#i *like* carmilla. i think shes really interesting. but people REALLY need to learn that theh are allowed to like ‘bad’ and ‘grey’-

[majorshatterandhare]

[ID: two screencaps of tags from dark mode

First Image: tags from ×-caliber reading “#guys it's called UNRELIABLE NARRATING all caps: unreliable narrating] # shes NOT [all caps: not] evil #jonny just views her in a certain light" Second Image: tags from ceaseless-ramblerand x-caliber.

Tags from ceaseless-rambler read "#this is such a hard fucking poll because do you love her or hate her' the answer is YES [all caps: yes] #she's great but the fucking morality switch destroys me every time i think about it because. morality switch. what the fuck. #but also. gestures wildly in her direction. you understand? #doctor carmilla #the mechanisms."

Tags from x-caliber read '#prev has a great elaboration actually #bevause i answered thinking only about the unreliable narration that made people think she's evil #but i didn't actually think as far about her ACTIONS [all caps: actions] #now i do think that she had good intentions with the morality switch #that doesn't make it any less fucked up however"

End ID]

Okay in regards to this poll I'm going to do some Doc Carmilla analysis because I don't like having back and forth conversations in tags. This is long, I couldn't really find a way to cut it down

The biggest thing that fucks me up about her is Brian's morality switch. The concept of a morality switch at all is horrifying to me, taking that control away from someone. Brian's about page on the mechanisms website says the reasoning was because Doctor Carmilla found it "amusing" which. Makes me hate it even more. @x-ca1iber pointed out the fact that Jonny is an unreliable narrator, which is a good point. However, I doubt Jonny wrote everyone's bio and I don't think either morality mode would really let Brian lie about it, lying is wrong and I can't come up with ends that would justify it. Brian could be wrong about reasoning, of course, but I'm not sure why he would be. Because a lot of that second half is speculation, *please* let me know if there's anything to agree or disagree with any of it.

The two other things that make me not willing to chalk all of anti-Doctor Carmilla sentiment up to unreliable narration and character misinterpretation are the end of this video and near the end of Lashings. The first video shows Jonny cut the music and, sounding somewhat frantic, ask Carmilla what she's going to do about being thrown out the airlock. When she doesn't respond, he backs away and accuses her of planning something. This is something that isn't attributable to unreliable narration because the premise there isn't that it's a retelling but an actual event occurring. Also, the way Jonny is on edge, expecting her to do something but not knowing what/when and having to just kind of act like it's fine really makes me read it as a bad relationship for him. The end of the Lashings performance shows Nastya stressed about various other things and Doctor Carmilla coming up behind her and hugging her. Nastya visibly tenses and remains as such for the entire interaction. I've seen people argue that this was due to the aforementioned various other things, and it could very much be that! This is definitely my least compelling piece of evidence. But it's worth noting that Doctor Carmilla doesn't back off from the hug and remains sort of in Nastya's face until Nastya steps away. The situation is either Nastya being generally uncomfortable with physical contact at that moment (or in general) and Carmilla not caring, or Nastya being distrustful of her in general. Either way doesn't reflect well on their relationship.

None of this is to say that I think she's trying to cause them harm. She does see them as her kids, in her own way. The only other close relationship she had that I'm aware of is Lorelai (please let me know if you have any more information on this! I'm always open to corrections) and that wasn't exactly healthy. She could very well not know any other way to treat them, and I really do think she meant well. The problem with meaning well is that is doesn't change the ramifications of your actions. The best of intentions don't change the fact that you hurt people. This is, in my opinion, especially prominent in parental figures, which she is.

That is all about her as a person, though. As a character? She's fantastic. Trans lesbian vampire scientist with dubious ethics? Great!!! And all of the things I just talked about that make me dislike her as a person make me love her as a character. That disparity is what makes it really hard to answer the poll I linked at the beginning, because holy fuck morality switch but I love her as a character

Tags that inspired this under the cut

[chaggie4ever]

Ok I need to get this off my chest: people need to stop hating on my girl for her final performance against Lute. Vaggie has been out of practice for 3.5 YEARS (42 months), during which she lost her depth perception and wings and hid her identity, which definitely limited her ability to train (not even accounting for the psychological torment and phantom pains). Meanwhile Lute has been living her best life in heaven, likely training every day to keep her position and fully intact.

She has one month to prepare and learn some basic self defense. Now mind you, training montages are hilarious because after the first week if you’re doing it right you probably can barely move out of soreness XD (the ONLY accurate portrayal I’ve seen was on Galavant, which everyone should watch - it’s a medieval musical with a similar tone to HH). I’ll cover more on her and Carmilla separately.

Then Lute proceeds to watch the entire final battle while Vaggie is busy killing at least four angels by my count. When they fly up to Adam and Lute, she immediately sucker stabs Dazzle, dropping them hundreds of feet and disarming Vaggie in the process.

Despite all of this, Vaggie is able to stop a full force sword charge directly at her eye bare handed. She deflects several more vicious blows, using tools in her environment to help (shard of glass, radio). Yes she is losing. She is unarmed and see above… also unused to fighting with long hair even pulled up XD (as an aside, I absolutely LOVE how Carmilla pulls her hair down the moment Vaggie complains when training lol).

She gets a few more face cuts while we watch Charlie stab Adam, and ends up on the ground reaching for her weapon, which Lute uses to stab her hand before stupidly leaving it while gloating. Yes, Lute could (and should) have ended her here. I have a few separate theories on why that did not happen (later post). But regardless of the reasoning, Lute’s hubris left Vaggie alive enough to goad her second wind by mentioning Charlie. And Vaggie was SMARTER (and ultimately more spirited).

Now the tables have turned but Vaggie spared Lute, more out of spite than kindness but ultimately because of Charlie. Lute only has her left arm pinned; she should have stopped the spear but basically asked for death. This is also deserving of it’s own analysis but I think all angels hate themselves :(

Vaggie leaves and when she no longer has her undivided attention, Lute is irate enough to rip off her arm and pin her. Vaggie isn’t fighting at this point, she’s trying to get to Charlie but was sucker punched/tackled. Pretty understandable imho… interesting theories that Lute may have ironically saved Vaggie’s life here. I love her but she’s not stronger than Adam :( I’ll keep these Yuri headcannons to myself for now XD

Ironically, I think this may end very badly for Vaggie and Chaggie (if Lute kills anyone I will kill everyone and then myself), especially after Adam’s death. We haven’t even seen Vaggie cry but Lute now has. The same girl who just pulled her own arm off in sheer rage (seriously what’s up with her brute strength XD).

But ultimately, while I don’t feel comfortable saying Vaggie properly won this fight, she did a damn good job with what she had available and people need to stop hating on this character! Lute definitely did not win. And I’m REALLY hoping for a proper rematch because given Lute’s HATRED, she clearly feels at least challenged by Vaggie, one of Adam’s “best girls” who likely had at least Lute’s 275 kills annually… AND/OR she was dumped right before Vaggie’s last extermination and all the yuri 😍🥰😘😇🤣

[psi-spectacular]

I don't like hazbin hotel (shocker)

A lot of the problems come down to three things: 1. Viv's issue with being unable to let a concept go, 2. Her inability to maintain a consistent tone, and 3. The fact that it only has eight episodes. Look at helluva boss for example. So many villains get cliffhangers that say "oooOoOoOo I'm gonna reappear in another episode, just you wait!!" And they either just don't or the execution is completely flubbed stryker-style. And what is the show supposed to be? Is it a slice of life comedy about imps killing people on the surface? That concept was basically abandoned like five episodes in. A serialized drama about a complex relationship? Nope! the exploration of Blitz and Stolas's toxic relationship is returned to status quo for gag comedy. OOP! We've got two new characters to center the episodes around while abandoning the core cast!

Now look at Hazbin. I really liked the pilots concept! The idea of sinners being redeemed was interesting, the animation was nice, the characters were compelling, and I was really interested to see how they would develop over time and become better people! Then episode one of the new season comes out. Suddenly its about how heaven sucks actually (Off topic but can we talk about how in the opening exposition, Charlie talks about how angels kill demons to keep them from rising against them, and then in the meeting with Adam talks about overpopulation? What's up with that?) and quickly turns into a war against heaven plot.

You know the main concept of the show? Redemption of sinners? Yeah. I can count how many episodes are about that on a couple fingers. And count how many characters are actually there for redemption on two. And there are so many side characters they like to focus on rather than, I don't know, Focus on Charlie?

Thats another problem! Charlie barely has a focus. You'd think, as the main character, she'd get some sort of development, or some kind of arc, or at least more of a personality than "sunshine princess with big dreams". I don't use this word very often or very lightly, but shes very much mary-sue ish. Her obvious issues (IE seemingly weirdly fundamentalist christian ideas on redemption, constant overstepping of boundaries, the fact that she barely seems to put anything into her relationship with Vaggie while Vaggie falls over herself to make sure Charlie's happy, Very visible savior complex) are never discussed or adressed, and the fact that her hotel is based on an idea that doesn't have any evidence of actually even being possible is only ever addressed by antagonists who are supposed to be in the wrong. She doesn't change, she doesn't do much, but still manages to get everyone to sacrifice themselves for a hotel they're supposed to be super attached to. But we're never shown WHY they care.

And don't get me started on the side characters. The V's are only important in 1-2 episodes and never again, Carmilla exists as a plot device, Lucifer's... Lucifer, Adam is a one-note sexist strawman, and they just... Keep introducing characters. Pentious, Cherry, Mimsy, Cannibal town! You care about these characters! You must you must you must!!!! What do you mean you don't know who these characters are? Of course you do! They were in the plot important pilot that you have to get on youtube to watch!

These characters could have been explored so much better if there was more time in the show. Yes, thats the fault of Amazon, but when you're working with constraints, you need to learn how to work within these constraints. Keeping the "Heaven bad, hell good" thing for the second season while leaving the first season to focus on character development would have made the final battle so much more impactful. It's like an anti steven universe. People complain about how much filler steven universe has, but without that "filler" we wouldn't care about the characters as much as we do. Hazbin hotel, on the other hand, is like watching all the "intense, plot important" episodes without any context of who these characters are and why we should care about them.

At some point, when you're working in the industry, you need to learn that you need to trim the fat. Get rid of certain characters and plot points. Kill some characters off if you need. Wait to introduce a concept. If you can only work with a short amount of episodes, focus on making a good story with well developed characters first and a grand finale later. If you can wait, Wait. If you can't, don't. I know there's a second season but I genuinely don't know how it can go from here. Adam's dead, a sinner is redeemed, the hotel was rebuilt bigger and better than ever... what now?

TL;DR Hazbin Hotel reminds me of me and my friends old edgy gods and goddesses discord roleplay from when I was 13 than an actual planned story.

Sorry for the essay. Its honestly painful seeing something I looked forward too for years flop so hard on the execution. I love the concept, the songs, the animation is.... okay, Angel dust is best boy, but everything else is just eh. Mid. It tries to be so grandiose but I just felt bored and very confused throughout the whole thing, and very uncomfortable during episode 4. Its not offensively bad (hell, its barely even as offensive as people say it is) But its just. Not good in my opinion.

[beevean]

And isn't this a telling line.

I know why Lenore says this. It's very clear, and it weighs on her, that she is seen as the weak link of the Styria council. The others keep her around because of her diplomatic skills, but they don't really respect her as a person: we even see the others constantly making fun of her behind her back (Carmilla mocks her for her penchant for caring about animals, Striga implies that Lenore is saccharinely romantic, Morana accuses her of "being off with the fairies"), and if she has really eavesdropped Striga's proposal to hire mercenaries, surely she has heard them dismissing her strategy of "adopting" Hector, which might have been the reason she rushed things with the ring. So yes, her sentiment is understandable: her own friends don't seem to care about her, so she leans on Hector, the only one in the castle who listens to her woes like she's a person and not just a problem-solver.

This is, as per usual with Lenore, highly hypocritical on her part, because she too keeps Hector around but doesn't care about him as a person.

The common conception is that, by S4, Lenore stopped treating Hector like an animal and started to see him as a person, and this is why, only six weeks after effectively raping him into slavery, Hector is so chill with her and even does his best to protect her regardless of his own life. The two have off-screen organically grown to care about each other, perhaps bonding about their positions as the unfavorites: this is what Hector choosing to be with Lenore even after cutting off the ring symbolizes, that he's no longer bound to her by force but sincerely.

But think back on their two major scenes in S4 before the turning point of episode 6.

What are they about? Ignoring the stupid dick jokes, what is the function of both scenes?

Lenore venting about her issues. About how she feels pushed to the side, how she feels useless, how she doesn't see a place for herself in the world Carmilla wants to build, how Carmilla is overreaching which worries Lenore because they'll lose the stability she has worked for, how Carmilla might have lied to her. She even reveals her tragic childhood out of nowhere lmao.

Do you notice what it's missing?

Hector.

Oh, he's physically present. He sasses back because we need to establish them as a couple, but he also asks genuine questions to Lenore ("Are they sidelining you?"), and wants to listen to her. He even attempts a little connection with his "Just like Dracula lied to me," showing empathy.

But do you see Lenore ever asking about how Hector's doing? You know, since she raped a slave ring into his hand and now he's trapped in a castle he didn't want to be in, working for people who have at best ignored him and worst have hurt him in all sorts of ways?

How about asking if he's enjoying the castle? How about asking what is he doing when not working? I'm not even demanding she'd do something as outrageous as asking him if the ring is hurting or expressing any regret that it has to be between them when they get along so well, just fucking be invested in the guy the story is trying so hard to convince me that you care about! Hector has empathy for her, but it sure isn't reciprocated!

It becomes all the more egregious when you remember that Lenore did ask about Hector's desires and life at some point. When she had to manipulate him in S3! Do you realize how utterly scummy this looks? Much like her losing any sign of sexual interest in him once he got out of his cell and gained a shred of attitude, it really looks like Lenore only pretended to be attracted to him physically and mentally to get something out of him, but now that she has managed to trap him and got a good dicking, she won't bother to put in the effort!

Yes, learning about Lenore's inner turmoil is important to establish the rest of the subplot: the sisters losing faith in Carmilla, Lenore being so devastated by Hector's scheming that she'd rather kill herself, all the good stuff. But I think the priority should have been, you know, the victim here.

Well, we know how Lenore reacted the only time Hector expressed any resentment over his condition...

You know this was coming 🙂 the clip I linked may have conveniently cut this exchange, but I, unlike the fandom, am not ignoring this little part.

I want you to take a good, hard look at Lenore's expression, and tell me that she feels any remorse for what she has done. At best, she believes he's just whining for no good reason - why would he, when he lives in a nice castle, gets to do what he likes, and even got good pussy? Oh, silly Hector, joking around like that. At worst, she looks offended to be called out like that, because he's breaking the nice façade they have going on. And considering that the ring is objectively a failure because it barely does what it was meant to do, this only gives credit to my interpretation that she's pissy that her master plan didn't work as she imagined and only made things worse. It's not about how Hector feels, it's about her pride in her skills.

This line is, conceptually, a continuation of this sentiment:

"You're not a real person, Hector. Stop complaining, and be thankful for what I give you. You can stand there looking pretty, like a good boy, and do nice things for me, but you're not allowed to express yourself: you'll make me look bad."

Tell me again how much she changed after the timeskip?

(and no, I don't believe Lenore was lying in this scene to play tough with the others. As much as I like the idea of her pretending to be evil to "fit in" a group of cruel vampires, this giddy, dehumanizing behavior is supported in other scenes where no one is around. There is, instead, enough proof to support the theory that Lenore resorted to forcing the ring on Hector instead of continuing with her manipulations because she got offended that Striga underestimated her methods, again fitting with her touchiness over being seen as "weak" or soft. It's about, once again, her pride.)

As the cherry on top, the line I quoted at the very beginning? Directly follows this. Lenore dismisses her rape of Hector, Hector concedes the point and urges her to keep talking about her woes, and she thanks him for wanting to listen to her. The very same thing she vehemently refused to do for him. Lenore angrily shuts down Hector when he tries to express himself in a way that would make her feel bad, but rewards him with appreciation when he acquiesces and makes her feel cared for. If this isn't an encapsulation of their dynamic, I don't know what is.

So let's move on before I spontaneously combust, because I'm not done! Because there's also her suicide! Or, to be more precise, her verbal suicide note.

TvTropes phrases her as killing herself out of guilt:

I would love to see how they came to this interpretation, considering Lenore makes it all about, guess what? Herself:

I don't see any "I'm sorry for what I put you through. I believe your life will be better off without me keeping you chained here." Now that would show "severe guilt", not a shitty "welp, things have happened". No, she sounds so damn flippant no wonder her fans see this as an OOC decision. But even in the best interpretation I can give, she killed herself out of her abject failure at keeping the council together, and because Hector, who was also responsible for taking her queen life away from her (not that she points it out), made her realize that this is all her existence will amount to, even long after he and Isaac will be dead (which is why the latter shouldn't even factor into her choice: in the grand scheme of things that she has just finished talking about, he doesn't matter, he's going to die in 40 years or so).

Hector is nowhere near her thoughts, except for a quick "I'm sorry I can't be here to help you through… whatever comes next", appended there like an afterthought, but still expressing the sentiment that Lenore would rather leave Hector alone because she feels too sorry for herself to even bear sticking around for a few more decades, which are nothing for a centuries-old vampire.

By the way, what concerns her about her vampiric power is not that she'll cause harm to people, but that she'll always crave more power and end up losing her mind like Carmilla, which means her existence will inevitably lead to feeling miserable. It's all about her, again.

Back to the point, that very line, that overly dismissing non-apology, shows how little Lenore is concerned about Hector's feelings: he wanted to be with her, even after cutting the finger where she forced the slave ring on him, really you couldn't have a purer declaration of love - and her response is basically "well I don't, bye". Girl even says, verbatim, that Carmilla's desire for power "ruined her life", as if Hector had been living in paradise ever since Carmilla barged her way into his life while looking for power. Isaac, of all people, had the decency to ask about how Hector's faring without a finger, while she, the very reason Hector had to mutilate himself, doesn't, because she's too busy drinking her sorrows away, because only her sorrows matter - when Hector cut off his finger, her main reaction was despair that she lost power over him and Isaac was now free to kill Carmilla. It's really hard to feel sorry for her suicidal intentions when she sounds and behaves so dismissively, and her suicide feels less like dictated by despair and more like she's running away from the consequences of her actions or, worse, from a few decades of a less than comfortable life.

And I'm supposed to be touched that she decides to look at Hector rather than the sun? It rings hollow, like many emotional moments in the show when it wants to wring tears out of you without putting in the necessary effort to build the necessary context - but unlike Dracula's "I'm killing my boy", which is simply less effective due to lack of concrete proof that he used to be a good father to Alucard, Lenore's final act feels like an active mockery after everything I pointed out.

(at least Lenore asks Hector "What will you do?" before sunning herself. This is the most interest she has ever shown in him as a person. Right before killing herself, something she knows will cause him grief, and after, as I mentioned, confirming she's not willing to support him anyway. peak romance)

So let's recap. How does Lenore show care for Hector? He keeps him in nice living conditions, as she promised: he can walk all around the castle, wear fancy clothes, do the work he likes, talk with other people, he's doing perfectly fine. She relies on him for emotional support, showing a modicum of trust. She's concerned for his safety: she "protects" him from Carmilla's ire at his stalling, and most noticeably she chooses to go to him and attempt to flee together instead of going to Carmilla when Isaac storms the castle. However, she shows no concern about his emotional state, dumping her own issues on him because he "listens to her", while never reciprocating the favor.

He's her pet. After all this time, Hector is still her damn pet: just because she doesn't call him "good boy" while on a leash anymore, doesn't mean the attitude has changed. Sure, you make sure your dog has all the comforts it needs, you might vent to it when you come home from a grueling day at work, and you make sure it doesn't run into traffic, but it's not like you're particularly interested in your dog's opinions or its life, right?

Everything, and I do mean everything Lenore does, ever since being introduced, screams of deep self-centeredness and lack of empathy. She only cares about herself, what she's going through, her status, her objectives, being respected, and most importantly having the upper hand in any situation. And she will trample over anything to get what she wants, and she will fold when she doesn't. I have shown more than enough proof of this. Her supposed "love for animals" is a mask to look, or feel, better than she is: and she will outright ignore any proof she is not as good as she believes to be.

tl;dr: Lenore is still loving Hector like a vampire would. I said it many times, but it bears repeating.

I genuinely love this line. I have quoted it many times. It is a very good interpretation of the way predators and abusers love, which is what vampires are. And I understand that the show didn't have the time to elaborate on this, but through Lenore, it could have given us so much food for thought.

Is Lenore really the kindest she could be? She took pity on Hector when he was dragged in the castle, she found a way to make him useful (in theory) despite her sisters' skepticism therefore allowing him to live, she kept her word when she promised him a comfortable life (and hopefully forgot about her promise to use him as a sex slave, the story conveniently ignores it), she relies on him for emotional support, and in the end she actively shows that he wants him to be safe from any harm. For someone like Hector, used to nothing but pain and rejection, these crumbs would look like a feast. But is this love? Do they even care about each other as people, or are they only each other's emotional crutches? Can you ask for more? Could Lenore do more? Are all the cruel, humiliating actions she took in S3 justifiable or understandable or forgivable due to her nature? Is she self-centered because she's a vampire, and therefore all she did is really her best love language, and this is why Hector, who has a similar love language shown in him reanimating dead animals to bind them to him through magic, never held all her previous abuse against her; or is she self-centered as a person, a flaw she never overcame, and Hector should seek the love he craves from someone else? Or, better yet, stop craving love, since it only made him suffer?

How human can she truly be? If she's nothing more than a vampire, then yes, what she did to Hector can only be read through the lens of a different species loving in a different way, but that would reduce her to the level of an unintelligent animal unable to rise above her instincts, and it would mean her efforts to be better than her species were for nothing. If she is more than a vampire like she so desperately wants to be, committing to the human values of pacifism and diplomacy that her kind scoffs at, then her behavior is as human as a toxic human can be, and condemnable.

Even better, Dracula of all people refutes Carmilla's claim. Carmilla herself mocked Dracula because he did what no vampire does with their human lover: he let Lisa free to go as she pleased, instead of turning her into a vampire or chaining her to the castle. Carmilla, used to men who take things from women, saw it as proof he didn't actually care about his "pet", but we as humans see it as genuine respect. Sure, after Lisa's death Dracula's brand of love is even more destructive than normal and his very plan of destroying mankind is disrespecting her memory, but not only the two had natural mutual chemistry when they just met, Dracula effectively loves like a human would. A severely unhinged human, but still, he never expresses the idea that he saw Lisa as his property. In this sense, Lenore doesn't go beyond the limits of her own species.

The show doesn't need to give us precise answers, but these questions do fit the general themes of the story, and they should have been hinted at.

But instead, we are meant to take Lenore's "goodness" at face value, with zero conflict. We know this, because Hector barely expresses himself in S4.

There is a noticeable lack of internal turmoil in him, and with all the screentime he got, most notably the montage in S4E2, he could have shown it. Imagine if he had developed the tic of fiddling with the ring: after six weeks, he still can't get used to this foreign object stuck on his finger (this would also be foreshadowing for his decision to cut it). Imagine if, in the library, we had a scene of him glimpsing outside, and then glancing at the ring, implying that he feels the desire to escape but knowing that he's trapped. Imagine a scene where, while bantering, he reaches for Lenore with his ringed hand, the scene putting an uncomfortable focus on it. Sure, they might be sassing and bantering and exchanging dick jokes, but it's an awkward, fragile façade, a warm genuine relationship all but made impossible by Lenore's past callousness.

Instead, the season politely removes any reminder that Hector has been living as a glorified slave after being intimately betrayed and dehumanized by someone he had grown to care about. Aside from not even forcing him to obey orders, the ring only briefly activates when he forges a Night Creature, and it looks like it hurts, but Hector doesn't linger on it because he has to take care of the creature: he doesn't express any sort of emotion over the fact that the sisters have taken even this one pleasure from him. And, as I said in the first part, he never speaks about himself with Lenore, because she's the only one who matters. There is no on-screen struggle to reconcile the Lenore who chooses to talk to him over her sisters, which indicates a moderate amount of intimacy, and the Lenore who smirked at his agony when she betrayed him mid-sex. One could think that he was mellowed out because he learned that Lenore is acting as a shield against Carmilla's anger, proving to him that she cares... but he learns it on-screen, six weeks after becoming their slave, therefore not explaining his friendly attitude with her in the dick jokes scene.

In fact, the one time he even dares to challenge Lenore for the cruel way she "solved his problem", he gets told more or less "you got your dick hard and wet so you have no right to complain," and he quietly relents to allow her to finish her sad vent, in what is clearly framed as wholesome banter. And, as an extra kick in the balls, he is appreciated for giving her the chance to keep complaining. This is what passes as ship tease! How isn't this enough proof that he, as a person, has never mattered, not just for Lenore but the story as a whole?

This one gesture is the closest time he gets to show inner turmoil, and it's still framed as character development for Lenore's sake, not his. That stump is the symbol of all the hardships Hector went through: he is giving Lenore the freedom that she herself took from him, that he had to regain by mutilating himself. Does he show any sign of being torn over this irony? No. This is nothing more than a romantic gesture. Hector grew more than Lenore did, but only enough for the show to paint her in the best light.

After all, unlike Isaac who was able to articulate how much he has come to appreciate life and how he's willing to live fully because he is a person worth living for himself, when Hector is asked what he wants, his answer is "I want to be left alone with Lenore" while looking with guilt and concern at his still bleeding stump. Hector's only desire is to soothe Lenore's hurt feelings like he has been doing ever since she raped him into a position of pet. This could have been painted as the depressing sign that Hector still hasn't grown from his instinct to crawl back towards the people who hurt him, or even as the result of his past tortures making him lose his will to live, and being confused on what to do with his life now that Isaac is giving him a second chance. But his emotions don't matter. This is meant to be seen as the proof that he loves Lenore so much, he wants her even without the binding of the ring.

A light criticism I have often read about Lenector in S4 is that they should have shown mending their relationship after Lenore's "scheme" (which is a nice word for what she did). My question is, why? Why can't it be treated like the Moral Event Horizon it is? Lenore doesn't show any sign that she was coerced into it or reluctant, and as I have proven there is zero regret in her actions and words. Lenore was a complacent part of the council, an important part even: unlike what the "Just the way Dracula lied to [Hector]" implies, Lenore was never tricked into collaborating by Carmilla, she was more than happy to help, and the sentiment she expresses in S4 is not "wow I did some fucked up shit for my sisters' sake" but "this plan is starting to feel inconvenient to me". Her kindness is hollow, and if Hector forgave her and slotted her in his category of "good people", it's only because his standards for basic decency are below hell, something that the show never addresses or lets him grow out of, only mocks him for.

To prove my point, there was the easiest compromise between "Hector setting the castle on fire and smashing Carmilla's and Lenore's skull with his hammer", which would have been cathartic but overall a sign of negative development, and him blithely loving his abuser: make him leave. Make him grow from a manchild hidden from the world to a brave man willing to face the world. Make him spare Lenore's life as appreciation for how she took care of him when no one would, but decide that he deserves better than what a vampire can give him.

But no, he isn't even granted this much dignity: his last shot in the entire series is him standing heartbroken next to Lenore's remains, stuck in the same castle Lenore forced him in, with no plans to build himself a better life (only writing a book about "his mistakes", which just feels spiteful at this point - he regrets his stupidity more than Isaac regrets the blood of innocents on his hands), with nothing left in his life isaac and whatever tentative friendship they could build doesn't count because hector routinely forgets about his existence because he only wanted to be with Lenore and he couldn't even have that. Fucking Dracula got a much more saccharine ending than he deserved.

But narrative cruelty aside, Hector's entire character revolves around Lenore, who in turn revolves around herself.

This is a profound narrative failure, from multiple angles. This is why I say that Hector effectively stops being a character in S3: his emotions and desires no longer matter unless it's for torture porn or painting him as stupid. This is why I cannot take seriously his big badass "redeeming" moment in S4E6, on top of him regressing morally and effectively only aiding Isaac who has hogged all the spotlight: he may have become smarter, but he doesn't have any significant character development. This is why I don't see the poignancy of him forgiving Lenore for taking advantage of him in the worst way she could have, or of him letting her go when she chooses death over him: it only looks like the same lack of spine that has fucked him over ever since his introduction (he could have trapped Lenore out of cruel mercy, but it's clear that it's just good-hearted mercy). This is why I don't see Lenore as a "good", nuanced person who went through character development and should have ended the story marrying Hector: she has depth (shown too little too late, but it's there), but it's completely negative depth, because the more I look inside her, the viler she gets.

And this could have been great! We could have had such a gripping story about the intricacies of abuse, how it's not just a man beating a woman, but yes it's made also of good parts, your abuser can still do good to you and you still deserve better than those scraps. Lenore and Hector's relationship could have been an intriguing discussion on morality, or the lack thereof, about the nuances of abuse and "kindness", the torn mixed feelings between anger and attachment, how being "human" doesn't mean being "good". In a well written story, Lenector would be one hell of a toxic, co-dependent relationship, built on necessity, shared misery, lies, mistrust, mutual harm, power games, and the eventual realization that they can only thrive if kept apart - if Lenore can even thrive, as a cursed undead doomed to only bring misery to the world and herself.

But S4 needed to be fluffy because S3 was the edgiest shit a 14 yo could write, and in its desperate attempt to write Lenector as yet another sassy cute couple like every straight couple in NFCV, the squandered potential and eagerness to forget about all the uncomfortable parts of their story in S3 becomes actively offensive, and I will never, ever understand what everyone sees in them, to the point that the arguments that Lenore is actually a good loving person honestly worry me.

There is a good story here, with a good villain and complex psychology. It's not the story presented on-screen, which is simplified, dishonest, and disgusting.

[deconstructthesoup]

Hello, I'm here as said I would. I've got a few questions. What magic(s) does everyone specialize in/study? Are glyphs back and in use? What were the inspirations for making the fankids the way they are?

Have a great day! Toodles!

Everyone's magic is as follows (and I'll be answering question 2 with that!):

Carmilla: Oracle/Abominations (they're both purple, they're both spooky, and she has a natural talent for Oracle magic while also having been taught Abominations since she was a kid)

Mickey: Bard/Beastkeeping/Illusions (they freaking love music, they freaking love animals, and they freaking love messing with people)

Evan: Healing/Construction (the first one highlights his belief that magic is a tool to help others, and the second one highlights his love for building things)

Lila Rose: Plants/Potions/Oracle (she's naturally gifted at Plants like her mom, she has a keen interest in alchemy, and Oracle magic is as close as she can get to legal necromancy)

Heather: Oracle/Healing (it helps to plan things if you can see the future, and she fully intends on being a doctor someday)

Hector: Bard/Illusions (the two tracks that are often underestimated yet are all about showmanship and not underestimating your opponent? Sign him up!)

Holland: They of course can't use magic organically, but thankfully, the magic of the glyphs has returned thanks to King! Just like their aunt Luz, they see no reason to restrict themselves and dabble in a little of everything.

Jayla: Potions/Abominations (she's never minded getting her hands a little bit messy, and both tracks encourage her to think creatively on the field and in real life)

Silas: Abominations/Construction (two tracks that are some of the physically strongest and are the most useful in a fight)

And as for the inspirations, well...

Carmilla is, obviously, inspired in part by Carmilla---both the classic novella and the fantastic webseries that shares its name. I've noticed a lot of "main" Lumity fankids, i.e. either only children or oldest children, who primarily take after Luz, and while that's incredible to see, I feel like we're kind of missing out on the chance to do one who primarily takes after Amity. Mickey kinda just... sprouted from my imagination, really, I'm still not sure how I landed on them. Their design and personality just popped into my brain.

Evan is named after both Evelyn and Evan Kelmp from Dimension 20's Misfits & Magic series, who is a character that absolutely radiates Hunter vibes (the pitch for his character was "kid who was born to be the Dark Lord and wants absolutely nothing to do with that"). In personality, however, he's primarily inspired by Palamedes from The Locked Tomb, which I thought would fit well for a Huntlow kid. And Lila Rose... I did make her with the idea that she'd mostly take after Willow in terms of personality, but I also loved the thought of a Huntlow kid just being weird. She and Evan are both part Grimwalker, after all. (Plus, I love the mad scientist aesthetic too much to let it die with Philip. His crazy dark cottagecore great-niece can figure out how to use what he learned for good, just to rub it in.)

Heather and Hector were actually originally gonna be Jayla's younger siblings---with Gustholomule being the couple that has no kids but a plethora of pets---but I've seen a lot of really cool fics and fanart of Gus and Matt breaking up and then getting back together due to there being kids in the picture and rebuilding a healthier relationship as a result of that, and... I dunno. The more I thought about it, the more it made sense---of course Gus and Matt, two characters who struggle with anxiety and not being good enough, would have a daughter who's a born overachiever and needs everything to be perfect. And of course Gus and Matt, two characters who have a flair for the dramatic yet tend to hide their inner struggles behind the flash and the confidence, would have a son who's a born thespian and is still learning how to step back from the theatrics and just be real. It just works.

Holland... again, I'm not entirely sure. They're essentially what happens when two incredibly kind alt people raise a kid. I knew that I wanted someone to round out Evan and Carmilla's friend group, and their personality and backstory just sprung from there.

With Jayla, well... I've seen some Skarey fankids who are more femme-leaning, but again, partially inspired by my love for The Locked Tomb, I decided that I wanted Jayla to be butch. And seeing as both of her moms were athletes, I figured that it wouldn't be too unusual for her to be, too. The rest of her personality kinda sprung up around there.

Silas came to me pretty much immediately---I knew that I wanted him to be an entitled popular kid who eventually shifts into a snarky common sense friend a la David Rose or Wallace Wells, and I knew that I wanted him and Evan to be rivals-to-lovers. At the same time, though, I didn't want Boscha to be a bad mom, and I eventually settled on her trying her best but also just not being in a good place mentally, which would absolutely fuel Silas's need to make her happy.

Also, I should clarify---Silas and Evan are not a story of "bully meets victim." The two of them are on equal footing, and their rivalry is based on pure academic pettiness and clashing worldviews. Both of them are dicks to each other, and both of them have instances of needing to grow as people before they can even consider each other friends.

[huntinglove]

What I expected to think about the characters vs what I actually thought of them after watching Hazbin Hotel

A little long because I tried to include as many characters as possible lol (also, I'm not a huge fan of the Hellaverse so a lot of the characters and their designs were brand new to me)

Sir Pentious:

He's kind of funny, I like his dirigible as well! His colors are a bit harsh though...

F/Od him and grew very attached to him, he was very sweet all throughout the show and he really deserves better than what he got

Egg boiz:

Silly little guys! How many of them are there?

They have names?!! I need to know all of them! I wonder if their personalities vary in any way or if they're just clones of each other. Do they have souls as well?

Charlie:

Big dreamer that will probably end up snapping and ruining her own plan

Determined and kind but a bit out of touch when it comes to other people around her, a nice soul that needs to learn how to listen

Angel Dust:

In it for the free stuff and overly impulsive

Dealing with heavy trauma and hypersexuality. Actually cares about people if they give him enough time, kind but stuck in a god awful situation, one of my favorite characters

Vaggie:

Intense but important character, really wants things to work out for Charlie and the hotel

Easy to tell she's an angel when you compare her design to the other characters'. Very supportive of Charlie, even when she 100% thinks that her ideas will go wrong. Interesting choice for a singing voice though

Alastor:

Thought I would F/O him, didn't. Love his aesthetic and mannerisms

His personality changed a bit, but I enjoy how easy it is to make him slip into a more menacing facade. Disliking technology must be awful when hell keeps adapting to it. I wonder who he made a deal with...

Husk:

Rude grump...

Actually cares about the people at the hotel but lives in constant exhaustion over being Alastor's "pet" because of their deal. Badass when he fights using his playing cards. I wonder what the bet between him and Alastor was...

Nifty:

Small critter?

Little chaotic lady, she can be really fun! Also, props for getting rid of that dick head

Cherri Bomb:

Fun! Impulsive and with one of my favorite designs, I like how she treats Angel, especially in Addict

Big kin, her personality is very similar to mine and I really enjoyed her scenes!

Lucifer:

First time seeing him! His design is very nice and balanced between the stylistic choices for angels and demons. I wish his demon was a bit more threatening though

He seems like a nice father to Charlie, I wonder what drove them apart. Lilith seemed like she didn't like allowing Charlie to spend a lot of time around him during the flashbacks...

His rivalry with Alastor is very funny, considering he's leagues above him, power-wise (at least according to the official scale)

Rosie:

Lovely! Such a fun character, plus the whole idea behind cannibal town is very interesting! I wonder if Alastor's affections towards her are genuine or if he just wants to get something out of her as smoothly as possible

Mimzy:

Plus size character, wonderful! Not a huge fan of her personality or the fact that she hides behind Alastor after getting herself in trouble, but she's most likely not the first or last to do something like that to him, especially in hell

Zestial:

One of my favorite designs in the show! I love his voice as well. He seems very polite and influential and I feel like there's a lot of potential for his character. I hope we get to see more of him as the show progresses!

Carmilla:

Very big hands, contrasts nicely with her otherwise sleek, ballerina-like design. Her archetypes and characteristics are very eye-catching and influential to the story. A caring mom and a powerful war lord, definitely one of my favorite characters in the show!

Vox:

Love his design and voice, not much else. For someone so powerful he seems to place his trust far too easily on random sinners and overlords. Seems far more obsessed with Alastor than he is in return.

Velvet:

My favorite of the Vees, her fashionista personality is very fun and I love the designs of the outfits she makes and wears. Doesn't seem very interested in anything that Vox or Valentino get up to, so I wonder why she joined them.

Valentino:

Ew.

Adam:

Ugh. Also, where is Eve?

Lute:

Beautiful design when unmasked. I like her personality, even if I'm not rooting for her side whatsoever

Emily:

My favorite angel! She's kind and very similar to Charlie, I hope she can change Sera's mind about the extreminations, especially now that the first soul to ever be redeemed is inhabitanting heaven!

Sera:

Seems kind enough but feels like she's holding back something very dark. I can't get myself to trust her

Lilith:

Beautiful, but not as good of a mother as I thought she would be. I wonder why she left Lucifer and Charlie by themselves. Did she make a deal with Adam or Lute??

[eternalwritess]

Hiya! I'd like to request a matchup for Hazbin Hotel, if that's alright. :)

Basics: My name's Sébastian. I'm a male (I am trans if that's important) and I'm bisexual. I wouldn't like to be paired with Alastor, Lucifer or Carmilla, if that's possible.

Personality: I'm an INFJ, though I do come across as an extrovert in online spaces. I'm typically very introverted, but when I'm around people I care about I get rather loud and obnoxious due to a fear of being ignored. I don't put myself out there as a smart person, but I was always very high up academically. I have a tendency to write or speak in a way that could be considered robotic. People have told me I'm really funny before, which I doubt. I constantly struggle to show those I love how much I care about them, and often resort to excessively love-bombing people. A lot of this is due to the fact I don't think about people unless I'm actually talking to or texting them, as I get extremely focused on other things. I often get called narcissistic by people because of it. The majority of my jokes involve innuendos or things like cannibalism, but my comedic timing is what others tend to enjoy. I get easily overwhelmed though, so there have been numerous times where I've just gone silent in a conversation. I struggle to navigate social situations, but thankfully I'm very good at articulating myself around normal people.

I'm autistic and have anxiety, which impacts a lot of my thinking and relationships.

Interests: Funnily enough, my main interest is in fashion, but I never have anyone to discuss it with due to my friends not being interested in it. My friends and family always come to me for fashion advice, though. I'm an emo, but I often dress in other styles to fit the mood or vibes. Other interests of mine include the skeletal system, nuclear energy and chemical warfare; an odd selection, I know. Hobbies of mine include: organisation, writing, drawing, crocheting and designing clothing. I'm currently learning German. My music taste is all over the place but I mainly listen to: My Chemical Romance, Waterparks, Melanie Martinez & Queen.

Love languages: I often give extravagant gifts to those I love. Another of my love languages is physical touch, I only touch those I really feel comfortable with though. I enjoy receiving pretty much any form of affection except for words of affirmation. I don't find spoken words genuine, it's a weird thing.

My type in a partner: I need to be with someone who is alright with me spoiling them spontaneously. I also would prefer someone who can be patient with me when I need it or will leave me be when I'm overwhelmed. I don't want someone who's talking all the time, I would appreciate constant texting over speaking to me a lot. I don't have many physical preferences, except for not wanting anyone who has severe health issues (mental or physical) because I have issues maintaining myself and wouldn't be capable of managing a whole other person.

What I look like: I have short brown hair. I'm below average height. I'm skinny, but I have muscular legs due to running and walking frequently. I have large blue eyes.

Extra: I run above average when it comes to temperature, so friends use me to warm up if they're cold. I also have a naturally lower resting heart rate than the average person.

(Hope that's enough info for you <3. Have a good day/night!)

𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕖𝕟 𝕞𝕒𝕥𝕔𝕙𝕖𝕕 𝕨𝕚𝕥𝕙…

𝓥𝓪𝓰𝓰𝓲𝓮!

You most likely met Vaggie either at the hotel or at a group of people. Most likely some sort of fight in hell etc.

She would constantly guide you around the hotel making sure that you felt safe etc.

If you ever made dark jokes around her she wouldn't care for the most part and would likely laugh as I see her as a dark humor type of person. She would probably even add onto the joke

Although if you ever mentioned the exterminations she would get somewhat closed off between you two and would seem cold, she would tell you that it wasn't your fault though and that it was her own stuff

"Don't worry about it... its my own bullshit, not your fault,"

You and her both likely suck at social situations and aren't very good at them overall she tries to avoid them every now and then you'll both go yo an event and don't often talk to people

Every now and then you might go up to someone to strike a conversation and she'll be right by your side, a bit like a guard dog but she'll be there

She may be a little overprotective of you and try to protect you a little too much, but seeing how you don't want to be lonely she'll probably open up a bit more trying to let down her guard a bit more for your sake

This is also because... lets be honest she's a little self conscious about your relationship and thinks that she's not good enough at times

"I'm... sorry about being overprotective, its just something about me I guess... guess you could say its in my blood or something"

That being said, while you requested someone without issues she does have some but they don't affect her too much. She has some guilt from the exterminations but doesn't let that get in your or her way

Every now and then she'll get a bit down thinking about the exterminations but can shove that aside. (Also almost everyone in this show is traumatized asf and the ones who aren't dont exactly suit some things you're looking for so she's the best i got, sorry-)

She'd totally take an interest in all of your interests and probably would know a bit too much about them-...

I think that she might take up crocheting with you, something to help calm her down and all. Although she'd be horrible at it

"I don't think I did this one right... mind helping me?"

I think Vaggie would love physical touch, an arm around your shoulder, waist, holding your hand etc.

Vaggie also doesn't talk too much and would be fine with just sitting in silence with you or hell even texting

While she might be a slightly dry texter she's texts a lot and fast, never leaving you on read

She would cuddle with you all of the time <3

[rocksanddeadflowers]

Gonna be thinking about this au all day now!!! Carmilla is SO CORRECT!!!!! Local small town kooky milf inventor.... Finds a body also completely torn apart by wolves and frostbitten in the woods and decides to Dr. Frankenstein her way into finally having a child in her own eccentric way!!!

Also I think that, while Belle is somewhat outcasted mostly bc her personality (<- autism to me but I must just be silly goofy) and ambitions clash with the locals (and a mix of jealousy for her beauty and brains I think) .... I think for Brian it could be all that but a healthy Frankenstein mix of genuine fear. He has so much love to give, so much to learn and experience, so much Life, but he's different and strange. He's beautiful, but otherworldly, unsettlingly beautiful. He's clearly a contraption of metal, though the flesh within and the story behind is one most don't know of. This makes people dislike and fear him, though they stand his presence much more like in Beauty and The Beast then Frankenstein.

Also this makes Marius far less basic and more eccentric is his choice of romantic pursuit. Considering he's like Gaston but just bad at it, or as I like to call it, "a bard with negative charisma", he's just a big weirder too. So of course he'd fall madly in love (<- Hyperfixate. His crush is a hyperfixation on the only interesting character in town.) on the beautiful brass man who's origins remain mystery. Marius can't resist a good story!

Also Brian in pretty dresses...... side note I think it'd be fun to narratively make a purpose for those dresses if he's masc presenting. I mean, there's so actual need to, but the idea of him having chronic pain + stiffness and whatnot bc of his form and flowy dress/skirts just being easier to put on, take off, and move around in... Projection? Yes. But I like it.

Lumiere Tim and Mx. Pots Ashes is were I considered going so it's neat you thought that too! Ashes is extremely chaotic but is still the most grounded of the mechs. (I know we could argue Ivy and Nastya are quite grounded, but I think they're really just slightly less chaotic and more in their own little worlds to count as "most grounded.) (Also in the cartoon there's like a footstool that used to be Pots' dog I think? Or just somebody's dog? I think that should be an 'octokitten' that Ashes named Cerberus.)

With Brian being Belle, Tim being Lumiere is perfect and hilarious. #1 chaotic wingman to his oldest (still alive) friend. Lyf being stuck paired with Tim is so fucking funny... It perfectly drives home the dynamic of Lumiere and Cogsworth. "Please Tim you're going to get us into so much trouble." "Not if this works! Now please help me lock them into this closet together or I'll go get that baron guy...." "... you're the worst." ":)" (Tim totally sees Marius and Lyf as a side project to wingman once Marius starts hanging out with Lyf more and forgets about Brian. Like they're important too but he really needs Brian to break that spell with Jonny so priorities.)

I do think Marius is so ghibli antagonist were something like this happens: stalks Brian and finds the castle -> gets ambushed by servants and beaten up -> starts to just hang around the castle and vibe despite many attempts to banish him he keeps popping back up -> finds annoying flirting talking with Lyf to be very fun -> is just always there and trying to get Lyf's attention and now town thinks both people are missing.

He doesn't even rally a mob if anything that's Carmilla or a third secret character since I doubt the town trusts her much but she would try to. Or maybe there is no mob. Eventually Carmilla finds her way to the castle and it's all vibes and curse breaking. Two kooky people and the loud fuck boy went missing? Well that's better than the local baker disappearing so who cares.

Learning healthy love all around is just.... Through Brian Jonny finds self love and outwards love for others, understands what it is he feels for Brian and his servants and how to express it. Brian loves on everyone in the castle (including Marius but, like, after Lyf is in the picture cause it's very awkward before then) and them loving on him in return helps him learn self love. Marius learning the difference between actual genuine love and just romantic attraction hyperfixation stuff so he gets better at identifying his feelings. Idk but you saying love is a big part of the story is so true!!! Not just in the sense of romance, but learning how to love yourself and others, learning that you're allowed to love.

Also Brian loving music in the way Belle loves books in IMMACULATE. I've always been a person who prefers narrative music (had no idea that was my taste until I got into the mechs lmao but ballads and bardic tales and stuff you know? Music that tells a story.) because it fits the canon mechs theme AND the love of story telling that Belle has!! Brian teaching Jonny how to sing and play instruments and dance and just showing him all this stuff about music in that rambly passionate way. Jonny has no clue how hard he's falling for Brian at the point when he's like "You love music so..... I think we should start a band" and instead of gifting a library he opens a room to like an orchestra of instruments and a giant stage and practice rooms and all the equipment one could dream of for the time era it's set in. So Brian can make and learn music to his heart's content. Besides, the Library is Ivy's. Even if Jonny technically owns it, he wouldn't dare gift that away lmao.

Oufgh I got very rambly.... Was procrastinating my own work to because I love this au now so much

Beauty and the Beast, but it's the Mechanisms.

Jonny must be the beast because feral Jonny and the whole heart thing... prove me wrong.

Tim or Brian is Belle.

Rest of the Mechs are the servants in the Beast's house. With an exception for Marius as Gaston cause I can totally fucking see it. He would suck at it though because it's Marius. And also, short Marius HC.

This is probably not new. But it's been brewing in my head for a good few months, ever since I put my Mechs OC in the iconic Belle dress.

[greensaplinggrace]

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It goes about as well as you would expect.

end of sanctuary (Complete) Trephacard

With the help of psychological magic, Trevor and Sypha enter into Alucard's dream world in order to help him confront his trauma, guilt, and other personal demons while also reevaluating their own relationship to him. 

The Threat of Explosion (Complete) Isaac/Hector

Isaac acts decisively to keep Hector from siding with Carmilla.

A.K.A. The seduction of Hector or Isaac thinks Hector deserves nice things.

Good Gloaming (Complete) Isaac/Hector

“Ah,” Isaac sighs when they first meet. “You’re the other Forgemaster.”

He says “other” the way most people say “pig shit,” but Hector’s tired from traveling and he doesn’t really think much about it until he’s gotten lost for the third time in an hour, in the same wing of the castle—following the directions that Isaac gave him.

In Memoriam (Complete) Gen & Trephacard

Trevor Belmont's family died when he was 12. He's spent quite a lot of time running from it since then. Lying to himself.

“But you know that the word Teloch means of death, right?”

Maybe, maybe it's time to stop.

Deliverance (Incomplete - 35/?) Trephacard

Adrian is beginning to think that Wallachia will be a smoking pile of ash long before he, Trevor, and Sypha can stop Dracula’s war on humanity. They’ve been chasing the castle for months, but each time they get close, it vanishes. Traveling with such genuine and trustworthy allies has been unexpectedly pleasant; Adrian doesn’t mind that Trevor and Sypha are involved with each other, but he is taken entirely by surprise when they open their relationship to him one evening.

Hopelessly in over his head, his heart keeps urging him forward, even when he’s forced to confront the darkest aspects of his nature. Adrian must learn to swallow his pride and let himself be vulnerable if he wants a chance at happiness. Unfortunately, there isn’t much time for looking within when the world is drenched in blood and magic, and the path to victory may destroy him completely. 

With Broken Words I’ve Tried To Say (Complete) Trevorcard

In which Alucard sends a letter to Sypha, but ends up corresponding with Trevor instead. 

The Shops On Morning Street (Complete) Trevorcard

Trevor Belmont, former monster hunter and current florist, is tasked with looking into the proprietor of the new tattoo parlor across the street, much to his annoyance.

What he finds is Adrian Ţepeş, current half-vampire, current tattoo artist, and a whole lot more than Trevor bargained for.

[pip-n-flinx]

Castlevania Spoilers Ahead

its tagged, its below a cut, don’t say I didn’t warn you!

So I may be one of 3 people in the whole world who hates the final season of netflix’s Castlevania adaptation. I know I know, you’re going to have a pogrom. I heard about it in the market square this morning. But see, here’s the thing. What makes me angry is that there is so much to love about this show and I really don’t feel like it stuck the landing.

I’ll probably make a series of these posts, but I wanted to address the narrative things that were set up beautifully, only to stumble and fall on their faces in the finale.

Today, we’re talking about Hector, Lenore, and briefly about the rest of Styria’s council.

Hector and Lenore are by far the most interesting characters to me in the whole series. Let’s start with how Hector is written in S2 and S3 of the show, because it provides a ton of context for where I really want to take this conversation. Hector is a brilliant man, whose views are all about natural structure and conservation. Think of him as the shows Department of Natural Resources. He likens vampires first to wolves, then to cats. He seems to see humanity as an ecological problem, believing they need to be culled. He dehumanizes everyone, human and vampire alike, throughout the course of S2. You could argue this makes him naive or ignorant, but there are plenty of brilliant people out there who see the world through lenses far more baffling than Hector. He doesn’t believe he was treated as a human, believing himself (probably rightly) an outcast. He hasn’t had much time to observe a functioning society, but he has had plenty of time to study the natural world that borders human civilization. It seems entirely in keeping with his characterization to frame people as animals in his quest to understand them.’

Cut to S3 and suddenly the tables have been turned. Lenore’s use of ‘good boy’ and ‘walkies’ can be seen as overtly sexual but its also very obviously Hector’s comeuppance. After a season of likening the Vampires to animals, he himself is characterized as a puppy. Lenore also introduces him to vampire philosophy and more broadly speaking culture. She may be treating him like a dog, but its one of the first times adult Hector gets to observe a society, not just a foodchain. Despite being a well learned magician, he has much to learn about diplomacy and etiquette.

And this is the meat of it. Hector and Lenore are the perfect inversion of Lisa and Dracula. This is why they are the most interesting people in the series. Lisa searches for Vlad Tepes in the hopes he might teach her. Hector is dragged to Lenore’s castle and kept in chains. Vlad greets Lisa with suspicion, but is won over by her bravery and determination. Lenore, on the other hand, greets Hector with gifts before beating him - cowing him for his bravado. Vlad teaches a human woman how to heal humans, Lenore teaches Hector about the sciences, but mostly about how commerce and luxury items are traded. Lenore takes Hector as a boy-toy, a dalliance, or gigolo. Vlad takes Lisa as his wife, and fathers a child by her. Lenore keeps Hector caged, while Lisa insists Dracula travel the world. Lisa dies a horrible death at the hands of the Church, where Isaac spares Lenore at Hector’s insistence. Dracula schemes to kill all the humans, while Styria’s scheme is to bleed the humans as livestock. And at the end, Vlad and Lisa return from the grave and inexplicably decide not to tell Alucard. Lenore walks into the sunlight, into a new dawn and dies leaving me heartbroken beyond repair. The perfect inversion of story-line/arc. But it didn’t have to end this way!

So here’s the crux of what bothers me about Lenore/Hector vs Lisa/Dracula. Setting aside the mechanism behind Lisa and Vlad returning (hooo-boy that will be the next post I think....) you wouldn’t need to kill Lenore at the end if you didn’t inexplicably bring Lisa and Drac back to life! But why shouldn’t we kill Lenore? Surely the writers didn’t just bring Dracula back on a whim, so to complete the inversion Lenore was always intended to die, no? This is what I have a problem with. You take one of the strong female characters, one who critiqued two of the big-bad-villains of the series in a meaningful way. She articulates for the audience why Dracula’s plan was evil. Then explains for us why Carmilla has gone too far. This is the womanyou kill off? You kill off a character with wit, with self-awareness. You kill off a character who for all her flaws is known for showing kindness, whose very introduction involves making a splint for a spider! An act so ludicrous and caring that her friends ridicule her for it. You take this woman, whose goal is to secure a future for herself and the women she has come to cherish. You write this brilliant character, a hypocrite just human enough to be our lens into the show and who despite her own machinations has one of the clearest concepts of morality in the whole show, and you kill her off because Dracula must live? This is Castlevania for godssake, isn’t the whole point that Dracula dies? She could have been the greatest anti-villain I’ve ever seen, and she chooses suicide before her lover’s eyes? I’ll give you its a gut punch, but it’s one I could definitely have done without.

Because Lenore condemns thirst that harms the greater community. She understands the value of diplomacy, of stability, of peace. She’s hedonistic, but less hedonistic than Carmilla. She shows a great deal of strength in S3, but she shows a strength of character in S4. And then she dies, because Dracula must live. Honestly, she is my Alucard/Anti-Dracula for the series. Adrian Tepes be damned. Lenore had no humanity left in the most literal sense, but she is the narrative foil to Dracula in a way the real Alucard could never be. She even had a reason not to turn her lover, which Dracula cannot say.

So I am salty. And perhaps more than any other reason, I am salty because at the very last moment, they chose to save Dracula over Lenore.

[sepublic]

Isaac’s Coming-of-Age Moment

           I find Isaac’s talk with the Captain in Season 3 weirdly… sweet, in a sense?

           Like… I kind of get this vibe from Isaac during their conversation that he’s basically some hot-headed, emotional youth, who is confused in a lot of ways, basically a teenager, and he just really needs some actual guidance, a positive adult/parental figure in his life that he can actually count on! Which, I don’t want to infantilize Isaac, but then again he does refer to himself and Hector as children who need to grow up in Season 4, so maybe I’m not too far off.

           I dunno, I just get the feel that as someone who’s been alone for a LONG while, without any real positive interactions with people or older figures… Isaac’s just in a kind of generally moody, angsty sort of headspace akin to an angsty teenager, obviously unreasonable in some regards, but not truly, his feelings are valid and you can tell that by the end of the day, he just wants to be left alone and in peace.

           So it feels really sweet to have Isaac actually like- Talk to an older figure who for once is acting as a mentor, passing on some real wisdom and guidance. The Captain can tell that Isaac needs someone to help him through what is a VERY confusing part of his life, a part that will decide a lot for him –again, like a teenager- and he’s very patiently and considerately advising Isaac; But at the same time, he’s not condescendingly lecturing him either. The Captain shows Isaac a lot of respect and consideration, and is both talking to him as an equal, but also as a mentor if that makes sense.

           And to me, that’s just really nice and heartwarming to watch, because with Dracula also in mind, I’m lowkey getting the impression of Isaac as this like; Jaded youth who secretly yearns for approval by someone for once, we can kind of see this from his abuser in the flashback. 

          Isaac hasn’t quite completely gotten over this, but with the Captain, Isaac can finally get that validation and support that he really needs and craves from an older figure, in a way that isn’t toxic and unhealthy. And I love Dracula and I will always applaud his decision to save Isaac’s life at the end of Season 2, how THAT led to Isaac learning to live for himself, I will forever love that moment even more from now on;

           But I think Dracula and I can both agree that he’s not, like. The healthiest role model nor person for Isaac to look up to, nor dedicate himself towards. Really, nobody is the healthiest person for Isaac to dedicate himself towards, he needs to live for himself after all! So it really was for the best that Isaac had himself cut off from that sort of toxic dependency; Dracula is an ENORMOUS step-up from Isaac’s abuser, sure, but he still represented Isaac’s refusal to really value himself, only just in relation to others.

           Anyhow, I really appreciate that talk where Isaac low-key finds a bit of a Father Figure in the Captain. Maybe I’m just protecting a little, but I found it very endearing how the Captain talks directly to Isaac as a person, in many ways he’s kind of firm and fair, but in a way that shows that he actually CARES about Isaac, and not that he’s just trying to get his own way. 

          Like, the Captain is interested in seeing Isaac prosper, but he’s not toxically dedicating himself to Isaac, the way Isaac would’ve done to Dracula’s memory; And that ability to help others and invest in them, while still being yourself, was no doubt enlightening for Isaac.

           Just… that side-eye glance of Isaac’s bear the end, actually stopping to think and consider, when the Captain tells him that hey, you can be a ruler! An almost endearing kind of immature desire to deny this in a rather “It’s not a PHASE” type of way, but it is in fact clearly getting to him, whether he likes to admit or not, and it’s kind of flustering Isaac. When the Captain gives him no shit but still treats him like a person. In general, all of Isaac’s interactions in Season 3 came from older figures who were a lot more experienced than him, which I think just adds to this idea that… 

          He really is kind of young and inexperienced in a lot of ways. And he really needs some second opinions to surround himself with, perspectives that are at times differing; Which I think is a neat contrast with Carmilla, who mostly relies on an echo chamber of her sisters and isn’t very receptive to different opinions.

           But yeah, Isaac is an utter mood, basically a moody, edgy teenager, who just needs some love and cherishing, some real mentorship and guidance, provided with actual respect and consideration, so he can get through what is an incredibly confusing AND formative period of his life. 

          It makes me all the more happy that it turns out for the best for him, and I really want to see a fic where like; Him and Hector encounter Dracula and Lisa, with all four on healthier terms, and Dracula’s sort of joy at seeing his other two sons being happy and living for themselves like he’d hoped- While Hector and Isaac are lowkey like, “See Dad! See how we’ve really become our own person, isn’t that really cool?” In that sort of excited, endearing way where they show a lot of respect and admiration, and place a lot of faith and trust in Vlad’s opinion. 

          Because even if they aren’t dependent on Dracula’s opinion, it’s still nice to see him validated and swell with pride, to actually see his Forge Masters get along as he’d always hoped. Like a sort of Coming of Age moment where they happily reflect on how much they’ve grown, to people who’d really respect and appreciate it, telling them that hey, your love for me, it paid off- It really meant a lot and I’m happy to tell the both of us that it wasn’t for nothing, it really meant SO much to me and helped, thank you!

           It’s just… Really endearing how we can see Isaac comfortably, in a safe space and level of interaction that isn’t plagued by threat nor violence; Afford to get snappy with someone else, like he can actually express his feelings at the Captain, but he doesn’t have to worry about holding himself to a subordinate level like with Dracula. Isaac can just be himself without having to constantly brace himself for the possibility of conflict or bloodshed, he can just comfortably exist in this space with a stranger and actually, fully, talk with someone who he feels actually gets and understands him on some level.

          Isaac is in a good environment where he can just let himself out, and it’s incredibly refreshing to watch- It was no doubt extremely cathartic to Isaac, I imagine. And it really stands to show that just as Lisa advised Dracula, traveling around the world really can be good for your health, for opening your mind and worldview; So it’s sweet to see that Dracula ended up passing on and applying Lisa’s wisdom to his low-key son, and that wisdom DID end up working out for him in the end! Thanks, Lisa.

         Now I can only imagine Isaac talking to Lisa about this and feeling really grateful, because she ended up inspiring HIM as well… And Lisa just looks wryly at Dracula like, Oh so you DID take my advice, and not only that, passed it onto others as well?

         And THAT just makes me imagine an older Isaac who continues the cycle of not abuse, but growth and guidance, who sees himself later on in another angry youth who reminds him a lot of himself, and then guides them to be more constructive- Because believe it or not, this wise King DOES understand what it’s like.

         He chuckles to himself when he realizes how the tables have turned, how HE’s the one giving The Talk to some kid, and he kindly, nostalgically, gratefully reflects on the Captain’s wisdom, and how it lives on through him and now this youth. Isaac and the kid are not so different and this realization of similarity and common ground just helps Isaac with accepting that human part of himself, and reaching out compassionately.

         Isaac is joked with and given much-needed fun and levity, while still taken seriously and respected as an individual; And I’m sure it means a lot to him, not that he fully realizes it yet. The Captain really expresses faith and belief in Isaac to grow up and support others through his own wisdom, the Captain sees himself in Isaac and that’s really fascinating- How this stranger is acting on this empathy to talk to Isaac and relate to him, to humanize him as a person for once. And it’s kind of shocking for Isaac to realize that others can actually relate to and see themselves in him, this alleged ‘monster’ and ‘thing’.

         It’s just neat to see an older figure express belief and expectation in Isaac to be something good because he thinks the best of him, rather than Isaac dedicating his belief to someone else, and it kind of inspires and incentivizes Isaac to do better with his life. That maybe he CAN grow and this isn’t the end for him, and one day teach others- Because maybe he DOES have something valuable to offer! The Captain recognizes Isaac as someone with potential and growth, and the ability to nurture and be positive, and I love that. 

         Especially with how Isaac dedicates himself to Dracula and his ‘wisdom of ages’, only for the Captain to turn around and suggest that Isaac himself has his own knowledge worth passing on, and that’s more than enough reason for Isaac to live for himself, then. It’s very nice to see Isaac lowkey latch onto a positive authority figure and actually be emotionally rewarded for it like he needs and deserves. And it’s even sweeter how Isaac leaves the Captain with an amicable farewell wave, and even AFTER an immediate negative experience, Isaac still decides to do better, showing that his lessons really can apply and retain underneath hardship.

         Isaac is challenged but in a healthy way that he can actually engage with and really apply himself towards, because he is a very clever person, he’s allowed to think and be rewarded for it. And it makes it all the more interesting how Isaac in Season 4 does see himself as a holy figure in a sense, not necessarily out of arrogance I feel, but from a real understanding that he’s worth a lot himself. And now Isaac can embrace happily his own self-value and what he has to offer, and his ability to do good, that maybe he ISN’T a monster but in some ways a hero, imagine that!

           (Actually, maybe Castlevania really IS a Coming-of-Age tale in a sense. Hector and Isaac’s growth are obvious, we know Trevor and Alucard is admittedly kind of emotionally stunted teenagers who learn to open up and trust, and even Sypha has her moments where she sees how the world can really suck –like the end of Season 3- before deciding for herself to have agency and initiative, and not be a bit player in someone else’s story regardless, in addition to openly defying some Speaker traditions like a rebellious teenager, because good for her! A narrative about really learning to take initiative and control of your own story, to live life for yourself, DOES seem very Coming-of-Age now does it?)

[a-little-slice-of-fandom]

I’d love to hear your thoughts on the Irish-ness of Dracula, if you wanna ramble about it!

(Okay I just want to apologise for how long this took to answer because I know it’s been sitting in my inbox for over a month but..depression and work happened and I just didn’t have the time or energy to complete it. I seriously do apologise for this but I hope you enjoy the post anyway!)

So the first thing I need to clear up is this: the concept of a monster or a demon that feeds upon the life force of humans is not limited to one singular culture or folklore. In fact, this core concept is a wider cultural phenomenon and variations of it exist across both countries and continents. And no one country can take sole credit for the this core concept of vampires. Anyone who tries to claim otherwise either doesn’t know much about vampires or is intentionally being disingenuous. There can be cultural variations that are specific to certain folklores (and to just blatantly steal these would be cultural appropriation), but the main idea of vampires exists across a wide range of folklores and no singular person, group of people or culture can take credit for the creation of vampires.

However, arguably it was the work of Bram Stoker that aided in the solidification of the concept of Vampires that we know today. While there were other authors from a wide range of nationalities who wrote about Vampires before Stoker (including John William Polidori who wrote the Vampyre in 1819)...Dracula is the best known. (Now I personally believe that’s because Dracula is an absolutely banging novel, although I do concede that the prevalence of adaptations of Dracula from the 1920’s to today helps keep Dracula in the forefront of audiences minds.) In addition, it’s important to remember that Stoker was inspired by another Irish author Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu, who wrote the novel Carmilla. As far as I know, Le Fanu and Stoker actually worked together on a magazine!

Another thing I think that needs clarification is the common belief that Stoker heavily/religiously based Dracula on the historical figure Vlad the Impailer. This is heavily debated by scholars. While there’s an obvious, undeniable similarity between the names of these two...the similarities start to wain after this, with only small similarities between the two and there’s even literal contradictions between the history of Vlad the Impailer and Dracula’s history in the novel. In fact, there’s not much indication that Stoker based the character Dracula off Vlad the Impailer, or even that he had a working knowledge of Vlad the Impailer beyond the name. In all 124 pages of his notes, there’s nothing to indicate that Stoker’s inspiration for Dracula came from Vlad the Impailer.

(Plus Dracula in the novel wasn’t even originally called Dracula...he was called Count Wampyr in the original drafts of the novel and this was only changed, from what I can gather, in the last couple of drafts.)

In fact, I’d personally argue that that connection between Vlad the Impailer and Dracula is actually something that’s been retroactively added by other artists, for example the 1992 film “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” heavily leaned into this idea that Dracula and Vald the Impailer were one in the same, and as time has progressed people assume that these elements were in the original novel when that’s simply untrue! Stoker didn’t write that! It’s a retroactive addition by other artists that’s just assumed by the masses to be canon. This phenomenon is actually super interesting and it’s absolutely not limited to Stoker’s novel Dracula/the modern day perception of Dracula (another example would be Mary Shelley’s version of Frankenstein versus the modern day perception Frankenstein). I’m not sure if there’s a word for what this is, but I like the term “cultural canon”, where something that’s been added in by other artists has become as good as canon within the minds of the masses and as such is ingrained within the cultural perception of something, despite it having no basis within the original piece or even directly contradicting what is in canon.

(Now I’ll absolutely concede that Stoker taking the name of a historical figure and possibly their likeness from another country and making them into a literal monster is something that should be discussed. I don’t know how Vlad the Impailer is viewed within Romania - whether he’s viewed positively or negatively or a mixture - but regardless he was a historical figure and Stoker did eventually use that name for his own creative purposes. Again, Stoker didn’t say that Dracula and Vlad the Impailer were the same person, that’s other artists doing, but there’s still issues with Stoker that needs to be discussed)

Now, I’ve seen people talk about how Stoker took a lot of inspiration from the Baltic folklore surrounding vampires for his novel, but I don’t really know this folklore very well and therefore I don’t feel like I’m qualified to discuss it. If anyone is more well versed in this topic wants to add to this post then they’re more than welcome to! I don’t deny that Stoker too inspiration from places other than Ireland (like the novel is set in Whitby) but I just feel like people over hype the relation between stokers Dracula and Vlad the Impailer.

Now, onto the Irish mythology side!

So the most obvious inspiration for Dracula comes from the story of Abhartach. here is a link to an actual, respectable retelling of the story of Abhartach which I’d highly recommend people read (it’s really not that long) but the key points go as follows:

There was this Irish chieftain called Abhartach, who was really cruel and the townsfolk didn’t really like him. So, the townsfolk and another cheiftain (known as Cathain) banded together to kill Abhartach. They did succeed in killing him (yay), however, Abhartach just sort of...rose from the dead and began another reign of terror (not yay). However, Abhartach needed to be sustained by blood and required a bowlful every day to sustain his energy. Cathain comes back and kills Abhartach once again, but Abhartach rises from the dead once more and now needs more blood. Abhartach is only banished when Cathain uses a word made from yew wood and wounds Abhartach with it. Abhartach is buried upside down with a grant stone over the grave to stop Abhartach rising once again.

Sound familiar? The similarities between Abhartach and Dracula are undeniable! Yes, there’s some differences between the two but the core story here is almost identical. I could totally reword that paragraph, omitting the names, and it would be indistinguishable from a short summary of Dracula! Even the way that the main characters find out about the wooden weapon that can kill the monster is similar, as both Jonathan and Cathain go to wiser and older members of their community to learn more.

(Also please mythology blogs don’t come for me I know my retelling was an incredible oversimplification but I’m writing on my iPad and my thumbs are starting to hurt. People have wrote full papers on the similarities between Dracula and Abhartach and there’s so many more people more qualified than me, I’m just an 18 year old trying to make a fun and interesting tumblr post. Again, if anyone wants add anything like extra sources or more information or even to point out my mistakes then I more than welcome the additions)

Another piece of folklore that’s also said to have inspired Dracula is the Dearg Due. Now there’s multiple different versions of the tale, but the version I have heard goes like this:

There’s a noble woman who wants to marry a penniless peasant boy, but her dad disapproves and wants her to marry another man who is much richer. The rich man and the noble woman were eventually married but the woman didn’t love the rich man. In retaliation, the rich man locked the woman in a windowless castle where she starved to death. The woman was buried by the locals who took pity on her, but because she was buried hungry she came back to life and drank the blood of her father and her husband as revenge. The version I heard says that the dearg due now basically wanders ireland drinking the blood of men who have hurt or wronged women (as one should) but there’s other endings to the story.

(Again is anyone has a reliable source they want to share then please feel free to add!)

So this is another Irish piece of folklore that clearly includes some elements that we now associate with vampires. Now people (including Wikipedia) claim that this story was specifically what Stoker based Dracula on, and while I definitely think that Stoker was aware of this story and took inspiration from it, I personally think that the Dearg Due inspired the concept of Dracula’s wives more than Dracula himself.

However the key point still stands: Stoker was likely aware of these legends and even the most staunchly anti-Irish person would have to concede that there’s similarities between all three stories. And very rarely are these similarities discussed in classes about Dracula...which I feel is a real disservice. I don’t think students should have to have an intense knowledge of Irish mythology (my knowledge is spotty at best) nor do I think it should be an exam question...but even a brief acknowledgment of “hey, Stoker was inspired by these stories and you can clearly see similarities between them” would be nice. Moreover, it further solidifies my original argument that Stoker was, at least to some extent, Irish and that his Irishness inherently influenced his work.

Also...the social context of what was going on in Ireland in this period can’t be ignored! Again, while Stoker did spend time in both England and Romania, he spent a lot of his life in Ireland and therefore would have known what was going on in his own country.

Dracula was published in 1897, which is exactly 50 years after the worst year of the Irish Famine/ The Great Hunger/An Gorta Mór. Now I don’t have time to do a whole history of the Great Hunger but the effects of the famine were greatly exacerbated by the horrific mismanagement of Ireland by the British government and the British system of ruling in Ireland. How many people died during the famine isn’t clear, but we do know that the population of Ireland at the time was 8 million and the population today is 6 million...200 years later and we still haven’t recovered. So while we all like to joke about the fact that Stoker wrote about an unfeeling member of the aristocracy literally feeding off others with no remorse and basically ruining their lives...are we really going to pretend that there isn’t social commentary there? Scholars specifically think that Stoker was commenting on the absentee landlords (basically British aristocrats who owned land in Ireland but didn’t live there and as such didn’t care about the well being of their tenants) who would often have tenants forced off the land when they couldn’t pay rent...despite the fact that their tenenants were already starving and had no money because their only source of food and income failed.

(I’m not being shady by the way, I also love to joke about the social implications of Dracula, but I feel like people forget that the jokes have actual points behind them)

There was also a cholera epidemic in Ireland in 1832 which is generally accepted to be one of Stoker’s biggest inspirations. You can read more about the epidemic here if you wish, but I’ll summarise what I feel are the key points. Not only was Stoker’s mother from county Sligo and lived through this cholera epidemic, but Stoker also asked her to write down her memories of the epidemic and used her accounts to aid in his research of the cholera epidemic. Now the fact that he was actively researching this should indicate that it would influence his work, especially considering the situation in county Sligo was incredibly morbid. There’s accounts of the 20 carpenters in Sligo town being unable to make enough coffins to keep up with the amount of people dying, resulting in hundreds of dead bodies just lying on the street. However, the most horrific account from this epidemic was the stories of terrified nurses placing cholera patients into mass graves while they were still alive. Stoker himself literally stated that Dracula was “inspired by the idea of someone being buried before they were fully dead”. So while at first there seems to be very little relation between the novel and a medical epidemic, it quickly becomes clear that Stoker’s fascination with this historical event influenced his writing.

My overall point is that Stoker’s irishness inherently influenced his writing. Writers don’t write in their own little bubble, divorced from the world around them, their views and work are shaped by their position in society and their upbringing (it’s why I dislike death of the author as a literary theory). So when people try to claim that Dracula is a piece of British literature...it indicates either a lack of understanding of the context in which Stoker was writing in or a wilful ignorance founded on colonialist ideas. His influences are so obvious to me as an Irish woman but they rarely get discussed, and even if they are it’s seen as overreaching! To call Dracula British literature and to ignore the inherent Irishness of the novel does a great disservice to Stoker!

Anyways I really hope you enjoyed this discussion my love! Once again I apologise for how long this took to write. Also I’m sorry if this comes off as argumentative or anything, that absolutely wasn’t my intention, I just have a particular style of writing long posts haha.

[jonnyvangelis]

brass & peaches: chp. 3

in which marius and jonny are stupid, jonny learns a few things, and takes his shirt off again. 999 words, canon-atypically low amount of swearing but jonny does rip his shirt open like a romance novel cover.

Marius stands and cracks his back. Calls out, “who’s there?” while they roll out their shoulders, poking their head into the front room of the auto shop. He cracks a bright smile at the sight of the rat-bastard Brian hired a week back.

“I was told to ask for a missus raz-puh-teena?” The man cocks his head, thumbs tucked into the waistband of his dusty jeans, the flannel of his shirt caught between two fingers where he rubs it thoughtlessly.

“I’m afraid Nastya’s out at the moment, but I’m sure I can help with whatever it is you need, Mr…”

“Jonny. Just Jonny.”

“I’m sure I can give you a hand with whatever it is you need, Jonny.” Marius’s grin reignites and he offers his prosthetic proudly, wiggling the fingers some. They feel their heart do something funny when the shorter man’s eyes blow wide, enraptured by the fine movement like a barncat watching sparrows.

“I… hold a minute, is everyone in this town as… gorgeously crafted as you and Brian?” Jonny’s gaze matches Marius’ when he says “gorgeous”, those wide blue eyes glittering something fierce. Marius thinks he’s never seen a clearer blue. Then, oh, he called me gorgeous.

“Not all of us, but a good chunk— I take it you haven’t met Ivy yet? She and Brian are two of the prettier examples of the Doc’s work. I built this puppy myself, though.” Marius rolls their wrist to give Jonny a better look at their hand, stealing a glance up at the man’s face while he’s distracted by the hard rubber pads of their palm and fingers.

His breath hitches. Jonny’s hand hovers under Marius’, almost as if to cup it, and his lips hang slightly parted, brow knit in concentration before—

Jonny lets his hand drop and starts futzing with his shirt’s top buttons, and Marius can’t find the words to ask what the Hell he thinks he’s doing until his shirt’s a little more open and— oh. The entire upper left side of Jonny’s chest is a mess of copper and brass, shining dimly by the dusty light in the office. The scar tissue is thick around the plates, thinner below where Marius can just make out the neat surgical lines where his left tit once was (his shirt barely framing the right, small enough to match the healthy bit of fat on his stomach and cheeks but there all the same). His chest is downright burly, really, a thick mat of blonde hair across every unscarred inch, as hard as those are to find— there’s what looks like a bullet-exit scar on his shoulder, a few gashes on his stomach. The man’s clearly led a colorful life.

“I stopped by this town a long time ago— traveling somewhere else from somewhere else, doesn’t right matter much anymore, but I started and lost a fight in a bar I see ain’t here anymore and the town doctor fixed me up. Think she fixed me up a little too well, I’ve had a few close calls in the last handful of years that were far closer than they should’ve been. Bullets don’t do much neither.” Jonny scratches at his neck, then at the still-fastened lower buttons of his shirt.

“Carmilla’s not the doctor here anymore, I am. But it is interesting to know her damage went further than this town.” Marius makes a point of not staring at Jonny’s chest. They will not fall for the handsome stranger. Even if his stomach is soft and his arms are strong and his shou— he will not fall for the handsome stranger. “This… feels like it’ll be a long conversation, let’s get you some coffee and get out on the porch.”

Jonny hums and sets about fixing his shirt before plucking a playing-card deck from the breast pocket. “Mind a round while we chat? Your pick of the game.”

Marius can’t help a smile. “Poker, there’s a bag of peanuts in the pantry we can split for chips.”

✎﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏﹏

Jonny knows ten things.

He knows Dr. Carmilla, full name never given, was a small-town doctor.

He knows that she was a mad scientist.

He knows she only ever gave what her patients asked for.

He assumes, from this point, that he likely said in his bloodless haze, “I don’t want to die.”

He knows that he should be dead.

He is not dead.

This worries him some.

There are several others like him in town, and he knows their names.

Ashes o’Reilly, the innkeep

“Gunpowder” Tim, the bartender

Nastya Rasputina, the engineer who he has been informed would not have taken kindly to his pronunciation of her name

Aurora, Nastya’s girlfriend and apparently just as skilled with machinery as her partner

Marius von Raum, the engineer and “doctor” sitting across him him with one of the better poker faces he’s seen in his life and the engine grease smeared on his forehead and into his hair and the curls falling into his face and the pretty eyes

His accent, apparently the result of Welsh and British parents in the southwest, is very good to listen to.

He is not going to fall for Marius “hand puns” von Raum.

Raphaella la Cognizi, chemist

Ivy Alexandria, school librarian

This town, small at it is, apparently has enough kids for a proper school, and cares about the school enough to have a library (even if the library is really public and just attached to the school)

Brian Brassmith, farmer, and his current boss

Brian’s accent is also cute, and he could listen to it for hours.

He is not going to fall for Brian “sweetest smile in the west” Brassmith.

Many of these people are dating.

Well, everyone but Nastya is dating everyone else. Except Nastya, who’s dating Aurora, Ivy, and Raphaella.

He has a headache.

Marius makes good coffee, and it’s helping get rid of the headache.

He knows, now, that he is polyamorous and not “just indecisive”.

He’s fucked.

[parandrum]

castlevania season 4 thoughts

It is now 3:29 AM and I have finished season 4 of Castlevania and oh my dear Lord... I got everything I wanted and more, the animation- brilliant, soundtrack-urgently needed on spotify, the Isaac-Carmilla fight in the pool of blood??? holy fuck!!! also I’m so glad every character was treated fairly and got their closure, I was a bit dissapointed in Saint-Germain because he was my favourite back in season 3 and honestly I still do pity him a bit, but after all he did I think it only serves him right. I never particularly liked Lenore and she was too manipulative and abusive for her relationship with Hector to work(honestly I was a bit surprised he wasn’t more... I don’t know, devastated after he’s been tricked, but I’m glad he got more independent and executed his own plan, good for him) and I think it’s a good thing that she chose to kill herself by exposing herself to the sun, it gave them both freedom. I saw people on twitter complaining about Greta and how trephecard should have been canon and I haven’t really shipped these 3 together anyway(even though I do enjoy fanart and fanfics of them ocassionally), but I don't really get it, I personally liked her character so much, she is so kind, gentle and strong 🥺 I’m glad Alucard has someone who he can truly rely on and that he accepted his half-human nature more, I really think he deserves that kind of peace and stability in his life. I didn’t feel like it was forced, it’s implied but it’s not like they got together right away, he learned to trust again(and most importantly he didn’t went all crazy-dark mode, which I feared the most) and he is happy now, so he can build new and healthy relationship from there. Also, the sex in season 3 wasn’t exactly portrayed as a positive thing(except from that one ep with Sypha and Trevor in bed together, but I’m obviously talking about THAT trauma-but-make-it-double-scene from ep 9), so I’m glad they kept it non-physical this season and focused more on character development.

Aaand Morana and Striga basically saying fuck it who needs battles or pointless revenge when all we need is each other, so wholesome 🥺

I’m really happy, because I feel like all you can see nowadays is just really promising shows going from great to terrible real quick, not to mention the usual awful endings(I often loose interest after first 2 seasons and drop it completely after seeing the spoilers...sabrina i’m talking about you+most of the korean dramas and let us not forget the star of all bad endings, voltron legendary defender...), but not only did they manage to wrap it up perfectly and in a satisfying way, but also it might be my favourite season of all 4. Might write some more after I get some sleep and most probably no one will even read it since I just needed to pour some of my thoughts somewhere but yeah for now I’m really satisfied and content, it was fucking amazing and it will definitely take me some time to recover from it. Now I'm just waiting for my friends to watch it so I can finally talk about it with someone else.

[littlemeangreen]

Since you like my alt-Marauders (WHICH IM SO HAPPY FOR) how about challenge for headcanons of them interacting with the Smashers, as allies or foes or just a chance encounter? No need to, I just thought it might be something you'd have fun with!

@thecorteztwins k I'm suddenly in a big writing mood so!! FINALLY getting around to this I'm so sorry sksksk

For anyone who doesn't know: Thecorteztwins has an amazing au where she's collected Haven (thicc angel lady who was possessed by a demon disguised as a baby), Claudine (Miss Sinister),Madelyne (clone of Jean Grey), Pyro, Sebastian Shaw, Shinobi Shaw and sometimes Alice (a clone being tested by Claudine)!

I feel like the first few days are really testy. Everyone's got some bone to pick, the usual. But the biggest thing? The name. A brief encounter with paparazzi ends with their name and the reactions go from Pyro and Claudine scoffing at how silly it sounds and what a rip off it is (Pyro being a writer?? U KNOW he wouldn't stand for Alt Marauders) to Shaw sighing about the fact that he's been stuck on a team with a cliche super nickname.

Then there's personal names because once again, Pryo and Shinobi both agree that everyone needs a name to reapply make them unique! Hardly anyone goes for it, ranging from Haven's soft "no thank you" to Shaw punting Pyro into a wall. Madelyne is slightly soft for Pyro's RPG themed alias ideas for her and less than impressed for Shinobi's idea of "Mad Milf".

Alice....I'm definitely thinking she gets nicknamed "White Rabbit" or "Wonderland" because; 1) no one can leave her out of getting a name. 2) Pyro 100% would give a cheesy media related name and 3) I like the very small connections of white rabbit to the white and red queens in Alice in Wonderland (and 4) rabbits always get experimented on :).

Gamma Gals having amazing duos with the ladies of the Marauders? Absolutely!!

Jen and Haven, being an amazing duo and I feel like they'd be the two who would have that issue where they're the only ones who can save the day and end up learning a lot from each other? Haven is probably thanking her stars that she finally gets to meet a hero who believes in her kindness just as much as she does (S H A W).

Just....Haven being able to meet an even bigger woman and trading stories and being GalPals(TM). Its a really interesting concept to me that Haven is someone who was deliberately used to destroy and Jen is someone who's entire identity is formed around smashing and destruction. It's probably rather cathartic to be working with someone who purely doesn't want to resort to violence immediately and who has been used (Haven by her demon and Jen by different people).

But also learning something from each other? Haven being able to see that sometimes you do need to fight for what you love and Haven proves to Jen that even after all this time, it isn't the muscle or power that can save everything, it's her and her drive and will alone. Catch Red and Shaw scoffing about it.

Speaking of, those two could either REALLY clash or really get along, no imbetweens. Have we found another old man for Shaw to wrestle with, Roman style??? (Ngl that would be hot in a sick way)

Skaar and Shinobi? Both long haired, beautiful, sons of big figures, grew up in abusive environments,,,,its a duo. Just put Shinobi into a mini team with Skaar and Daken and we have the "Black haired brood squad"

Rick and Pyro working together to have a joint production??? FIrebomb productions baby!! My podcast ideas? Absolutely would happen when you combine these two and its hell. Aka; Rick and Pyro gossip on their podcast and give advice to starting heroes as immortals and smack talk. But also outside of that I imagine they can get along a lot in the "had a hard time accepting stuff" and "we were heroes who often did a lot for others and got disregarded and hurt for it".

Pyro: Hey if I set you on fire can you become a flaming bowling ball

Rick: well let's fine out!!

Red and Shaw....there's a lot there. Both are old men who have been pressed on in their lives and affected by masculine presences in their lives...both are regarded as awful shitbags but they're both MUCH more complex and driven by a need for power and stability...lots of thoughts here.

Shaw and Red are one team you do NOT wanna mess with because two old men who are perfectly willing to do what's needed? Red can respect a man willing to get his hands dirty with clear means and Shaw can probably like a guy who has the drive to do what he believes is the better good. Also big hulk man who can give you endless power.

But also differences in them because Shaw abused and continues to abuse Shinobi while Red neglected and most likely emotionally abused Betty but it seemingly trying to make a difference in it now that she's come back? I feel like these two probably have a SUPER in depth conversation when forced to or alone and then never speak about it again.

Spending of Betty! Her and Madelyne?? What a DUO they're litreally a great mix because Maddie is a clone of Jean, Betty was assumed to be a clone at first and often has to suffer being the "domintrix" she hulk. Both have serious issues with their mental health and identities as well as dealing with their lives being ruled or devoted to men who ruin them. Both want freedom and have such passion! I just....so much to say about these two and the similarities. They're both red.

But yeah Phoenix and Harpy?? Skksks Maddie voice: I'm FIRE HARPY nOW

Am I still yelling for her hero name to be Griffin because of how mystical they are and being a bird and lion??? Yeah.

Also sad thoughts but,,,gals talking about their lost kids (Maddie with Nate and Betty suffered a miscarriage induced from stress), the stress of their lovers and who they've lost to (Jean, Emma, Caiera, Jarella,,,) and being manipulated by men for their power (Maddie by Sinister into Goblyn queen and Betty by Leader into Red She-hulk, Harpy, both died).

Anyway point is I can fully see them two just CLICKING or fighting a lot at first until someone points out just how similar they are. Then? Maddie and Betty out here being the brand new Thelma and Louise. Red and Black styles, willing to use force but protect the innocent, both take Alice and this cute kid that Betty absolutely mother henned in her run and,,,two moms and their talented daughters pls step out the way sir.

Tbh I don't think I have much for Samuel apart form him having a small crush on Claudine (and like,,,,not in That Sense, but Samuel does have a big history of falling for smart women or just...OP women). And then a series of gags where Haven wants to know him because he's like Shaw but also incredibly different in thinking and everytime she walks into the room,,,,Samuel is doing some horrific experiment and she just NOPES OUT. Shaw wants to make use of this but it goes horribly wrong oh God why did he try.

Lyra! I just....feel like there could be a lot for her and Claudine and Alice. Lyra was genetically engineered to be used in a war and was bullied relentlessly for being "half man" which...is rather transphobic and sexist but that's her storyline and it's too deeply embedded for me to headcanon over it so...sighs.

But yeah!!! Lyra taking Alice and giving her a night of being able to just....be whoever that night, not being pressured to have an identity of the sorts from anyone and just being able to fight people with a giant green woman. Probably has a lot of deep talks later that night with Lyra, sitting over a building and eating ice cream because it was one of the first things Bruce shared with her and a first realisation that Lyra could be more than someone's daughter.

100% would picture this with Carmilla (Lyra's sister and...also messy kinda clone) or Laura Kinney hopping along and!! Clone weapon woman team!! I could GET INTO this!!! Just...pls marvel give me a team of women overcoming abuse and forming identities among each other and cool women,,,,

But also Lyra admittedly would respect Claudine for her skills and her...tenacity? Yeah, that. She has strength and guts and Lyra probably actually tells her that she'd rather get experimented on by Miss Sinister than some pig of a man and Claudine just "thhhanks?"

Hulk,,,,funny enough I don't think I have many ideas for him yet? Probably gets into a fair few fights with Shaw and Haven over different stuff, Maddie has a bome to pick for Betty,,,I am,,,blank.

I feel like a lot of things for him would be Haven trying to break through into him, maybe each of the Marauders dealing with different parts of the system? I can imagine Shinobi and Pyro don't have a high opinion of the oversized dad until Bruce turns super ashen pale and immediately Joe starts yelling for some whisky and GIRLS....and a fella or two for matchstick and ghost baby here.

Maddie thinking that he's another Scott and then finding out that Hulk's thing is more complicated than Scott simply looking for Jean again. Also Maddie demands that she will forcefully adopt Hulk's kids and these two bonding over abusive dads???

But uh,,,that's about it!! Hope you liked it!!! I probably could easily delve into more thoughts if there's anything specific for me to set my mind on.

[diabolikmosquito]

Just-Watched Thoughts on S3

Alright time to write this while I’m still here recovering so I can go to bed already. I might add more/clean this up once I get some proper sleep. Tagging it but putting Castlevania Season 3 spoilers under a cut just in case people haven’t got tags hidden and such. Here goes-

Overall I’m honestly just kinda shocked? I think it’s because a lot of things were easy to predict (that the cult might be trying to bring back Dracula, something was up with the Judge, Hector was obviously gonna fall for Lenore’s bs, etc.) so when things happened I didn’t see from a mile away.. 

When I was only like an episode or two in, things actually felt a little stunted to me? Something about it felt like “This is what people liked from before, right??” particularly with certain action or such, but I feel like it picked up pretty quickly from that. I’m still kinda in winding-down-emotions mode so I can’t really definitively say what storylines I liked and which ones I disliked for the most part. I liked Isaac’s, and the design of the... Hivemind Magician? Was all pretty sick. It felt like the first thing that was actually a massive challenge for him, and nearly overtook him, but he overcame it and even came out of it thinking through what he wanted for the future. It’s a nice change from seeing him steamroll anything that came his way. 

I like that Trevor and Sypha’s storyline ends up with them not getting their heroic grand time like they did last time. Yes, there were sacrifices made, but before it still felt grandiose: they’d worked together to kill Dracula, something the world didn’t even think possible for the most part. This time, they sacrificed a lot more and ultimately didn’t win a thing other than their own lives, and were helping a hidden monster in their process of killing other monsters. What a crushing thing for them to have to go through, and I think Trevor’s conversation with himself before (and later with said monster, ironically enough) about missing parts of his old non-heroic non-adventuring life was pretty somber and interesting. 

The whole Lenore/Hector route was exactly what’s expected from the beginning, but it was done well for what it was, and I don’t think they were trying to fool anyone with the direction it was headed. Carmilla’s plot was.. eh, more or less not much seemed to actually happen, but it did introduce us to the awesome vampire sisters so I’m more than down with it. I wish we got a little more about Saint Germain’s whole deal with that portal and such, who he was looking for and how he knows they’re still alive in there, but I assume that’s a next-season kind of thing. I’m gonna ramble if I write anymore so here’s a more concise/clear list:

Things I liked -  Trevor and Sypha’s chemistry! I thought it was good the first couple seasons (which apparently puts me in the minority?) but they felt much more compatible as a couple this time around. The little exchange about the “taste for rougher things in life” is wonderful, and I definitely snorted when she sleep-bapped him in the face. - The tidbits of funny dialogue! Seems to still be a show specialty. Some of them were understandably a bit funny (using “Nope! speedwalks away” in place of “shut it” is pretty good), and others weren’t funny but I just found it hilarious (e.g. Morana’s repeated fancily-stated things that boiled down to “... Lenore, seriously, TMI”) - The soundtrack! Not really any surprise, despite it not being the famous Symphony of the Night tracks people clamored for trust me I totally get that and despite it still not being released even from season 2 much less 3,  it was very nice to listen to.  - The vampire sisters! While it was obvious from the beginning Lenore was the “cutest/nonthreateningest-looking of the scary bunch but actually the scariest” one I liked the energy they all had, especially Striga and Morana and their relationship. I liked that we got to see Carmilla’s attitude bouncing off of other vampires who (while respecting her skill) also called her out for it from time to time. - The references! I’m sure there’s more and I’m a dumbass who only spots the obvious ones, but... the fact there’s demons that’re exactly ones out of the ol’ Symphony of the Night game again, like the Malachi and Fire Demon. It’s so dumb but I love shit like that, especially since they obviously stray far from the game canon and don’t have to do that but do it anyway. - Some of the action scenes. I cannot mention what I like without mentioning the parts that made me go “... Okay, yeah, that was badass.” You know the ones! When Cho busted that sword with her hands, when Sypha chopped that angel-like demon into pieces. ... A lot of the stuff Sypha did, actually, I’m glad she got some more epic moments to kick ass this season. I thought the earlier action scenes of the season were just alright, but by the last fight it was definitely starting to feel like that awesome dynamic fight style we saw in season 2. - The fact Dracula saw an opportunity to return and didn’t want to. Not much to say here other than the obvious - I feel like that’s extremely fitting, and I’m glad they made it clear without bringing him back and having him be angry/regret it or something like that. Without any dialogue, even. - The ending.. somewhat. It destroyed me a little on the inside, but I actually like that nobody really had a happy ending. Particularly if there could be another season, it feels really fitting. I’ve seen some people complaining “They ended up where they started! Trevor and Sypha are back on the road, Isaac’s traveling with his army, Alucard’s alone in the castle and Hector is a slave” but I couldn’t disagree more. Of course if you boil it down to the words themselves, it’s “the same,” but did ya see the sheer trauma literally everyone was put through? Obviously some had it worse than others (and we’ll fucking get to that) but nobody came out unscathed. Everyone’s now had some belief challenged or retreated further into a fear/mistrust that already existed - previous events planted the seed for it and the hell the cast went through gave it growth. 

Trevor and Sypha are going to have to challenge their goal they’d been following since working together/getting together: they can’t just go headlong adventuring and fixing people’s problems, because things like this can happen. Their new allies and the entire town were slaughtered or trapped somewhere, and the man they’d trusted and been helping this entire time was a serial killer, particularly of children. Alucard is drifting into a state of consciousness not unlike his father before he met Lisa, but potentially in a worse place since he’s witnessed and felt true kindness, but has retreated away from it even so due to the betrayal he’s suffered at an already-fragile time for him. Isaac has to reconsider what he’s going to do once he has his proper army, and even if it’s worth it to get his revenge or to carry out Dracula’s original plans. Saint Germain.. I mean, he’s in psychodelic hell searching for that person and presumably a way out, I assume it’s tragic. Hector’s learned a hard lesson in trusting and is going to have to figure out if his freedom is worth risking pain or death. Likewise I think the characters grow this way. Even if it was a happy ending, or an ending where everyone “wins” some small victory somehow, I think it’d ultimately have been worthless if nobody was fundamentally changed by the end of the season.

Things I didn’t like - The sex scenes. I’ve seen a lot of people like “If you’re gonna put in gratuitous sex then actually include Trevor and Sypha??” and I’m gonna have to disagree with that. While I love the ship and all, I’d like to give the benefit of the doubt and say sex scenes weren’t thrown around randomly or just to flex the rating - they were only tied to actual story, hence why I’m down with the bedroom stuff of the show’s main ship only being alluded to. However, I gotta say that the long broken-up sex scenes mixed with battle/action was not the way to do that. I think I know what they were going for (it definitely drove my anxiety up having those scenes back to back with intense action/violence, I can tell ya that!), but it just wasn’t a good idea. Yes, they were obviously made to be uncomfortable (particularly since I’m pretty sure one of them was dubious consent at best?) but that was reflected well just in a few key frames/actions - it didn’t need to be drawn out and mixed with the action. It made me want to skip through (I didn’t out of fear I’d miss battles, which isn’t really good design) and I’d like to bet parts of the finale are unwatchable for some. For the record, yes you could say “well they got into an adult-rated show, deal with it,” but the fact of the matter is up until now sexual violence/discomfort wasn’t heavy-handed and in-your-face like this. Non-sexual violence was definitely all over the whole series, but it’s still a bit like whiplash considering. Also, the fact people think the scene with Alucard was at all chill. I see it from a story standpoint (though I honestly think their motivations were weak and there’s other ways to betray someone/get their guard down), but I think the people going on about “power bottom” and this and that are forgetting that the absence of a no is not a yes, particularly with someone severely emotionally damaged after spending months alone not only without a support group but without any contact, immediately following the death of his father by his own hands. I’m no expert but I don’t think that’s someone in the proper state of mind to consent to anything sexual, even if there were a couple weeks or whatever of spending time with these new friends. He very well might’ve been on the way to a stress disorder before they turned his world upside-down and frankly I’m wondering how he’s going to be faring come the next season (assuming there is one.) That’s more of a fandom gripe than the show itself I suppose but it’s worth a mention. - The pacing. It’s hard to pinpoint it, but something about it felt off, especially in the first half. The best way I can describe it is when you pump the gas and brakes because your brakes aren’t working great and you’re loosening them up - maybe it was necessary to get things going, but it’s a bit destabilizing/odd for anyone in the car. I think it’s what contributed to that stunted sense I got until things picked up a little more. You can see it more in just how packed with stuff the latter half is, some things which could’ve been planned a bit better through the whole season. - Sumi and Taka. I honestly felt that they wanted to get in a way to have a punch-in-the-gut arc with Alucard (not a bad idea, I am one for tragedy), wanted to kill off some characters who were actually important, and decided to do these both with one stone. I don’t think they were successful on the second part, because these two absolutely contributed to the stunted feeling I had about some of the season. They had a good start in terms of backstory, and the idea of two people working together to fight vampires without having some big legend tied to their name to drive it (e.g. Speaker magicians, Belmont legacy, Alucard’s heritage), as well as a connection to/fleshing out of one of the nameless generals, sounded like a great concept. A great concept, but it was rushed I felt, to the point that their motivations for turning on him were so packed and squished in they just weren’t believable if we’re supposed to believe these two were sane. They had some sort of mental/trust issues due to their backstory - that’s fine, and could contribute some emotional problems. However if their distrust in Alucard had been given more time to fester and grow, more little comments of Alucard’s brushing off their attempts to learn about specific things, and more cues from him that could be misinterpreted by them as him causing trouble and lying (not just them not believing him by itself), it would be more believable that the past and misinterpretations of the present get into their head and poison their thoughts of him. You can plant a seed of doubt but just like any other character bonds, it has to be given time to grow. Alucard’s rapid bonding with them could be attributed to his loneliness, trauma, and need for a support system, but you can’t make that excuse for Sumi and Taka’s motivations going from “Hm.. I wonder what he isn’t telling us” to “We need to emotionally gut him and then kill him” basically overnight. Edit:

I forgot to add a conclusion last night, so I guess the TL;DR is season 3’s a good 7.5/10 for me, -1 for the overall pacing, -1 for missing a bit of the punch from before, and -0.5 because the last few episodes jumped me with a bat and I let it happen.