

And instead of actually exploring that, it's completely skipped because it's inconvenient to the story they want to tell, which had no actual basis in Wanda's story thus far. Stephen Strange and Wong act as if it's common knowledge that Wanda is practicing witchcraft and that they had always known that Wanda was practicing witchcraft which is a HUGE continuity error that no-one has ever actually addressed. And it bothers me a great deal because so much of the plot of the film hinges on knowledge that there is no way anyone could have gained. To the point where I've basically discounted it completely as not part of the MCU because it doesn't fit. none of the pieces fit with the other films and it doesn't build off of the first film well nor does it fit with WandaVision and it's just so poorly written in direct comparison to Spider-Man: No Way Home.

but what I love about Jac Schaeffer is that she has taken the hot mess and character assassination of Multiverse Of Madness and found a way to make it work with everything that has gone before in ways that make sense logically and emotionally. and at no point does it judge Wanda for her actions when she was under the direct influence of the Darkhold and her judgment was completely impaired. But neither does it sugarcoat her actions in Westview. she is responsible, and accepts responsibility for her actions even though her actions were not under her control and she was unaware of the true extent of them until Agatha kidnapped her children and gave her her first lesson in the craft.

Much like the events of Civil War where Wanda was able to partially contain an explosion created by former SHIELD/Hydra agents that would have murdered countless thousands of people (not to mention brought the entire building down) she still bore the guilt for those deaths she could not prevent and shouldered responsibility for them in public even though they were not her fault and in fact she spared everyone in the immediate area through her quick thinking.

Wanda has always accepted that she deserves whatever misfortune befalls her because she somehow deserves her pain. It's survivor's guilt taken to be extreme and that's I think why WandaVision hit me so hard because of course she doesn't deserve loss after loss after loss with no comfort and no family to support her-- found or otherwise. No-one does.

I genuinely hope that Teen avoids this fate because he doesn't deserve it, either. He's only a few years younger than his mother was when she was duped by Hydra, and I hope that Agnes will be a better tutor and mentor to him even if it is only for the final four episodes of the series.

The first episode would not have mentioned how absorbing Rio's power would destroy Agatha without that being Chekhov's gun. but my hope is that it won't be permanent, even if it is inevitable.