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pali-and-proud · 9 days ago

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I was thinking about Buddy's character arc earlier!

It's really, really rare that you see a redemption arc like Buddy's work so well in a romance, and that's because there's often some level of excusing abusive/harmful behavior on past trauma/characters/factors. I love Buddy so much, but early Buddy put in the WORK to make Chase's life hell.

Romance novels/webtoons are especially guilty of this--how often has the protag forgiven the love interest within two chapters? how often has the love interest even apologized for what they did, or illustrated remorse by actually trying to change?

And I think what really sets Buddy's arc apart from a lot of other redemption arcs is the decision to not give us any details about his past. We can somewhat discern Buddy isn't doing great, something Chase has picked up, but we also know Chase isn't doing great, something Buddy has not realized.

Chase said it best--regardless of whether it's morally right or not, if Buddy treats him shitty, Chase will call him out on it. Chase has the same amount of information as we do, and he makes it clear that it's not enough to justify the way Buddy treated him.

And Buddy CONFIRMS that, much later, by apologizing. Most importantly, we know Buddy's sincerity in the way he's clearly harboring guilt--his hesitation over Chase's injured hand, his scorn for his tendency to worsen a situation, and his reaction to Vampire-Guy's heart-filled speech.

What all this means is that we know Buddy feels upset and remorseful for what he did + how he treated Chase, without really knowing the angsty logic behind it. And that's brilliant, because Punko manages to use Buddy's facial expressions and cleverly-placed crumbs of information to help us sympathize with him without even giving us the trauma.

We as readers can't excuse his behavior (bc we literally do not know WHY he was that callous--the guy stuffed bugs in Chase's shoes and set traps to catch the kid), but we can compare who he was with who he's trying to be. And somewhere between the two, we can almost see the authentic, genuine Buddy.

It's such a brilliant way to set up/carry out the redemption of Buddy. If you check out episode one Buddy (please do), and you compare with episode 53 Buddy, it's an absolutely insane difference. You think ep1 Buddy would cry out for help? Would hug Chase? Would even consider apologizing to Chase, let alone saving him from a creep? Excluding the bit where Buddy tricked Deacon into nearly getting mauled by wolves, of course, but that was character-consistent and hilarious and honestly, would he be our boy if he wasn't slightly maschotic

Anyway, I love seeing a good character redemption arc, and I genuinely think Buddy's is one of the better arcs I've read in such a long time.

#cinderella boy #chase hollow #buddy #stargoth #all i do is fixate on characters that make me lose my mind #And I loved the speech Chase gave him #about how Buddy couldnt just apologize #and I love that hes genuinely sorry #i hope this makes sense lol #i was too sleep-happy #and now im slowly getting sick #the duality of students

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mademoiselle-cookie · 1 month ago

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Moriarty the Patriot Vol. 9

"En troupeau"

(translation: "in a flock")

It's only in the french version, not the english one. I don't know japanese so I don't know if it's the original intention to use words this negative and insulting toward women. The issue is, even if it's just the french translators who did a massive mistake, I had no problem believing that was just the author casually insulting women (my money on the english translators softening the term. Also the eng ver I read was fanmade).

Maybe in another manga, I wouldn't have minded. Like if the character is supposed to be a misogynist and you're supposed to think bad of them for that and not agreeing with them. But Albert is not supposed to be a sexist asshole. And given the manga's striking record in its depiction of women, I don't feel lenient.

And that's just the beginning.

(first picture of the guests)

♫ Où sont les hommes ? ♫

No reason why there shouldn't be men at the tea party. Or at least why women shouldn't be accompanied by chaperones. Etiquette was very important back then, and you wouldn't leave a woman alone with a man. The Moriartys are ONLY men to the rest of the world. No one would leave them with women alone.

Good Manners

Noble women have all received an education in good manners. They are more subject to the severity of etiquette than men. There is very little chance of seeing them throw themselves at men by elbowing each other and calling each other "primbêche" (again, only in the french version. In the eng one, it's just "these girls...")

Especially if the person in front of them is of a different rank than hers. The hierarchy is very important within the nobility and determines who you can talk to, how, who to be friends with, who to marry…

Sure, I know bc I've read hundreds of romance novels about English aristocracy but the author prides themself on depicting the real England of that period and doesn't even know that? Any webtoon whose story takes place in an aristocratic environment knows that, even when it's not the same universe as ours.

So no, aristocratic women don't behave like groupies (and of course the Moriartys have groupies, what did I expect)

It's basic for an author to do research. How many authors have you seen joke that they'd be mistaken for serial killers if you looked at their history? Do you know how long I searched for descriptions of the pain of tattoos for a fiction I'll never write?

It's crazy to put so little effort into a story that claims to be ambitious.

Servants

Nobles are raised from birth to view commoners - including servants - as inferior. Often, servants are more of a piece of scenery than actual human beings. It’s not meanness, it’s just their upbringing.

Of course, that’s the theory. There are exceptions. But that’s what they are, exceptions. Which are generally kept to oneself, and not shown publicly. Noble women won’t openly swoon over the Moriarty’s servants.

And if they ever got hurt doing something stupid, they would be more upset about their injury than about the lost work of a servant. That's what happens when people are used to having everything served on a plate since birth.

(And in this situation, the servant would indeed have been at fault. In a party with many people, an element that can easily hurt was accidentally thrown by the hip thrust of a not very thick woman? Thank goodness there was no one behind.

The protagonists obviously think that these women are wild and stupid. Why didn't they babyproof the entire property? Especially the rose garden, which is a place they know will be very busy.)

Flirting

Obviously, the woman who dares to flirt with William in an aggressive and vulgar way is fat and ugly. All the others are pretty and thin, except her. She can't be a pretty femme fatale who is used to having men at her feet and thinks that William will be the same. She must be an idiot who has the audacity to think that William will be attracted to her, whose inner ugliness is reflected on the outside. It's not stupidly fatphobic at all.

Popularity

Why are the Moriartys so popular? They are handsome but in the eyes of the general public, that's about it. They are not the only men who are attractive and have good status/wealth. In any case, their beauty is the only criteria cited to justify the obsession they are the object of (and it is NOT the most important criteria for noble society). Nothing justifies the groupie behavior of apparently all the noble ladies . They are not k-pop stars. Will is just a mathematician, not even the heir, and he is the one who receives the most attention?

There is no accounting for likes - and dislikes. If people think Jayden Revri is average-looking, I can assure you that there are women who don't swoon over the Moriartys.

The art isn't bad, but it's not good enough to rave about the characters that much. So all these compliments ring hollow. Just like in R&C

The chapter is just: look how beautiful and popular the main characters are.

(I won't talk about these ladies swooning over a math class)

Secret

William was showing off by saying that he put protection systems in his office to protect their secret. But apparently, he didn't think of a very basic one.

Locking the door.

The girls who entered his office don't seem very bright like all the women in this manga, so I highly doubt that they picked the lock (and even less broke down the door). And if these very young, naive girls managed to do it, they need to put better locks. It should be easy with a genius like Von Herder.

Speaking of him, why is the secret meeting room in the basement so poorly hidden? How did the dog (who is just a dog with the intelligence of a dog, not a spy looking for the Moriartys' secrets) get so far? Its owner too? Is the entrance to the basement so poorly guarded?

There is once again a simple solution.

A door. Locked. Hidden by a curtain or a screen. Or even the same appearance as the wall. How did they not get caught before with such miserable discretion measures? (Well, they got caught, because William and his brother are too stupid to wear a mask)

Sure, there is the wine cellar right next door. Well, they might as well not put the secret room just next to it, especially if it has no protection against intruders. Otherwise, they could have put away everything that could be compromising. And I maintain, at least a door should be put in the basement entrance.

"King's scholars"

Of course the brothers got nicknames at school because they're so cool and smart. It would have been stupid to be discreet. Especially since one was known for being stupid. And another wasn't a noble at all to begin with (he didn't get bullied for that? Lucky him)

???

How does he know it's for William specifically? They don't know they've been exposed and Milverton officially has no interest in William.

Explanations please!

Sherlock

And one booger for Sherlock, one!

Court case

I have nothing to say in particular about the trial, I don't know enough about law or how it was done at the time. For MTP standards, it's pretty good since we're shown the reasoning and it more or less holds up. Nothing transcendent (I'm pretty sure no judge will side with a street kid demanding blood, over a nobleman) but of a quality expected for this manga. The problem is elsewhere.

It's William again.

There is almost no difference between adult Will and child Will. He has the same mentality, the same habits, the same level of intelligence, the same impressive culture compared to his peers. Even considering that he lived in a bookstore and is a genius, it becomes hard to believe when he can speak and manipulate so well at such a young age and has such a vast culture. William has been perfect and superior since childhood. His adoption into the nobility, his aristocratic education and the years passed have made no difference. He is essentially the same.

(this is a problem his brother shares, being exactly the same as his adult version while he is far from having received the education necessary for it to be credible. But he is very secondary and does not have the ridiculously intelligent side)

And all this would not have been a problem if he had FLAWS. Flaws are important elements for a character, it makes them endearing and above all credible.

Look at Edwin from Dead Boy Detectives. He is very intelligent, has an impressive memory and a gigantic library of knowledge (and extremely kind despite a tragic past and strangely neither racist nor sexist despite the context in which he was raised). But if he is my babygirl, it is because he is a fucking diva (also, the other characters can shine independently of him).

William has no flaw nor weakness, no prospect of evolution, nothing. He's boring.

"The most famous trial in the world"

The newspaper tycoon only learned about this story while investigating William. Even Bond didn't know about it. So not very famous, no.

(to be fair, in french, it's just "of the century". Doesn't work either)

Cruelty

It's ridiculous how much they try to portray young William as cool when he should just be crazy. He's a kid who's 100% ready to cut up another person. The MC are only the villains they're supposed to be when it's cool and edgy, otherwise they're classic good Samaritans. When those two notions are opposite.

Higher Intelligence

You discovered his identity because he didn't think to hide himself when leaving a crime scene. Stop saying William is smart.

I repeat myself but by dint of repeating that the MC are exceptional, it has no weight anymore (especially if it is not compensated by their flaws).

Lord of Crime

Glad to see non-noble people being skeptical about the Lord of Crime but it makes no sense that he is already so famous and popular. When we see the main characters act, it is usually very discreetly, like with Jack the Ripper, or Irene. So how did he becomes so famous? The general public has no proof that he actually exists, it is just a rumor, but everyone treats him like a real person.

Bendley

A person who lacks finesse and is not very subtle. I wonder if he is sincere because it is so exaggerated but that is a question that the manga asks itself so not so much a criticism. And he is clearly treated with respect - more respect than Sherlock.

Reputation

It is sad that Milverton is supposed to be a very bad guy and not subtle (not a flaw tho), but given the situation in the US, and even in France, I can't honestly say that he is unrealistic.

In conclusion, this image I found which sums up William and his gang very well

#yuukoku no moriarty #moriarty the patriot #sherlock holmes #critic #moriarty the patriot critical

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asongofstarkandtargaryen · 2 months ago

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My thoughts on Nothing Butt Nightwing ( part 2 )

I guess the writer wanted some ~drama~ in Dick Grayson's life and nothing screams more drama than breaking up so Dickbabs had to be sacrificed to the ~dramatic altair~.

Let me share the actual scene before I continue:

Dick and Barbara, I'm so sorry this webtoon did you so dirty!!

Ofc you are not dating a real person, Babs! You are dating Dick McButt Grayson, whose whole personality is having a sexy ass and being a total idiot.

Dick can't read a tense mood bc he has to be a himbo 24/24 and Barbara already packed her things before she even talked to her boyfriend about their issues because that's totally how relationships work!!/s

Wait, it gets worse:

Dick Grayson, one of the most well developed and multi layered characters of DC, can't define himself outside being a superhero or Babs' boyfriend.

Dick Grayson who has a large family he loves, Titans who aren't just his teammates but also his friends, characters who are mentors to him and characters he mentors himself, people from the circus he was raised in, Bludhaven's civilians and the list goes on.

I understand that the premise about a superhero not being able to identify themselves outside their vigilante activities could make an interesting story. However, this isn't a story suited for Dick. Because he's not some teen who just started his superhero career and can't find the balance between this and his life outside of it. He's in his middle/late twenties and he's been a superhero for many years. After all this time being Robin, Nightwing, Batman and Nightwing again I think it's obvious he's past that phase.

Also, Dick defining himself as Barbara's boyfriend is an insult to their relationship. The reason so many fans like this pairing is because both characters have well rounded personalities and lives outside their relationship. It's wrong to define Dick as only Barbara's boyfriend just like it's wrong to define Barbara as only Dick's girlfriend.

I know this break up is probably temporary and that at some point they will become a couple again on this webtoon but for me this first episode ruined any interest I could have on this adaptation of theirs. I couldn't care less about this version of Dickbabs, because those two aren't the Dick and Barbara I know and like.

#dickbabs #dick grayson #barbara gordon #dc comics #nothing butt nightwing

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kiingfluffybuns · 1 year ago

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Okay, I just gotta rant a bit about TGED, and probably will get other opinions, and that's great, so please share them!

Also, this is mostly my speculation, I have ONLY read the webtoon, and I haven't been able to find the novel properly translated to read, so have mercy.

SO. I know that og!Lloyd was a bully to Javier and Julien and all that jazz, but it looked to me that he was an alcoholic that desperately needed help.

He lashed out and thew fits to call the attention of his parents, that he was sure as hell they were going to replace him with Javier at any point. (Bc let's be real, the Frontera's affection seems heavily conditional)

Arcos was pretty okay by letting Javier do whatever he wanted, becoming a knight was his choice and he did everything to make that happen.

Then, we have Javier's duties, that was to watch over 'Lloyd', which that also more or less what he did because he wasn't with Lloyd all the time.

The Fronteras were more than okay by letting him leave their alcoholic son alone and drunk somewhere in town. Which was what killed him by falling n breaking his head,,,, that wouldn't have happened if Javier was actually there,,,,

The there's this detail I noticed in the imagery, in most cases it's suggested that Javier is confused as the heir and novel bc he's handsome, but that's not it.

it's bc he gives a novels profile. And the reason is his clothes.

Javier seems to be dressing like the proper heir, and wears the same style as Arcos Frontera, meanwhile Lloyd is left to dress like a commoner. That's why he's confused as Javier's servant, bc he looks like it.

Arcos Frontera didn't want to deal with an alcoholic son, he had enough on his plate by letting his estate become in debt and bc of his spineless attitude.

He was most likely replace Lloyd with Javier, or make Julian the heir. He was ignoring Lloyd, and just paying attention when he caused damage to the town. Because then it would come back to him.

He didn't actually cared if he died in a ditch.

I don't justify og!Lloyd's behavior at all, but I understand what was going with him. He was mad, he was jealous, and he was frustrated, and the only thing that made him feel better was some drinks.

He was so depressed he wanted to be blackout drunk, and that killed him anyway.

I'm honestly very much into how our!Lloyd has put such boundaries with the Fronteras, bc he's a guest in his own home. He wants to lazy around, but he doesn't actually do it at home, he did it once and immediately got an excuse to go out and work.

But anyway, this is such my own analysis on the matter, I find absolutely fascinating the takes this webtoon has taken over the Isekai trope, and how that affects to those around the mc.

#the greatest estate developer #tged #lloyd frontera #arcos frontera #javier asrahan #character analysis #burnstalk

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lynn-tged-posting · 17 days ago

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tged webtoon ep 169 spoilers and thoughts that i'm incredibly late on because finals are coming up but it's okay we ball and more below the cut

two little creatures,,, i really like this little panel,,, why is he crouch like that,,, heehee silly guy

nothing too drastic happened in this ep but there's a lot to talk about (and a ton of thoughts i have abt the execution of it) sooo ya here we go!!!!

the expressions and the art in this ep were all REALLY good i really liked these HAHAHAA hes so fucking menacing,,,

JAVIER WAS ALSO FUN I LOVE WHEN HE PLAYS THE STRAIGHTMAN HAHAHAHA

javier ilysm "i have so many things to say,,, but i wont,,," LOL

the heavenly demon kings were cool too! though very short-lived,,, i will have more to say on that,,, their designs are pretty varied and i like that a lot!!! tho seriously why are there eight of them what happened to warrant eight LMFAO

ALSO LLOYD IMMEDIATELY SUBDUING THE DEMON KINGS BY SINGING LMFAOOOOOOOOOO he's got a weapon he's gonna fucking use it LAKJFDLSJKDF

zero hesitation he just blasted them,,, it's like taking an airhorn and firing it immediately in someone's ear,,, how evil,,, lloyd u bastard /aff

AND ARTANIS ARTANIS WAAAAHHH SHES SOOO PRETTY i love characters with horns like that ive had my fair share of OCs with those horns and together w her hair and expression and eyes i love her a lot <3 i hope she gets more sillies

it seems like she's the only one with mind reading abilities maybe its a demon king thing? javier did mention that she has a LOT more power than she lets on so maybe theres more to it? her introduction and her request for help came VERY quick she was quick to cry and while it absolutely makes sense that its bc her people really, REALLY need help, im also wondering if there's something more to it,,, she was very fast to trust lloyd; what else does her mind reading let her see, to what extent? not saying that she's an antagonist or anything, i do believe that she wants to help her people i'm just curious at how. fast this is. though it may just be because of a pacing issue thats causing this confusion in me,,, which i will talk about later below cause i wanna get thru these panels heehee

and lastly, OUR FIRST LOOK AT THE FORMER/FIRST DEMON KING CREDOS!!! and apparently he just. stopped invading and focused on farming!!!

one) i love collecting little bits of lore like this it makes me go heehee yay worldbuilding

and two) THIS IS WHAT BRIDGES TGED TO THE NEW PREQUEL THAT THE AUTHOR IS WRITING!!! AAAHH YESSS YES YEEESS I LOVE THAT A LOT

if you didn't already know, the author is currently publishing another webnovel set in Lorasia, and it's supposed to take place when tyrannus was a kid, basically a long LONG time ago

AND ISN'T THAT FAMILIAR? A DEMON KING WHO STOPPED INVADING AND WENT FARMING,,, THATS THE BITCH!!!

(it says here there were four heavenly demon kings here tho i wonder why they doubled HAHA)

i love love LOVE that the pieces were set up like this, idk if credos is mentioned in the novel at all but little building blocks that create bridges (however small) between works in the same universe are my favorite thing ever i like collecting those it's my favorite kind of worldbuilding thing bc it's like putting pieces together heehoo

i'll ABSOLUTELY be making a post yapping about this prequel and the Everything that is Lorasia soon, so i'll leave this off here for now :3 but just know IM VERY EXCITED/HAPPY ABOUT THIS LITTLE LORE BIT IN PARTICULAR

ok that's all the panels i wanted to talk about ,,, i was gonna dive into worldbuild yapping/speculations but again i wanna make a separate post dedicated to that

now,,, about the pacing of this episode,,, as aforementioned, it feels really, REALLY fast! it feels like we're speedrunning the build-up part of the journey, like within the episode it's like "oh we got new characters, we get to know them- oh okay yeah they're not bad people actually - oh new powerful character let's work together okay cool moving on"

and it's a shame because i really really like the art and gags for this ep, i think they're really silly and i think i could have really come to like these new characters with more time, but because we're going through this process so fast it's like,,, the setup is barely there, which makes the punchlines just short of satisfying,,,

i wanted more out of this episode, i expected something else. i haven't read the novel so i couldn't tell you how i'd adapt it or what the something i expected was but,, idk it feels like the pacing is off,,, lloyd was quick to piece together the status of the overworld demons based on their attire and behavior but i really wish it went about in a different way. i wish we could have had more time with the heavenly eight demon kings before they were just. subdued? and the two children too, are we gonna see them again? with how fast they were introduced and how fast they were set aside, i'm worried they won't show up again

i also kind of wish artanis' reveal was,,, more. i don't know how to explain what that means. maybe more ominous? more mysterious? just a little more, more hints to her character or her relationship with other characters or something,,, though maybe this is too soon and we'll see more of her later and i'll be more satisfied? i'm not totally sure

this episode just didn't hit the same, and that really upsets me because i really wanted to like this episode! i've read more manhwa than novel currently so even with it's flaws i still really like the manhwa, and i want to be able to continue liking the manhwa,,, i really hope that this pacing thing and these fast-paced bits is just within this one episode and that it'll be okay as we go forward. i really want to continue enjoying reading this!!!

it could be that the adapter is experiencing some kind of burnout, it has been quite a long time since the start of tged. i really hope they take their time with adapting the rest, i really wouldn't mind another break. if another hiatus is needed for the adapter to pace the story and the artist to draw the panels in a way that feels better or less rushed, i'd accept the hiatus fully

anyway that's all i have to say right now,,, ep 170 really feels like a gamble right now and im praying that it goes well, if i have more thoughts ill probably rb with more yapping idk

i'll see y'all next week (aka tmrw) (because this post is a lil bit late LOL) im praying im praying,,, manifesting that this ep was just a lil awkward and that everything else is fine,,, please,,,

#tged #the greatest estate developer #lloyd frontera #tged spoilers #the greatest estate designer #lynn misc #credos #artanis #javier asrahan #when i talked about this on the tged discord the first response was “oooh the realization is starting to hit you�� ALKJFSDLSDKJFHA #like man. yeah. i suppose it is...#i may have not finished the novel but i can predict a very strong reaction for when i finally do and realize how different the manhwa is #i'll be here til the end though! these posts will keep coming #still glad we got that panel of lloyd crouching though. highlight of the ep for me #AND THE LORASIA TIMELINE BUILDING YESSS HEHE IM EXCITED TO MAKE A POST ABOUT THAT AFTER MY FINALS ARE OVER

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