#im definitely doing a faith build next time
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failure isn’t a result, it’s a mindset
i’m gonna b so for real w u guys i’m eating lunch w my friends rn n this is came to mind and i have to type it 💀💀💀 on my life u guys need to hear this.
failure, by simple definition is the absence of succes, or the absence of the results desired.
success, by simple definition, is the act of accomplishing a task, obtaining the results desired or reaching a milestone. another definition that came up is “the good or bad outcome of an undertaking”
11:11am rn btw <3
let me put it this way, i have 4 test today, right? and my goal i’ve set is to get an a on all of them. what would be success to me though? my grade not dropping below a b+ 💀 And i know that won’t happen because im doing something. im taking the tests, im working on them, im doing what i was told and processing the material.
that would be success to me, and i know it seems like the bare minimum since i am a straight A student (other than spanish 😭😭). it is the least i can do.
i feel like shifting is similar.
just do something, process the information and work for the best, even the least results. and base them off your past experiences, your past work, your past knowledge.
your past knowledge, experiences and work is literally just getting there and doing the fucking work (3:33 pm now bc uh…. i may have took all my tests 🙏🙏)
all you have to do is show up. that’s my point here.
you just have to do something, and the bare minimum isn’t failure, it is a step to success. and success isn’t always the desired outcome sometimes it’s just a step to it.
what i’m saying is just do something, show up, set an intention, and have the faith.
success is a mindset and a result.
set little goals of success. even if it’s just “let me set an intention tonight” then build on it. do one thing then either do the same thing the next and add something.
and even if you don’t get all the way to your goal, at least you did what you’re used to.
i don’t know what i mean 💀💀 bye yall
edit: what i was trying to say is have a baseline of success. if you take an hour to run a mile, take that fucking hour. at least you did it right? just don’t get BEHIND an hour, you know? try 59 minutes next time. and if it turns out to be 60 again, at least you didn’t sit there n hope and pray your endure got better. you tried to make it better.
that’s it 😭😭 sorry if u didn’t know what i meant at first
#abyss .speaks#shiftblr#reality shifting#reality shift#shifting#desired reality#black shifters#shifting community#shifting motivation#shifting consciousness#desired reality shifting#mcu shifting#quantum shifting#shifting advice#shifting antis dni#shifting diary#shifting blog#shifting journey#shifting meme#shifting realities#shifting stories#shifting tips#shifting script#shiftingrealities#reality shifter#shiftinconsciousness#shifttok#shift#shifter
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Hihi its me again bc I have thoughts about pirates again :D (btw sorry if this is rly incoherent its 5 am when im starting to write this and ive been up for an hour and i dont really have energy to read this over but yeah)
So i finished apos yt series yesterday wich reminded me of how Apo and Acho actually were, yk i used to tgink og that duo a lot when it was life becouse there is a lot going on there and they are similar in many ways and like idk
Like at first neither of them are exactly happy about getting an offer from "just" the nightingales and would rather be in different places Apo in the kites and Acho not at the usles at all. And like at the beginning that affects how they interact and how they have a closer thought process than most of the other nightingales. Also at the start neither of them really seem to know what pirates actually do in a faction.
Also when Acho and Gracie were helping Apo build his treehouse. He says that Gracie can help him build and then theyll get Acho to judge wether she was helpful or not if she was then Apo would accept being a nightingale and if not theyd call him a kite, Apo choosing Acho to be the judge shows that he cares about stars opinion. Then Acho then says smth like im not going to tell you who to be (i cant remember what exactly he said but it was smth similar to this)
Also just how ready they are to help each other like when Acho doesn't trust Will and they work together on a plan to make sure he can question him n stuff that I cant remember rn there where definitely more moments but.
The next part is all taken from Achos stream "the duel lore" and all the direct quotes are from there (I rewatched the second half of it for this)
In that stream specifically I noticed how willing Acho is to follow Apo despite acknowledging to the seagulls that smth is up like he says that smth is wrong but he's going to stay in case Apos just going through smth like???
"He's my friend I can't just leave... I have to have some sort of faith" like damn that line rly shows how Acho thinks of their friendship sometimes
"I'm right here you are not alone" like bro
"You're so worried about being yourself that you are being someone else, it doesn't matter who you are or what faction you are in Apo you are just my friend, who are you trying to be?
this this line is so good and it so descriptive of Apo but its also taken from experience yk
Like both of them are about defing labels like Acho says in the cinematic he's a nightingale that is also the richest pirate and really good at fighting, and Apo is always talking about how ppl are pushing labels on him n stuff
I have more thoughts and unfinished stuff from this one I might write on here later but this is all I have time to do rn :)
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Info for writer in Thai series fandom: Superstitions, beliefs and ghosts
Disclaimer: I'm definitely not an expert.
There are a lot of supernatural beliefs, and people have a different level of faith in them, hence a different level of approach towards them. There are some small ones that do not require much faith or afford to participate, like the belief in guardian spirits. You see their shrine, you wai, and that's that. Everyone does it, even when they don't really believe it. And then there is a big thing like black magic, like in the Long Kong series, where if you are a true believer, it can go so far, but if you are not, it is a complete non-sense "Why would anyone do that?" kind of thing.
Thai culture is a mix of cultures. Throughout history, we have constantly been influenced by many different things from many different sources. The superstitions of today are a mash-up of animism, Buddhism, Brahmin, Hinduism, chinese lores, and possibly a few other things. I honestly can't tell what came from what or explain with confidence why anything is the way it is, so keep that in mind. Also, it's a belief it's not going to have a fixed rule.
Sin(บาป), Merit(บุญ) and Karma(กรรม) I say I can't distinguish any belief origin, but this one is clearly Buddhist, so if you want more information, you know where to look. The basis is that when we do something, it's karma, and if it's bad, then it's a sin. If it's good, it's merit. Every krama will have a consequence. And, I don't think the next part is pure Buddhist, the consequence can come to you in your next life if it has not already affected this life or the afterlife. By praying, we can give merit to the other person, dead or alive. The reason I believe this is not a pure Buddhist is that Buddhists have a concept of non-self (อนัตตา), which means that everything is impermanent and will one day cease to exist. These two concepts do not really fit together when you think about it. Also, there is a teaching about how we shouldn't believe in something just because it's been told to be or because of who told it, and only believe in what can be proven to be true, so according to that, I don't think any superstitions are really part of the core of Buddhism. I really like that in Buddhism. A teacher who is not afraid to be questioned or researchers who are not afraid to have their theories subverted is a good one in my opinion. Anyway, the concept of karma is, I want to say, literally everywhere, but it is not a tangible thing, so figuratively everywhere in Thai.
Guardian spirits There are a lot of type of guardian spirits. First, start with the one you are most likely to see in the background in series "Phraphom Chaothi"(พระภูมิเจ้าที่)
they are the local god of the land and by land we usually mean house they can also seperate into Phraphom and Chaothi if we want to be really specific. Phraphrom is Phra ChaiMongkol, the deity that protects houses. It is believed that paying homage to Phra ChaiMongkol will make people in the house live happily bring good luck and help avoid danger.Chaothi is the Spirit which used to be the original owner who ties to that area and help take care and protect it. Their shrine will look a little different but the condition about how their shrine should be build are the same the shrine must build on the ground, the location must not be cast down by the shadow of the house, be far from the location of the bathroom, not face into the area where the bathroom is located, not face the front door, at least 1 meter away from the fence or the wall of the house, and the height should be slightly above the eye level of the homeowner. Most Thai people tend to set up both shrines together. Start By performing a ceremony to invite Phraphrom first and then Chaothi after. The worshiping rituals we do are also performed at the same time too. Im not sure if it universal but my family do it once a year. We will ask they for "left over" food after pay homage so the food is not waste.
*something not quite related - There is a phrase "Chaothi raeng," which translates to "Chaothi here is powerful." It means someone's lover is a really jealous person.
Second, we have "Chao Pa Chao Kao"(เจ้าป่าเจ้าเขา)
the guardian spirit of the forest(Pa-ป่า) and mountain(Kao-เขา). Sometimes they get called together, sometimes separate, but their concept is the same. Since the forest is under their protection, anyone who insults or damages the forest might get punished by making them lost in the forest by hiding the offender from other people. In Thai language, it's called "Phi Bang Ta" (Phi-ผี-ghost Bang-บัง-conceal Ta-ตา-eyes) so when people get lost in the forest, the searcher party often makes an offering to apologize to Chao Pa Chao Kao in case the victim offended them somehow or to ask for their help in searching. The offerings consist of white wine, boiled chicken, and garlands or baisri. Other than to apologize, there is another ceremony that people who work in the forest do. It's called "Pi Tee Pert Pa"(พิธีเปิดป่า) The direct translation is Forest Opening Ceremony, The point of this ceremony is to ask to be free from harm when they enter and work in the forest. It is performed by lighting incense, saying the objective of entering, asking for success and safety, apologizing in advance in case anything offends them, and during the stay, people might also make food offerings to them too.
Third, "Mae Yanang" (แม่ย่านาง)
guardian goddess of boats, who nowadays is also a guardian goddess of any other vencicle too. The main worshipper of Mae Yanang is the fisherman, but there are also many other people who are not fishermen too. There are a few different stories about who Mae Yanang is and how she came to be the guardian goddess of boats, but the most popular (in my opinion) is that she is Mazu, the Chinese sea goddess whom we worship after being influenced by the Chinese merchants first and then by the Chinese Hokkien people who migrated into Thai during the Ayutthaya period.
There are other guardian spirits, but if I list all of them, it's going to be too long and I doubt that anyone will need these for anything. I just kind of like some of the concept and also think Phraphom Chaothi's shrine is very cute and I want to introduce it to you, so I will stop here. But as usual, if you have other questions, feel free to ask.
บนบาน Bon baan The meaning of bon baan is to ask the Holy for assistance by promising to give something in return or to do what was promised when it is completed, and so on. It can be shortened to only bon or add sâan glàao at the end, depending on how you want to say it. Săan means shrine, and glàao means to say, inform, or announce.
Buddhism is atheism, but most others that influenced Thai culture were polytheism, so we have many gods to pray to, and if gods aren't enough, we can also pray to other things. Nowadays, it might even be to no one in particular. People will just said that if something they wanted happened, they would do what was promised. But back to the gods. Every god has their own niche, both in terms of what they like or dislike being promised and what they are likely to grant or not. For example, you can pray to Trimurti for love but shouldn't pray to any god or goddess who is widowed for love because it is not their area of expertise. At best, they just not help. At worst, they might get offended.
Tips that are believed to help get the results faster.
1. Make no impossible wishes or wishes beyond one's own merit. For example, donate ten baht but ask to win the lottery first prize. It's beyond your merit. 2. We must only ask for positive outcomes. Do not ask for something that is sinful. You can ask for a lover, but not for the other pair to break up. 3. The mind must be still before pleading. 4. When we promise to do anything, we can do it immediately for them to see. For example, when you promise that you will abstain from eating meat for 7 days if your son gets a job, you can start refraining from eating meat that day and don't have to wait to get what you want before doing it. 5. Accumulate a lot of merit. Minimize bad karma as much as you can.
Those who pray may be true believers or not fully believe it and are just hopeless or need more reassuring. It's really popular for those who want to attend a specific university to pray to that university's sacred. My roommate in my first year promised to run 10 laps around campus if she got into our university, which she did. I don't really get why our university's sacred would want her to run 10 laps, but if it's work, it's work, I guess.
ปีชง Bpee Chong It's a concept that everyone has unlucky years depending on what zodiac year one was born. It is linked with Tai Sui Xing Jun, the god of destiny in Chinese astrology. It is a pair of years that do not match. The year of birth plus six is the opposite year, which is believed that opposite years are opposing each other, so unlucky things will happen in those years. If that year is the unlucky year of any zodiac year, people born in that zodiac year will face obstacles no matter what they do. Every year, there are those who are 100% Chong, meaning they were born in the year opposite the current zodiac year, and those who are only partially Chong, consisting of those who were born in the year counting three years from the current zodiac year and the opposite year, as well as those whose year of birth is the current zodiac year. People who believe in it will enhance their luck and make their fortune better by going to do the ritual in a Chinese temple, especially those who are 100% Chong.
Things to do to enhanced luck Well, in the end the core of almost every belief is what to do to bring good luck and avoid bad luck so here are some random tidbits about how people try to enhanced their luck nowaday.
-ชื่อมงคล auspicious name Many people name their babies with the intention of the name bringing luck to their babies. What names are auspicious or ill-lucks can be considered based on many factors, such as time of birth, day of birth, gender, surname, parents' names, and what aspect in life the parents want to compensate for or boost. It also has many branches, with each branch having its own set of rules, which you can choose to follow. In some cases, it makes us able to guess things from people's names. People who got a name that spells with no visible vowel are usually those born on Monday, for example.
-สีมงคล auspicious color In my understanding, auspicious color is a relatively recent thing. It is based on an older concept, but it is a new trend. It is incredibly popular among the younger generation. If you type the word "สีมงคล" into a search engine, you will find many charts showing information about what color is auspicious or ill-luck for what day and in what aspect. It's been created for easier use, so people can easily see what color to choose for their clothes.
-เครื่องราง amulet There are a lot of types of amulet, but let's focus on the most popular type first, the one for money and success.
1.ปี่เซียะ Pixiu, a Chinese mythological animal well-known throughout Asia, is thought to increase property value and bring in an endless supply of money. The usual form it comes in is a red rope bracelet with Pixiu as a pendant.
2.พระพิฆเนศ Ganesh the Hindu god of beginning, is the patron of intellectuals, bankers, scribes, and authors. People in the entertainment industry are his devotees, and many other people worship him too, as he is seen as generous and able to remove any obstacles.
3.หินมงคล Auspicious stone. Different stones are believed to have different attributes and, in some cases, people who are born on different days will also be differently affected. But what most of them have in common is the belief that the stone should touch the skin for it to have maximum effect. There are many stones that are considered auspicious. Some of the popular ones are rutilated quartz, agate, lapis lazuli, jade, and any gem, but the real classic is the combination of nine different gems. Diamond, Ruby, Emerald, Yellow-Sapphire or Topaz, Garnet, Blue Sapphire, Moonstone, Zircon, and Chrysoberyl All this together is called Noppakao (the same as the lovely writer's main actor's name in all spelling, pronunciation, and meaning).
4.พระเครื่อง Phra Khrueang (Thai Buddha amulet). It is a small Buddha image you can wear around your neck. People who wear it usually don't take it off much if they have a choice.
5.Parents' picture There is a phrase, "Father and mother are like in-home monks." It is believed that if we respect our parents, our lives will go well in all aspects. So a picture surely doesn't hurt.
-เลขมงคล auspicious number People will use Taksa or Thaksapakorn, which is an astrological method to find an auspicious number (and some other things, like an auspicious name) to use in all matters that have numbers involved, e.g., choosing a car registration number, phone number, or even finding what number you want on a banknote you will deliberately carry. That banknote will be called "ngern kwăn tng." It's money you won't use and just carry around to bring luck.
-Lucky homescreen/wallpaper Yeah, for your phone. I can't find any reason or principle behind this. I have zero idea why some pictures are more auspicious than others. Someone will just say it is with no explanation. It can be an animal or group of them, a river, tree, god, ship, flower, etc. It has gotten quite popular for a bit. If I remember correctly, Lisa Blackpink used the god of fortune, Cai Shen Ye, who is a popular choice to help enhance luck in financial matters, as a lockscreen at some point.
สักยันต์ Sak Yant
There are two methods of tattooing. Firstly, ink. Unlike the black ink we use today, ink used for tattooing used to come from nature, such as snakehead fish gall grind mixed with Aporocactus flagelliformis Lem (Thai name:เถานาคราช:Naga vine) or Stephania venosa (Thai name:สบู่เลือด:blood soap). which is thought to result in invulnerability, so those tattoos for invulnerability will mostly use ink, resulting in a visible tattoo.
Next oil, most of this method will use "wan 108 type water", which is believed to give the effect of popularity, such as compassion and great charm. The direct translation of wan (ว่าน) is aloe, but it used to be an umbrella term for all plants that are used for medicinal purposes and some that are used for ornamental purposes, so in this case, wan means plant, and for 108 types, it does not mean they will use all 108 of them, it just means they will use some of those 108 it refers to. The most popular is sesame oil, but some institutions might mix other things in. The oil will be invisible after its healing, so those tattoos for popularity will mostly result in invisible tattoos.
You can see more yant pattent at this link.
ทำเสน่ห์ Charm The meaning is to make someone enchanted with you by using superstitious methods. There are two ways to do it; the white way and the black way.
The white way is the safer method compared to the black way. Because the maker will not have to be afraid that the occult will get back at them and drive them insane like in the Black Way, it has the least risk overall, whether for the maker or the target. It is considered the more popular method. The white way will focus on the mind. It's using spells to either call lovers back or convince the target to become their lover. The most important thing is that the white way is said to be more effective in the long run. It will also last longer than the black way.
The black way is said to be an extremely dangerous thing. Both for the maker and the target. In the Long Kong series, it's the black way. This method is only popular with certain groups of people, which are those who are really desperate and didn't care about the consequent or happiness in the long run anymore. For it focus on wanting to possess that target person, more physical than mind and said to be effect the health greatly in short spant of time
Both the white and black ways have many varieties, from different sources, for different results. For exemple there are things like soul binding, love potion(เสน่ห์ยาแฝด:SaNayYaFaet :Charming Twin Pills?) and the use of Prai oil(น้ำมันพราย), etc.
Ghost Everything was kind of all over the place. There are no concrete rules, and there will always be an exception.
Type of ghost. There are many of them, so I will only address those I'm 100% sure came from dead humans and not something else.
-Sambhawesi (สัมภเวสี) directly translates to "birth seeker," meaning a person who is dead but not yet born, or in some interpretations, everyone, dead or alive, who has not yet become a Buddhist saint. It's kind of a broad term more than an actual type, but due to repeated use in some contexts, it became slang for a ghost that can't be reborn because of their bad karma, so they have to wander begging for merit from the living people.
-Chao Kam Nai Wen (เจ้ากรรมนายเวร), a ghost that has ill will towards a living person due to the wrongful karma that person committed to them during their life. In some cases, it can also mean a living person or even an animal that got wronged too. Because if those who do wrong can be reborn, why can't those who get wronged? The action Chao Kam Nai Wen does is called Jong Wen (จองเวร). Jong means reserve, book, or hold, and Wen means resentment, vindictiveness, malice, indignation, sin. Wen can also be used as a swear word. Both words can also be used to refer to people who we don't like but keep having to meet and interact with. Like, is that guy my Chao Kam Nai Wen? Why is he still following me? How much longer is he going to jong wen me? Pat from the Bad Buddy Series calls Pran his Chao Kam Nai Wen in Ep1 after Pa, his sister, calls Pran his soulmate.
-Phi Tai Hong (ผีตายโหง). Phi (ผี) means ghost or spirit. Tai (ตาย) means die, dead, or death, and Hong (โหง) means die a violent or unnatural death, ghost, or demon. It is a ghost caused by an unnatural death. They did not die from sickness or old age but suddenly died from something unnatural, such as death from being shot, war, drowning, being hit by a car, suicide, or something fast, so their death occurred in such an instant that their mental state couldn't accept it. They are in a state of fear, shock, or spite. Thus, causing most souls to be unable to admit that they were actually dead, they refuse to be born and keep haunting the place where they died as vengeful ghosts. In many tales, Phi Tai Hong can get really powerful.
-Phi Tai Thang Klom (ผีตายทั้งกลม) is a Phi Tai Hong variant. They are pregnant women who died while giving birth along with their children. They are associated with many black magic practices because they were believed to be really powerful and required a really hard and complicated ritual to pacify.
- Kuman thong (กุมารทอง) The first version of them originated from the spirit of a child who died in the mother's womb and was brought in by a black magic user to adopt as a child and help with various tasks. The maker of Kuman thong will really perform the ritual by using an actual stillborn child in early practice. Later, there has been a modification of the process of creating Kuman thong by changing it to create the form of a child by using the soil of the seven cemeteries, a specific type of wood, metal, etc. And then do the ritual to conjure up the mind and soul. They can be gifted, so the owner and the maker might not be the same. Anyone who owns them must raise them as if they were their own children, provide food and drink offerings for them, and call them to eat in the same way that a parent would. It is said that if Kumarn thong receives good care, they will help with many things. For example, they will help protect the owner and family from all bad things, help them get more trade, protect the houses from thieves and enemies, and issue a warning about future danger as well.
-Hong prai (โหงพราย) ghosts under the power of black magic users/sorcerers. They can have varying differences in ability and other things dependent on the ghost itself and the ritual their owner does to keep them. It is considered a heavy sin to keep one.
-Sa ming (สมิง) I'm not too sure, but its root word might mean king, ruler, or guardian. Sa ming prai (สมิงพราย) A powerful ghost Suea sa ming(เสือสมิง) Suea means tiger. A tiger that was believed to originally be a person with a strong magic skill that later transformed into a tiger Or a tiger that eats a lot of people and gets possessed by the dead, and later, it is able to transform into a human form. Suea Sa Ming will use their human form to lure their prey to them to eat.
-Pret (เปรต) A hungry ghost comes from a religious tale, born from those who committed real heavy sin. Their shapes varies, but the most famous ones are the ones that are really tall with giant hands and feet but only have a mouth the size of a pinhole.
- Pu Som Fao Sap (ปู่โสมเฝ้าทรัพย์) Pu som (ปู่โสม) means gnome, gremlin, or churl. Fao means guard and Sap means treasure. A ghost or spirit that guards a precious treasure or a national treasure. There is a tale about how the sky was distorted after thift laid their hands on treasure the spirit guards, or how they received many misfortunes until they had to return what they took. Their origin is not clear and, in historians' opinion, their story is quite new compared to the others, but the version I know is that they are people who get killed or commit suicide with the intention of guarding the treasure, whether willing or unwilling.
Ability: What could a ghost do? The ability of Thai ghosts is mostly in line with every other country in my opinion. They can sometimes appear, make some noise, lure people to their death using various means in the hope that they will get replaced and be free, or just so that person will stay with them. If they are really powerful, they can even assult people using their own hands, strangling them or something. They can also appear in someone's dream, to haunt, to give lottery numbers, or something else depending on their intention toward that person, possess people invited or uninvited, or influence people's minds.
other things
-Phit phi (ผิดผี) translates directly to "wronged the ghost". It means violating custom or tradition, especially in a sexual way. I use this word for many things. Ex : Eat grilled bananas without sauce, make fried basil without basil, and don't give out free lime slides when selling fried rice. I will give more examples, but apparently food is all my mind can think about. All in all, in this day and age, this word can be used to express that you don't agree with something (and find it to be kinda out of the norm), ranging from silly things like an opinion on food to more serious things (like sexual misconduct).
-Benjapas (เบญจเพส) translates directly into the crucial age of twenty-five. It's a belief that bad things will happen when people reach a certain age, like twenty-five years old, and then every twelve years or something else depending on what book you choose to believe.
-Ong long (องค์ลง) to be possessed by a spirit. When one performs a traditional performance, it's believed that there is a chance that the spirit of the master or deity might possess the performer, and it's not a bad thing, a good thing even. They will leave when it ends, and the performance will be perfect. It can also refer to someone who has a mood swing.
-Phi plak (ผีผลัก) got pushed by a ghost. It's when we feel like something got pushed but can't find what pushed it, so we say it's a ghost or It can also be used to refer to when something unintentional happens.
- Sia khwan (เสียขวัญ) to lose ones khawn. Khawn in this context, is an invisible spirit that lives within each person and which is responsible for psychological and spiritual well-being and, when lost, is thought to cause health or mental problems. But in general, sia khwan means anxious, discouraged, panicked, scared.
-There is a belief that planting lemongrass in the ground upside down by a virgin will make the rain stop, so sometimes when there is an event and people don't want it to rain that day, they will do it. And if you are not a virgin but do it anyway, it's said to make the rain rain harder. The ones who do it are typically girls, cis or tran, but I don't remember anyone caring much about the gender of the performer.
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i have media studies exam (although mock so its fine) that i didnt study for so im gonna force myself to practice by applying barthes narrative theory to season 1 hannibal (vaguely tbh cuz its the whole seasom but ok)
hermeneutic codes(how do u even pronounce this omfg) :
enigma codes, they are def crucial to this show as each episode raises more and more unanswered questions as the audience continues watching the show, questions like who is commiting the crimes, is will ok, does he know how fucked up his clocks are, is crawford fucking stupid, is abigail ok, what the hell is hannibal doing, why are they using cat guts for strings, are the dogs gonna live oh my god please can the dogs be okay for once
usually done by leaving cliffhangers for each episode
it drives the audience forward and interests them so they continue watching the show to find out the answers to their questions
its also a convention to use hermeneutic codes for horror crime shows like hannibal
Proairetic codes:
action codes, the actions done to drive the narrative forward, previous events drive other events into action. ngl this one is fucking stupid to apply i dont get if i ever apply it correctly
in hannibal, proairetic codes tie a lot with hermeneutic codes as the actions of the characters raise questions for the audience questioning their choices and makes the audience wonder what will happen next. the action creates tension and makes the audience wonder how the created problem(if there is one) will be resolved. for example when hannibal lecter called abigails father to inform him that "they know" and that fbi is on the way. this drives the narrative forward as then the audience wonders how the characters will react and wonder how the actions will affect the story. this action ended up with abigail becoming an orphan and their suspect dead, creating a few side plots and introducing new characters. this constant tension created by each action drives the narrative forward and engages the audience to continue watching the show
semantic codes:
connotations, things associated with something, the deeper level meaning of a symbol. this one is hard yet so easy cuz theres literally SO many of them
they basically give insight into the plot and characters, building personalities and maybe even starting the deep questions the audience will have
for example, for hannibal, hes quite sophisticated, the semantic codes for that would be how he wears suits all the time, his overall style and his acquired taste. those things connote sophistication, wealth and even control and power (especially the suit and his high respected position as a psychiatrist)
but another thing that can be derived from things like how hes always careful, always has a cloth that doesn't leave any fabric fibres, how he doesn't use anything digital, only physical things like journals to leave no traces, the fact that hes literally eating his evidence lmao, his knowledge and experience of human anatomy and mind connote that hes a careful, experienced, ambitious man and prob(definitely) is a serial killer
symbolic codes:
it has such an easy concept that its literally confusing to understand. its basically symbols, binaries, a thematic/structural device, but it's basically about themes and contrary signs specifically, which is ig why its kind of difficult to understand since its specifically binary symbols
some symbolic codes in hannibal would be life vs death, clearly a reoccurring theme with all of the crimes happening, good vs bad, murderers and their victims, health? both physical and mental? stability? work vs personal life? idk its so hard to pin point it even tho its so easy and common idk
a better example woukd be the bad vs good binary used in star wars with ghe colours of light sabers
Cultural codes:
literally cultural and social conventions, knowledge that comes from the outside world of the text, specific connotations used
example, FBI for crimes and america, religion and faith, the whole fbi units especially medical, even Christmas is a cultural code as its a celebrated event of certain social and cultural and religious conventions
bruv i cant think of any more examples even tho i know theres so many
hope yall enjoyed my silly analysis of hannibal as my media studies application practice if u read it all xx
#idk why i did this on tumblr instead of just writing all of this in my notes or smth#media studies#gcse#a levels#fucking british education system#media studies a level#nbc hannibal#hannibal#roland barthes#barthes theory#narrative theory#hannibal nbc
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@eucyon Oh my god tumblr ate your ask I’m so lucky I screenshotted. So mad I have to type again . Thank you so much for dis question it’s so fun and made me really think to be honest ^__^ ILYSMMMM this is long but it’s too fun
This is Lynx’s most popular album, Conspiracy Theories. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to have a pic of lynx as the cover even if it’s silly. I really like rabbit imagery in music anyways though so I think it’s nice. I was inspired by Alice In Chains album covers and also fleshwater’s ‘we’re not here to be loved’. I tried to find a way to make it more 'gritty' but I couldn’t unfortunately 😭 I like how the title looks, like they just got a label maker and smacked it on..heheh
I imagine that this album is about relationship anxiety, betrayal, resentment, anti social tendencies, infidelity, and aliens. Probably not little green men, maybe more like the thing kind of fleshy imagery. Definitely appealing to atlas and scotch in different ways. Tool’s Undertow is a good example (off the top of my head..) of the sound I’m thinking of, so… prog? Or at least heavily inspired. I’m bad with genres heheh
im currently trying to either become okay with roadkill's name, or decide on a new one.. so im not making any album covers for them yet lol but i will post when i do..
I think roadkill would take a lot of inspo from their fave band so their style is probably heavily influenced by Lynx. Scotch adds a lot of sampling, distortion, whatever..idk I don’t make music.. and atlas is a big fan of slow tempo and bass. think its important to note that atlas doesnt play bass like a bassist in this album, he plays it more like a guitarist. kind of. hope that makes sense. I’ve always been really torn about roadkill’s genre, it’s been everywhere and tends to change. scotch and atlas’ styles would be vastly different if they were solo, so I think that’s why i am so indecisive . I think I just have to keep reminding myself that they’re in a band together, so styles would be mixed.
A part of me is like.. I think roadkill’s first album would be reminiscent of faith no more’s ‘the real thing’, or even some of Primus' stuff in some sense, plus similarities to Lynx and influences of industrial. i know thats a lot of random descriptions. I kinda think of (here’s a goofy genre for ya) sludge metal bands’ instrumental style, not necessarily vocal style... its hard to describe a band that doesnt exist. LMFAO
right now im thinking about 'the pot' by tool as a close example of roadkill.. im having a hard time finding artists that match scotch's vocal range even remotely. also doesnt help that the bands im basing this off of like tool and FNM dont exactly...fit into genres very neatly. roadkill and lynx wouldnt either. HAH. i just know it wouldnt be that high quality but definitely obvious theres a lot of passion in it. i mean this is just an album made by guys who dontknow what theyre doing. like at all. lol
Roadkill’s sound changes quite a bit their next album when seraph is involved. It becomes a lot more ummmm I guess palatable to more people? I don’t exactly know what I mean by that. Ok. LOL. I’ll think about it.. but this is around when Scotch realizes he wants this to be his job. Having Seraph helps A LOT with building a more dedicated and bigger audience, since they’re the one most willing to make changes. Plus they’re in art school, I feel like they’d have connections. So I guess roadkill would sell out in a way.
if you asked me this question a year ago i would have had a completely different answer. i wouldve probably said roadkill is pop punk or garage rock or something. i have trouble fitting scotch and atlas into a genre together. it fits scotch just fine and i think he would enjoy it, but its not roadkill.. also ive been thinking of stylizing roadkill as rdkill.. lmk wat u think.. im unsure about the name is generalHAHA. i know this is a lot so dont feel pressured to reply to everything LMAO im just thinking out loud. and drawing connections between genres that completely do not make sense. peace and LOVE<3
#cover definitely looks like it’s made on picsart but dats ok HAHAHAH#I know I’m throwing a bunch of album titles at u but I hope this makes sense HAHAH#Spotify#ive been typing so much i hope this answers your questions..! <333 LOVE YOU#asks#eucyon#roadkill
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SHSHSHS HONORARY MUTUAL SHUT UP IM SO HONORED!!!! Also @/i-am-so-strange you’re too kind!!!!! Hsjshsjs always happy to provide more bllk content hehe but also thank YOU for supplying us with that glorious art I really got a kick out of seeing that LMAO I’m ngl stressing hiori is one of my favorites HAHAHA
BRO I LOST IT AT THE YUKI MARIOKART!!! We’re literally being stalked it’s insane….yes Reddit is definitely….a place…..honestly I only really use it when I wanna see non bot reviews for things and occasional bllk news because there’s usually at least one chronically online member active whos posting the latest stuff….
LMAOOOO NO ITS SO FUNNY HAHSGSHAAH ok but that makes more sense I feel like it’d be hard to expand too much on a request like that!! I love how it coincidentally lined up with Isagi being difficult/not as interesting to write about though LMAO
Wait that’s a good point HAHAHA maybe your inner tabieitaken agenda seeped out and you attracted side character enjoyers (me)……is that a sign to slide in secondary main character thoughts /j that is pretty hilarious though……I mean granted I also contributed to the hiori pile a bit when I sent in that like…(wanted to put this note in here that I straight up FORGOT what I wrote omg let’s see how long it takes me to scroll and find that ask I could’ve sworn I wrote it down somewhere but the fact that I don’t remember exactly what I wrote down is kinda embarrassing LMAO)
LMAOOO no because I love the idea of building up ego nation and just leaving like idk those cheesy stories where the lore is like yeah our great founders/creators one day disappeared HAHAHAHAAH I forgot that the man canonically doesn’t do laundry or cook decent food so that’s true too I’m here for the long ride though if you do end up writing that at some point then we can truly become the fake ego nationals LMAOO
MEGUMI I love megumi too omg bruh the recent events in jjk are really not good for the soul someone bring back megumi and his shadow animals :( Ah yes very brief Yuta interlude LMAOO (pi slapped so hard) also SHDJSH GET OUT SHIN AHS MY FAV TOO I also really liked Kija too!! I’m still sad that they didn’t continue with the anime though I heard it’s because it was just promo for the manga? Man. Ok but being converted by content is a little too real it happens to me too often….you know what’s funny. I saw a tiktok roasting Karasu for being number 3 and then like disappearing and I remember saying to my friend “yikes I don’t even like Karasu but why’d they do him so dirty” haha. Ha. I have no idea how it spiraled from there but it was quite literally shortly after that moment. But yeah I’ve definitely been converted by a good edit or piece of art! I’m pretty certain I started liking chigiri after seeing some fanart someone showed me LMAO
No I have full faith in you….you’re cooking in Michelin chef mode…so take your time LMAOOO it really does make me realize yet again that no one is serving Karasu nation like you s2 bring my man some justice….ok genuinely crazy has me really curious like if we’re talking genuinely crazy via Mira standards I’m eyeballing something around 30k (don’t say anything to this LMFAO)
WHEN I TELL YOU I LAUGHED SO HARD “I’d stay downstairs when my brother has friends over” IS SO FUNNY??? I’m actually crying but also agree!! I usually don’t watch as much slice of life to begin with so
the oikawa thing is actually so funny as a running joke now but I think (I’m also not a hardcore hq fan nor have I dipped my toes in the hq circles on social media) it stemmed from people actually thinking oikawa was really mean…? Maybe?? But if that was the case I’m like…..he seems pretty regular to me….seeing people put him next to like Sukuna and Kenjaku though is so hilarious LMAOOO
“#unfortunately idt I am built for the sports manga/anime life” AHAHABAAHHAAHAH you really were in for it LMFAOOOO
The soccer dudebro side of the fandom…ah yes….you know sometimes I forget dudebros actually watch and then I’m painfully reminded by some power scaling tiktok…this is also oddly specific but I remember seeing Maddie on tiktok talk about how she traded some blind bag keychain pull with a dudebro and gave her Kunigami to him for nagi or Reo or some Nagi Reo combo keychain and I really thought to myself like wait dude bros watch and buy merch?? Then I realize it makes sense that he wanted Kunigami LOL
HAHA Honesty translating is so fun and gives me more opportunities to use the target language too so I got you!!! <3 Classic Otoya activities indeed….CHATTER X CHATTER CHEMICAL REACTION IS CRAZY guys we are devouring bllk itself we devoured kaneshiro now he’s gotta give us his seat as bllk creator!!!!!! And also ok good I’m glad LOL I didn’t want to be like rapid fire pinging your inbox and messing up anything HAHAH
Oh…omg…….wait I hope that all worked out ok for you because omg….yeah that’s so awkward and honestly sounds like a nightmare…..hoping you get some platonic male irls too!!! Maybe you just have too much rizz LMFAO well….at least you didn’t find out during the actually dinner ig!
-Karasu anon
LMAOOO idk if i follow you or not but trust i would if i don’t��you’re like one of my tumblr besties atp HAHAHA one of my elite employees 🫡 and YES that art cracked me up poor hiori was struggling
to be honest if i’m looking smth up or i have a question i always go straight to the reddit results…truly it’s the best place for research questions because you can tell by upvotes how accurate smth is and especially if you’re looking for an answer about the contemporary world it’s better to get answers from people who live that experience vs study it!! so i can never be a full reddit hater even if some sections of the community are horrific
HAHAH i think a more focused prompt like that might’ve made me struggle for ANY character but yeah it coinciding w isagi definitely made me do a double take…although i would def write for him again if anyone else ever requested for him LMAOO i just wouldn’t seek out writing him on my own the way i do w tabieita and nagi
LMAOOO i give off a general aura of side character enjoyment 😩🙏🏻 that was back when my blog was only nagi themed too and he’s pretty popular so i’m surprised i didn’t get more reqs for him too!! you can always slide secondary main character thoughts my way 😋😏 but yeah i just found it funny that i’ve gotten more reqs for karasu than literally any other character…maybe too it’s because once i wrote for a side character the people who are into more random characters realized i would write for them and came to req?? vs people who like more popular characters have a wide range of people they can req/read from so they might not even see my blog in the results compared to me being one of very few authors who writes longer fics in the hiori/karasu/otoya/etc tags…idk if that makes sense but it could be one explanation
no because idk if you saw the vol30 color spread with the coaches but why is ego looking lowkey kinda…like sure i’ll join ego nation myself if i must HFJDDNJSSN
OMG YONA OF THE DAWN FAN???? you are officially my fav person ever I LOVEEEE YONA OF THE DAWN I CANNOT BELIEVE YOU ALSO LIKE SHINAH BCKDNFJSDJDMSN WHY ARE WE THE SAME PERSON 😭😭😭 he’s my fav ever omg…besides him i rlly liked hak and soowon 😓 but shinah is my number one my bae my man 👹 forever hoping for a reboot of the show because from what i’ve heard the manga is sooo good and yona is such a well written fmc!! i need them to get mappa level animation and finish the whole show 😔 i’m surprised they haven’t yet it’s one of the most popular mangas i’ve heard?? i know SOOO many people would watch it if it came out plus it would appeal to such a broad audience because it truly has everything 😩 okay sorry for the brief rant i just love yona of the dawn i wish the fandom wasn’t NONEXISTENT because it has so much potential for fics art and analysis!!
i’ve learned to never say i don’t like a character because almost immediately after i WILL fall in love with them!! idek how i started liking karasu because after season one i could not tell you who karasu otoya or any of the others were (i did remember liking yukimiya though)…after i finished the show i was SET on not reading the manga because i thought it wouldn’t be as fun as watching it animated but the same mutual who convinced me to watch the show told me to read the manga and eventually i caved 😩 and that was when i was like “ok lowkey why is karasu so fine…” but it wasn’t until i took a break halfway through third selection to read epinagi that i really became a FAN 🤔 at least i think that’s how it happened HFJDJSN i don’t remember it as well as i remember becoming a fan of nagi (didn’t gaf abt him until i realized i was lowkey giggling at his scenes in team z vs team v…tried to hold out as a rin fan throughout second selection but it was impossible and then i was the number one nagi fan before i knew it)
i will not comment on your prediction 🤐 but michelin star meal OMG i can only hope it’s that good…truly i am doing what i can for karasu nation 😭🙏🏻 laying a foundation for those to come after me (aka his fandom which will surely grow after s2) 🤞🏻 i wonder what his fanon version will look like actually 🤔 are we going to get fboy tabito??? hopefully not because aiku and otoya are right there but bby karasu is a sarcastic dark haired handsome asshole who’s secretly a sweetheart so i do fear he’s going to be bastardized a la the itoshis a bit 😔 at least i can imagine him being flirty even if i do think he’s too much of a loser and undercover loverboy to ever sleep around or anything
i guess by slice of life/chill anime standards oikawa might seem mean?? like he’s nothing compared to sukuna/kenjaku or even kaiser but in comparison to others in the show he might be ruder hence the general perception of him being as such…no idea though 😩 i agree it is funny seeing him in the top villain compilations
LMAOOO I HAD NO IDEA WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN TO ME TRULY now i’m in so deep but like i love it…the bllk community on tumblr is also rlly fun and i’ve made so many mutuals/friends because of being active in the fandom which has been awesome!! no regrets for sure
PLEASEEE the dudebros are awful but also hilarious to me like lowkey i love them because they simply are so unreal like NO ONE irl talks like that 😭 one time i commented on a bllk dudebro’s tik tok and my comment was the only one he responded to despite how many of his fellow dudebros also commented…tell me that was the most interaction you’ve had w a woman in weeks without telling me 😓 but also omg the chokehold that kunigami and barou have on dudebros HAHAH i’m always scared to say i like barou because i need to specify it’s NOT in a dudebro way it’s in a “he’s my housewife and i love him very much” way
PLS WE DEVOURED KANESHIRO FR entering destroyer mode now…watch out the tongue’s abt to make an appearance 😩
unfortunately i have a lot of accidental rizz 😔 one time i actually didn’t realize i was on a date (i thought it was a family hangout) until the guy’s mom told us she was leaving so she didn’t third wheel us and then i had to pretend i had a boyfriend so i could escape 😭 that was a crazy day because that guy knew i was in love with his best friend?? so idk what he thought he was doing there…anyways this time i just pretended like my father wasn’t allowing me to hangout with anyone so i got out of it 😪 unfortunately no matter how hard i try to have male friends irl it inevitably ends up with them asking me out and me saying no 💔 one day it will be different i hope 😩
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Please don't take this as me hating on this storyline because i love it, i see the vision, i think it's heading exactly where i want it to. But one thing i kinda do agree on with the bad faith anons is that Marisol is the most random person they could have done this storyline with.💀 Like, there was literally no build up to it? People who don't spend their life on tumblr probably don't even remember who she is? And i know that might be half the point, but damn, she didn't even get to give Eddie bad parenting advice wrapped up in a botched metaphor before they met again.
i agree! and i do think that was sort of intentional. i think the choice to bring her specifically back when we barely saw them interact and when the GA had almost no memory of her instead of bringing back felisa, who he did share chemistry with and who the GA would've remembered, is a loud one
where i (and you, i think) kind of diverge from the bad faith anons is the idea that this is meant to be the conclusion of his romantic arc. you said it but i think there wasn't any build up because there truly wasn't supposed to be. if this was the answer he'd truly been looking for, we would know it.
i think the decision to have this feel so rushed is multi-fold. i think it was a good way for the writers to have ended his arc for this season on a relatively happy note for the GA in the event that the show was cancelled, but very much in a way that they can easily walk back in the next season (versus cramming buck and eddie getting together in the last two episodes, for example). it also can 100% serve his overall arc and development in the next season if we see end up seeing the relationship play out in a way that might mirror buck's arc in s5, with him exploring what he wants in love and in a partner (which!! would be huge for eddie)
and then at the same time, the rushed nature of it all provides indicators that it's not meant to be serious in the long run. just like we had buck saying that he felt like natalia really saw him without seeing anything to back that up (and then getting further confirmation this episode that he had maybe only seen what he wanted to see, not what was actually in front of him), we also get the same feeling from eddie saying "this is exactly what i was looking for" after we see him make small talk with a woman we barely know for a few minutes
anyway sorry this got so long but yeah i definitely agree there was no build up but overall im not mad about it at all
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Fate and Phantasms #22P: Romulus
today on Fate and Phantasms we’re building the biggest, baddest roman to ever roam rome… no, not that one, not her, not him, not them-well, technically not them… it’s Romulus! everyone’s favorite roman lancer that isn’t a 5*.
he’s a Champion to be a fighter with better PR, but we also dip into Horizon Walker and Druid for a walk on the wild side.check out his build breakdown below the cut, or his character sheet over here!
next up: the best character in Hades.
Ancestry and Background
Romulus is a human that’s part god, so he’s an Aasimar too. that means he gets a boost to Strength and Constitution, and he can see better in low-light than most humans. it also opens up aasimar-only features, so you can be a Lawbringer right off the bat! (I know he’s supposed to be CN, hush.) with this, you get a +1 bonus against emotion effects, and your successes are always critical. that’s part one of the mechanical boosts from Imperial Privilege down, like five more to go.
at level 5 your Natural Ambition gives you a 1st level champion class feature for free, giving you access to your Deity’s Domain- the City. that means you get the devotion spell Face in the Crowd, making it easier for your to blend in with and move through large groups.
that being said, you probably still have to make the city, so before we get too far ahead you should be a Hardy Traveler at level 9. that gives you a boost in speed for travelling, and you can carry more than most. Romulus has some beef on ‘im, and he definitely isn’t weighed down by armor.
at level 13 your Enforced Order makes your weapon attacks deal lawful damage against chaotic creatures. ignore the fact that you are a chaotic creature. hypocrisy is rome, after all.
finally, at level 17 your Heroic Presence gives allies around you zealous conviction once per day. this technically lets you order them around, but they won’t do anything they wouldn’t do anyway.
for your background, it turns out rome must be in Jersey, because you’re a Wildwood Local baby! that just gives you a boost in dexterity and strength, as well as the Nature skill and the Natural Medicine feat. you can use Nature to treat wounds, and if you’re in a natural environment you might get a boost to the roll. and that’s really good considering how you were literally raised by wolves.
Class Levels
1. okay, speedrun time- your key ability is Strength, you’re trained in Perception, Society, Athletics and Religion as well as your Reflex saves, Class DC, all Attacks & Armor, and you’re an expert in Fortitude and Will saves. this one’s short though, since we’re not picking up any intelligence boosts later. again, raised by wolves.
with that out of the way, it’s time for level one in earnest. grab an Ability Boost in Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, and Wisdom, and now it’s time to pick a god and pray! now there are three city-domain gods that a chaotic neutral person can worship in Pathfinder, but we also have to cross one off the list because they’re anti-slavery, and hoo boy that would not fly with rome. with that in mind, if you choose to worship Findeladlara, you’re in the clear, she’s got cities in her main domains. but I prefer Dajermube tbh, so we have to worship a Splinter Faith. with this, you can worship her alternate domains (including cities), and you can even add in one domain that wouldn’t normally be on her list. for Romulus, I felt the best combo to go with was cities, ambition, star, and might, or CASM.
you also have to live by a Champion’s Code, and annoyingly there isn’t a neutral option so we’re picking the Tenets of Good to at least be a team player. that also means we’ll make you a Liberator. it’s Chaotic Good and not a little bit ironic, but it’s what we could get. you can move people around with a Liberating Step, and you can Lay on Hands to heal people. that’s Imperial Privilege effect #2! it also makes you better at Survival for some reason.
that lay on hands is a Devotion Spell, which you spend focus points to cast. you get one focus point per devotion spell you can cast per day, and you can also recharge them one per 10 minutes by doing godly stuff. you also know the Shield Block reaction, but you don’t use shields!
2. at level two you get your third skill, making you a Devoted Guardian, with this you can give an adjacent creature a boost to their AC… as long as you keep your shield raised. yeah I know you don’t use one in-game, but romans were really big on shields! it’s roma!
since you’ll be king one day, it’s best you practice your Courtly Graces now, letting you use society to make impressions on nobles and act as one. since we’re still in the wilds right now, you’re a Horizon Walker, letting you pick a Favored Terrain. rome covered a lot of terrain, so just pick whatever feels roma at the time. for now, you can travel faster over the terrain and creatures that follow you can ignore difficult terrain, also gaining the bonus to movement.
3. at level three you gain a Divine Ally in your Blade, giving you the ability to swap in one of several effects at the start of your day. shifting would be nice for a spear that’s technically a tree, or you can use disrupting against undead or ghost touch against ghosts. none of them are super in-character, but they’re all pretty useful this early on.
another thing that’s useful? your ability to Predict Weather once per day by making a survival check. this might give you a bonus to checks for weather prep, but it’s always useful to know when you’re a second-century warlord. or an 8th century BCE warlord.to make those predictions easier, you’re an expert at survival now.
4. at level four you gain an Aura of Courage that’ll help your allies commit atrocities in your name! as well as do other stuff, I’m sure. whenever you become frightened, you get it one less than usual. you reduce other allies’ frightened-ness each turn too.
in lighter news, you can Survey Wildlife, spending 10 minutes to scout out nearby animals with a survival check, followed by a recall knowledge check to learn more about them.
you’re also great at Acclimatization- while in your favored terrain you have resistance against environmental damage and temperature effects. you can pass that temp resist onto your allies when they follow the expert.
5. fifth level servants get their complementary Ability Boost in four stats like Dexterity, Constitution, Wisdom, and Charisma, as well as a boost in one stat and your Weapon Expertise. the latter does exactly what you’d think it does- make you an expert with all weapons. for the former, pick up some expertise in Society so you can help build one later.
6. sixth level champions can learn how to make an Attack of Opportunity as a reaction, hitting people when they give you the chance. you’re also a Wilderness Spotter, a different thing than surveying wildlife. with this, you can use survival to roll initiative in a certain terrain (hint: pick your favored one), and you can also use that skill to notice traps and disarm them.finally, you’re a Perpetual Scout- while inside your favored terrain you’re always gaining the effects of scouting during travel, giving your whole party a permanent +1 to initiative without having to move half speed.
7. at level seven, your Armor Expertise does what you’d expect, but it also gives you the armor specializations of heavier kinds of armor. you’re also stronger at living in a Society, which means you have a Biographical Eye. after spending only a minute with someone, you can make a society check to learn things such as their profession, their nationality of birth, and their current nationality. it’s easy to figure these things out when most of the people you meet have the nationality of “that country you made, just now”.
also your Weapon Specialization means you deal more damage with all weapons. it scales based on proficiency, but you’re equally good with everything so, whatever.
8. eighth level champions can have an Advanced Deity’s Domain, giving you another city-themed devotion spell. when you take the Pulse of the City, you instantly learn the name of the nearest settlement within 25 miles, as well as a significant event happening there in one of three categories. Wardens includes criminal reports, major crimes coming to light, and trials. Titles includes high society goings on. Masses reports on the common folk- mobs, festivals, that sort of thing.but enough about city livin’, you’re here to be an Experienced Tracker, right? you can move at full speed while tracking now, if you’re willing to take a small penalty.
you also finally become a Druid, giving you proficiency in Crafting and Arcana as part of the Animal order. you can now cast two cantrips per day, but we’ll go over a suggested spell list at the end of the build. while you don’t get any benefits from the animal order, you do have to follow their anathema against killing animals unnecessarily or cruelly. thankfully, the Iceni are people.
9. at ninth level your Champion Expertise makes your divine magic even stronger, including your Divine Smite. now when you take your champion’s reaction it can deal damage too! you’re also better at diplomacy and reflex saves, and you’re a Juggernaut for stronger and more often critical fortitude saves!
10. it’s been another five levels, so here’s an Ability Boost for Strength, Dexterity, Constitution, and Wisdom. you also have a Resilient Touch- when you lay on hands, the ally you heal gets a +1 bonus to all saves for a round.
you’re also an Efficient Explorer, helping your party move faster on your favoured terrain. speaking of wild things though, you can now finally create your Verdant Weapon, spending ten minutes to turn a seedling into a wooden spear. now you can turn that seed into that weapon and vice-versa as an action, and can even be runed up like your normal blade spirit.
11. your alertness makes you an expert with Perception, and your Divine Will gives you mastery over Will saves, which also become more critical. you’re also better a Diplomacy, to help explain what happened to the Iceni.
you can also Exalt your champion’s reaction to give it to more people, and your Folk Dowsing makes it easier to search for water, metal, or whatever else your new society needs to flourish.
12. your new class feature is the ability to Sense Evil, giving you a vague sense to detect evil auras. not really in-character, but neat.
your new society is also starting to build up some Connections, letting you leverage favors with important people. finally, your Basic Druid Spellcasting gives you a 1st, 2nd, and 3rd level spell slot, which is how we’ll get your noble phantasm.
13. your Armor Mastery and Weapon Mastery do what you’d expect, and you’re even better with Diplomacy now. easy clap.
14. your new champion feat makes you a Blade of Justice, so you can deal extra damage against evil targets you’ve seen hurting your civilians. they’re “innocents”, right? yeah, probably. also you have Poison Resistance. all rulers need poison resistance.
while you don’t need to be a god this build, you will need to start working at that now. Roma wasn’t built in a day, after all. now you can Evangelize as an action, making a diplomacy check against a creature’s will DC. if the creature doesn’t already worship you, or come to worship you afterwards, they’ll be Stupefied if the check is successful.
15. at level 15 your Ability Boost bumps up your physical stats and charisma again, and you can now make a Pilgrim’s Token, which you’ll have to craft at a holy site. while holding it, you always win ties in initiative order. you also get Greater Weapon Specialization and a greater appreciation for Nature.
16. you can now spend an action to Expand Aura, doubling its reach for one round. you’ve also learned how to make Shameless Requests, so you can make ridiculous demands of your neighbors without reducing their attitude towards you, likely due to you running the largest empire in the known world.
congratulations! your proselytizing had paid off, and Romulus-Quirinus now exists. that means you’re now a Forgotten Presence, removing all traces of your existence from Fate’s writing team, and giving creatures a -2 penalty to recall knowledge about you, and letting you learn Modify Memory as a primal spell.
17. Champion Mastery, Legendary Armor, a skill increase in Nature… do these features hold hidden depths?no, they do exactly what you think they do.
18. at level 18 your become an Instrument of Zeal, dealing even more damage with your Blade of Justice and slowing down whatever you hit. you’re also in tune with nature enough to Influence Nature, usually spending at least a day or two of downtime to create minor effects, such as making it easier to hunt or teaching birds to fall silent near danger. finally, your Expert Druid Spellcrafting makes all your druid spells stronger, and it gives you a spell slot for levels 4-6.
19. at level 19 your Diplomacy is strong enough for Legendary Negotiations, allowing you to make impressions and request your enemy stop fighting you, at least temporarily. you also learn Hero’s Defiance, which is basically a guts effect.
20. for your final level, you can ability boost one last time- grab some more Dexterity, Constitution, Wisdom, and Charisma. if you’ve survived to this point, you’re now a Sacred Defender, giving you resistance to all physical damage from creatures opposite your tenet. those creatures also can’t critically hit against you.
you can also use Morphic Manipulation roughly once per day to speed up the growth of a plant, in case you need a new spear.
finally, you can now use the Tireless Guide’s Mask to guide your allies using any skill you’re trained in, while also giving them an additional bonus to doing so. you can also let allies stride as a free action after targeting them with a spell, but most of yours are offensive, so maybe don’t. this is the ultimate form of your Imperial Privilege.
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2023 Tarot Reading
Boy howdy. Im still learning tarot, but if I can predict anything from the cards Ive flipped is that twenty three is going to be TRYING. Each card is the general theme of each month. Here we go:
January - Reversed Wheel of Fortune: Misery, bad luck, misfortune, the past, a lack of control. The Wheel of Fortune Reversed can reflect resistance to change, particularly if you feel it forced upon you. This card suggests that change has become a source of significant stress, and you may be trying to consciously or subconsciously stop events from running their course. Accept that change is inevitable and you will have a much-improved experience when you can go with the flow.
February - The Tower: Massive upheaval, change, rebuilding, revelation. The best way forward is to let this structure self-destruct so you can re-build and re-focus. And let’s be real – with a card like The Tower, you have no choice but to surrender to the destruction and chaos, no matter how unwanted or painful. Change on this deep level is hard, but you need to trust that life is happening FOR you, not TO you and this is all for a reason. This destruction will allow new growth to emerge and your soul can evolve. The Tower doesn’t always associate with pain and turmoil. If you are highly aware and in tune with your inner guidance system, then this Tarot card can indicate a spiritual awakening or revelation. You may be able to see the cracks forming and take action before the whole structure comes tumbling down. You may create a massive transformation before you reach the point where change is your only option. In its most positive form, The Tower card is your opportunity to break free from the old ways of thinking that have been holding you back.
March - King of Swords, Reversed: Quiet power, inner truth, misuse of power, manipulation. The reversed King of Swords can reflect a lack of decisiveness about where your best opportunities lie or in what direction you want to go. You may also lack the mental clarity to work out what you need to do in your situation. Your thoughts are scattered and may start to feel panicky and out of control. Upright, the King is typically a very rational man who uses his intelligence and a definitive understanding of a situation to make critical decisions, but reversed, this card indicates that you are feeling lost and uncertain about your options, let alone the decisions you need to make. As a result, you are delaying necessary decisions and generally not achieving anything because you are getting so worried.
April - Five of Swords: Conflict, disagreement, defeat, winning at all costs. If you have been engaged in a conflict and can see it taking its toll, the Five of Swords is an invitation to apologise. The longer you brood, or the more you try to prove you were right, the more challenging the relationship will become. Be ready to say you were wrong and make amends. There’s no sense in trying to justify your behaviour; just let it go and move on. Look for common ground with those you have been fighting with, or seek forgiveness so you can put this behind you. The Five of Swords may also point to failure. It shows that, despite your best efforts, you are likely to be beaten or come out as the loser. If you allow yourself to become disillusioned after such a loss, then you will find yourself on the path to increased ruin and torment. Accept your defeat, and learn from it. Be smarter and wiser next time.
May - Nine of Wands: Courage, persistence, test of faith, resilience. This card may also come when you feel battered and bruised, having endured significant challenges and struggles along your path. Just when you think you are making progress, you suffer another setback. The Nine of Wands asks you to trust that this is merely a test of your ‘grit’ and resilience, and know that every time you overcome an obstacle, you are getting stronger. You have the inner resources necessary to overcome any difficulty you encounter, even though it may seem impossible at the time. See this Nine as an assurance that you will eventually prosper if you maintain your position. And, if you do not succeed at first, then try again.
June - Six of Wands, Reversed: Private achievement, personal definition of success, egotism. The Six of Wands reversed suggests that you have reached a significant personal milestone, but unlike the upright version of this card, you prefer to keep it to yourself right now. You may be uncomfortable receiving public praise for your work, or it may be such a private achievement that you have no reason to share it with others. Check in with yourself though: are you avoiding sharing it because you lack confidence or feel nervous about being too over-the-top? The reversed Six of Wands encourages you to create your own definition of success. If you have found yourself seeking approval and validation or comparing yourself to others, you may have stripped yourself of your personal power and self-belief. Rather than relying on someone else’s opinions of what is ‘successful’ and what is not, bring your energy and attention within and ask yourself, ‘What does success mean to me?’ Your answer will look different from other people’s interpretations because your values and priorities are unique to you. When you are clear about what success means to you, you will make better decisions that are more in alignment with who you really are, and increase your confidence and independence – and that’s a good thing!
July - Justice: Fairness, truth, law. The Justice card represents justice, fairness, truth and the law. You are being called to account for your actions and will be judged accordingly. If you have acted in alignment with your Higher Self and for the greater good of others, you have nothing to worry about. However, if you haven’t, you will be called out and made to own up to your actions. If this has you shaking in your boots, know that the Justice card isn’t as black and white as you may think. A level of compassion and understanding accompany Justice, and although you may have done something you regret, this card suggests that you will be treated fairly and without bias. Be ready to take responsibility for your actions and stand accountable for the ensuing consequences.
August- Eight of Coins, Reversed: Self-development, perfectionism, misdirected activity. The reversed Eight of Pentacles can appear in a Tarot reading when you are focused on self-improvement and personal development. You are highly disciplined and focused when it comes to understanding your inner beliefs and behaviours, and you are dedicated to becoming the best version of yourself. You may have certain ‘rules’ such as only allowing yourself to think a negative thought for 17 seconds (knowing that after this amount of time it begins to have an increasingly negative impact on your well-being), or recalling three things you’re most grateful for before you go to sleep at night. You are ready and willing to do these things over and over until you see results with your well-being and general happiness.
September - Seven of Wands: Challenge, Competition, Perseverance. After the success of the Six of Wands, you are now in an enviable position and are being challenged by others who want to take your place. You worked hard to get to where you are, but some people covet what you have and are prepared to fight you for it. While it is flattering that they strive for your success, it also makes for a tense and competitive environment because you need to protect what you earned and must continually prove yourself.
October - The Chariot, Reversed: Lack of control/direction, aggression. Upright, The Chariot is a green light to move ahead with a key project and push past any obstacles that might impede your desired outcome. Reversed, however, The Chariot tells you to ‘back up the truck’ or, as we Aussies say, “Chuck a U-y” (AKA “do a U-turn”). You might bang your head against a brick wall, trying to push a project forward when really, you ought to back off or change direction. Or you might have lost your motivation and no longer feel as committed to the outcome as you did when you started. So, if something is not moving forward as you planned, re-evaluate the situation and check in to see if it’s a sign that you need to change course. Then ask yourself: Is there a deeper reason things have become more challenging? What lesson can I learn here? At times, The Chariot Reversed is a warning that you are letting obstacles and challenges get in the way, preventing you from achieving what you set out to do. It’s all getting too hard, and you don’t have the will to go on. If that resonates, stop for a moment and think about the things that matter most to you and why you want to achieve this goal. Will you allow other people’s opinions to sway you or give up as soon as the going gets tough? Or will you follow through on your commitment?
November - Two of Coins, Reversed: Over-committed, disorganization, reprioritization. In an inverted position, the Two of Pentacles warns that you are overcommitted and, at times, struggling to maintain your overloaded schedule or stay on top of your bills. Others might not see it yet, but the stress is getting to you and you may even catch yourself dropping the ball. Follow this card’s lesson and get organized. You may need to bring more structure to your responsibilities through budgets, to do lists, forward planning or a diary and effective time management. Turn down opportunities that are no longer in alignment with your goals. The reversed Two of Pentacles can also be a sign you are over-investing in one area of your life at the expense of others. For example, you may excel in your career, but have little time for your family or your partner, leaving them feeling disconnected and alone. While you may get away with a few late nights at work, there will come a time when enough is enough. Something has to give.
December - The World, Reversed: Seeking personal closure, shortcuts, delays. The World Reversed suggests that you are seeking closure on a personal issue. Perhaps you are still emotionally attached to a past relationship and want to move on. Or you dream of the day you can fit into your old skinny jeans but realize now that your metabolism and body shape changed in the last ten years. You know, deep down, that to accept and embrace where you are now, you need to let go of the past and move on. Finding closure may be an intensely personal journey – something you manage through journaling, visualization, energy work, and therapy.
The thing to remember is that if you decide to do a 12-month reading for yourself, the cards/outcome can completely change again in a month. Our futures change with our actions, decision and mindset.
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Day 358: Saturday December 24, 2022 - “Christmas Eve Fire”
I sat back and relaxed, thinking about the grandness of the scheme. It was Christmas Eve again, and I stretched my legs in front of a fire like I did back on Rialto Beach 11 years ago. Tis the season for Nostalgia. I was blessed with a quiet reflective Christmas Eve this year, at least while William slept. On my own, as Audrie is out fighting winter storms and holiday air-traffic somewhere between me and Milwaukee. I kept returning to the thought “I used to do Christmas Eve’s all the time!” And of course it got me thinking of that cold one in 2012 that sparked me to go “home.” But how the year before that, you were really something out there. And just like that, two separate reflections of a man twisted up in story. About the one, on fire for life, set out in the dark for truly his first Christmas on his own, at 30. Eating Chocolate covered cherries, reading about Living A Great Story to the waves - one of the best fires and nights and Christmas’ of my life. And how that man, much too old to know it all anymore, couldn’t have imagined the life of the other; now smoking a cigar instead of slurping chocolate covered cherries, with Live A Great Story around his wrist, working oh so hard this winter to figure that out. One in the cold ocean darkness, the other in the warm desert in his slippers and in his backyard. One dreaming of a wide open road, the other incredibly grateful for how it all played out, wondering if this is as good as it gets. I imagined these two reflections of my Christmas Eve selves sitting here around the same fire, and what would be shared....
From Present Day Dad Jake 2022 to Aesthetic Cowboy 2011 Jake:
“Yea, the logs here are store bought, but don’t worry - Im ok with that. I earned it, I suppose. Dont need to go collect my own wood anymore, as unadventurous as that might sound to you... I can always say that I did the things I wanted to do, thanks to you...and this is what I want to do now. Turns out, being a Dad is the hardest job of my life, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything....not even to be sitting in your sand. I appreciate these responsibilities, especially on Christmas Eve. Its different challenges, but Audrie was really on it when she said “life rewards all the time” - this juice was definitely worth the squeeze...
“whats that? who is Audrie - ah you caught the pepper in my eye when I brought her up? Yea, she will be your wife, partner, your captain. The best thing that will ever happen for you. Turns out, shes your “For What?” Just keep exploring and adventuring, and build your resume up, and don’t be afraid to break-out and go for it when the opportunities come around. Its the only way you’ll have a shot with a woman like this. Because of you, I have a shot at never having a lonely holiday ever again. See, Im not really alone, like you, this Christmas Eve. While she’s not here, I know she is out there. I always felt you need faith for the same reason its so hard to find. Just knowing every day I get the opportunity to choose her again, gives me the best and only adventure I’ll ever need. To share a life, thats what its all about. Alex taught you that right? (By the way, you give your son Alexander as a middle name for just this exact reason. Wink - I got you man).
“by the way, next year - you wont get a fire out there...and you’ll be frustrated. You’ll throw your lighter into the ocean, just before you realize you’d need that to make dinner. I suppose the anxiety in your bones was settling in, and it wasn’t a calm Christmas for you, and you really struggle with that not going as planned. You’ll be ok. You’ll always be ok. You just need to start telling your self that more. There will be some bummers along the way but it all served a very important purpose; find the blessing in the bummer, and remember that as long as you have a drum in that sea-turtle heart, there is a chance to find what has been so desperately sought. Yes, Im still looking for it, all this time later. And thats ok. Im more comfortable with that now, than ever. That bummer Christmas fire of 2012...its the reason you are where you are today. Its a beautiful story. You’re a good character. Give yourself some credit - you’ve earned it, I suppose. Don’t know how it turns out, that story. Still figuring out the ending. I have some ideas and some experience. I have everything I need, now.
From Aesthetic Cowboy 2011 Jake to Present Day Dad Jake 2022:
“Nice fire with your store bought logs... ;) I cant imagine ever having a fire with store bought logs again now that I am figuring out this ‘life’. But cheers to you, you do you, you look comfy in your slippers. No way they are as comfortable as my ole oppossums here, remember these? Might as well been made of gold - they unlocked a way of being and seeing to you, didnt they?! Remember those days? On Yellow Aster and Oyster Dome, and down in the Grand Canyon? Neat that you settled in Arizona, of all the places - how the hell did that happen?! And a mortgage?! I thought we said we would NEVER do that? Must be a good story to tell in here somewhere...or you forgot about ALL of the Rules. When we talked about your future being behind you, I really didn’t see Tucson in the cards. That desert Red Rock must really be something.
“Hey - did we ever write that book? Aw man - “life got in the way” you say? Wasn’t it always going to be all about life? Tell me about that - lets get into it. 10 years from now - whats good? Whats the meaning of life? What are your intentions? Do you still do those and pay attention? What are your plans? How are you crafting the life of your dreams? Look at me - Im sitting here with a perfect driftwood fire in the salty air next to the Pacific Ocean - it can’t get any better right? Please tell me Im not right. No finish lines, remember. So whats next, Daddio? What will next year write? Ah - nevermind, no don’t tell me, show me instead! This reflection of your self is hopeful. Forgiving. Calm and easier. Do something with it. Find your greatness. Follow Through. Get on fire for life, for you, for Audrie, and for your family. Have a big year. Cast a Vision. You know the way. That old cowboy spark - its still in you. I mean just look how comfortable you are alone on Christmas Eve after all. You’re closer to your best than you’ve been in a long while. You can have both of these reflections. We can share this same space. Dad, Cowboy, Romantic Seeker, Curious, Responsible, Intentional. How about you try to be all these things and see where that takes you next? See what kind of story that writes for itself. you earned it, I suppose!
Congruence.
Gratitude.
Upward Spiral.
I accept the invite.
I didn’t need to look up what was song of the day back then in 2011 - I remembered it well. About being in the belly of the whale and the adventure of having Mother Nature abruptly kick me out of her house on Christmas. There is some credit to be given to waking up cold in a tent on Christmas Morning. It defies the nostalgic marketed comforts of Christmas we’re raised on and live by this time of year. And the hope is that these excursions harden for times when you’ll only have your self to count on. the first step you’ll take out of the belly of the whale, will be in the right direction. Its really no different now as it was then.
Later in the night, William would wake with loud painful mad sad angry crying, as if somehow he did know that today was Christmas Eve and mama wasn’t here. It took a lot of work to stay grounded and skillful. At its height, as I was about to get really frustrated, I opened the spotify on the phone and quickly just played the last song I had searched for “Scott Orr - In The Belly of The Whale” - as it came on, his wailing turned into little wimpers, then to little breathing cries, before deep sleep breathing....before the song was over. “I dont mean to be good, I just mean to be whole” - in the belly of the whale. I kissed his cheek and whispered “Merry Christmas” in his ear and told him his mama and dada love him. I give it all to you.
Song: Teddy Swims - Please Come Home For Christmas
Quote: “Matter and thought are a canvas in which God paints, a painting with tragedy and delivery, with sin and redemption. Life is a dance toward God, I begin to think. And the dance is not so graceful as we might want. While we glide and swing our practiced sway, God crowds our feet, bumps our toes, and scuffs our shoes. So we learn to dance with the One who made us. And it is a difficult dance to learn, because its steps are foreign. I began to think of my time in these terms, as learning to dance in a new way. The first few lessons had me feeling clunky and awkward. But soon they will give way to a kind of graceful sway and I will feel completely content as though there was nothing in life that I was missing out on. And I think to myself, There is nothing that I am missing. I have everything I was supposed to have to experience the magnitude of this story, to dance with God." ~Donald Miller, Through Painted Deserts
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thank you for asking!! I usually do some kind of faith build just bc the incantations are so diverse and neat, my first playthrough was a black flame build, then i did a golden order playthrough then a dragon communion playthrough and now im doing like, bloodflame/frenzy stuff. i think i want to do death sorceries for my next thing almost exclusively bc i think rykards flying red skulls spell is really cool LOL
I've used morgott's sword in like two different playthroughs bc it usually scales well with my builds, its really good but im kind of bored of it so I'm trying other things. i think my favorite weapon design is the golden order greatsword, it's soo pretty... i did a playthrough with radahns swords and that was very fun. i also think the bloody helice is underrated
my fashion is so all over the place but i do tend to look like a weird freak. i like the imp heads a lot. i always spend so much time on my guys in the character creator just to put a mask on them LOL. i definitely care about cohesion like my outfit does have to match my weapon. rn my character is wearing the goldmask, melania's dress, and gold gauntlets/boots i forget which sets. i was using the golden order greatsword so i was very golden & sparkly but now im trying mohgs pitchfork thing so i may need to reaccessorize...
honestly i dont think i like doing anything more than i like playing elden ring. sometimes i wish my job was playing elden ring. i know streamers exist but im not very funny or even particularly great at elden ring so i dont think id be a good streamer. like i cant play it really fast or really good or whatever. well no actually i'll admit im pretty good ... :]
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I just finished Solaire's quest last night...the poor guy didn't deserve this :(
#genuinely upset#god when i got to that hallway my heart sank bc i thought i got all the bugs but i didn't know there was more on the other side#he was so happy in anor londo 😭 ough i couldn't even handle him doubting himself for the rest of the game#ugh it broke my heart. it broke broke my heart seeing him finally find his 'sun' and having to attack him bc it was hurting him 💔#reading his item descriptions hurt even more </3 he just wanted to find his sun couldn't there have been another way for him to find it#i know you can save him but he dedicated his whole journey to finding his sun i dont want him to be even more upset :(#i mean i will save him next time and join his covenant#but god that line where he says 'what if im seen as a laughing stock?' made me so upset and i didnt have anyway to comfort him either#im definitely doing a faith build next time#i also did get to summon solaire one last time for the centipede demon and get a sunlight medal from him at least <:)#my art#chitchat
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Hello, do u have any game recommendations for the steam winter sale? If not don’t worry. Have a nice day!
what a sweet question...my recommendations are going to suck so sorry ahead of time
dark souls remastered - $19.99 / dark souls 3 - $14.99 : you know what these are. i still think the remaster price is bullshit. that's a good price for 3 tho.
sekiro - $29.99 : this game took a long time to grow on me but man. it fucking rules.
fallout new vegas ultimate - $7.99 : the good bethesda game not made by bethesda. a steal for a game that i dropped a ton of time into over the years. for some reason it just kept pulling me back in! it's just kinda fun to explore, you know.
morrowind GOTY edition - $4.59 : god i love morrowind. uh, once i modded it to hell and back lol. the base game is not very playable. but once you fix all that shit my god its easily my favorite bethesda game. it has absolute faith in the player to fucking figure shit out and doesn't give you waypoints. instead you have to ask around and get directions! they have not and will never make a world this weird again. you ride around on giant insects and explore cities with bizarro architecture that's easy to get lost in. you meet living gods and dunmer who have gaping holes in their faces and empty skulls. the fauna are fucking dinosaurs. its so fucking good. AND everyone fucking HATES YOU LMFAO. EVERYONE. absolutely no one wants you to be the chosen one. its great.
oblivion GOTY edition deluxe - $5.99 : morrowind's much much dumber brother. hysterically bad at times. breaks in the funniest ways. install mods so it breaks more often. one time i walked into a village and everyone was t posing outside and slowly slid to the left through houses and barns and shit until they disappeared into a mountain. just wonderful.
dishonored definitive edition - $4.99 / dishonoured 2 deluxe bundle - $11.99 : extremely fun series where you get to teleport around and kill people. takes itself very seriously which makes it all the more charming lol. it feels good to play, you know.
opus magnum - $9.99 : i still havent finished this puzzle game because its hard but like. good hard. reminds me of the difficulty of 90s puzzle games that were geared toward adults.
two point hospital - $8.74 : this is just the base game bc the price for everything is completely out of pocket. this is a hospital sim game. run your hospital. hire your staff. build your rooms. try not to kill people. don't go bankrupt. good luck!
disco elysium - $17.99 : you know what this is.
girls like robots - $3.49 : a little puzzle game that scratches an itch ive been drastically trying to scratch. you can pick up and put down quickly. i like it
sunless sea - $6.45 : taking place in the world of the browser game "fallen london", you pilot a ship and manage your sanity, HP and food meters while out at sea. slowly reveal the map, find ways to make money by determining the best trade routes, and meddle in everyone's affairs. everyone's. the fellas at the salt lions will trade with you until the supply dries up and the fed-up postal workers have their own very insular culture that doesn't involve you and the polythreme causes all inanimate to become alive. all of them. pretty neat.
civ 6 anthology - $29.88 : ugghhhhhh 30 dollars?! in this economy?! damn you sid meiers and your stupid piecemeal dlc releases. you might as well get the full bundle bc the base game is unplayable. they shipped half a game. this pissed me off so much next time im pirating. good game tho.
pathologic 2 - $9.79 : maybe a little too close to reality right now but it is one of the best games ive ever played. feel free to play it on any difficulty option (this game is notorious for its perceived difficulty) but know that you're supposed to die and fail repeatedly. you cannot save them all. you won't save them all. maybe on the next playthrough, you can take what you've learned, try again.
planescape: torment - $5.99 : i played this ancient game this year and had an absolute blast with it lol. despite knowing nothing about the lore of the world, i managed to get sucked in to this really weird place the game dropped me in and quickly caught up on all the details.
sleeping dogs - $2.99 : neo-noir mystery set in hong kong. you play an undercover cop trying to infiltrate a gang so the game has you working both criminal stuff and police work at the same time. neat concept. funny on purpose at times. but my god the ending is disappointing lol. im telling you now to spare you the "that's it?!" feeling
saints row 4 game of the century edition - $4.99 : deeply stupid game. the johnny gat DLC is supposed to be terrible. the christmas one was a hoot. its mindless.
SOMA - $4.49 : philosophical horror game about consciousness. i dont know if there's a way to describe it without sounding pretentious. the way the player choices are utilized is the best way ive seen in a game so far since it reaches past the character youre playing to you, the player. highly recommend to play the mode where the monsters dont kill you. i fucking hate frictional games' gameplay. its wretched stuff. plus the monsters are pretty cool lol i liked looking at them
star wars knights of the old republic 1 & 2 - $3.49 : these games are worth exactly this much. the first one is one of the stupidest games ive ever played in my entire life and i dont think ive laughed so much. its like a b-movie in game form. its a riot, its just not good. the second one is made by obsidian and NEEDS!!! the patch!!!! to be a fully playable game. with the restored content its not half bad and the writing still drops into b-level territory delightfully.
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harmless (viii)
Summary: Bucky volunteers to go stop a small time villain, but nothing can prepare him for what exactly he has to deal with. (Bucky x villain!reader, drabble series)
Warnings: cursing, protesting, frustrated bucky, dramatic reader, gamer (derogatory), smidge of angst
Word count: 3.5k
A/N: listen idk what goes on at construction site and im too sexy to research so we’re going with my version of the world. hello. how are we all doing?
here’s my ko-fi if you’d like to support my writing <333
Previous Part || Series Masterlist
He doesn’t expect to see you on TV.
In jail maybe, for something scandalous and completely unnecessary, but not TV.
But there you are, a sign board waving around furiously in your hand, voice in protest against the demolition of the community centre. You’re flipping the board back and forth to alternate between the messages you’ve scrawled on the cardboard.
You were among a few protesting, but clearly the loudest.
He thinks that maybe he has the weekend off if you’re too busy fighting big corporations. He’d send his support even.
Until he zeroes in on the sign when it flips over, finally reading what it says.
You better get your ass here, sarge
And so he does.
Half the crowd had dipped by the time he arrived. You were there, still the loudest, but he couldn’t help but notice the lack of people as compared to an hour or two ago on TV. He supposed that justice could wait as long as it took to get lunch from the nearest café.
“I can’t stop you from protesting, y’know.” He’s a little wary of approaching your raging self.
“Oh, hey Barnes. You got my message.” You break away for a second to scream a bunch of obscenities at the gigantic glass building before turning to him. “You wouldn’t be able to.”
“What’s your dumb plan then?”
“First of all, it’s not dumb. It’s stupid. Put some respect on my technological genius.” You held up a finger. “Second of all, it’s not here.”
“Where is it?”
“At the construction site.” You point down the road. “Come on.”
Right along the way you stop to chant another slogan. He waves his arm around meekly in support. He did, after all, have to stand up for what was right, but if his publicist saw him here she’d have an aneurysm.
The construction site isn’t very far off. It’s adjacent to the community centre, which he assumes they’re going to tear down to make more space for whatever shitty commercial building was going to take its place.
There are already a few excavators and dozers there but no one to man them since it was lunch time. What garners his attention is the small silver plate that’s on the floor a few feet ahead in the direction you’re walking towards.
“Here.” You stop once it nears. “The plan.”
“Am I supposed to know what this is?” He lightly kicked at it, earning a smack on the arm from you.
“Stop that,” you scolded, “and look at it. It’s not hard to figure out.”
He narrows his eyes. There’s a small u-shaped piece of metal in the middle of the plate. “That’s a magnet.”
“Exactly.” You clapped your hands together in excitement. “The world’s strongest electromagnet.”
He looks around. The only possibly magnetic things are the cranes and excavators around him.
“You’re going to... stop the machines from moving ahead?” he hesitates in his deduction.
“Yep. Can’t tear anything down if they can’t get to it first.”
Bucky looks down.
“Does this thing even work?” He toes at it again. “It’s kinda small.”
“It works beautifully, stop kicking at it, you demon-”
“What happens if I step on it, huh?” He knows this would get on your nerves wonderfully. He raises his leg. “Do I get to go home for the day?”
“You’re such a little shit,” you whine, reaching for your back pocket. “Stop bullying my invention.”
“’m gonna squish it like a bug.” He’s only half kidding about that part. “I’m gonna-”
Before he can finish his sentence something yanks him down hard. His head nearly hits the ground before his right arm shoots out to break his fall.
"Woah there, don't go falling for me as yet.”
“What the fu-” he begins, eyes locking on his metal arm that was pressed flat against the earth.
“I told you it works,” you say smugly. “Try crushing it now, Barnes. If you can even get off the floor.”
He tugs his hand but it’s firmly attached to the thing. No matter how or where he’s applying the effort, his limb refuses to move. He’s stuck.
“Turn it off,” he sighs. “You made your point.”
“No. Stay there.”
“Y/N, shut up and turn this off,” he groans, trying to find a better position rather than chin down on the ground.
“Lay there and rot. You deserve it for underestimating me.” You huff.
“I wasn’t underestimating you, Jesus Christ.” He really was planning to just step on it, but he had complete faith that it worked.
When he doesn’t receive a reply, his gaze follows yours. Suddenly the crane looks a lot closer than it initially did. Awesome.
“Those are moving towards me.” He picks up on the low groan and creak of metal.
“Yeah, they are.” You nod, one hand on your hip, watching them.
He didn’t think that getting crushed under construction equipment would be how his day went.
“Not my problem,” you decide finally after a bout of silence.
Now that simply wouldn’t do.
Death was definitely a problem, but what was more important was that he was going to get a dust allergy from the mud. He could already feel the blocked nose and temperature incoming.
“Are you really going to waste this on me? Don’t you have a demolition to stop?” He manages to twist his body so that he’s lying on his back.
“Good point,” you squint into the distance at the whirring of the heavy machinery. Their owners wouldn’t be happy to find them missing from their original spot. “But I still can’t help you out.”
“You’re willing to sacrifice your-”
“I can’t help you out because I don’t have an off switch. Yet,” you add the last part in a hurry.
“Then when the fuck were you planning to build one?” He sits up, leaning on his elbow. The cranes weren’t a mini object on the horizon now; the closer they got, the faster they were starting to move towards him.
“I don’t know, after they agreed not to take down the building?”
He could just detach his arm and come back for it later he but had no guarantee that you would stop here for the day or that the vibranium could withstand all that pressure.
“You better make a switch right now and get me out of this, I don’t care how.”
“Yeah, yeah,” you grumbled, bending to assess how badly he was stuck. “You know, this thing runs really deep into the earth. It’d take forever to dig back up and then get you back to my lab and then build a switch.”
“How long?” He didn’t have a lot of time, clearly, but even generally he didn’t have the whole day to waste. He had a mission the next day. He had to put the fear of death into some Russians and bring some pirozhki back for Nat.
“I don’t know,” you furrowed your eyebrows. “Too long for my schedule anyway, I have class prep to do.”
“Motherfucke- that thing’s like twenty feet away.” He’s worried about how you don’t look fazed at all when he points at the stupid machine.
He’s about to volunteer to detach his arm when he realises it’s definitely less than twenty feet now. He had a backup just in case. It didn’t move as smoothly, but who could tell the difference when a couple of tons of pressure was aiming for your face, and hell, if he explained his circumstances of the destruction of his arm to T’Challa-
“Okay, fine.” You reach into your backpack to grab something that looked like a wrist watch. It matched the one already around your hand.
You reach over and clasp it around his hand before turning a dial on the side.
“You ready?” you ask, ignoring the large crane that was starting to charge towards you.
“For what?” he replies, looking down at it. He can barely hear you over the sound of the whining of machinery.
“Teleportation, baby.” You send him a big grin before slamming down on his watch.
“Huh-” His voice cuts off immediately.
If there’s anything that can be said about teleportation, it’s that he feels like every atom in his entire body violently splits to float around briefly before suddenly rejoining again.
The ground beneath him feels different, and it takes him a second to realise that he was on the floor of your lair.
“What the fu-”
“Hello,” your voice comes from above him.
“You can teleport.” It’s not difficult for him to look at you now without the sun in his face. His arm is still stuck to the magnet but since the giant rod it was attached to was no longer deep in the ground, he could lift the entire apparatus up relatively easily.
“What, like it’s hard?” You discarded your bag on the floor. “You good? Takes a while to get used to.”
He gives you a grunt in acknowledgement, shaking his arm to see if he had any luck. It didn’t budge.
“Come on, take a seat.” You gesture to a lab chair you’ve pulled up for him on the raised platform at the front of the room. He realises that this is the first time he’s properly seen what’s actually inside your lair.
There are various buttons that do God knows what, drawers and cabinets painted black, several computer screens and gigantic pillars of glass on either side of the set up that encapsulate some green bubbling liquid. There’s a giant television set up against the wall, divided into several screens.
“Whaddya think?” You do a small swoop of your arm to show off the place.
“Gamer,” he says simply, testing his luck.
“What did you just say to me?” you recoil instantly, disgust on your face.
“It’s a gamer set up.” He points a finger at the TV screen. He was told by Shuri to use it as an insult, but he wasn’t exactly sure why. It just felt appropriate.
“Take that back right now.” You raise a finger accusatorially at him.
“No.” He was sticking with it even though he had no idea what exactly the context was.
“Fuck your arm,” you announce, throwing your hands up in surrender.
“Fuck your demolition then,” he replies simply, getting up from his place on the chair to leave with the thing still attached to him.
He takes one step ahead before your voice rings out.
“Sit down, drama queen,” your voice calls from behind him. “God, you’re annoying.”
“You’re infuriating.”
“I’m the best part of your week,” you fire back, ”and also your only way out of this. Now sit down.”
He didn’t even need the second warning, he was already on the chair the first time around.
“I’m not going to build a switch to turn this off. It’d take too long,” you examine the piece of equipment with more gentleness than he was expecting, “I’m going to remove it instead. It’s gonna take a while, so you better get comfortable.”
“I’m not.”
“That’s so sad,” you say without any indication of wanting to help.
He rolls his eyes.
You pull up next to him, welding glasses covering your face and the tool in your hand.
He turns away when you start, making sure his face is not directly within its trajectory.
He makes himself busy by looking around some more. There are details you’ve put into the place, materials that are non-flammable made up most of the architecture. It’s dramatic, sure, but somehow the designs and colours seemed to go together. It did look sinister, he’d give you props for that.
The space was quite big. It occurs to him only then that that’s how you manage to sneak up on him so often in the past. Everything clicked. Fucking teleportation.
“So,” your voice was raised to speak over the noise. “How’s it going?”
He decidedly doesn’t answer. His position is more than enough.
“Right.” You clear your throat.
He takes to counting the tiles on the floor, figuring out how many were there from the raised platform to the wall of the entrance.
“Not how you imagined your day to go, huh?” you continued despite his lack of response. “But some might say it’s a privilege to be spending the day with a cool, mad scie-”
“Are you going to keep talking?” he interrupts, losing his count on the floor.
“Yeah, duh,” you say like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “You got anything better to do?”
He didn’t.
“What’s it like living with a bunch of superheroes?” You change course. He’s not sure if he’s really allowed to disclose top secret information. “I assume there’s a lot of protein shakes, talcum powder for the chafing-”
Then again, how much damage could you do by knowing that Steve preferred pancakes over waffles?
“It’s quiet,” he says. “Most of the time.”
“Save all your smart talking for the battlefield, huh?”
He doesn’t reply. It’s quiet around the Tower. A lot of their energy goes towards missions and recuperating once they’re back.
“You go on missions a lot?”
“I can’t tell you that.”
“Boo, you whore,” you say with mock disappointment.
He got that reference.
“What’s your favourite food then?”
He scrunches his eyebrows.
“What?” The welding stops for a second while you look at him. “Don’t tell me that’s classified too.”
It’s not, he’s just never thought about it.
“I don’t know,” he murmurs, “Pasta?”
“Vague, but I’ll take it.”
He used to boil a lot of pasta, from what he could remember of his days in hiding. Cheap and bought in bulk before he saved up enough to buy things like fruits. A lot of the times the amount of sauce he had access to was enough for maybe seasoning, not a whole component on its own.
It’s one of the perks of being a free man in the 21st century he thinks, a steaming bowl of fettuccini drenched in sauce and garlic bread on the side.
“What do you do in your downtime?”
“Nothing.” Well, he considers it to be a pass time and doing nothing is a full time gig. It takes effort to do nothing. He even has days dedicated to doing nothing, as suggested to him by his therapist.
“Really?” You sound a little surprised, although it’s hard to make out when you’re already speaking a lot louder than usual. “No shining your penny collection? No software update for this thing?” You tap at his arm.
There really isn’t anything. Truth be told, he thinks he’s the most boring guy in the Tower. He sticks to himself, has a few succulents that he adores and occasionally watches trashy television. So then why are you so interested in him?
“You’re obsessed with me,” he says pointedly. “Why?”
You give a short laugh. “I think it’s the blue eyes, sarge, they’re really popping today. Gotta say, I’m loving this colour on you. Is it different from the black you wore last week? And from the one from the week before that?”
He looks down at his dark t-shirt and utility pants. He had other clothes but those were reserved for things that were not this.
“Or maybe it’s the grumpiness, I don’t know. I love it when someone shows absolutely no interest in me. Very sexy of you.” Oh jeez, you were going to continue. “Hell, maybe it’s the thighs-”
“Okay,” he interjects, feeling the need to count the tiles more than ever. He equates the heat in his neck from the welding going on beside him.
The loudness of your laughter is clearer than the sound of metal on metal when you tug a large piece of the invention off. Things were moving fast. He could get back home to his Star Trek marathon and forget this day ever happened.
“You know, you’re more interesting than you think,” you pipe up casually.
He doesn’t expect this and therefore he supposes he can’t stop the curiosity from enveloping his face. He hasn’t told you anything about himself, so then the inference you reached came out of nowhere.
Apparently, you take notice of the confusion on his face, even though he can’t see through the giant welding mask, because you let out a chuckle.
“Oh, come on, really? You have no idea?” you ask lightly, pausing to see if he offers anything other than silence. “You’ve come back almost every week even though you know it’s a waste of your time, you always keep your promises and I know for a fact that if you wanted to stop me once and for all, you could have. But you’re not.”
He doesn’t realise you’ve stopped welding until you start again. Good, it gives him an excuse not to have to look at you after that.
Frankly, he’s a little stunned.
You’re not looking at him, he can tell from his peripheral vision. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you have a small crush on me.”
At that, he’s forced to roll his eyes out of instinct. Thankfully you do know better.
A few screws out later, another piece comes out. You inform him that’s it’s going to get trickier from there since the circuit was a little more intricate, a lot more time than the original few pieces. He can see his Star Trek marathon fade away in the distance.
You ask him a few more questions. Some he answers with silence, others maybe a tidbit here and there.
“How’s dating now compared to the forties?”
“Strange.” He purses his lips in thought. “One guy asked for a gym date. Didn’t know that was a thing.”
“How’d that turn out?” you laugh.
“He didn’t ask for a second one.” His Bumble matches with girls somehow had gone down since he cut his hair, but he’s not too bothered. Not like there was a huge shortage.
He likes cats, thinks the worst merchandise that they make is the stupid baseball card with his face on it, and doesn’t have social media for the sake of his sanity. He’s seen the thirst tweets.
Clearly, he’s revealed his deepest, darkest secrets. Utterly classified material. But he doesn’t know anything about you other than your name, number, address, where you teach, what your hobby is-
“You, uh-” he hesitates, “You got a favourite food?”
Your hands hold still to hover above what they’re working on. You fight back a smile. “Sure do.”
He asks a few more questions. Shuts up when he feels his social battery drain. That’s enough for the next month, he thinks.
The sun’s dipped down beyond the horizon by the time majority of the work is completed. Both of you have taken a few breaks to fight the feeling of stiffness that was creeping into your joints.
You scoff and tell him you’re not planning to poison him when he denies the offer of a soda. He doesn’t deter in his decision.
“How much to go?” He has a mission tomorrow that he’d really like to get some sleep in before. Waking up at 3am to get ready was the worst part of the job.
“Basically done.” You roll your chair back, rotating your shoulder and stretching your fingers. “There’s just this little part that I can’t access from this angle. How good are you at hanging upside down like a bat?”
Fuck it, he sighs to himself, it was almost finished anyway.
Bucky stands up, tilting his neck to the side slightly before pulling at a small latch under his arm, one so tiny that you’d never make out was even there unless you knew it existed. The arm releases from his shoulder with a small click.
He offers it to you, a piece of your magnet still attached to it.
Your eyes are slightly wide. He raises his eyebrows.
You don’t say anything, just accept it and flip it to a position you were comfortable with. It takes only a minute or two for the sound of the last piece hitting the floor to reverberate through the hall.
You give a small cheer. He lets out a tiny exhale in equal parts fatigue and relief.
“So,” you drawl, handing his arm back to him, “you could have just done that the whole time.”
He doesn’t reply, just slides it back onto his shoulder.
“You had the option of leaving your arm here and coming back later to get it.”
He gives it a few shakes, opens and clenches his fist shut a few times to make sure everything is working.
“You wanted to talk to me.”
He gives you a deadpan look. “I was distracting you.”
“Bullshit,” you laugh.
“Believe what you must.” He shrugs, turning around. “My job here is done regardless.”
“Oh, I believe alright,” you call out from behind him as he walks towards the entrance of your lair. “I believe you’re a sneaky bastard, Bucky Barnes.”
He doesn’t stop himself from smiling at the overdramatic gasp you give when he flips you a middle finger. From the metal arm, too.
Next part
#bucky x reader#bucky barnes x reader#mcu fic#bucky fic#bucky barnes fic#bucky fluff#bucky barnes fluff#bucky angst#bucky barnes angst#harmless fic#winter soldier x reader#Winter Soldier#bucky barnes#bucky
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hi ok listen i am not proud of myself but im having a high anxiety day? month? year? and weewoo got me through the last month but for *reasons* aka *my mental health sucks* i am fucking terrified that i will watch faithfully unto the end and then buddie won't happen and I will not be able to handle that. do you have any wise words
also pls enjoy this gif which is me being fragile about tv characters being allowed to discover their queer selves after the age of 21
Well, first of all, I'm sorry you're having a difficult time. I definitely know how that feels.
As to everything else...the thing is, we can't know a timeframe. We don't have a blueprint for this. I can say that I'm fairly confident that by the end of this season we'll have some form of confirmed queer Eddie with feelings for Buck because this whole season (and stretching back to Suspicion and "make sure you're following your heart") has been dealing with the theme of hearts + Eddie and what he really wants for his life, but if we didn't get that I would still be confident in Buddie happening eventually. The writers have crafted this story so beautifully, so thoughtfully up to this point. It's not an accident. They are very good at their jobs and they love these characters at least as much if not more than we do.
The other thing is, we also don't know how long the show will last or how much else needs to happen before they can get together. Right now, I don't think Buck is ready. And I don't think he's going to be ready until he has some time after breaking up with Taylor to sit with his ideas of what love and relationships are supposed to look like after all, he misunderstood the assignment, and realize that what he's been trying to find, he's actually been building with Eddie the whole time. This season was Eddie's journey. If I had to guess, I would say next season is more of Buck's. And it would be amazing if they were fully together by the end of S6, but we genuinely cannot know. All we can do is be patient, trust the process, and enjoy the epic love story playing out on our screens.
As far as advice goes, I think the best thing I can say (and not just to you, but to anyone with this concern) is this: a comfort show is a comfort show, it can be a wonderful thing to have. But I think you have to ask yourself whether the anxiety you feel about the potential of not getting your preferred outcome (which could be years away by the time it happens) outweighs the other benefits to your mental health. Because if the stress of worrying about whether a fictional ship will go canon is really detrimental to you, and especially if that anxiety is interfering with your enjoyment of the story or life in general, it may be that the best thing is to take a step back and find a comfort show that isn't going to cause that level of stress. And there's no shame in doing that -- I have absolutely taken a break from shows I enjoyed for any number of reasons, including the fact that I was frustrated with the pace of a will-they-won't-they slow burn ship. There's no law that says you can't come back and bingewatch to your heart's content when the arc you most want to see finally happens.
For myself, all I have to say is that I have hope, I have faith, I have trust. I get frustrated sometimes. I get impatient. I whine and complain. But I have faith. And sure, there's a chance that the show will end in however many years and I will be proven wrong and all the people who insisted I and others were stupid for having that faith will be vindicated. And if that happened, I would likely be sad, I would be disappointed, I might be angry, but it's still...fiction. I've made my peace with the possibility of that happening. But if I may be a little arrogant for a moment, I am also...a very smart woman and a good writer in my own right and I'm not wrong very often. So...there's that.
Ultimately, the most important thing you can do is take care of yourself. Whatever that looks like is up to you.
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what is utahime’s role in the future? — a prediction (manga spoilers)
part 2 (unedited)
part 1 is here!
let’s continue answering the question: is utahime weak?
chapter 135
what preparations is utahime making? like i’ve mentioned before, i theorize that she needs to charge up in order to use her technique. since momo and the other kyoto students are fighting on the front line to buy time for utahime, i believe that they trust that their teacher’s ability can help turn the situation around.
what do the students think of her? do they think she’s weak?
chapter 128
mechamaru manipulates the circumstances in a way that allow him to keep the kyoto people away from danger. this has more to do with how much he cares about his classmates and his teacher rather than seeing them as incompetent sorcerers who can’t hold their own. notice how he says “EVEN utahime”.
chapter 128
kamo thinks mechamaru doesn’t have that much faith in the Kyoto students—but this isn’t true at all! he knows who the enemy is and has a grasp of how dangerous they are. he just wants to keep his friends safe. besides, kamo is a semi-grade 1 sorcerer which means he’s more than capable of defending himself against curses. but since he’s being kept safe too, it suggests that this is not a matter of keeping weak people away from fighting :)
chapter 41
this seems a bit off topic but let’s talk about the misogyny in jujutsu society. momo points out to nobara that the women from the zenin clan are expected to be perfect. the misogyny runs so deep to the point where some women aren’t allowed to even fight. you may think that this is just about the zenin clan but it’s about society as a whole. that’s why nobara responds to momo in a more personal sense. she doesn’t care about the boys versus girls issue because she embraces all aspects of herself. she loves herself when she’s strong, and she loves herself when she’s dressed up and beautiful. if it only applied to the zenin family then nobara wouldn’t have responded the way she did.
in the chapter before, nishimiya explains, “even if a girl has skills, if she’s not cute, she’s looked down upon. of course, if she’s only cute with no skill, it’s the same. women sorcerers aren’t expected to be skilled, they’re expected to be perfect.”
some of the female characters in jujutsu kaisen apply to this. for example, maki and mai. they’re looked down upon because one can’t use a cursed technique or see curses, while the other’s cursed technique is weak. in chapter 148(?) naoya says the only thing maki had going for her was her face, but it’s ruined now so she’s nothing. the zenin twins fall under the “cute but not skilled” category in jujutsu society. before we can put utahime into a category, let’s examine mei.
i promise this will all connect so please bear with me LOLLL let’s move on to mei. we find out that mei has the ability to control crows. she deems this ability as weak because it’s simple and doesn’t have much attack or defense power.
she convinces herself that a sorcerer’s worth doesn’t revolve around their CT. by following this ideal, she soon found herself at her limit because you can only hone your physical abilities to an extent. she said she was crushed because she thought that her weak CT would forever stunt her ability to grow as a sorcerer. but because of all the training she did in order to not rely on her CT, she was able to combine her physical prowess with her technique to make what’s best of her ability to control crows.
mei is an example of a perfect woman based on the standards the jujutsu world has established for women. although she has a weak technique, she makes up for it with adept use of weapons and physical prowess. she found a way to incorporate this “weak” ability to make it something strong. she’s beautiful and powerful so therefore, she was promoted to be a grade 1 sorcerer. she is what a woman is expected to be in order to be acknowledged by others.
what about utahime? why couldn’t she follow the same footsteps as mei?
i can’t answer that because we don’t really know much about utahime so far. i can only speculate why. being a grade 2 sorcerer at 20 is not bad at all. but why is she stuck as a semi-grade 1 sorcerer at 31? that surely proves she’s just weak, right?
semi-grade 1 sorcerers are sorcerers who have performed well on missions with a person accompanying them. i feel like when utahime was on a mission to exorcise a grade 1 curse on her own (the final step of the grade 1 promotion process), something happened that gave her her scar and made her unable to fulfill the mission. it’s either that or she did complete the mission but her appearance is too unsatisfactory. can you recall what nishimiya said? if you’re cute and not skilled, you’re not good enough. if you’re not cute and skilled, you’re still not good enough.
in men, scars are a symbol of honor and strength. on the other hand, scars on a woman’s face are seen as an imperfection. as a result, those who are scarred are deemed imperfect and unsuitable for marriage.
gojo hates the way things are run because the higher ups are so close-minded. they make decisions on a whim and have no compassion for sorcerers who are breaking their backs on their orders. he wants to change jujutsu society for the better by raising the next generation of sorcerers to be as strong as him. the old-fashioned and narrow-minded attitude of the higher ups leads me to believe that utahime is stuck as a semi-grade 1 sorcerer because she is viewed as imperfect. utahime’s scar is most likely the reason contributing to her being held back. who would want to promote a woman who isn’t beautiful enough to be a grade 1 sorcerer?
she obviously has a lot to offer because she’s a teacher at Kyoto. todo, a grade 1 sorcerer, has never shown any sign of disrespect towards utahime despite the fact that he surpassed her in rankings. he trusts in her and believes she has some things she can teach him.
can we additionally address the fact that gojo respects mei? he refers to her as mei-san and says that there’s no way she’d cry because she’s strong. mei has a weak technique though? 🤔🤔🤔 controlling crows?!?!?! nah im jk, mei is strong with and without her technique, of course. since gojo respects someone like mei, a person who doesn’t have an out-of-this-world technique, i believe his view of someone strong isn’t solely based on their technique. when he calls utahime weak, he may not be insulting her CT. it’s just all jokes because in chapter 65, geto and mei join in on the fun too and pick on her. mr. hot shot knows that utahime is a valuable asset to his plans so he entrusts her with the task of unearthing the traitor(s). if she was so incapable of such a thing, why did he pay mei to do the same job? 🤔
*a lot of people think mei was actually paid by gojo to promote his students but that’s incorrect. it goes against everything gojo advocates for. he wants his kids to enjoy their youth because his was taken away. being a sorcerer is not a smooth job and no matter how many years you’re in the profession, it never gets easier. he doesn’t wish for his students to be thrust in a world full of hardship and loss, which is why he was so against yuuji and yuta’s execution. he works hard to preserve the innocence of his students. he doesn’t want yuji’s heart to break, not even once. why would he pay mei to promote his students to grade 1? that would automatically strip them of their innocence and youth and push them into a world full of burden and pain.
PHEW that was long. how does this all tie back to utahime’s future role in the story?
her CT will probably come in clutch in an important battle
she might be the one to help get gojo out the box (A REACH i know)
she will help gojo with his plan to overthrow and change jujutsu society as a whole
i don’t really have to dive into the first bullet point. as for the second one, look at what i found!
in the second opening, utahime is seen searching for something in a dim forest.
*i read an analysis about opening 2 and apparently this just symbolizes her looking for the traitors. that makes sense too.
in chapter 144, this scenery pops up right before they enter master tengen’s base(?) the branches are thicker than in the opening but it gives the same vibes to me. i think utahime will be the one to break gojo out.
why utahime? well, gojo is their best shot at stabilizing whatever the fuck is going on right now. she knows it’s a crime to unseal him, but she wants her students to be safe so she’ll probably risk it. plus, gojo’s flashback starts with him breaking utahime and mei out of a building with a barrier. i think utahime breaking gojo out of the prison realm will make a perfect parallel :3
that theory is a massive ass pull I KNOW. it’s just fun to think about. it’s likely that kurusu hana will be the one helping yuuji and megumi out with that.
if utahime isn’t the one freeing gojo, she will definitely come face to face with the other traitors.
ive read numerous Reddit threads and tons of users think she’ll play a small role in the story—nothing too significant. i’m perfectly content with that as well. i never expected her to be gojo level or anything like that LMAOO. as long as we get to see her technique in action, i will be satisfied 😮💨
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i feel like there may be a few things i missed but i tried to include everything i could think of. the organization of this post is quite off but im too lazy to rearrange it in a way that makes it more coherent LOL. thank you so much for reading. ill probably analyze gojo and utahime’s interactions in the manga and anime next :-)
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