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northopalshore · 27 days ago

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hihi! i have a question and does juno and pof have any meaning in the composite/synastry chart? thank you!

Juno in the composite & synastry chart (romantic)

₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑

Juno symbolizes love, marriage, and partnerships as she is the Roman goddess of marriage & Jupiter's wife. They are the Roman version of the Greek Hera & Zeus. In the composite chart, it tells you what you both may desire from the relationship and what makes it work. It also represents what you two will be doing the most together.

In synastry, it's quite similar but it tells you what you both think are "marriage/partnership material" & what makes you stay. The synastry & composite descriptions are interchangeable and do mostly contain the same agendas, however I did try to specify them a tiny bit more based on what I've seen.

In Aries/°1,°13,°25/1st House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

The very "feel" or image of them is something that you find very attractive. You may share a lot of things in common, and find a lot of what your partner does; how they act, look or carry themselves to be attractive. In a way, they may reflect your ideal image of how a partner should be. There is a hot & heavy attraction, both physically and emotionally. It's easy to get lost in their features, they may have a comfortable yet strong & lasting impression on you.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

You may both bicker or quarrel a lot but that's a natural part of your dynamic; the more tension there is the closer the pull towards the other gets. Thing may get hot & heavy quite often with you two.

In Taurus/°2,°14,°26/2nd House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

Your partner is the ideal manifestation of stability for you which could be monetary wise, emotional comfort or both. It's very easy for you to get attached to your partner & romanticize a future with them. One where you have it all together. It's quite common to see with couples that work together or share resources. You find that their reliability, stable income, or just sense of maturity is a valuable aspect to them which is also what might have brought you to them in the first place. Even if they don't own anything, you see the potential for them to have something with you in the future.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

You'll be getting that bank together ayee, but more so than that you both are focused on stability. It's about drive, it's about power, the money the family the love — all of that.

In Gemini/°3,°15,°27/3rd House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

You're attracted to their wit and humourous nature. You love that they are someone smart and are able to manage a lot on their own. There may be different sides of their personality that you find very interesting or appealing.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

You both will be very focused on connections, work and communications together (in whatever context). Both of you display a lot of creativity and wit when you're together and on that note may always prefer to be around each other of do things together. This is one of those "inseparable duo" placements, and you may kind of merge your identities as well.

Ex: Beyoncé & Jay-Z has composite Juno in Sagittarius (°14 Taurus) in the 3rd house. It's pretty self explanatory inthis case!

In Cancer/°4,°16,°28/4th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

You love that your partner is down to earth and kind. There is a sweetness to them that melts your heart and they may seem more feminine than other women/man or just have that demure .. subtle way about them. You love the way they treat you and tend to you specifically and how they get you to open up so easily.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

The comfort that the relationship provides will be unparalleled. This can make it very difficult to leave your partner if things turn out sour. It brings you back together, binding you in a way. It brings a similar effect in synastry & composite. There is a tendency for codependency to arise in the relationship as well. With one having to be more responsible over the other, but it's not always negative, some do enjoy that dynamic.

Ex: Sid & Nancy have Juno in the 4th house in their composite chart; you can see that play out quite clearly between them.

In Leo/°5,°17,°29/5th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

You love how they are the life of every party, how charming and attractive they are, how they love the things that they love and do the things that they do. Their expressions, artistry, love language and laughter is what brings you in closer and enables you to open up to them on a deep but still fun and flirty way.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

They bring more enjoyment/fulfillment into your life. Physical attraction will feel especially good with this person. Their sense of childlike wonder, or the way that they make you laugh and look forward to another day will make it seem like you were a match made in heaven. The relationship works best when you're having fun or expressing your romantic feelings and creativity. You are more romantic around them and more childish as well. You'll notice that you joke around more with them too or they help you "lighten up".

In Virgo/°6,°18/6th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

You'll find yourself naturally drawn to doing things for them. You may share a lot of similar habits, and are attracted to their way of life. You'll find a lot of compatibility when it comes to personal pleasures; what you do during leisure time and your daily life. It's good to see in the synastry/composite charts of people who live & work together.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

Something about your partner makes you want to be with them 24/7 all day, all night to the point that it will feel strange if they haven't texted you or called you at least once the whole day. It just feels right to be next to them. Both of you are very invested in each other's wellbeing, and constantly find ways to help each other improve.

₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑

In Libra/°7,°19/7th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆In synastry

Marriage is on your mind almost from the get go lol. They will exsert a lot of what you deem to be "your type", and allows a lot of room for the other to make mistakes (minor mistakes of course) as you are more tolerant towards them. Will this make you head over heels for them? Absolutely. Does that mean you'll let them ruin your life? Hell no! You both still value equal exchange and loyalty, but this placement keeps you with them for longer than you usually will with other people you've dated for example; because of that early sense of potential and chemistry.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

Both of you have a very harmonious relationship for the most part, there is a lot of compatibility and both of you are usually seen together as well but unlike Virgo where you can be fussing around for or towards your partner; Libra gives you that lovebirds look. You are together, but you don't keep each other busy or are actively trying to improve the other when you're alone. You just love to bask in their company and are able to compromise easier too. You feel like you belong here, or feel like you are responsible of this person in a way.

In Scorpio/°8,°20/8th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In Synastry

This one I've seen is the most unpredictable placement. The relationship itself is likely very deep and enigmatic. Some may struggle with the intensity, and could potentially lead to toxicity, but for the most part; both parties will be very attached to each other. Sex can be very addicting to both of you, in some cases it might be the main agenda of the relationship. Trust me when I say you will have a very hard time getting your hands off of your partner once you get intimate. Though it also means it's tough to let of of this person specifically if the relationship does end. Regardless if you are intimate or not you will greatly appreciate your partner's ability to "feel more depth" compared to others.

Ex: In synastry, Michael Jackson has Juno in Lisa Marie Presley's 8th house. They were on & off again for 4 years after their divorce but she did try to stay away because of the drug abuse.

Here's an interview I found on Oprah: "During that final conversation, Lisa Marie says Michael told her she had been right about certain people around him—the vampires. He also asked her if she still loved him."

"I told him I was indifferent," she says. "He didn't like that word. He cried."

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

It's quite similar as if it were in synastry actually. As you can imagine, in the composite chart it leads to a great attachment to this relationship on both sides. "There is a thin line between me & you". This is the person you want to be greedy with, to have everything with as you know they will feel it too and have that multilevel understanding. You will be very jealous and protective of each other, that's a guaranteed outcome of this placement.

In Sagittarius/°9,°21/9th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

This is a good placement to see, since it adds some maturity, common beliefs and an understanding between you and your partner. You both see each other with curious eyes, excited for what's to come and are able to get past a lot of issues due to that shared willingness to cooperate & a shared sense of optimism. You'll likely have a lot of fun talking and joking around with your partner, I've seen it once with a couple I used to know. Both of them are very chill with each other. Gave off a nice energy. You look up to your partner for advice and protection in some cases.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

It's always a "broaden your horizons" type of relationship. Having this in your composite chart with a romantic (or non romantic partner actually) means that through this relationship many doors will open up and opportunities come gushing in almost instantaneously following your union with each other. Works on multiple levels too; spirituality, love, maturity and career! I like to think of it as the golden star composite placement. You both help each other see the bigger perspective of your union.

Ex: I have an 8th house composite AND synastry with a friend, she's one of the only people I've met offline that is able to sense the same things that I do and "feel" the deeper truths/details. Our composite Juno is in Sagittarius (°20 Scorpio) in the 8th house. Gives me goosebumps thinking that it's all part of destiny's design.

In Capricorn/°10,°22/10th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

Similar to Taurus or the 2nd house; you will be able to envision a future with them almost from the start. Though for you, it's not an image or fantasy but a goal. It's also a trophy partner placement, being together is not only good for your love life but it's also practical for you in the future. Both of you may share a common passion in something and this will make it 10x easier to see each other eye to eye and support them through their journey for "greatness". Being with them may be good for your status too.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

You'll be working with them a lot, this is something that may be very prominent in your relationship. Both of you may work on a business together, or create some sort of brand, but it could also mean leading the family or relationship together.

In Aquarius/°11,°23/11th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

This placement usually manifests as a partnership where both partners support each other's personal freedom and intellectual growth, you value their independence and they yours. You may also share a fondness towards unconventional or progressive ideas, whether about life, relationships, or society.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

Both of you may bond over things like shared intellectual interests or a commitment to causes, sense of humor, humanitarian work, or other goals/aspirations you may have. There could also be a strong sense of friendship and camaraderie. You may infact have a pretty unconventional relationship too no matter what it may be. You are your own rebels without (or with) a cause.

In Pisces/°12,°24/12th House

⋆｡‧˚ʚ♡ɞ˚‧｡⋆ In synastry

You are easily enticed by your partner's enigma, and may feel a strong spiritual connection with them. You are connected to their beliefs and a lot of their convictions may stand out to you or effects you in the long-run. This is one of the "hopelessly devoted to you" placements (aside from the 4th house) but it's more romantic in my opinion. One or both of you may see the other as perfect for them or somebody they can fall into completely.

𝜗𝜚 ࣪˖ In composite

You can sometimes feel like nothing can take you down when you're with them. It brings this sort of "destined to be" aspect to your relationship, and both of you tend to extend yourself to each other often (sometimes sacrificing a lot for the other) but it's usually for the better; like quitting bad habits or abandoning old mindsets. You might move around a lot too, but this also means you both may go through a lot of hard times together, whether financial or otherwise.

Ex: My parents have Juno in the 12th house in Virgo (°23 Aquarius). Both of them have gone through a lot of changes and unexpected event together; literally through thick and thin. Poverty, alcohol addictions and even court. It amazes me every time I think about it.

₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑

Part of fortune, in synastry & composite

as the name would suggest is what works best in the relationship or what comes easily to the both of you (in both composite & synastry), where you bring a lot of luck or comfort to the other party. It's quite similar to Juno, but tends to bring some sort of joy along with it, like Jupiter enhancing all that it touches. This section works for both composite & synastry.

☆ Aries (°1,°13,°25) | 1st House :

Sexual chemistry and attraction is enhanced with Aries. You also act as a catalyst for your partner to be bolder and more genuine to themselves; you are more passionate around your partner, they give you vitality in a way. Though, it also enhances that possessiveness towards your partner. You feel like you can live and die just for them. You act more childish around your partner, but again — it's not always bad to be childlike!

Ex: Sid viscous & Nancy Spungen have POF in Aries (° 14 Taurus) in the 3rd house. For the most part, no explanation necessary lol.

☆ Taurus (°2,°14,°26) | 2nd House :

You tend to be very generous with each other. Both of you could be earn more money when you're together as well. Whether that'd be through starting a brand, a business or just collaborating together, but it also works if you have separate jobs but come together to build something together at home for example. The perfect person to lounge or shop with lol. You can get very physical with them often too.

☆ Gemini (°3,°15,°27) | 3rd House :

Conversations come easy, you will love talking with them and you will always feel like you understand each other immediately. You can talk for hours & hours with then and won't even feel the passage of time.

Ex: I have this placement with a friend in our composite chart, whenever it's just the two of us talking; we talk for hoursssss non stop lmaoo! The topics are broad and random but it never feels forced.

☆ Cancer (°4,°16,°28) | 4th House :

There is a very sweet relationship with this person, and you tend to be a bit mushy around each other lol. You feel that it's easier to be emotional or show your true feelings/be vulnerable around them.

☆ Leo (°5,°17,°29) | 5th House :

The sun shines a little bit brighter when you're with your partner. They encourage you to have more fun and let loose. You'll notice that you're going out more when you're with them or there's always something to look forward to, even if you aren't doing anything particular.

☆ Virgo (°6,°18) | 6th House :

You work well together, take care of each other and have a sort of "duty" to be around them almost. You are very invested in their lives and tend to help them with things a lot (but it's usually reciprocated and feels very natural). You will enjoy taking care of them in a sense.

☆ Libra (°7,°19) | 7th House :

There is a great sense of belonging that you both may feel. Similar to Juno in synastry/composite, marriage & commitment was something you both may have had in your mind when it comes to this person. You are especially romantic with one another; flirting and hand holding often. Doing a lot of traditionally romantic gestures because it brings you joy.

☆ Scorpio (°8,°20) | 8th House :

There is this sense of belonging that exists between you. You tend to be very generous with each other, and also put a lot of importance in the relationship because of how deep and meaningful it is to the both of you. You are able to get through a lot together and understand each other on a very deep level. If you work together, this is also a good aspects to see as it brings luck and success in the 8th house specifically.

☆ Sagittarius (°9,°21) | 9th House :

You are each others biggest supporters, motivators and mood boosters. You help each other to grow and look at things from a different perspective. This usually results in some sort of expansion as well or good luck with trying something risky or taking a big step foreward into something. More than that though, you will be more introspective around your partner with this placement.

☆ Capricorn (°10,°22) | 10th House :

Through this relationship, fulfillment, success, and happiness comes easier or seem more enticing now that you're with them. They may give you a sense of purpose, or at the very least are very supportive of your ambitions. In the 22nd degree, they may infact be the reason that you are able to take more action in your life for example, or get more opportunities through them.

☆ Aquarius (°11,°23) | 11th House :

Expect the unexpected when you are together. Both of you will experience a lot of things or help each other break free from whatever that is old or stagnant in your life; being more experimental while still respecting each others sense of independence. This is the couple that can do their own thing one day but come together the next without much thought. You will feel respected and free around them.

☆ Pisces (°12,°24) | 12th House :

I'd like to name this the miracle placement. If the "through thick and thin" vows were a placement in astrology, then this would be it. You are able to overcome hell together and still come out hand in hand. You help each other and are able to put a lot on the line for each other as well. It's not as direct as if it were in Virgo, but both placements seek to help their partner to improve in their own way. Pisces is usually much more tolerant & takes more figurative punches though.

Ex: Surprise! My parents also have POF in Pisces (°24 pisces) in the 6th house! Fun fact; when my mom was pregnant with me she was in and out of court for my father. I think it's also because of this that they were able to get through so much and still be in love with each other after what.. 27-28 years of marriage now? Damn. They met like years before that too.

₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ . ₊ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑ ⊹ .₊๋‧₊ ˚ ⊹ ࣭ ⭑

Hope this helps ♡

@northopalshore

@northopalshore composite & synastry 2025

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pseuddamntired · 3 months ago

Text

Needle Lace Resources

This is a very long post, so I'm including a cut.

Tutorial-like Things, Others' Work

An overview of the stages of needle lace (specifically learning from Alençon, I believe. They link to a documentary type of video on Alençon lace): https://www.taixtile.com/needle-lace-first-steps/. This blog has links to other resources (one link is broken, if I recall correctly).

A very approachable first project, I think. From a lace maker who has done very cool illustrations with lace, Maggie Hensel-Brown: https://youtu.be/OLuRpJ96p4Q?si=gqBWqYxa755gFozr

This channel has videos of the stages of needle lace making. They specifically demonstrate Irish lace, I believe. But the stages are very similar to or the same as the stages in Alençon lace. https://youtu.be/dZVagIFCnLc?si=d8lRnPsmz5iTM0Z_

Pierre Fouché has a video about making dense filling stitches and even doing short rows to makes curves (something I tried but did not yet succeed at): https://youtu.be/DK5cMQND3b8?si=qySmT9yaoTcpsUV9 He also does really cool bobbin lace illustrations by constructing patterns in cell-like units.

An embroiderer tries needle lace in two videos. In one of them she tries different styles from different places: https://youtu.be/eTO7dA4oyl4?si=VInx35kql115bIIo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9Wa6-Qf5xw

Example of a different style of needle lace. Unsure what it is exactly. Some sort of cut work or reticella, idk: https://youtube.com/shorts/7DFogWC3tDI?si=uju74sPFbRj3_wrn

Sampler directions: https://youtu.be/oDKBfjDYBnU?si=shQYvaT4kAZD7BgV

Again, a more geometric style of needle lace. I don’t know the particulars of this style (styles?), since I’ve mostly been looking into styles similar to Alençon because I’m aiming for more illustration-like lace. This channel has multiple videos demoing and explaining that process: https://youtu.be/gJd6mkrsUCQ?si=AfVIiwljHvfismrX https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R6dk721UwW4

Not so much instructions but video of a very skilled lacemaker working on a project: https://youtu.be/01H2GdEXLrs?si=2suFHSG4Kwa6Yl2m

Another lacemaker's work on their blog. I don’t know if they do as much lace making as they do other needle arts https://www.robesdecoeur.com/blog/needlelace-my-work-so-far

A lacemaker's work... the site is older and kind of tricky to navigate. Like. there's no home button, as far as I can tell. Album of their work: https://www.lacemakerslace.oddquine.co.uk/album/index.html Home page, I think: https://www.lacemakerslace.oddquine.co.uk/

Useful/Interesting Things to Know

Alençon lace -- specific French style from the Alençon region, which has a history of point lace and a current institution dedicated to preserving the skills and producing lace. This is the style that I was looking at examples of to try and learn from.

Search terms like different styles of lace that I’m not qualified to talk about but you can look into and do research on: Battenburg, point de gaze (very very fine work, like gauze)… More to be added as I learn about them.

The terms "needle lace" and "point lace" are both used to refer to lace made with a needle. I'm unclear on if there are subtle distinctions between them or if it's simply a matter of location. But having versions of a search query for both terms should help find more results than just using one.

Encyclopedia of Needlework by Therese De Dillmont is an excellent resource to learn how to do different stitches. It seems these stitches mostly come from Irish lace, according to the book. HTML copy of book available on Project Gutenberg here: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/20776/20776-h/20776-h.htm I recommend using ctrl+f to search for "lace stitch" on the page. The end of each chapter in the HTML version seems to have a link to the Table of Contents that is at the end of the entire document. It has chapters for plenty of other needle arts, so it's a good resource all around.

If you want to find examples of needle lace, look on Wikimedia Commons! Using a variety of search terms will help you find more material for inspiration/observation than otherwise

If you want to design your own needle lace depicting objects, it might be worth looking at stained glass to see how larger shapes are broken up into smaller shapes that still feel complete.

You can use multiple colors! Let yourself use multiple colors, like stained glass!

Thoughts from the Learning Process So Far (some terminology used here, look them up so you know what the actual definitions are, but I’ll define what I mean by them)

Tacking vs Couching... I'm unsure about the actual definitions so I may be using them wrong here. In the videos I’ve seen tacking seems to be making a stitch that runs along the way the cordonnet will run. Couching seems to be just when the thread that secures the cordonnet comes up through the backing and goes down through the backing at the same point. With these definitions… Tacking went faster for me than doing couching, but it feels a lot less secure and precise for the form of lace I’m making. Unless I made the tacking stitches perpendicular to the cordonnet's path, the outline cord moved too much due to tension. If it's perpendicular and not a very short stitch, it might get in the way of your filling stitches or binding off stitches. Which might be fine, since you pull them out anyways. But it would also mean more holes in the backing, and at some point the holes are too close together and might tear the backing and pattern. I don't like that. Couching—much, MUCH more tedious for me because I’m not practiced at making the needle come up in exactly the right spot. but it feels more secure to me. The outline seems to be less affected by tension as you work. And I took some shortcuts for couching that helped. I don’t couch the doubled cord, instead I whip stitch back over the already-secured cord. I might make a post to demonstrate what I mean. It kind of messes with the shape/placement of my cordonnet, but for the sake of my impatience I’m willing to sacrifice the precise shape.

Backing material... To use fabric in backing like the instructions usually say, or not? Idk. For me, it’s hard to find the right hole for the couching stitches when I can't see my pattern from the back. It took a lot of trial and error until I got a feel for how to predict where my needle would come up. I don't like the way the poke-and-check method of stitching the cordonnet down tends to rip the pattern up (at least, with my easy-to-access materials. Probably better with better materials and more practice. Using my thumb to find approximately the right spot helped, but not enough). So I just used a sandwich of tape/paper/tape as my backing. If you're willing to fuss around with fabric in your backing, it might make it easier to remove the couching threads after you're done, and when I tried. The directions I've seen usually say to use a backing of doubled-up fabric, clay paper (I'm unsure what this is. might be a thicker paper than cardstock, or it might be paper made to contain clay particles. Probably more like the first option), and contact paper. My last attempt at making a backing used notebook paper (or other type of paper) with packaging tape on both sides to provide a smooth surface and structure. I think it worked fairly well, and I didn't have to figure out where to buy contact paper (or figure out exactly what contact paper was).

#lace making #fiber arts #needle lace #instructions #tutorials #information #resources #my post #i will make this cleaner/easier to read later

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0wldn0 · 2 months ago

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For the family dinner, wouldn’t it be cute if breakdown and bumblebee rounded them up to announce they were gonna be conjux’s?( Ik in your Breakbee post it was like “conjux-to-be”, I just associate the word with being married, idk if that’s accurate tho 😓).

Awww this is so cute!! 🥺💕I love to imagine them announcing it when everyone is together like that! I do think it wouldn't be a surprise to anyone though FDHDFH Those two are not subtle at all, the situationship could be smelled from a mile away 😭

((Also, yeah! I think "conjunx" is very similar to humans' concept of marriage! There are four acts of affection that two bots need to commit before becoming official conjuxes, I've been thinking about what those may be for Breakbee a lot!))

((I don't know if this is fanon or canon but; I really love the idea of Cybertronians bonding their sparks together after becoming conjuxes! Literally sharing a part of their souls with one another... How sweet is that? Such a deep commitment for someone you hold dear, feeling them in your soul all the time after that. I really love that concept so so much. So of course, I made it canon in my AU, hehe.))

If this is the first family dinner though, I think they would only say they're in a relationship, not conjunxes yet! After all, I can see both Bumblebee and Breakdown not wanting to go that far so soon. They both do love each other, but they've only known each other throughout the war, they could only meet once in a while, and they barely managed to spend long days together. They both aren't sure how the war changed the other either. So, while their adoration is still mutual, they would take their time and see how their relationship will develop in this time of peace! Because who knows, despite all the adoration you may feel for someone, in the end you may realise that you are just not fit to be with them in a romantic sense. And considering Cybertronians literally share their souls with one another in this AU, a huge decision that they can't un-do, they wouldn't want to jump into being conjuxes immediately.

Of course though, they do end up realising that they want each other as one another's sparkmate!! Even then however, it is kind of scary to take a big step like that, especially for Bee. I imagine that Bee would still not be used to how things are currently, kind of like Wildrider. The difference is that, Wildrider craved danger and adrenaline because that's what he was used to, peace scared him and made him uneasy; while Bee is afraid that these peaceful times will slip through his fingers if he settles too much into it, he feels as though nothing can hurt him if he just doesn't let himself sink too deep into the idea of peace.

Breakdown doesn't take it to heart and is understanding of Bee's decision. He is worried that this way of thinking may be... unhealthy. But he would rather die than force Bee to do something he doesn't want to do.

It is after the whole "Motormaster gets captured by the Quintessons and the Quintessons manage to get control of Menasor" arc that Bee realises that he doesn't want anything to happen to either of them before he can experience being Breakdown's conjunx. He was so close to losing Breakdown there, so now, he is realising that his fears were keeping him from getting the life he wants.

It is true that things may not be peaceful all the time, but if the peace does cease and there's a terrible danger again, he would rather be able to say that he experienced sharing his whole being with the person he loves anyway, than to lose them before ever getting to do that.

((How interesting would it be to bond with someone that already has a gestalt bond? Do you think the rest of the Stunticons would be able to feel Bee's presence too, even if it is faint? That's so interesting to think about!!))

#vi chirps #answered #anon #ES Stunticons AU #transformers #transformers earthspark #earthspark #tfe #breakbee #can you tell i love thinking about breakbee #i think they would be so sweet #i think they would be more willing to hear each other out about the whole #factions arguments they used to have #after becoming conjuxes #breakdown #bumblebee #tfe breakdown #tfe bumblebee #stunticons

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lilacxquartz · 2 months ago

Note

Do you ever think Nanami could be a good yandere?

technically speaking, i believe that everyone can be a good yandere given that yandere/being sick in love, can be fleshed out by exaggerating their existing traits. so… the answer is yes. :)

content warning: yandere talks below—

nanami on the surface is a stoic, yet calm and kind man. he’s caring, protective and sensible. if he were to find himself as the yandere in a relationship or in pursuit of one, i believe that these traits when tweaked correctly, could make him into a believable yandere.

as for what type? i’m thinking perhaps a protective yandere, i do write darker imagines, but i don’t headcanon him as being potentially toxic. this is just my opinion, though!

some things that come to mind include:

• nanami would likely exhibit interest by showing concern for you should you be putting yourself through unnecessary stress or danger; normal on the surface, but a yandere is often extreme, so he would take it upon himself to try and eliminate those factors.

• nanami would present himself as someone loyal and consistent in your life. being a hardworking person who takes his interests to heart, he would retain his position in your life no matter what happens, so you come to associate him with always being there for you.

• nanami would remember the little things you do, perhaps keeping trinkets or a log of every time that you did something kind or notable. being a yandere, he would go over this nightly, obsessing over just how perfect you were in his mind.

• nanami would also notice the little things about you, that nobody else does. he knows you the best, after all, no matter what anyone else claims. it would be subtle things, too, like your expressions in reaction to certain things or if you were feeling off, likely knowing the cause as to why.

• nanami would socially engineer you. he worked a normal office salary man job for a while before he returned to jujutsu society, so he became well versed in networking. he’d figure out everything he needs to know about you, adjusting himself to match your wants and needs.

thinking darker though, what could he possibly do to become a more problematic yandere? nanami as a character definitely wouldn’t, but we’re exaggerating him.

• let’s think back to how he would eliminate the stress factors for you—would he kill for you? i’d think so. he’s a sorcerer, so it wouldn’t be something he’s not done before, at least with living things. cursed spirits aren’t too different to stalkers or those with ill intentions.

• would he abduct you to keep you safe? potentially. he would do it subtly though, like insisting that you were in danger and inform you that something happened, so going back home is not advised. he’d accommodate you so well, though. he knows everything about you, after all, so you wouldn’t even want to leave.

• nanami would likely see himself as the only suitable candidate for your affections, so while he allows you to date perhaps, he would slowly eliminate the competition, leaving you thinking that everyone else had ghosted you. unintentional of course, but in a darker imagine, why wouldn’t he jump the opportunity to comfort you?

so yeah, i feel like he has good potential with being a certain type of yandere, since yandere doesn’t always necessarily mean dark romance. if this is a subject you would like to see explored in a one shot or similar, let me know! <3

#asks #jjk #yandere nanami #nanami kento #kento nanami #cw yandere #yandere headcanons

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nocturnalfandomartist · 2 months ago

Text

.⋆｡ﾟ Art vs Artist 2024! ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ﾟ☾ ﾟ｡⋆

Click for better quality!

It's my first time doing art vs artist, but I thought it'd be a nice opportunity to see how it looks! My style has been so inconsistent this year (thanks multiple style crises), but I am proud of a few pieces. Mostly. I seem to use similar techniques and colors a lot, but I guess that's the point of an art style anyway. Everything up here is cropped a bit since I don't draw at a 1:1 ratio usually. If this is your first time seeing my work, I love The Legend of Zelda and Zelink!

Thanks for another fun year of art! ^^ Some stats below:

#1 | 1,943 notes | June 18, 2024

• ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎

༺ Top 10 posts by notes!

I remember drawing this on the announcement day, within a few hours! It's my first post to surpass 1k!

My second post to surpass 1k!

#2 | 1,197 notes | June 22, 2024

#3 | 694 notes | July 27, 2024

...trends work

i need to repost this with type instead of handwriting

#4 | 572 notes | August 3, 2024

I want to redraw this one, even if it's not very canon

#5 | 546 notes | July 28, 2024

#6 | 528 notes | August 5, 2024

I will continue to change how I draw her

#7 | 456 notes | Setember 19, 2024

I tried a slightly different look here, I think it's kinda cute!

A tie!

#8 | 456 notes | June 19, 2024

Two pieces are in this post! I love Classic Zelink, so I was trying to figure out how I wanted to draw them. :) I have a lot of drawings of them to come...

#9 | 355 notes | June 9, 2024

I've really been trying to figure out how I want to do backgrounds on my doodle pages. And how to draw TP Zelda properly. Still haven't figured either out, if you're wondering.

#10 | 353 notes | May 18, 2024

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

So much from EoW... I jumped on that hype so fast, it's the Zelda game I've only ever dreamed about!! ♡ Still kind of surprised nothing from Linktober is up here, though, considering it was all the better stuff. ^^" There are a few pieces I never finished this year, also... maybe 2025 will be their year!

▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ • ▪︎ •

Small announcement - I got a private commission I'm working on at the moment, but soon they will be entirely open again! I do character art and designs if you're interested! ^^

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

✦ Ko-Fi | ✧ Ao3 | ⟡ Bluesky

REBLOGGING IS ENCOURAGED, BUT DO NOT REPOST.

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caramel-maveeato · 9 days ago

Note

Since you said Words of Affirmations isn't really something Karma does much, I'd like to know your thoughts on if he had an insecure s/o who likes being reassured with ILYs ♡

HII ILYTOOOO!!! Thanks for asking anon 🫶 I didn't mean to make this a whole fic but got carried away so, here you go lmao <3

At first this mf doesn’t understand why someone as amazing and lovable as his s/o would feel insecure, like, tf you mean you don’t feel pretty enough or good enough or… whatever? Have you even seen yourself pookie?? Even someone as emotionally guarded/difficult to charm as THE Karma fell like a leaf for you, isn't that already a gigantic boost to your ego? But then again, sometimes it’s hard to be confident. Of course, Karma knows this; he has insecurities, too, he’s just good at acting like they’re not there most of the time.

Karma might not be excellent with spitting out comforting words, but he wouldn’t hesitate to try to make his s/o feel better. In more ways than one.

𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐌𝐲 𝐄𝐲𝐞𝐬 ♡˚₊ 。。。

❧❤ SYNOPSIS: Karma with an insecure S/O... ♡ Pairings/Love interest: Akabane Karma x GN!reader ♡ Genre: fluff, hurt/comfort ♡ TW: insecurities, self-hatred, slightly suggestive joke ♡ Word count: 1.6k

Note: All characters originated from “Assassination Classroom” except for y/n. English is not my first language!!! Sorry in advance if I make any grammar and vocabulary mistakes.

There’s a huge difference between loving someone and loving yourself.

Sounds similar enough. But many find it much easier to give love and admiration than to accept them. Karma has long ago realized his partner is one of those many people.

Societies get off on judging each other. It’s a challenge to feel positive when the world hasn’t been kind enough to you. The issue with your self-esteem isn’t necessarily the worst, yet on the bad days, it’s an uncontainable turbulence of distress that overshadows every compliment you’ve ever appreciated.

“Hey Karma, do you think—”

“Yeah, that looks great.”

You blink in confusion, before cracking a small, amused smile. “How d’ you know what I was about to say?”

Casually lazing on your bed like it’s his own, your redhead boyfriend shrugs briefly in response, sharp eyes still cemented on his Nintendo Switch with feigned focus. “Hmm… dunno. I just did.”

That’s a big fat lie. Karma was staring at your back the entire time, watching attentively as you stood in front of the mirror, trying to fix the nonexistent flaws only yourself could’ve spotted.

Or perhaps, he did try to shift his eyes back and forth between his gorgeous lover and the gaming console, not wanting to accidentally drill a hole in your back and hand his simping ass to your acknowledgement. Even so, he was following you like a hawk, so distracted by your presence and your behavior he lost the game multiple times.

Karma wasn’t even subtle in the last 15 minutes, yet you still didn’t perceive his curious gaze stalking you. You were too preoccupied in your own image reflected by the glasslike surface, your throat feels tighter and tighter by an invisible squeeze the more you look and think.

This outfit isn’t half ugly in the slightest, but for some reason, you feel like something is wrong, making the whole thing seem wrong. Maybe it wasn’t these pieces of fabric’s fault that you looked weird. It’s your fault.

Karma grows concerned when he hears you unconsciously let out a heavy sigh, heading towards the closet and abruptly throwing on a zipped-up hoodie to block out the cute outfit underneath. “What’s wrong? It’s not even cold outside.”

You shake your head, suddenly having this urge to avoid eye contact. “But I feel a little cold.”

“’S literally the middle of summer.”

Skepticism can’t be more obvious in Karma’s voice, it only makes you wish to disappear from his vision right now. You know your boyfriend is too perceptive to not immediately tell what’s up. Just from a few words spoken, you’re easily dissolved into a transparent drop of water in his lens.

Not receiving an answer, Karma sits up, calling your name softly, almost carefully. You hummed in response, striving and failing to sound as nonchalant as you’d planned.

“I know you’re not cold, so don’t give me that bullshit.” Karma’s soon already behind you, tugging experimentally at the arm of the hoodie you’re wearing. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

You sigh again, no longer having the space to shy away from him when he gently spins you around, properly taking a closer look at your face. “Nothing’s wrong.”

“Yes, there is something wrong.” He corrects. Despite not wanting to make you feel cornered with discomfort, he has to put an end to this. “Do you not like how these clothings look on you?”

Being straight-forward can never be Karma’s weakness, you love and hate it at the same time. Your hesitation only further confirms his suspect, causing something dull and hollow to collapse inside his stomach.

He nearly wanted to joke, “well, you always have the option to not wear clothes at all around me,” but Karma knew better. As much as humor might lighten the mood, the risk of upsetting you was far greater—and that was a gamble he wasn’t willing to take.

Karma has a knack for reading people, his sharp-wit cutting through curtains of secrets with ease. But he isn’t as gifted when it comes to offering the gentle, soft-spoken reassurance. In contrast, a blunt approach is more of his preference, which even Karma himself understands tends to come off as sarcastic or brash—those are so, so not needed right now.

For a brief moment, he actually feels a twinge of fear of saying the wrong thing, of poking at the open wound he can’t even physically see.

“Listen, I honestly don’t know why you’d feel that way. You look amazing.” It’s all he could’ve thought of telling. As expected, this isn’t enough to cheer up his beloved. If anything, it almost sounded like he only said so for the sake of ‘cheer up.’

“Thank you… but you didn’t have to say that.” You murmur, eyes lowering down to where your hand is fidgeting with the hem of the hoodie. And Karma sighs, calloused palm cupping one side of your face tenderly, lifting up.

“I’m being honest.” He repeats, sensing your doubt floating in the air. “You look amazing, hell, magnificent, even. You know I don’t do compliments for shit and giggles.”

Though you’re still not entirely convinced, his uncharacteristically kind words tugged at the corners of your lips, threatening a smile. “Sappy.”

“How ungrateful. And here I’m trying my best to be nice for once.”

Still observing your face intently, Karma pulls down the zipper of your hoodie, his grin widening as the pretty little outfit beneath is revealed once more—adorning your figure so perfectly, it almost seems made for you. How could you feel belittled by clothes that only look good because you’re the one wearing it?

“See, such a waste to cover this up.” Karma hums, his free hand gingerly brushing a few strands of disarranged hair off your face, itching to see you clearer and better. “Especially when it’s not everyday I’d get to see you all dolled up for me.”

Your cheeks dust with a lovely shade of pink he wholeheartedly adores. “But… I feel like this looks ridiculous on me, I should’ve sized—”

“Shhh, enough.” Karma grabs your face, fingers squishing your cheeks together to disrupt your unpleasant speech. “You shouldn’t have put the jacket on, that’s the thing. What now? Do you not trust your own boyfriend? Your very stylish, tasteful one at that.”

Your chuckle’s muffled between pursed lips as you playfully swat his hand away. “Still, you’re just biased!”

“Aw, and you just be quiet and admit you look amazing like this already.”

He can tell that your self-consciousness is no longer haunting the atmosphere like a ghost, but acting long-term, you still have to work a bit harder to eliminate the insecurities you harbored. And Karma’s here, always more than happy to help.

“Now…” Steering back to the topic. Karma deliberately slides the hoodie off your shoulders, pausing midway in case you’d rather stay in your comfort zone. “I’m not gonna force you to wear this on our date if you’re not yet to feel comfortable in it, but I really do like this look on you, okay? Don’t assume I only say this because we’re dating.”

“I know.” The sincerity in his voice makes you smile, feeling his words somehow eclipse that bit of reluctance in the back of your mind. “Guess I should… listen to you for once. It really would be a waste to change after I spent a whole half an hour stressing over it.”

The small gush of certainty might just be momentary, but acknowledging yourself from Karma’s point of view truly has your heart flutter with pride.

“Smart move.” Karma comments, his elation unconcealable as he steals a quick kiss on your temple. “Though that stress was pointless, babe. I’d rather you use that energy for me or something.”

“You’re so shameless today omg!”

You snort, quickly being swept into Karma’s arms as he Eskimo-kisses your cheek, bashfully and giddily at the same time. “Because of whom I’m disgustingly cheesy right now, huh?”

Karma doesn’t coddle or sugarcoat, instead expressing his concern in a subtle, almost unusual way, straying from the typical words of consolation one would have expected. Beneath his teasing, bluntness, or even seeming indifference, he cares genuinely—even if he isn’t always able to convey it in the conventional, comforting way.

He has his own… techniques, alright. Some you aren’t even aware of.

(You are lol.)

That one day he caught a classmate of yours denigrating your intelligence. Guess what? Karma spent a whole week tutoring you, and when the next major exam came around, you aced it so effortlessly that you ranked first in the entire class.

Another day, someone else downgraded your effort out of jealousy. The next day that bitch went up and apologized to you with utmost fear, then actively hiding away from your presence since then.

Another and another. Akabane Karma doesn’t play when it comes to protecting his loved ones. Physically—his strong suit, AND emotionally—he might be kinda sucked at some point but willing to keep trying.

Affection wasn’t something Karma’s grown accustomed to, hell, even the concept of it sometimes cringed him out before. Yet, despite his supposedly rough exterior, Karma’s actions spoke volumes.

He doesn’t think of his beloved’s insecurities as flaws to be fixed. He does love it when you stand your ground with confidence and show the world the very “you” he’s fallen in love with, but he understands it’s also an internal battle rather than a response to external influences.

At the end of the day, you’re so, so much more than your doubts, and Karma will never hesitate to remind you of that—again and again.

#delulu is the solulu #akabane karma my beloved #akabane karma x reader #akabane karma #karma akabane x reader #karma akabane #karma x reader #assassination classroom #ansatsu kyoushitsu #request #anime x reader

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absolutebl · 9 months ago

Note

Hii do you have any recommendations for bl that’s similar to Bad Buddy, My School President, and Semantic Error? Idk I’m looking for something fluffy, but with some angst for flavor (also potentially school setting but it doesn’t have to be). Anyways thank you so much!! 💟💟

10 Fluffy Yet Angsty BLs + School Setting (By Request Rec List)

Examples: Bad Buddy, My School President, Semantic Error

Interesting selection. I added the "school setting" to keep me tailored down. Let's see what we got.

You'll never guess how we are gonna start...

Did ya guess?

Seven Days

Japan 2015 - grey

Never doubt my ability to recommend this show. One of the best live action yaois ever made, with perfectly structured angst, fantastic characters and acting, and no problematic tropes (rare in Japanese BL). The leads have excellent chemistry although it’s low heat there’s still some really cute mutual kisses.

I Cannot Reach You

AKA Kimi ni wa Todokanai

Japan 2023 - Netflix

This classic friends-to-lovers BL is everything Japan does best. Angsty. Emo. Aching. Driven by real thirst. Yamato is deeply in love with his childhood bestie, Kakeru, and has been for ages, unable to hide his ungainly damaging high school need. He wants Kakeru in every way possible and it oozes off of the screen. Kakeru is silly and a little simple, but not frenetic or overly camp about it. He is earnest, and genuinely wants to keep Yamato in his life which means giving a romance (and gayness) a fair chance. We watch him realize his affection and what form it can take in a truly authentic way. This show was impossibly kind to both of its lead characters and I felt almost honored that I got to watch something so lovely and rare play out on my screen. Full review.

Light On Me

Korea 2021 Viki

Korea does an elegant pastiche of traditional live action yaoi but all tropes are cleverly deployed to bolster one of the most riveting love triangles ever put on screen… and I don’t like love triangles. LoM strategically tailors classic BL tropes to 2 different semes resulting in pristine pacing, plot, and character development, explicitly serving narrative (not just to tick boxes). LoM is a master class in this trope drops. (If you write fanfic or romance you should study this show.) Full review.

Cherry Blossoms After Winter

Korea 2022 Viki

Korea took on early Japanese sweet yaoi but gave it their signature softness and precise production with a STUNNING color palette (beautiful pastels, sun-saturated over-exposure), manga framg style, some traditional BL character archetypes, that tiny edge of bullying roughness and out-of-control seme, plus FINALLY a palatable take on the stepbrothers trope and it was, in a word, classic. Sophisticated and understated CBAW is not slow, it’s just subtle. It's dream-like and atmospheric, as if the whole thing took place under cold water on a warm spring day. Is there plot or peril? Not really. Do we care? Also, not really. Look, I can’t help it, I’m old school and so is this show. I grew up reading sweet yaoi, and this was THAT YAOI just on my screen. There’s no objectivity with me and this show. It’s a beautiful pastiche and I loved it for how it made me feel and what it remded me of. It’s not flawless, but it is a wonderful experience. Full review.

Takara-kun and Amagi-kun

Japan 2022 Gaga and Viki

I gnawed on my knuckles and squealed a lot with this show. Reserved cool kid who must learn to communicate to keep the tiny disaster nugget he’s madly in love with. It is beyond charmg: soft and gentle, packed with cuteness and high school angst, thirst, & yearning. Was there plot? Not really. Was it emotionally tense and paced well enough for me not to notice? Absolutely. Did I enjoy the hell out of it? Oh yes. Full review.

Blueming

Korea 2022 - iQIYI

It’s a tiny bit dark and a tiny bit bittersweet, almost too honest to a university experience and first love for BL, but if you want your md ever-so-slightly messed with and your intimacy hellishly sweet, this BL will do it for you in a coldly distant manner, while bitch slapping you with self worth issues. I wasn’t into it at first, but the leads are solid and by ep 5 it got really good, becomg a narrative about self discovery meets understanding and accepting others people’s flaws without hurting them. Ultimately we witnessed two characters maturing because of each other and their mutual affection, without that affection becomg the conflict point. Instead, tension was built around other aspects of identity, popularity, and self-worth. While production values were a touch lower than usual for Korea, Bluemg included decent kisses and other forms of intimacy and a satisfying ending plus there’s judicious and very elegant use of tropes, this is a great BL. Full review.

About Youth

Taiwan 2022 - Gaga

A truly lovely little coming of age high school BL with a classic YA low drama but high angst and an earnest depth. I didn’t even mind the singing, and that’s saying a lot. A weak seme/uke dynamic but tons of BL tropes (both rare in a high school setting but common for Taiwan) makes this one feel both sweet and colored by real world authenticity and grit. Full review.

My Love Mix Up

AKA Kieta Hatsukoi

Japan 2021 - Viki

Completely adorable absolute chaos bi disaster muffin falls accidentally and utterly in love with his classmate, hijinx and friendship result. What’s great about this BL is that it deals with things like homophobia, asexuality, and one sided affection in an extremely gentle and palatable way. Perhaps sometimes too subtle, but I believe this is a great show for younger audiences, particularly if you want to spark conversations about identity, sexuality, authority, truthfulness, and consent. Oh and it’s funny.

The Eclipse

Thai 2022 - YouTube

GMMTV does gay Blacklist with a good boy/bad boy pairing. This is a good show but the cast is excellent and the leads are absolutely flawless, which elevates it beyond just good. We got a nuanced and multifaceted burgeoning relationship: philosophical (and socio-political) conflict contrasted to moments of empathy; flirtation contrasted to moments of genuine affection, plus plenty of angst. This narrative is less about love than it is about courage and tenderness. However, near the end the pacing was off and the plot frustrating. Still, this is an enjoyable watch, with a finale that features verbal consent and a fun blooper reel.

Destiny Seeker

Thai 2023 - WeTV

Frankly this probubly ranks along side most of hte runners up, but it's chronically under watched so I wanted to give it a special shout out.

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

Honorable mention

These satisfy your criteria but I jsut personally like the above 10 better. And you did ask me, still OPTIONS!

2gether & Still 2gether

A Breeze of Love

Between Us

Dark Blue Kiss (+ Kiss Me Again - PeteKao Cut)

Hidden Agenda

Love By Chance

Love Class

Love Class 2

SOTUS

Star in My Mind

TharnType

Theory of Love

Why R U? Thailand

Why R U? Korea

(source)

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fluffydeoxys · 1 month ago

Note

may I ask how you developed your relationships for zero, both romantic and platonic. I kinda need help with my own and you’re one of my favorite oc x canon artists at the moment, I love your work and you’re a huge inspiration !

ouuu... thank you.... (big wet eyes) That's a huge, very high compliment to me thank you!

If you have any further questions feel free to ask! I LOVE developing OCs and stories. I wouldn't say I'm any type of 'authority' on the matter, but I just love the process of creating, of developing and exploring. There's a reason why I named my mascot "The Editor" hehe, but anyway.

Putting a cut here because I talk a lot. I think if I put this on people's dashes it would be legitimately annoying LMAO. But if you're interested in reading about some of Zero's creation process and character dynamics, there's a fair bit of that in here

With Zero I had a lot of existing elements to work with, so some of her dynamics/ideas got a headstart. In addition, I wanted a romantic dynamic with 2BHank, so I asked myself: how could I make it interesting without losing the essence of 2BHank?

The Arena Mode story provided the blueprint for Zero and 2BD's dynamic. Initially, it's not dissimilar to how the story goes and the two have mutual respect. Doc is a little more eccentric and egotistical but he likes how obedient and efficient Zero is. He has a fondness for that, which unravels into genuine attraction with some more unhealthy elements when he learns of her "true origin."

With Hank, I wanted some sort of foil/parallel to his tendencies/mannerisms. Arena Mode also provides a perfect example of this. Zero's killing is duty-bound. It is boring. Hank's killing is freeform. It is fun. They are similar yet different, largely silent to mute characters whose existence is to kill, to maim. They learn from each other, in a way. But I didn't want them to overlap too heavily because that ended up being quite boring, so I wanted some contrasts.

Contrasting elements can be good on a character interaction or thematic scale. Foils are important to demonstrate key elements of what you want to say with a character or their story, and for me, how HankZero kills is important. How they perceive life and death and interact with it in the context of Nevada is an integral part of the story I wish to tell with them.

I think essentially look at what story you want to say, or if not something on that type of scale, what kind of dynamic you want to explore. Hell even start with one character, and then think about the scenarios you want to put them in. It's how I started with the multi-character concept that I'm currently working on.

Also take inspiration from media! Sometimes I do so deliberately, other times its quite subtle or unintentional. The dynamic between Rory and Jane (who I will reveal soon) has a lot of similarities to Elita One and Bumblebee, which I didn't plan but it helped refine their ideas. Conversely, Zero was inspired a lot by silent indie game protagonists, the Courier from FNV, etc.

When it came to evaluating Zero and the relationships she has with others, it was important to remind myself of the core aspects of each character. Sometimes I literally list them out as positive/neutral/negative traits (old technique from my OC development), or outline them as dot points. I also do this to help keep the character clear in my mind, and to ensure they stay relatively balanced in "pros" and "cons." It has helped because somewhere along the line with Zero I realised I didn't actually know what I was "saying" with her. Hence my current rewriting.

One element I definitely fail at/find lacking is creating conflicts between characters. I subconsciously make a lot of dynamics where they're usually on fine terms. Zero is mostly because she is quite forgiving and neutral, almost to a bad degree. But I think it's more fun and compelling when characters aren't perfect, they argue, and they have faults and flaws that make them clash. Hank finds it annoying how obedient Zero is sometimes. Doc finds it annoying when Zero and Hank fight and end up killing each other and wasting his time. Zero has an extremely hard time talking about what's bothering her so sometimes she's perpetually irritable and closed off.

When it came to reflecting on character dynamics as a whole, I stepped back at looked at the fundamentals of Zero. She is essentially a silent protagonist who came into this world feeling nothing. The way she was made, formed and trained makes her distinctly inhuman. Many of her relationships highlight this aspect of her in some way. But she has found herself through the people she has formed bonds with. That serious part of her interspersed with some silly charm. She doesn't express much, but those who know her can see the subtle differences. She is a guardian to all life, protective of the weak. But she will kill. She has learned she cannot save everything.

I'm still refining and adjusting elements on a day-to-day basis. More recently I've fleshed out her relationships with Deimos and Sanford. I think there is a subtle romantic element between them, but nonetheless, Sanmos is the more 'human' exploration of her. Deimos is lively, a huge chatterbox and quite silly. Zero has a great fondness for that and sort of follows him around like a silent shadow. She sees his vices and has little judgment for them (she doesn't really have a ton of personal opinions), so Dei feels strangely vulnerable and safe around her. He's great at reading her face, cus he got a lot of practice from when Sanford was really closed off. Deimos was the first person to hear her voice (besides Dave).

Sanford is her emotional bedrock. He was in a pretty similar situation to her (emotionally speaking), shutting everyone out and stonewalling emotions/life/etc. He empathises with her deeply and wants to help her, and is the first to notice/reach out. Zero takes a LONG time to open up to him, but eventually, she does and she's much better off for it. They share tender physical intimacy; Sanford likes to put his hand on her shoulder, and Zero will stand closer to him. When she needs quiet and to relax, she usually seeks Sanford out. Because Sanford understands Zero, she also understands him, so in their worst moments they support each other.

For the rest, I definitely want to flesh things out more. I've been thinking a little more about the aspects with Dave, but I'd like more detail for Skinner and Pava. And of course, I'd actually like to get QBert and Bossman in there somehow, because I can't think of a particular "point" that would make them interesting. Eg. for Pava, it was the weapon modification.

Having a good grasp on the character individually can also help with thinking of more random interactions. I don't think Zero is super interesting on her own, but putting her with Sheriff for example was pretty funny. Her passive demeanour and face looks eerily similar to Hank, which frightens the fuck out of him. But she just thinks he's cute, especially with how flighty he is. She has a lot of respect for what he's built with the MERCs.

Her relationship with the Maker is also interesting too, I think. I'm still reworking it alongside Zero's story so I hesitate to explain the particulars right now, but it's quite similar to the Pale King and the Hollow Knight.

Hopefully that explains? Some things? There's a lot of me talking about my own stuff but hopefully there's some useable advice/ideas in there. hehe

It sounds lame and boring and overdone to hell but genuinely reading/watching a lot of different things can inspire you in ways you didn't expect. It's something I need to do a lot more of.

#_mail #oc: zero #i ain't readin allat im happy for u or sorry that happened ass post

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mirrormazeworld · 1 year ago

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Twst Analysis and Findings Why Crowley isn't Malleus's Dad, Unpopular Chapter 5 Diasomnia Twst Theory

While 99.9% of people seem to be convinced that Crowley is Levan, I'm that 0.01% who is still not convinced yet because there are some things that I found really odd if Crowley is Malleus's dad. So odd that this post itself has become a long post.

If you search for something and want to read where Crowley isn't Levan/Malleus's dad, then this theory and analysis is for you because here I'll explain some points for your considerations before jumping to conclusions, though I'm not sure if anyone will care about what I write and hear this small opinion at this point.

1. Heavily implied "another dragon from another country"

In Diasomnia chapter 4, it's said from Lilia's dialogue that "Draconia clan are the descendants of the dragons". All this time we might think that "Draconia are the only dragon in Twisted Wonderland" but in chapter 5 it's revealed that Draconia aren't the only dragon in Twisted Wonderland because there are other dragon clans from faraway country.

Malleus's dad, Levan's title is 竜眼公 in Japanese and it can be translated literally as "Dragon Eye Lord" or "Longan Lord". (More about his title, you can see it in my previous post)

If we see it the way like how longan fruit is named, (龍眼) either 龍眼 or 竜眼 still have the same meaning, but the only difference is 龍眼 is from Cantonese while 竜眼 is from Japanese.

But the main points in common are : They are both "Dragon Eye" and "Eastern Countries"

Which means there's a high possibility that Levan is a dragon from the longan clan/eastern dragon clan.

What's more interesting is that Lilia seems to be very fond of this "Long/Eastern Dragon" that he wants to spend the rest of his life there in their homeland. Out of all the countries he can and had ever visited, why did he choose "Red Dragon Country" in particular?

In first Halloween event Diasomnia also went with the theme of Long and it's revealed that it was Malleus's idea himself with Lilia providing more information about the Eastern Dragon Country culture and the Longs. And then there's that one dialogue said by Lilia himself in the Halloween Event :

"In fact, one such Long became a family's guardian spirit"

It is somehow similar to Levan who has been like a guardian to Meleanor and his draconia family, as her husband, her Left General alongside Lilia (Right General), and her most trusted person (Meleanor's Eyes and Limbs)

If it's not a subtle information but also kind of important that it's heavily implied many times just like Malleus who froze the time in Endless Halloween then I don't know what it is.....

2. Discarded Character Concept (?)

In twst exhibition there's an initial concept art of Crowley where he seems to have a similar theme and is somehow grouped with Diasomnia. It's because he had the same color as that of Diasomnia, even you can see the thorns on his leg and arm which as we know, is the symbol of Diasomnia/related to Draconia family (Sleeping Beauty Squad)

However, if we compare Crowley's old design and his original, usual one, in the design of the Crowley that we know now, twst seems to actually change every Diasomnia/Sleeping Beauty concept out of him and replace it all, from "thorns" to "mirrors" and "golden keys", and leave only the "corvid" part of him.

The question is, Why did Yana and twst team go into such trouble to change him all the way?

In Diasomnia Chapter 4 it's revealed that "Briar Kingdom has two castles : Black Scale Castle (Briar Valley's Main/Capital Castle) and Wild Rose Castle (Meleanor's Castle)

Diasomnia chapter is heavily tied with Wild Rose Castle rather than Black Scale Castle and places the main casts of Diasomnia chapter in Wild Rose Castle rather than Black Scale Castle and wrote Meleanor as Princess rather than a Queen. I know Diasomnia chapter was written with Sleeping Beauty as its story frame, and Meleanor is supposed to take the role of Maleficent in that story, but the question is why they created two castles and used Wild Rose Castle as the main background of the story rather than just create and use one castle, and give the title "Princess" to Meleanor and not a "Queen" since Maleficia, Malleus's grandma is the Queen? In the original and older version of sleeping beauty by Brothers Grimm, "Maleficent" is depicted as a Queen who is jealous of Talia (Sleeping Beauty) and not a Princess. It's as if they want to separate what is "exclusively Diasomnia chapter" from Briar Valley/Briar Kingdom itself.

This is honestly only my personal opinion, but based on these facts, the only logical, possible explanation I can think of is because they want to give this Diablo/Diaval's role to this Lord Longan so that Crowley can play a more bigger role rather than just a diplomat/messenger, and thus, discarded the old Crowley concept and made it invalid.

Thinking the old design as the valid source of information means that you want to tell people that "Epel with skirt and Idia as the little brother are canon" but are they now? Do twst used that concept in the end? Does Epel wear skirt in game and Idia is Ortho's little brother? Of course not, and you already saw it yourself that Yana already discarded that idea completely.

3. A seemingly Disastrous Chronology if Levan is Crowley

With the given information from in game, I want you to think with logic here :

Lilia is 700 years old. NRC gave him a letter of acceptance 500 years ago, but then he ripped it, and then Levan taped it back and stored it in royal archives. Silver said they are in Lilia's dream from 400 years ago and as we know this is when the war between faes and Silver Owl occurred, and at that time it's said that Levan was missing.

Now what I find odd is : if Levan is Crowley, then who sent the NRC acceptance letter to Lilia? We all know the Headmaster is in charge of student admission just like how he permitted Yuu and Grim to become NRC students, sending letters to people acknowledged by dark mirror, persuading Kalim's family, letting Ortho enroll even though he is an android and so on. And if Crowley is Levan, he wouldn't be able to do his job as Headmaster in Land of Dawning because he would need to be present in Briar Valley by Lilia's side to tape back the letter Lilia had torn to shreds.

Keep in mind that there are no official exact years and number from twst itself how long Crowley had been headmaster of NRC yet but from Diasomnia chapter it's clear that NRC already existed back then far before the war between humans and fae.

This one is just my personal opinion, but I'm more convinced that Crowley was the one who cast complex, ancient spell on Grim and therefore, know something about the extremely rare overblot incident that seems to always happen in NRC (and so we heard his voice summoning Yuu and said "we are all running out of time" in the prologue") and so he is tied more heavily to book 8 (Ramshackle/NRC) after Diasomnia if it does exist in the future than book Diasomnia.

Both The Watcher from Island of Woe (Idia's family) and the primeval spell that casted on Grim which seems to be similar to Shroud family's curse were from when the nature of overblot was not known yet and was considered as natural disaster, dated back to the "Age of Gods" which is approximately 1000 years ago.

But then you might think "Oh maybe Crowley had lived that long and pretended to be Levan to play his role." This is impossible because Lilia, Meleanor and Levan are childhood friends and well, Lilia said it himself that they were still children, besides Lilia is 700 years old and not 1000 years old.

Therefore I don't think Crowley is Malleus's Dad, Levan. But if someone said "Crowley was Maleficia's (Malleus's grandma) subordinate, then I can believe them because that way it will be possible for him to exist since the Age of Gods.

And perhaps this is also the reason why Yana and twst teams purposely wrote Diasomnia story with two castles and used Wild Rose Castle as the main background scene in the story rather than just created and used one castle, because they do wanted to separate it and created a place exclusively to tell Diasomnia story so it wont disturb the other plot of the other story and create a plot hole as a whole.

And so that's all the many reasons why I don't think Crowley is Malleus's Dad. Unless someone can answer the questions that had been swirling around my head because of how absurd Crowley is Malleus's Dad theory is which I had been marked with red color in this post and explained it logically or the official told it themselves then I won't be convinced.

#twisted wonderland #twst theory #dire crowley #twst crowley #twst thoughts #malleus draconia #twst malleus #twst lilia #lilia vanrouge #twst levan #personally I think Crowley is Malleus's Dad theory is so absurd #unpopular opinion #twst spoilers #twst chapter 7 spoilers #twst chapter 7

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nikethestatue · 5 months ago

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Hello there!

A bit new to fandom and I do apologize in advance if this has already been addressed in a previous post but what are your thoughts on when Elucien fans say that both Lucien and Elain are very similar? Personally, I think Elain and Azriel are more similar but my bigger issue with this is that it does not matter how similar two people are. If they aren’t into each other romantically, you should take it at face value versus trying to force them together. It’s a bit frustrating to see this so often-their personalities match, they are mates, she needs to give him a chance because he is a good male who deserves happiness, etc. I truly do not understand this fandom, tbh.

Thanks in advance for your much appreciated insight.

Hi Anon,

I think the mistake in this whole 'these two characters are similar' discussions is that it's not the similarity that's important, it's compatibility.

You don't have to be similar to be happy and to have a great relationship (one of the big problems with dating apps I think is that it's doing exactly that--looking for similarities between people, assuming that if both like sports and sushi, they'll make a great match), but you have to be compatible.

Yeah, on the surface, Elain and Lucien might have some commonalities--kind of the ignored and forgotten children in their families. Both at ease in social situations. Both polite and gracious (most of the time). But the funny thing is, exactly the same thing could be said about Elain and Azriel. In fact, the same WAS said about them--Elain and Azriel, the only polite ones. Azriel, graceful as any courtier. "Rhys could make Azriel a Prince of Velaris...' "No, Elain was his princess'.

But that's not the most important thing, even though of course SJM put all of it in the books for a reason. Note how Feyre never said that Elain would cling to Lucien...

But I think the important thing to remember is that compatibility isn't based on mutual likeness. Cassian and Nesta have NO similarities, but they are compatible. Lorcan and Elide have even fewer similarities, but they are drawn to each other and are compatible.

Lucien was in love with Jesminda. Thought even that they might be mates --they were very different in many ways, but obviously he found her vivacious nature very appealing.

At the same time, Azriel, for example, seemed to have loved Mor, but they are incredibly incompatible. Whether it's when she had to MAKE him, BEG him, CAJOLE him into things, or her being part of the group that gives him headaches, or them just being completely different temperament-wise and having almost nothing to say to each other, despite both being warriors, both being in the IC, having knowing each other for literal ages, etc. It interesting that it translates to friendships as well--Rhys and Azriel seemed to be fairly similar in many ways, yet they are not compatible. Azriel loves him as a brother, but I don't get the sense that they just adore each other. Whereas Cassian, who seems to be very different from Azriel has a much, much closer relationship to him, and Rhys as well.

It's a fallacy which is pretty popular in this fandom --they are so similar, they must be a romantic pairing! Look, Gwyn and Az are both Carynthians! They are so similar. Whereas Azriel kept thinking to himself how he can escape the interaction with her. Whereas with Elain, who certainly isn't a Carynthian, he could sit for hours, listening to her garden plans.

I think all we need to know is that Elriel have a mutual understanding that doesn't even require words. That's a high level of emotional connection. Pretty much the highest--to be able to understand the other person just by sensing subtle changes in them. And Elriel already have that.

#elriel #pro elriel

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ghostflowerhotpotch · 2 years ago

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Part two of this Post because I literally ramble for so long.

So, was Gwen trying to shut down Miles, or incline something is possible?

Let's dive in!

This is her looking down towards her hand Miles's, who very subtly, try to get closer. She notice what he is doing.

It's very subtle, the type of stuff you notice after you are going half-speed and compare the images side by side. I also think regardless of how quick, in movement you can capture how she appears to almost be swallowing a bitter pill.

Closing her eyes, the corners of her smile falling just slightly so, in the moment it looks almost like she is telling this to herself more than she is telling Miles.

This, is the moment when I feel is Gwen shutting Miles down.

Because no one here has actually said the words dating or relationship or similar, not in the context of them together at least. Yet they are both well aware that what Gwen meant with those words wasn't just casual trivia about the spiderverse.

And Miles takes it as a sign to pull his hand back.

Here is a part that has trip me in my multiple runs to the theatres.

She looks back at her, and smiles, heck her smile even gets bigger in this shot.

A lot of this conversation she has looked back at the horizon, with her smile showing at its brightest when is at him, and yet she tries to keep her gazes short most of time.

But not here, she stares.

And Miles sees that.

I don't know if the moment we move the camera to this angle, Gwen's moves her face away for no reason, or maybe the fact that we are seen Miles now, means he is just turning to see her now, and she shies away.

What I found interesting is how the shot doesn't show them looking at each other, or seeing them in front each other.

Angles have different meanings in cinematography, and believe it or not, despite being this crazy about frames I have no idea about these angles. Not in a true professional level.

But I can see that if we were seeing Gwen look at Miles from this angle, we would miss her expression. This also means we get to see Miles's expression sink in while she looks back to the horizon.

I wonder what Gwen felt when she saw his gaze, if she saw the way he looked at her and needed to look to the other side because her love for her shows so clearly in his expression and she knows they can't.

Remember how in the last post, I pointed out how Miles turned into a better lighter something, and it helped?

He is just doing it again.

Here is the thing, I don't think Gwen is fully convinced about this anomaly-ending-all-the-universes situation, if she truly thought Miles was dangerous as Miguel makes him seem she wouldn't be here.

She believes it because Miguel makes a strong point, because he is the one who introduced this situation properly, and because she is in an agency fully committed to Miguel's mission and this is her life now.

Yet she is still with Miles, repeating the things Miguel probably has pointed out (if not him, someone, I don't think she stumble onto this by accident.) and they kind of get outweighed by Miles here.

Here we go back to what I was talking about, they are seeing each other, but we don't get the entire picture of it, we just seem what they see, with camera making us look almost like if we are looking over the shoulder of the character.

I think this is a good way to show the still present divide, we cannot see their feelings for each other fully appear on the screen, and they can't see it either. They cannot realize that the two together like this paint a picture that could only have one meaning.

But let's stop my sad attempt of purple prose, and to this.

Gwen leans into Miles, is her doing this.

So, if we establish that Gwen still smiles after hearing his refusal to buy into that mentality, to look at him and just stare as he lovingly glances at her, and she is the one to lean into him; I still think she is trying to turn him down?

Because...she didn't say anything else.

The situation is this, this entire exchange has been showing moments of Gwen slightly pulling back, from the different moments at the clockwork where she walks away from him, to her going to fast for him at times, for her saying to Miles and herself it is probably not meant to be.

Yet she never tries to go far enough he cannot follow, or she cannot get back to him. She still leans into him, smiles; the last time they saw each other she reminded him that she was older than him, for 15 months, but still counted for her.

(Yes, I think it carries meaning that she herself reassures is not that big of a gap, but this is not the post to dive about that.)

So what is it now that she still cannot find a way to say clearly, no?

She doesn't want to, it's really that.

She knows she shouldn't be here, she shouldn't be talking about this, and she shouldn't be in this position, but she is, and she doesn't want to go away.

I think she still shuts him down because the last thing she said about the subject (or well, while hinting at the subject,) was she thinking it wasn't going to work.

Before, she told him that it was great talking to him, and confirmed it so again. She told him things were different with him, even if she wasn't sure how to put it.

And yet at the chance she has to say "yeah, maybe there is a first time," she stays quiet. But leans on him.

For me, this is her indicating that she is just letting the moment sink in, to have the closest she has to a proper date with him. If circumstances were different, this is the moment when while looking at each other, they should had kissed.

But they still turned their heads away, not taking that step.

This is where people may feel Gwen is giving mixed signals (and I will probably go for the kneecaps of someone trying to imply that,) but I think the fact that Gwen doesn't mentioned something between them again is that she is letting those words be the last ones about her opinion on the subject. And the fact that she isn't saying anything else is that her mind hasn't changed in that regard. Yet.

And we finish this sequence with one of my favourite frames of the movie, which says a lot in a movie full of frames that feel like works of art.

I like to point out how earlier we see them being still a bit far from each other, but the last shot on this environment is them rectifying that.

How this is a show where not by coincidence, makes it looks almost like they are the only people in the world, on a shot only people like them can see, and yet it happened because this was Miles favorite spot, and Gwen decided to sling in a way Miles has never attempted before.

Making this a sight, only possible by them being together.

#ghostflower #gwiles #gwen stacy #miles morales #atsv spoilers #across the spiderverse spoilers #across the spiderverse #atsv #spiderman #spiderwoman #ghostflower files #I cannot believe I wasn't thinking on analyzing this sequence because I assumed I didn't have anything to say #and I didn't even address the beginning of it!#jeez how I do these things

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licncourt · 2 months ago

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God I know it’s annoying to be one of those people who rains on people’s party by preferring original works instead of adaptations but the way book fans have kind of been pushed out of the fandom sucks lol Like I totally understand why people love the show and that it naturally has a huge fan base due to its wide reaching platform, it’s just I’ve noticed a good portion seem to dismiss book fans as small minded, as if you can’t be fans of both. Specifically with Louis of course. It just sucks that Lestat is seemingly embraced by fandom at large in both book&show form while bookLouis is basically nullified. Which is why your blog is such a joy to browse through as a Louis girl! Because I thought we were all on the same page that these are all horrible and terrible beings? lol And honestly both book&showLouis are so different yet so similar in ways that I find fascinating as they are both interesting characters with their own complexities. Anyway thanks for this blog and all your shared thoughts it’s much appreciated.

ps. I kind of miss the dynamic between L&L in fic where it was a bit more of a blurred line of push and pull. No one pulls off Ice Queen quite like Louis and I personally love fic where he’s the one who has Lestat crying and eating his heart out lol

I don't like to talk about the show/show fandom a ton on my blog these days because I don't want to invite any drama but I do agree with you for sure. I find it frustrating, like there's an infinite amount of space for everyone as long as you're nice, book fan, show fan, or both. It's definitely the only fandom I've observed with so much vitriol for the source material from a huge chunk of the extended fanbase..? A lot of the really intense hatred for even the IWTV book feels like the weird moral purity discourse that shows up in other fandoms and it just feel so out of place for something as inherently dark and morally ambiguous as VC/AMC IWTV. They're just dark in different ways (and many of the same).

The Louis stuff probably bothers me the most. I've made jokes before about people needing to hate him in the right way if they're going to hate him, but it's not really a joke tbh. If people don't want to engage with book Louis because they're uncomfortable with the plantation/slave owner aspect or they find his hypocrisy annoying or his personality too dour and unpleasant and not fun, I totally get it, he's an acquired taste!

My frustration is that a large group of people who hate book Louis as show fans commonly state that he's boring or has no personality or that he was a nothing character made into something interesting by the show and I hate that take SO much.

His character is more subtle and understated than Lestat or Armand, but incredibly rich and layered and he absolutely comes to life in the subtext in way that's really magical. I think show Louis is a fantastic character, but he's also intended to be easier to digest because it's a show on AMC designed for mass consumption and modern tastes.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with that, but by comparison book Louis takes a little more effort to understand and absorb and evokes way more complex emotions in the reader. If that's not someone's thing and they just want to have fun, that's totally fine (I feel that way about other media sometimes), but I'm always bothered by people who feel that way speaking badly about the book/his character without giving it an honest try. I don't know how anyone could say that this character written as a mirror image by a grieving mother in a toxic relationship who has just lost her child and her faith while battling alcoholism and grappling with her relationship to death, sex, gender, and cycles of violence could be considered one dimensional.

It feels disingenuous to paint him as a lazily written stock narrator and spread that analysis across social media so that other people go in with preconceived notions and hate on it blindly.

#oh and re: your ps #i agree totally i think what makes book loustat so fun is how the power dynamic is constantly in flux like gay vampire tug o war #if one or the other is consistenly at a disadvantage it flattens them out so much!!!#answered

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idonttakethislightly · 2 months ago

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So even without having read any X-Men, I know from Pop Cultural Osmosis that a big thing in X-Men is using mutants as a metaphor for various real-life marginalized groups. Here's a good post about one way the mutant metaphor can get weird- it's talking about how the mutant metaphor gets mixed up and diluted when there's so many other things going on in the Marvel 'verses. Also, I don't have one source for this, but many people have remarked on how people with superhuman, possibly dangerous powers, would be a little bit different from real-life groups. In this world, people might be marginalized due to their race/religion/queerness/whatever, but they're still human, right?

I mean, can we really think of a group of people who are dehumanized in part because a few of them have seemingly-superhuman abilities? People who don't just look different, but act different due to the inherent workings of their minds? Is there a group that includes the most powerful man in the world, yet is overall underprivileged? Is anyone in this world actually like that?

...yeah, so I'm saying that even if The Power Fantasy isn't intentionally doing a deconstructive take on, "Autism is my superpower," I'm going to be eyeing it with those kinds of parallels in mind. That kind of analogy is playing with fire in terms of representation, maybe to an even greater extent than mutants as other marginalized groups. Here's an article I like about all the ways that can go badly wrong. Basically, framing neurodivergent characters (autistic or otherwise) as only valuable for their abilities is dehumanizing, as is treating them as essentially different than "normal humans". And here I am, putting a read on The Power Fantasy that boils down to both those things being true- even if Kieron and Caspar aren't intentionally doing those things, I am. That's on me.

But I'm going to hang onto that perspective, at least for a while...

... because I do expect The Power Fantasy to go hard on deconstructing ideas about ability and difference and humanity and so on. And I know it's not the same: autism, the one neurodivergence I'm really familiar with, is a real-life neurological difference, and Atomic powers are a fantasy thing that doesn't seem to imply the same kinds of neurological experiences as autism. But all three Atomic superpowers clearly do things with their minds, not their bodies. And based on what we've seen, I think that shapes them in ways that are similar to autism in some ways, if different in others.

I can't speak for sure about the non-Atomic Superpowers, especially because Eliza and Jacky are still pretty enigmatic. But let's take the three Atomics one by one, and I'll make my case on how they're toying with autistic experiences and tropes:

Masumi: well, she's got an intense passion that's her main way of avoiding massive, uncontrollable breakdowns. Special interests and meltdowns right there. In some ways she's playing into that troubling stereotype of the immature autistic adult who hasn't been pushed hard enough to grow. But she humanizes and justifies that stereotype a little- she's aware she's being coddled to some extent, and there's a very pressing reason why nobody's willing to let her feelings be hurt. I can relate, in a way, to her fear of her own emotions. And it's a subtle detail, but you know how, as the monster manifests underwater, Masumi's own body goes translucent? That's very evocative, in my mind, of this certain dissociative, out-of-body experience.

Etienne: at first glance he's the opposite of the expected autistic experience, considering that he can know anything he wants about nearly anyone's inner thoughts and feelings. But he's got this highly detailed and highly cerebral approach to ethics, similar to a lot of autistic people. And as a younger man, he's a bit conceited about his own ethical smarts- this reduces a little as he goes through life and accumulates regrets, but he still acts decisively and surely making decisions most people would think twice about. People will go back and forth on whether it's accurate to say "autistic people have a particularly strong sense of justice"- my take is that we often do think hard and care a lot about what is right and fair, but that doesn't imply a superior moral compass or anything. And as for Etienne's confidence in his own reasoning, as well as his often-stoic mannerisms- it's easy to overintellectualize when your feelings are just too much to bear. I think Etienne has no choice but to completely detach from his knowledge of what people feel- if he let himself empathize as well as understand, I don't know how anyone could survive that.

Heavy: remember how I alluded to the most powerful man in our world (as in, the richest) being autistic? You know, the guy with an oversized ego and an eagerness to "wave that member of [his] on the world stage" as Etienne put it in Issue #4? Heavy's a little different, with a different kind of power, but I see him as the specific kind of autistic person who's managed to transmute his unhealthy coping mechanisms into semi-effective power moves. He's got an incredibly black-and-white take on morality, and lets his anger run away with him- but he frames those things as heroism, championship of the marginalized, etc. He's also a sensory seeker in a number of ways- sex and drugs are the obvious ones, but also, think about how much he'd have to work out and eat to actually have that body. That's if you're taking his muscles and fat literally and realistically, which of course isn't a given. But it seems pretty in character for Heavy to be using physical distractions to avoid facing how he feels, as many autistics do. But he's reframed those distractions to build up his self-image: that complicated mix of charm and intimidation that I described here. Heavy's got exactly the kind of ego and worldview I'd expect from someone who used to feel marginalized and helpless, and then found the niche that gives him power- that's an autistic-coded cliche in fiction, although usually that character is more nerd than jock. But also we call that an "aspie supremacist" in real life. It's a thing, and a concerning one.

...okay so. I didn't entirely realize, until I typed all this out, that the autistic-coded tropes in The Power Fantasy are mostly really negative ones? And that's assuming they're actually there and I'm not just projecting. (I don't think I am, but of course, I wouldn't think so.) But- I feel like, even as the story sketches out all these worst-case scenarios (maybe even untrue stereotypes) about autistic people, that they have this physical truth to them. Masumi's the one whose physical dissociation from the world is most obvious. But Etienne, who steps from mind to mind, and Heavy, who controls the world without touching it...

I wrote this whole thing about why Heavy caught my eye- it boils down to a physical dissociation from my body. Partly that's gender stuff but it's also very much autism stuff. Lots of people think of autism as a difference in personality or behavior. But while autism does affect those things (not always in stereotypical ways) really it's a difference in processing and perception.

I don't know if the story's ever going to get into this... but I'm curious how Masumi really experiences her monster, how Etienne experiences his psychic knowledge, how Heavy experiences the physical world. Sure, the differences between their minds and most people's is a massive danger to the human race, and I'm interested to see how that shakes out... but how does it feel to be like them? Does it feel anything like being me?

#the power fantasy #autism #morishita masumi #etienne lux #ray heavy harris

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gffa · 1 year ago

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These two pages from Dark Victory have stayed with me ever since I first read it because they're visually hella interesting, I enjoy Tim Sale's art for how stylish it is, but also because every time I see it, I hear the click of a spotlight being turned on, almost like this is a play being acted out. It highlights the connection between the characters, but that it also is shutting everything else out. That makes sense in the moment, Dick just watched his parents die, there's nothing else in the world for him. Bruce is reliving his own trauma of having watched his parents die, as well as watching another child go through the same thing--but, in a way I can't shake, it almost feels like Bruce is intruding on this moment, too. That Dick's loss gets interpreted as a mirror of Bruce's loss--Dark Victory goes to great lengths to hammer home that parallel, it is not at all subtle about it:

But what strikes me about the moment of the Graysons' deaths is that it feels almost like a play being acted out, that Bruce becomes part of it because they mirror each other so strongly, that for all they grow as individuals and come to love each other as uniquely different people, they will always be rooted in this mirroring of each other. Bruce isn't just a bystander to Dick's loss and grief, it fundamentally connects them and defines them--that in many ways Dick understands Bruce the best because, as Dick says about himself, when he was Robin, he was smaller than everyone else, so he had to learn to read people better, to know what they were going to do, because Dick was with Bruce the longest, because Dick and Bruce often are the most similar. But it's also that Dick understands Bruce best because Bruce allowed him in because of this mirror, that sometimes it feels like Bruce only understands people through the lens of his own grief, that's why Dick's the closest to him, because Dick shares that same loss. This isn't to undercut that Dick was a bright, lively child who brought laughter and joy because that is also absolutely true and I will fight tooth and nail anyone who says otherwise. Bruce loves that kid because Dick refused to not be loved, because he's not the same as Bruce, he's brighter, he's better, he's more in so many ways. Bruce and Dick's relationship isn't just one thing or another, there are times when it borders on almost being kind of healthy and then there are times when it's toxic as hell, yet it's always underscored by how much they genuinely love each other, how Bruce keeps thoughts of Dick in his mind to turn to for solace just like he turns to thoughts of his own father, how Dick demands to be worth just as much to Bruce's parents even when they've traveled into the future to be directly in front of him, and Dick gets that worth from Bruce. But sometimes I think about that panel, I hear a spotlight clicking on in my head, I think about Bruce unintentionally inserting himself into this moment of Dick's loss and how Bruce sometimes holds him closer to his heart because Dick's hurt mirrors his own so much. How sometimes Bruce sees the world through that lens of trauma and only how much people can understand it, that the rest of the world drops away and is nothing but black, empty space, except him and the person who understands his hurt.

That I can look at that panel and see it as its meant to be--a moment of pure connection, "I understand what you're going through, I can't take it away, but I can be here with you." and how that saved Dick Grayson's life, how it allowed him to heal and grow and thrive. I can see Bruce's heart breaking because he would have done anything to save this kid from that pain. And sometimes I can look at it and see Bruce watching a horrific play unfold before him and relating to it through his own issues, rather than true empathy. Ultimately, it's really more that they're kindred spirits, that's what the follow-up pages show, that Dick goes through the same process that Bruce went through, he does the same things Bruce did, all while Bruce isn't there to influence him into that at all. Dick is his own person, Bruce couldn't make him be a copy of Bruce if he'd wanted to, he couldn't even win an argument with a nine-year-old about putting on a costume and fighting crime with him and absolutely not staying out of the line of fire. Dick Grayson did what he was going to do, Bruce had nothing to do with making him into that person. But part of the reason they're such an interesting dynamic is because they're not just purely one thing or another, that for all that at the end of the day, Dick and Bruce are naturally like each other in a lot of core ways, it's also possible to read them as unhealthy co-dependent on each other, that them being everything to each other comes with some sharper edges, especially when Bruce sometimes resents Dick for growing beyond him and leaving him, even while desperately proud of him at the same time.

It's a thing Bruce struggles with a lot when it comes to Dick and I think of this tangled web of emotions every time I see that second splash page above. That Bruce came to love this kid as a son, but also as someone who understood what it was like to live with that kind of devastating loss, and how hard Bruce connected with that--and then how hard it was to let him go, when Bruce can't let go of his parents. That it's hard for Bruce to see Dick grow beyond being the son who understood him best, who mirrored his tragedy best, and he'll do it, he loves his kid enough to keep climbing back up out of that desire to hold onto him as his reflection even if he falls back into it sometimes, that some part of him will always see Dick as the one who had that connection that blocked the rest of the world out and understood him in a way no one else could.

#lumi.txt #dc #batfam #dick grayson #bruce wayne #batman: dark victory #long post

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