#i have a seasons scene in mind that will say some of this

[becausebuckley]

michelle's buddie fic recs: week 6!

and what a week it's been... idk about you all, but i'm very much looking forward to all the 8b spec fic after seeing That One Leak...

this is a mix of fics with all ratings, so some include NSFW content. please take a look at both the ratings and the fic tags before reading! some might also contain spoilers for season 8.

if you come across something you like in this list, remember to show some love to the author by leaving kudos and a comment!

a graveyard in blue | moonlightmornings/@moonlight-mornings | 12.9k | GA

After a call goes south because of limited resources and an equipment malfunction, Eddie's brave move to rescue a young girl takes a nasty turn. i love how this captures the energy and vibe of a rescue!! genuinely feels straight out of an episode <3

and i'd do it over and over again | playinginthunderstorms/@playinginthunderstorms | 4.4k | E

Buck and Eddie hook up at the end of "Confessions". oh when i tell you i savoured this one... such a wonderful fic that captures buddie's first time so so perfectly!! i love how their dynamic is written here <3

everything in between | simplyylupin | 2.1k | T

They’re quiet for a moment, mulling over the unsaid, and then Buck’s bringing his phone closer to his face, eyes squinting. “Are you naked?” the absolute codependency of these two <3 so good!!

hot ghost problems | ebjameston/@ebjameston | 40.9k | T

The ghost would prefer to go by Buck, if Eddie wouldn’t mind. this was a reread! i was reminded of the magic system here and revisited it - can confirm that magic and ghosts and all that are so very good here, and i love the diaz siblings!!

i'll tell them put me back in it (and i would do it again) | paleredheadinascifi | 4.8k| T

Eddie doesn't know how to make his listening history private. Buck doesn't know what to do with the words in front of his eyes. Chris cannot believe he has to deal with either of them. the sheer brilliance of this concept... such a lovely look at the buckley-diaz dynamics! i was smiling the whole way through <3

it's golden, like daylight | rarakiplin/@hoediaz | 8.7k | T

“Shut up,” fingers dig into his ribs, “I mean, would you want to? Be married again?” such wonderful firefam dynamics!! i read this last week, i think, and already reread it this past week as well. a new favourite for sure <3

lonely little love dog | littleghost/@ghostlandtoo | 24k | M

When the 118 is closed for reconstruction after an earthquake, Buck is a floater for different stations around the city. He tries not to let it get to him. Much. this is such a fascinating look at buck's character!! and i LOVED the mara scene <3

parabola | semperama/@semperama | 4.6k | T

“Hey, uh. By the way.” Buck’s been thinking about this, and he has to say it now, or it’ll explode out of him at a much worse time, in a much worse way. “Make sure you don’t forget to change your will again.” truly no fic captures the angst with a happy ending tag like this. also this fic is how i learned that there's a special ao3 tag for eddie's will, which sounds about right. anyway, point is, this is wonderful!!

the last shred of truth in the lost myth of true love | lemonzestywrites/@lemonzestywrites | 25.7k | E

After the events of 6x13, Buck is worried he's lost his charm in bed. Eddie eagerly offers his services to prove otherwise. a reread of one of my favourite fics <3 there's something about the intersection of smut and feelings realisation and introspection in this fic that just hits so very hard, it's lovely <3

the whale fall principle | fastcardotmp3/@fastcardotmp3 | 95.5k | M

Daniel Buckley lives, but he’s still deciding what that means. Maddie is having a baby, but it isn’t her husband’s. And Evan knows his purpose. Until he doesn’t anymore. okay so definitely heed the creator chose not to use archive warnings tag here (there are specific warnings in the chapter notes) but holy shit, this fic. genuinely the best buckley sibling dynamics i have read, like, maybe ever. such a wonderful eddie and chimney and everyone, and such gorgeous writing!! if this one sounds up your alley, you're in for a treat <3

to ebb and flow | akapeterman/@akapeterman | 5.1k | GA

buck is sick, eddie is worried, and christopher is an angel. they'll be okay. i've really been vibing with sickfics lately, can you tell? this is another lovely lovely fic, such great hurt/comfort/domestic fluff!!

wait for me to come home | written_promises | 1.9k | GA

Eddie comes back home to LA from Texas to find Buck waiting for him… in his bed. Because he’s been living in Eddie’s home. and eddie's bed is exactly where buck should be<3 so soft and sweet and beautiful!!

we return to each other in waves | cozycatwriter/@leon-trans-kennedy | 3.1k | GA

“Yes I do. Of course I do. You saved Chris and looked after him the best you could during a tsunami-and you’re still recovering from an embolism from having your leg crushed on the job. The least I could do is look after you and let you stay the night. Besides, Chris would want you to stay.” post-tsunami fics my beloveds <3 it genuinely makes me so happy to see new ones pop up, and this is truly an excellent one!! i love the bed-sharing especially!

you need a friendly hand (and i need action) | AmZamReads | 13.1k | E

Eddie picks up pottery as a hobby and accidentally blows up on Instagram for "accidentally" posting thirst traps of him throwing on the wheel. Buck stumbles across the account and immediately becomes obsessed with Eddie's hands, and horny shenanigans ensues. this fic makes me wish i could make pottery. i love eddie's pottery friends!! and a lovely buddie dynamic too <3

[1296-very-good-year]

The thing that bugs me most about Caitlyn's arc is how obviously she was forced into the position Jayce had been set up to fill.

Jayce was the de facto head of the council that Sheriff Marcus (keep that in mind) reported directly to for city security.

He was the Golden Boy, Man of Progress, beloved by everyone in Piltover for the invention of Hextech! Charismatic! Handsome!

They didn't NEED martial law. After Jayce emerged unscathed from the terrorist attack, most of the council dead, Piltover would have been falling over itself to give him sole authority regardless of him wanting to quit the council right before the attack.

And Jayce should have been beside himself with rage! Jinx turned his invention, his dream, into a weapon that nearly killed him and the two people he loves most! Mel and Viktor, at the same time! She ruined his peace deal! (And killed Silco, but for some reason Cait and Vi never tell anyone about that)

But nope. He's just sad, and tries to talk Caitlyn down from wanting to kill Jinx.... Like wtf!! Where did his passion go?? His recklessness? Caitlyn got it all.

Let's say he's still reeling after killing the kid in his shimmer raid and fearing the consequences of violent intervention. Fine. But then there is the attack at the memorial. Now it's bigger than Jinx, and his entire city is threatened.

Picture the end of episode 1, with the council gathering in the basement after the memorial attack and it is JAYCE marching in to announce the strike team, with Caitlyn and Vi beside him, with their shiny Hextech weapons.

They didn't need to give Caitlyn political power. She could have become Sheriff under Jayce! She would have had nearly the EXACT same scenes. She doesn't get a single moment where she acts like a political leader in Act 2 anyway!

We never see her do anything the sheriff wouldn't do, which tells me this was a late change to cram all the remaining story into one season, to every character's detriment. If Caitlyn had just been following Jayce's orders until running into Vi, her flip would not have felt so jarring.

She loves Jayce as an older brother, she's grieving her mother, she and Jayce could have BOTH been manipulated by Ambessa. Let Caitlyn be at the forefront of all the awful shit she's ORDERED to do, instead of ordering it HERSELF.

By giving her ultimate authority instead, the few clipped scenes of her redemption, her "I know" and letting Jinx go free are nowhere near enough to get the audience back on her side. As evidenced by how many people hated her arc this season.

[dulcescorderitas]

05

parings: married!deanwinchester x married!reader (+ sam)

synopsis: cooking

the kitchen was already a disaster. flour dusted the countertops like a crime scene outline, and a bottle of olive oil had tipped over, creating a slick, shimmering puddle on the wooden surface. the smell of garlic and onions filled the air, mingling with the sharp tang of burnt something—probably whatever dean had been in charge of.

"i told you, babe, this is why takeout exists," dean grumbled, flicking a piece of raw chicken at you. it hit your arm with a cold, wet slap.

"jesus, dean!" you yelped, shoving him in the chest. he barely budged, just grinning like an idiot, dimples and all.

"you two are impossible," sam muttered, rolling his eyes as he expertly diced an onion. his knife skills were alarmingly precise, which only made dean more suspicious.

"yeah, okay, gordon ramsey, we get it, you know how to cut shit. but can you do this?" dean attempted to twirl a knife between his fingers, only for it to slip and clatter onto the floor. you sighed. sam sighed louder.

"real smooth," you muttered, picking up the knife before dean could impale himself. "if we actually wanna eat tonight, maybe we should focus."

"focus is for nerds," dean declared, leaning over to steal a sip from your beer. you smacked his hand away.

"you have your own, dumbass."

"yeah, but yours always tastes better. kinda like how you always steal my fries."

sam ignored the both of you, setting the chopped onions into a sizzling pan. the butter hissed, and for a moment, it actually smelled promising. that moment passed quickly.

dean, having been left in charge of seasoning the chicken, had apparently gone feral with the spice rack. the second the pieces hit the heat, an acrid, eye-watering cloud of burnt paprika and chili powder filled the room.

"oh, hell no," you coughed, waving a hand in front of your face. "dean, what did you put in there?"

"i dunno, some of that red shit," he answered, barely concerned, peering into the pan as if offended that his creation wasn’t behaving properly. "it looked right."

"you just threw in spices like you were summoning a demon, didn’t you?" sam accused.

"hey, if i was summoning anything, it’d be a pizza delivery guy, ‘cause this ain’t workin’." dean grabbed the pan handle, but immediately hissed and dropped it back onto the stove. "son of a—who the hell made this pan lava-proof?"

"it's called heat, dumbass," you snorted, but the joke was cut short when the smoke alarm started blaring.

"aw, come on!" dean groaned, grabbing a towel to fan the smoke away. "we got this under control!"

"do we?" sam asked dryly, as you rushed to open a window. the sound was piercing, and it was only a matter of time before someone (probably a very annoyed neighbor) complained.

"alright, screw this," you said, tossing the ruined pan into the sink with a dramatic clatter. "i'm calling it—pizza and beer."

"now we're talkin’," dean grinned, already reaching for his phone. "see, this is why i married you. you get me."

"yeah, yeah, just order before i change my mind and make you eat the chicken."

sam just shook his head, stepping around the mess as if it personally offended him. "i swear, cooking with you two is like watching a disaster movie in slow motion."

"yeah, but we make it look good, right?" dean winked at you, still smug despite the failure.

"you know what else looks good?" dean leaned in, voice dropping into a husky murmur. "you, bent over this counter, covered in flour, with me showing you how to properly handle raw meat."

"oh my god," sam groaned, throwing down the spatula. "can we go ten minutes without you turning everything into a porno?"

"hey, i'm just saying, cooking’s a very sensual activity. lotta kneading, lotta poundin—"

"i will stab you," you deadpanned, brandishing a fork. "not in the fun way."

sam rubbed his temples like he was reconsidering every life choice that led him here. "i don't get paid enough for this."

"you don't get paid at all," dean shot back. "you just hang around, all tall and judgy, pretending you don’t enjoy our company."

"it's not pretending if it's true," sam muttered.

"see, babe?" dean turned back to you, grinning. "this is why you gotta appreciate me more. i'm the fun brother."

"you're something, alright," you muttered, shaking your head.

finally, after much more unnecessary bickering, the pizza arrived. beers were popped open, and the three of you collapsed onto the couch, the kitchen a war zone of spices, flour, and regret.

"y'know," dean said around a mouthful of pizza, "we should do this again sometime."

"we absolutely should not," sam and you answered in perfect unison.

and that, of course, just made dean laugh harder.

taglist: @iloveeveryoneyoureamazing @legalmente-loca @bluemerakis @whisperingdaze @cherrygirlfriend @figthoughts @sunsbaby @ambiguous-avery @sunnyteume

[starlight-bread-blog]

Okay I'm gonna go full conspiracy, but some of y'all are way worse so I'm doing this. Listen up. Will Byers and Mike Wheeler are fictional characters. Meaning, that everything they do, everything they think and yes, everything they feel has a purpose. So let's look at the facts as they are. Mike couldn't tell El that he loves her, and Will is in love with Mike. Right off the bat, with Will, this fact could lead to two things:

Mike is also in love with Will, and there will be a love triangle with Mike in the middle.

Mike is not in love with Will, and Will will either end up alone, or die, or find another queer boy to love.

With scenario 1, everything is fine. But although on paper, scenario 2 makes sense, we should take into account that everything that Will feels is a carefully thought out decision.

Let's remember the themes and the message of Stranger Things. This show is about the freaks of society, the losers, the outcasts. How people may l give them the side eye, but they have each other. And they'll stand by each other no matter what. So, how does this relate to Will and Mike? Will is a gay boy in the 80s, which not only makes him an outcast, but an outright freak in the eyes of the public. It would go against Stranger Things' message to write a freak trying to find love in his best friend, the one who's supposed to be by his side forever, and having him rejected. In real life, this would not be a problem. If someone is straight, they're straight. But in fiction, the sexuality and or love interest of a character is again, a choice with ramification on the quality of the story. And writing Will, a "freak", having his heart broken by someone who he considered another freak, when you're telling a story about how freaks empower each other by sticking together, is not a smart writing decision.

(There is also the matter of the van scene, where Will's supposedly unrequited feelings are being used to repair El and Mike's relationship, as Will cries over not being able to be with Mike. In other words, if Mike isn't in love with Will, the outcast's suffering is used to fix what's more socially acceptable. Do you see the problem? I don't know how many times I'm going to repeat myself in this post, and I hope it's not getting annoying, but I need to make this as crystal clear as possible: Fiction is not real life. In real life, a gay boy could use some words of affirmation regardless of how they feel, it's just being nice. But in fiction, you have a job to do. You have a story to tell. You have a message you want to put out into the world. And this scene is not compatible with the message).

But let's look at Mike. In season 4, El confronts Mike about him not telling her that he loves her. And throughout that whole scene, not even once, does he just say that he loves her. In the end he does, but the reason as to why he stopped saying it, or why he didn't say it when she confronted him, is never explained. In real life, it's okay if Mike wants to deal with whatever he feels and the reasons behind it with himself. But this is not real life, this was deliberately written to be understood by an audience. It was written to serve a purpose. Mike not being able to tell El that he loves her was a serious conflict in season 4, and the cause behind it is left unknown. This is bad writing, plain and simple. Unless, there is some other factor we are not yet aware of. Unless, he could possibly have feelings for someone else. Maybe that someone is Will.

With that theory in mind, remember when Will and Mike met after a long time of not seeing each other? Will was gonna hug Mike, but Mike just went for a fist bump. There was a very awkward atmosphere in that moment. Why would there be? Once again, I'm not talking about real life. In real life, it could just be awkward because they haven't talked to each other in a while and Mike needs time to adjust. But this is fiction. Every emotion has a purpose, every bit leads to something. And so far, it led to nothing. There was just one awkward moment, with no explanation, and it's never brought up again. There is no reason for it to be there. It's common knowledge that unnecessary story bits shouldn't make it to the final cut. If this wouldn't be expanded upon in some way, it'd be bad writing. It wouldn't be the worst thing to ever happen, but combined with him not being able to tell El that he loves her, it's all very confusing to say the least. But the story is not over, and maybe, all will be explained. And just maybe, that awkwardness could be described as tension between the two. Maybe Mike is in love with Will. That would be the most logical explanation.

[craziertogether]

mike’s behavior shift & byler endgame confirmation

little yap moment (long rant):

just to start, i wanna say that i was a m*leven lover from s1-s2. given i was young asl, it was a wonderful ship for kids, but as i’ve grown and gotten more into analyses for media it has become clearer to me why my dislike of mike wheeler’s character despite my love for him originally, actually came from a lack of understanding.

so yeah, i truly think the moment i started developing my own byler agenda was in season 3. i had always known that will was queer, season 1 episode 1 with joyce and episode 4 with troy, it was just so clear to me. but i never saw it actually developing into a love story, i actually saw it as a little bit of queerbait when i saw the “crazy together” scene (ik crazy to say but i was also literally 11). but season 3, was like a huge smack in the face that oh mike is 100% the queer one WITH some kind of feelings towards will. i love how we as bylers joke about it? but truly will’s feelings for mike were so masked it’s insane to me.

back to my rant, i was a little caught off guard by mike’s CRAZY behavior switch from likable friend and leader to el’s personal make-out buddy and actual hater of his own best friends (mind you mike was always my favorite character originally, he was the protagonist that was a little unlikable but that’s my favorite kind of character). it wasn’t until my rewatch recently that i totally clicked for me again that mike was so in love with will, i can’t remember who mentioned it but mike inviting will to his house after el dumped him was absolutely unnecessary, lucas was needed but mike just had will there because of his genuine need for will to be there. rain fight outburst and post breakup crawling back to will was so clear that mike valued will on a level unbeknownst to anyone else around him. even beyond the el breakup, mike is lowkey such an ass to everyone else 😭. he needed to be guided by everyone else to apologize to el, lucas, and dustin. but will was like air to mike, he breathes will, the second he hurts will, he immediately crawls back to him because he knows at the minimum that will’s feelings are greater than his own arrogance.

and now season 4? there are so many wonderful analyses out there regarding mikes straight up queer behavior, but i really feel like this season is what fully converted me. btw i was still afraid of this possibility of queerbaiting, i had a strong feeling that maybe i was still reading into it too much but when will’s feeling were CONFIRMED in the first like minute, i knew in that moment that byler endgame was real. like i said above the way will’s queerness was clear to me was no shock, but seeing it be visually shown that he was IN LOVE with mike i was truly convinced in that moment that this was it, they were setting them up to be THE endgame couple. (ps i had NOT interacted with any byler content until very recently, i just had this instinct). and after now having read the analyses and rewatch the season again, i literally felt like my eyes were opened and like the show was spelling it out for us. the california plot line being the MOST boring without byler development, the fights and apologies, the heart to hearts, and van scene all just either fed my confirmation bias or proved to all audiences that this is what we need to be looking at. it is insane that season 4 has like 6 incredibly byler focused deep moments and there’s still byler doubt in my opinion. anyways yeah back to my original point the complete decline in mike’s character development the last two seasons completely confirmed it for me in my most recent rewatch. there was no reason to absolutely nerf his character like that, and if they do set up m*leven endgame, i actually will have lost respect for the duffers but also for my favorite character. but i have full faith that this show would not destroy everything it spent the last decade building up to.

TLDR: byler endgame is imminent and as a once byler skeptic and even m*levin fan, i cannot wait to see this story wrap up in season 5. i need the trailer, actually the whole season but the trailer will do for now.

[vldunchartedregions]

Voltron Season 8 Meta - The Ground Work

Before we start our episode-by-episode deep dive & broader analysis of Voltron Season 8...

I wanted to address our main philosophy and themes we will be touching on our journey together.

Firstly, every frame, expression, shot, angle, storyboard, character placement, dialogue? It is all intentionally chosen to cater to the story. Animation is expensive and Dreamworks banked on this show being the success. It was greenlit for 78 episodes off the bat, sectioned into 3 parts (26 episodes each).

MM: Okay. So at that time did you know it was a 78-episode contract?

JDS: Yes.

LM: Yes we did. That was probably one of our biggest lies. You know, sadly. We try not to lie too much, but I’ll tell you, I’m gonna blow-blow the whole industry up right now: if an animated show tells you they don’t know if they have a second season, they probably know they have a second season.

Let's Voltron - Episode 175 - Transcript by Team Purple Lion

---

Oh yes, Dreamworks & Netflix were banking on this project. Budget comes into play and the show would've had an overall budget set in stone for animation, voice actors, writers, background artists, the showrunners, directors, marketing, events, etc. the works.

Moving forward, we must keep this philosophy in mind - every decision reflected within an episode - the title, all frames, shots, character placements, and dialogue choices within an episode that we'll be dissecting always has the following:

Intentions - The What?

Motivation & Purpose - The Why?

In a great audiobook I listened to from Reggie Fils-Aimé, called Disrupting the Game (highly encourage you to listen to it if you're curious about his time as President of Nintendo), he goes through his career journey chapter-by-chapter, tells important stories that helped shape him into who he is, and then ends each chapter with "The Why."

Why am I saying this? ADHD, but I do also have a point; walk with me here.

We will be looking at each episode with the lens of dissecting the double meaning of the episode titles - including the what and the why; identifying the layers in each episode that reflect the title's original intention and purpose. Neil Kaplan explains this notion well with "Launch Date" in his interview with Afterbuzz TV (Season 8, Episode 1 & 2 Recap)

[Timestamped: 3:07] 2. We will be dissecting scenes with the notion of the "What & "Why?" - from character expressions, to placement, to how the edits in post-production that were requested disrupts all of the original intentions of the episode and/or shots.

3. We will be looking towards my secret source (apologies to you all, but I'm NOT revealing who it is - sit down with some popcorn instead and enjoy the ride) with the information they have provided + other sources of information we've uncovered or have been informed of, to make informed conclusions with evidentiary support. Every step we take will be an informed conclusion.

In short, everything has a purpose and we will be walking through all of this with some lovely nuggets of (alleged) truth to feed our conclusions from my sources.

We also must keep in mind: explanations, intentions, and motivations can change throughout this meta. Our conclusions now might not be the ones we decipher later on. Not everything we know may be the truth, and even if we are to assume that what I've been told is all facts (allegedly; for entertainment purposes only), some facts even from my source may shift our current knowledge into a new truth.

When I tell you we have been binge watching these episodes again, and again, and tearing them apart limb from limb with the information we have, we are not exaggerating. We keep uncovering more with each rewatch and my friends, it is fascinating.

With ALL of this in mind, let's dive into some of the broader themes of Season 8:

In the first half of Season 8, we are shown that the paladins have not always made the correct decisions in their time defending the universe. Their actions DO have consequences, and their decision making from the past bites them in the ass.

...Case in point. 2. In the second half of Season 8, we unlock a few new themes: Love, Rebellion, & Redemption.

We will also address the Macross Theory™ Love Triangle.

Religious themes that go much deeper into the show than we initially thought. Further influence from many mecha shows (oh yes, this includes Evangelion here, friends - get in the robot, Lance).

Please see a screenshot from a DM from my valuable source from New Year's Day:

I was going to censor this message a little... however, I think it's a bit more fun to give you a teaser for what's to come. It's probably not what you're expecting.

Again, I must implore to you all - these changes were asked for last minute, hence why Season 8 is such a hard watch to old fans and new:

It was DONE. COMPLETE. FINISHED.

BEFORE Season 7 dropped.

They were ready to take a grand ol' break before Season 8 was meant to drop. Walk the dogs, paint some walls, eat some food. Y'know, they were on holiday mode - ready to book flights, job well done team!!

There was an incredible story awaiting us that unfortunately ended up on the cutting-room floor. This was even mentioned by LM at the NYCC panel in 2018, but for this purpose, I'll use a quote from the Afterbuzz TV podcast - February 25th, 2019:

LM: It was–there’s a ton of stuff that just hit the-hit the, kinda, cutting room floor, storyboard-wise, just because we didn’t have the time and so we’re looking like, it’s a kids’ show technically still, even though we’re trying to make it more than that. You have a-a scene that’s basically an act long that’s just in a white floaty space with people talking about, like, you know–

JDS: Bigger emotional stuff-

LM: Yeah. And, uh, you know, letting that go any longer than that is just like, “You can’t do it!”

ABTV Voltron February 25 Season Review with Showrunners in Studio - Transcript by Team Purple Lion

---

Now that's all addressed, I do want to lay some ground rules as we proceed through this meta. I'm going to sound like a broken record, but I want to make this clear to the fandom:

It was NEVER the crew, cast, or showrunners intention for Season 8 to pan out this way. They had an entirely different vision as to where the show was heading + they were probably confident it wouldn't be changed by the time they finished it. There was direct, last minute, executive intervention here. Do not hunt down all parties for this as it has been several years.

We implore you to approach this meta with empathy and kindness. How heartbreaking would it be to be the crew, let alone the showrunners, to be asked to amend and revise all of Season 8 after painstaking, hard work and having the season done already? With NO budget left? You can agree to disagree with me here, but this is how we will be approaching this meta. Be kind.

Your feelings are valid - abusive, unwarranted behaviours and opinions are not. We were not there and we don't know the full story and how it unfolded, no matter how much context and bits of information we were given. We DO have evidentiary support to fuel this meta and piece together a look at what may have been the original ending (allegedly; don't get me wrong) but I wanted to make this clear - no sending hate to anyone.

In light of all of this, let us begin with a teaser: I'll share one confirmation I had from my source...

Lotor was meant to be brought back to life from the rift.

Check out my Twitter page for any and all updates in regards to this insanely detailed meta; including teasers and screenshots! Please and thank you.

---

Disclaimer: The one thing I humbly request is PLEASE... No hate towards the showrunners, cast, crew, or the official Voltron IP holders. There's a lot that has changed culturally and intrinsically within the industry over the years and this outcome was not something they could simply control. Let's be adults, look at this open conversation with empathy and love, and respectfully, let's indulge in this topic with grace - your feelings, however, are incredibly valid when it comes to this meta and what we uncover, as there's many alleged finds that may shock the fandom.

[lune-moon-nuit]

I was rewatching s2 and I tried to envision Mike being that attentive and sweet to Lucas or Dustin instead of Will—It doesn’t fit. It doesn’t feel right. It’s too much for their relationship because they ARE friends. Watching the whole scene where Mike comforts Will and holds his hand but picturing Dustin instead of Will is mind blowing. It’s crazy how clear the romantic intention of some scenes become when you replace Will with someone who is actually just a friend to Mike. Could Mike be sweet to Dustin and Lucas? Of course—but not like that. No way. His moments with Will are special because of Will and how Mike views him. Whereas you could remove Dustin and replace him with Lucas in a one-on-one scene with Mike and not have much change in terms of the overall feelings of that scene. The scene wouldn’t feel off. Their conversation wouldn’t feel out of place between them. They also don’t have many one-on-one scenes together whereas Mike has a lot with Will—the heart-to-heart in Mike’s basement on Halloween, spending the day at Will’s house, holding his hand, sleeping by his bed, staying at the hospital with him and telling him that choosing him to be his friend was the best thing he’s ever done. Mike is a kind person but it’s kinda hard to picture him doing all of that for Lucas or Dustin. Or to picture Dustin doing any of that for Will. Even if you remove both Mike and Will from the hand holding scene entirely and imagine Lucas and Dustin instead it still feels off. It’s too much. They don’t talk to each other that way because they are friends. Obviously they all love and care for one another but it’s so different for Mike and Will. There’s a level of intimacy with them that obviously is missing from the other friendships because they are friends. In s4, during the rink-o-mania fight, try to imagine Lucas stopping to argue with Will instead running after an upset Max. Or Lucas stopping Dustin to argue. Even Dustin and Steve have cute and sweet moments together but not like Will and Mike. I’d even say Dustin and Eddie had sweeter moments together than him and Steve but it’s still not the same as Will and Mike. Now add Nancy and Jonathan into any Will and Mike scene and it doesn’t feel weird or off. Not much changes. Or flip it and add Will and Mike into an intimate Nancy and Jonathan scene and again it feels fine. It works.

Every single scene between Mike and Will in season 2 is completely and undeniably framed with a romantic tone, and that’s precisely why it doesn’t work if you replace Will with Dustin or Lucas—but it does work if you replace Mike and Will with Jonathan and Nancy, who are a fully established couple.

We see Mike’s dynamic with Dustin and Lucas all throughout season 1, without Will, and even a little in season 2 with Will present—and the difference is obvious. Even before Will was back, it was already clear that Mike’s friendship with him was different compared to the other two, simply by the way Mike reacted to Will’s disappearance versus how Dustin and Lucas did. But season 2 only reinforces this distinction.

If you replace Will with a girl in season 2, you are literally watching a love story with explicitly romantic scenes. That’s why this dynamic cannot be replicated with Dustin or Lucas—their friendships with Mike are clearly, explicitly, and canonically confirmed to be 100% platonic. But that’s not the case with Will, because in their scenes, you can feel that this friendship is different, deeper than the others. We don’t necessarily have the words to define it, but we know that there is something there.

And the proof? Mike is one of the people chosen to help bring Will back from his possession. They could have asked Dustin and Lucas, who are also Will’s friends and have memories with him. And it's not about who was physically present at the lab—Jonathan wasn’t there either. Yet, for Joyce, Jonathan (and Hopper), it’s obvious that Mike has as much emotional power to reach Will as his mother and brother do. So they let him be there to talk to Will.

And they were right—because it’s Mike’s memory that weakens the possession enough for Will to start communicating. Even though his hands start trembling after Jonathan’s memory, that only shows that the possession is weakening, not that it’s breaking. It’s Mike’s words that actually break through and bring Will back enough for him to signal in Morse code with his fingers. You can see it in his expression—how his eyes shift, how his brows furrow, how he starts to whimper.

I’m getting off track, but yes—season 2 is so coded as romantic between Mike and Will that it’s painfully obvious. I even remember watching it this summer (before knowing anything about the later seasons or what the fandom says), and right after Mike’s monologue scene, I turned to my friend—who had already seen all four seasons—and said, “Are you sure there’s nothing going on between these two?”

[natsuki208]

Mikasa Ackerman! Strongest Girl With That One Flaw

Today is that day when I can express once more of how much of a Mikasa defender I am! But despite all the good, I will acknowledge the major flaw that caused many to dislike her as well, and unfortunate ruined her character going onward.

(Plz, I don’t wanna see any of you haters here for this girl on her special day, thank you)

-

We all know of Mikasa’s strengths; figuratively and literally. She’s known as one of the manga/anime’s strongest fighters, due to her Ackerman blood and what she had to go through as a child. It was because of both her power and compassion is how she managed to save citizens of Trost to escape the city in S1. She showed signs of a dependable soldier.

One other noticeable side of her character that got explored a lot more within the story was her connection with Eren, and that divided a lot of the fans as the series went on. On one hand, it reflects back to when Eren saved her from being sold for profit and how much his kindness meant to her, but on the other hand, it slowly started to isolate her from other important aspects needed to keep her interesting.

But it wasn’t all that bad; to me that is. There have been times when Mikasa showed worry for her other closest friend Armin, protecting him and comforting him during hard times, swung in to save Historia and Sasha from titans, checked on Connie by asking if he’s okay, and even was concerned about Levi’s ankle.

So yeah. Mikasa grew connections with almost everyone around her, opening up to have more friends within her small circle since her childhood, however, her feelings for Eren started to overlap those friendships. Not that it is a bad thing, I love how the two grew closer as the series went on but it really shouldn’t be the only important part of her development. A healthy mixture of all her traits would’ve made a better experience.

Sadly, the concept of her undying love for Eren gets heavily exaggerated in the dreaded fourth season.

By that I mean for most of her screentime she spend worrying about Eren and only him. Sure there was… Sasha, but it didn’t really last for very long. In fact, she didn’t really speak much to anyone other than Armin afterwards, and I thought she’d be more open to help them out with their own struggles.

In fact, her love for Eren seemed to have made her more fragile to his own thoughts as well, like when he spoke his mind and pretended to admit he hated her, she got over emotional.

(this is the same girl who didn’t hesitate to punch him in the face when he went too far)

But at the end of the day, it didn’t really matter since she managed to save the world by killing Eren with her own hands but still has him at the front of her mind years later. Yes, it can be hard to move on but at least show some scenes of her bonding with her other friends, even leaving Armin in the dust.

-

Anyway, happy birthday, you poor girl. You deserved much better. Not as in Eren, but as in better writing to expand your character. I had a lot more to say but I don’t wanna make this too long. Maybe I’ll update this later on.

[pynkhues]

Most people in That corner of fandom make a mockery of Lestat being three for three on RAINN, so it would be ironic if they decided he wasn't their favourite masculine Daddy any more after he gets raped in Season 3. Most of their head-canons are based on archaic gender roles and they think Louis is more of a woman because he was abused, so they might decide Lestat isn't man enough for them after they see how he was abused and raped. They already act like Lestat initiated the incest and tried to force Gabrielle to be more feminine. Among other ridiculous things.

I honestly think that there's a portion of this fandom who wants this ship to be Christian Grey and Anastasia Steele. I was actually even talking to someone a week or two ago about a post that got flicked up on my dash which was about the idea that Louis didn't know how beautiful / desired he was before Armand, and like - - a) he can literally read minds?? but b) even before he was turned, one of the first scenes we see of him in the show is him cruising outside the Fair Play Saloon (that he'll later buy!). Sorry, Louis knows he's beautiful, his repression issues are around race and sexuality, not his desirability. He's not a YA heroine. He's not a Bella Swan, who's biggest flaw is being clumsy, not knowing her own beauty and stumbling into Locations. It's what makes it good. Louis' 33/34, he's Lived, he's a man with baggage, which is what makes him interesting, and - - look.

If this existed on its own as a subet of the fandom, I probably wouldn't talk about it. Like I said in the last post, there is, and should be, room for everything. It's not my interpretation, no, but I honestly do love that people have found comfort and a space in those interpretations of the character, that's great, but look. This sect of the fandom brought my sister and her children, who are exiting a real domestic violence situation right now, into all of this, so now gloves are off a bit, y'know?

So yeah, I hope they don't blame me, but rather the person within their own community when I say that while they purport to be the champions of the fictional character (in more ways than one, some might argue), the 'battered housewife' Louis de Pointe du Lac, their arguments fall a little flat when they dox, harass, bully, and abuse other people in the fandom. Real people with real lives There is a subsection of this fandom who has seen my sister's abuse, curently in court, as only an avenue to cause myself and her, by proxy of that, further abuse, and the fact that nobody on that side of the fandom, felt the need to say a thing, while obviously, nakedly, stalking my blog, told me everything I need to know.

Because these bad actors within these spaces don't care about abuse. They don't give a shit about victim-survirors. They don't care about gender. They're sycophants and they're hypocrites. What they care about is that their fetish might become normal enough to become canon, and it won't be, so now they're lashing out at everyone who has ever exhibited an alternative. It's an ugly approach to fandom, particularly a fandom that carved them a heady, dominating space, adnd their now approach is one with what I interpet as a fascist outlook, as I said in the last post, but their flagrant disregard for real life, particularly the real life of a real abuse victim in my sister, reveals their hand in full.

As long as people in the fandom, especially those with shared interests, are silent about these people, as long as they enable people who literally act as child predators, as long as they enable the doxxers, the harassers, the suppressers - they are complicit in enforcing a culture of fascism in this fandom.

I'm going to try and get a bit louder about it, I hope some of you might too.

[bnhaobservation]

@biggibbins said:

My take on the 'retcon' I think it's more of a "what is seen in the shadow is often misunderstood by the mind of a child" kinda thing yk? Because both Touya and Shoto were children when they last saw thier mother, and there is litterly NO way for Dabi or Shoto to know that information(same goes for Dabi accusing his father of forcing his mother to have children) Rei isn't the type to discuss such things with her children so my guess on it is Dabi and Shoto making assumptions instead of retcon.[i hope that made sense] Also with the flowers; is it not possible to greenhouse them to get the result of them blooming/staying the same out of season?[i know nothing about plants]

Don't worry, it makes sense and it's a possible Watsonian explanation, but it comes with some problems.

From a Doylist angle, generally, when an author uses this trick he also reveals it's a trick. As in he let the characters involved know they remember wrong or have someone who's aware of the truth say they can't reveal it to them. Here neither Enji nor Rei (Touya also told his mother that her parents sold her) correct Touya's belief or give us a reason on why it was better if Touya were to think so.

Also, another thing to consider is that chapter 301 originally wasn't planned at all. When Shouto told his own past, Horikoshi hadn't planned Touya yet, and originally Enji wasn't supposed to live long enough to take part to the second war, and, very likely this also means it would have been only Shouto who would have faced Touya in battle, not the whole family.

If chapter 301 originally weren't meant to exist, if Touya as a Villain was created after Shouto told us of his past, this means when Shouto explained things to Midoriya the Todoroki family's past was meant to be very different.

We know that the Todoroki family's past was retconned more than once, Shouto's prototype was changed to give us our current Shouto, Horikoshi in chapter 302 first messed up and said Rei was hospitalized AFTER Touya burned, when he had Fuyumi said if was PRIOR to it, and then he had to retcon the scene for the volume version.

Honestly I have doubts thinking when Shouto told Midoriya about his past, Horikoshi already planned to have him be mistaken because at the time he was a child.

If we move to the Watsonian angle instead, Touya was made aware at 4 that he was born to fulfil his father's dream. It's not something Touya says, we've Rei saying Touya now knew why they had him, likely this happened when they discussed the problems Touya had with his Quirk with the doctor, meaning they might have explained him of the Quirk marriage.

It's canon for some reason they discussed WHY Touya was born in front of Touya. Touya is also not so small when he last saw Rei as he was almost 14 and, as said before, he discussed with his mother how his grandparents sold her, with Rei never telling him he was mistaken.

It would also be pretty weird for Touya and Shouto, who canonically couldn't interact together, to make the exact same assumption without the slightest basis.

Note that Touya never said Enji forced Rei to have children, he said he forced Rei to marry him.

If we want to try to smooth the retcon into something that could work in canon, Rei's parents needed to be persuaded because they originally wanted to marry Rei with someone else, then Enji waltzed in and they changed their mind. Rei being forced doesn't mean being dragged into that marriage kicking and screaming but being pushed into it by social conventions.

In the same way as Touya, who is Enji's firstborn, would be expected by society to inherit his father's job, and the fact he can't makes him a failure in society's eyes, Rei, as the Himura's daughter, was expected to be a good daughter and help her poor family and marry Enji and give him the children he wanted.

Still, this post is pretty hold... I've discussed a little better Enji and Rei's marriage here.

As for the Gentians... I couldn't find info about greenhouses growing them out of season. I guess it's not impossible but, as I can't find info about them, I can't tell for sure.

Said all this, if you prefer to theorize that Touya and Shouto are simply making assumptions, please, don't let me stop you and sorry for the long rambling. I just love to talk about the Todoroki family.

BNHA Observations, speculations and assorted info: Pre-marriage Todoroki Enji (Part 2)

So, in order to write my fic, I spend much time observing canon scenes, comparing the manga and the anime version, take note of details, translations and info in them as well as finding out how are some things called.

Since what I noticed/speculated/found out can be of use for other fic authors I thought to share as well.

Resources:

Chap. 301 "The Wrong Way to Put Out a Fire, Part 1" (火の不始末前編Hi no Fushimatsu Zenpen) Chap. 31 "The Boy Born with Everything" (全てを持って生まれた男の子 Subete o Motte Umareta Otoko no Ko) Chap. 302 "The Wrong Way to Put Out a Fire, Part 2" (火の不始末後編 Hi no Fushimatsu Kōhen) Chap. 187 "Flaming Roar! vs. Nomu: High-End" (燃えよ轟け！VS 脳無：ハイエンド Moeyo Todoroke! vs. Nōmu: High-End) Chap. 387 "Congealing" (煮凝り 'Nikogori')

Ep. 130 "The Wrong Way to Put Out a Fire" (火の不始末 Hi no Fushimatsu) Ep. 19 "The Boy Born with Everything" (全てを持って生まれた男の子 Subete o Motte Umareta Otoko no Ko) Ep. 88 "His Start" (始まりの Hajimarino)

School Briefs I "Notice from School"

OBSERVATIONS, SPECULATIONS AND ASSORTED INFO:

As of now we only have two more scenes which depict Enji pre marriage, the first being his 'Miai' with Rei and the second being their first 'date'.

The scene are flashbacks placed while Enji is at the hospital so first let's look at...

THE FULL SEQUENCE AS IT IS IN THE MANGA

So now let's focus solely on the scene in question and, since it has been transposed in anime version (and the anime added scenes) let's have a...

COMPARISON BETWEEN THE MANGA AND THE ANIME

The anime starts by adding more scenery, we see what could be the Himura house, which is also a traditional Japanese house... though with all the green it has around it seems its garden is a lot bigger than the one of the Todoroki mansion.

Actually it might also not be the Himura mansion but some place they have chosen for the meeting but it seems more a traditional Japanese house than anything else and the Himura used to be wealthy so they might still have their old residence and anyway... who knows?

The anime gives us also a close up of the Shishiodoshi (鹿威し literally, "deer-frightening" or "boar-frightening") device or Sōzu (添水 "Adding water") fountain, a bamboo water funtain originally derived by a devices to frighten away animals that pose a threat to agriculture and who's currently part of the visual and aural design of gardens, and are used primarily for their aesthetic value.

We also see the Soribashi (反り橋 "Arched bridge"), a red arched bridge, over a pond (probably a Koike (鯉池 "koi pond") filled with Koi (鯉) carps, or, more specifically, Nishikigoi (錦鯉 “brocaded carp”) carps.

'Jiki No.1 no yobigoe takai Endeavor-sama kara o koe kake itadakeru to wa yume ni mo omoi masendeshita! Gyōkō no kiwami ni gozaimasu!!' 「次期No.1の呼び声高いエンデヴァー様からお声掛けいただけるとは夢にも思いませんでした！僥倖の極みにございます！！」 "I never dreamed that I would be approached by Endeavor, who has been hailed as the next No. 1! We are at the height of luck!!"

The anime shows Rei's father bowing to Enji while the dialogue has him calling Endeavor-sama. He uses his Hero name and the -sama (様) suffix which is highly respectful.

Interesting enough, even if Enji is marrying Rei because he doesn't think he can surpass All Might, according to Rei's father there's many people who think he'll do it.

All Might and Endeavor have around 10 years of difference as, during the final fight with All for One All Might says he's more than halfway through 50 while Enji should be 46.

In chap 165 Enji has said at 20 he figured out he couldn't surpass All Might, and we know Touya was born when he was 22 so, considering Touya should have been conceived when he was 21, either he's still 20 or he's just turned 21 and he and Rei will have a fast marriage.

On another side, Rei's father never mention Enji also coming from a prestigious family, just that he's the Number 2 Hero and, possibly, will become the Number 1, which might hint to how Enji didn't come from an equally prestigious family and make a name for himself after he became a Hero.

The anime partially shows us Rei's father's face. In teh manga he's just a black shadow but he gives me the feeling Horikoshi planned him to look different than in the anime.

The anime changes the background a little, in the manga there's a scroll on the wall, in the anime we see white Fusuma (襖) doors, vertical rectangular panels which can slide from side to side (they're often painted with scenery but not in this case).

Also the glass window in the manga is close while in the anime is open.

They are in a Washitsu (和室) room, a Japanese-style room with a Tatami (畳) mat flooring and they're sitting on Zaisu (座椅子) chairs, Japanese chairs with a back and no legs.

In the garden there's also a Ishi-dōrō (石灯籠 "stone lantern"') lantern, a lantern made of stone in its Yukimi doro (織部灯籠 "Snow-viewing Lantern") variant. The customary placement is at the edge of land and water and the original Japanese character describing this lantern may have meant ”floating light”.

The anime adds Rei's father turning toward her but doesn't show Rei looking at the side. She's just staring down. As for Enji he seems to frown a little.

The group is drinking tea. In the manga they're probably using normal Chawan (茶碗 "tea bowl") bowls, traditional Japanese bowls used for preparing and drinking tea.

In the anime though they seem to be using the Chinese Gaiwan (盖碗) bowls, Chinese lidded bowls without a handle, used for the infusion of tea leaves and the consumption of tea, which consists of a bowl, a lid, and a saucer and they are still used by tea connoisseurs all around the world, as a simple piece of teaware that gives the brewer a lot of control over the tea.

I might be wrong though, maybe they're just Chawan bowls or maybe the Himura are using their best tea set, which happens to be a Chinese one.

The anime then adds exposition from Enji's point of view.

'Ichiō, miai to iu katachi o totte wa iruga, koreha "kosei" kon' 一応、見合いという形をとってはいるが、これは"個性"婚 "Just in case, although it was made to look like an arranged marriage meeting, this was a "Quirk" marriage."

'Jishin no "kosei" o yori kyōka shite tsuga seru tame ni haigūsha o erabi, kodomo o uma seru tame no kekkon' 自身の"個性"をより強化して継がせるために配偶者を選び、子どもを産ませる為の結婚 "A marriage to have children in which the spouse is chosen in order to strengthen and pass on one's "Quirk""

'Ore wa nozonda noda. Ore no honō no "kosei" to kōri himura-ke ichizoku no kōri no "kosei" ga majiwareba, All Might o mo koeru Hero ga umidaseru to' 俺は望んだのだ。俺の炎の"個性"と氷叢家一族の氷の"個性"が交われば、オールマイトをも超えるヒーローが生み出せると I wanted it. If my fire "Quirk" and the ice "Quirk" of the Himura family were combined, I could create a hero that would surpass All Might.

'Katsute wa meikadatta Himura-ke mo ima wa aoikitoiki…' かつては名家だった氷叢家も今は青息吐息… "The Himura family, which was once a prestigious family, was now in deep distress…"

'No.2 Hero no chii to meiyo, soshite djisankin meate ni Himura-ke no tōshu wa ore no teian o assari to ukeireta' No.2ヒーローの地位と名誉、そして持参金目当てに氷叢家の当主は俺の提案をあっさりと受け入れた "The head of the Himura family easily accepted my proposal, aiming for the status and prestige of the No. 2 hero, as well as the dowry."

'Kotowaru koto mo dekita hazuda' 断る事もでき��ハズだ "She could have refused."

'Daga kanojo wa "kosei" kondearu koto mo shōchi no ue de, ie no tame ni ore no tsuma ni naru to iu' だが彼女は"個性"婚である事も承知の上で、家の為に俺の妻になると言う "However, even if she was aware that it was a "Quirk" marriage, and said that she will become my wife for the sake of her family."

So... this exposition remarks it's a Quirk Marriage but they don't quite want to admit it so they make it pass for an arranged marriage. Because if your family sells you off but it's not for the purpose to strenghten your husband's Quirk, it's so much better. -_-

Anyway at the meeting there's just Enji, Rei and the "family head" (当主 'tōshu'), which is generally assumed to be Rei's father (but it could have been her grandfather if he was still alive... or her brother if her father died prematurely).

Generally in arranged marriages, or better in the 'Miai' (見合い, "matchmaking"), the marmatching meetings made to organize arranged marriages there's either a mediator or the parents of the two who're meant to marry. Enji though is alone. We can speculate that Rei's mother (whom we know is alive) is absent because she's preparing more tea or retrieving sweets... but Enji went there alone and we'll never, through the whole story, hear about his mother.

Maybe she died too.

While in the manga the family head only sounds honoured to receive Enji's proposition in the anime he looks at Rei greedily, as if instead than Rei she's saying a stack of bills. I feel bad for Rei.

On a sidenote this clashes a bit with how Shouto presented the whole thing back in the past. Shouto made it look as if they were pressured into agreeing to him marrying Rei...

...while in the manga they just seem glad he asked to marry her and in the anime they seem delighted to sell her to him.

Also the anime in this scene and the manga in another scene implied Rei could still have refused. She was likely pressured but could still say no, while Shouto paints it as if she and her family had no choice but to sell her off... though it can be a matter of translation.

'Jisseki to kin dake wa aru otokoda… Oyaji wa haha no shinzoku o marumekomi' 「実績と金だけはある男だ... 親父は母の親族を丸め込み」 "He is a man with accomplishments and money. . . My old man won over/seduced/persuaded my mother's relatives"

'Marumekomi' (丸め込み) seems to have a not so positive implication as it's used to imply you manage to talk someone into doing what you want, as if the Himura didn't really want to sell Rei and needed to be persuaded.

Tōya too also seem to imply the Himura were forced into selling Rei...

'Endeavor wa katsute chikara ni kogarete imashita. 「エンデヴァーはかつて力に焦がれていました」 "Endeavor was once thirsty for power."

'Soshite All Might o koe renai zetsubō kara yori tsuyoi "kosei" o motta ko o tsukuru tame' 「そしてオールマイトを超えれない絶望からより強い"個性"を持った子を作る為」 "And out of despair of not being able to surpass All Might, in order to create a child with a stronger "Quirk"

'Muriyari tsuma o metorimashita' 「無理やり妻を娶りました」 "He took a wife by force"

Tōya uses 'muriyari' (無理やり), which means "Forcibily, against one's will".

In the manga he'll also say (without Rei correcting him)...

'Obāchan-tachi ga binbō shi tetakara okāsan o uttandaro' 「おばあちゃん達が貧乏してたからお母さんを売ったんだろ」 "Grandmother and the others were poor so they sold mother, isn't that it?"

'Okāsan wa sō suru shika nakattandaro' 「お母さんはそうするしかなかったんだろ」 "Mother had no choice but to do that, isn't that it?"

Here it doesn't say his father forced them to sell his mother, but that his grandparents did it because they were poor and insists on how Rei "had no choices" (しかなかった 'shikanakatta')... which Rei doesn't deny with him but will later deny in an inner monologue.

'Sentakushi wa kagira rete itakeredo' 選択肢は限られていたけれど "Although my options were limited"

'Erande susunda no wa watashi no ashi de' 選んで進んだのは私の足でーーー "I chose to move forward with my feet."

'Semete sono-sakide wa waratte iyou to' せめてその先では笑っていようと "At least I'll try to smile there"

'Omotte ita no ni...' 思っていたのにーーー… "That's what I was thinking…"

She claims she had limited options but, confirming Enji's words, she still could choose.

I should probably say that the impression I get from Tōya first saying it was Enji who forced Rei to marry against her will (same as Shouto), and then him instead choosing to blame his grandparents for Rei's marriage, with Enji and, more important, Rei, feels like a retcon (and since this chapter already contained a retcon in its magazine version I wouldn't be surprised if this was the case here as well).

Of course we can excuse it with an 'at the time Tōya was still longing for Enji's love and didn't want to blame him too much...' only to remember he was blaming him in that same chapter in his chat with Natsuo so... whatever.

And, in addition to this, there's also the narrator in "School Briefs I: Notice from School" which says Enji "singled out his would-be wife and forced her into a Quirk marriage".

Really, this doesn't make it look like Rei even had the option to refuse... only for chap 301/302 to change the situation having Enji say she could refuse, Rei saying she chose that path for her family's sake and Tōya not blaming anymore his father but his grandparents for that marriage.

So, skipping the old bits as retconned out of the story, honestly the impression I got of the Himura from the scene was they saw this as their golden chance as soon as they were asked out so Enji didn't really have to work on being persuasive. Maybe it's just me, though we'll later learn the Himura were already into organized Quirk marriages... however their own were to strenghten their own Quirk as they tended to marry among distant relatives.

In Japan is considered incest only if you marry someone who's a second or a third degree relative so I guess they could safely marry among forth degree relatives.

Rei also will claim she

Anyway really, I doubt Enji had to do much work to persuade the Himura and, if he hadn't shown up, her family would have still likely try to organize her marriage so...

The anime cuts Enji's pouting face as he and Rei walks around the place.

The flowers Rei is watching are Gentians.

In the series we see Enji gifting them to Rei in November as she has them during the Second Hero Billboard chart which takes place in November but she also has them during the Paranormal Liberation War which takes place in March.

Now, we can assume the first kind of Gentians Rei has are likely the ‘gentiana scabra’, a specie of gentian with a blue (青色)/purple color (紫色), also called Japanese Gentian. In Japan their name is Rindō (リンドウ/竜胆) and well, they're basically The Gentian in Japan as when you mean to say just gentian in Japan you say 'Rindō'.

However this comes with a problem. In Japan the ‘gentiana scabra’ blossoms in Autumn, from September to November... so it's fine for Enji to gift them to Rei in November for the Hero Billboard chart... but it would be difficult to do the same in March, before/after the Paranormal Liberation War,

The alternative is that the second gentian we see, the one she's holding in March is actually a 'gentiana zollingeri' or Fude Rindō (フデリンドウ), another gentian typical of Asia which is either white or blue and whose flowering period is Spring, usually from April to May... but the problem is I've heard this gentian is usually quite small so... no idea. For now I'll let the guessing to who knows more about gentians than me.

Now let's focus a moment on what Rei says...

'Kono ohana watashi ga suki tte itta no' 「このお花私が好きって言ったの」 "I told him I like/love these flowers"

'？' 「？」 "？"

'Hajimete atta koro tatta ichido' 「初めて会った頃たった一度」 "Only once when we first met"

Actually, the Japanese text in this scene matches more with how we saw it being played out. In the flashback Rei never said they were her favourite flowers and here she confirms she only told him she liked/loved them.

Anyway, according to this scene, this mean they have that walk in which they saw the gentians on their first meeting.

And that's all we know about Enji pre marriage form the manga.

[rainintheevening]

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie is so much better when I put it in the context of Peter being just about to turn 18, and Edmund is wrestling with that, trying to prepare himself to let Peter go (even though he's already done one term at school without him), and trying to stand on his own without Peter, figure out just who he is without his brother.

I think the implication in the movie is that Peter went to America too, but forget that. Peter's visiting Professor Kirke for the summer, at his little cottage in the country, and working on a farm as well as getting tutoring for university entrance exams, even though he knows he's not going to be going in for a few years, or however long the war lasts.

Ed hates the idea of Peter going off to war without him. Lucy is feeling left behind by everyone (parents and Su in America, Peter on the verge of becoming a soldier, and Ed wanting to join him).

Ed by turns latching onto and getting annoyed at Caspian, because he's not Peter, but it's like having Peter there, and Caspian doesn't understand what he and Peter have, but Ed can see how much Caspian wishes for a brother, and they do become that for each other in the end.

Ed wielding Rhindon at the end, Peter's sword in his hand, like Peter hasn't left him after all, and Peter's love and Aslan’s promise are louder and brighter than any ghost or sea serpent ever could be.

Lucy shooting with Susan's bow, because she doesn't have to be Susan (or Peter or Ed) to be like her in protecting the people she loves, she just has to use what Aslan has given her.

Ed knowing he's gonna go back to England and Peter's going to come celebrate his birthday with them before he signs up, so he hugs Caspian extra hard, because Caspian's going to have to go on alone too.

(But not alone, no. They have the Lion's promise. They all do.)

[arcanegifs]

ARCANE LEAGUE OF LEGENDS: 2x03 - “Finally Got The Name Right”

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

At your side [End of Season 2]

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[sskk-manifesto]

Bungou Stray Dogs: Dead Apple and how “ability users” (opposite to “normal people”) learning to accept themselves through the acceptance of their own abilities is a queer metaphor of acceptance of own's sexual orientation and gender: an essay by me

[heyaritou]

"I'm so relieved…"

[aliferousdreamer]

so i've been rewatching season 4 of the next step for the first time in years and hoooo boy do i have a lot to say t