#if a character has a death scene/execution they're dead

[kkatastrophic]

Reblog if your favourite danganronpa character is dead (let's see how far this reaches!)

[greenerteacups]

I wonder often why Deathly Hallows as a book is so fascinated with wandcraft and wandlore, especially after the series has spent six volumes being more or less disinterested in it (with the exception of the Twin Cores plot in Book 4). A weirdly high % of the plot depends on who owns whose wand and why: the wand mixup with the Snatchers, Harry's wand being broken, Draco's wand, Bellatrix's wand, and of course, the final rigmarole over who's the "rightful master" of the Elder Wand, which ends up being a weird combination of killing/disarming/fist-fight to disarm someone who... wasn't even wielding the Elder Wand at the time he was disarmed, which begs the question of what it counts to "disarm" someone of a weapon they're not technically wielding? Also, are we to assume that Dumbledore was not disarmed once in the N years since his fight with Grindlewald? Or — here's a harder one — that Draco wasn't disarmed once between Dumbledore's death and his fight with Harry? That's plausible, but it's kind of weird that I need to believe it for the rest of the plot to make sense.

And like, I can think of a few Doylist reasons for this to be the case. The first is that JKR wants Voldemort to kill Snape in the boathouse, which allows Harry to get Snape's memories and retroactively justify why Snape's acted this way since PoA (and explain where the sword comes from in the lake in DH, too). I can think of better, more character-driven reasons for him to kill Snape (just... blow Snape's cover? reveal him as a double agent? have him try to kill Nagini? idk), but let's suppose, for subtextual reasons, she wants Voldemort to think Snape was loyal to the end. Having him die by Nagini's hand muddies the already-opaque water of what constitutes "disarming," because Nagini is a living creature. What if I drop someone into a pool of piranhas? Do I get their wand? Yeah, Voldemort commands her, but then — okay, what if I Imperius someone and make them disarm someone else? I get that it's not like DH has time for Harry to sit down with Ollivander and go through all of the tiny procedural rules for wand usage, but also, are these not relevant questions? Is this not the central mechanic of the final battle, this one piece of magic? Am I not supposed to wonder how it works?

The other reason I can imagine is that Harry wins a duel against Voldemort 1v1, which is not terribly believable unless there's some kind of magical advantage working in his favor. We know the Elder Wand's failure to execute the Cruciatus means Harry can't be harmed by spells the Elder casts, because it's his "true master." This is a really weird quirk in wandlore — why does it work this way? Is it the only wand that works this way? By that logic, shouldn't everyone Harry disarms be incapable of casting spells on him? — that emerges in Book 7, apparently for the purpose of giving Harry a buff in the final duel. Functionally, that's weird, because on a technical level it works the same way as Lily's protection — it's a reason that Voldemort can't hurt him. So why get rid of Lily's protection at all? It's not like he duels Voldemort between Book 4 and Book 7. The graveyard scene artificially hikes the stakes for Harry by making him physically vulnerable, pretty much only so he can die at the end of DH... except again, not for real, because Voldemort only ends up killing the piece of Harry that's a horcrux, so it doesn't even count!

And then Harry replaces the wand in Dumbledore's tomb. Which would be a nice moment if the lore hadn't established that anyone who disarms Harry, ever, will become the master of the Elder Wand by default. Harry knows this. He also knows that this knowledge is out there in the world; sure, Grindlewald's dead now, but do we think that Grindlewald never told anyone else about the Elder Wand? And he learned about it from somewhere, didn't he? So Harry might naturally assume that someone else would eventually come looking, in which case Dumbledore's tomb is far from the safest place to put this equivalent of a wizarding nuke. (Not that it seems to be all that powerful anyway; the coolest thing it does is fix Harry's other wand, and we're left wondering why the Elder Wand is considered "unbeatable" when people who own it seem to be getting disarmed all over the fucking place.)

Also, in retrospect, this makes it incredibly odd that Dumbledore allows Draco to disarm him, because he's giving the Wizarding Nuke to a 16-year-old servant of Lord Voldemort. Suppose that he's trying to prevent Snape from getting the wand, because he doesn't want Snape to be a target: okay, fine, but does he know Draco's going to give Snape credit for the kill? What if Draco lies? What if LV just... accepts the fact that the wand recognizes Expelliarmus as a point of transfer, and either disarms or kills Draco? And in any case, no matter what the answers to these questions are, why didn't he just ask Harry to disarm him before he went to the lake?

I'm usually not one to be an asshole about plot holes — mostly because, taken by themselves, I don't find them that interesting — but they become interesting to me when I see several of them in the same vein, because they tell me that the author's trying to do something. And they want to do it so badly they're willing to strain other parts of the story to make it happen.

[constantfragmentation]

Arcane S2 Thoughts

I've had a week to digest this season and well, I guess I have the unpopular opinion of being very disappointed. After the initial flash of gorgeous animation and some ooo's and awe's.... I was left with a bitter aftertaste. I can rewatch S1 loads of time. I don't think I can watch S2 again.

I'm happy for the fans that loved it and got what they wanted or the shippers that got what they wanted. I'm happy for you. Do your thing.

Me? Not so much. Even as a Silco fan (and I admit to squeeing for any footage of him at first), I'm not pleased. Yeah, my young Silco is a nerd, man-bun hottie, but that's where it ended for me. His entire characterization was nothing like the character I fell head over heels for in S1.

Vander's Flashback: I honestly don't find Felicia's inclusion necessary at all. In fact, I think it waters down everything between Silco and Vander. Their knowing her and the kids creates more questions, plotholes, and problems than it supposedly solves.

Why is Vander only in those memories with the kids? It's before the fallout with Silco. Why don't the kids know or remember nice Silco? Why do they only fear him (obv that's from Vander and Benzo, yes?)?

Why doesn't Silco seem to know Powder at Vander's dead body? Why would he kill Felicia's kids? None of it makes any fucking sense if he cared about Felicia. He hates Vander so much, he hates the kids too because he adopted them?

How the hell does S2 Young Silco turn into S1 Silco? Riot really messed this one up. Vander's attempted murder didn't change his entire personality.

It was a rebellion battle. People were going to get hurt and killed. They had to know this. So, whether Silco accidentally killed Felicia (as some fans are debating) or she died, is so damn dumb for Vander to solely blame Silco. Takes the kids, becomes a pacifist FIRST and then decides to (shave and grow younger) kill his brother for the greater good. Doesn't make one lick of sense narratively.

The narrative, characterization and animation inconsistencies don't help from S1 either. The drowning scene doesn't fit the S2 explanation. They're too young. Vander had a beard and appears much older on the bridge. Hell, S2 Young!Silco looks older than S1 Young!Silco. Sloppy, sloppy, sloppy. If people want to kiss Riot's ass, fine, but there was too much that was straight up lazy writing.

Silco's death is just glossed over considering how important he is. Silco did what Vander couldn't. Even without Shimmer, the Underground was thriving. Cait's mother's death/burial/statue gets more screen time and Silco gets dumped in the river. No one seems to question his death or what happened? Yeah, ok.

I'll use this moment to complain about the excessive music video montages this season too. I watched S1 again and the writing and use of music worked in unison and enhanced scenes. S2 felt like scenes in between music videos and it was irritating.

There was so much screentime wasted that could have been good dialogue heavy scenes that S1 was great at. Instead, time wasted on poorly executed plotlines that needed way more time to flesh out (Mel, Ekko and Viktor) and we have slowmo music videos and MCU fight scenes. Hermie's guitar song and Mission Impossible jokster crap was laughable and not in a good way.

Riot tried to pack too much into one season, and it was a mess. This season felt like watching a Marvel movie. Cool action sequences with little to no substance. All the nuance and grit from last season were gone in favor of the 'good vs. bad' trope. All the political-societal issues in S1 were abandoned that were far more fascinating to explore.

Mel has superpowers now? It feels all out of place. Her, Ambessa, and the Black Rose plot have zero time to make it interesting and plausible. She was introduced as this master manipulator/politician and her sage persona feels so forced.

Jesus Demigod Viktor was too much. I was excited for the Machine Herald and the psychedelic Arcane magical multiverse took me out. Making him to be the big baddie and timeloop it around to Jayce felt like a big cop out. Viktor deserved better. Hell, Jayce deserved better.

So much was sacrificed to make the whole Arcane magic THE point of the series when it was one of the least interesting aspects of the show. Hextech for weapons and the continuing problems between Piltover and Zaun was RIPE for storytelling. It seems each act needed several episodes to cover.

Ekko sure as fuck deserved better than that half assed time warp with Hermie. The AU really bothered me. Everything felt wrong. EVERYTHING. Nothing was explained well at all. It felt like complete fan service at the expense of the characters. Before people rip me saying "well duh! It was an AU!". You don't assassinate characters and plot to have a happy ending that insults your viewers.

They turned Zaun (its own cool character) into the bargain basement of Piltover. How is it sunny and pretty? Really? Mirror tricks? Everyone just forgave Piltover after years of oppression?

You're telling me Vi's death saved humanity? Fuck that shit right now. Piltover just stopped because a kid died? Suddenly everything became better? What happened to Jayce? Viktor? Hell, Hermie after decades didn't give two shits about Zaun, so what changed with the Council? Where's Singed? I don't buy it.

I don't buy Jinx/Powder being super normal smart girl. I LOVE JInx, but I believe she had mental issues prior breaking into Jayce's apartment. I don't think Vi's death made that go away (as I don't believe Silco's death did either). As someone who battles with mental health, this is insulting to me as a viewer.

I hated AU Silco. There. I said it. He just forgave Vander? Really? Bullshit. The reason Vander tried to kill him is stupid. A simple letter changed Silco? That fluffy-haired softy is not Silco. I can't imagine that Silco being the one who fought a rebellion. He probably would not have become a mob boss peddling drugs but this AU softboi dad feels so wrong. I never would have stanned AU Silco. Not in a million years.

S1 Silco's traits didn't magically appear because Vander betrayed him. The young S1 Silco had to be similar in many ways to older S1 Silco. Drive, ambition, ruthlessness, willing to die for a cause. I don't see Felicia's death changing that. I certainly don't see Vi's death changing that.

If Vander needed to kill Silco to stop the violence, etc, it's because he saw Silco as a threat to him or society as a whole. S1 Vander is known as The Hound. So, he seems to be violent as well. He takes credit for building the Underground when Felicia credits both 'bozos' for it. So Vander being upset she died and blaming Silco to the point of murder is a slap in the face to fans' intelligence.

I do hate that by Vi's death, everything is magically better. I can't express how much I hate that. AU Powder was irritating and was nothing like my Jinx that I love. Again so much wasted time that could have been better spent on good character driven scenes that actually advance the plot.

Pointless characters. Introduce Isha (who I adored). Make her seem important to Jinx. Kill her and never mention her again. So what was the point of her inclusion this season? Just to make Jinx suicidal? I hated that also. Again WASTED SCREENTIME.

Oh, and Caitvi was a disgrace. I think shippers deserved better here, too. Caitlyn goes crazy dictator because of guilt over her mom. Granted, Caitvi only knew each other for a week-ish? Not a lot of time to make their relationship serious past an infatuation. Cait turns from all her good points last season to Ambessa's padawan.

Don't get me started on that side piece Maddie. Really? Cait you were that hard up? And that long awaited sex scene was a big eye roll. Vi goes to her sister, and shit goes to hell, and a few minutes later, she's fucking Cait in the same cell. Vi was reduced to shit this season.

I mean, these characters just got shafted in every way for a high speed train wreck ending that we've seen a million times in Disneyfied stories. Action sequences were more important than actual character development and plot.

You can't make me believe that one speech from Jayce 'seeing a possible future' suddenly got Zaun to work with and dress up as Piltover soldiers? Really?

I had high hopes for Sevika, and the girl got shit nothing to do except in two episodes. Her seat on the Council feels like a last-minute decision and not worthy enough to expand on.

What made S1 so great was the class divide between Zaun and Piltover and how it affected the characters. S2 decided to scrap that and go with the easy good vs evil trope instead. Even the parallels didn't have the same hit as last season.

I did like Jinx talking to her 'ghost' Silco in the jail cell. He was calming to her in contrast to Milo/Claggor except the implication that she should die (that's what I got out of that).

We didn't even get much from Singed. Yeah, he got his daughter back (in some form) but his story was so blah. We didn't get nearly enough of him and Warwick and what made Warwick.

I guessed a few years ago it was going to be Vander but I didn't like how it was handled.

Too many plotlines all rushed together without getting any decent screentime and explanations that don't confuse or insult viewers intelligence. OR you have to be a LOL fan/player to understand. I never played LOL before S1 and wasn't confused as to the main plot.

I loved all the characters in S1 and felt they were pretty much watered down or assassinated in S2 for an apocalyptical Demigod villain vs humanity battle done to death finale.

The Zaun/Piltover political-societal problems, parallels, corruption, science going wrong, pathway to hell paved with good intentions themes from S1 was so much better in every single aspect.

I'm still a fan of S1 and the characters and frankly, I'm going to ignore 95% of S2.

[doodler16]

man... after that episode idk anymore honestly what is going on.

summarized thoghts i guess?

>i feel like viv has just gotten lazy with the remaining sins' designs... like... why is asmodeus so incredibly different from the succubu/incubi but leviathan just looks like an envy citizen? all i thought when i first saw them was "oh thats the karen from the hospital and glitz or glam combined?"

>also mammon is the only fat character here so obviously that means food jokes..

>striker apparently abandoned his enitire character of hating the goetia/rich, which is so disappointing.

>so many confusing cramped designs which completely turns the goetias into a clusterfuck. why. if they did it from the start like this and didn't give everyone the impression that the goetias were entirely birds, it could've maybe worked. idk if they're supposed to mimic the court in heaven in the hh s2 leaks.

> andrealphus literally says everything about the blitz the fandom already does lmfaooo

> ofc stolas sacrificed himself 🙄

poor via, man..

That episode was ass. Nothing and something happened at the same time. 😂

This episode reminded me of final episode of Hazbin Hotel. Like for example, the tonal whiplash: one moment it’s comedic. Then another scene is dramatic, we the audience are supposed to care about what happens to the IMP gang as they cry and worry about each other despite previous episodes saying and showing otherwise.

The fact that Andrealphus similarly to the fandom accused Blitz of rape is insane.

It was so hard to take this court trial seriously because of the switching tones. Why was Vassago hyped to hell and back when he barely contributed anything besides being Stolas’ cheerleader. Why didn’t Moxxie or Millie mention Striker’s involvement in the attempted assassination, like cmon you guys were there when Stolas was the verge of death. Even better, why didn’t Blitz mention that Striker was involved when he finally got the chain off his mouth.

Ozzie didn’t do anything, he easily could’ve said more since Stolas has confided to him about Blitz and the grimoire. They did mammon and striker dirty, Anon. Leviathan’s design is interesting, she looks like glam sisters’ older sister.

Stolas “sacrifice” was so ugh. That “Master mind” song was stupid, it easily could’ve taken 5 minutes or less to explain his side. He unnecessarily insults Blitz multiple times during the song, like just admit you were wrong like a normal person and explain that Stella, Striker and andrealphus is in charge of the assassination attempt. Don’t need to make it all complicated.

Stolas sacrifice wasn’t even out of the kindness of his heart, fixing the damages he done. Dude literally regrets throwing away his freedom and privileges and mentions how he rather be dead than live life without Blitz’s side. So much for loving Blitzy. That scene was so corny “you’re my light 🤣, you’re my heart.”

The fact that Satan wasn’t even going to execute Stolas was the most annoying part, why should I take this trial seriously if you aren’t hold him accountable. If Andrealphus didn’t say anything, what would Stolas punishment be? Satan didn’t even try with Stolas and was like time for lunch.

Only Vivziepop somehow makes Stolas losing his powers and status a bad thing/point it in a sympathetic manner.

[wardensantoineandevka]

The way I see it, how things played out in the episode indicated that Beau, Caleb, and honestly even Keyleth were never in any danger of dying.

Beau and Caleb roll so poorly, and they're captured completely unharmed, then largely ignored by the villains for the rest of the scene. Yes, Ludinus says he wants them to witness their failure, but that's just the story excuse. The classic Bond villain traps him instead of the smarter move of killing him because Bond has plot armor—and so it is with Beau and Caleb. Ludinus harmlessly traps them and then leaves them alone instead of killing them immediately and permanently remove them as threats because he actually isn't allowed to kill them by the meta concerns.

Keyleth gets wrecked, yes. She isn't protected from being harmed, but she was never in danger of dying. The narrative surrounding her for that moment is that Vax will appear to protect her from Otohan and prevent her death—whether that's at the end of the turn or, I imagine and feel, at any moment that would've knocked her out or killed her. The story itself RELIES on preventing Keyleth's death, so while it's A Lot, from a narrative mechanics perspective, she was never actually at risk of death because there is a narrative trigger to stop it from happening.

Vax, well, he's already dead and can't get much deader. Don't really understand what precisely happened to him and what it means for his personal status, but he is well established to be in the territory of "you can't kill me in any way that matters".

These failsafe and mechanics don't protect these characters from setbacks, general harm, pain physical and emotional, failure, grief (and it would be weird if they weren't allowed to experience these things anymore), but it does protect them from death. It's a harrowing series of events, but there was no real threat of death from a narrative perspective. The former PCs who are susceptible to death were always going to survive this scenario because table etiquette and respect around the cast demands it. The way everything unfolded really felt like it highlighted the (well executed) mechanics of the story in place to guarantee that they did.

And, going forward, I'm sure they'll continue to be fine in the end.

[lemonhemlock]

It’s very amusing that Condal clearly wants to adapt AFFC, and how people eat it up despite it not being earned. AFFC was the fourth book of the series, after the beheading of Ned, Winterfell falling, Jaime losing his hand, the Red Wedding, the Purple Wedding. All the reasons for why the War of the Five Kings is over, all those people are either dead or scattered to the wind, and yet the war rages on. It’s a pointless war that characters we have grown to know and love undergo intense changes in, notably Jaime and Brienne as they wander through the Riverlands, Arya in Braavos, Sam on the edge of despair as he journeys south. Frankly? Considering that the Dance hasn’t even properly started yet and no one cares about the deaths that have occurs (Luke, Jaehaerys, Rhaenys) the sheer fatalism feels unearned bc no one has gone through gut wrenching tragedy yet. “War is pointless.” Great, but we got another two seasons of this and if the characters think this story is dumb and pointless and are just going through the motions, why should we watch? It’s frankly just too early for everyone to lose their shit bc they haven’t even begin to truly lose everything yet. The characters themselves thinking it’s pointless robs them of motivations bc we still got more than half the story to go! Criston’s monologue in the finale is good but that’s because it’s directly cribbed from Jaime’s “honor is mist” speech but it’s not nearly as earned bc we don’t have any idea how or why he started sleeping with Alicent or even why he became a kingsguard in the first place! Daemon’s Harrenhal arc ended with him somehow obsessed with a prophecy and connecting it back to Rhaenyra without him coming to terms with Viserys not trusting him with the prophecy which is what he was mad about in the first place!

We never actually see anyone react to anything, and the limping plodding along of character development happening off screen so we never see how or why anyone changes is not good! Episode 7 actually gave me some hope bc Rhaenyra seemed to be embracing her role as a leader of there’s dragonriders the gods have given her, but in the next episode she’s literally saying the exact same lines “what would you have me do” and “who will pay the price” which she said at the start of the season! Even Alicent’s about face is unearned bc we don’t actually see her truly fight with her children about anything, really. She just lets them talk in her face and then limps away to camp in a scene that’s “all about rebirth bc baptism and water” without ever getting to the core of anything. It’s a beautiful show full of empty symbolism without a narrative actually underpinning it, borrowing from a better story without understanding what makes that story so good.

You said it more eloquently than I could at the moment. It's not just one or two badly executed points, nothing gets built up, nothing gets resolved or even discussed, we just skip past A TON of vital characterisational changes and are expected to "fill in the gaps". No, they're just bad at writing. You wouldn't be reading a book or watching a show that is so bad at these elements - people are watching because it's ASOIAF.

Why is Alicent so mad? Aegon has barely done anything as king, he's actually tried to help the smallfolk in his audiences! Aemond dismissed her from the Council, sure, which I found a dumb political plot hole, but she hasn't done much to address it? And what exactly has Criston Cole done all season that he is the most reprehensible male character on the show? He didn't vote for Alicent and called her by her name. Does he deserve to die for that? Has Alicent ever been portrayed as the type of character who would react so disproportionately? That's Aemond-level writing. Is Alicent = Aemond now? (She isn't even shown being mad at Criston for sending Arryk after Rhaenyra!)

What Alicent is shown to have a problem with is Aemond burning Aegon. But then again why abandon Aegon to be executed by Rhaenyra? Just overdose him on milk of the poppy and let him die, ffs. Alicent also suspects Criston is not telling her about Aemond's crime, but they part on okay terms? She gives him her favour? How do you go from that to dooming him by revealing his coordinates?

I would really like to pile on-to the AFFC copycat accusations* with Succession rip-offs (my followers are probably tired of hearing me mention it, but it's truly what prestige television should be and it's what we should be comparing HotD to!). First it was teenage!Aegon wanking in the window à la Roman Roy, then Alicent suddenly gets water symbolism this season like Kendall and "I do not wish to hear it"? Do they think they're being cute here?

*not just with Criston, but with Rhaena, too, although you could at least argue there that GRRM himself is also mirroring Jaime and Sansa there

[ennn]

How are you feeling about the aaa finale? idk I’m loving this show so much and I’m so afraid of being disappointed by the ending. I was still hoping for everyone to come back but now I’m accepting that they are gone, gone and the way it’s going Agatha’s coven will only be her and Billy and I like him but not nearly as much as I love everyone else

And then there is Rio, hopeful I’m just being too pessimistic but I fear the show will just end with her still being the antagonist, they will fight, there will be a truce and she won’t kill Agatha and Billy and they will part ways. The only way we will get that kiss is in the flashback which will be worth it but I still wanted more. idk the interviews usually makes me excited for what’s next but this time it made me conflicted

but Jac saying the show will be all about Agatha to the very end was nice to read. I can’t stand all this talk about where is wanda??? who knows but not in this show hopefully!!!

Hello Anon! Well, I would say my emotional state towards the finale has been about the same for the past few weeks, which is a mix of absolute excitement and nerves.

Probably not the best for my emotional and mental health so maybe I should be glad this is a limited series! My body certainly will be.

I was entertaining the thought of dead coven members possibly coming back but Lilia's death was so beautiful and her choice despite it being also her destiny, and her arc was about accepting the life she had and making the best of it and embracing her power.

As for Alice, it's possible she comes back, but it's also possible her character gets closure and moves on, given that we do know there's a scene with her post-death coming up. And Jac Schaeffer seems big on delivering emotional satisfaction at the end of her stories (not to say she's guaranteed to deliver, but it's her goal at least).

Putting the rest under a cut because omg this got long

I have some meta thoughts brewing about this episode's take on destiny and fate and time and death (alongside other death personifications in media) and as hinted at in the latest Schaeffer interviews, there's definitely stuff the show wants to say about it.

On another note, I've mostly processed my feelings about the tragedy of these two as star-crossed lovers in this post if you haven't read it it may help. For me it's still hard to get a read on Rio as they're building new lore with this version of Death. This is definitely not the same Lady Death from Marvel comics.

But I do think that it's actually a good thing that Agatha and Rio are getting into open conflict, the same way Agatha and Billy are having it out in the open, because the characters need to deal with their shit.

And I feel like... especially from the last episode, the show isn't setting up Death to be evil, or necessarily bad. Death is Agatha's antagonist because – as Schaeffer puts it – she refuses it, she refutes it. Lilia ran from her visions because she wanted to avoid seeing death but ultimately embraced it. Agatha's a rule-breaker, a trickster but witchcraft is inherently rooted in nature.

There isn't a simple or clear answer here on what's right or wrong, which is why I'm really interested to see how the finale unfolds. Schaeffer genuinely seems to love ambiguity and the discussions around her shows.

Like yes, Agatha and Rio are going to fight. That's not really new for them? Okay maybe the scale of this will be. But as we've seen with all these reveals, what really matters is how and why and all the details in its crafted execution.

And again, Schaeffer has said that she's aiming for an emotionally satisfying conclusion. Even if the stories for these characters continue beyond, this series is designed to stand on its own. And the Agatha-Rio relationship has been important to the show, from the very first episode.

I'll also be making a predictions post for the finale for funsies, if you want to see what my guesses and expectations are.

[absolutebl]

I'd like to specify a request for good Thai shows that just finished. They're my favorite for many reasons, and I also enjoy getting to learn more Thai words.

Good 2023 Thai BL That Recently Finished (to Binge!)

(I actually held off answering this one until a few had ended this week because I didn't have many for 2023. It's not been great year for Thai BL so far IMHO. Now South Korea is KILLING it. So is Japan.. in a different way.)

My School President

9/10

GMMTV gave us a classic high school set Thai BL with tropes like messy boys singing their feelings that made this one Love Sick for the modern age with all the gentle sweetness and pining ache, but none of the dated damaging tropes or issues.

Yes, we’ve seen it all before, but I still ADORED this. And there is a lot to be said for the classics being re-executed perfectly. Who let my BL be this wholesome and funny? This show was fantastic, it’s only flaw was the singing (and that’s my baggage).

My favourite GMMTV BL offering to date. And yes, I've watched them ALL. (YouTube)

Step By Step

9/10

This was Thailand’s answer to The New Employee, and everything I loved about that show I loved about this one.

This was an office romance between stern boss and sweet subordinate that felt more authentic to an office environment than previous Thai BLs of this ilk. And that authenticity added tension to the narrative and character development (how novel). Now that might be because it has western source material, or it might be because it is actually kind of old-fashioned (it’s been years since I worked as an office grunt). I also really enjoyed the brothers’ relationship, and kinda wished they hadn’t attempted (and failed) to give said brother his own side BL.

(Gaga & YouTube & Viki)

La Pluie

9/10

This BL takes to task the fated mates trope and what it means to have love chained intimately to predestination. It’s about how faith in destiny before choice diminishes the authenticity of emotion, relationships, and connection. This is a high concept to examine through the lens of a BL.

By activating + examining the soulmates trope this show is challenging a foundation of romance: the idea that there is one person meant to be your one romantic partner all your life. This means that we, as viewers, spend much of the show worried about it having a happy ending, and that’s the source of both its brilliance and tension: would the narrative have the strength to truly challenge its own romantic core?

But, ultimately, all this elevated complexity was executed in a somewhat shaky manner with the narrative derailing into some serious pacing issues and characters manipulated by miscommunication. However, with good chemistry and decent acting all around, plus some excellent high heat and representation of consent and a few other rare tropes, this one has to (like it’s sibling show My Ride) earn a 9/10.

I enjoyed it even as it made me think. (iQIYI)

Make a Wish

8/10

PNR (from Sammon: Manner of Death & Triage) about a doctor who can see the dead and strikes a bargain with a wish-granting irreverent tree angel - naturally they fall in love.

Stars Fluke Natouch opposite not-Ohm, but who cares bc Fluke has chemistry with everybody. Once again the Thai afterlife is incredibly bureaucratic but I enjoyed the premise and the unfolding of the story (it’s not predictable but still satisfying and with nice little twist). I like that the doctor is just gay af and has a fag hag bestie and everything.

The cast is excellent but the comedic stylings are too overblown and tonally off. It had sad parts and did make me cry but is ultimately happy with a great sex scene, good smiley kisses, and all the agency. (grey)

Moonlight Chicken

8/10

I enjoyed this complicated little show, even though it’s spectacularly messy gay with lots of shrapnel and authentic pain.

I thought EarthMix turned in their most compelling performance to date. But it was GeminiFourth who stole my heart.

That said, the most interesting central relationship was that of Jim & Li Ming, their father-son angst mixed with evident affection made me tear up.

This was more slice of life than it was BL, but it ended happily so I’m not mad at it. (YouTube)

Never Let Me Go

8/10

Bodyguard romance where poor boy must watch over rich boy for family obligation reasons. Simple premise well executed with a few bumps that made it feel like it was trying to tackle too much (when it wasn’t).

Still, an enjoyable show that benefited from being handed to PondPhuwin who did a stellar job with their roles and chemistry. Is it going into permanent rewatch rotation? No, but a solid GMMTV offering. Of GMMTV passing out new series to established pairs this has been the most successful IMHO. PondPhuwin were about 10000x better in this than FUTS (and that's FUTS's fault, not theirs).

It's typically Thai in that its a bit bloated and has a confusing plot, but at least it HAD a plot and the central relationship is solid and loyal. Their Our Skyy 2 follow up is great. And very much adds to the cannon in a fun way rather than feeling superfluous - making this show ultimately 14 eps rather than the usual 12. (YouTube)

Destiny Seeker

8/10

A darn near perfect pulp featuring 3 likable grumpy/sunshine pairings with uncomplicated iterations of enemies to lovers. At least one half of each does a decent amount of pining and there’s good chemistry, classic tropes, and communication rep. It’s fun and full of linguistic jokes.

Sublimely cheesy but a good rainy day offering with tons of rewatch potential. (WeTV)

Bed Friend

8/10 (Triggers include: child abuse, attempted rape, family abuse)

Office frienamies transition a flaming hot one night stand into a f-buddy relationship that is built on a puppy/cat dynamic (and kinks into it at one point). Our puppy is loyal, smitten, and protective with endlessly longing eyes, while our cat is snarky, prickly, and deeply damaged (ALL THE TRIGGERS).

NetJames give lovely high-heat with excellent chemistry and tuned-in performances of surprising depth, unfortunately the story ultimately failed them. Had the show had the strength of its convictions and kept to a tighter, darker, harsher 8 eps it would have been the first high heat to earn a 10/10 from me, but once they fussed with it, it dropped to a solid 8/10.

Could have been great but was overworked. Still if high heat is your thing, this one will not let you down. (YouTube)

Between Us

8/10

Featuring the hugely popular side characters from 2019′s Until We Meet Again, Win Team (played by Studio Wabi Sabi's most popular, and commercially viable, pair BounPrem - Long Khong, You Never Eat Alone, Seven Project, Even Sun), adaptation of the y-novel Hemp Rope.

It’s a serviceable series about hot swimmers flirting and dealing with family drama in a sweetly earnest manner, but ultimately it squanders the talent in play. I would’ve preferred a cleaner narrative arc, less angst and more plot, fewer couples, and a shorter series.

That said, there’s nothing objectively wrong, sub-standard, or off-putting about this show. And it has lots of consent and other good qualities.

It’s fine. Watch along here. (iQIYI)

This list dated July 16 2023, not responsible for anything that came after, that'll probably be in end of year wrap ups.

[lizardsfromspace]

The problem with Lost's final season (full spoilers btw) isn't "unanswered questions" (after all the episode set aside to answer all the stray unanswered questions is one of the worst ones), it's that the flashsideways are bad. They're a bad idea that's not executed well

They don't feel organic to the story, but feel like they're there bc it's the final season and in final seasons you revisit old characters, and because the writers can't just remove the flash structure even if there's nothing to flash to anymore.

But the problem is that...okay. The flashbacks did hint at larger lore and connections, but each one also told a complete story about the character's life before the island, and more importantly, who they really were before the Island. It's important that Locke was in a wheelchair, but it's equally important to learn that Locke was a LARPing office worker with a desperate need to feel special. The flashforwards were pieces of a larger puzzle, but also told complete stories about how each character's life fell apart after leaving the Island.

But the flashsideways are...an AU version of everyone's first season character, running through familiar beats with some unexpected connections, but no clear reason why it matters? I remember the discussion at the time, and there was relatively little discussion of the content of the flashsideways, just a lot of discussion of what cool explanation will eventually make it all matter in retrospect. People did discuss the bigger picture of the flashforwards, but they did also discuss the character arcs to a larger degree. I guess there's the ~thrill~ of dead characters returning, but uh. Lost already had a half-dozen devices to do that and did that regularly. Lost did unexpected character connections in flashbacks since day one.

Because there's just no momentum to them. Because they don't introduce a character who knows what's going on until two-thirds of the way into the season, and deny us any explanation of what's going on until the penultimate scene of the series. At least in the flashforwards we knew they escaped the Island, even if we didn't know how. Here we have nothing

But when they do reveal what it is, it's...odd for a couple reasons. The surface level are the absurdities, like Sayid's soulmate being Shannon, Aaron entering the afterlife as a baby, and Ji-Yeon entering the afterlife as a fetus surrounded by people she never met.

At a bigger level, though, the afterlife is a place where people are drawn to work through their issues and then move on, with the people they're tied to by destiny.

That's...the Island. That's what the Island is. Did the Island fail to improve anyone but Frank and Mr. Eko? Why do they get drawn to the Island to undergo character development with everyone, then get reset to do it all again after their death?

The answer is so they can have the requisite finale warm and fuzzy ending where they all move on together, all in a church with all the other people they've spent six seasons screaming and pointing guns at.

The writers talked about story arcs and character arcs they cut from season six for lack of time, but half of each episode is devoted to a plot line that only gains emotional resonance in the finale, and that gains no real energy or interest when you do know what's going on, since the way it's set up is designed to invite theories before it's designed to lend emotional weight. Bc why should I care about a character reliving season one's flashbacks, when I uh, saw season one?

Like. Everyone complained about how repetitive Kate's flashbacks were, even in season one. Kate's on the run, she does something that shows she cares, goes back on the run. Kate has by far the thinnest backstory of any of the "major" characters. And what's the first solo flashsideways? A season one style Kate On The Run episode. They ran out of material for the basic flashbacks fairly early, and spent season four doing flashforwards, and spent season five doing flashbacks to everyone's life in the timeskip, and then the final season brings them back, but uh, she meets Claire! So it's different enough now

In the afterlife Jack has a son named David, and his arc is about his afterlife son David, because after the show made Jack interesting again in the last couple seasons by giving him new arcs we really need to go back to the "Jack's daddy issues" well, and then halfway into the finale he's just never mentioned again, and anyway, the writers later said that David was just a psychic projection of Jack's younger self. Which would've been a neat storyline to allude to in any way, instead of having the end of his storyline be everyone just kind of leaving and forgetting him

[opoki]

I love this RoyAi art. Not because it looks amazing: The artstyle, the colors, poses(even when Riza's right arm looks weird lol), it is beautiful. But because of the meaning, which I don't know if it was intended or accidental.

The first time I've seen it I was like: „wouldn't they kill themselves if they decides to shoot the other?“, and yeah that's true. And that's what makes it beautiful. Both exist in an unhealthy dependency. They can't live without the other. Their hearts will always beat for each other. Though, they wouldn't hesitate to kill each other if one gives into their madness(example: the iconic 'don't go where I can't follow' scene ; in the game prince of dawn, Roy was ready to attack Riza, if she actually was going to kill the prince of Aeurgo.). I think the reason for this dynamic is that, even though they both love each other so much, they're not blinded by that feeling. Both are tactical, rational and have their own moral. Unable to be shaken by anyone. Also I think the guilt is driving them forward. Riza feels guilty for the actions of Roy in Ishval, she was the one that gave him the flame alchemy after all. And Roy? He feels guilty for dragging the woman he wants to see happy into hell.

Roy is an idealist, wanting to change the world. It's his purpose in an otherwise meaningless life. He couldn't be happy with a family with an other woman than Riza, but for this he has to give up the promise between these two. The promise that gives Riza her purpose in an otherwise meaningless life. (Who could guess that I'm a nihilist?)

Also, the series shows us that this promise is the only thing that could stop Roy from madness. From making an second Ishval, when the wrong people have to much power. He's a lapdog of the military after all.

Roy wants to get high up, just not without Riza.

And since they're so depended on each other, they couldn't live with the other dead.

So if Riza would've killed Roy, she would've killed herself, like she said.

And if Riza would've gotten killed by the weird doc, Roy surely would've gone crazy, more than when he executed Envy. No one who could lead him on the right part again. Finding his death maybe by the hands of father? I'm 100% sure that Roy could've burned Bradly, if he was in his rage mode he showed earlier. But I stop going into this maybe-thing.

This dependency isn't something that a real humanbeing should crave. Nevertheless it's my favorite trope, since even though I'm aromantic, I've fallen in love with the idea of love. Only needing that person, I'll never have. That's why Hannigram and RoyAi are my favorite ships. Both are unhealthy, both are destructive, they're beautiful. But only as long as you aren't a part of them.

When your love is killing you, is it a good death?

If you've read until the end: thank you for listening to my pointless thoughts about two fictional characters lol.

[fernlessbastard]

first time using this ask thing heh and i don’t rly know what to say, but, as a casual tntduo lover to another tntduo lover, i desperately kindly ask what are your favourite fics? dont rly mind if its suggestive/smut, id still like to show dem authors love and support. as a trade offer, ill leave some fic recs on my next ask hehe :]

anyways been following u for a while now (on insta) and id like to say ur art brings me immense joy and never fails to inspire me. hope u and your partner have a nice day! bubye !

i know this aint a prompt or idea or concept but u just seem like a cool person that i want to interact with :]

Hiiiiii

My guy, I am so sorry, but I hardly have any recommendations...

Why? Well, I went to my AO3 account, and like a solid 1/3 of my history was completely deleted - as in the works were deleted. Additionally, I haven't been reading much lately, so I have no newer titles, unfortunately. But here's the couple I have:

there's always this thing that we're becoming. Brilliantly written, genuinely gorgeous, in character, etc - it is smut though (top notch smut, though)

I'm pretty sure I enjoyed TntDuo Content I Don't Want To Attach My Username To too - also smut lmao

Agape - NOT smut, for once, but never finished lmao

There's also this fic I am completely not connected to ha ha it's called Losing Face and while it is unfinished I heard that the author is doing this like kinda rewrite kinda reimagining sort of thing where tldr it's the same concept just executed better ha haa👀👀👀

Another one is real life au - it's VERY heavy though. Like, I had to stop reading it at some point cause it was legitimately just hitting too hard. It is well written, and it's supposed to evoke those emotions, but just be VERY careful with it. VERY tldr is that it's about Schlatt - Q's abusive ex - becoming Wilbur's sugar daddy. It is VERY dead dove do not eat, and deals with SA and s-cidal ideation. The fic is called Sugar Lips, but I won't put the link here cause seriously, it's fucking heavy - and in a very realistic way, not the fantasy "eating someone's heart while they're alive" type of thing, but in a "this happens to real people in real life" type of way. Idk if you still want to read it dm me for the link but yeah, just please stay safe, guys

And then there's one work which I cannot find for the life of me - I don't know if it got deleted or something but if it wasn't, tntblr please help me find it It was about Wilbur coming to Quackity when his stitches break. Once the guy stitches him up, there's a whole scene when Wilbur has a breakdown and Quackity helps him through it. Then I believe it's kinda this sort of "montage" of how Wilbur and Q kinda grow closer, and (spoiler alert) it ends with some event during which Sapnap and Karl show up and there's arguing and at some point Wilbur and Sapnap start fighting (physically) and Wilbur ends up beating Sapnap to death. It was so well written, and it was one of the earliest fics i've read, and i haven't been able to find it for a long, long time now

Anyway send me asks about absolutely anything, don't worry about it being "right" or anything - all asks are welcome, be it HCs, prompts, ideas, or just some appreciation, sharing something you like, a question to me, etc :]

[isekai-crow]

Mashle 2 Episode 2

Other Episodes-> ep1 ep3 ep4 ep5

This episode was a riot. It was so much fun.

SO many random HP easter eggs and we get some new fun characters!!

Specifically, Margarette Macaron!!

I love them. Non-binary, music magic, and a love of tartar sauce (and a motorcycle in the ending credits!). (It me? maybe.) Despite seeming like an overused Okama-trope, I have hope based on the spoilers I went searching for. I'm so hype for more of them in the next episode.

VA Squee: They're voiced by Koyasu, Takehito!!! The voice of Dio Brando! Touji Fushiguro! Faust VIII from Shaman King! and Clayman from TenSura!!! A very masculine voice that can also take on feminine tones and a perfect fit for Margarette. Manga Spoiler: I wonder if they'll have another va...

Ep 2 Spoilers Under the Cut! Warning IT'S SO LONG THERE'S SO MUCH.

We open in the middle of the decision to execute Mash or not, and Dumbledore, Harry, and Draco having a stand off lmao

We learn that Whalberg/Dumbledore is a famous wizard because he fought with Innocent Zero in his youth.

Does this mean the shadowed Innocent Zero who was called father by Cell War is the equivalent of Grindelwald, and Evil Jesus(Cell War (or cell wall if you wanna be a pun) is Voldemort? (Also is it father or Father lololol)

ALSO, ARE ALL THESE NAMES FROM A RNG OR PUNS CAUSE I CAN'T TELL YET lmao

We get a little speech from Wahlberg reminiscent of one of Dumbledore's speeches, but more importantly, WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF RAYNE ALSO BOWING???

Also his protecting the headmaster is a cute touch

I get that he is one of the Divine Visionaries, but is he more important than the others? He's still a student, wait, HOW DO STUDENTS HAVE THIS MUCH POWER IN THE GOVERNMENT?? NO WONDER ITS FUCKED UP??? Did I miss something??? (His reasoning for not wanting Mash dead also being the flashback to Rayne thanking him for taking care of his little brother?)

And of course Mashle can't be executed, so they set they give him a task to delay his sentencing...

The original goal Mash had in the first place, so ABSOLUTELY NOTHING HAS CHANGED.

Them backing the fuck up as Mash punches the floor is fricken hilarious. The best parts though...

1) Innocent Pero / Innocent Gyro - Thats a great subtitle translation choice, because they can't do a straight translation. Mash calls them Innocent Pero, with pero being the onomatopoeia for LICKING something in Japanese (WHATS THAT IMPLYING :EYES:), so Innocent Gyro is a good choice XD

and 2) the scene cuts to the bad guy's lair... which also seems to be shaking...

(I went and installed a gif maker for this >.>)

DON'T TELL ME. IS THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS UNDER THE BUREAU OF MAGIC????? (This is my theory and I'm sticking to it. Season 1 semi-stuck with random Philosopher's Stone plot points and the secret rooms, so it can be a semi-safe bet that season 2 might follow Chamber of Secrets?)

We then jump to an outing at the near by town to celebrate Mash Avoiding Death.

↓ ↓ ↓ ↓ The normal one ↓ ↓ ↓ ↓

Finn is the only actual normal one, WITH STYLE AT THAT, and I love him for it. (However he might also be the target of a Brother Complex and end up on the receiving end if Rayne can get over himself>o>)

The fucking Koalas...

What The Fuck Lmfao. That's all I have to say (but also this is a common gag for Japanese comedians and high school boys so... Still WTF. (This had my Beetle killing himself with laughter))

3 Wizards and a Macho walk into a wand shop and...

And the Macho is the one to get a wand. I'm so fascinated by this. How much damage is this thing going to do when Mash finally yeets it at someone???

The entire second half episode is so cute. Mash is so happy to have friends... I'm so happy for him....

But Also. Poor Finn. Look at these Freaks (affectionate).

YOU'RE ONE TO TALK. But Also Poor Finn.

The last bit. Our introduction to Margarette Macaron.

The fucking... shrimp.

Literally

It took Too Much Time for my ace-ass to realize they're THRUSTING the shrimp into the tartar sauce.

I love them? I love tartar sauce too. It's delicious.

They are so over the top. I love everything about them.

I've added too many photos to this post and tumblr is yelling at me.

So I will leave off with my hype for Rayne vs Margarette in the next episode!!!

↑↑↑↑Imagine me making this same face in anticipation↑↑↑↑

[flower-dagger-gay]

Just finished Dead Boy Detectives

Thoughts under the cut

So as a filmmaker(yes I know I'm annoying about that lol) I do have a lot of critiques about the execution of the production but honestly I do not care

Not everything you like has to be perfect and not everything perfect is something you need to like. Recognizing that keeps you normal.

DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE DESPAIR APPEARANCE

DEATH APPEARANCE DEATH APPEARANCE DEATH APPEARANCE DEATH APPEARANCE DEATH AP-

Can we talk about how fucking strong Crystal is??? Like she had her EX living in her HEAD and almost died SEVERAL TIMES and lost her powers but was still up for beating up a witch like !!! Unstoppable, we love to see it.

Also Jenny?? I only hope to someday have even a fraction of the PATIENCE she has. Like girl I would've lost it 😭

Some of the coloring in the scenes were gorgeous. Specifically the scene with Crystal's ancestors aaa the purple tree was such a cool piece. Also the scene with Despair's mirror room?! I should learn how to gif. I need to learn how.

Cats <3

I was thinking while watching ep 7, I wonder if something happened to Maxine to make her act all weird?? I know the thing about obsessors (I can't think of a better word. I also don't think that's a word) is that they don't see what they're doing wrong but I'm still curious because that seemed unnatural. Open to discussions.

Edwin being the least charismatic character ever and still having a lot of pull is hilarious to me 💀.

I already miss Niko :(. (Ik she showed up at the end but idk what that means)

Uhh so honestly I can't tell if it's hinting to possibly another season but I hope so because I feel like there's more to see.

[michdoodles]

mmk, so my thoughts on Sonic movie 3

I very much enjoyed myself watching this movie although I did find that the jokes were pretty darn corny but I knew they would be corny heading in and I still laughed at them so corny but funny. Jim Carrey had no right having so much chemistry with himself in a silly goofy dance scene no less. It was annoying watching eggman/Robotnik call Gerald anything but grandpa like a normal person but I also cringe inside when Boom!eggman tries to use "hip" language so that's just me not liking boomers and early gen x trying to sound like stereotypical gen z teens lol (and I've personally never heard teenagers say stuff like that so come on, writers. Get off of tiktok please). Gerald as a character was also weirdly wacky in this but he was being played by Jim Carrey, I guess I shouldn't have expected anything like the game characterization lol. Speaking of characterization, Shadow's was great! I am stealing that revenge guac line. But seeing him dream with Maria and relive the ptsd of her death and the relationship they had with each other was very good, better than what Sega did to him during the 2010s (good thing I was out of the loop then). That moment where he sees Sonic's reaction to injured Tom and has the flashback to Maria... yeah. But boy still had his mind on revenge and we needed the movie to be nearly two hours long so he doesn't let that change his trajectory, yet. Rewriting his backstory so that he was not made by Gerald but discovered inside a meteorite is alright, his canon backstory in the games isn't realistic in any way so I get it, and this will likely lead up to introducing the Black Arms to the SCU.

But since I am on the subject of Shadow here, what I did not like was that they don't give you time to let it sink in that Shadow has um, "died". I say it in quotes because we saw no body but the explosion is meant to make you assume he's dead. Also, if the games didn't kill off Shadow for good, what makes you think these lighthearted comedy films for the family will? I mean, the end credit scene introduces Metal Sonic, who can only really have been made by Robotnik so I'm assuming neither he nor Shadow are really dead cuz he probably used Shadow's quills as a power source now that they're talking about Chaos energy. But anyway, instead of the movie giving you the time to realize oh wait, Shadow sacrificed himself and just let you sit on that feeling of this poor alien hedgehog who had everything taken away from him dying for the good of humanity because that's what his human sister would have wanted, Tails did an exposition and just... tells you. And then Team Sonic has their moment or whatever, it just... didn't feel quite right. Whereas in Sonic Adventure 2, you have the whole cast just being like "wow, that just happened", Sonic gifting Rouge Shadow's inhibitor ring, the image of Shadow superimposed over the earth... I get emotional thinking of that part and I haven't reached it in my own gameplay. There was like literally no time to get emotional during the movie. It's like Tails pretty much said "Shadow and eggman died" and they move on even tho Sonic was the one that had the moment with Shadow that helps turn him around, that they teamed up to save the earth, they had a BONDING MOMENT. WHY AREN'T YOU MOURNING HIM MORE??? Probably just the executives butting in and saying "nooooo, don't make the kiddies cry, they're here to laugh and make us money enjoy themselves with silly talking superpowered animals!" They did Shadow so much good for his characterization in this movie and then just sweep him under the rug like that? Nawwwwr

I have more thoughts on the movie but I ranted enough lol. Still think it was worth going to the theater for, and like I said, it was a fun watch and I liked it. Just kinda mad with how they ended things with Shadow... for now. And I was quite excited to see them introduce both Metal and Amy, yay! Am I excited for Sonic movie 4? Not really, as this is starting to look like the mcu and I say that as someone that was a big fan of the mcu back in the day and had a freaking crush on Tom Hiddleston because of it. But, I'll probably watch it anyway cuz there's no way three movies can condense the vast amount of history, stories, and characters that exist in Sonic's universe[s]. As long as they don't make another Knuckles show that focuses more on human OCs than the titular anthropomorphic character, we should be fine.

[nicstylus]

Whats ur opinion on all the Dead Men? They're so precious to me I just sit and think about them and pretend nothing bad happened and nobody betrayed anybody...

Hahahaaaa *heavy sigh* Wall of text incoming. Feel free to comment I love reading em :]

Disclaimers: -I've only read up to Dead or Alive. (Spoilers) -I also don't really... form my own opinions on characters and stuff? -I've said before that I don't ship characters together (Is it because I'm aro? Is it because I'm boring? Is it because I spend too much time playing Zelda? Who knows!) and I don't make my own headcannons (all my creative power goes into my own characters. It's a full time job.) Nothing super juicy here, unfortunately. Sorry :[ - I started rambling about death and stuff whoops

Skulduggery: He's my favourite. This is not a surprise to anybody. I love his rashness, his completely disregard for the world when it comes to loyalty, his anger, his ruthlessness, every single terrible quality about him. I love the sarcasm and the wit and the fake it till you make it acts. The pure ridiculousness. If you can't beat em, confuse em. He's a terrible person, hugely irresponsible, but god dammit hes the bastard I signed up to read about and they can never make me hate him.

Ghastly: God I love Ghastly. That man gives great hugs. I don't like hugs but I want to hug him so badly. I wish Phase One had gotten more domestic Ghastly without throwing him into the thick of things as soon as he entered the scene lol I made a doodle chart out of Skul, Val, China, Tanith and Ghastly and had arrows pointing between them all, discussing the terrible things they've done to each other. I couldn't think of a single thing Ghastly did that wasn't bad. I'm sure there was something, a lie maybe, but I can not think of one. I never finished that chart:

Disclaimer for the rest of them: I don't... really think about them all that often xD Like I said I'm really boring I'm sorry I think the only times I really draw them is when I draw them all (like on the pallete) as a group, or when I'm specifically asked to do so (my asks are open! I'm just currently completely sucked into NCIS rn) Anton: This guy would also give great hugs. When I was first reading the books as a kid I envisioned him as like... really short for some reason? Also: I hate drawing him with long hair. I hate it. He looks amazing but oh my god I cannot draw straight long hair. I have no idea how you guys do it, I MUST draw swoops. There has to be waves. Every time I try to draw straight long hair it looks so strange. Look at this: What is this: Why is it so thick? Why is it so... the way that it is? I hate it. Wow that's really all I have to say about him. How depressing..

Dexter: I cannot believe that this guy was the only dead man to Live with flesh and blood still attached lmao I was convinced he was going to die in some huge and gore-iffic way but nope, we grew a beard instead. Can you imagine how scruffy the beard would be? It wouldn't even be able to grow over scar tissue? It would have to be decently big and wild to cover them effectively. Dude was not taking care of himself during Val's ... Exile? Retirement? Do you think anyone even bothered checking up on him?

Saracen: As a kid when I first picked up LSODM I thought the drawing of Erskine was Saracen. I actually had no idea who was who except for Dexter (white T-shirt) and Ghastly (scars) The three other men just kinda... took turns being each other? Anton was between the two black suits but Erskine and Saracen I had no clue lol You can see that his design has changed a lot since I was younger xD His death hit me but probably not as hard as I was expecting it to. Although what I can never get out of my head is like... HOW did Dexter kill him? Its said in the book that Dexter had the god killer bow on his back when he took him into the wilderness. But like... I can't see Dexter... backing up...? To execution-style shoot him??? Did he ALSO have the god killer dagger? Did he just, slit his throat with an arrow? The 'bow only works if the arrow is fired form it, 'god killer' only works if the arrow is fired form the BOW, its not 'god killer arrows' Did Dexter snap his neck? Did he wait until he was asleep and then shoot him? I still can't see him backing away from him to shoot his best friend/(ex)boyfriend. There's no way he shot him point blank with a bow. I've thought about this more than I've thought about Anton I think xD

Erskine: Unfortunately this guy was spoiled for me because I'm just too smart and have the ability to connect dots. I was looking at fan art like... mid way through reading KotW I think, because I wanted to see how people drew Saracen. I found this (by @yoohdontknowme on twitter) and unfortunately zoomed in far enough to see the eyes clearly. Had my 'oh shit' moment and now I'll never know how I'd have reacted to Ghastly's death from an unknowing perspective, which is much more sad than the death instead (kidding don't come for me) I really liked his character arc though, and I liked that he had legit reasoning to kill his friends, no matter how fucked up they were from an outside perspective, HE believed in his reasons and that's what made him a good villain. It wasn't willy nilly and he didn't do it 'just because.' They may have died for nothing, but I think that makes it even more tragic, which is great.

Larrikin and Hopeless: I love the fan art I see of them, and it amuses me that the fandom kind of collectively agreed Larrikin was a redhead. Other than that though, I unfortunately must admit that I have not had a single thought about these by myself. I've never drawn either of them because I don't have images of them in my head (which reallllly annoys me cmon derek) but I appreciate the liberty it gives also haha

[warsamongthestars]

... Damn.

Its been a bit time since I started shoveling coal into the rage train.

But the reason I started on this path, still stings.

I still get hit with Tech's Death. Usually in depictions of wind, sky, and falling, from art, to picture, to music. It was a helluva scene. Impactful.

So impactful, that its very existence, destroyed the lead up to it, and retroactively turned the entire show to shit, all the little problems went from small stones in a shoe to an entire gravel path one takes bare foot.

Its a beautiful and tragic scene for a deeply unpleasant, horrible piece of "art", whose concept calls me to comfort, but whose execution demands my rage.

In my personal set of stories, whether I'll get to writing them or not, he's not dead.

( In one set of these metaphorical stories--they're all dead. Because that's the only way you stop the metaphorical super duper squad from outbesting Luke Skywalker. )

One person or team's depiction of character death, no matter how budgeted and published, no matter how impactful, doesn't mean one has to accept it.

And I don't.

( Just because the lunch ladies served folks grit slop, doesn't mean that Lunch automatically means droopy grey grit slop with overboiled fruit bits (that might've been blue berries at some point maybe) all the time. It doesn't meant that I'll accept grit slop. I prefer classy garbage--like pepperoni pizza. Not stuff that melts the spoon to the bowl. )

( One can absolutely say that what one is given was horrible and wrong and that one doesn't have to accept it. Even if its just a shit star wars show. We can in fact tell them to take it the fuck back, and redo it. Art deserves that much, and Corporations must learn to Answer for their transgressions.)

It was, and still is, a meaningless fucking death and no amount of streaming services and merchandise and nice words, is gonna get me to accept it--its a beautiful thing that shouldn't exist.

( Dare not to go gently into the good night. Dare not to fall gently into the clouds below. )