#i even cited the text

[rasticore]

Camael ripe for the "my pronouns are they/them not because i'm non-binary but because i'm Literally Everyone" joke

[lgbtlunaverse]

While rereading mdzs I am once again shocked by how talked about the "you were the only mistake he ever made" line from Lan Xichen to Wei Wuxian is and how heated it gets some people because honestly... I don't think he actually even believes that.

Stay with me. Look at the actual line. (I Included 2 translations for comparison's sake)

Firstly, yes he is mad at Wei Wuxian in this scene. But his biggest moment of anger was actually before this. By this point he's realized that Wei Wuxian forgot what happened after nightless city (and therefore ISN'T stringing along his baby brother on purpose) so he has in fact calmed down a bit.

Secondly, notice that he starts by talking about how his uncle felt. This is not Lan Xichen making a value statement about what he thinks. When he says Lan Wangji was proper and righteous he is talking about him being a model lan, he's talking about their family and clan's perspective of Wangji. Indeed, in their eyes, Wei Wuxian is the only time Lan Wangji was ever not the textbook perfect Lan.

Thirdly, what is Lan Xichen trying to say here? What is he mad at Wei Wuxian for? It's that he doesn't know Lan Wangji is in love with him. His anger is eased by realizing Wei Wuxian doesn't remember the very blatant confessions lwj made in the cave after nightless city, or Lan Wangji fighting his own clan elders for Wei Wuxian, and so had no way of knowing the whipmarks on Lan Wangji's back were related to him. But he is still mad, he still thinks Wei Wuxian should have been able to figure it out. So what does he highlight?

The fact that the only thing Lan Wangji, perfect model-Lan righteous Lan Wangji, ever defies his clan for is Wei Wuxian.

And Wei Wuxian has seen him do this! Even if he doesn't remember this one instance. Because Lan Wangji has been doing that the whole story through. Wei Wuxian has watched Lan Wangji blatantly stand against the entire cultivation world for him, and here Lan Xichen is highlighting just how unusual that is, how much Wei Wuxian must mean to Lan Wangji that he's willing to do that. The important part of the sentence here is not "mistake" it's "only."

Lan Xichen here isn't trying to say that he disapproves of Wei Wuxian, or telling him to stay away from his brother. Remember, the thing that made him mad in the first place was Wei Wuxian saying that he and Lan Wangji slept in seperate rooms. He thought they were together! He's mad because they're not!

At no point does Lan Xichen say he individually considers Lan Wangji's feelings for Wei Wuxian a mistake. If he ever did, it's clear he accepted them regardless long ago. Mistake or not, what he wants is for his little brother to be happy.

[petruchio]

Caroline I’m moving too!! and also returning to the hunger games to procrastinate unpacking!!

Since we’re both here, can we talk about Madge? She’s sticking out to me on this read through.

Like it’s so charming that two very opposite people are such sweet quiet buddies. Like Katniss doesn’t think in terms of friends but that’s clearly what they are. And it’s so interesting that we don’t hear much of her after the games. She gives Katniss the pin, but is estranged from the Mockingjay she becomes.

Maybe I’m just forgetting her place in later books, but like? Is that anything? Like Madge is real, and the pin as a gift is real. It’s anchoring to Katniss in the Capitol to have her token.

But when it stops being her token from Madge, when she starts wearing it because she has to, it’s less real. It’s a symbol, not an anchor. And we don’t hear about Madge anymore.

Something something real or not real.

i think madge is SO interesting, and i think her presence adds a lot of layers to the commentary the book is making! i think it's annoying that she was written out of the movies, because while i get it, i think her character actually does a lot of heavy lifting in terms of what sc is trying to portray.

like, yes -- they are friends!!!! and it's super important that they're friends, even if katniss doesn't realize it, because it's one of the ways early on that we see katniss making genuine bonds that transcend her "assigned" social class. (this is a good time to return to my extended gale analysis, in which i always like to point out that one of the very first things that happens in the book is that he "takes a dig at madge" and katniss doesn't like it. she doesn't disagree with his IDEOLOGICAL opinion, but she does disagree with the way he directs it at individuals. and well... that will continue to be relevant!)

and the symbolism of the pin has been written about time and time again by everyone who loves thg, but i do actually think it's significant that it comes from madge -- someone for who the hunger games (and the other living d12 victor) are so deeply woven into her family history (re: maysilee, also omg i cant believe we're getting a new book soon but we can talk about that later) and the mockingjay being representative of these kinds of bonds that the capitol can't control. that is to say, katniss and madge's friendship is a "mockingjay" in its own way, the same way her and peeta's love story is -- it's a bond that transcends social class and goes against the divisions and divides that the capitol and the society thrives off claiming are innate. it's the same seam/town bond that we see with katniss and peeta, with mr. and mrs. everdeen, with haymitch and maysilee, and so here, even so early on, it's threaded into katniss and madge. so i DO think it's deeply significant that the pin comes from her -- that it represents this bond both as a symbol but also in the relationship itself.

also, on the topic of mockingjays and music, one of my favorite sort of throwaway lines that we get in catching fire is that madge tries to teach katniss piano after the first games. katniss says something like "mostly i just like listening to her play" but i think it's SO interesting that music plays a part in their bond as well, especially in context of the mockinjay pin, especially in context of the role of music throughout the series and the way it transcends social division. (hello mr. and mrs. everdeen! hi peeta! and ... oh wait... lucy gray??? is that you too??)

anyway, all that is to say i think madge is deeply woven into the mockingjay even as a symbol! her part in it is in symbolism of bonds that go beyond our assigned social classes! (though to your point, it is interesting that she dies when the mockingjay symbol ceases to be a sign of resistance by the oppressed and is co-opted by another authoritarian regime... but i don't have anything super insightful to say on that quite yet.)

[galedekarios]

honestly, i'm less afraid of never getting another da game and more afraid of the ppl involved in any eventual new games taking the wrong lessons from ve*lguard

[extravagantliar]

I’m not a cpa under the law but seeing the things you all say makes me think we should actually listen to accountants more

[elisalsaa]

I ordered groceries on instacart and they just emailed me that my "behavior" was reported ?? 😭 all I did was apologize to the shopper for accidentally sending an auto response and thanked them for communicating w me ab replacement items what did I DO

[symbologic]

Luffy vs. Zoro at Whiskey Peak

Unpopular opinion maybe, but the Luffy vs. Zoro clash in Whiskey Peak made sense for their characters. You could even argue that it was bound to happen, given their personalities.

Luffy likes the people who feed him. In the the face of their suffering, no matter who's responsible, he's too angry to concern himself with the reasons behind it. Zoro, on the other hand, prefers to handle things independently without saying much about it, especially if it means his crew gets to enjoy themselves a little longer

So it's not really surprising that Luffy would be blindsided by finding their hosts cut up by his swordsman, and that this would send him flying into a fit of rage. If he's never paused to listen to context or backstories before now, why would he start here? And of course, Zoro is not the type to back down from a challenge. He will match Luffy's energy and respond in kind

"But if Luffy were a good captain, he would have stopped to listen to Zoro's side of the story." Vivi tells him he's a bad captain two arcs later, precisely because of this kind of behavior. It clearly leaves an impression on Luffy, and we see he's grown into a better leader by the time he reaches Amazon Lily. (Almost as if Oda set all this development up on purpose with Whiskey Peak. HMM...)

"But Luffy refused to believe that Nami had killed Usopp in Arlong Park." This argument is like comparing apples to oranges. Nami did not actually do the murder that Johnny and Yosaku claim they saw, nor is she capable of killing people in cold blood. Of course Luffy isn't going to believe Nami killed Usopp based on hearsay. But in Whiskey Peak, Zoro did cut those bounty hunters. Luffy sees the evidence for himself, and he knows the carnage Zoro is capable of inflicting once he puts his mind to it. There is no denying what happened. Nothing other than Zoro saying "someone else did this" (or Nami knocking the soul out of him) was going to stop Luffy from going ballistic

"Why would Luffy fight so hard to recruit Zoro into his crew, firmly believing that he wasn't a bad person, only to later attack him because he believed Zoro was capable of harming 'innocent' people?" Because the fight was never about whether their hosts were "innocent" or not, not really. Their fight was about what Zoro did (assaulting the ones who fed them), and how those actions made Luffy feel (mad as hell, because these people FED THEM) For Luffy, context did not actually matter at that moment in time because, for him, "they fed me" unequivocally means "they're my friend", full stop This is even shown again in Mocktown! Both when Luffy unquestioningly eats an apple from Doc Q, and when Bellamy buys Luffy a drink in Mocktown. In the first case, Luffy only lived because he was lucky. And in the second case, he assumes Bellamy is a good person despite all evidence to the contrary, only to have his face brutally smashed into the bartop by Bellamy. Luffy is shockingly bad at reading people who try to feed him.

Luffy has interpersonal conflicts with all the core members from East Blue at different times. The fight with Zoro is the only one instigated by Luffy. But surprisingly, their fight highlights their similarities instead of their differences. They still fight equally and work together against BW agents who try to interfere with their fight.

I think that's what Oda wanted to showcase with this scene.

In short, Luffy's initial anger stemmed from his protectiveness towards those who have fed him, while Zoro's actions were driven by his dedication to the crew and subsequent refusal to back down from Luffy's challenge. It was a clash resulting from miscommunication and misunderstanding, something that is not typically a problem for them — until it suddenly becomes one When all is said and done, they're both quick to forgive and forget. This, too, is fitting for both their characters. From that point onward, Zoro continues to demonstrate that Luffy's trust is not misplaced. And Luffy never, ever doubts Zoro again after this

[sondheim-girly]

Yes I think bob loved Cherry to death no I don’t think that they had any kind of healthy relationship

[adhdandcomics]

adding to my tags because i’ve been thinkin a lot about the post i just reblogged and have more thoughts:

i’ll be real, the more i saw ‘hey adhd influencers are so annoying’ the more i worried that i was unconsciously contributing to the spreading reputation of adhd folks as annoying and over-pathologizing every symptom they experience

and then i realized. i am not a goddam influencer or life coach or representative. obviously i have some obligation as someone who cares about myself and the people that like my comics to not spread harmful ideology or blatant misinformation but i never intended myself to be a “’increase your productivity!!’ blog OR a ‘if you have XYZ you have adhd!’ blog. and i do this for fun, and originally started this blog bc i had a lot of internalized shame and self loathing about my adhd and thought if i could make it funny i might have less of that. let’s get real! and it worked!

i’ve obviously done this kind of thing— (hey these symptoms might be adhd!) a lot before in my life & on this blog, but there’s more to it than trying to be an “influencer” or whatever. a term that didn’t even exist when i started this blog!

i felt very isolated trying to find out if i had any mental problems & what have you originally because of large advice (etc) blogs with staunchly anti self Dx views at the time

so i overcorrected when i DID get dxed and tried to validate everyone who was like me. and of course. not the best course of action always for the ol mental health. tried to be the source of positivity and jokes that i didn’t see because the online adhd presence was near non-existent.

and anyway. i make a lot of fun of myself & the way m brain works in my comics obviously but it is not my obligation to... how do you say.... not be annoying online.

because if folks interpret MY little jokes as a strict guide to diagnosis. that’s on them, really, not me. i also believe “making adhd your entire personality” is a non-issue. so what if people find out they have it and get over excited with identifying as adhd. saying this as someone who DID do it. criticism of this gives the same vibes as people being annoyed that young queers make “being queer” their whole personality. im very obviously more than a guy with adhd, and id reckon other adhd comic artists are too. (im friends with a lot of them!) it’s fine to post about it online.

anyway. i just don’t take myself too seriously and i’m a comic artist for myself first! and you know what, i’ve been considered annoying my entire life. what do i care if a few more folks think i’m annoying. neurotypical or not

[littlemut]

have IG users ever had one (1) original thought in their life ever?

[mariatesstruther]

just wrote a lil somethin somethin im reslly excited for. kind of a foil to the conversation between maria and ellie in 1x06 in which maria makes things right given the information she (hopefully) has in retrospect once ellie and joel get back

BUT I NEED SOME HELP YALL—what is ellie’s favorite color???? was it ever mentioned in the game/show or is there like some sort of fandom consensus?? do yall have opinions??

[irritablepoe]

if you see me posting on tumblr that's actually not true and you're wrong, i'm actually actively studying like i'm supposed to and definitely didn't get distracted :)

[docmerlin]

i really don't think it's possible to have productive conversations about mental health without addressing how truly unlivable a lot of places in this world are becoming

like sometimes people have mental illness that can be helped with therapy and medication, but sometimes they're just having a natural reaction to the Horror of it all and the only true remedy is for life to suck less

[roseseals]

wait whys this kinda orv

[moinsbienquekaworu]

How have I been in fandom for - going on 8 years (?) and not gotten into fanvids before?? All the association I could have been making.... All the memories.... All the composition and clever editing....

[anthonycrowley]

her music is mid at best and her personality is like cheese, white people love it

hey now. i’m white. don’t insult cheese at me.