#input from people with what they're representing

[little-forest-goblin]

Steve blackman i will never not have time to drag you you fucking bitch. You not only ruined a good show with your shitty choices for the fourth season and cut back 6 to 4 but you also blatantly ignored david castenada who tried telling you in the nicest way possible that that fuck ass choice of making a love triangle was uncomfortable and weird. I can't look at any of the interviewings for season 4 because I can feel this thick tension that is awkward between all of them. But lets not just talk about that lets talk about your fucking controversy that has just appeared of you allegedly making a toxic bullying work environment for your staffers. 12 anonymous people gave complaints to HR about your fucking behavior. You pitted staff against each other making an angry and untrustworthy working environment. Oh lets not also talk about the fact there were complaints of your ass making lewd remarks that people said were sexist, homophobic and transphobic. Elliot page praised you for your fucking handling of his characters transition but other sources say you also would praise your team and staff in public and than go behind there back and bully them in private you fucking two faced scumbag. You also would ice out your own fucking staff if they didnt fall in line with what you wanted or would blatantly get rid of them. How fucking power hungry do you have to be to do that shit. Lets not also forget that you were a bastard to a poor pregnant woman who didnt tell you she was pregant when she was hired and had to go on maternity leave so you failed to extend her contract because she didnt make it your business she was pregant you fucking creep. You gossiped and talked shit about your own staff but really you should praise them since they're there to help make this show run. Their there to make this whole operation not fucking crumple and you’d think you’d give them some sort of respect but you wanna act like a little bitch and whine and cry when you dont get your way and get called out when they dont wanna do something that is uncomfortable for not just them but everyone else. Let's also not talk about how you did not give proper credit to those who made scenes and stories for the show and took all that credit for yourself. Your a fucking piece of shit that couldnt come up with your own ideas so you stole everyone else’s because your unoriginal and had nothing good to input within the conversation. On top of all that, I think people should check your computer because you had no problem making a creepy relationship between two vastly differently aged actors. Aidan Gallagher is freshly of age to depict mature romantic relationships within tv shows and you instead of finding someone who is more closely to his age you pick the actress that he GREW UP AROUND. HE WAS A CHILD WHEN THEY FIRST MET. But also fuck Aidans parens too for not maybe coming out and saying that this is fucking creepy. Maybe they where silenced and paid off to stay quiet but looking at Rob gallaghers creepy and controversial fucking behavior anyway, i dont think it took much for them to be silent. The fact that you deny any and all allegations of any of those claims and your representatives tried to save your ass steve and than there was a investigation which surprise sur-fucking-prise was less than comprehensive. You probably paid those investigators off to get off your ass and have your representatives scrambling so you don’t get cancelled and you keep lining your pockets with money that you probably stole from your staff too since you wanna steal their work. so might as well double it and give it back to yourself, right? . Fuck you and everything you stand for steve blackman you toxic, manipulative, predatory, creepy fucking bastard. Fuck you. 

[anti-transphobia]

It sucks that what people typically call out Plushie Dreadfuls for (being "ableist" by having plushes themed around various disorders) is incorrect and a lot of thought and care goes into them and that misunderstanding needs to be corrected when people bring it up. But also the company is still ableist (utterly horrible stigmatization of ASPD, NPD, and schizophrenia)

[stormz369]

☕💖 Can I Get Your Number? ☕💖 Ch 35.5 & Jason Todd Week Special! Day 5: Family + Jason is a Literature Nerd

A/N: this official mini-chapter is part of the event being run by @jasontoddweek2025 but life got in the way of posting yesterday, so ... here we are! This chapter was inspired by 👻 anon!

Jason Todd x (f)Chubby!Reader

written with a female reader in mind, first person pov, no use of Y/N, let me know if I missed anything worth tagging!

warnings/labels: family fluff

wc: 830

Chapter Selection

I was reading Jason's annotations in his Christmas present for me when Damian knocked on the door. “Do you remember those snotty women at the gala?”

I blinked a bit, chuckling softly; “hello to you too, kiddo. Yeah, I do. Why?”

“They were talking about Todd's scars. … Todd gets upset when people do that.”

“He does, yes?”

Damian looked around, as if double checking that Jason was out. “... I … might have something for that … it will require your input.”

I raised an eyebrow; “oh? Do tell.”

The boy set his backpack on the table, pulling out his sketchbook. He flipped through it, and after a moment's pause he passed it to me. I smiled softly, taking the book. The page he'd flipped to had a rough sketch of Jason's face and torso. A few of his more prominent scars were delicately traced out, and above them were drawings; tattoos.

His shoulders and the side of his neck had tribal inspired patterns in heavy black lines. Damian had designed the tattoo so it curled toward his jaw, making the J on his cheek look like an intentional part of the design. Some particularly aggressive burn scars on his forearm were transformed into a skin rip design with flames and dragon claws curled around the muscles. And finally, Damian had outlined an oak tree over his autopsy scar.

“This is so sweet, Damian! I think he'd love to see your designs.”

He shifted his weight between his feet, squirming a bit. “They're not done yet … the tree's not quite right yet … I was thinking of putting a robin in this branch, and a bat here, and maybe a sword plunged into the trunk, but I'm not sure what else to put in…”

“And you want my opinion?”

He nodded, smiling a bit; “... If you don't think it's too dumb?”

“It's not dumb at all!” I pulled him into a hug, running my fingers through his hair. “My sweet boy~”

A pink flush dusted his cheeks as he looked away shyly. “O- ok, Sister, that's enough.”

I released him, smiling softly. “Ok, sorry. Let's take a look at this… what does the sword represent exactly?”

We sat at the table, looking over the design. “The sword is for nobility and honor. … He's … he's like King Arthur; rising from the gutter to stand for something greater, and inspire greatness in others…”

I smiled softly, biting my lower lip a bit. “... I think he'd be incredibly moved if he knew you thought of him that way.”

Damian cleared his throat, looking away. “Tt. It's not a big deal…. I still feel like it's not complete though…”

“... Why are you doing this, kiddo?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, artists don't typically create for just anyone. Usually the people they create for are important to them… Yeah?”

“... Of course he's important to me … he's my brother.” Damian mumbled into his chest.

“Then maybe what the tree is missing is something to represent your relationship. … Expressing his love for you all doesn't come naturally to him, but I know you’re very important to him. You're like … constellations, guiding him through the darkest nights.”

Damian slowly grinned, pulling the sketch book toward himself as he began to draw. I smiled softly, ruffling his hair gently as I got up to grab him an after school snack. By the time I returned, the tree had nine stars sprinkled through the branches. The robin and bat were nestled amongst the leaves, and he was finalizing the lines on a medieval sword, plunged halfway into the trunk of the tree.

“It's beautiful, sweetheart.” I smiled softly. “You're so talented…”

“... Do you think Todd would like it?”

Before I could reply, I heard the sound of Jason's key in the lock. Damian clutched his sketchbook to his chest as Jay opened the door.

“Honey, I'm home~” he called out, grinning.

“Hi baby~ how was your day?” I leaned in as he kissed my cheek.

“It was good, … you two working on homework or something?”

Damian shifted a bit; “... ah … no, not exactly. … I have … it's not done …”

Slowly, he let the sketchbook slide onto the table. Jason leaned over him to look, blinking slowly. “... Is … is that me, demon brat?”

“It's just an idea … It’s dumb …” Damian scrambled to close the book, but Jason reached over him to stop him, looking over the designs carefully.

“... Can I … have this?”

Damian slowly nodded, ripping the page out to offer to him. “... It's really nothing, it's not even done …’’

Jason gingerly took the page. “... It's not nothing, Damian. … It's … it's really nice.”

Damian perked up ever so slightly; “... do … Do you like the stars? They’re us, the family … she said … we’re constellations? … Do you like it?”

Jason looked over the design again; “... I do. I like it a lot.”

Next ->

Divider by: @saradika-graphics Fanart in the header by: @crowkip

Taglist (open): @jawdropforkpop @krys0210 @snowy-violet @superthoughts @wordsfromshona @mystic60 @iwannabealocalcryptid @morstuavitamea-a @frosty--giants @arisa191 @prized-jules @phoenix666stuff @dinonuggysandhuggus @anuttellaa @whore-of-many-hot-men @cottage-worm @v1ckycheesue @roastyyytoastyyy @sarakmec @thestarcatcher7297 @stupidlyunhinged @mishkapi @mermaidgirl-11 @bunniboo0015 @bibibusinessman @iimichie

[the-fabled-void]

*emerges from lab, with messy hair, eyebags, and carrying a conspiracy board*

We've been thinking about Frisk's personality the wrong way! They're not either merciful or murderous, or flirty or childish. They're all of them at once. Their personality is one of possibly. They aren't one individual option, but choice itself.

They represent something we don't consider a part of their personality as a human, and that's something that makes them *so* human. Because humans aren't a set of choices, but all of those choices combined, and the drive and possibly to make any of them at any given moment.

They're not a blank slate or something you project yourself onto. They're their own character, you just help them choose.

The choices are always there, Frisk always has them. The choices are not ours, they're theirs.

The Frisk who flirts with every monster, being silly and becoming friends with them? That's Frisk.

The Frisk that's pissed off at everyone but still wants to be friends? That's Frisk.

The goody two shoes who's as nice as possible? That's Frisk.

The Frisk that does what is necessary to achieve the best ending? Frisk.

And the Frisk who kills off everyone, just to see what happens? Still Frisk.

They only allow the player to choose between a very specific set of actions. Fight, Act, Item, Mercy. And the ACTS change from monster to monster, only a few they seem really fond of staying the same.

As expected from a kid, they seem to be driven by curiosity. They want to know as much as possible about a given Monster. Conversations- there's quite the extensive set of options when calling someone. You don't have to give them any input for what to say if they choose to call anyone. Simply calling is enough.

It's implied they made quite a dirty joke if they're told to flirt with Toriel after calling her mom. Because believe it or not, kids sometimes know about weird topics without engaging in them.

Even their expression could be used as evidence: -_- is now they look- their eyes closed, they're allowing you to guide them.

Despite how people portray them, they're not a silent protagonist, they're not speechless. They're actually quite talkative.

It's like they recognize that you want to play the game, and that you can only do that by giving them choices. And they allow you to give them choices. But only those specific ones.

It's like they're saying "you can play, but you gotta play by my rules"

Not to mention the circumstances that have to happen for you to know their name.

Because despite all these options, the kid does have a preference. They want to be friends with everyone. Or at least, they want everyone to be as happy as they can make them. That's why, only once you manage to help them free everyone, you get to learn that they're called Frisk.

"You're not really [Player Name], are you?"

That? That's Asriel, not just acknowledging that Frisk is not his childhood friend and kindered spirit. The one he misconstrued in order to relate to them, who wasn't perfect, but still trying their best. He knows Frisk not them.

No, he's acknowledging that, despite everything, despite the choices made in their regard, Frisk is happy. Someone chose for them, but they did it by their rules. Everyone is happy, just like they wanted. And Frisk did not change as a person.

You do not learn Frisk's name if you do not appease them.

Instead, they disown your choices, and you by refusing to let you know who they are, if you don't make them happy.

If you do the opposite of what they want you to do, you only get what you've been doing reflected back at you.

By someone bearing your name but not your face.

And they? [Your name]? Chara? ? They will remind you, even if Frisk is gone, that you were the one to drive them away.

"You didn't follow the rules, you betrayed the trust I gave you. You proved yourself unworthy of control. I won't even allow you the illusion of playing through me anymore."

You thought you could do what you want with them, but now, they're rejecting you.

Despite how little control they seem to have, Frisk is the one pulling the strings.

This is their game.

[just-a-ghost00]

General messages for the collective

Group 1

2 of pentacles, 2 of swords, King of cups, ace of cups, page of swords, queen of cups, back of the deck 7 of pentacles

You lack clarity and balance concerning a person that you love. This is a romantic interest that holds a lot of importance to you, considering they are represented by a King. This person may have played hot and cold with you, either voluntarily or because of their life circumstances. Their actions and words got you confused and you may have thought that this person wasn't truthful or reliable. Soon, you will gain clarity on this person's point of view and experience. You will be able to understand their stance better and there may be a renewal in your connection. Because clarity has been made about feelings and expectations for the connection. Either you or they communicated clearly how you felt about the situation which will enable both of you to heal and regain balance in the connection. That could either mean that you will receive an apology from this person and explanations about their behavior which will allow you to move on from them or the conversation could bring you closer and help you move on to a new step together. With the Queen of cups also being present in the reading, I get the feeling that this person considers you an equal and values your input. It is at least very obvious that they care about you and do not wish to cause you harm. With this set of cards, I don't sense any ill will coming from this person. This isn't to say that their actions haven't had a bad effect on you but this person's first intention was never to bring you down or make fun of you. The ace of cups is at the center of the deck. So the heart of the matter is compassion, love, understanding. This card can symbolize a new start in a connection, the will to open up to another and share feelings. It's the blossoming of interest and the expression of a genuine care. The 7 of pentacles at the back of the deck suggests patience and caution, taking the time to assess the situation and leave up to fate a part of the outcome. The 7 of pentacles indicates that has person has done what was necessary to set their goals into motion and have reached a stage where there is nothing more that they can do to ensure a positive outcome. The ball is no longer in their court.

Possible confirmation signs : repeating 2s, water signs, letters P, C & S

Group 2

7 of pentacles, 8 of swords, King of cups, 9 of cups, 9 of wands, page of cups, back of the deck 8 of wands

You may have felt drawn to group 1 as well. If that is the case, I suggest that you check that group too. Because the third card is exactly the same and the 7 of pentacles was group 1's back of the deck. So your energy and group 1's seem to be linked. I have the energy here of people that feel like they gave a situation their everything and are running out of options to make it progress. Yet, they haven't given up on the idea of succeeding, because this situation matters a lot to them. This is something that they are deeply emotionally invested in. It is a dream of theirs, whether that dream is in the form of a project or a person, maybe even both. This person is determined to fight for that dream no matter what but they're at a loss at what to do. They feel like they tried everything, used all the tricks up their sleeve and thought about it over and over again. Yet, they can't seem to find a solution that allows them to get the desired result. They feel like they're in a dead end and they have no emergency exit or detour route that they can take to get where they want. They feel stuck and exhausted, discouraged but still adamant on trying their best until their last breath. I get a feeling of urgency, like "if I don't act soon enough I'm gonna lose my dream", "I will lose the opportunity and I don't want to miss it". I get a "now or never" kind of vibe from this spread. It's like they wish they could jump straight away to their goal because right now they feel like they're in a maze and if they keep walking in it they're gonna miss the exit and will never see the end of it. It's like a lion in a cage, running in circles trying to find ways to be free and find their home. I saw the card that was hidden behind the 8 of wands and it was the 9 of pentacles. And it gave me the feeling of someone trying to save money to travel. The 8 of wands calls for quick action and swift communication. It's also an encouragement to move. So if there's a particular goal you have in mind and you feel like you're not making any progress, you are encouraged to make a significant move towards that goal. There's a need to take a risk and get out of one's comfort zone once and for all.

Possible confirmation signs : repeating 8s and 9s, fire and water signs

Group 3

10 of wands, 10 of pentacles, 2 of swords, 2 of pentacles, King of cups, King of pentacles, back of the deck 3 of swords rx

These messages seem to be more career oriented but that doesn't have to be the case necessarily. I pick on the energy of someone feeling burdened with their responsibilities and overworked. Yet, they are sucessful in their career and projects. That doesn't seem to satisfy them. There may be a feeling of boredom or lacking visibility on the future. I also pick up on the energy of someone that is in a period of doubt concerning their life in general, but also concerning two people or two instances. There is an energy of pondering, decision making, reevaluating one's priorities and goals. There's also an underlying fear of being disappointed, hurt, abused. These energies are weighing on the mind and creating an extra pressure. There's a need to take time to process information and analize what is going on. I looked for a clarifier for the 3 of swords rx and got the page of pentacles. Studying, investigating may be the key to an important step on your journey. This page of pentacles could also represent a younger person, possible an earth sign, that could help you on your journey. I am also picking up on reading, research. Organization is also important. Anticipation, task managing, being open to new ideas and unconventional ways of proceeding. All of these elements could be useful resources in your situation. I'm also picking up on the energy of two people that are circling around each other and testing each other. Neither of them are willing to make a step and risk being vulnerable. Both are testing and trying to assess the intentions of the other. If one has a very practical approach to the situation, the other has a very strategical approach. And I feel like this has been going on for a while. This in a way feels similar to the energies of group 1 and 2. So there may be a lot of people that are going through a similar experience of going back and forth with something or someone. There's a need hear to clearly assess one's intentions to be able to decide on the appropriate course of action.

Possible confirmation signs : repeating 2s, 10s and 14s, letters K and P, Scorpio, Taurus, fixed signs

[pheebsvegetable]

hi gonna give my input on the analogy pictured below bc i love being analytical + i need to give my two cents :3 idk very much about insects/collecting them so this is probably a poor interpretation.

i would also like to apologize that it's 10pm where i live and normally i'm asleep right now. none of my thoughts are coherent, and i hope they make somewhat sense.

full analysis (shortened is at bottom of post):

when bugs are pinned to the back of a display case, they're incapable of moving. not by choice, but by force. because he's comparing himself to the bug in this situation, he's forcing his own self from expressing his true emotions; he seems careless on the page previous and the one this analogy appears on--which, he becomes defensive during some parts of conversation. he's doing anything to not break his character, even if it involves spewing a bunch of latin participles out at a peer.

he says he feels jekyll pulling back the layers of his figurative shell, which could mean that he can read lanyon better than he thought he could; because of this, he feels uncomfortably vulnerable. he's scared of being exposed because of the image he's built up for himself.

with this uncomfortable vulnerability, he's startled. jekyll is extremely close to unraveling why he pretends to not care about many things, that's something he doesn't want to speak or express.

and regarding the warm lighting and the coziness associated with it i saw someone else mention (can't remember their user, sorry)--many people correlate warmth and being loved. to be loved is to be known. the lighting could be used to further represent the repression of emotions from lanyon and how jekyll recognizes what he's doing due to their previous affair.

in short: i think that the analogy is referring to someone being able to see how you truly feel, and how polarizing it can be that someone has that ability.

i unfortunately don't have the energy to connect it to the rest of the comic but here's the extent of analysis i could do!!

[wraith-caller]

I;m thinking about thos Death Knights.

Amber Medallions +3:

These medallions, of the largest variety, were conferred to Godwyn's inner circle of distinguished golden knights.

Death Knight Helm:

The decayed golden wheel that adorns it represents their unbroken loyalty to Godwyn, he who became Prince of Death.

Death Knight Armor/Gauntlets:

Golden armor of the Death Knights, adorned with an antiquated depiction of the Erdtree. These knights, once Godwyn's personal guard, quested to find their transfigured master's cadaver surrogate—for the coming age of the Duskborn.

Death Knight's Twin Axes/Longhaft Axe:

The knight, once the personal guard of Godwyn, was also the protector of the Prince of Death's cadaver surrogate.

So what does this all say? First, these knights were some of Godwyn's most loyal knights. They served him before his death, and remained loyal to him even after he 'died'. They sought to find and protect Godwyn's "cadaver surrogate". In Japanese, the term used instead is "divided corpse", which is a little more comprehensible. As it stands, 'cadaver surrogate', to me at least, implies a corpse that died in someone else's place. Which IS what Godwyn's soul did, dying in place of Ranni's. However, the context it's used in in the descriptions is weird because they refer to it as GODWYN'S surrogate corpse, when, if it is a surrogate of anyone's corpse, it's Ranni's. Granted, I am but a simple fool, and may be misunderstanding completely. However, divided corpse seems quite straightforward given that yes, his corpse IS dividing and growing and blooming into deathroot, pieces of his body scattered over the Lands Between, with several more fully formed copies of his corpse appearing in the crypts of the Shadow Realm and Stormveil castle.

Anyway, back to the knights. The idea that they have some insight into Godwyn's will beyond his death is hard to grasp. For one, how does seeking these copies of his corpse help their cause? If they know of him as the Prince of Death, why protect and defend the copies instead of the original? In the base game, the only person to refer to him by this title is Fia, all others calling him 'the Golden'. So how many people even know about what's happened to him and what he's become? And how do they expect this Age of the Duskborn to even come about if they aren't...doing anything to help make it happen lol What were they waiting for? How did they KNOW to wait for anything to begin with? Where do they get the idea that Godwyn has any presence of mind to want to become this anyway if they aren't even interacting with his actual corpse but these diminished copies of it?

There are also some questions to be asked about when and why they went to the Shadow Realm because of this. It is of course a place where 'all forms of death wash up', but Godwyn's deathroot is already sprawling all over the Lands Between, and is even growing beneath Stormveil's castle. Why make the difficult trip to this sealed off realm when there is plenty of Godwyn to be found here in the lands they're from? They can't have been there before it was sealed and then left trapped there - the "wrath from afar" incantation mentions the people of the shadow realm also feeling it when the Elden Ring was shattered. If they were still part of the Lands Between at that time, there'd be no special reason to mention that, so that indicates to me it was sealed off before Godwyn's death. And his loyal knights were probably not there.

Personally, I read their undying loyalty as less about confirmation that Godwyn has an intention to become the Prince of Death, and more about their devotion to him being such that they will continue to serve him, no matter how twisted and grotesque he's become. That is their lord, and he still 'lives', albeit in this horrific, unnatural state, so they don't consider themselves relieved of their duty.

I do not think it's a coincidence that there is NO input in the entire base game or DLC from either Godwyn or one of Those Who Live in Death, while others around them make big claims about what these voiceless people want. Fia says they want to be uplifted and a permanent mainstay of reality, the Hunters call them vermin and claim they're perverting the Order, these Knights insist on the return of their beloved lord that they served so dutifully that they can't let him go, Miquella wants him to die a true death, and Fortissax does their best to stave off this infectious half-death. But from Godwyn, and the dead, we hear nothing.

[astriiformes]

Okay, fun question time. One of the various multimedia elements of the LotR Road Trip AU story is that I am planning on making playlists for each member of the Fellowship, the idea being that they're supposed to be snapshots into everyone's music libraries for when they have the aux cord in the car.

My music taste is pretty all over the place, which helps with a project like this, but I can't claim it's as broad as I would like when trying to represent the music tastes of nine different people. So I would love to solicit some ideas from people--genres, artists, even specific songs. You name it.

Here's generally the vibes I've been curating so far, though I'm not entirely married to all of them:

Frodo -- Indie, acoustic, folk? Probably some instrumentals. Chill beats to carry a cursed artifact to.

Sam -- Generally pretty upbeat. For sure some really traditional folk influences but also like. Folk rock. Should be an extremely feel-good playlist.

Merry -- Nerd music, to put it simply. Folk and filk, as well as some of the found-filk folks out there like Hank Green, probably.

Pippin -- Pop music! He's here to have a good time. Would especially love some input from the Gen Z crowd here since my pop knowledge is a little dated for the youngest member of the Fellowship. What Chappell Roan song would be his favorite.

Boromir -- He is puzzling me. I am keeping in mind that he should have some like. Elder millennial vibes. Currently have Green Day, etc on there but I'm trying to decide if that works.

Aragorn -- Dad rock, plus some modern rock. Think about your dad's road trip playlist (I know mine has several) and you're getting the right picture.

Legolas -- Pop and some indie/acoustic songs. Also a little musical theater. I'll be honest I'm making his eclectic on purpose. Definitely a little cheesy, aro/ace jams encouraged.

Gimli -- Metal, industrial, classical. There is no bigger Trans-Siberian Orchestra fan. Possibly also some labor songs, though I'm thinking more like metal/rock covers.

Gandalf -- Prog rock and other wizard music. I am doing something very dumb and silly and putting classic rock songs with meta references to LotR on his (ex: Led Zeppelin's Misty Mountain Hop), but other suggestions are good too.

Please feel free to totally contradict some of these vibes though. Ideally some of these playlists with be a little more all over the place than I would usually lean towards, since the idea is to represent someone's music taste, not make a true character playlist.

So! Help me out here. What do you all think each Fellowship member would listen to?

[goddessofroyalty]

Baby!Naph having a bad day where he just wont settle and both his parents are on their last nerve only for grandsire Silco to save the day.

I imagine it's the kind of day where Jayce has been in and out of meetings. And he's been trading off with Viktor when he's having breaks from them but no matter what either of them try to do Naph won't settle and Viktor is definitively taking the brunt of it. He's better off in their arms than put down though but it's been a long day and Viktor is clearly at the end of his tether from dealing with a crying baby and Jayce is called into yet another meeting.

Going with that set up because I want Jayce walking into a Councellors meeting (with the Zaun Representative there of course) with a clearly unhappy crying baby apologising but explaining (in a way that despite sounding kind of desperate but also clearly isn't going to be argued with) that he's giving Viktor a break, again he's very sorry about the situation but if this meetings so important this is what they're going to work with it. And sure people can make sly comments about how this is why you hire nanny's but that isn't exactly fixing the here and now problem of the crying baby who if handed over to someone unfamiliar is only going to get worse.

Silco sighing before taking his grandchild from Jayce into the hallway (with a not very subtle comment-threat about not discussing anything important / making any decisions he would want input on while he is gone) because Naph knows him well enough not to get worse. And Jayce clearly is also approaching the realm of Not Coping and also a Council chamber mid-session is not going to help his grandson settle.

In this instance I don't think there's anything he does that's different to Jayce or Viktor just that eventually Naph tires himself out from crying all day and falls asleep in his arms. The relief on Jayce's face when he re-enters the chambers with a now asleep Naph (and fact that his grandson is no longer crying) is worth it.

[amybizarre]

Wings lol

Inspired by avian fantasy concepts I went ahead and designed wings for most of the Welcome Home cast. While doing so, lore and worldbuilding kept running wild in my head. So consider this as a bit of an introduction to an AU?

Yes, I know, there's quite a few winged Wallys out there already (all very cool!), but I wanted to make sth similar too.

Also, scopophobia warning for Home's wings, lmao. They're the first under the cut.

Home

Home is a seraphim like being. Half deity, of sorts. Yet they are very much part of the physical world. They are the ruler of the Featherfolk, who reside in their kingdom of floating islands. The Featherfolk has developed a rich culture and beautiful architecture. Sadly, Home isn't the greatest leader, with ruthless tendencies and only truly caring if something benefits them themself. Thus things like slavery and brutal punishments for breaking the law are still a thing. Not good- No one, not even Wally, has ever seen Home's face, for it is always concealed by a plague doctor like mask. Home's soldiers and guards are also required to wear such masks as part of their uniform.

Poppy

Poppy is a being very close to Home. (I just haven't made wings for her, cause she basically already has them). Personality wise she's the polar opposite of Home. Rumors have it she used to rule the Featherfolk before Home did something terrible to her and took her place. But Home quenches any rumors like this at the root. People spreading information about how Home took over the throne, are met with harsh consequences. Besides, it's been so long ago, no one living remembers the incident. What Home doesn't know, is that Poppy is still alive and hides from them.

Wally

Wally used to be an orphan on the streets. At a very young age, he was taken in by Home, who raised him as the prince. Despite Home's input, Wally is a very kind and easy going individual. He treats his subordinates with care and empathy. Barnaby made sure to teach him that. He usually mingles with the common folk and is the friendly representative face in public for Home. He has yet to learn that Home is flawed. But when he does, he will do what is necessary to ensure the best for his people.

Barnaby

Barnaby doesn't have wings. He used to be part of the Furfolk living on the groundlands, before slave hunters caught him. Back then Wally was still very young and needed lots of care. So Home acquired Barnaby to do exactly that and be his male nanny, basically. Despite Barnaby's social situation, he maintained his mirthful attitude, although his jokes have the capacity to be very critical and cut deep. As Wally grew up they became the best friends. To this day Wally holds the highest respect for his old friend.

Frank

Every growing child needs a teacher. This was Frank's role. He was the royal teacher for young Wally and still is his most trusted advisor. He much more serious and calculated than Barnaby. They used to get into arguments back in the day whenever Barnaby distracted Wally from schoolwork too much. Frank likes to display a stand offish and grumpy demeanor, but he means well. Married to Eddie.

Eddie

Royal messenger and delivery boy. Married to Frank. Eddie takes his duty very seriously, although he has a tendency of getting dragged into shenanigans and forgetting was his initial mission even was. Nevertheless he is protective of his friends and loved ones, even defending strangers on the streets, if he sees them treated with injustice. His only setback is his fear of heights, which renders him nervous and fiddly at the thought of flying. Which is... Part of his daily life-

Sally and Julie

Sally and Julie work and travel together. Sally performs as an actress and multitalent on any stage that hires her and Julie travels with her as her loyal musician and helping hand. Most of the time they perform together, delivering the finest emotional tension and entertainment. The emotional tension between them transcends the stage, but it's nothing official yet.

Howdy

Howdy has his butterfly wings in this AU. Not really part of the Furfolk, not part of the Featherfolk either, he doesn't really belong to any group, because his kind has become so rare. He makes the best out of the situation by being a traveling merchant. His wings aren't the best for long term flying. They're more something for short bursts of flight. Because of that, he owns a fluffy dragon, both to do the actual traveling and carrying the goods.

I'll leave ve it up to you, where your place in this universe is. My initial idea was that you're Howdy's apprentice or business partner or mercenary, who he hired to protect him on his travels,since it would give you the opportunity to explore the realm and meet all of the other characters.

[explosionshark]

Thoughts on Faith and Dawn? They’re dynamic is so interesting to me

Talked a little bit about this one time (with input from @coraniaid)

It IS a really potentially interesting dynamic! There's so little of it on screen, which is a shame. What we do know:

-by s7 Dawn still (understandably!) resents Faith for trying to kill Buffy. She makes some protective comments about it. Actually I watched "Dirty Girls" last week and iirc she's the only one to call Faith out directly in that episode over that

-I think it's fair to extrapolate from what Dawn chooses to call out in that moment, that Faith's violence was never turned directly on her

-Despite this, Dawn does seem to warm up to Faith fairly quickly after she's back. They seem to be getting along in "Empty Spaces" and Dawn and the Potentials leap to Faith's defense when those crooked cops go after her at The Bronze. She essentially goes along with overthrowing Buffy and making Faith the leader in the confrontation that ensues (let's put aside the characterization choices for now and just focus on the fact that she is willing to allow Faith that level of authority)

-In early s3, all of Buffy's friends respond really positively to Faith showing up. I'm sure Dawn (young and impressionable) would be no exception. I talk a little about it in the post I link up there but it's really easy to imagine a situation where Dawn is really impressed by Faith in a way that her Baby Sisterness prevents her from manifesting towards Buffy. Especially since part of Faith's narrative role is to threaten Buffy's relationships in some way, I'm sure there was a bit of hero-worship to get Buffy feeling unexpectedly jealous.

So, there's tension between Buffy and Dawn in late season 7. Despite the initial shot Dawn takes at Faith over rejoining the team ("hotels that take Tried-to-kill-your-sister-types") she doesn't put up too much protest. Buffy at this point is being harsh and withdrawn from the team and her friends. Faith, meanwhile, is showing an interest in people, putting an effort into connecting to the girls, and generally being pretty mellow and non-judgemental. Aka, she's doing stuff that's pretty close to the classic big sister shit Dawn is no doubt missing.

Treating the girls (Dawn included) like people, learning things about them, crucially NOT being the woman cracking the whip that they're all pretty sick of, generally being more relaxed and less uptight, taking them to the Bronze and letting them underage drink instead of locking them in her busted ass living room and giving them speeches about how they're gonna die soon - yeah! Okay! You can really see how Faith becomes super popular just by being a little more chilled out and not being Buffy.

Given Dawn's comments earlier in the season (teasing but still) about feeling smothered by Buffy sometimes, I think there's something interesting in how Dawn seems to respond so much from being treated like someone mature, a little more hands off, but still with positive attention - it's easy to work back from there and imagine what kind of relationship she had with Faith in earlier seasons, why it worked, and why it hurt so bad when Faith betrayed them anyway.

Dawn and Faith have an interesting overlap in being used at various times to thematically represent different sides of Buffy. They're almost polar opposites that way - Dawn being Buffy's childhood, her innocence, Faith being her dark side - so to me there's always going to be something inherently interesting in the ways they relate to each other.

In conclusion: damn dude I really wish they had more scenes together idk

[hannahp0calypse]

Falin?

something i really like about falin is her existence for the majority of the story being entirely via what other people tell us about her. i'm pretty sure that's classic well-written "haunting the narrative" type stuff, but it still really appeals to me. it's fascinating seeing the various facets of a character represented almost entirely by how other people remember them - with the character themselves having little to no input on the way they're remembered and talked about.

an obvious point of comparison, to me, is rose quartz stevenuniverse - a character whose death and absence defines the narrative, presented as almost ridiculously perfect initially, and is slowly revealed over time to not be the simple, perfect "loving damsel" deal. obvs falin's deal isn't about slowly being revealed to be a very harmful person and the cause of almost all of the pain in the setting, but you see the comparison.

one part of falin's flavour of "haunting" that stands out to me is the way that the two characters who know her best - laios and marcille - both knew completely different parts of her life. this is part of why i bring up rose quartz - in SU, we learn about her the same way steven does. everyone else has mostly complete information about her, though obvs not 100%, and it's almost entirely about steven's discoveries. meanwhile, laios and marcille both have very incomplete pictures of falin because they both knew her at completely different stages of her life. they learn more about one of the most important people in their lives from each other, and grow closer to each other (and her!) as a result. it's really cool.

there's another element to it, but it touches a bit on endgame dungeon meshi spoilers, so

particularly interesting to me is how falin has an entire character arc while spending the majority of the story being dead (literally or spiritually). and that arc ties into the entire idea of her being this dead character, absent from the narrative and from her own agency.

falin's arc is about learning to take up space, to want and to need, to be open about her desires. it's kind of similar to how the inciting incident of the story allows laios to be open about his desires and interests in a way he hasn't been before, but stretched over the story's timeframe. part of why the characters learn about falin from each other is because she lived her life closing herself off from people to make herself more palatable. it's why the inciting incident is her own self-sacrifice for the people she loves!

but so much of dungeon meshi is about learning to open up to others, to share parts of yourself, and to share in parts of others. it's about eating, and choosing to eat, and how eating is living, and choosing to eat is choosing to live, and choosing to be eaten is choosing to die so something else can live.

it's why at the end of it all, falin revives because she chooses to eat, and chooses to live. chooses to take up space, and to make herself a presence in the world. just think about how she dresses and carries herself at the start of the story, vs how she does so at the end/in post-story materials.

i like falin :>

[the-motif-deck]

The Motif Deck is now available on Game Crafter!

Thank you, everyone, for your interest in this deck and for your input on its final touches. The Motif Deck is now available for purchase at The Game Crafter.

(Marker for scale)

What is The Motif Deck?

The Motif Deck is a unique cartomancy system where the images have no inherent meaning, and so its up to the reader to assign significance.

The cards consist of seven objects interacting with each other: hand, candle, rose, feather, key, string, and cup. Each image consists of one or two of these items on a plain colored background.

There are four colors: red, green, blue, and yellow.

Each image appears in the deck four times in different colorways, for a total of 112 cards.

These images were designed to be meaningless- they are just objects. What gives them meaning is the combination of color, frequency, placement, and interpretation from the querent and the reader.

I want the reading to allow a back and forth with the reader and the querent- be able to ask 'what does the cup represent to you? or 'who does this red key represent in your life?'

Who is behind The Motif Deck?

My name is Lee and I have been a tarot reader for more than ten years. I am the author and artist of The Sweeney Tarot, which has been my go-to deck this whole time.

As I became more skilled in reading, I learned that I had a unique reading style: rather than having specific spreads and card placements, I let the cards decide for themselves what order they're meant to be read in. I allowed myself to gravitate towards specific cards and read them like a story.

I have always been a fan of stories told through objects, and I thought about the symbolism of everyday items was powerful in that a key can mean so many things to so many people. And from there I began thinking about those objects and how a thread can symbolize love but it can also symbolize struggle. And I thought that was beautiful.

On occasion, I will be doing a tarot reading for a stranger and they will have a different interpretation of the cards than I do. I always encourage this- the querent knows who they are more than anyone. And I wanted to make something that made space for that.

Is there a guidebook for this deck?

There is a simple guide book that comes with the deck, that gives a sample reading as well as some approaches to the reading, some potential meanings to individual colors and objects.

However, I have been (and will continue) posting a weekly spread and asking people to give their interpretations. There are no wrong answers, and you can find them in the 'sample reading' tag.

Thank you, once again, to everyone that egged me on and gave their opinions. I hope you have as much fun with this deck as I have had showing it off to strangers for the past month.

[nikitricky]

These are 50 triangles "learning" themselves to mimic this image of a hot dog.

If you clicked "Read more", then I assume you'd be interested to hear more about this. I'll try my best, sorry if it ends up a bit rambly. Here is how I did that.

Points in multiple dimensions and function optimization

This section roughly describes some stuff you need to know before all the other stuff.

Multiple dimensions - Wikipedia roughly defines dimensionality as "The minimum number of coordinates needed to specify any point within it", meaning that for a 2-dimensional space, you need 2 numbers to specify the coordinates (x and y), but in a 3-dimensional space you need 3 numbers (x, y, and z). There are an infinite amount of dimensions (yes, even one million dimensional space exists)

Function optimization - Optimization functions try and optimize the inputs of a function to get a given output (usually the minimum, maximum, or some specific value).

How to train your triangles

Representing triangles as points - First, we need to convert our triangles to points. Here are the values that I use. (every value is normalized between 0 and 1) • 4 values for color (r, g, b, a) • 6 values for the position of each point on the triangle (x, y pair multiplied by 3 vertices) Each triangle needs 10 values, so for 10 triangles we'd need 100 values, so any image containing 10 triangles can be represented as a point in 100-dimensional space

Preparing for the optimization function - Now that we can create images using points in space, we need to tell the optimization function what to optimize. In this case - minimize the difference between 2 images (the source and the triangles). I'll be using RMSE

Training - We finally have all the things to start training. Optimization functions are a very interesting and hard field of CS (its most prominent use is in neural networks), so instead of writing my own, I'll use something from people who actually know what they're doing. I'm writing all of this code in Python, using ZOOpt. The function that ZOOpt is trying to optimize goes like so: • Generate an image from triangles using the input • Compare that image to the image we're trying to get • Return the difference

That's it! We restrict how long it takes by setting a limit on how many times can the optimizer call the function and run.

Thanks for reading. Sorry if it's a bit bad, writing isn't my forte. This was inspired by this.

You can find my (bad) code here:

https://gist.github.com/NikiTricky2/6f6e8c7c28bd5393c1c605879e2de5ff

Here is one more image for you getting so far

[msfbgraves]

The first Godfather movie is on Y*utube for free now! I rewatched it and it was just as great as I remember, so on to Part 2. But then I went on redd*t to check out some Godfather threads, and was disappointed to see so much discourse on who was hotter, Apollonia or Kay. And why there is so much hate against Kay, mainly because she is “too feminist” and “educated”, doesn’t “obey or support” Michael, and that she’s not as beautiful as Apollonia. All in all a disappointing experience. I didn’t see any male characters reduced to how handsome they were or were not : /

Let me help you there, then, Nonnie - of course Michael was destined to become the new Don - he is far prettier than Fredo, Sonny or Connie. And Vito was prettier than Don Fanucci all along! 😎

All this "Kay isn't good enough for Michael" discourse - he pursued her. Both in film 1 and 3. And the only time I felt Kay was weak, was when she said yes when he returned. Imagine, here is your war hero boyfriend who says he wants a clean American life... and then he shoots two people, leaves the country, ghosts you for a year, tells you he has become a career criminal and then proposes marriage. She should have said no, she really isn't open to this, but is this man, who she knows has people killed with no repercussions, a man she can refuse? As little as Vitelli could really refuse Michael's request to court Apollonia. The first thing Michael says to him is: "If you don't do what I want, I will kill you, and what I want is meet your daughter."

But alright maybe love isn't rational. Maybe they loved each other still. Kay really wasn't suited to mob life and that is on Michael. He knew who she was and it didn't matter, he wanted her. He had barely a clue who Apollonia was, her with no English and he with broken Italian. It didn't matter, he wanted her. Kay would have been perfect for Michael Corleone, aspiring senator, which is what he was when they met. But he didn't care Kay was not suited for who he was now. Why didn't he grieve Apollonia and find another mob wife? Why didn't he remarry after their divorce? Even when he proposes Kay is already reluctant and Michael pushes and pushes and pushes. She must represent something he actually does want, still.

But it's always the woman's fault when relationships don't work out, isn't it? No Kay wasn't a good mob wife. She didn't want to be one. She got out with her children - that is something Michael never managed. And Apollonia is something many men imagine they want, but when they have it, they get bored. I am not saying Apollonia wasn't intelligent, but if you get told to completely erase yourself into motherhood, which means you can't offer more than comfort and sex - that's not enough for a lot of people. And it's not like these women wouldn't have had more to offer but everytime they try they get shut down. And what you get then is Carmella, which may have suited Vito - that man who craved domesticity above all else - but even Sonny and Michael needed more input from her than she could give. So Michael fell for the total opposite. And maybe Apollonia was a fierce presence who might have become to Michael what Connie became, but we can't know. We don't know what she and Michael talked about. We know she was very beautiful and made Michael laugh, and she may or may not have had a slight independent streak. That's it.

I feel that they might have worked because they clicked emotionally and Apollonia knew the life. But Michael didn't look for someone like her again. He looked for Kay, again and again and again.

If she doesn't suit him - and no, she doesn't suit a Don - Michael should try to figure out what itch he was trying to scratch with her. Oh, and that obedience shit - in my experience, boys who go on about that are deeply insecure about something. They couldn't get a well trained dog to obey them, let alone a person!

All these men who think they're owed power while being unwilling to do what they'd have to to obtain it, always want women to fawn. Men who have what it takes to gain power, should they aspire to, usually spend time honing a skill. They rarely throw their weight around putting others down. No matter where they start, the bottom or the top - they put the work in. Michael did, Sonny did, and Fredo mostly complained. As much as we see anyway. If Fredo had done a good job with what he was given, or would have found himself an opportunity, he would have won Michael's respect. Not position,but respect, like Tom. Instead Fredo demanded respect for his position as an older brother.

That's the type of man who whines about having women obey him.

[bellaaldamas]

I just wanted to say, thank you and the other fans from this part of the GoW fandom.

In a place full of trolls and gamerbros who turn characters that they deem annoying into irredeemable, useless bitches (Freya, Angrboða) and characters they do like are reduced to either prize for someone (Thrúd, Sif and somehow, Freya again) or into their masculinity idol (Kratos, whom they only accept as the testosterone caricature godkiller and his development seen as creators turning him soft. This claim is at it's peak with Ragnarok, but it was there back in 2018 such as wanting Kratos to beat or even kill Atreus for "acting like a brat". What a horrible mindset!) - It's nice to have a side with people who are welcoming, creative and genuinely fun to interact with.

Your analyses - both fandom and in-game inputs - are a delight to read. They're beautifuly written, intelligent and well formulared, I always feel smarter after reading them.

Apologies if you prefer to discuss this in DMs, I wanted others to read this too.

I wish you a wonderful rest of your day/night 💛

Thank you so much for this message, this kind of feedback truly makes existing in this - and, admittedly, other fandoms - worth it. Your summary of my ramblings genuinely took me by surprise as I haven't been "conventionally" active in the fandom intentionally due to negative past experiences with other fandoms. Those occasional inputs I do come up with are mainly hastily written bursts in broken English.

I don't make a secret out of the fact that in my experience all fandoms, definitely not just Gow(R), are toxic to varying degrees due to trolls employing the very same tactic everywhere they go. For one, it's creating the illusion of dominance of their opinion in terms of quantity (as they have no arguments to back up their stance other than canon twisting nonsense they clearly realize that "quality" is not their strong suit). To attain that, they resort to a number of other tactics typically used by abusers both online and in real life.

As such, whenever trolls see intelligent and thoughtful people refuting their "points" they know they cannot come up with a single canon compliant rebuttal. Therefore they dog-pile in droves as to wear down the opponent who inevitably has to stop responding to them at some point. Because a logical person who dedicates time and thought to formulate an argument, fact checks and brings up evidence and quotes from the source material simply cannot withstand a wave of unhinged trolling coming at them left, right and center. They certainly cannot respond to each ridiculous one line statement of the trolls (such as the types of statements you bring up, in the vein of "Freya is a b1tch, she should've DyEd instead of He**d*all!!11!!") by typing out a thorough and researched response each time. As it would require not just spending hours on it but repeating themselves numerous times over.

The above behavior from trolls is what caused me personally a burnout from the fandom culture overall and led to my taking a distance. When I engage with people in online communities I tend to avoid blanket statements and try to always back up my points with examples from canon. Trolls don't need any of that and always dismiss those points or, at best, make it look like they acknowledge them (by quoting back). But instead of replying with canon facts they resort to Strawman Arguments or Ad Hominem.

In Gow(R) and other gaming fandoms there's also the matter of the trolls looking for "backup" in the form of big bloggers/reviewers who express, in some respects, a view of the plot and characters similar to them. Which trolls use as another "proof" their opinion is supposedly held by the majority. But the uncomfortable - for them and those reviewers - truth is that YouTube community (a cesspool of trolling as of now) represents hardly even 1 percentage of the general audience (one that pays actual money for the games). Which at most passively watches some of those videos, mainly when they have a click baiting title.

A prime example is that "viral" video with millions of views about Atreus supposedly "having a crush on Thrud". Looking at the comment section it becomes obvious that the people leaving humorous and lighthearted remarks don't take the video or the title statement seriously. Whereas the actual trolls who consider Atreus a "selfish little runt" (c) but somehow good enough to be a prize/reward for Thrud (whom they either sexualize or treat as their girlboss self insert); and who deny that Atreus and Angrboda is the only canon budding romance arc in the series are the same four or five people/nicknames. Who can be observed under other Atreus/Angrboda videos with their nonsense.

Furthermore, trolls actively participated in making the "Atreus and Thrud" piece viral in the comment section for at least one Atreus/Angrboda tribute video by mentioning the AT video and the amount of views it has. And openly insisting it somehow "proves that the fans want" Atreus and Thrud as a romantic arc for Atreus - the very same character they consider unworthy of being a secondary protagonist let alone becoming the main lead of the series or having his own spin off. But, as noted, they believe him to be acceptable enough to become a trophy man for their preferred girlboss.

That in turn brings us to another issue of male characters absolutely also being susceptible to objectification and being reduced to love interests and plot devices for female characters whom fandom minority treats as a part of their personal power fantasy. Atreus hating trolls originally didn't even deny they hated Angrboda "by association" with Atreus - thus even they initially admitted she was intended as his potential romantic partner by the narrative - because women to them are just men's extensions/accessories. But when they realized this argument makes it very easy to dismiss them for the bitter misogynists that they are they changed the tactic (also classic troll pattern) and started to distort canon in order to invent "arguments" to justify not just their Atreus hating but also their Angrboda hating stance.

To "warm up" they originally started calling Angrboda a "woke points character" which I cannot stress enough is utterly laughable when coming from Atreus/Thrud shippers. Because if there is a woke points or fan-service character in GowR it would be Thrud and Heimdall, respectively. They're the only ones who could be either removed entirely (Thrud) or replaced/have their screentime reduced to one or two scenes and the story would've been exactly the same. Thrud's Valkyrie aspirations have no influence on the plot whatsoever and are a complete filler. I'm saying this not because I dislike either of them but because it's an objective fact that smashes troll arguments flat.

Then there is the matter of the trolls being unable to stand the fact that interactions with Angrboda is Atreus's healthiest and most positive relationship in the story. It especially challenged them that Angrboda always valued Atreus's personal choices and didn't once question him (even when she disagreed with his train of action), his moral character or his right to take his own independent decisions (on the contrary, Thrud questioned his every move and deemed him untrustworthy the moment he made one, genuine mistake with Garm - and the trolls deemed it admirable because "finally someone put that little runt in place"; they don't actually ship Atreus and Thrud, they ship their own aggression and disdain towards Atreus projected onto Thrud).

Angrboda let Atreus exercise his agency (another troll nightmare as they cannot stand the very idea of Atreus having any) even when his actions went directly against her mother's words about the giant marbles or against the prophesy itself. That is, despite Angrboda considering the prophesy which killed both of her parents her lifeline. And believing that delivering said prophesy and the giant souls to Loki was her one and only mission in the existence full of loneliness (years of not speaking to another person, per Angrboda's own admission). As well as full of hard labor she had to engage in daily at a strikingly young age (purely out of love and sense of responsibility for every living thing in Ironwood) because there was no one around to help her (Atreus understandably expressed astonishment and admiration at that which Angrboda appreciated but - which is no less important - pointed out they're the same age; implying that she knows and acknowledges Atreus/Loki has gone through a lot himself and fared well). Even Angrboda's grandmother broke due to challenges that only made Angrboda more caring and compassionate.

Which is another point worth addressing about fandom culture because it tends to put down gentle and vulnerable girls and women as "unfeminist". Modern "feminism" has little to do with woman empowerment or rights and is a repackaged patriarchy that praises women/female characters as strong and independent only when they take the aggressor and conqueror mantle from a man.

Kratos fell a victim of a similar thinking on part of both the gamebro AND the "progressive" segment of the fandom. I realize Tumblr is not ready yet for that conversation, but masculinity is not inherently toxic and neither is femininity. What both gamebros and woke types cannot handle is that Kratos's development and Angrboda's character represent the type of masculinity and femininity, respectively, that isn't imposed on them by the sexist society but that is based completely on their free will and life experience. Moreover, Thrud is the one who was heavily influenced by the toxic environment she grew up in. Therefore considering her a "feminist icon" is both factually wrong and unwise (even if we discount her "treacherous ex wife" comment in regards to Freya because that was ALSO a part of Odin's toxic influence that she can now, hopefully, work through and move on from).

But the most delightful part is that none of those troll views and arguments have proven to matter at all. GowR developers went on to do literally every single thing trolls dreaded. Freya was not made into a "big bad b!tch who deserved to be killed by Kratos for being a less than perfect mother" (even though not only was Kratos the furthest thing from the father of the year in Gow18 but as you note, the very same people wouldn't object to physical violence against Atreus at his hands). Kratos continued to work towards healthier existence and carving a better path. Angrboda remained an emotionally mature, loving, caring and independent person with a potential of her relationship with Atreus going further in the following installments. Atreus is clearly set up to have his own spin off or remain a secondary protagonist or even become the main protagonist next game. That in and of itself is a prime example of how irrelevant trolls and their entitled demands are in the grand scheme of things.

That being said, as I always point out, we should keep in mind we cannot control media we consume, only our experience with it. A healthy emotional distance from it is the only way to avoid stress if/when the writers come up with decisions we might not like or find offensive. Mental well being should be our priority and media created by others should never define us.

Thank you again for this positive and inspiring message. Have a great and fulfilling time yourself <3