#idk I understand why other people may like portraying characters as still being evil or being jerks to each other
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sweetandglovelyart · 4 months ago
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A little art/comic announcement: While Knightfall in Dream Land is still in progress and I’m still working on that I’ve also started plotting out the storylines for both the Daroach backstory comic and the Susie redemption arc comic that I want to do.
Before I started drawing Knightfall in Dream Land I did some very simple pencil sketches with dialogue written on them to get an idea for the direction the story of the comic would go in and get an estimate of how long the finished comic would likely be/how many pages it would likely have. That’s the stage I’m at right now with the Daroach comic and Susie comic. I’m planning to start posting actual pages for both of these comics in January 2025, because I want to get a little bit further into Knightfall in Dream Land first before I launch the new comics. The final length may vary a little bit depending on whether or not I decide to add more stuff or change some of the dialogue I’ve plotted out, but when Knightfall in Dream Land is finished I’m estimating that it’ll be around 34-36 pages, so I’d like to maybe get to page 20 or so before I start posting the new comics. Knowing how slowly I update I’ll probably hit page 20 around late December of this year so January is likely when I’ll be launching the new comics.
Like I’ve mentioned before I’m also still very busy with grad school stuff (I’m working very hard to finish up my PhD in the next year and hopefully get a job lined up if I can so I don’t have to live with my parents when I graduate) so comic updates might get even slower than they already are in the coming months. Thank you to everyone who’s been reading the comic even though I update it really slowly, it really means a lot to me to see people enjoying what I’ve created, and I hope you’ll enjoy the new comics too when I eventually start posting them.
#text post#Kirby#my art#I’m still plotting out the storylines for the Daroach comic and the Susie comic but I have some tentative title ideas for both of them#I’m thinking of calling the Daroach comic Second Chances and I’m thinking of calling the Susie comic Incorporated#I have a lot of affection for Squeak Squad as a game since it was the first Kirby game I ever played#and it was one of my favorite childhood DS games in general#so I thought it’d be fun to give a little backstory to Daroach and the other Squeaks#and I know that Susie is a kind of divisive character in the fandom but I really like her and find her interesting#and I always see people complaining that she’s not properly redeemed or is still evil#so I thought it’d be interesting to come up with a redemption plot for her#in my Kirby AU in general I’m portraying most of the characters as no longer being evil or villainous#like they may do shady or immoral things at times but overall most of them got some character development and became better people#the main theme of my AU the SweetVerse AU is kindness/friendship#so basically Kirby was kind to all of these people and it inspired them to be kinder and do better#idk I understand why other people may like portraying characters as still being evil or being jerks to each other#but I personally don’t feel like that’s very fun and I feel like it’s a bit overdone I want to do something a bit different with my AU#I think it’s more fun to consider how all the characters would interact as friends/what that dynamic would be like#instead of just writing about or drawing them always antagonizing each other#I also feel like portraying certain characters as still being jerks literally undoes character development they get during their games#idk I just personally don’t find it very fun or interesting to portray everyone as being assholes to each other#I think the friendship angle is more fun and interesting but that’s just me#doesn’t mean they won’t tease or antagonize each other from time to time but it’s all in good fun it’s not malicious
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spacerockfloater · 9 months ago
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Why the fuck does Laena Velaryon, who is canonically younger than Rhaenyra Targaryen in the show, look like a fucking 20-year-old in episode 5 while Rhaenyra, her elder, still looks fucking 13? Why the actual fuck did they change the YOUNGER girl’s actress and made her look older, but it’s okay for Rhaenyra to continue looking like a preteen? I’ll tell you why.
They’re trying to distract us from the fact that creepy ass Daemon is courting a 14-year-old. A FOURTEEN YEAR OLD. Rhaenyra is 15 in episode 1 and Laena is 12, meaning they have a 3 year age gap. Then, Viserys tells Rhaenyra that she must marry since she’s 17 now, making Laena 14, maybe 15 at best. So they obviously can’t afford having Daemon thirst over a child again, therefore this is a shitty attempt to cover up the fact that Laena still is a very fucking young child.
HBO what is this? Why do your casting choices indicate that you’re trying to use some kind of ageist technique to manipulate your viewers? Why are the supposedly good guys, Rhaenyra and her children, portrayed by very young actors? Is this to show how innocent and pure they are? Why are the characters who are supposedly evil, Aegon and Aemond, or the character for whom we shouldn’t worry too much about since she’s just a tool for Daemon’s story line to develop, Laena, portrayed by obviously older actors even though they’re all supposed to be kids? Because the youth = good people and old = bad people analogy is fucking gross and lowkey paedophilic. Not to mention how weird it is to make all the black girls in the show look like fucking grown ups. What kind of racist bullshit is this?
I can’t understand HBO’s decisionmaking for the love of me. Like, on the one hand, it’s so obvious that they’re forcing Daemon and Rhaenyra down our throats, to the point that I actually laughed out loud when the show runner said “he doesn’t get why people like Daemon”. Like, my guy, you MADE the show. You made him look like an appealing, dangerous, sexy, strong, victorious and mysterious man, so what do you mean you don’t get the appeal? On the other hand though, most of the actions that they allow Daemon to perform are so horrifying that it makes it impossible for a sane person to stand beside him and defend him. Like, they try to sugarcoat that he’s an abusive piece of shit yeah, but they somehow don’t shy away from the fact that he’s terrible? Are they doing both of these things on purpose? Are they trying to challenge the viewer, to show us how abusers, despite being openly deranged, still have their way of dazzling their victims, the average person, and hypnotising them with their charm? Is Daemon doing to us (and by us I mean you Daemon stans, not me, stay safe though) what he’s doing to Rhaenyra and Laena? Are the show producers testing the average viewer’s intelligence and ability to recognise an abuser? Will there be a lesson to be learned?
I would like to hope so but I highly doubt it, because while one could support this theory by arguing that changing Laena’s actress is an attempt to mask Daemon’s degenerative nature a bit so that it isn’t completely obvious that he’s a bad man, someone else could counter this argument by saying that we’ve already seen Daemon groom a minor so this wouldn’t be something new. We’ve seen him do much more violent crimes actually, so why shy away from the fact he’s a groomer when we are already aware of this? Idk man, I really want to think that HBO is trying to make us see that Daemon is an evil person, but then indirectly glorifying him constantly makes me believe they just want people to root for him.
P.S. I may anger a lot of people by saying this, so I’ll make myself clear by stating that I love and greatly respect actors who specialise in portraying evil characters, because doing so and not losing yourself is a challenge (*cough* Leto *cough*) but if done correctly, it’s a true showcase of one’s talent and hard work. Lee, De Niro, Hopkins, Bardem and Rickman are just a few to name. However, Matt Smith has never rubbed me the right way. No hate to the guy, I don’t even know him, but I’ve seen him play the villain in three separate occasions (HOTD, Last Night in Soho, Morbius) and I just get these weird vibes, but I usually told myself it’s just my imagination running wild. However, I recently found out that Smith claimed that Daemon is a loyal man who loves deeply and that his “heir for a day” brothel feast was his way of honouring Aema, which really disturbed me for obvious reasons. I don’t know if he said this because he’s trying to defend his character and by extension himself, or if he just wants to promote the show, or if he doesn’t understand Daemon or if he funnily enough has fallen victim to his own character’s charm and I don’t care because it is a dangerous thing to say. Painting this character, the arrogant, obnoxious, self serving, people slaughtering, wife murdering, backstabbing, abusing, grooming, lying, manipulating, war criminal of a man, in such a positive light while being a man yourself, knowing that most of this character’s supporters are young impressionable women who just find him hot, makes me lowkey wanna cover my drink in his presence, I don’t know.
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nicki0kaye · 1 year ago
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I've been thinking a while about why this became a thing, and there's been a lot of great posts about it, but I want to try and untangle where this misconception may have sprung from.
We know for a fact that if one has access to media that portrays a minority group as respectable AND entertaining, the audience is more likely to form a positive parasocial relationship with that character and carry that parasocial relationship into the real world. Will and Grace had a big impact on the general American population getting comfy with the idea of Gay ppl just being People who are Gay. This is, to the best of my understanding, what's at the core of 'Representation Matters'. If you show an outside group favorably, there are real world benefits. Negative portrayals of minority groups also have direct, real world consequences, mostly by reinforcing biases and unspoken reasons why the minority group doesn't deserve respect. Good intentioned portrayals can still reflect negative cultural assumptions about a group.
This is where I think good intentioned teens and other literal thinkers get hung up. Because a 'good' portrayal can have real world benefits and a 'bad' portrayal can have real world consequences, obviously we want more good shit and should shun and avoid bad shit. Instead of this being a general rule of thumb, its a black and white issue where any 'bad' attributes immediately knocks a piece of media out of the 'good' category, when...that's not how media works. There's also the flattening between characters and real people inherent to this kind of thinking; if you don't treat every gay character like a 'real' person, ie portray them favorably in ur piece of media, you hate real gay people.
Applying the knowledge this way has fucked everything up, bc it ignores a super important part of Why Representation Matters; it helps convert assholes. People who already know gay ppl are just normal ass ppl don't need to have their hands held or be coaxed gently towards the conclusion that everyone deserves basic human rights. Gay ppl obviously benefit from seeing themselves reflected in media, but that INCLUDES 'negative' portrayals in a way that would-be converts cannot benefit. The converts are still freshmen in Ethics 101 and everyone else is speeding through their AP college electives.
ultimately, the characters and what happen to them Do Not Matter, if you're mature enough to realize Fictional Characters and Real Life People are two completely separate groups. One of them are objects by default and the other are subjects by default. We want less assholes treating real human beings like objects, because it is always, always the real world ppl who matter the most.
Messy, awful, fucked up media exists for a reason. It inherently serves an emotional regulatory function. It is helpful for us as humans to experience scary, fucked up things from the safety of an observer/audience. It is helpful to express awful feelings and beliefs through fiction bc it can help process those things without endangering Real People. The problem has Never Been the messy, awful, fucked up media. It Has Always Been people using that media as an excuse to be asshole to real ppl, either intentionally or unintentionally. This is why fetishes are fine so long as every Real Person involved has consented. The second you transpose your fetish onto someone who did not sign up to be your fetish object, that's the very second you become an asshole no one wants around. That is literally the line. Making the media is not an inherently evil act, consuming that media is not an inherently evil act, Treating Real People like shit is fucking evil, so don't maybe, idk
I really think everyone needs to truly internalize this:
Fictional characters are objects.
They are not people. You cannot "objectify" them, because they have no personhood to be deprived of. They have no humanity to be erased. You cannot "disrespect" them, because they are not real.
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anzcty · 3 years ago
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Analysing Episode 6 Sylvie - her actions, her choice and a whole bunch of theories (Spoilers!)
After watching the Loki finale, I have been scrolling through Tumblr for quite a long time. I already knew that people's opinions were gonna be incredibly different but I definitely did not expect this much negative backlash. Especially when it comes to two specific topics - the Sylvie and Loki kiss and Sylvie's betrayal (/choice/actions). I'm gonna be talking about the latter, for it is another time I'll talk a lot about Sylki's relationship. (Beware that this post is also really long though)
First of all, everyone has different opinions and I respect that. I absolutely adore movies, books, TV-shows and videogames because despite what's happening within the story, each viewer has the opportunity to see something else in what they are shown (besides the obvious canon). What I mean is that everyone interprets certain scenes differently and gains the opportunity to make up theories. Therefore I want to clarify that I do, by no means, want to force my views upon others. It's nice to see people talk about the Loki Series (as long as it doesn't get too negative and hateful, iykwim) because every viewer can share their specific experiences with it :)
I'm gonna analyse Sylvie's character a bit ( because, well, I'm bored and I kinda wanna protect my beloved character that I've only had for a few weeks >:^0 AND the only thing I could think about the past day was this episode) and try to explain her actions in the finale (keep in mind: not justifying them, but explaining them).
I'm terribly bad at concentrating on one single topic point so I kinda made a 'list' with questions and whatnot that I wanted to dive deeper into. Your thoughts are also more than welcome!
I already want to apologise for grammatical mistakes, for I am not a native english speaker.
Sylvie's reason for being taken away by the TVA is still kinda unknown
You know, I've heard quite a few theories about Sylvie's nexus event by now. Some people say that she got taken away because she was playing with her toys in a way that indicates her having a good heart (playing as a Valkyrie and wanting to save someone, another hint may also be the reaction she showed towards someone else who got kidnapped by the TVA, yelling at the soldiers to "help them out"). Another theory is that she already knew she was adopted, unlike Loki who found out way later than her. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but we never got to hear the actual reason why Sylvie got kidnapped. Even Renslayer didn't say a word about it.
Now I'm gonna come up with yet another theory. What if Sylvie didn't really have a nexus event in the first place how we know it? In the final episode, Kang has said that he has planned out everything beforehand so both Loki and Sylvie would end up right in front of him. Did Kang's plan also possibly involve him getting killed by Sylvie? Hear me out: We don't actually know if the Kang we saw in episode 6 is the actual 'nice' Kang and not one of his evil variants. He has already talked about 'reincarnation', so who says that after ending the first universial war, Kang didn't reincarnate into someone with an unpure heart (aka, one of his evil variants)? That'd mean that the real Kang would have been killed and the Kang we've seen in the finale is actually an evil version that simply lied to both Loki and Sylvie. Besides that, we also don't know if Kang actually had that 'point' where he didn't know what would happen next. The show revolves a whole lot around trust, not only regarding the characters, but also the viewers. Who's to say that Kang said the truth? Maybe he planned it all out: He created the TVA, let Sylvie get kidnapped and therefore give her a reason to hunt after Kang, who in return could reincarnate if he got killed OR get killed and therefore give his other variants a possibility to conquer the universes yet again. Don't you think that it was kinda suspicious that Sylvie escaped so easily out of Renslayer's hands? The one person who's probably closest to Kang? (Even though, yes, she doesn't know who he is but Renslayer seems to play a very important role in his plan). What if the Kang we saw was the nice Kang though? Would he plan everything up to a point where another universial war would break out because he might know that there is indeed something/someone out there who could end it and therefore, possibly end Kang as a whole or create a new kind of system revolving around the universe? And therefore, get rid of the possibility of another universial war happening? Who knows. I am definitely overthinking and reaching at this point. One more thing that stood out to me while thinking about the episode again today (which kinda weighs more into my theory of Sylvie being a keypoint (or rather a puppet) in this plan): Kang has talked about his Tempad and that he knew that he would need it to have enough energy. But for what? Yes, his initial idea was to give it to Loki and Sylvie to rule over the TVA, but what if it was supposed to be used for another reason? Sylvie used it to transport Loki back to the TVA (though I kinda think he was accidentally transported to another timeline, hence the reactions of both Mobius and Hunter B-15) and therefore get rid of the only thing that could prevent Sylvie from killing Kang. The Tempad was used to secure Sylvie's path and therefore eradicated Kang's only option of safety. You can see the Tempad loosing it's glow after Kang was killed, possibly due to Kang himself being the origin of it's energy. But maybe, it only had enough energy for one specific action: getting rid of Kang's protection. I do think that Sylvie is now stuck at this place and somehow has to find a way back to Loki's reality. The Tempad clearly doesn't work anymore (at least in my opinion) and there was quite a long shot showing the Tempad up close, which is kinda suspicious tbh. Also, something regarding Sylvie's unanswered nexus event feels kinda odd to me, too.
My theory in conclusion: Sylvie (and Loki) are unconciously helping Kang with his plan (a big, big, BIG plan). They're his puppets, especially Sylvie, because she's the one who created the Multiverse to begin with. Think about Loki, who was said to be manipulated by Thanos in Avengers? It's basically the same train of thoughts.
Sylvie does not take Kang's offer into consideration
To be honest, this was something to be absolutely expected of her. Sylvie was kidnapped as a child, taken away from her home and family, and had to grow up in countless apocalypses where she could never form a real bond with anybody because she knew that those people were all going to die anyway. (Please don't judge me if I got that wrong, maybe I understood the next thing wrong? Idk, if so, I'm very sorry) She revealed that she was kidnapped way before Loki was even born (something I have to think about, too, because, if Loki is the actual Loki the other variants are based off, why did he exist after Sylvie? Wouldn't that make him a variant of Sylvie instead? Idk timelines and parallel universes are hard to understand for me :') I'm kinda stoopid ), therefore she must've had spent several decades of her life running away. She had no life at all. Her only goal was to bring down the TVA and whoever is behind it, driven by pure rage, seeking out revenge for stealing her life and basically forbidding her existence. And now that she has found said person, the only thing that'd be right for her character would be to go for the kill. As immoral as it may sound, it is the only thing that makes sense. And I am actually very happy that Sylvie's goals didn't change besides the fact that she did indeed soften up a little and has gotten someone really close to her. In contrary, it makes sense for Loki to do the exact opposite. His goals have changed. He does not act the way he did in Thor or Avengers anymore. He has found another goal for himself: to make Sylvie feel alright. He has had immense character growth and didn't take a chance to change his goals back in the Thor movies or in Avengers, (....maybe later in Thor: Ragnarok, kinda). This is exactly what I think might happen to Sylvie, too. She is at the beginning of her character arc. She doesn't take the chance to change her goal, but goes for her original goal instead. Said goal does not really have positive consequences (though, maybe it might have some? We're about to find out), which results in a so called 'negative character development', which Loki has already gone through. I think that Sylvie is gonna grow as a character in season 2 and get a positive character development in addition, just like Loki did. I highly doubt that she's gonna become the antagonist, it does not make sense at this point.
Why does she not take Kang's offer (besides her very obvious intention ofc)? That leads straight (or not so straight, pun intended) to the next thing I wanna talk about. Sylvie's distrust in everything and everyone. Besides not wanting to let other people go through what she has been gone through and wanting to let people have a free will, she also does not trust Kang with his offer of 'ruling' the timeline. And it might be because she also does not trust the one she'd be ruling with: Loki.
Why does Sylvie not trust Loki?
I don't even have a specific answer to that, except that Sylvie has an incredibly thick wall built up around her. Loki has always been portrayed as the one you should not trust because he's known for backstabbing people. Loki could have thought the same about Sylvie, but he didn't. Due to his character arc, he himself has learned to trust other people and tries to redeem himself with making himself a person others can trust (He may project that onto Sylvie, meaning that he puts his trust into a Loki variant and therefore in himself, too). You can connect that fact with both Sylvie and Mobius. They're both people who are incredibly important to Loki. He wants them to trust him. He openly told Sylvie about his mistakes and tells her that he's not that person anymore. Sylvie on the other hand does not trust that easily and is - in my opinion - a very important key regarding Loki's character development. It is incredibly hard for Sylvie to trust others (probably due to her trauma) and it therefore creates a very difficult situation for Loki, where he has to 'prove' himself as trustworthy. It's basically about 'trusting yourself' if you put it that way. It's something Loki has to learn about himself: not betraying the trust of others. Sylvie might have to learn something like this, too: learning to trust someone else. It's kinda like a two sided coin - one side is about putting trust in others, whereas the other is about gaining trust from others (and what you do with it). (Good) Relationships in general are always based off trust and honesty. So in order for them to be able to have healthy relationships with others and themselves, they have to learn about trust within themselves (I hope you understand my point, I got carried away, sorry). Loki started to trust Sylvie very easily (maybe because of love? Maybe because of something else? There are still a lot of unanswered questions) whereas Sylvie doesn't trust Loki very easily. Sylvie's character arc might (hopefully) carry on with this topic in the next season.
Was that kiss initiated due to emotional or practical reasons?
Kinda both, somehow. I do think that Sylvie used the kiss to her advantage but you can also clearly see how moved she is while hearing Loki's words. Facial expressions are insanely important when it comes to acting and both Tom and Sophia delivered perfectly. You might've already heard of the quote "The eyes tell more than words could ever say". Look at Sylvie's face when Loki tells her that he wants her to be okay. She is teary eyed, sighs even. She is indeed touched by his words and I strongly think that Sylvie also has non-platonic feelings for Loki, despite barely showing anything.
Here's a snippet out of an interview with Sophia:
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(Source)
Both Sylvie and Loki are said to be people who can not trust others. They both have a vulnerable side though. Loki clearly showed that several times when with Sylvie (singing to her, the blanket scene, the comfort scene in the room of the timekeepers, the confession of wanting her to be okay) and is also shown incredibly vulnerable at the end of episode 6: there are several shots showing him, crying. Sure, we have already seen Loki cry a few times beforehand but this time, it's different. He cries because the one person he is the most vulnerable with doesn't trust him, and that does hurt like hell. By the way, if you look at the close-up shot of Sylvie after she yeeted Loki back into the TVA, you can see pain in her eyes, too. But that pain quickly shifts into rage and determination. Something that I have to admit was incredibly well executed by Sophia and the people who directed this shot. Sylvie does show her vulnerable side for a brief moment before putting up her walls again and reaching for her goal.
In conclusion: I think Sylvie initiated the kiss as an emotional response to Loki's words but also used it to distract him to be able to kick him back into the TVA at the same time. Keep in mind that it was because he was in her way of fullfilling her goal. She didn't want to kill or hurt him, so she sent him away instead. So, yes, I think the kiss had both emotional and practical intentions.
Did Sylvie betray Loki?
Even though it really felt like she betrayed him, she didn't. Let me tell you why:
Loki knew exactly what Sylvie was gonna do after reaching the person behind the TVA. Loki supported her all the way up until Kang suggested a deal to them, that's where Loki's and Sylvie's paths divided. Loki is a very smart character, he outsmarts a lot of Marvel characters and therefore I think it's very in character for him to consider one part of the deal and outweigh the pros and cons. Not because he wants the throne, no, but because he wants Sylvie to be okay. A universial war could lead to countless casualties - possibly those people close around him, so of course he would want to keep her safe through that decision. Making them both rulers over the TVA and the sacred timeline would probably guarantee a strong protection from several threats. Also, maybe he thought about the possibility of Sylvie regretting her decision (which she clearly did in the end) and wanted to protect her from even more emotional pain. But as we know, Sylvie's intention has always been laid out in front of her and it didn't change. Loki knew what choice she was going to make and merely tried to change her way - without being successfull.
I don't really know what to think about this scene though. To me, it doesn't meet the requirements of a 'betrayal' but at the same time it does feel like one. It's very difficult to explain :'D
Also, I've seen some people asking themselves how or if Loki will ever be able to forgive Sylvie for making her decision. Let me assure you one thing: he will forgive her. He has said it himself: "I know what you're feeling, I know what you're going through". He has been at Sylvie's point, too. Not only once, but several times already. He seems to have learned from his mistakes, Sylvie has yet to do so. ("I betrayed everyone I've ever loved" is a line to keep in mind now, too. Maybe it could even be projected onto Sylvie this time, because Loki is indeed very dear to her) If there's someone out there who can empathise with Sylvie the most, it is Loki.
Why would Sylvie straight up cause another Universial War?
As I already said. Sylvie's arc is a negative character arc. It does not end well and causes a lot of chaos. Think about Peter Quill in Infinity War and his rage moment on Titan. They could have had the infinity gauntlet way before but Peter got emotional (understandable) and therefore destroyed the chance of an early good ending. The same happened with Sylvie. Her decision was mostly emotional, but also practical on the other hand (giving people free will and freedom). She will face the consequences and I'm pretty sure she's gonna redeem herself and tries to help fix the big mess she has caused.
Sylvie's breakdown
Another scene that was absolutely brilliant was the scene after Sylvie has killed Kang. She backs off slowly and then slumps to the ground, breathing heavily (now that I think about it, I think she even started to cry). She has waited for this moment her whole life, but now that it's done, it kinda feels like she didn't exactly get what she needed. Hunter B-15 has already mentioned it before that Sylvie needs to hunt the person behind the TVA down, unlike Renslayer, who only wants to find out who it really is. Although Sylvie might have recognized that this wasn't everything she needed at this point. We already got to know that she didn't have a clue what to do after she's done with the TVA. She didn't have a goal beyond that. And now that she has reached the point where she is clueless, she might have recognized what she really needed beyond finishing her goal: friends, a life, literally anything that doesn't make her feel alone. And she literally just kicked that one thing away from her. Loki, the one person who has been closest to her and gave her the feeling of not being alone anymore, the feeling of having a friend (or someone more than a friend), has been pushed away by herself. I think that in this exact moment where she sinks to the ground she recognizes that not trusting Loki was a mistake this time and that revenge isn't enough to satisfy her forever.
But maybe that one thing that will satisfy her for a long time is something she's returning back to in season 2. I am so excited to see her again and find out more about Sylvie's character!
Thank you so much for reading this! If you want to add something to this list or correct something or anything, feel free to do so. I'd love to hear your thoughts on Sylvie's character in the finale and what you think might happen with her in season 2 :) see y'all, stay safe and have a nice day/night!
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sunnysaylorboy · 4 years ago
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my opinion on/a surprisingly passionate defense of Mulan (2020) (SPOILERS)
I’ve seen a lot of ppl ragging on the new Mulan for so many reasons, so I will go over why these (mostly) are stupid reasons and why I love the new movie.
1. Liu Yifei supporting the Hong Kong police. Now this is not a stupid reason, this is valid. I am an East Asian studies major, and as much as I love Disney, when I first heard the news I knew I could not watch Mulan (2020) in good conscience. It went against everything I have learned in my studies, and everything I believe. However, now I am almost positive Liu Yifei was forced to make those comments- I've seen several sources saying so recently. You can look for these sources on your own, because this isn’t the whole point of my post, but I think it's true. A movie about a woman defying her government and social expectations of the time? Hong Kong citizens could absolutely use her as a symbol for protesting against China. It makes sense that the government would take preventative measures before this could happen. But anyways, I was not planning on watching Mulan (2020) until I found out that what she said was most likely fake/forced.
2. The removal of Mushu. Yes, I too miss Mushu but I completely understand why they did that. A lot of ppl make these sort of complaints about the live action remakes not using humor in the same way as the original, but that’s bc it doesn’t translate well. Humor in animated movies is exaggerated or silly, and it works in that medium but if you do the exact same in a live action film, it will come off as too slapstick. Think Will Ferrell in Elf (still a good movie). Mushu’s whole character is based off of this humor that appeals more to kids, and it would have really made the dialogue with him super cringey. and I know if they made him a more serious supportive character people would've complained about that too, so I understand why they did it.
3. The removal of Li Shang. I miss our bisexual boy too, but I actually think they did a really great job with the new guy Honghui. The directors removed Li Shang because he is in a sense, Mulan’s boss, and they felt that it was too much like the #MeToo movement, which I applaud. At first I was upset that supposedly this new character would be a jerk to Mulan until he found out she was a girl, but that's not what happened in the film fortunately. Honghui and Mulan start off on the wrong foot but they grow as comrades and sort-of friends, and Honghui is the first to stick by Mulan’s side when she reveals who she is. Even if there aren’t as many signals of him being bi, I think they progressed their relationship nicely. (I was sorta hoping for a kiss at the end though).
4. Mulan’s “chi.” Apparently people do not like that Mulan already has a sort of warrior streak inside of her already, as opposed to the 1998 version where she struggles to get used to the army. I think this is an overgeneralization. Mulan does struggle to become a soldier, as we can see in the training montage. Similar to the pole and the arrow at the top, she cannot reach the top of the mountain carrying the buckets with her arms outstretched like everyone else at first- then when she manages to do it, she knows she has proven herself. Plus, I like that they gave her more character. We don’t see any of Mulan’s childhood years in the original, so it is a little hard to understand why she is such an outcast. She only had one incident with the matchmaker and suddenly she is questioning her identity. But the 2020 version establishes that Mulan has been different from the start and everyone has known it since then. It makes it more believable that she brings dishonor on her family so easily. And just because she has strong chi doesn’t necessarily mean she is already a warrior. She is told to hide her chi as a child, and she does not tap into it easily- her commanding officers can sense something is holding her back. She is special, yes, but she isn’t “the chosen one.” She still works hard and she still relies a lot on her strategy instead of brute force just like in the animated version.
5. Lack of musical numbers. I do miss the musical numbers. But they did well with incorporating the musical themes from the original into the movie. The little “Honor to Us All” theme playing while she gets ready for the matchmaker? Perfect. The bit of “Reflection” playing when she reaches the top of mountain? Beautiful. And “Reflection” playing at the end when she is recognized as a hero? I was bawling. Also, this isn’t the first remake that Disney hasn’t made as a musical- the 2015 Cinderella did not include “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes,” (except in the credits like Mulan did), or “Bibbidi-Bobbido-Boo,” or “So This is Love.” I know that Cinderella is an older movie and may not be as beloved to this generation as Mulan, but those song are still incredibly iconic to the Disney brand and I didn't see anyone complaining about those songs being removed. Idk, I don’t think it’s a big enough deal to be upset over it, especially because they included instrumentals of the songs for the live-action version.
6. The addition of the witch. I can’t believe people are complaining about the personification of the hawk from the first movie- seriously, watch the remake and you’ll see how great Xian Liang’s character is. I love the parallels drawn between her and Mulan. Despite fighting for opposite sides, she sees herself in Mulan, and Mulan sees how she might end up if she had chosen the route of evil. I think they did it wonderfully and I’m definitely not gay for Gong Li...
7. The cost. This one, I understand. $30 is a lot to pay for a movie, but I get it because they’re losing money from not going to theaters for a few months. I paid the $30 because I felt like I had waited long enough to see it, I was foaming at the mouth the night of its release, and I had $30 I was willing to spend on it. Ofc Disney is a multi-million dollar company, so I don’t begrudge anyone pirating it bc screw capitalism.
I just had to get this off my chest because so many criticisms of this film seem so unjustified, weak, or deliberately negative. I swear, not just with Mulan, I see so many people who hate the live-action remakes- it’s like they’re trying to find things to hate about them, and I'm frankly getting sick of it. Like damn bitch why you gotta be so negative about everything?? The acting is great, the music is phenomenal and timeless, the costumes are so extravagant, the action sequences make you hold your breath in anticipation... y'all will find anything to whine about and I'm TIRED. And it seems like some of y'all are purposefully ignoring WHY they made these changes. These changes were made to adhere to the Legend of Mulan more closely, to make up for some of the racial insensitivity/cultural inaccuracies in the original, and to appeal to their Asian audience. the 1998 version is a VERY Americanized way to tell they story- so stop complaining, you got “your version” that appeals to you.
Some things I loved were
1. Mulan’s sister. It’s not often we see Disney princesses with siblings. Even though she didn’t have much screen time, I loved Xiu and the relationship she had with Mulan.
2. The phoenix symbolism. In Mulan (1998), there is heavy dragon symbolism as Mulan is preparing to run away to the army. This insinuates that Mulan is the dragon, the protector of the family, and that is why the Great Stone Dragon doesn’t awaken later. In this version, she is instead guarded and represented by a phoenix. In Chinese mythology (correct me if I'm wrong), the phoenix stands for yin and yang, harmony and is often the female counterpart to the dragon. The wings specifically represent duty, which is why the wings of the phoenix spread behind Mulan when she saves the emperor singlehandedly. Though I don’t know if they intended this, in Greek mythology the phoenix is a symbol of death and rebirth. Mulan is reborn again as Hua Jun, but ultimately in this version she is not discovered as a girl, she chooses to fight as one. The moment she does, “Hua Jun died, and Mulan was born again,” as she sees the phoenix once more. Mulan is the phoenix, and she brings harmony after defeating the Rourans. It’s beautiful.
3. The avalanche scene. A lot of the battle scene was different, but I loved that they kept in the avalanche from the original. Mulan’s planning in this one shows how big her brain is, and how well her strategy works.
4. Xian Liang and Honghui. As I already mentioned, I really loved how they portrayed these characters.
5. The fight scenes. God they really got the perfect actress to play Mulan. Liu Yifei leaning back to avoid an arrow from a Rouran? Impeccable. Mulan’s display of her techniques when she and Honghui get into it when they’re supposed to be practicing? So cool. 
All in all, I loved this movie just like I love all of the other Disney princess live-action remakes. Disney obviously spent a lot of money on the action sequences, the costumes, the backgrounds, the historical accuracies, the casting, the storyline, everything is amazing. I will definitely be watching again.
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sentientsky · 2 months ago
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YESSSS to all of this.
Bury Your Gays as a trope has been noted in media since the late 1800s, and it was often employed by queer authors looking to write queer stories and still have them published while also avoiding being arrested themselves. Execution of the trope frequently involved one party dying or being pushed to the fringes of society, and the other turning to heterosexuality (x). For instance, consider Spring Fire (1952). Of course, language can expand and change over time, so the definition might look a bit different today. As Alex pointed out,
Bury your gays is when a studio kills off a character either right after or a small while after revealing them as queer or showing aspects of a queer relationship. Bury your gays is Castiel going to superhell after telling Dean he loves him. Bury your gays is Lexa dying for no reason in literally the same episode she and Clarke get together, which meant killing one of the two only queer characters on the show. Killing Eve is bury your gays.
Neither of these definitions align with what happened in AAA. By positioning Agatha's death as nothing but an incidence of "bury your gays", we're denying the idea that queer characters can have complex, multifaceted stories which may sometimes, yes, involve death. For instance, consider Bill and Frank in HBO's The Last of Us. They both died, but they died together at the end of a long and happy life. Context matters.
Good representation doesn't just mean "perfect happily ever after wholesome uwu ending". It doesn't mean that every story has to end the same. In fact, demanding that every queer story eschew death would deny the intricacies inherent to queer experience, thereby collapsing us into a bland, uni-dimensional monolith. Which is not a vibe, honestly.
Again, we also have to consider CONTEXT. Agatha might be dead, but if we use a smidge of genre awareness, we can recognize that the fantasy setting permits her to live on as a ghost. Her story isn't over! The writers haven't thrown down their pens and gone "yep she's dead in the dirt cause she's gay. sucks to suck". No, she's living her best (after)life! And who's to say agathario won't persist even in its altered form (cue Agatha looking up at Rio with big wet ghostly eyes like "would you love me even if i were a worm? what about a ghost?") Once more, just gonna highlight this vitally important point from Alex:
The show is unapologetically queer and Agatha dying was NOT because she was queer—THAT is the defining part.
Additionally, anon idk what you were going for with your comment that,
[...] apparently nobody on team was even vaguely aware of media trends since killing off or demonizing lesbians has been a massive conversation over the last decade...
Just to clarify, how is this story demonizing lesbians? I ask this as a lesbian who watched the entire show. Death was a woman who happened to be queer. She is not demonized because of her queerness. Hell, she's not even a VILLAIN. She's just a force of nature. Agatha did some messed up stuff, sure. And she happened to also be queer. But like Rio, she's not positioned as "evil" for her queerness. I understand that queer-coded villains can have a negative impact on peoples' perceptions of our community by virtue of association. However, there was really no villain in AAA (besides Agatha's mother, of course. I hate that bitch). And regardless, if straight people can be portrayed as villains, why can't we? It's fun! It's interesting!
Glad Jac has heard us but confused that apparently nobody on team was even vaguely aware of media trends since killing off or demonizing lesbians has been a massive conversation over the last decade and the bury your gays trope in general is older than half the people working on the show probably.
Yeah, that part specifically is a bit... iffy.
Like I said, it's not all the difficult to have conversations or do a little bit of research.
Not that I necessarily have an issue with Agatha's death, but moreso just how they went about it. That's the part that always is an issue.
Like, I personally did not mind the Killing Eve ending as I thought they closed all the doors and it was written in a way that made perfect sense. This one wasn't.
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af1899 · 3 years ago
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FEH - "The outside world...! So vast!" (+10 WIP Sophia mini-showcase and appreciation)
So, with the [Feh Pass] subscription, I've been auto battling as much as I could while doing whatever else and gather [Hero Feathers] to get all the [HM] I had yet to get, and it was absolutely worth it, although I've already spent like 300 out of my 900+ something [Stamina Bottles] in the [Forging Bonds] lmao, I have around 660 now.
But with the obtained [Hero Feathers] I merged up Tailtiu to +6 and...
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Poggers
I'm happy to have finished merging Sophia at long last which makes of her my eleventh fully merged project soon after New Year Eir, her build is pretty much done but I'd be delighted to give her more premium stuff she can use in the future and make more builds, as well as giving her the remaining [Dragonflowers (I)] but I'm so close to fully boost Sonya and then I have to boost OG and Legendary Julia because of the post-[CYL 2021] update. 🥴
But her current build does wonders already, true, she's not impervious to nearly everything as it is, but I can give her some team support and the like, she's still great on her own.
Now, onto appreciation talk which includes describing her a little and explaining why I like her. I did this in one of my previous posts but it's time to review the info we have about her and expand on it. As always, feel free to read on (long read ahead)...
About Sophia
She's a half-dragon, half-human girl with the power of foresight, she's a priestess residing in Arcadia, a village that houses manaketes that survived one of the most vicious wars from past lore (The Scouring) located in the southwestern desertic region (Nabata) in Elibe, the continent on which the sixth and seventh Fire Emblem games take place in, she's a playable [Shaman] in the former and makes a minor appearance as a NPC near the end of the latter. Her class makes of her one of the two playable dark magic users in Fire Emblem: Sword of Seals (the other is the guy you're most likely to get while pulling on red stones in FEH, a.k.a. Raigh), and she gains access to basic staves after promoting to [Druid].
In her support convo with Niime, it's revealed that Sophia's father was human, meaning that her mother was a dragon, but neither's identity is ever known to the player. But despite this, she never transforms into a dragon, most likely because she never had her own stone to contain those powers. Being half-dragon also allows her to live much longer, but not as purebred manaketes/dragons.
She's fully self-aware of her heritage and doesn't let that bother her, she accepts both halves of herself which make of her a whole person.
She's somewhat important around the half of the game's duration as she helps a gravely injured Cecilia to at least tend to her wounds while waiting for Roy's army to rescue them as they were both thrown into a prison under Bern's control (the kingdom invading the other countries during the events of the game).
Sophia displays a shy and gentle personality, showing clear astonishmnet yet in a calm way when witnessing what the outside world is like and what it has to offer (beyond the village she's been living for around a century), this is most evidenced in her support dialogues with Igrene. She even feels similarly when wearing a new set of clothes, such as those of Embla in the World of Zenith, anytime after she joins the Order of Heroes.
«As long as I am with you... I can go anywhere...even a new country...»
― Sophia
She also mentions she was raised to avoid outsiders, and in the same aforementioned support convo, it's mentioned why.
«I understand what he's saying... The Dragons' powers could easily destroy entire countries. If the outsiders found out, they would surely fight over it. I've seen many conflicts like that in my life...»
― Igrene
And it's understandable why she feels that way after being raised by the elder of the village to do as told for decades. But in the end, she wants to work towards a world of peace where both dragons and humans live together without a war ever spreading out, and befriend other people, she's appreciative of other's kindness.
So... why do I like her?
Because she's purple-haired and most of her design has purple and I love purple soooooo much, that's all you need to know. :)
...Kidding kidding, that's not actually it, but it's in part true that I find her aesthetic pleasing, partially due to my passion for this color:
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(Official artwork from FE6)
Her design is rather simple but so charming, clearly evidencing her shyness (see the way she holds her book and her facial expression), and feeling clean without going overboard on details.
Also, I find long, purple hair a rather rare yet dazzling sight, I always look at it in her artwork and remins me why I love her design.
True, her neck in Zaza's take on Sophia in Fire Emblem Heroes bothered me a little, mostly because her neck is a little long as seen above, but not as slim as long as Zaza has drawn her (it's still a decent artwork and the artist has made some really nice pieces later, look at Emmeryn), the style also felt a little off to me. But her Resplendent upgrade made Sophia look more cute and still being the one we know, doning a brand new attire.
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(❶ Original by Zaza. | ❷ Resplendent by Miwabe Sakura)
But for me, it's pointless to be pretty if there's not a likeable personality behind the character in question, and Sophia has been proven to be really interesting, often a mysterious but shy girl, she's capable of kindness and finding comfort with outsiders like Kiran or Roy, when I see her, I always feel that she's so nice, never feeling bitterness towards any of her allies, just being shy due to how she's grown, but with a desire for friendship and peace pushing her forward, even slowly but surely, she's so lovely. 🥰
What's more, some of her quotes show she has a protective side, determined to stand up to help her allies but specially those she's close with, this eventually includes Kiran themselves.
Her voice in Fire Emblem Heroes is also really soothing, Wendee Lee has made such a delightful work giving new life to Sophia through her voice acting, there sure are differences between her work back in 2017 (Sophia is a launch unit, meaning she's been around ever since the game was live) and the work on the Resplendent in 2020, yet both are pretty consistent and equally pleasant to hear. But if I have to vouch for one or another, I give a point to the Resplendent voice acting, her voice can be heard with a little more depth and calmness to it than the original, which feels more natural.
And she's a dark magic practitioner but that doesn't make her evil at all, she's really pure actually. But I actually find dark magic most appealing out of any kind of weapon I have ever seen, the whole concept is cool, being always creepy and nefarious in nature, often portrayed in hues of black and dark purple.
And like, c'mon, this thing is amazing:
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I wish that [Apocalypse] was her PRF weapon in Fire Emblem Heroes but neither Raigh nor Bramimond who's its OG owner got it and just got random PRFs instead.
Anyway, in short, I adore Sophia and it always makes me happy to turn a seemingly weak unit into a tough to crack cookie, love for favorites sure can take them far.
"And... as a unit?"
I've been trying her mainly against the foes she has advantage with, but I've been also trying her against red/blue units and sometimes she does a nice job holding them at bay, she has low speed even after all this investment but with buffing it's somewhat usable.
Yet I prefer to focus on her strengths, not weaknesses, and she stands as a fairly good magic tank, with the few extras she enjoys as a launch unit and full demote plus Resplendent skin since around the first weeks of the [Feh Pass].
I actually tried her here some time after posting this because I didn't notice the [Limited Hero Battle] for today requires you use FE6 units, so I went with my faves in the game and it was rather easy. 🙂 But it still took a little thinking.
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"Who's the next +10 you have in mind?"
Hmm... actually gonna (at least try to) work on Lilina, another one of my Elibian favorites. I also have her Resplendent upgrade and could revamp her kit. 🤔
But she's currently +3 so her turn might take longer or someone's else may come before, Idk.
And then, hopefully someone I like out of the next potential Resplendent Heroes...!
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callioope · 4 years ago
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Continuing my reactions to Avatar: The Last Airbender. 
This post is about Book 2. See my overall impressions and thoughts on Book 1 here.
Quick/General Thoughts
Uhhh pretty wild there is both a solar eclipse and a super comet happening in the same summer… anyways!!!
Ba Sing Se was so messed up omg
Aang
SMH more adults trying to take advantage of Aang. I was furious with the Earth Kingdom general who tried to force Aang to fight the Fire Lord well before he was ready. Clearly he was not ready! And then the audacity for him to attack Aang and then Katara to provoke the Avatar state was whole levels of messed up. 
The Great Appa Kidnapping: Yeah, so, as soon as the sand traders took him, I was like, “Oh no. I’ve heard about this. They are going to be in trouble!” But even then I didn’t know it stretched out over so many episodes. These episodes broke my heart! Aang’s complete distress at having lost Appa. Then the episode from Appa’s POV. Poor Appa! He goes through so much. It’s devastating. And then both Appa and Aang both dream of how they originally met each other? UNFAIR. CRUEL. HOW DARE THE CREATORS DO THIS TO ME. (I’m being facetious I love it I live for this kind of drama this is how i express they were doing good storytelling)
The whole “final chakra” being about letting go of attachments… hmm that felt VERY Star Wars of them… Filoni is this your doing? (Although actually I don’t remember seeing his name on any Book 2 episodes.)
Sokka
My fave continues to be the long-suffering Sokka, just trying to get his family to Omashu, it shouldn’t be this hard!!! This was literally what I wrote at the time of watching “Chapter Two: The Cave of Two Lovers,” and OH LITTLE DID I KNOW!!! [cut to Book 3… lmao… anyways]
Sokka making a map to help keep track of the maze-like cave/tunnel is actually really clever. I can’t believe people think he’s stupid. I mean, sure, it didn’t end up working, but that’s because the cave was magic or whatever, and that is beyond his control!
Side note, but lol at Sokka’s purchases and love for shopping. His ridiculous belt! How excited he was that it matched his bag!
Second side note, I was pretty excited to see that gif where Sokka is making that “I’m watching you” gesture and then goes “Water tribe!”
Katara
Yeah, notice how I don’t have much to say about Katara? It’s not that I don’t like her or that I don’t think she’s interesting, but. I just don’t really have a lot to say about her. 
I was amused by how she handled those bullies. My impression before I started watching was that she was going to be this like, pure and GoodTM character, but she definitely has her flaws and that is better.
I really liked the scene where she is able to calm Aang down while he’s in the Avatar state. There was good build up to that, showing her worry every time he entered it and her awareness of the fact that he only ever enters it when feeling upset. The fact that she was able to do that clearly Meant Something. So again, I suppose, I really feel up to this point that the show is very much like “Aang/Katara Endgame!” it felt very obvious to me. And I knew before starting the show that Zuko and Katara are a thing — but Aang and Katara is just so heavy handed that it was impossible for me to ship them with anyone else. They were just foundational to the show. Like it always felt like a foregone conclusion to me, almost as if they were established from the beginning although they obviously weren’t.
Toph
I spent like, the second half of Book 1 thinking “WHEN TOPH WHEN TOPH!” Imagine my ire that she still isn’t around for the first five episodes of Book 2, which is titled “EARTH” my goodness.
But OH was I delighted by “Chapter 6: The Blind Bandit”!!! I loved her intro, I loved how Aang is just immediately in awe of her skills when he sees her. He knows she’s exactly the teacher he’s been waiting for. “She waited and listened!” he says. Yes. I love it. (But also, lol at Sokka booing Aang.) Despite this, Aang really does not handle that first interaction very well!
So frustrating how her parents were treating her. “She’s fragile and helpless!” what a thing to say about your daughter. [Also you literally named her “tough”?!] And he is basically going to imprison her, wtf. & how do you get off saying “the avatar is no longer welcome here”?! smh children whose parents try to “control” their kids always end up being the most rebellious.
I was amused that “my dad changed his mind” apparently was a popular lie daughters use on this show. *facepalm*
I liked the contrast between how Toph wanted to teach Aang and how Katara thought he should be taught! That was interesting. And yeah, Toph certainly lives up to her name. 
Zuko & Iroh
Spent a good portion of the early part of this season wondering how Zuko and Iroh could possibly be related to the awful Fire Lord (and Azula for that matter — jeez she is nuts!), and longing to know what happened to Zuko’s mom. (Obviously that would be answered soon!)
Knowing that Zuko eventually joins the Aang crew, but also remembering that I never saw Iroh with them, made me SEVERELY worried that something terrible would happen to Iroh. And I spent the entire rest of the series worrying about that. Uh, especially since, apparently Iroh is hopeless at Survival 101. Honestly that was surprising to me. 
Zuko deciding they needed to split up was devastating!!! No!!! I loved the adventures of Zuko & Iroh!! He said, “There's no reason for us to stick together,” and I was like, “Yes there is you idiot! Because you’re family and you love each other!!!” I was so sad. I mean, also Iroh is currently the only person who likes Zuko, so, you know, that might be a good reason to stay with him. Just a thought. 
The last thing Zuko needs is to be alone, that will NOT be good for his issues. And lo and behold, look! Immediately, he’s struggling on his own. But I did like that episode (“Chapter 7: Zuko Alone”) because we get to see Zuko’s mom! (Uh, did she have a name?) Turtle ducks are so cute.
“Everything I’ve done I’ve done to protect you.” THIS. SLAYED. ME!!!!!! I mean, y’all know Rogue One is my jam so this parallel with Zuko’s mom and Galen Erso????? I lost it. I just lost it. Plus, though it isn’t confirmed until later, we can tell she’s sacrificing herself to save Zuko and just. (A) what a completely messed up family, but (B) MY HEART. SHE BETTER BE ALIVE is all I’m saying.
Interesting side note: they never show Ozai’s face in the early seasons. 
If you assumed that I was delighted to see Iroh has been tailing Zuko this whole time, you’d be correct. I had hoped that was the case and was very glad it was. Although *facepalm* again at Zuko. I suppose he had no way of knowing Katara had healing powers but it was so frustrating knowing if he had just listened to them for one minute they could have helped Iroh after Azula blasted him. At least he made him tea and nursed him back to health. 
If the evil advisor of Ba Sing Se had files on everyone and knew everything that went on… I mean… did he know about Iroh and Zuko? 
I didn’t jot down any notes about this at the time, BUT. Man. Did I ADORE Zuko and Iroh’s adventures in Ba Sing Se. I mean it was a nice relief from all the other crazy stuff happening. (Not happy to see Jet though. Ugh.) 
Finally, though, Zuko’s betrayal at the very end of the season totally shocked me. Because of spoilers, I knew he’d join Aang’s crew, and so it was so confusing! And such a regression, I really didn’t understand it and was very worried about what it would mean for his redemption arc — but more on that in the next post, don’t want to get ahead.
Azula
Oh. Boy. Again, I knew she was going to be crazy, but I don’t think I was prepared for just how messed up she is. “Do the tides command this ship. You said they would not allow us…” Jeez that is pedantic in a very bizarre way and obviously not what was meant… Yikes.
Also, Azula is much better at finding Zuko than Zuko is at finding Aang. Just a stray observation.
“Father regrets your banishment. He wants you home.” [insert IT’s A TRAP gif here]
“If the Earth Kingdom finds us, they'll have us killed. If the Fire Nation finds us, they'll turn us over to Azula. Earth kingdom it is.” Yeah, this line was hilarious but also sad. It really said a lot about Azula, and Zuko and Iroh’s relationship with her.
Had no idea Azula had her own crew. It was incredibly clear that Ty Lee felt coerced to join her and didn’t really want to, but that was less clear to me for Mai. Mainly seemed like Mai was bored with where she was and was just like “shrugs might as well do evil stuff.” 
I did know that a character named “Mai” would eventually be Zuko’s love interest (and it is pretty heavily portrayed that she has a crush on him), so at this point, I was very much like, “Hmm. This character is too apathetic and annoying, I don’t want her to end up with Zuko!” Plus, the fact that her name was pronounced “May,” (which was not how I thought “Mai” was pronounced) and I knew Zuko would have a thing with a lady in a tea shop, I wasn’t 100% sure Zuko/Mai were end game. 
“She’s crazy and she needs to go down.” I think Iroh said this. I just don’t know what to say. Why is Azula the way she is? That’s never entirely clear to me. In some ways, it’s implied she was just Like That (in the flashback where mom is like “What is wrong with you?”) and perhaps she’s just her father’s daughter. I don’t need a reason, per se. Idk. I just don’t know what to say to her. She clearly needs help. 
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nofliight · 4 years ago
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THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; Mun & Muse - Meme.
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fill out & repost ♥ This meme definitely favors canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multi-Muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.
tagged by: stole it from @sternenteile​ and honestly others tbh tagging: TAKE
my muse is:  canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless / complicated
Is your character popular in the fandom? YES / NO. [ for better or for worse, he’s THE face of kid icarus, after all. he’s a dork and funny and likeable and even if the fandom tends to get him WRONG (thanks smash bros) there’s no denying his popularity ]
Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK. [ i don’t??? think so??? most people are too busy talking about how they think he’s like 5 ]
Is your character considered strong in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK. [ EVEN THE FANDOM AIN’T GONNA MESS THIS UP. MAN FIGHTS GODS. CALL THAT WEAK. ]
Are they underrated?  YES / NO / IDK. [ make no mistake - pit’s got fans and plenty of them but he’s so MISTREATED by the fandom. his character is a lot more complex than he gets credit for and smash bros in particular is a big reason people think he’s just Big Dumb Baby Man ]
Were they relevant for the main story?  YES / NO. [ HE’S THE MAIN CHARACTER, THE CENTRAL FIGURE UPON WHOM THE NARRATIVE IS STRUCTURED AROUND, YEAH HE’S PRETTY RELEVANT. Uprising is literally made to tell the story of a war exclusively through the perspective of a single side and Pit (and Palutena) are the EMBODIMENT of that whole side. ]
Were they relevant for the main character? YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG. [ and a perfect one at that. he’s literally a perfect protagonist don’t tell me i’m wrong cause i’m not ]
Are they widely known in their world? YES / NO. [ pit is beloved by humans... and mocked by the Gods. seen by most as a spineless extension of palutena’s will, most “respect” of any variety goes to palutena while he gets treated as a joke 99% of the time... and it’s not like Palutena gets too much respect either ]
How’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL. (????) [ Uhhhhhh... it’s an odd one. Short answer is that Pit’s a good samaritan who’s done a lot of good BUT most of the gods think protecting humanity is a Folly and a Joke and that Pit’s just a pawn of Palutena’s and while the humans do hold a lot of respect for him, uh............. let’s just say, some humans on the surface have reasons not to be too happy with him. ]
How strictly do you follow canon?  —  about as much as I need to to respect one of my favorite video games of all time. while kid icarus uprising is a comedic game most of the way through it has a lot more nuance and depth to itself, its world, and its characters than one can see at first glance, even after a full playthrough. if you let yourself get invested in the characters, take a closer look at the dialogue it provides, and acknowledge the central, core storytelling message of the game for what it is, there’s a lot more to pull out than one would think. that being said, it’s still a comedic video game and one that I think could use some more expansion. though the game is inconsistent there seems to be the consensus that pit is like a child and I’m not into that, mine’s a bit more showing in his cynical and snarky side after all he’s been through and overall there’s a lot of expansion on the base while building it into something unique.
SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.  —  imagine your typical bootstrapped anime protagonist. someone who, when younger, was a runt who couldn’t meet the expectations of others, was looked down on, and found himself crushed and hurt and near-killed by a great tragedy that he was forced to claw his way out of to make himself stronger. Now imagine all of that with a character who comes out still able to have a very real smile and ultimately comes out of it a self-assured, chipper goofball with a good heart. now put that together with all of the darkness and depth you would have expected to be there, but scattered realistically throughout the attitude of someone who does genuinely want to keep a positive attitude. someone who is sincerely an optimist who’s grown past his weaker days, but isn’t quite so simple as he’d like to believe. all of that combined with someone who can’t read, is willing to eat ice cream off the floor in times of duress, is extremely easy to fluster and can channel his goddess’ power to slay GODS? you got one strong man.
Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?).  —  his positive attitude is what most people will see when speaking to him, because for what it’s worth, he’s not actively lying about his depth. he’s a cheerful, jovial man with a big smile and a love of the world around him - which is all well and good, but his depth is something you have to find, even if it is reasonably clear if you’re willing to look. he’s also portrayed as a bit unreasonably dumb at times, and though I personally justify the worst of it with proper explanations, I can understand reducing some of the value of the character in favor of seeing all of his Jokes
What inspired you to rp your muse?  —  i made my original pit blog, flightlesswarrior, on a total whim after playing kid icarus uprising. cute character, fun premise, why not? but over time, and with numerous plots I was able to take part in exploring the serious, not so serious, shipping, tragedy, and going back through the game to keep my muse rolling, it occurred to me more and more with time just how nuanced and interesting pit and co. really are. pit embodies many of the things i really, truly love in a protag, falling firmly on the side of good, having a heart of genuine gold, and having nuances and parts of his personality that are less than savory without making him seem like a contradiction. he’s got depth, he’s got story, there’s a lot to explore and flesh out... and he’s also just a nice, friendly guy who gets along well with others. plus, i’m drawn to dorks.
What keeps your inspiration going?  —  a) love for Kid Icarus: Uprising. a game that helped me gain a deeper and more insightful understanding of character development, subtle storytelling, optimism still tinged with legitimate and healthy cynicism, and overall something that changed my understanding of character development and storytelling forever. and b) spite. the fandom treats him like an idiot baby and smash DOES NOT help matters so i have to remind others that he is a veteran of a war, a socially inept loser with few real friends, and someone who’s kindness and optimism was shaped and molded by its hardships in a way that doesn’t require a near-breaking point or a reminder that “this guy could be evil you know” to show how someone can still keep a positive attitude in spite of all the shit life throws at him.
Some more personal questions for the mun.
Give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.
Do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO [ i’d like to think i have?? but i also acknowledge that he’s become something of his Own in some ways that do intentionally diverge from sakurai’s intentions. ultimately though, even though i may not play him completely true to text, i try to be as loyal as i can be to the spirit of the character. ]
Do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO / SORT OF? [ when i can!! but??? the problem is my mind really, really likes to reiterate the Same Damn Points i have to make with characters that draws me to them - and you know, writing the same hcs over and over is generally considered poor form?? ngl i also prefer to let the writing do the talking unless it’s something that’s not gonna show so 90% of the time pit’s open enough that all but the darker sides of his mind are lain out before you. ]
Do you sometimes write drabbles?  YES / NO [ maybe??? once or tWICE???? but i need to write more ]
Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day? YES / NO [ I REALLY DO, HOO MAMA. i have a lot of thoughts about him, his depth, potential relationships, goofy thoughts, more serious fanfic ideas im never gonna write and don’t get me started on how many SHIPS i have to think about for him ]
Are you confident in your portrayal? YES / NO [ my portrayal is made out of spite for portrayals in the fandom and some supplementary material that gets him wrong - it’s kinda hard to do that without the confidence ]
Are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO / ??? [ it’s uhh........ complicated??? i don’t think writing is my expertise, tbh. but it is the best way i have to show the passion i have for characters, by putting their nuances into actions, by allowing them to shine from who they are their core, by exploring relationships and scenarios and struggles and hope and everything that can flesh a character out. whether or not i’m a good writer is something i’m still sorting out - but i’m proud of my ability to develop a character, and to that end i feel like i’m doing fine ]
Are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO. / SORTA. [ on one hand......... very. i have a tendency to overthink everything i do and look back at moments i made an ass of myself that keep haunting me throughout my day - they haunt me. i only have two fears: what my immediate friend group thinks of me and the crushing existential weight of worrying one day i’m gonna ruin everything i am SOFT. that being said, i’m also hardheaded and stubborn and i’m not afraid to go off on someone i don’t have much respect for if it comes down to it. i’m easy to anger when it comes down to it you know i guess that proves the point huh i’m not stonefaced at all ]
Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal?  —  i try to? it’s a bit touchy for me I admit just because I do take portrayals and try to make them my own, but i am willing to listen if someone has any points they’d like to make that i haven’t acknowledged properly. if criticism IS had, lemme know, i do wanna hear it!
Do you like questions, which help you explore your character?  —   Y  E  S
If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why?  —  not that everyone who disagrees with my opinions has to explain themselves of course, but i do sincerely like the chance to learn if something i’m doing doesn’t quite feel right. even if it’s one-sided and i’ll come to disagree, i’m happy to listen! even if i don’t agree with the disagreement head-on, i like to keep them in mind and see what i can shift around to acknowledge them if necessary
If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it?  — neutral?? i mean don’t be mean about it, but if you just think my pit doesn’t seem right or it doesn’t click right with your muse i’m not gonna throw a fit about it. everyone’s allowed to view a character in their own way - and even if i may get salty about those who oversimplify him, it IS anyone’s right to view him how they will.
If someone really hates your character, how do you take it?  — agree to disagree tbh. i can’t pretend it wouldn’t disappoint me, but it’s not like, worth ending a friendship over or anything. everyone’s got their own viewpoints to run on
Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors?  —  sure, within reason! i take pride in my grammar but i know that with my fast typing and often running on only a few hours of sleep some problems do slip in through the cracks. while i generally either catch them or just Die with them i’m all ears if i mess up
Do you think you are easy going as a mun?   —  uhhhhhhhhhh well i’m?? kind of a socially anxious mess honestly which DOES make being easy going a bit difficult BUT i do try and be friendly and sociable as i....... can. i’m too scared to talk to people and CAN say some dumb things but i’m not a hardass or anything!! i like to talk and Yell and shitpost and pretty much do anything but write tbh DHFLKSJDF
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bleachintothemultiverse · 5 years ago
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THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; Mun & Muse - Meme.
fill out & repost ♥ This meme definitely favors canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multi-Muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm. image:
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My muse is:   canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless /
Is your character popular in the fandom?  YES / NO. Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK. Is your character considered strong in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK. Are they underrated?  YES / NO. Were they relevant for the main story?  YES / NO. Were they relevant for the main character?  YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG. Are they widely known in their world?  YES / NO. How’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL. How strictly do you follow canon?  —  I try to follow canon as closely as possible with Aizen. I try to do head canons that would fit close to canon and how the manga and anime portray him.  that be said, im some what canon divergent when it comes to his relationships with other muses. especially with Hiyori.
SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.  —  A pretty boy nerd with a god complex who plans everything way to much and pulls a freza and has at least 6 different forms his final form being that of a butterfly type thing. He is the closest thing in the series that you could consider a ‘god’ other then the soul king it self. His zanpakuto has some one of the coolest abilities being able to control all five senses and being able to make anyone see anything he wants  them to see.
Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?).  — generic betrayal villian. “oh look i wanna become a god now. ha im evil now.”  sterotypical sociopathic evil boy. doesn’t really have a backstory on why he is doing the things he does. other then the fact, he wants to change the soul society and become a god. with out any full backstory to it. So it kinda just feels like he is evil.... because you need a threat.
What inspired you to rp your muse?  —   honestly- my rps with @redeyeschaosdragon on discord and her dragging me deeper into bleach and I realize that a lot of things are under developed about his character, that needed to be developed. So thats basically the two main reasons.
What keeps your inspiration going?  —   The fact that there is so much to headcanon about and explore deeper into with Aizen. He is such a complex character that really needs to explore more and that keeps me really motivated.
Some more personal questions for the mun.
Give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.
Do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO. Do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO. Do you sometimes write drabbles?  YES / NO. Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day?  YES / NO. Are you confident in your portrayal?   YES / NO. Are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO. Are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO. Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal?  —  I mean- kinda depends? i wanna say i do- but my anxiety ridden self is like “nah fam- we will not.”  but i won’t snap at some one for giving me criticism. It helps me improve and realize a mistake for it. i will just- feel awkward afterwords. but i do appreciate any form of criticism.  
Do you like questions, which help you explore your character?  —   Yes. Give me all of the questions relating to Aizen.  It allows me to explore deeper into this already complex character. 
If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why?  —  Yea. We can talk about it. I love talking about Aizen.  Maybe they saw something- that I didn’t realize or i didn’t understand how something works. Because my memory is horrible and I may get a fact wrong or portrayal him wrong. I am always open to discussion about it.
If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it?  —  it depends on the person? If its some one who i respect highly on here then i might take it pretty bad. I would like to talk to them and see why- and see what i could improve on it. But if it people i haven’t interacted with much. Then it won’t effect me that badly. because everyone has there own opinions and they can disagree with a protrayal.
If someone really hates your character, how do you take it?  —  I mean- i used to hate Aizen, when  i first got into bleach. So like i don’t blame people to hate Aizen. But like i won’t take it negativity as long as they try not to send me anon hate or something for rping him. Because I understand most people reasons for hating him. He did a lot of horrible things. As long as they don’t hate him for just hating him- then yea I don’t really have a problem with it. again everyone has a right to there own opinion.
Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors?  —  YES. I make so many. I suck at grammatical errors. I would love to be corrected in a nice way. But like- don’t nit pick every small mistake. I used to have a friend that used to do that and it really bothered me after awhile. But at least give me some pointers on how to fix it, so i would know next time ^^
Do you think you are easy going as a mun?   —  I think so...? im just a awkward raisin honestly.  I am full of anxiety and will apologize for every little thing unless im close to you and know that I am not bothering you when im message you and get comfortable with you to the point, I can call you a rat as a friend term.  But other then that. I think im really easy going im always down for ims or discord messages and chatting about anything really.  But im horrible at keeping conversations in the beginning. till I know what exactly you are comfortable with. Then im the type to send you random stuff that reminds me of our muses or send you non rp memes (and vines)  for the fun of it. 
That’s about it, congrats for filling out! tagged by @skyvar //thank you <3// Tagging: @xyuuken @rukia-kuchiki-divided @hirako5hinji @viciousvizard @gentleshinigami @redeyeschaosdragon @goofyshinigami​ @bookofaion @kaibacorpbros @wild-pineapple-butt​  @world-duelists​
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fcarher · 5 years ago
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THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE; Mun & Muse - Meme.
fill out & repost ♥ This meme definitely favors canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore, and lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multi-Muses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.
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My muse is:   canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless /
Is your character popular in the fandom?  YES / NO.
Is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK.
Is your character considered strong in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK.
Are they underrated?  YES / NO.
Were they relevant for the main story?  YES / NO.
Were they relevant for the main character?  YES / NO / THEY’RE THE PROTAG.
Are they widely known in their world?  YES / NO.
How’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL.
How strictly do you follow canon?  — with yuna being a fandomless original character; it is rather hard to strictly follow canon; first of all, one has to define what canon means & that would be, in yuna’s case, the story that i have previously written before writing on Tumblr with her as my muse. i do try to stick to it, however, i always leave enough room for her to develop, otherwise, it would be just plain boring, wouldn’t it ? with that said; she already has developed a few characteristics that might be deemed out of character within the canon material
SELL YOUR MUSE! Aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutuals.  —  she is a character with several layers; meaning, you will always get to know a different side of her, the more you interact. yuna is an outcast, though, you might not notice it at first. she’s really strong & her species is still rather unknown; many abilities might have not been uncovered yet. her mission is to destroy humanity, though, will she do it ? she works as a hitman within a secret organization that is more than meets the eye. she is ACTUALLY not a true descendant of lilith. she is old & has seen & experiences MANY things. 
Now the OPPOSITE, list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?).  —  She is way too stubborn & it takes AGES to form a real relationship with her; so petty & weak-willed when it comes to her own desires; way too set on her own belief; the whole humanity-is-bad stick gets old quick; her being paranoid about every SINGLE thing; her whole concept is less about her own power but more about the control of said power & how she deals with her being pressured into the position she is
What inspired you to rp your muse?  —  i love mythology & the lore within Christianity (mainly the characters, stories; def more a fan of the “evil” stuff )  i love horror; i love paranormal stuff & if you combine everything, you have yunaeisha & her sisters. the lore ( which is massive & yuna’s story plays within present-day while most of it plays in the past) is something i hold dear to my heart; i worked on it for many years, since approx. 2014-2015. yuna embodies a lot of the pain of my previous characters; not knowing her place in the universe while KNOWING that you have to function within this society that deems you’re not a part of them, either. she’s honest & a bad bitch with a very soft side; i love her a lot & she’s grown so much. my love for her inspired me & how much more i wanted to flesh her out. 
What keeps your inspiration going?  —  I constantly find new stuff that i could implement within yuna; i dream A LOT about my characters, actually, & i always try to put some material of those dreams into her. i love russia as a land; the language, the clothes, the cities. i love mythology; i love her aesthetic & i always find something that could be of use. simply going outside & watching people interact makes me think instantly; how would yuna react ? how would she talk ? i try to keep her as real possible & thus, i constantly think about her.
Some more personal questions for the mun.
Give your mutuals some insight about the way you are in some matters, which could lead them to get more comfortable with you or perhaps not.
Do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO.
Do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO.
Do you sometimes write drabbles?  YES / NO.
Do you think a lot about your Muse during the day?  YES / NO.
Are you confident in your portrayal?   YES / NO.
Are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO.
Are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO.
Do you accept criticism well about your portrayal?  — I am quite the sensitive person when it comes to HARSH criticism; when someone just comes to me to talk about how badly i portray yuna, then i’m gonna be sad about it. however, i do accept people that give me constructive ideas like; maybe it could be better if you did ... instead of .... ? i have NOTHING against it. i never received it, though, so i’m not 100 percent sure about it. though, i’d love to think that i’d be even more motivated to better her. 
Do you like questions, which help you explore your character?  —  I rarely get question but i’d love if some more flew in; LET THEM BE IC QUESTIONS EVEN !! i had some muses be invested in yuna, but the more the merrier so OF COURSE !!! 
If someone disagrees to a headcanon of yours, do you want to know why?  —  yes, please !! if you think a headcanon might clash with another or you think, it might be really out of character or just generally unfitting for yuna; TELL ME !! i sometimes forget some minor headcanons, though, they can play a MAJOR role sometimes; if you become aware of that, please tell me. also, if you just generally don’t agree with it, PLEASE also tell me; i’m a really open-minded person & i’d love to hear your point of view. 
If someone disagrees with your portrayal, how would you take it?  —  if someone disagrees; alright, then so be it. all people think differently; you can’t please everyone. yuna is my characters, however, her concept, of being half-demon, half-goddess, the child of lilith, has been done before & thus, i know some might not agree how i portray yuna within that concept & that’s okay; though, if you outright HATE on it; why ? if you think you can do it better; make your own lore & character but don’t hate on anyone. with that said, i personally don't have anything gainst people disagreeing; that’s just how life works; we can’t agree on everything. 
If someone really hates your character, how do you take it?  —  i’d be taken aback at first because of course, as the creator of yuna, i love her dearly. though, i could understand why; she does MANY things that are considered problematic & has no remorse, whatsoever; she seems very self-centered & almost toxic to some & i GET that’s not everyone’s cup of tea; however, she’s not ONLY that but it takes times to get through that layer; i understand not everyone likes such muses. it’s okay, i don’t mind it but don’t HATE on her, aggressively ?? telling me how shitty she is or how much she sucks, is not really nice, & i know she often sucks, you don’t have to tell me twice. 
Are you okay with people pointing out your grammatical errors?  — YES PLEASE !! i’m human, english is actually my third-language & i still make a lot of errors; probably did some in this post as well lmao. but seriously, if you see it & you feel like correcting it; PLEASE DO !! or just shoot me a quick message, saying that you have noticed that i OFTEN make a specific error. it helps a lot !! thank you. 
Do you think you are easy going as a mun?   —  no, definitely not! i hyperfixate a lot, meaning that i have this uncontrollable urge to just do one thing; or speak to one person or play a certain game; it messes up my social life a lot because i sometimes go months without talking to my best friends, though, they don’t mind because they’re used to me “ignoring” them. i also dislike convos that lead to nothing, even within real life; i like topic-related conversations & not just the plain “hey” & “how are you”’s. though, let me state one thing; if we have talked before & i was very open with you; I LOVE YOU! i’m not “ignoring” you on purpose or because i stopped liking you or something; it’s just me being dumb. so, if you want to talk, plot, have an idea, want to ship, ANYTHING !! shoot me a message, please, I BEG YOU !!! i hardly reach out first & that makes me seem unapproachable; i’m aware of that & i’m so sorry, i’m working on it! but other than that; i’m a person that you can talk to about everything ! politics; anime; mythology; pop-culture; roleplaying; i love it all !! i may not know the topic at first but i love learning & i’m willing to listen at all times !! also i love listening to people gush about their characters or just plotting stuff; ITS GREAT !! so, this is an invitation for you to come plot with me 8^)
That’s about it, congrats for filling out!
Tagged by:  @skyvar ; i loved the nasty questions ! 8^)  Tagging: @dvojakyvlk, @thevvolf, @childrenxfthemoon, @hensetsu, @talonness, @shikkotsunin​, @aemiliiu​, @nezumi-vc-103221​ & everyone who feels like stealing !!
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eloquent-music · 5 years ago
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THE POSITIVE & NEGATIVE: MUN & MUSE
Fill out & Repost ♥ This meme definitely favors Canons more, but I hope OC’s still can make it somehow work with their own lore and Lil’ fandom of friends & mutuals. Multimuses pick the muse you are the most invested in atm.
Tagged by: @polyhexianchicken​
Tagging: anyone who wants to do it!! Just go ahead and say I tagged you
> Putting under a read more bc of the length <
MY MUSE IS.   canon / oc / au / canon-divergent / fandomless
* is your character popular in the fandom? YES/NO
* is your character considered hot™ in the fandom?  YES (from what i see from a lot of people in the fandom including myself)/ NO / IDK.
* is your character considered strong in the fandom?  YES / NO / IDK.
* are they underrated?  YES ( I believe there’s more depth to him that some don’t see) / NO.
* were they relevant to the main story?  YES (Sorta?) / NO.
* were they relevant to the main character?  YES (Kinda sorta esp to Megatron) / NO
* are they widely known in their world?  YES / NO.
* how’s their reputation?  GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL.
HOW STRICTLY DO YOU FOLLOW CANON?
I try my best to follow canon as best as possible. I do put in my own twists here and there.  I have added things into his character have been shared later on through Tweets on Twitter from Jro and Milne. I take their portrayals and incorporate them into my Tarn. For example, Milne said that Tarn was Pharma’s new lover and they had a special relationship and since I’m weak for that pairing I really wanted to incorporate that in. Also Red doesn’t help we both feed into each other ilu <3  ALL IN ALL though, I do like to keep him canon and not too much off character to where he isn’t Tarn anymore. I want him to be Tarn not someone else
SELL YOUR MUSE! (aka try to list everything, which makes your muse interesting in your opinion to make them spicy for your mutual.)
I could sell Tarn for hours and a few friends know this very personally. IM SORRY. ANYWAYS. Some may find what I love about Tarn to not what they like but it’s my opinion on him! So here goes.
I love his damaged nature (I’m sorry Tarn muse). I find his addictions interesting, even though they weren’t technically shown in the issues. It’s part of who he is from who he used to be (however they came about). I will always love his flaws and I enjoy showing those sides of him so be aware that I will show his addictive personality (through Transformation, Nuke abuse, and murderous tendencies).
Which brings me to... His murderous/torturous nature. We see killers a dime a dozen in the series but to be a leader of a torturous group? Like that’s pretty rad and completely different from a lot of other characters. Can you tell I like the baddies? sdifhoisdf This brings up this ONE side of him. He doesn’t like killing / taking part in the demises of SOME of their victims. Why? I think I may know the answer to that. Why does a mech like him want to advert his gaze while the others have their way with them. Talk about something deep we never got to understand that.
He has a soft spot for musical pieces, especially classical piano music. I love Chopin the most, so you’ll see me post that all the time!
He apparently loves pineapples and just I LOVE THAT SO MUCH UHG.
He’s a big tank with Daddy (Megatron) Issues! You gotta love it LOL  He’s got biolights literally everywhere. FLASHY
When he’s only around his team, he can be a little bit more calm even though he can drop it at the drop of a dime.
He’s a touch starved mech odifhsodif
NOW THE OPPOSITE! (list everything why your muse could not be so interesting (even if you may not agree, what does the fandom perhaps think?)
Even though I kinda sold him on this I thought I should mention it here too. I don’t think people find him interesting for how dark he is as a mech. Push aside everything and look at how purely evil he can be. He’s cruel. He’s torturous and very sadistic. He will thrive off of every little bit of pain you give him. He can be manipulative at times.
Tarn is a huge hypocrite. It shows so much throughout the comic issues if you really look at it. I show it a lot (he will deny it sometimes but don’t worry I know he’s one) Probably one of the biggest hypocrites in the whole 2005 IDW Series.
Tarn is easily-influenced and persuaded by certain situations (to not look weak) and mechs.
He is very easily angered from the smallest things.
He holds onto grudges
WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO RP YOUR MUSE?
I know I’ve been asked this before and when I’m asked again I forget the GOOD reasons why I was so inspired to write him so I hope i do okay this time around. Even though I know I will leave out the good shit. Idk why I just dont draft on what truly inspired me. Just watch, itll come a day later and I’ll add it in just wait and see
I started rp’ing him on here as soon as he debuted in the MTMTE series (i think it was back in 2013 or 2012?) I did kind of poof for a few years due to being so busy sdiufhs. Anyways, I fell instantly in love with his character. I loved his dark ways and how he was so drastically different of a villain. His musical tendencies. And how he could offline a mech with ONLY his voice? Like damn sing to me all day you Musical Angel. He is dark and mysterious. NOT TO MENTION, black and purple my favorite colors.
His design was flawless and MTMTE #7 sold me on who he was and from then on I just couldn’t stop loving this murderous tank. I love how Jro and Milne have come out later on to answer more questions about him and just I love him that much more. Looking back years later on it, I see a little bit of myself in him.  
WHAT KEEPS YOUR INSPIRATION
He’s pretty easy to flow out honestly. Just like my other muse I have. If he does struggle some, I just pop on some Chopin and he’s good to go. What really does keep me going more than anything is continuously exploring who he is as a mech and as a Decepticon. I want to know so much about him literally everything. Even though I could write headcanons all day and drabbles too, I love making him interact with others to find that personality.  It’s really just my never-ending curiosity for him.
SOME MORE PERSONAL QUESTIONS FOR THE MUN.
* do you think you give your character justice?  YES / NO. ( i hope I do! )
* do you frequently write headcanons?  YES / NO.
* do you sometimes write drabbles? YES / NO.  ( i love writing drabbles!!!)
* do you think a lot about your muse during the day? YES / NO.
* are you confident in your portrayal?   YES / NO.
* are you confident in your writing?  YES / NO. (Most of the time, I know sometimes I mess up and its honestly just me not seeing it for whatever reason. Im so sorry if my replies come through scattered sidfhfs)
* are you a sensitive person?  YES / NO. (Not really at all. I don’t get offended or anything but certain things can bug me)
DO YOU ACCEPT CRITICISM WELL ABOUT YOUR PORTRAYAL?
Only if its constructive criticism. I love it when friends bounce ideas or talk to me about him. I will take into consideration of changing him slightly from only my close friends and that’s because we’re close. I will not change my character for anyone because they don’t like how I portray him because he is my portrayal of him, not yours.
DO YOU LIKE QUESTIONS, WHICH HELP YOU EXPLORE YOUR CHARACTER?  
I love all the questions you all send him, either on anon or not. Even the most awful ones! Tarn may not like them but most I find absolutely hilarious. I think the more personal questions really help for exploring who he is or if I post drabble prompts, go ahead and send me one! Even if I dont send in one and you wanna know more about him I will try my best to respond to it.
IF SOMEONE DISAGREES TO A HEADCANON OF YOURS, DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY?  
This is a hit or miss question. I don’t really want to exactly know why unless if I ask you personally on it (which is usually just between close friends because sometimes I just aint thinkin straight). I don’t mind bouncing off ideas but ishdfoisdfh i really truly don’t know the answer to this one
IF SOMEONE REALLY HATES YOUR CHARACTER, HOW DO YOU TAKE IT?
I honestly don’t care. People won’t like every character out there and that’s just part of being human. I understand why people would hate his character in the series in all honesty. But I love him for all his flaws.
I don’t blame people for hating Tarn but I do not want hate sent to me. That is unacceptable and not okay. You don’t have to like my portrayal but please don’t shove it at me that’s just uncalled for. If your character hates him that’s totally different but don’t come attacking me for any reason.
DO YOU THINK YOU ARE EASY GOING AS A MUN?  
I think I am. I’m usually fairly quiet. But once you get to know me, I am kinda strong on the goofy/funny side and a bit blunt/straight-forward sdoifhodsf. I tend to be really easy going and laid back. My personality has drastically changed since I’ve gotten into my mid-20s. I don’t like drama and dont wanna be apart of it.
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raviposting · 5 years ago
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how about two top fives? top five characters you werent supposed to like but you did and top five characters you were supposed to like but didnt
Ooh nice I really have to think about this! And I hope this is what you meant but I took this to be what the narrative wanted you to like and/or who fandom likes a lot 
Characters I Wasn’t Supposed to Like But Did: 
I remember when I started Buffy, I saw that fandom had hated Dawn and I was going in prepared to be like, oh man, I’m probably gonna hate her too I wonder why she’s so annoying what does she do? And then I watched and I just…didn’t get it? I understood why she wouldn’t be anyone’s top 5 but I absolutely adored her and she was tied for #1 favorite character for me 
Probably Cersei Lannister lmao. She was a massive bitch and I was rooting for her death the whole time, but god she was one of the most fun characters to watch and I loved to hate her so much that she’d go on screen and I’d be like “YESSSSS” 
People really hated Carl from TWD and I think that’s lessened a lot nowadays but man I always adored that kid. I know he had his annoying moments but I absolutely adored him and he’s the only reason I ever continued on with the show after Glenn died. 
I’m going to be honest. I really don’t hate Ross from Friends. Yeah he’s pretty shitty and his views are outdated af (maybe even for the 90s?) but I thought he was a funny character and honestly, I thought that with the exception of Phoebe they were all kind of shitty characters (Chandler made fun of Monica’s weight multiple times from a friend to being her husband and was with Cathy while she was with Joey, Monica assumed a maid was stealing from her, etc.). Also side note, Ted from HIMYM annoys me a lot but honestly I didn’t go through the show hating him. I went through the show with him as my least favorite each season and being far more invested in Swarkles and their story, but I ultimately did stick through the show to hear his story, and to see how he may have grown in order to find and be with Tracy - and when he met her I was happy not only because we finally saw how he met the Mother, but because he was finally with his soulmate (until the show fucked it up, of course). But anyway, idk, as much as I love Swarkles and the other characters, I don’t think I would have been able to follow the show if I hated the main character and wasn’t invested in him finding happiness
Kali from Stranger Things. Her story was underdeveloped, sure, but I’m hoping to see more of her in the coming seasons and I’m going to be real, I feel like if she was played by someone like Dacre Montgomery fans would have been raaaaving about how amazing Kali was and how they were excited to see more of Kali in the future. 
Characters I Was Supposed to Like But Didn’t: 
Michael Cordero from JTV. I actually started out liking him, just not wanting him and Jane together, because - and don’t get me wrong before I say anything; Rafael has messed up too, but the extent Michael did things was on a far greater scale to ruin a relationship forever IMO. He made a plan with Petra for her to get Jane’s baby, even when Jane wasn’t sure, he was directly responsible for Mateo getting kidnapped - which wasn’t his intention, but later when Rafael reported him, Michael knew this, went undercover, and still initiated a fight with Rafael saying that he got him fired, and did this while Rafael was right next to his infant son, who ended up getting hurt. Then he continued to just stalk Jane afterwards, and I just couldn’t understand how a character like Jane, who despite being so full of love and forgiveness still loves her son above all else, was with and married a man who tried to get him out of her life and directly hurt him. The more I watched the more I disliked him, and I hated the bad implication of fans ramping up Rafael to be evil while Michael was the “good guy” who “deserved” Jane (and there’s a bad implication there that even though both characters are white, most of fandom didn’t realize Rafael wasn’t a man of color until recently, and that Michael was literally portrayed and shown as Jane’s “white knight” in the narrative). 
Maggie from Supergirl. I tried really hard but I just couldn’t, and I’m going to be honest I think it’s most likely just because I was both really starting to dislike Supergirl and also because I was majorly annoyed at the whole Fl*riana Lima situation, and while I tried not to let it affect how I saw the character, I usually couldn’t look at Maggie after a while without feeling vaguely annoyed - so that’s honestly much less about the writing and me not being able to separate character from actor in that case to be completely completely honest
Trish from JJ. IDK if the show cares if we like her but the fandom adores her and I’m just….eh. I didn’t care about her in the first season (I disliked that she tried going with Jessica even though it was something that made Jessica vulnerable, and that fandom consistently pushed Trish up and would bash Luke) and in the second season she just got much worse to me. I’m not watching s3 unless JJ comes back on Disney plus but from what I’ve heard, I’m not going to like her there either. And I don’t think any of it is OOC from the Trish we’ve seen in the show tbh. I hated her more with each episode, but each progression seemed natural (for the show they’ve written, not what the comic counterpart is because I can’t speak to that at all) 
Dany from GOT. Unlike with Trish, even though I started hating Dany from like….season 5 onwards (although by s4 I was starting to get kind of annoyed) I am still on the crowd that she (like most characters) was written massively poorly in season 8. I think it could have been a natural progression for her to have been a mad queen, but the show rushed it and made a huge jump that her character shouldn’t have made with the story that they wrote. That being said, her being a mad queen didn’t surprise me and while I still love book Dany, show Dany was a huge white savior and watching almost every POC die for her story while she was touted as a feminist icon was………………………eh 
Kurt from Glee ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh my god I hated him. He was a massive hypocrite most of the time (I mean everyone was but he really grinded my gears) and after like 2 seasons he always seemed to act like he was better than everyone. Honestly insert him, Rachel (half the time), and Will in here and I like…did not like them 
put “top 5” anything in my ask and i will answer
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calliecat93 · 3 years ago
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ST: TNG S5 Watchthrough Episodes 14-17
(Trigger Warning: The episode Ethics contains the theme of suicide. While I will try to not go too in-depth, as it is part of the episode I will be discussing it. If this topic makes you uncomfortable or is triggering to you even in the slightest, please skip the section of the watchthrough. Thank you)
Conundrum: So we have us an amnesia episode. Who’s the poor individual who gets hit with it? Everyone! Yes, some weird scan thingy causes everyone to lose their memories. They still know how to perform their jobs and all that, but otherwise, they remember zilch. I’m kind of mixed on how they did it. Overall, they are intelligent and calm about the situation, which on the one hand feels unrealistic. You’d expect far more panic and tension if you suddenly found yourself on a ship among people you don’t know. On the other hand at this point even without their memories, they’re probably used to weirdness like this (the S4 episode Clues had a similar thing happen) and it’s kind of refreshing to see people handle a situation without becoming paranoid assholes. Also… they make some kind of awkward Troi/Riker/Ro love triangle. Troi has some familiarity with Riker due to their past, which makes sense… but why add Ro to the mix? The only time they really interacted outside this episode was Ro’s intro, where Riker was a hypocritical asshole who made her take her earring off. They really don’t seem to agree and I guess the writers went ‘well they argue… so it must be love’! Which… no, going with this with Ro makes zero sense and it really makes it feel like Riker is playing both women, which both feel OOC for him, and even taking amnesia into account makes him look worst. Why does S5 want me to hate Riker? Otherwise, it was fine. Just kind of eh. Again we kinda sorta did this plot already (differently but still) and it doesn’t become hard to figure out who the one behind this is when you realize that they’re the only one getting prominent screentime who isn’t a pre-established character. Still, it’s just alright, but yeah that love triangle nonsense, while by no means the worst I’ve ever seen, really was unnecessary. 2.5/5.
Power Play: In this one, Troi, Data, and O’Brein get posessed on an Away Mission (Riker almost did as well, but it flew away before it could posess him). They take Ten-Forward hostage which includes Worf and Keiko, and later Picard. This had to be fun for Marina Sirtis, Brent Spiner, and Colm Meaney since they ge to act all evil… though Spiner’s already done it with Lore, but still XD So it was fine. It was tense and had some disturbing moments like Posessed!O’Brein forcing himself on Keiko. Dear God I hope the Enteprise has a counselor (aside from Troi since she was partially involved in this) cause neither of them deserved that. It was also scary to see Data acting like… well, Lore pretty much. Seeing Riker, Crusher, Geordi, and Ro trying to figure out how to save them without anyone getting killed was also interesting, it’s the first time we’ve seen a hostage situation like this in a ST show (Space Seed in TOS kinda counts, but that was an entirely different scenario and was more ‘hostile takeover’ than ‘hostage situation’). That’s honestly all I’ve got/ IDK, S5 has just been painfully average thus far where none of the episodes have been particularly bad, but only like… three so far (Ensign Ro, Disaster, Unification) have kept me interested. Maybe that’ll change here soon bu it’s just like ‘…it’s fine but I feel nothing otherwise’. 3/5.
Ethics: I again point to the trigger warning above. The episode contains the theme of suicide (though it is NOT carried out) so if this topic at all is uncomfortable/triggery, please skip this section. So what happened? An accident has left Worf paralyzed. Crusher has called in a neurologist while Worf, believing that he can no longer be a warrior in his condition, wants to be killed. Needless to say, we’re dealing with some heavy stuff in this one. We kind of have a similar thing going on as in Half a Life where Worf wants to die as according to his Klingon beliefs, his life is over since he is paralyzed. He asks Riker to help commit it as he’s his friend and naturally Riker is appalled at this. Picard breaks it down for Riker and that while we don’t understand it we should respect it… but again we’re talking about assisted suicide. I get what Picard is saying but just… no. The episode makes it clear that we’re supposed to be conflicted, however, and in the end, Worf decides against it due to both an experimental procedure and because Riker uncovered that Alexander would be the one who’d have to assist in the suicide if Worf did it. Needless to say, Worf ain’t letting that happen. It does make Worf’s feelings clear, however. His anger, his fear, it’s very hard to watch Worf in such a state. The neurologist, Dr. Russell, offers him a procedure that may work… but it’s a procedure that is still in the experimental stage and turned down by Starfleet Medical. Needless to say, Crusher’s not exactly happy with the idea of using a medically untested procedure on one of her patients… but to be fair, Worf has refused all other treatment and the use of implants and with suicide the only other option, I can see why Russell would be willing to offer. But at the same time, it does come across her just using this as an excuse to use said treatment which also has plenty of risks on said patients life/further well-being, and Crusher telling her off repeatedly is very satisfying especially at the end when Worf almost died due to her, and she seemed more concerned with noting it than what her actions caused and said that Crusher was jealous. Yeah, Russell sucks. It does bring up a lot of medically ethical questions, however: is it right to use an experimental procedure on a patient when all other options have been turned away or are available? Especially when said patient is suicidal or when it comes to said patient's beliefs? I side with Crusher at the end of the day especially since Worf is very lucky to have survived/recovered his mobility afterward, but the questions are still ones to point out. Then there’s poor Alexander whose on the verge of losing his father and Worf not wanting him to see him like he is and… God yeah. Just as I complain about the lack of impactful episodes, this one comes in. It’s a very tough episode with everything going on with Worf, the theme of medical ethics, and it’s heavy on the emotions. IDK how well I can say that the episode portrays it, but it certainly hit hard and brings up a lot of questions for the viewers. It certainly reaffirms how much I love Crusher XD 4/5.
The Outcast: /sighs/ Okay… how to go about talking about this one? In this episode, we meet a species of aliens that don’t use gender identity, and if they show signs of identifying as male or female, they undergo ‘treatment’. One of these individuals is Soren, who identifies as female and falls in love with Riker. So… there are many things that this can be associated with, but this was made as a gay rights episode. Now… let us remember when this was made. S5 was airing during the early ’90s. This was not a good time for gay individuals. We were very much anti-LGBT+ in those times and the AIDS epidemic where they were scapegoated as a public menace still being rampant didn’t help. In many ways, doing this episode was a bold move and I can respect them for at least is trying to tackle the topic seriously. If there’s any franchise that you’d expect to tackle these kinds of issues it would be this one. But the question is does it hold up 30 years later? Well… unfortunately, no. First, if they really wanted to get the gay rights message across… why was Soren played by a female actress? Maybe it was the only way they would have been allowed to do this, but because of it, it keeps a heterosexual angle that causes the message to be lost. We also don’t have any regular/reccuring characters as queer which would be pretty important to have in this episode. Considering that TOS took the risk with making PoC equal to white people at a time it wasn’t at all welcomed, TNG not doing so with LGBT+ individuals is rather unfortunate to put it nicely. Not to mention it sticking to standard male/female stereotypes as the norm when breaking them down to Soren, as well as Worf’s sexist/bigoted comments. That’s no even going into other identities such as transgender and non-binary. I’d really like to know what they think of this one considering the themes. As I am a bi/demisexual cis woman and this was meant to be a gay rights episode I will look at it as such and from that POV, the episode does not at all look great in a modern light.
Maybe I’m just far too nice and should be harsher on this, and I’m not gonna lie I’m horrible at addressing these things so I apologize if any of this came out wrong. But between this and The Host, it’s clear that the show was ill-equipped to handle LGBT+ topics. But at the same time, back then even considering addressing the topics in any way would have been risky. I do believe that there was a good faith effort and maybe in some ways, it helped when we improved later. It’s always hard to say if people should tackle topics they don’t understand or not. Naturally, it’s rage-inducing when they get it wrong, but it can also open the door to getting people to learn and to improve. Maybe this was needed in the ’90s and they did it the best way that they could, and maybe the fact that we can look at it and go ‘we know better’ is a sign that we’re better than when we were 30 years ago… or again, I am far too nice/too much of a doormat and I give the benefit of the doubt way too much. People who are more knowledgeable/know how to address this far better than I have here have likely done so and I’d encourage others to read more into those perspectives. Regardless, the episode overall is okay I guess. I certainly felt horrible for Soren at the end as she’s taken to undergo ‘treatment’ and Riker trying to help her get out of it. Her speech, wanting to just be treated as a person and not be treated as horrible due to who she is during the trial did really hit me and is why I think that the show did mean well. If she wanted to identify as female and be with Riker, she should be free to and then how she was forced to conform to her society’s views at the end when Riker tried to save her, it’s just... hard to watch. I wish that the ending was more optimistic/hopeful but I can’t say that the message wasn’t loud and clear. It very much reflected society at that time, and in many ways it’s still relevant today concerning how society treats those deemed outside the norm. But it also has issues due to the execution as I already mentioned, and I can only hope that Modern Trek (Discovery, Picard, soon SNW) and whatever they do in the future are/will be better at handling these kinds of themes because there’s no excuse to get it wrong in today’s time. 2.5/5.
I hope that I addressed things properly concerning the last episode. But it’s now done. We have nine more to go for the season. Let's see how it turns out.
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the7thcrow · 3 years ago
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hi :D i was utterly delighted when i saw this reblog last night, so how about some commentary shall we?
Our father is dead, so where is mother? Who is our mother? So many questions to be answered. Will we ever get an answer?
perhaps👀 although it may take some time for more of the backstory, i can tell you she is mentioned in part 2 (which i am currently writing) ~
Also Jongho??? Is evil?? Very good job of turning my strength into my weakness, Lovely author. Well played. (i’m hurt, Jongho, of all of them. I mean I understand why, But I was expecting Hongjoong, not Jongho so this maybe a bit dramatic.)
to be fair, jongho himself didn’t seem evil, did he?more of just a kid stuck on the bad side of things… unless >:)
MINGIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!(part 2), Why did you do that- ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, my heart! </3 Mingi don’t kill yourself for me i should be the one doing that for you bestie! Still dear author the way convey the emotions is amazing!!! It fits the theme of the fantasy while being realistic enough to relate to. Gorgeous. But MiNgI!!!!!!!!!!!! pretty perfect we lost the best ‘best friend’ when we need him the most.
ah yes, poor mingi😔 he truly didn’t deserve it, after such a noble tall boi sacrifice. also tsym for the writing compliments :,) twas worried that it might not have delivered, so i’m very glad it did.
Wooyoung!!! What a way to greet us by almost drowning us in the river!! We haven’t seen much of his character’s personality other then him being slightly rude(is this an understatement?) and prideful (and idk why but I feel like with his elemental powers he could put on such a beautiful waterwork display? Thoughts being thinked about.)
yeah.. wooyoung. he’s uh, well to put it simply, he’s a bit of an ass. ofc we are going to learn more about them all + their history and backstories as time goes on, but for now it’s very safe of you to say that he’s pretty damn rude lmaoo. but perhaps for good reason.🤷🏼‍♀️
Seonghwa!!!!! You kind human being! If he wasn’t there Woo would have definitely finished us off lol. And While so far he has portrayed as Kind, caring and slightly(?) naive I personally, feel like he’s hiding something. I mean he is a group of bandits. Something needs to have happened! (Feel like he has slightly dark past? Who knows (other than our lovely author of course lol)
ooo i like this theory. seonghwa with a dark side? very fun, i guess we’ll just have to wait and see. (but yes, for now at least, a gullible protective soft boi. we love to see it.)
Is he the leader of their little group? With that line of him holding our fate in his hands I feel like this is more true than false.( If it turns out to be false, I will be extremely embarrassed) He has more mystery shrouding him than the others. But, the biggest question might just be why he was able to negotiate with Woo so easily? I mean it could be just him being a fantastic negotiater, but really? it is a fantasy themed story, i’m gonna go full on fantasy. All we know about his personality so far, is probably just that he is introverted and quite possibly very dangerous.
firstly, you never have to feel embarrassed for making theories about my works. i absolutely love hearing them, whether they are spot on or not. part of what i try to do sometimes as a writer is throw you off, so don’t ever worry about that.
but for this one, you’re right lmao! at least in the way of planning and making decisions, san definitely has the most level head, and seems to take the lead there. and don’t worry, there will be more exploration and world-building around people who are gifted as the series goes on.👀
[ Also who is prince we’ve been berothed to since birth?]
hehehe. i can’t possibly say. 😈
And once again thank-you for writing such a masterpiece!! Can’t wait for the next chapter!!
you’re so sweet! this made my whole day. thanks so much for reading, and i’m so excited to hear more of your thoughts in future chapters!! <3
Not all that Glitters is Gold -> 01
pairing: (fem) princess!reader x wooyoung x san x seonghwa. eventual polyamory.
series masterlist | prev chapter.
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Part One: a sacrifice, a narrow escape, and three bandits.
series rating: 16+
series genre: action and adventure. romance. angst. fluff. suggestive. fantasy au.
series warnings: character death, blood and violence, weaponry, injury, suggestive content, mxm content, language. (i will only be using chapter specific warnings for things not included on this list. i want to keep the surprise and unknown of the story alive, so pls just make sure you’re comfortable with the above before proceeding.)
summary: as a princess fleeing a royal assassination attempt, you have no choice but to put your trust in a band of three thieves in order to reach the kingdom of kuroku alive. however, amongst magic, deceit, and the bounty hunters that are hot on your trail, you realize you might have stumbled upon a relationship far more complicated than what meets the eye.
chapter details beneath the cut ->
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fae-fucker · 7 years ago
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Shatter Me: Chapter 12-13
Chapter 12
5 full minutes under piping hot water, 2 bars of soap both smelling of lavender, a bottle of shampoo meant only for my hair, and the touch of soft, plush towels I dare to wrap around my body and I begin to understand. 
They want me to forget. 
They think they can wash away my memories, my loyalties, my priorities with a few hot meals and a room with a view. They think I am so easily purchased.
Or they just ... don’t want you to fucking stink like twelve rat corpses. Because you’ll be interacting with other humans now. 
I’m sorry, does letting people shower mean they want to brainwash you now? Is basic hygiene yet another head of the Establishment Hydra?
YA dystopias have this uncanny and frankly impressive ability to make me side with the evil government, just because the heroines are such absolute morons.
I also want to touch upon the fact that not only did Juliette get out of nearly 300 days of solitary confinement with her shitty mind intact, she also somehow managed to keep her morals and “loyalties” (How can you have loyalties when you constantly whine about how alone in the world you are and always have been?) and is just too pure and good to fall prey for their devious manipulation tactics!
Unbelievable. Literally, I do not believe this. She should be crying of happiness at this point and forget all about eveyrbody else. Yeah, she wil have to remember eventually, but right now? Fuck no.
But I guess that would mean she’s “weak”, wouldn’t it? And we can’t have a weak, a human female character! She must be strong and dignified and always know right from wrong and survive solitary with her flawless mind and morals still intact! 
Fuck off.
I didn’t want the clothes or the perfect shoes or the expensive anything. I didn’t want to be draped in silk. All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.
She’s not like OTHER GIRLS. She doesn’t want PRETTY CLOTHES. She just wants to TOUCH someone with her PURE HEART.
She angsts about how she never had any human contact and “grew up” through books, which would be sad if the “books are holy” wank was kept short, which it obviously isn’t. We gotta wax poetic about books in a YA book, how else will the reader know she’s special for reading? Also idk where she got these books since the Reestablishment supposedly destroyed everything, but ok.
Juliette angsts some more about the usual, nobody-likes-me crap. I love how despite the fact that people have treated her like shit and she doesn’t have any memories of ever being loved, she’s still such a pure-hearted wee angel that she’s not even a little bitter and still thinks of all the poor and starving people!
It just makes so much sense that she wants to protect those people who shunned and despised her! She’s just so good and pure!
They think I’m a doll they can dress up and twist into prostration. 
But they’re wrong.
But ... Why? Who are you fighting for? What have you got to lose by joining them, and more importantly, what will you win by resisting? 
I know that the main conflict comes from her resisting and being whiny about it, but even that needs a good motivation? Why is she doing this? What does she think she’ll do? Escape and live among the poor and helpless, who all hate her because of her Bad Touch? 
What is Juliette’s motivation for literally anything she does?
Adam comes in and is stunned by how hot she is now that she’s clean, because of course. 
I have no idea what to expect I have no idea what my life will be like in this new place and I’m being nailed in the stomach by every exquisite embellishment, every lavish accessory, every superfluous painting, molding, lighting, coloring of this building. I hope the whole thing catches fire.
The Reestablishment is evil for taking away art and beauty.
Art and beauty is evil also because the Reestablishment has it.
Aight.
Adam takes Juliette to Warner Bros. where he’s chilling at a big table with a bunch of other dudes, and Juliette notes that there are no other women so you know this properly evil and it’ll be time for Juliette to feminisms this place up.
Juliette is seated right next to Warner Bros. because drama.
I’m so thirsty I could inhale a waterfall.
I had to read that and now so do you. 
I hate his smile. 
Hate looks just like everybody else until it smiles. Until it spins around and lies with lips and teeth carved into the semblance of something too passive to punch.
I had to read that and now so do you: The Squeakquel. 
Hey uuuuh Tahereh WHAT THE FUCK DOES THIS MEAN.
This isn’t even purple prose anymore, this has transcended the boundaries of human comprehension. 
“Are you not hungry?” Words dipped in sugar. His gloved hand touches my wrist and I nearly sprain it in my haste to distance myself from him. 
I could eat every person in this room.
So this basically confirms that Juliette doesn’t believe the crap she spouts, right? Otherwise she’s literally considering cannibalism right now. 
He licks his bottom lip into a smile. “Don’t confuse stupidity for bravery, love. I know you haven’t eaten anything in days.” 
Something in my patience snaps. “I’d really rather die than eat your food and listen to you call me love,” I tell him.
FEMINISMS! 
Also why the passive narration? “Something in my patience snaps”? This is like two layers away from your own person. Why can’t you just say that you snap? Too much agency for you there?
Also also: No. She hasn’t eaten anything in DAYS. She should be INHALING food right now. I don’t fucking CARE how PURE she is, unless she can sustain herself by sucking energy out of her high horse, she’ll forget all about the EVIL GOVERNMENT and EAT. 
Hey YA? Can we uuuh ... let women be people please?
Warner Bros. is a deeply fucked up man who may I remind you will be Juliette’s fuckbuddy at some point, so he takes her rejection by shooting a gun into some food. 
Don’t you just ... love all these extremely violent men in YA fiction being portrayed as hot? I know I don’t! 
Warner Bros. goes all Christian Grey and threatens Juliette into eating some food.
Amazing.
Chapter 13
Adam has fucked off and Warner Bros. takes Juliette back to her room.
“I don’t want you to hate me,” Warner says as we make our way toward the elevator. “I’m only your enemy if you want me to be.” 
“We will always be enemies.” My voice is cracked into chips of ice. The words melt on my tongue. “I will never be what you want me to be.”
Because reasons! 
Warner Bros. smiles at her and of course he’s gorgeous, duh. He’s clearly a fucking asshole and a violent man but HOTDANG we have to know he’s bangable.
“You and I, Juliette—together? We could be unstoppable.”
I would call this foreshadowing but it’s actually more like spoilers at this point.
Juliette notices that Warner Bros. is covered everywhere except his face so she can’t touch him even if she wanted to. You can’t just Harry Potter vs Voldemort that shit and touch his face? Give him a Bitch Slap of Death? For someone who refuses to bow to the Man for reasons unknown, you sure give up pretty easily.
“What’s your first name?” I ask him. 
We’re standing in front of my door. 
He stops. Surprised. Lifts his chin almost imperceptibly. 
Focuses his eyes on my face until I begin to regret my question. “You want to know my name.” 
I don’t do it on purpose, but my eyes narrow just a bit. “Warner is your last name, isn’t it?” 
He almost smiles. “You want to know my name.”
1) Is Warner Bros. fucking OK? Is he stuck? Do we need to reboot him?
2) What the fuck is this atrocious dialogue? Was Tahereh absolutely shitfaced when she wrote this? 
3) Why doesn’t Juliette seem to have any sort of control over her own damn body? Why is this such a common narration tactic that’s used for NO REASON in YA books? Girls don’t even have agency over their own bodies in fiction, for God’s sake! 
Warner Bros. shows off his inner masochist and tells Juliette he’ll tell her his first name if she shows him what she can do. She refuses to touch him (-why did you worry about being able to touch him before you dingus?) and Warner Bros. asks a man named JENKINS to take her to her room and not let go of her no matter what happens.
Juliette tries to escape but ends up getting caught by Jenkins and:
I feel alive. 
I wish it hurt me. I wish it maimed me. I wish it repulsed me. I wish I hated the potent force wrapping itself around my skeleton.
But I don’t. My skin is pulsing with someone else’s life and I don’t hate it. 
I hate myself for enjoying it. 
I enjoy the way it feels to be brimming with more life and hope and human power than I knew I was capable of. His pain gives me a pleasure I never asked for.
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Let’s be fucking real: This could’ve been such an epic, interesting concept and we’re stuck with THIS.
I’ll put this in my pocket and make sure to use this in future WIPs. I’ve always been a fan of Reaver type powers in Mass Effect and Dragon Age (where you drain an enemy’s health to refill your own), I think exploring that concept in a book would be super interesting.
Juliette starts screaming for someone to help poor Jenkins and we get this crap:
Warner’s gloves are back in place and he’s trying to hold me together, he’s trying to smooth back my hair, he’s trying to wipe away my tears and I want to murder him.
He’s a bastard abuser but it’s OK because he has a hidden soft side, y’all!
Juliette passes out for no reason. I guess that’s the only way we’d get a “smooth” chapter transition. 
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