#if you haven't read X-men blue: origins yet

[decemcattus]

Mystique and Destiny in X-men blue : origins

Written by Si Spurrier Art by Wilton Santos (inks by Oren Junior) & Marcus To Colors by Ceci De La Cruz

[joshriku]

What are your favorite fics you've read in the past year?

hi thank you for asking i love to talk about fics i read. im so sorry you didn't specify a fandom so i'm going to talk about everything i favorited this year so far lol. i am currently reading this cherik fic called exit wounds by lemonadegarden and i cannot stress enough how good it is. the worldbuilding, the politics, the characters, the storytelling, the emotions, just so so good. please read it if you are a cherik liker. i love it. i haven't finished it yet but omg. not in any particular order

the patch of sand where we buried the dog by shroomyystar: this fic is about luna and erik running into each other and getting ice cream. it should be normal but it's magneto family you know it's fucking insane. you don't even understand the luna and erik brainrot i gained from reading this i was like oh my god his granddaughter.. magnificent character work. to me the magneto family in comics have such a special specific dynamic and it's so well nailed here. it's crazy

make the fire rise by frozencinders: alright i don't go to baldur's gate 3 but i know enough about wyll and astarion and i really like this author so i might as well read their wyllstarion do you feel me. it's about yearning and romance novels and vampires and everything u could ever ask for. i loved it sm. one of my favorite things about this is the narration, like the way the thoughts flow so easily while keeping in beat with the character voice and making u feel so earnest..... gorgeous.......

what's the point in playin' a game you're gonna lose by shroomyystar: raven/irene in regard to the x-men blue origins revelation. raven being so fucking mad at irene but also so deeply in love with her to the point it's the same thing. when i say toxic yuri this is exactly what i mean it's exactly raven trying to kill her and thinking it's like having sex. that's EXACTLY what i mean.

gravity felled the apple (but the spiders stuck around) by maroonmusings: insomniac spider-man 2, peter gets to keep the teaching job and everyone thinks he has a favorite student (miles) which creates some drama until they figure it out a little too well. it's so fucking good. when i read peter parker, i want him to sound exactly like this. the character voices.. the non-canon characters perfectly fitting in this... the entire spider-man cast playing very well in this fic.. THE DIALOGUE! writing peter is such an art but this person GETS it.

taste the way that you bleed by maroonmusings: peter parker/astarion based on that one time they made a joke about it. again i don't go to bg3 but fantastic character work, it's literally so in character it totally sold me on this pairing - not that i need much convincing for crackships. that's just who i am brother.i fucking loved this so much.

Some Catching Up to Do by magicasen: jean/wanda! jean/wanda set in x-men first class. it's so fucking good and funny, it feels incredibly in character to the xmfc versions of them. it's such a feel-good fic about them in that period of time too, and pietro's cameos were too fucking funny. i love girls being girls and being in love :(

lech lecha by ferriswheelsdayoff: hosea matthews character analysis it will blow your tits off. i'm still floored by the amount of work into each line and how it's connected to real world teachings and how it manages to weave all of hosea's important relationships while analyzing him too. saur good

take what you give me by magentateam_bplot: storm/magneto. THIS is the sub erik type of shit i enjoy. magnificent characterization of both of them i could easily read 9k of it 1k was too little!!!

Girls' Nights by EmilyArmadillo: gabby bonding with vault laura!!!!!!! I THOUGHT THIS WAS SUCH A GOOD IDEA like i wish we actually had gabby's reaction to talon? i mean ofc that's asking too much from duggan, or for duggan to care, but this person delivered so well. everything was so well implemented, even the bit where the other laura kinney sees her and leaves the room. ahhh so good

Graveside by NotesFromSarah: the aftermath of erik burying anya after the fire, and then him and the twins coming together to visit her burial place. i thought this was amazing and heartbreaking and also a very groundbreaking magneto fam style for me..... not a lot of fics focused on them during the 80s, which is a good place for them to be somewhat normal around each other, and this fic does such a good job of using tragedy to join them without disregarding their past. gorgeoussss

Last Chance by Lefaym: my notes on this says 'old man sex heart hands' and it's exactly that. doomed timeline cherik from dofp have such a special heart to me even if i don't go much to moviesparts as i did before and oh my god... it's about that longing that regret that they're running out of time and also your hip being sore so you can't really hold a sex position. i love it.

Speed of Silence, Sound of Silence by neverminetohold: x-men evolution pietro & erik. something goes wrong and pietro thinks he's going to be scolded, but erik doesn't scold him. 'His quickening stride screams of his wish to escape this moment that is as far removed from a lecture as it can get.

That defines their relationship in a nutshell. Will they never be able to move beyond this?' you don't even get it im insane. im insane. im insane

chatoyant by unsungillumination: this fic is the best use of the fake dating trope that's ever existed, probably because the main protagonists of this are light and L death note. L and Light get in a relationship for strategic reasons until light gives up the death note, forgetting it is strategic, and believes it's actually real. it's so fucking good. also devastating

Drive. by MissAmyShay: the bear fic. insane. carmy and richie reconciliation, nat and richie flashback to when mikey was first declared dead, nat richie bonding, nat giving birth, donna mentions. what else could i even ask for. it's amazing. i don't even need to read any other fics

telltale by unsungillumination: L haunts light after his death. it's literally ruining light's life. this is my favorite thing in the world i love a good fic about grief and about fucked up soulmates who are not soulmates in a traditional way. i recently finished death note after leaving it on standby for a decade and i'm thriving

This Is How I Disappear by TzviaAriella: kira gets found out. he gets sentenced to death row. he asks the task force to shoot him. it's literally the most haunting fic in the world and i'm so so so so obsessed with it i kinda wanna reread it but it's like devastating and most of all GOOD

they both die at the end by unsungillumination: when i say i love fics that make me feel at odds with my own mortality and how i am spending my life and also grief for the future and grief for things past and grief, in the actual sense of death, ohhh. oh my god. what kills me is that this fic is just so grounded as well. you know the ending is coming. you just hang onto the little moments hoping MAYBE it won't happen, but you know. i loved it so bad. also this is a death note fic again

Connect the Dots by GrayJay: SCOTT SUMMERS ASKS MATT MURDOCK OF DAREDEVIL FAME TO BE A TEACHER AT THE SCHOOL AND THEY BOND OVER HOW SIMILAR THEIR DISABILITIES ARE it's ltierally so godo it's insane i love my favorite characters talking so much :(

the thirty-second hour by unsungillumination: this fic is about light yagami not being able to lie for 4 hours in each day, but it happens at random times, as a consequence of regaining his memories of the death note. it's inspired by i found you in the fire by yosgay which is ALSO one of my favorite fics even if it's not from my current 2024 reads but it IS TO ME. anyway. point is a character like light being forced to tell the truth is amazing. the layers of performance and what truth even means being analyzed through light's own eyes... mmmwah..

Tough Love by UmbrellaMartialGod: haikyuu fic. suga/tsukki. i was like no one in this world understands my fucked up haikyuu dynamic ship in which tsukki has a life-ruining unrequited crush on suga that no one else knows about except yamaguchi EXCEPT THIS PERSON!!!!!!!! THIS PERSON WROTE IT!!!!!!! IMAGINE THAT. HAVING A FIC ABOUT A RAREPAIR THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT YOU NEEDED. THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED TO ME BEFORE. I GENUINELY DONT KNOW HOW TO ACT

anyway, thank you for asking. i love fanfic and i love talking about it. hope you enjoy either of these

[creativefiend19]

Fandom Trumps Hate Beta Offering

What's your story?

I can help you start it / write it / improve it / tell it!

I'm offering beta services for @fandomtrumpshate 2023

Do you need:

- cheerleading

- brainstorming

- helping with organisation & deadlines

- spelling & grammar checking

- editing Original Works

- language suggestions for ESL writers?

I can be any kind of beta you want!

*

If you're looking for canon story and characterisation feedback, here's the list of fandoms from FTH that I'm familiar with (which means I've read/watched some or all of the canon). And of course, I'm always happy to learn about new media, or your OCs!

Drop me a line if you need more deets!

(List follows after the cut)

• All for the game

• Alex Rider (books)

• Agatha Christie (all media)

• Anne of Green Gables

• Arrowverse/DC Multiverse (to an extent)

• Asimov (works)

• Buffyverse

• Charlie's Angels (2019)

• Cosmere - Brandon Sanderson (except The Lost Metal - its #1 on my TBR tho!)

• DCEU (most of it)

• Batman (all media)

Carry on Simon (haven't read the last book yet but I plan to, ASAP)

• Dead poets society

• Divergent (any media)

• Doctor Who (mainly 10th and 11th Doctors, some Torchwood)

• Downtown Abbey

• Dune (books)

Grimm

• Heartstopper (books)

• How to train your dragon

• Howl's moving castle (all media)

• Hunger Games (all media)

• Inception

• Jane Austen (works)

• Wodehouse (works, except Psmith)

• James Bond (all media)

• Jurassic Park (all media)

• Locked Tomb trilogy

• Man from U.N.C.L.E. (2015)

• Merlin

• Miss Fisher's murder mysteries

• MCU (the films + Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D)

• Old guard

• Riordanverse (all media)

• Queen's thief

• Raven Cycle

• Red white & royal blue

• Schitt's creek

• Grishaverse (all media)

• Shadowhunters (all media)

• Sherlock homes (all media)

• Star Trek (films and series, but I stopped watching after Voyager)

• Star Wars (films only)

• Tolkien (all media)

• Wheel of time (all media)

• Twilight (all media)

• X-men (all media)

[popculturebuffet]

500th Article Special: House of Claremont Part 1: A Wein Start (Giant Size X-Men#1): A Rope of Sand

Welcome to my 500th article extravaganza you happy people! Yes folks it's been a long road: three years, countless reviews of Duck Based Media, regular coverage of Ducktales, Owl House and Amphibia. I've had high points with successes like my Scott Pilgrim Retrospective, my coverage of the season 1 and 2 arcs of ducktales, an annual best of episode list, my three cabs retrospective, covering all 12 issues of watchmen, two seasons of thomas the tank engine and three seasons of venture bros among MANY more things i'm probably forgetting. I've also had projects that stalled: I still haven't finished life and times of scrooge mcduck and will probably have to start all over again with New X-Men at some point. I've had schedule slippage, delays and what have you.

But i'm proud of how far i've come: I have three patreons, multiple commissioned reviews a month, and 500 articles under my belt. After years and years of wanting to review stuff I finally am, I have a loyal fanbase who loves what I do, good fans who turned into good friends, and i'm STILL going. I'm still doing this three years later. I thought by now the bottom would fall out but here I am. So before I get into the festivities anymore i'd just like to say: Thank you all. Thank you for reading, thank you for staying, thank you for following. Wether you just read one or two reviews or read every damn one, thank you. Thank you all. And special thanks to Kev for bankrolling about half my salary, Emma for doing most of the other, and Brotoman for being a new yet loyal patreon who helped me revive a project I couldn't be happier is going at top speed. Thank you all. I love you guys.

So for my 500th spectacular I wanted to do something that both fit the history of the blog but was still something neat to do, especially since this also doubles as my annual birthday review. For those new to the tradition: I start a new project based on something dear to my heart, my very soul. Something that is a very real part of me. And the choice this time was easy: If there's one thing i've talked about on the blog every chance I get, one thing that is a true part of me and I geek out about at every chance, if there's one thing I had only scratched the surface of it was the Uncanny, Amazing, Astonishing, Classic, Extraordinary, Immortal, New, Blue, Gold, Red, Black , Green and X-Treme X-Men. There's no one franchise in comics that has kept my attention, created so many characters I love, and given me this much joy.

The question though was what to cover: The X-Men are a MASSIVE franchise and there are tons upon tons of runs I want to cover at some point: New Mutants Original Run, Every Run of X-Factor (Particularly the three runs by Peter David and one by Leah Williams), New Mutants excellent 2010's run by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning, Cable's Solo Series, Uncanny X-Force, X-Statix, Iceman's solo after coming out, Cullen Bunn's trilogy of stellar work on the franchise.. the list goes on quite a while.

But what I settled on was something that's both obvious and daunting: A run on the merry mutants that set the tone for everything, and changed their world forever. That took a decent but forgettable Fantastic Four knockoff with a lot of potential and made it one of the greatest comics of all time. As you can tell by the title , we're talking about Chris Claremont's run on Uncanny X-Men… though before we can get into it in full next time we're starting with what kicked it off.. a book ironically NOT by Chris Claremont but which would set up the characters and themes he'd follow since. A book that's a tad awkward, somewhat dated, but still big, fun and has an island that walks like a man. We're talking Len Wein and David Cockrums Giant Sized X-Men #1 Under the Cut.

HIstory of X: To understand why this run and it's start, sorta but we'll get to that, with Giant Sized X-Men #1 was such a big deal you have to understand the state the X-Men were in when Giant SIzed X-Men #1 was published.

See the X-Men of the 60's came about because Stan's editor wanted more books dammit since Stan and his oftentimes creative Partner Jack Kirby were a lisecnes to print money. And given Stan had at this point created Spider-Man, Hulk, The Fantastic Four, Iron Man, Ant Man, the Wasp, the Avengers, and brought back Namor and Captain America, he wasnt' exactly wrong. So while he created yet another solo hero in Daredevil, again not exactly wrong, he needed another team book too. Problem was you could only have a hero fall into a radioactive vat of cream of wheat so many times before it got boring. Stan The Man needed a new way to create new heroes and villians.

And that folks is how we got mutants: "Er their just born with it! Yeah people with power exists! That's the ticket! Excelesior!"

That said as hilariously simple and need based as the solution was.. it was still brilliant. A one size fit all solution for when a writer didn't have time for a villains power. An easy out: you can still give them a backstory and such if you fancy, but this way if you didn't have a reason for the villains power in mind, just make them a mutant. It came up quite a bit till decimation for a reason after all: it was just easy to make them when anyone could be one if they weren't introduced as a human already. Was it a cheap narrative device? yes. Was it one that others would use brilliantly in a myriad of ways? Hell yeah. He also decided to make a teen team, with the original 5 x-men, now enshrined in most continuities as the OG's before whatever modern team pops up, consisting of Cyclops, Jean Grey, Iceman, Beast (Pre-hairy), and Angel lead by Professer Xavier, fighting the dreaded Magneto. A lot of the basic stuff from the school to a lot of the most iconic x-men are there from the start.. but the basic element of protecting a world that hates and fear them took a second and even then it wasn't fully crystalized.

And that was kinda the problem: while stan and later roy thomas intital run wasn't lacking for great ideas, iconic foes the Sentinels and Juggernaut were Stan's idea, it kinda feel more often int0 being just another superhero book: For starter stan's teens, from what i've raed of classic x-men (which I also intend to cover), was very

Especially compared to Spidey which has some of this, but still felt a bit closer to earth. The idea of a superhero school was brilliant.. but the problem was at this poitn it was a prep school with pretty stock , if still deeply loveable teen characters; Brooding troubled hunk Scott, richie rich Warren, female sterotype because Stan Lee's talents didn't includ ewriting women Jean, jokester baby of the bunch bobby and erudite badass jock hank. Okay not all typical, even before he got all beasty, Hank was still a standout. They weren't terrible character, there's a reason they've endured since and this run brings all of them back for guest spots or in the case of Scott, Jean and Warren brings them back as full members at various points, eventually cumilating in the spinoff X-Factor. The seeds of who they are, Scott's brooding workaholic nature, Warren's rich joviality, Jean's warm caring nature, Bobby being fun personified and hank being the best before his long slow dark decsent into being a macvilian jackass, it's all there and stan and later roy thomas deserves credit for it.

The Lee and later Thomas era wasn't bad.. but it just wasn't anything new for the silver age. The foes were mostly just "bwahahahah i'm evil" types, including shockingly Magneto. Even I forget he started as trying to conquer the worlds for mutants not because of deep seated trauma but because that's what super villians did. There wasn't the complexity the franchise would gain with the iteration i'm talking about here. We got the first hints of that with Denny O Neils breif but fondly remembered run that brought in Havok and Polaris, Scott's brother who sure is there and Magneto's daughter who sure is awesome, but ultimately it just wasn't a huge standout from Stan's other team books. It's more worth checking out for what Lein Wein and directly after him Chris Claremont made of it, and what Denny O Neil before them did, than as some big silver age gem. So it's no shock that with feedback on O'Neils run reaching them too late to keep him from giong back to dc that the X-Men eventually got the boot. they remaind in reprints because back then it wasn't as easy to get those and the book still had a cult fanbase, but the x-men for all intensive purposes were dead. The team wasn't gone: Hank got his own solo adventures that made him a real beast before joining the avengers and the X-Men showed up every so oftne as guests.. but the strangest heroes of all were on the backburner. Thankfully as luck would have it the X-Men had a key ally in their corner; Roy Thomas, marvel legend, creator of my boy the Vision, and former X-Men Writer. He had grown attached to the team and wanted them to come back, and kept pitching. Eventually he got his chance when President of Marvel Al Landau, wanting to break into foreign markets with thier reprints more, suggested an international team of heroes. And since the X-Men were doing nothing and needed a fresh shot in the arm anyway, Roy gladly volunteered.

He originally leaned into the global aspect, pitching the idea of the x-men traveling around the world in a floating base, rescuing new mutants and generally being global. Which honestly does sound badass and if it hasn't been recycled yet it needs to be. It didn't end up going ahead as this for whatever reason, possibly because Thomas Himself , being an editor and busy as heck, coudln't do the book himself.

He did put it in good hands though with at the time Hulk writer Lein Wein and former Legion of Super-Heroes artist David Cockrum. And for those just joining us i'm a massive Legion of Super Heroes fan so finding out years later as I got into them that they both shared an artist at one point was a feeling so awesome i'ts hard to describe. Both also brought a character along for the ride: For Wein he was currently working on Hulk, and when asked by editorial to create a Canadian superhero, ended up creating the best at what he does, Wolverine.. and what he did in his debut was fight the Hulk himself, AND live and also fight a Wendigo because every sundae needs a cherry. So he was in.

Cockrum brought in an awesome character he'd designed for a Legion spinoff. But with him leaving DC because they wouldn't let him have some original art, which given Cockrum went on to help create their competitors most popular book of the 1980s, was moronic even by executive jackassery standards, he brought Nightcrawler with him and he eventually shifted from a sardonic ghoulish alien to the friendly chap with the demonic face we know and love.

The result of this powerful partnership was one of the most important comics in marvel history.

My history with the comic is probably baffling to any younger readers: See I had the comic on CD-Rom

In the 90's marvel did a bunch of these: it's how I became a lifelong fan of the hobgoblin by seeing his first appearance and got my first taste of legendary writer, artist and ego John Byrne's Fantastic Four run. Which is also on my to do list along with the runs of Mark Waid, Jonathan Hickman, and Matt Fraction's run with Scott Lang. I inherited these Discs from my brother and in the early 2000's somewhere, I popped em in and throughly enjoyed myself.

While a Wizard Magazine focused on X-Men's greatest moments and X2 made me an X-Men fan for life, this issue is what cemented it. I feel it shaped a lot of my opinons on the house of x as I got more and more into it. And with some nice sound effects, data files and other nice widgets it was a great way to dive right in, to the point I later bought the first two masterworks for the uncanny era simply because it had this issue.

It's opening is a big reason. It's one of my faviorite scenes in all of comic books, one of the best character introductions i've seen period, and introduces one of my favorite characters all in one go. We open in a sleepy remote village in gemany where a bloodthirsty mob, the kind you might see in a Universal or Hammer monster film, is out for the blood… yet in a clever reversal of this old cliche, it's the target of their bloodlust that's our viewpoint character.

It sets up Kurt perfectly: He's a perfectly normal, charming guy who simply dosen't want to live his life being pointed and laughed at for being different. It's a fair and honest thing anyone in said "Freak Show" should be able to have. It's not.. phrased the best, mid 70's and all. But instead of being welcomed by this small town, by society, he's shunned simply for looking different. They see him as a monster and try to burn him simply because he looks different. It's prejudiced boiled down to it's core: people hating something because it's different, and instead of trying to approach it with an open mind, instead bring out a closed fist. And when they try to burn him out, he decides if their going to think he's a monster than so be it and goes down fighting as they end up overwhelming and restraining him ready to stake him

I'll admit the villagers are heavy handed: It's a literal angry mob complete with a wooden steak, clearly having the wrong issue as Dracula's guest appearance isn't for another couple of years. It'd only be less subtle if the dialogue read

Yet it works: Sure people aren't going to be forming a mob to go stake a trans, nonbinary, queer, or POC person, but they'll do everything in their power to make that persons life harder simply because they don't agree they should exist and can't accept it. Prejudice sadly will probably never go away because there will always be hatred, ignorance, religious dogma and white supremacist nutballs. They just say the loud part quite.. unless your Kanye West. There are still assholes commiting violent hate crimes and others trying ot massage those hate crimes on television or the internet because they just can't be happy unless people they don't like for reasons of prejudice and hate are miserable. Kurt just wanted what we all want, to be treated like a person and he nearly died for it Thankfully it was just nearly as we get a nice moment of Charles Xavier demonstrating just how scarily powerful he is: with one thought he paralizes every one of the mob in motion and has a nice long conversation with Kurt afterwords. He'd heard Kurt had come to learn.. and well he happens to have a school for mutants that coudl use someone like him. Their conversation after Xavier makes the option is one of my faviorite exchanges in X-Men:

It gets to the core of the franchise: You don't have to be normal.. just be a whole you.. and that will be fine. And that's all Charles wants: not for his students to perfectly blend in, but to be who they should be, to be their best, and to fight for a world where they can be without being feared and hated. And with that Kurt goes with him. All Kurt wants to be is treated like any othe rperson and for the first time someone does, while showing Kurt he dosen't have to be normal: just a whole Kurt Wagner.

Next up is the best at what he does.. and what he does is stare longingly at a photo of Jean Grey. But since he hasn't met her yet, he's made due being an oprative for the Canadian Goverment as Weapon X. Yes it's

Turns out Charles Xavier knows people so he easily got a meeting to speak with Wolverine. While I like Kurt's the most out of all the intros wolvie's is still great, with him just kinda swaggering in there, and being fine with listening to Charles offer for a new job. It also sells him as a badass long before he'd earn the title: Charles mentions his debut fighting hulk and how he sought out Wolverine specially because he needs someone that strong and skilled. It dosen't take much either: Charles offers him a job as a free agent, and being able to escape government red tape sounds fine just fine so he takes it and agrees to quit. His boss mr. soldier.. guy here… dosen't take it especially well so Wolverine has to deal with it with all the grace and tact he's famous for

He'll regret those words as this guy will take that as "Challenge Accepted", but we'll get to that another day.

We get our shortets recuritment yet with Banshee, which only takes two panels but it's understandable: The rest of the cast are either brand new, or in the case of Wolverine relatively new. Banshee however had been a recurring character for a bit, a former criminal brainwashed by the evil mutant empire known as Factor Three.. which naturally was acftually run by an alien wanting world domination because comic books. This.. wont' be the last time an alien was largely responsible for the X-Men's woes for a while, but we'll get to that next time.

Since the Professor asked nicely and it's an opportunity to turn things around, Banshee's happy to help. He also gets a slight redesign having looked a tad inhuman.. which was apparnetly the idea as creator Roy Thomas apparently intended for him to be a "GIANT LEPRECHAUN".

Yeah.. I have no real joke here. Roy Thomas wanted the only major irish character in marvel comics at the time.. to be a LITERAL LEPRECHAUN. Thankfully Len Wein hard noed out of that and had Cocrum make hi mlook like you know.. a person. Banshee also adds something as being a bit older: not as old as charles, but still older and experinced enough to be an extra mentor to the group.

So next we go to Kenya to meet storm and well… you just kinda have to see this part for yourself.

Yeah… maybe having your first major black character in a franchise, and marvel's first major black woman character be a mock goddess for a bunch of stereotypically dressed villagers who want to slaugther animals in her name and has to have it told by a white man that she needs to go into the real world might be just a touch horribly offensive. LIke there's still some good stuff to pick out of this mess: the drawings of Storm ussing her powers are beautiful and Charles does give out a great classic Charles Xavier speech to convince her to join the team…

While him saying she has a responsiblity just for being a mutant is oh such bullshit, she doesn't have to put on spandex and save the world because she has power charles, but he's not wrong that actually living in the world, even if some hate and fear her, is better than living a lie as a god, knmowing people instea dof having the mworship her. Also yeah.. she's topless this entire scene. It's far from the last time storm gets naked but here it just adds to the immense discomfort of the scene. Some great stuff in here but man oh man is it uncomfortably racist. Not the worst i've seen.. but i've seen some pretty deep lows so that's far from a compliment. Next up is Sunfire who has a neat as hell costume.. but is an arrogant racist prick. While he once fought the x-men only because his evil uncle tricked him into it, he still hates the US and only agrees to help out of arrogance. I used to love Shiro.. but honestly it was mostly the costume. Behind it.. he's just an arrogant racist prick, who while having some good damn reason to resent the west (his mom died during hiroshima), it still dosen't fully excuse him being a racist prick. His past is sad.. but it dosen't mean he should take it out on othe rpeople or be a jingoist dickhead. And the Dickhead part has nothing to do with his past, he's just.. ike this.

Next up we get another iconic intro to a character, and thankfully without any overt racisim this time. It's Soviet Russia and on a collective farm, Pitor Rasputin gladly works hard to help bring in the harvest when a young child, later revealed to be his sister Illyana who will become a major supporting character in this book and a main cast member in another later, as well as a longtime x-man herself, from a tractor.

It sets up Peter perfectly: He sees a child in trouble, dashes to save her without any hestiation, and when he ineveitbly has to destroy the tractor.. .worries about how his neighbors will possibly pay for a new one. It shows him for what he is: A Kind empahtetic paragon of good not unlike superman.

What makes this noticable as this was at the height of the cold war: tensions were flaring and woudl only get worse.. yet Wein and Cockrum still portrayed peter as a kind decent man doing his best. That just because a countries goverment and military might be pure evil.. dosen't mean every single person there is evil too. This is especailly enlighted as previously marvel had a bad habit of having COmmunists as one note villians.. instead here one is a hero and an honest one at that who loves his homeland and is a genuine patriot, he just so happens to also be a kindhearted young man. He is conflicted though when Xavier offers after the incident: He has great power.. but shoudln't it go to the state? Charles, once again expertly, aruges it belongs to the world.. and while Peter's heart wants him to stay with his beloved family and community.. his concisence tells him the offer is the right call and thus Colossus is born.

So it's back to racisim as we get John Proudstar. Whoboy. John Proudstar. John is an angry young man who hates living on the reservation.. and while a indgenous person with anger towards the community is an intresting angle and one actual indgenious writers have done great things with, this.. is a clueless white guy who has him take down a buffallo to make him look extra Apache and tell Charles..t his

I mean he's again not wrong.. and Charles response.. is to use racist sterotypes to basically bait him into joining. Like Pitor, Ororo and Kurt all got well reasoned arguments… he just gets "Well I guess your a pussy then huh John?" My god. The Storm stuff is bad but this. this is somehow worse. I'm really glad when John came back after several decades that an indeginous persons writer, Nyla Rose, wrote his one shot because jesus christ he was done dirty.

Anyways we're onto act 2 as the various new X-Men have assembled in Charles Foyer, complete with spiffy new uniforms courtsey of Reed Richards, aka Mr. Fantastic Aka Jimmy the Reach. He says they'll meet him some day and true to his word some of them sure, do.

It also makes Storm's and colosus outfits, iconic as they are at ad creepier knowing a middle aged man dressed them this way.. which granted is also what happened in real life but it's a bit diffrent when ti's an actual character saying "Yes you sexy young people dress in next to nothing for me, your new commander> I promise it's all about moveablity.. and showing off them legs. "

Jokes abotu Charles being a dirty old man aside, the costumes are X-Cellent for the most part. And I only say the most part because Thunderbird looks like they stacked every native American sterotype they could on top of one another. I've seen worse, but it's very telling when coming back he only wore this trainwreck for one issue before getting a kickass new outfit.

The rest though.. the rest are fucking awesome. There's a reason that 90% of Colosus, Wolverine and Nightcrawlers outfits are based on this, and that all but one of storm's iconic looks has that cape, as well as Banshee just.. wearing that outfit until very recently and Sunfire usually doing the same.

Starting with Nightcrawler because he's my boy, and because his outfit is the only one out of this group that dosen't cahnge over claremont's run with the character. And it's easy to see why: The red pointy vest, white gloves and boots and heavy black jus tlooks damn cool and fits his showy, carny nature. The only thing that's ever changed is getting rid of the shoulder pads and I question.. why.

Speaking of shoulder's hey goons , thugs and bosses let's talk about Colosus. His outfit is skimpy when you see pitor without his metal form.. but it makes sense with it. The cool serated look (with writers making sure his muscles showed), NEEDS to be shown off and the red and yellow just perfectly fit peter's heroic and often hammy when mid combat nature. He has blue coverings for his legs here but those won't last long.

Storm's outfit is pretty good. It shows some skin, but it fits Ororo not really having any taboo about being naked, kind of how Starfire later would be a lot of the same way, and her strong, confident nature. The black and yellow will forever be her colors and the cool has heck headband and badass, neatly styled cape just complete the style. It's regal yet modern, even by today's standards.

Wolverine's is a classic and there's damn good reason the only thing Chris changed later was removing the shoulder pads, and changing the color to brown. I like both versions and both colors, so i'm fine either way, but the OG outfit, well the remodled og outfit, is still an utter flassic: the cool mask, awesome claws and bright blues and yellows truly help him stand out.

Banshee's outfit is awesome, mostly for one reason: while the cetner of it, the greens and yellows really work well together, it's the fucking black and yellow spiral cape that truly makes his costume an all timer. It's just hwat makes banshee banshee and ther'es a reason his daughter wears it and he does no matter the verison. Even when brainwashed or an angel of death, he still has some varation of it. Finally we have SUnfire. HIs costume is goofy, very sterotypically japanese..a nd yet awesome. The weird fish mask is just a banger and those eyes are just so freaking cool, and having a japanese flag perfeclty fits Japans #1 hero and someone whose a japanese nationalist.

Charles prepares to explain, simply having been waiting on someone else who was there first hand: Scott Motherfucking Summers, one of my faviorit x-men, THE leader of the team only equaled by storm in terms of record and iconography leading, and certified badass. A sfor the the details…

As for why he uses Cerebro to .. somehow take us back to what happened: The X-Men got a ping from Cerebro that a massive, powerful mutant had been awkaned on the islnad of Krakoa in the south Pacific. So that means…

It's no bub, sugar, boz moh, fraulien, mein gott, or juggernaught bitch that's for sure and it ain't very nice. It is however charmingly goofy.

Like this was just Cyclops catchphrase while the x-men were gone or something Scott tried to make a thing and none of his friends had the heart to tell him it wasn't working.

As I said, Hank is with the avengers now, something that comes up and Scott seems totally not at all bitter about it.

Dude he's busy fighting gods and WITH gods. Move on. Find another best friend whose super intellgent and has feet hands. I mean.. it'll be hard that's a narrow classification but you can check the want ads. Those are still a thing in 1975.

Things don't go well on the island as not only is it massive, making FINDING the mutant an issue, but they soon get attached and Scott only remembers some breif flashes of horros when he wakes up in the Blackbird, no memory of what happened, the controls locked to leave and his eyes suddenly normal. He tries his best to go back, to save his fellow x-men.. but resigns himself. it's who scott is: he won't give up until there's no other way and will press on through. Sadly the only GOOD part of this, that he can finally look someone in the eye without cool shades or a visor without slamming them into a table, doesn't last as soon his eyebeams are back and even STRONGER. And it's here I'm going to start a little counting gag for later

God Hates Scott Summers Count: 1 Trust me, we'll need this.

So that's the mission: Take this untested new team to Krakoa, save the x-men and defeat whoever took them down. Sunfire naturally nopes out. Which begs the question why he came at all. He could likely tell the x-men were out simply because Charles asked for his help and was alone, and if he didn't then the room full of strangers probably shoudl've clued him in. He comes back of course, but only after Thundebrird gets pissy with Storm for daring to not.. you know like that one of the first muatnt's she's met decided fuck these innocent people needing rescue who have saved an ungreatful world countless times. (also you should fuck off) He of course returns .. and is a racist ass to nightcrawler calling him misfit and getting angry later when he's paried iwth the guy, which Kurt snarks at him for.

Kurt: 83, Sunfire: -2 So once they approach Cyclops decides to have them split up gang to find the x-men: th eaformentioned team of nightcrawler and the human tire fire, wolverine and banshee, thunderbird and cyke himself and storm and colossus. Colossus tries to make a superhero landing but ororr catches him with a "you fool you cannot fly" not getting he can land. This does actually have a nice payoff in the story after this so props to Wein for thinking ahead as while he didn't write the story he did plot it. This does lead to one of the issue sproblem: there is a LOT of arguging and in the case of Thunderbird and Sunfire i'ts insufferable. And it really is sad that two of the only POC members of the group.. are insufferable egotistical assholes. I get the missiong sucks, it is kinda stupid, but I also get why it is: while it is depserate to grab whoever and put them on a missiong together, the x-men have no time for it, did apparently try to contact the avengers nad ff but both were busy: forming this new team.. is a last ditch effort. So the fact neither can show one ounce of empathy rankles me. It makes it hard to enjoy the campy, fun action when you have two guys who won't shut up about how much this blows every other page.

Thankfully we do get that campy action as each team encounters some gloriously weird shit and get to show off: Cyclops and THunderbirds fight some living vines, Storm and Colossus fight some rocks tha ttarget them, Nightcrawler and sunfire fight some birbs, with Storm and Wolvie and Banshee get the best of it

Killin Crabs, Their Krakoan! Kill em fast, pain explosion. Seriously I love me a good giant crab and you add in Wolverinme slicin em up and banshee voicesploding them and you have my fandom for life.

Our heroes all converge at a weird temple, and decide on the bst, most stealthy method to break in

With their kool aid manning done they find the OG X-Men and help get them unhooked from some weird vines entalging them all. Angel is less than Greatful

This bit.. has always bothered me and come off as face punchingly dickish. Yes I get it, Angel dosen't want Scott or these new strangers to get eaten. That's fine.. but how the fuck could Scott have possibly done anything else? Yes he likely smelled a trap even if not the distincitnly weird KIND of trap this was, but the love of his life, two of his best friends, his brother and his brothers girlfriend were all trapped here. How would he ever even consider for one second NOT coming back to save you all? To risk everything, to fight with EVERYTHING he has to save the people he loves most in the world? What kind of man would he be if he didn't and what kind of man are you, Warren, to be mad at him for trying.

As for what had them.. well that my friends is the most delightful twist. See i've talked abotu Krakoa.. so if you've followed my work you likely know what's coming.. but it is in the most glorious comic booky way possible. Ladies and gentleman I present…

Yes folks the All New All Diffrent X-Men's first foe.. is a fucking living island. It'd be retconned that h'es an ancient being and what not, but for now he's simply a gaint atomic mutant that's a living fucknig island that looks awesome, wants to eat our heroes, and WALKS LIKE A MAN. I have ALWAYS loved Krakoa, from the look to the gloriously goofy "island tha twalks like a man" moniker, to the fact the very ground xaviers was on was once a clone of him, an idea that was only topped when in 2019 they straight up MOVED to our boy, made them into a nation, and he becmae best friends with fellow boy Doug Ramsey. So. Fucking. Awesome.

Also just if your curious as to how this guy still eats now mutankind and him are cool and live on him… he still feeds off their energy. It's just instead of kidnapping them iwth conflulted super villian plans, he straight up asks for some of their energy as part of mutankinds lease, and with millions of mutants on krakoa… they don't even feel the tiny bit he takes. With millions of peopl ehe dosen't have to drain them to death, they willingly give it for giving them homes (seriously he amkes theM) food (that too) and a homeland.

Anyways back int he present.. or rathe rthe past, the x-men get a badass page fighting him

Only for Xavier to yell at scott that their efforts are meanless. I'm going to go ahead and not only add to this count God Hates Scott Summers: 3 For both this and the angel thing, but also start up this count Xavier is a Jerk: 3

2 for his treatment of thunderbird in diffrent ways (the name calling then the outfit thign) and 1 for yelling at Scott for doing the bes the could when he coudln't possibly know the plan. Xavier does have a good plan thoguH: have Storm and Polaris combine their powers to create a giant rainstortm and a magetic wave of force and stuff. Cyclops and Havok combine powers and use it to propel krakoa into the air.. and thanks to the magnet stuff, it seperate sthe island from the earths gravity FLINGING IT INTO SPACE

I'm conflicted on this finale. On the one hand.. it fucking rocks. I mean Scott launched an island into space. How he got back I truly don't know, and I don't care. it's coming. Weird shit happens a lot. Maybe he regrew. We don't know Krakoa the Island That Walks Like a Man's life. Leave Krakoa The Island that Walks LIke a Man Alone. But it really dosen't involve the new team all that much: Lorna does most of the heavy lifting, and only Storm really contributes. The rest of the action is Done by vetran x-men. For an issue spotlighting this new bold era.. it feels weird tha tthe resoultion is all up to the old guard. Maybe it was to give them a last hurrah but it still feels weird. At any rate our heroes survive, find the jet, and are vicotrious and happy. But their left with one little problem

And we'll find out next time. For now though Giant Sized X-Men has shown some flaws with aged, but is still a stellar start for this era. The characters mostly get great introductions, the art is crisp and awesome , and the new characters are intresting and engaging. There are some uncomfortable flecks of racisim strewn about, Thunderbird and Storm's origins paticuarlly are painful to read, and the last half is n't nearly as snappy as the first, with it mostly being the formula of "X-men veruss something on krakoa" for a few pages, then the finale not using the new characters hardly at all. Still the awesomeness of these x-men and them fighting a giant island cannot be overstated and the cheesy goodness helps paper over the weaker parts. Wein would not be there for it though> Whlie he plotted the next issue, as it was planned to just keep going with Giant Sized the issue ended up being a massive success.. so massive in fact, that they brought back the monthly instead. And since he could only handle one monthly book, hulk, Wein passed it over to a fresh face in the office,a young chap who had kept barging into meetins planning this who practically begged to get the roll. A man who would DEFINE the x-men and write them for the next 17 years: One Chris Claremont, whose run we properly start next time. Until then thanks for reading all this time, thanks for being here, and just.. thank you. Thank you all . Next Time: We wittle the roster down to 6 x-men as five leave and one dies. Then our All New All diffrent x-men deal with betryal, giant robots and space for the first time as the series first major overarching plot kicks up.. and the Sentinels return just in time for a late christmas.

[mrpenguinpants]

Spider’s Thread [Reverse AU]

Possessive Red Xiao x Reader

Word Count: 2.5k

Commissioned for: @profoundwitchsalad

Art Credit: @ruoyeahs

Warning: Unhealthy relationships.

Prompt:

“You’ve ruined my life because I have a warped idea of what love is and I can’t live without you. But now you’re trying to leave me and I won’t allow that. You left me alive. You have a duty to live for me and by me. I’m not letting you go.”

---

Xiao Semi Series

[ Friendship ] [ Falling in Love ] [ Cuddles ] [ Protective ] [ Affection ] [ Jealously ] [ Opposites Attract ] [ String Of Fate (Soulmate) ] [ Fainting ]

Link to original posts:  [Red! Xiao.] [Reverse AU]

[Masterlist]

Alatus was once told a story by his Master. A sinner who falls into hell is rewarded for his only good deed, choosing not to kill a spider. As his reward, a thread is lowered down for him to climb out of Hell. In the end, the sinner remains in Hell because he kicks aside others and the thread breaks. Alatus doesn't remember why his Master told him this story but he still empathizes with the sinner. He would have done the same or asked for this 'saviour' to extend their hand down instead. That way he could pull them down.

"Xiao? Are you okay?"

He slowly opens his jade eyes to see you hunch over, peering down above him, eyebrows furrowed together in concern as you reach down and softly tap his temple. He allows you to take a moment to do whatever you want with his face before he reaches up to grasp at your wrist gently, holding back on his want to rub circles into your skin. His reminiscing can wait for now.

"What is it?" he asks curtly, sitting up and resting his elbow on his raised knee. You pout at his curt tone but shrug it off as you take a seat next to him and lean your shoulder against his. You dig into your bag and pull out slips of commission papers and hand it over to him to read through what needed to be done today. A few Hilichurl camps needed to be taken care of, sabotaging a slime balloon, all tasks that seem mundane to someone who fought in a war. As he's preoccupied, you take a moment to look at Xiao's face. He's just the slightest bit unnerved whenever you do this because you always seem to know what's bothering someone.

"Were you dreaming of her again?" you ask quietly. The silence is a good enough answer but you nod understandingly. You never knew his Master personally but you did fight a long strenuous battle against her. From one look you could tell she was a manipulative and cruel woman. While it may not be very kind to say, you were glad that with her passing, Xiao would be free from her physically. But mentally...there were still some things to work out. But Xiao was a very reclusive person, especially with his emotions, so pushing him any further would only make him irritated and closed off.

"Venti and Zhongli are joining our party for a bit if that’s alright. They'll help out a lot with our commissions and travelling. I like Liyue a lot but climbing mountains stresses my shoulders out," you laugh as you change the subject to something less depressing. Standing up as you dust your clothes off before turning to Xiao and holding your hand out for him to take. He stares at it hard for a few moments before huffing and reaching over to clasp your hands together.

It has been so frustratingly peaceful since the war ended. He's not used to it and he can still feel the lick of cutting winds and the heavy pressure of rocks against his body when he sees the bard and funeral parlor consultant just on the horizon. If it were up to him, he wouldn't play nice with these two Archons but they're important to you so he bites his tongue until he tastes blood. He knows the Archons do the same. As soon as the two of them spot you both, Venti is already rushing and tackling you to the ground in his excitement.

"Traveler! I haven't seen you in ages. You need to come and visit Mondstadt more," Venti cried into your shoulder as you awkwardly patted him on his back. Always with the dramatics but you cared about Venti all the same. Xiao scoffed before flicking his jade eyes to meet gold as Zhongli stared down at him cautiously. Since the war ended, everyone seemed to have this warped idea that Alatus had some vendetta against the Gods and Celestia but he was fighting because he was told to.

"Xiao. It's good to see you again," Zhongli said to him. Xiao just nodded in acknowledgement. Even with this new mortal form, Morax never bothered to change his eyes. His gaze alone held the weight of the mountains he had thrown. If Xiao hadn’t been under one of them before, he might have crumbled under the pressure.

"Alright alright, Venti. I promise I'll drop by sometime this month but we still have commissions to do!" you laugh as you haul the bard onto his feet and swat his cape down from the speckles of dirt. He grins cheekily at you, linking pinkies with you to seal your promise, before suddenly lighting up as if he just remembered something.

"Actually! Before we start anything, I need to speak to Mr. Zhongli and Xiao. Super important archon things, you know?" Venti nodded to himself as the two mentioned people stared at him with varying levels of confusion. But Venti just waved their worries off and linked his arms with both men as he dragged them off to a more secluded corner with a surprising amount of strength, “We’ll be right back!”

"Do what you need to do but don't take too long," you called after the trio as you trailed off to the side, messing with your bag of commission papers and gear. Xiao hated that. He knows that these two Archons are your...friends.. but shouldn't you be a bit more cautious? Just because they have mortal forms doesn’t make them human, it doesn’t make him human either.

"Hey, there's no need to look so scary. There really is something important I wanted to talk to the two of you about," Venti speaks up as soon as you're out of earshot. It still gives Xiao whiplash whenever he drops the persona and switches back to Barbatos. "Since Morax is the only Archon I trust with this information and, while I don't trust you one bit, you're the one that's with her all the time you should also know. She's ascending to Celestia."

Barbatos gauges both of their reactions. Morax seems visibly surprised, his eyes slightly widened a fraction, while Xiao has no idea what that means. His Master didn’t exactly give him a history lesson on Celestia or Archons, just pointed to who was his enemy and dealt punishments when he failed.

"And what the hell does that mean?" Xiao asks as he crosses his arms. Venti appears for a second as the bard pouts before continuing.

"It's like I said. A mortal who performs great, heroic feats can ascend to Celestia and achieve godhood. Where they will watch over their people from above. I've only seen this once before so it took me a while to recognize the signs. But 1000 years ago, I helped a woman named Vennessa with her ascension and with the traveler's recent actions with winning the war. Well, you don't need me to explain the rest," Barbatos finishes. Zhongli simply hums as he cups his chin and absorbs what's just been heard. He doesn’t seem troubled by the news at all.

"Have you told her about this?" Zhongli questions as he looks towards the direction that you left. Venti shakes his head. “That would mean that she would vanish from this world."

“I know she loves this world. Whether she wishes to ascend or not isn’t my choice but I want her to continue her travels with that beloved smile on her face. But if she does choose to ascend, she will need our help," Venti stares at the two of them in a mix of pride, sadness, and determination. "Can I count on you two for your help?"

It's a complete white noise in Xiao's ears as his surroundings fade out. He thinks he can see Zhongli nod to Venti wishes, the ever calm smile on his face to match the cheery grin on Venti’s. What, now you want to become a God? Leave this world behind? That’s not funny. You made him give up everything. While in your eyes, your blinded hero syndrome, you think you've liberated him from a soulless conquest but he still has nothing. You still took everything away from him and your only compensation was to have him by your side until he left himself. But now you want to leave without a warning? That’s not fair. You don’t get to take back what you owe. He won't allow you to leave him behind.

“Did something happen? Did Venti say something unnecessary again?” you ask out of the blue. Zhongli and Venti had returned to their respective regions once your commissions were all finished. Since the three of them disappeared to talk Archon business, Xiao had seemed even more tense and aloof than usual. As if he was out of it? You knew that everyone was still suspicious of Xiao and they were angsty to leave you alone with him, but you knew Xiao would never do anything to hurt you. When he doesn't answer, you slowly reach over and you subtly nudge his head up onto your lap and look at him curiously. Before reaching down and cupping his cheek. He leans into your touch before turning his face into your palm and leaving a soft kiss. It makes you giggle at the ticklish feeling as you look at him so softly. It annoys him.

"You were never connected to the war and yet you fought against us anyways. Even when I killed so many people, why did you choose to spare me?" he asked as you blinked at him before giving it some serious thought. He went on a rampage and almost destroyed the world. It was fun. He doesn't have any regrets at all because he hated humanity. His own Master was human after all. But then you appeared and stopped him. A random outsider that wanted to play the hero. He thought it was cute. Perhaps he had underestimated the lengths someone would go to to save the world they loved but when he fell defeated at your feet. He said that this wouldn't change a single thing. He would still scorn humanity and what they did to him. He was so sure he would die there but you chose to extend your hand down to him instead despite what your companions felt. Even when the war ended and he had nowhere else to go, you offered him to travel with you. Nothing changed about his mentality, every person that chose to talk to him was quickly scared away with piercing eyes. Every conversation started would end in silence. Every touch would be met by the tip of his spear. But you would link your hands together with his and smile brightly, and he would always end up forgetting his trauma for a moment. You’ve... become precious to him.

"I love this world and everyone in it. You are a part of that world even if you tried to destroy it. It...didn't seem fair to leave you behind when you've suffered just as much," you finish but it only seemed to spark a wave of deep anger inside of Xiao. He quickly lurched up, almost knocking your forehead with his, before grabbing the scruff of your shirt collar and yanking you forward.

"Cut it out with that "love of everything" crap. It's revolting. So you're saying the people I killed weren't worth avenging? Do you think I'm so weak that I need protection? It's one thing to try and please everyone but at least have some awareness would you?" he snarled as he pushed you to the ground. He knew he was being harsh on you and you had every right to walk out and abandon him but you didn't. Of course, you wouldn't. You needed him as much as he needed you. You just reached over and tenderly reached your hand and placed it next to his. Damn it, why is he always the one stuck worrying about you.

"Then you want to protect me, right? Then don't break your promise. You left me alive which means you have a duty to live for me," he takes your hand in his and squeezes hard. Digging his nails into your own until crescents appear and tiny specks of blood appear so you know he's serious. He doesn't care how you interpret his words, just so long as you never leave him.

"Don't die on me, Hero."

It's been a few hours since the conversation so it's pitch black outside but Xiao was never one to sleep. Even if he could, his mind is too loud to fall asleep too. He's startled when you melt against him fully asleep. Honey smooth as you curl up to his warmth and cling to him like moss to a rock. He can feel his cheeks start to flush as his heart begins to pound against his chest. He can't breathe as his world is filtered through each beat that drums against his ears. He's not sure if there's actually something wrong with him or if it's just been a while since someone got so close and his instincts haven't left.

He's just realized it. He's feeling pain. The feeling in his chest is black but he can't claw it away. It's strange in a way that he can't explain it, that he's never felt before, that he's never felt the need to experience. His life had been warped by battle and a constant push to submit to his Master. They are all things he knows but the gentle words that come from your mouth, the bright eyes that hold the world, the horrible ice-hot feeling inside of him is so foreign yet too easy. He doesn't like it.

It makes him feel...clean in a way. Enlightened perhaps? His Master is long gone and it's like you said. He's free now. Free to make his own decisions and live his life how he wants to. He carefully turns over so as to not startle you away as he really looks at you. You look so peaceful in his arms, eyelids shut without worry, face slack without nightmares, breathing so softly against him. If you weren't so close to him that he couldn't feel the rise of your chest, he wonders if he would think you were dead. He stares at the lock of hair swaying back and forth with each breath like a starved man. The strange feeling doesn't stop. He hates it. It's everything that goes against him and what he knows and everything he should want. He's supposed to be the villain in your story, he should kill you right now-

"Xiao..." he hears you mumble beside him as you lean further into his arm. Damn it. How low is he going to go?

“What are you thinking about now? You just need to think about me. Don’t think about anything else...but me” Xiao sighs before he wraps his arms around you and pulls you into him until you're snug against his chest. Close to him, where he can touch you, where you belong. Not with Morax or Barbatos. Not with humans but beside him. He closes his eyes and nuzzles his head into your hair and he stares off into the distance. The feeling never leaves him for the remainder of the night.

"Ah! There you are. I was running around crazy looking for you," he turns his hair to see your flushed form pulling yourself up onto the mountain cliff, "When I woke up I couldn’t find you anywhere! You gave me a scare there."

He hates you. He hates you.

Words of his previous master ring in his ears, almost as if her very soul is wrapping around him as she whispers in his ear how weak he is. Ones with power that refuse to take what they want because they rather live in the comfort of nothing. Be greedier, take what belongs to you.

"Xiao?" you say as his piercing eyes stare directly through you. His Master always told him that she loved him. Even if he hated her he still clung to that false love. Of being wanted. Isn't love for a single person vile? Would feeling such emotions for one person instead of "everyone" bring you down to reality? It's not fair that you've crawled your way into his heart while you walk along in bliss. Now that he thinks about it. It was so simple. He just needs to monopolize your thoughts and love. This time it won't be as friends.

"I love you."

He'll pull you down to where he is. You extended your hand down to hell so it's your fault. He'll drag you down kicking and screaming if he has to. You left him alive. You have to live for him and by him. He's not letting go.

Reblogged for extra notes

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[that-shamrock-vibe]

Superhero Spotlight: Mutants In The MCU (Spoilers)

Disclaimer: As the title suggests, I will be diving deep into the Marvel Mutant section of the Marvel Universe. This will include spoilers for the finalé of the recent Ms. Marvel series, so if you haven't yet seen it don't read on until you have.

Introduction:

While not officially named in the main MCU-616 canon, Mutants are now officially in play in the Marvel Cinematic Universe after the "game-changer" reveal that Ms. Marvel aka Kamala Khan is in fact a Mutant/Clandestine hybrid.

This was revealed when Kamala's bestie Bruno discovered an abnormality in Kamala's DNA that makes her different to the rest of her family that descend from her great-grandmother Aisha's Clandestine genealogy that he describes as a mutation.

Aside from the obvious, the troubling thing about this reveal that seems to cement the path the MCU is taking Kamala in is as soon as he states this the opening bars of the very classic and nostalgic theme tune from the 90s X-Men animated series plays...this actually terrifies me.

The Problem With Kamala:

As much as I appreciate the Ms. Marvel series for everything it has done to positively represent Pakistani culture from religion to family and mythology when it comes to Djinn. I honestly don't think the creatives knew how to handle Kamala Khan's origin story when you take out the factor that she is originally supposed to be an Inhuman.

At first it seems that Kamala is a Djinn and the bangle simply unlocked these powers, it's even stated in the second episode that the bangle acts as a totem for these powers as they are supposedly inside her.

We also have it stated numerous times that Kamala's powers and ancestry are connected to the Noor Dimension and in Islamic faith, the Nūr is a symbol for god's guiding light so making Kamala a half-human/half-hybrid being of light would make sense with her hard-light abilities.

However, despite Kamala supposedly being a Djinn, which is a genie and therefore situated in mysticism, the show continues to push Ms. Marvel into the Marvel Cosmic section of the MCU with her idolising Captain Marvel and bringing in the Light Dimension and making Kamala's ancestry from said dimension therefore making her an alien-hybrid.

It just would make sense if Djinn were introduced in this series...which I don't even know if they are now...that they would sit alongside witchcraft, mysticism, sorcery and chaos magic...rather than space vikings and blue aliens.

I just want to reiterate, I feel the series getting Kamala's Pakistani culture authentically well done was probably the best part about this series, but then if you completely deviate from the comics and rather than making her an Inhuman or even a Djinn make her a Mutant, it takes away not only from the strong foundation the series has built up with representing the Pakistani culture, but also stretches Kamala into so many corners of the MCU that she supposedly is the one character to connect them all which has never been Ms. Marvel's story.

Mutants vs. Inhumans:

Where this problem may have stemmed from is the fact that Kevin Feige adamantly does not care for the Inhumans and simply does not want them in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. This was made clear when the originally conceived Inhumans movie became that horrendous Inhumans series to which the only payoff for that has been the inclusion of Anson Mount as the Earth-838 Black Bolt who was part of the Illuminati in Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.

But I knew when the idea was originally brought up for Ms. Marvel joining the MCU that there was a high probability she would not be an Inhuman...which I was concerned about because it the idea was also floating around that instead of Inhuman Feige would turn her into a Mutant.

It's just very frustrating both as a massive X-Men megafan but also someone who actually likes certain Inhumans introduced in the wider MCU canon. I thought Quake from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and both Black Bolt and Lockjaw from Inhumans were all great characters and all could have done well in the wider MCU.

The fact that also what is supposedly now happening in the Marvel Cinematic Universe stems from what is happening in the comics of late, where not only were Inhumans originally pushing out Mutants but now they're making Mutants more cosmic-based, is also a worrying factor for me.

Particularly if these changes aren't successful, like I hear the recent cosmic mutant change is, then why does Feige believe that not only is this the right way to go for the MCU, but how this is the right way to finally introduce Mutants into the MCU after so many years of fans waiting and hoping that Feige would finally do for the X-Men what he has done for the original B and C list superheroes like the Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy.

Mutant Genesis:

Not to say that Kamala is the first Mutant discovered in the MCU chronologically, but if she is actually a Mutant then this sets a bad precedent going forward that takes away from what makes Mutants unique. If Kamala is a Mutant, it's not quite clear as to where her Mutant x-gene came from. Her mother's side of the family which goes back to her great-grandmother has the Clandestine genealogy, and it was established in X2 that the fathers traditionally carry the x-gene, so does that mean Kamala's dad has the gene?

In a way it would make sense as Bruno would have only supposedly scanned Kamala's grandmother, mother and brother given it's that side of the family...so why scan the father and therefore obviously overlook the x-gene, but then there's a second problem.

If Kamala's great-grandmother Aisha is responsible for making Kamala a mutant, then why have the same powers as Kamala. Mutants don't inherit powers from parents/grandparents. A parent and child can both be Mutants and have similar powers but not the same power. Magneto and Polaris have similar linking powers but not the same powerset, Cyclops and Havok as brothers have similar powers and immunity from each other but not the exact same.

Now yes, Banshee and Siryn as father and daughter have the same powers but Siryn's is seemingly more evolved it's not effectively the same powerset.

Young Avenger or Young X-Man?:

When the Ms. Marvel series was announced, it was heavily implied that Kamala would eventually help form the MCU's version of the Young Avengers, while in the comics Ms. Marvel was never part of the Young Avengers and instead part of the Champions, it still makes a lot more sense for the Captain Marvel fangirl to be part of the Young Avengers team as opposed to the X-Men.

There are enough young Mutants already to be included without turning Ms. Marvel into a member of the X-Men. Also it's the fear that if she does join the eventual team, is she going to be as annoying as Jubilee was in the 90s series? Because honestly that's how the character seemed to be in her series.

There are obviously the New Mutants as the "Young X-Men" team, but if you're talking about a female young Mutant who somehow as the access or powers of an extra-dimensional plane of existence...we have Magik already for that, don't dilute what is already potent.

Also, Mutants already have Muslim representation in the form of Dust, who has never had a turn in live-action, yet was also part of the short-lived Young X-Men comic series...why then would we have Ms. Marvel as a Young X-Man who is her own brand of uniqueness and found fan-favouritism as part of the Avengers, if you already have these characters that could reach the same level of fan-interest if given a fair chance.

Conclusion:

Overall I am genuinely just not happy with Ms. Marvel being a Mutant, it's not even the old trope of dropping the bombshell then re-watching the series to discover the little hints that finally add-up. I mean major fans already knew Agnes was Agatha Harkness in WandaVision from the start, but after the reveal and killer song intro, looking back and connecting the dots made a lot more sense.

Here though, there is no indication that Kamala is a Mutant and I'm not entirely sure how exactly she is. Yes Kamala can easily be the only Mutant in her family, but with her also being a Clandestine on her mother's side, the explanation that the hybrid DNA created the mutation makes no sense when you consider her brother Aamir is not at present a Mutant.

Then also with Najma being a Clandestine and her son Kamran being a hybrid, does it make him a Mutant?

Again, the way in which Kamala's origins have been handled from a superhero perspective have just reeked of sloppiness this entire season, I don't even think the creatives knew the trajectory they were going in and just made it up as they went along.

Also now Ms. Marvel is a Mutant, does this mean that The Marvels will introduce more Mutants for her to interact with?

The term mutant or mutation could extend to most "enhanced" individuals in the MCU, but the human genus Homo Superior term of Mutant is a separate subspecies. Technically the likes of Spider-Man, Steve Rogers and the Abomination are mutates, but the likes of the X-Men and supposedly Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver are Mutants.

This again creates more of a dilution not only for Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver in the MCU but also Wanda's sons Billy & Tommy. All four of them are Mutants in the comics, and realistically should've been the first set of Mutants introduced into the MCU, but having Scarlet Witch being a Nexus Being within the Marvel Mystic corner, and I'm guessing Wiccan will also be in that section, and Quicksilver and Speedy seemingly only being "enhanced", having Ms. Marvel officially be the MCU's first Mutant introduced when she isn't even a Mutant in the comics just disparages the more fan-favourite introductions impact.

Ultimately I am actually really nervous for how Mutants are going to make their mark on the MCU officially, bringing in the X-Men, the Brotherhood, how they're going to tie-in with the established characters and what the reception will be.

So that's my thoughts on the current MCU Mutant situation, what do you guys think? Post your comments, check out more MCU Spotlights as well as other posts.

[mortedeveles]

A Letter To My Love.

P1: Chaotic Interviews.  ALTML MASTERLIST. 

Copyright © 2020-2021 by Veles.

NOTE: PLEASE READ THE NOTES IN THE MASTERLIST ! 

SUMMARY: Tamaki Amajiki, also known as the Pro Hero Suneater, has been your friends for years. You’ve known each other since U.A. During his entire life, Tamaki has fought against his internal demons, insecurities, and voices that rage in his mind. With the help of his friends Nejire and Mirio and you, he was able to overcome his fears and become one of the most successful Pro Heroes in Japan. 

In the last few years, writing has become an outlet for Tamaki when he feels troubled. And being a Pro Hero comes with great luggage- including hyper fans and their strange romantic theories. One of them being 'TamaY/N', a romantic ship created by his fans. As an anonymous writer, Amajiki can finally express the love and affection he's harbored for Y/N for several years through fanfiction when he has spare time. But when Y/N discovers the infamous fanfiction after an awkward interview, drama, heartbreak, and confusion are bound to break loose.

PAIRING: ProHero! Tamaki Amajiki x Fem!ProHero!reader

THEMES: pining, fluff, angst, etc. [SERIES]

TW: cursing, sexual innuendos, mature themes. 

a/n: my requests are open for business lovelies! i proofread this but if i made any mistakes, please let me know! as always, please leave a like, reblog, follow and/or comment if you enjoyed! i appreciate the support and feedback <3 

''His heart sings in joy in her presence. Around her, he's blessed with a sudden warmth that soothes his bones and washes over all the tension and strain in his muscles.'' 

                                                         _______

''Good morning!'' you greet hurriedly to all the workers you leave behind as you race towards the third floor.

Shit, shit, shit! You had an interview with an important press with Tamaki today and it was about to start in three minutes! Luckily, you'd managed to make it to Tamaki's agency on time, but you were yet to arrive at the designated floor. Once you reached the elevator, you let out a sigh of relief. It was empty and while you waited for the elevator to open, you began to pat and smooth over your Pro Hero costume.

It consisted of a sleeveless loose black top with a pair of black shorts, with silver armor that started from your shoulders up to your elbows, paired with black combat boots and silver gloves with some metal and gadgets that allowed you to improve the use of your quirk Liquify.

Before you knew it, the elevator dinged open and you quickly stepped out, plastering a bright smile on your face. The third floor had been emptied- and the equipment from the press stood in the middle- two elegant chairs, cameras and lights, and a few dozen reporters mingling. At the back of the floor, you noticed Tamaki, wearing his Pro hero suit. He was facing the wall- he tended to do when he was nervous.

''Good morning!" you greeted the reporters, who smiled in response. ''I apologize for my tardiness.''

''It's okay. It's a pleasure to meet you, Pro Hero Unda,'' a busy looking woman approached you. She glanced towards Tamaki. ''Do you think you could get Suneater ready for the interview?''

You shoved down a stressed sigh and nodded. ''I'll get him right away!" with one last smile, you stepped away and approached the nervous blue-haired man.

''Tama,'' you spoke in a soft voice and pressed a hand on his shoulder. He was slightly trembling and was muttering something along the lines of 'I want to go home.'

''Y/N,'' his voice was trembling. ''You're late.''

''Ma'am?'' you called out to the lady that had approached you earlier. ''We're ready.''

You sighed and pinched your nose. ''I know, Tama,'' your heart felt heavy. ''I'm really sorry. I was busy doing paperwork and time flew by. Can you forgive me?''

He nodded and turned around and you nearly jumped with joy. The two of you approached the press and sat down on the chairs.

All of the workers quickly surrounded you and you clenched your fists on your lap. Now that they were all crowded around you, it felt like all of them were studying you, nitpicking and silently judging you in their eyes.

You glanced towards Tamaki. It wasn't a surprise that he looked like he felt the same as you. Offering him a small smile, you squeezed his shoulder comfortingly. He offered you a weak smile.

''Good morning, Japan! This is your favorite reporter, Hirano Chizue! I'm live with our two favorite Pro-Heroes, Suneater and Unda!" the smile on her face was so dazzling you were sure it was fake.

''Alright! Let's get started!'' the businesswoman clapped her hands and sat down on the seat in front of you. ''Camera crew, get in position! We're live in 1..2...3!''

You heard several workers move behind you-most likely the ones with cameras and the lady in front of you held a microphone as she smiled towards the camera.

''How are you two doing this morning?'' She pointed the microphone towards both of you.

''Fine, thank you,'' you smiled softly. Tamaki swallowed and raised his gaze towards the businesswoman.

''I'm feeling okay, thank you for asking,'' his voice was somewhat low but at least he replied.

''Good, good!'' Hirano said. She pulled out a clipboard with a neat stack of papers.

''We're honored that you accepted to the interview. Do you mind if we start? The questions are fan-submitted and others are from our crew! Since the two of you are new rising heroes, Japan is eager to know the two of you!'' 

You didn't notice how Tamaki froze at the word 'fan'. You were barely a few minutes into the interview and you already felt exhausted. Nevertheless, you smiled and nodded. 

''Not at all. Ask away.''

Hirano grinned- you didn't miss the hungry glint in her eyes- what type of questions had she chosen?

''This question is for Suneater!'' she shot him a brief smile before trailing her eyes on the paper. Hirano's smile grew.

''What's your relationship with Unda? Are the two of you dating?''

You coughed awkwardly, averting your gaze towards the floor.

''N-no,'' your friend sounded nervous. ''We're good friends, that's all.'' 

When Tamaki said the word 'friends', you couldn't stop the painful ache that throbbed in your chest. You knew that he meant well but you had hoped for years that one day, the two of you would be more than just friends. Clearly, today wasn't that day.

Hirano hummed in response, but she didn't seem convinced. 

''The two of you have a beautiful friendship,'' she complimented. The two of you muttered a 'thank you'.  Hirano's beady eyes focused on you. 

''This question is for Unda! Tell me, your fans are dying to know more about your quirk! Could you give us a brief explanation of your quirk, Liquify?''

A good question, you thought with a smile. Even though it was modern times, the oppression of women and misogyny hadn't been fully eradicated- and it showed during Pro Hero interviews, asking women nothing but shallow questions while the men received interesting ones. Her question was quite refreshing. 

''Of course!" this time, your smile was more genuine. ''So, my quirk Liquify focuses on the state of matter of an inanimate object. I can turn any inanimate object- it doesn't work on plants or animals- into liquid and bend it to my will! I can also return the material into its original state, but I can change its figure and volume,'' you waved your hands as you explained.

''That's a marvelous quirk! Would you mind giving us a demonstration?'' 

''That was an excellent demonstration, Unda!'' you shot Tamaki a glance. He was staring at the ground but when you glanced towards him, he met your eyes and smiled. You smiled back.

With a nod of agreement, you rose and grabbed the closest thing- an empty mug and wrapped your hand around it. When you opened your palm, the once red mug was now a red liquid hovering about your palm, sloshing side to side.

The press gasped in amazement and applauded. You smiled gratefully and returned to your seat.

''Thank you, miss.''

''Now,'' she flipped a page. ''Ooh. This is another question for you, Unda. It's quite a juicy question,'' Hirano bit her lip and grinned. 

''Have you ever read books about TamaY/N?''

Next to you, Tamaki flinched in his seat and coughed lowly. No one seemed to notice, the attention was on you.

You furrowed your eyebrows and shook your head. 

''I'm sorry, is it a book? What's TamaY/N? I haven't heard of it before...'' you trailed off and glanced at Tamaki, hoping for some kind of help, but he wouldn't meet your gaze. You noticed that the tip of his pointed ears was turning red. Was he feeling okay?

Hirano cackled and shook her head. ''No, TamaY/N is the ship name for Tamaki and you. The fans seem to like seeing the two of you together. It's called fanfiction.''

''Oh...'' you said, feeling clueless. Once the information sunk in, you felt your cheeks bloom with warmth. ''Oh.''

''Oh indeed,'' Hirano agreed. ''It's quite scandalous, you should read some on your own! You'd understand what I'm talking a-,''

''Oh, um, well...'' you nervously played with your fingers.

''Isn't this a professional interview?'' Tamaki snapped. His voice was loud and firm and Hirano flinched in her seat.

''I appreciate the support of fans but we are Pro Heroes and have a right to main-maintain our privacy. The status of our romantic experiences is private and will remain that way.'' 

You nodded in agreement, remaining silent as you had nothing else to add. Hirano looked surprised- she cleared her throat and quickly recollected herself with a smile.

''My sincerest apologies, Suneater, we didn't know you felt like this about your... relationship status. Here, let me find another question for Unda...''

The interview continued for half an hour- but the tension was much more tense and awkward than before. Tamaki gave short and clipped answers.

After the interview, Hirano quietly thanked you for your time and the press quickly left. After an hour, the only ones left were Tamaki and you. He was sitting in the corner of the room. He didn't look particularly nervous but the scowl on his face made you frown with worry. 

Slowly, you approached him and sat down next to him. You spent a few minutes in silence before speaking up.

''Are you okay, Tama?''

You shook your head. ''It's okay. If you want to keep those inquires private, that's perfectly fine. And to be fair, it's better that way. The press feeds on any source or evidence of romance in the Pro Hero industry.''

Tamaki was silent. You noticed how he clenched his fists and lowered his head.

''I'm sorry,'' he mumbled. His shoulders slumped. ''I was being very rude and distant...''

Tamaki smiled at you- but the look in his eyes was distant.

''Yeah...''

                               ━━━━━━━━━▼━━━━━━━━━

After the exhausting interview, Tamaki and you had worked for hours in his agency- racing outside to save civilians, filing paperwork, until it was eight o'clock- his agency would be closing early today. The two of you walked towards Mirio's department- he said a celebration was necessary. 

''Helloo!'' Mirio yelled loudly. You laughed as he grabbed Tamaki and you into a tight bear hug, squeezing the air out of your lungs. Even though he wasn't a Pro Hero, he was immensely strong.

''I saw the interview!"' Nejire popped up behind the blonde. ''It's your first interview, I think we should celebrate!" 

''Congrats, Tama and Y/N!'' Eri said and joined the bear hug, along with Nejire.

''I-I can't breathe!" you complained and Tamaki groaned in agreement. Nejire and Eri giggled in amusement as the hug feel apart and everyone stepped back. Mirio jogged towards the dining table and brought a tray with four bowls with delicious takoyaki.

''I think we should celebrate with takoyaki. I've put on a movie that I think everyone will enjoy. Dig in!'' 

Immediately, Tamaki snatched the bowl and raced towards the sofa. You laughed in amusement and followed, holding your bowl of takoyaki.

You spent the rest of the night huddled next to Tamaki and Eri on the small sofa, eating takoyaki. Maybe it wasn't a fancy or expensive celebration, but you wouldn't trade anything in the world for moments like these- lively nights with your best friends. All previous thoughts of the awkward interview and whatever that lady had mentioned washed away, only to be brought back tomorrow. 

a/n: well!! this is my first time writing for my baby tamaki!! what do you guys think? should i make a tag list for this series? dm me if you’re interested! xx 

[lokaneiscanon]

Mighty Thor in Thor: Love and Thunder rant

Seeing Natalie Portman returning to reprise her role as Jane Foster, nevertheless wielding Mjolnir, finally getting the treatment this character deserves, was surreal to say the least. I had just started reading Lords of Midgard, the 8th issue of Mighty Thor (2015 - 2018), and had fallen in love already. But I didn't suspect at all that Taika Waititi would pull this card in Thor: Love and Thunder, considering Jane was barely mentioned in Ragnarok. The news about my favorite actress portraying one of my favorite characters coming out of the blue - you can imagine the excitement. Alas, I quickly remembered what the fandom thought of that comic (at least on tumblr) and imagined it now growing tenfold, cuz not everyone in the MCU fandom reads comics but pretty much everyone wants to watch another Thor movie. And yes, many fans weren't ready for this step, still recovering from Sam Wilson getting the shield in Endgame. Which is completely fine. We're not obligated to like everything Marvel throws in our faces, we're allowed to criticize and express our opinion on the internet or wherever. What is not okay is mindlessly hating, and even worse - using false facts to support said opinion.

I have seen some people using the argument that it is one of Marvel's worst selling comics. Which has already been proven wrong by multiple sites, including Comichron, just Google it, as I did myself. I read multiple posts, ones saying how good Jane is doing as Thor in sales, others disproving this, so I checked for myself the numbers at the site mentioned above month by month to be sure. The comic truly had its downfalls as the story progressed but in my opinion it's normal for the 1st issue to have more sales than the 21st. If we compare it to Unworthy Thor, which started running a bit later and followed the now unworthy Odinson, the data shows the latter had more sales. But then again, while Might Thor was at its 17th issue, Unworthy Thor was at its 2nd. Also, they later crossed paths, shared comic issues, it's fair to say they go hand in hand and Jason Aaron, the author, probably doesn't want us to compare them, as they complete and compliment each other's stories. Still I decided to check the comic that made Thor unworthy in the first place - Thor: God of Thunder (2012 - 2014), which seemed to me more "comparable" to Might Thor (2015 - 2018). *I keep putting the years it was being released so as to not be confused with previous Mighty Thor issues, whole Odinson was still Thor, please bear with me* So yes, the numbers were pretty close, but from what I saw, Mighty Thor had the upper hand if we compare first issue to first issue and so on. (In defense of Odinson, we have to take into account that this data is only from the US and does not include digital sales. Also, he's been around since the 50s. We could argue Jane was a breath of fresh air that some Marvel fans were indeed ready for. As a non-American, and also a person without a hint of knowledge in economics I cannot take into account inflation and whatever else has prevented or enabled Americans to get their hands on the comics or has affected prizes through the years. Bear that in mind.) Moreover, from what I saw on Comichron, both comics had much competition - God of thunder was released along with Avengers vs the X-men, the Uncanny X-men, pretty popular at the time, and the Goddess of Thunder faced Civil War 2 and DC Universe Rebirth (yes, DC is in the game too), also dominating with tremendous sales for the longest time. Yet I stick with my original statement - both Thors are valid and shouldn't be put against one another regardless of profit. Because at the end of the day what will matter the most is the story. And boy, what a story it is.

Now, I haven't read the Thor: God of Thunder, but as I was doing research I found one very well written summary and explanation of Thor's arc and his becoming unworthy and I will post a link below, because I honestly feel I wouldn't be doing this comic a favor by describing it without having read it. Which I plan to do in the future, tbh. It's a fantastic prelude to the Mighty Thor (2015 - 2018) that I've come to love. First, I'd like to ask you all to stop hating on the comic without having read it first. It doesn't make any sense and being petty for the sake of being petty won't benefit neither you, nor anyone, really. Now, about the comic itself - the art is magnificent. It's just gorgeous. Mighty Thor isn't , thank all the gods, sexualized, she is pretty buffed and generally looks like a warrior. As it is with the other characters, I dare say. The background truly captures the essence of every world Jane finds herself on. Action scenes are just the right amount and balanced with dialogue well. On a side note, it's pretty funny to read/listen to in your head the Shakespearean English cursive in which Jane talks as Thor. The plot line branches beyond this comic, starting from Thor: God of Thunder and leading to the War of Realms. And it is elaborately built in every issue. You don't know what to expect, yet it makes sense when it happens. Which leads me to the characterizations. My God, what a treat Loki is in this. Clearly, my opinion is kinda biased, since he's my favorite character, but you never know which side he's on. What his motivations are. And it just feels so... Loki. His writing is brilliant. Almost makes me forget what the MCU did to him. Also, he gets some daddy time with Laufey (not as kinky as I make it sound). Frigga/Freyja is just as awesome as in the MCU, even more, at least in the comics she calls Odin out on his shit, who btw is I guess an asshole in every version and universe. Malekith, the main villain, is unbearably despicable, I want to tear every page he is on. He really was mishandled in the Dark World, if you want some true action with the dark elves, you are welcome to enjoy. I saved the best for the end - Jane Foster/ Might Thor. Now, if you think Dr. Foster spends her time boasting about her worthiness and how Odinson is just called Thor, but she is Mighty Thor, you are horribly wrong. She just... does her job. Because the hammer chose her. Because there's no one else to do so. That's it. If you think there's some feminism involved, yes, there sure is, but it certainly isn't the reason Jane became Thor in the first place. It was not the creators going SJW because it's trendy, as such a mindset is honestly offensive to any descent creator with any self respect, but a well thought out story arc, which, I repeat, you have to read the comic to understand. Jane is not at all whiny about the hate she gets in-universe, not only from foes like Odin and who-not, but from Shield and generally people whose asses she's saving. Her having cancer is not something they pulled to provoke sympathy and make her look like a victim - on the contrary, she is a damn hero and a victor. I don't want to give out spoilers, but her being Thor is actually a giant sacrifice that no one really appreciates (both in-universe and in the fandom). She is not Thor to prove she can be, or just to prove "women can be heroes" - she doesn't have to. She is simply needed by the realms and so she does her job, even though she is called a thief, persecuted and generally hated. All that matters is that the hammer finds her worthy - the beauty and simplicity of that fact you will find out, for the last time, if you read the comic.

I'm not making you read the comic or watch Thor: Love and Thunder. I myself don't know what to make of this film yet because there's barely any information about it. I only know it will be based on the comic so that's a reason for my hopes to be up already. On the other hand, since I didn't like Loki's characterization in Ragnarok, I'm not sure what to expect from Taika. There are valid reasons to not like the idea of Jane returning to the MCU as Thor, which you are entitled to. However, reasons such as "why does everything have to be political these days" are not. Because if I had to make a list of everything politically related in the MCU, it would take forever. Steve Rogers kills nazis is the most blatant example. Make of it what you want. But I think we're far enough into the 21st century to realize art and real life are not that separable. It's undeniable that art affects people and that is to say, people everywhere. And they all have different opinions and aren't gonna like everything media is offering to them. And I wish I could simply tell you not to watch the movie but I'm a Marvel fan too and I understand that I can't just take away Thor from you because I want Mighty Thor as well. But none of us can stop Marvel from producing it. So, to quote an image I saw recently, I don't know how to explain to you that you should care about other people. Let the rest of the fandom enjoy what they want to enjoy. Yes, ik I can play around with the tags and avoid posts that unnerve me but, for example, I'm looking up Mighty Thor fanart, which obviously isn't anti-Mighty Thor, yet I get attacked in the comics for anticipating a movie that doesn't even have a full cast yet. Ik I'm not asking for too much when I wish to get the same internet experience (not only tumblr, but also insta, YouTube, Twitter, any site) as the Thor Odison fans, for example. I'm aware I cannot stop all the toxic fans and the trolls but I hope this post has inspired those of you who simply can't envision Jane as Thor, or don't like Natalie Portman in the role, or whatever eles personal preference that doesn't involve political issues and isn't harmful to the community, not to attack every post on your dash with hate. The movie is called LOVE and Thunder, for God's sake. (on a side note, is a franchise that is too afraid to show LGBT characters for more than 1 minute so as to not lose profit from China, THAT politically correct)

Anyway, that was a veeeery long rant, sorry to whoever reads this but, like, please, I put effort into this, hoping this time around I won't be the only positive reviewer of a movie, like I was with Solo: a Star Wars story (yes, I'm still bitter about this), which was boycotted for no apparent reason but was a decent film in reality, and I'm only bringing it up because it has a similar experience to Love and Thunder for getting hate before even being released. I'm not defending a billion dollar company that flopped in box office once, I'm defending the viewer's right to media they are interested in. If you don't like the character, remember - that's your opinion, not a fact that the character sucks. Kudos.

Not very easy to navigate, I advice you to do the research month by month individually for comics you'd like to compare. Also, if you happen to find more reliable data, pls say so in the comments.

Here you have the summary and explanation of the greatness of Thor: God of Thunder, Jesus, I'll go bankrupt if I buy this one too.

Yes, I want to end the sales dispute once and for all, I'm tired of seeing it on my dash. This guy probably explains it better than I did.

@awesomejenlawrence you said you'd like to read this and I delivered

[a-gay-bloodmage]

Hmmm, time to get to know a bit about everyone x) Can you do 2, 4, 8, 15, and 17 for the oc asks I haven't seen yet? Thanks so much, I love getting to know about your ocs :)

I’m going to be answering for my Dragon Age OCs, but I’ve got more in a non-DA setting for an original story I’m working on! If you want to learn about those, send an ask to @daughter-of-war

I’m more than happy to answer!

As usual, this got quite long! More under the cut!

2. Do any of your OCs have a physical disability?

You know what? None of my Wardens really do. I should try to work on making more diverse characters, but as of now, I think I’ll include Redren, because over-use of his magic can lead to pretty bad anemia, which is always there to a degree. And Maria, one of my non-warden OCs, is mostly blind.

4. Does your OC have anything they take pride in? (Like an award or collection?)

Redren takes immense pride in his blood magic, something he’s always defined himself as. His entire life revolved around the singular fact that he was a Blood Mage, and he learned to take pride in it. To him, the only part of himself he could take pride in was what he couldn’t ever change. Unfortunately, nobody in the world seemed to think blood magic was anything to take pride in.

Orest takes pride in his nature, seeing his personality as the most important thing about himself. His ability to have compassion, and to make people laugh, is one of his favorite things about himself. He’s not vain, but he is self-confident. To Orest, the best anyone can be is their best, and he’s proud to say that he’s doing the best he can.

Faelyn takes pride in her friends. She’d lived so long with only her cousins as friends, as soon as she found companionship in Alistair, and Morrigan, and Leliana, and Zevran, and even in Shale, Wynne, and Oghren, she sees it as one of the best things she’d ever accomplished. Sten’s still a work in progress, but she’ll get there some day!

Andrea is quite vain and self-centered at the beginning of her story, making her social status the most valued aspect of herself, something she took immense pride in. Eventually, she learned to see past that fairly narcissistic view of herself, but in the start of it all, her place in the world as the Arl of Highever’s only daughter gave her all the pride in the world.

Hundir was similar to Andrea, but as soon as he was cast from Orzammar, the object of his pride moved to his battleaxe, the weapon that led him through the Deep Roads became his source of pride, the dark crimson stain of Darkspawn blood helping him hold his head up high.

Gemma takes pride in her brand. To many casteless, the brand is an awful reminder of what they are, the failure of their birth, but as soon as she joined the Wardens, she held her head up high, pulling the hair out of her face to show the world the black brand on her face. She’d smile as she thought of what those back in Orzammar would think, to see a casteless girl take pride in her branding as worthless. Because she knew she wasn’t worthless.

8. Do you ship any 2 of your OCs?

None of my Wardens, no, but I do have a few original couples!

Jo and Renee Bircann, from Orlais, are one! Jo is genderfluid, who switches from biologically and mentally male to biologically and mentally female at random, with Jo’s birth gender being unknown (this way people can’t really call it a “fake gender”, because s/he is “actually” fe/male on any given day. Loophole, transphobes!) And Renee is his/her wife, a lesser noble-born woman forced to run from the Orlesian nobility due to her magic that manifested when she was fourteen. The two started their relationship when both of them were fleeing Orlais, meeting in the Orlesian side of the mountains near Orzammar, with Renee immediately captivated by the rugged-looking “man” in the mountains. Luckily, Renee is bisexual, and very attracted to both women and men. Jo is just two lovers in one!

Maria and Bethany are another couple! Maria is one of my most developed non-Warden OCs, seeing as she’s central to Redren’s story. An approximately 600 year old Tevinter-born sorceress, Maria is in a relationship with Bethany, a spirit of an ancient tribal princess of the nomadic Enchanted Wood Tribe of the forests of the Anderfels and Orlais. They started their relationship when Maria invited Bethany out of the Fade as a fully-formed apparition about 500 years ago, as she had been there for 500 years already, fully aware, but with no way to get back to the world of the living.

15. Do any of your OCs have pets?

All of my Wardens got the Mabari companion! How could I resist giving each of them a puppy?

Redren named his mabari Dog, because it’s simple and he couldn’t think of anything better in the moment. The name stuck, in the end, despite Alistair’s protests against naming a warhound Dog.

Orest named his mabari companion Anga, Tolkien Elven for Iron. He thought it was pretty cool, and a tough dog deserves a tough name!

Faelyn decided to call her mabari Puppy! Her first instinct was to call out "puppy!" when she saw him, so yeah, she kept the name. Cute, isn’t it?

Andrea called her mabari Prince, and she treated him like one. She’d play with him in the Highever Castle gardens, and read books with him, and brush his fur, in short, she spoiled that dog rotten. And after she lost everything except that dog, she treasured him more than anything in Thedas.

Hundir, the ever so tough Aeducan, named his new mabari Ripper. He liked how tough and intimidating it was, and over the course of the Blight, yeah, that dog earned that name tenfold.

Gemma named her mabari Flower after her favorite thing on the Surface. She had never seen a mabari before, so she was very excited over the idea of having one to call her own. The pretty little flower that saved it is forever remembered in her mabari’s name.

17. Do you have any OCs you haven’t posted about?

Maria, who I’m in the process of writing a “write-up” post about, is honestly a really fun character to develop! She’s loud, and outgoing, and certainly the pinnacle of the older-sister type. She is the one largely responsible for raising Redren, with the help of her mother, Alda, and her Dearest, Bethany. She’s been blind for nearly six hundred years, after being bound to the Fade by the magic of spirit-channeling and Necromancy. To say she’s a living corpse is untrue, but she is essentially frozen as an eighteen-year-old for the foreseeable future. She’s able to see the spirits of people, animals, and living plants, making her able to navigate with no problem. Spirits free from the “prison” that is the mortal flesh are able to be seen with perfect clarity for her. She’s slightly infamous from Tevinter to Ferelden, however, known to many as an Enchantress that seduced men who later went “missing.” Human blood is incredibly good for potions and food, in her mind. She gave up the habit about two hundred years ago, but that doesn’t stop her from telling story after story about the fun she had with the witch-burners and Templars before they died, though.

Bethany, as mentioned above, was a tribal princess of the Enchanted Wood Tribe of Orlais and the Anderfels. Elf-blooded a million times over, due to the mixture of elf and human makeup of the nomadic tribe, Bethany was considered the most beautiful of her tribe, with wavy blonde hair to her ankles and green-blue eyes, she was sacrificed to Desire Demons in order to keep her tribe alive through the unpredicted and harsh winter. She sacrificed herself willingly, but she’s always wondered what happened to her beloved tribe. She’s a full-bodied and fully aware ghost now, forever reminded of her sacrifice by the large hole though her chest where her heart was taken, and her eternal forced nudity. She doesn’t mind the nudity, though.

Alda, Maria’s mother, and Bethany’s Dear Mother, is the matriarch of the village all my Dragon Age OCs live in, which is made of nearly all apostates driven from their homes or Circle escapees. She’s a proud Andrastian, but not opposed to the Ancient Elven or Tribal Gods and Goddesses. She’s a kind and loving old lady, physically around 70, as she stopped her aging after her daughter. A spirit healer, she’s kept alive in the same type of way Wynne is, except she chose to be kept alive by the Fade. She’s incredibly matronly, and helped to raise Redren as his Auntie.

And many more, but way less developed ones!

I’m also making playlists for each of my Wardens, so if you have any requests for what character I should prioritize, please reply! Thanks~!