#it's like. i want to make it clear that he's a mad scientist type character. but i'm unsure on how to keep him as proper as the countess

[okultraoldmanyaoi]

that one swap gloomwood au i mentioned

[hotvintagepoll]

Charles McNaughton (Treasure Island)—he is such a weird little weird pirate in this movie!!!! the whole movie is creeEEEEeepy at this point, weird characters showing up at the bar FREAKING jim hawkins ass out, but charles mcnaughton's black dog (the first of many weirdos) takes the cake for me.

Dwight Frye (Dracula, Frankenstein)—he's my babygirl please please please please please i want to baby bird feed him flies and spiders and pick him up and make glitter edits of him and give him gross forehead kisses like he's my cat. in dracula he was so incredibly creepy that he was typecast as madmen for the rest of his life and he fucking hated it but by god if he didn't do a fantastic job. he steals the show every time he's up on screen just because he's so fucking deranged. i need him

This is round 1 of the contest. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. If you're confused on what a scrungle is, or any of the rules of the contest, click here.

[additional submitted propaganda + scrungly videos under the cut]

Charles McNaughton:

Link to the entire movie of Treasure Island [1932]—McNaughton comes in at 12:02. I haven't seen the whole movie in a long time so go forward with caution for content warnings!

Dwight Frye:

He absolutely owns the entirety of Dracula (1931). Compared to the novel, his part is massively expanded and it's clear why. He's magnetically unhinged and his facial expressions are pure scrungle. And in Frankenstein, he begins the archetype of Frankenstein's assistant even if the character's name there is Fritz. He'd still go on to play other scrungly guys in later Frankenstein movies. But he's kinda the archetypal and progenitor of the scrungly lil guy.

The scrungliest guy ever to scrungle. He's pretty much the blueprint for every mad scientist's assistant, and he's the best part of every movie he's in. He manages to make you feel sorry for the creepy little dudes, even when he's eating spiders and crawling across the floor.

[editor's note: content warning for the "hunchback" stereotype and "madness" in the clips below]

the "Rats" soliloquy:

I saw him in Dracula and frankly he has me bewitched. I could watch him do his silly routine forever. The gay tension with Bela Lugosi onscreen was frankly unparalleled. Kirk and Spock levels. I am chewing on the furniture

Played the weirdo little guy in Dracula AND the weirdo little guy in Frankenstein in the same year. Iconic.

I honestly think it would be a crime to ignore Dwight Frye's scrungle factor. He played two of the prototypical creepy little henchman as Dracula's lackey Renfield and Dr. Frankenstein's hunchback servant Fritz, and I believe that his excellence in these roles absolutely shaped the future character tropes of the "Igor" type as much as Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff shaped the future understanding of Dracula and Frankenstein's monster. He's got it all from the looks, to the manic energy, to the crazed laugh, I'm telling you right now that I think he could win the entire tournament.

The scrungles to end all scrungles! There's a reason why this man codified the manic vampire's familiar and the hunchbacked lab assistant for generations, because by God can this man be feral and scrungly: Whether he's soliloquizing about rats as Renfield, scurrying around Frankenstein's lab like a spider as Fritz, or skulking around dark alleys (and scaring the hell out of little baby me) waiting for a fresh heart to steal as Karl, if you want a scrungly little man for your classic film, Dwight Frye is your man. He has the range to play varying kinds of scrungle, with his wide eyes, his manic smiles, his soft, breathy voice, he is truly an undisputed scrungle master.

[socksandbuttons]

Bean Eclipse Au has my love and seeing any post makes me very happy but now I want to get to know your Space au a little. May you give us some funfacts about the characters to get to know them better?

Aw thank you! I'll do my best describing some things! Its been a moment where I dont know what ive said about them on here. ((The ladies, are by @nekojaf so if u want info on them you gotta ask her!)) First, We got Eclipse (yes thats his name, unless we go au hopping its-)

-He's a captain of his own spaceship (however its mostly a ship that can house just a handful of people.)

-He's self confident, he's got leadership qualities and doesn't stand down often. However can be a huge flirt (as Beige unfortunately deals with). -I've mentioned before but Eclipse (like other models of his kind) are far more Emotive than the previous models.

-Eclipse is the reason Lunar has a collection of plushies. The guy is very good with sewing. -He's not familiar too much with the 'Star' like SAMS' Eclipse is. At least not currently. He's far more concerned with other things.

-His relationship with Earth is rather... interesting. He may be vocal about not wanting to speak to her but its mostly cause she's like a mom who tends to baby him. (Although he can't blame her frequent check ins.) -Most people avoid him, but that's cause he's made an interesting name for himself.

Lunar, my BOY who started this whole au actually.

-The space suit was given to him by Eclipse. Who may have taken it.

-He comes off as sweet, but don't think less of him in comparison with his brother. He's mischievous as well, and cunning when needed.

-Far better at keeping his emotions in check than Eclipse.

-Unlike Eclipse (again) he's actually rather good at y'know. Getting the girl.

-However, he is younger than Eclipse. In part not as experienced with the whole line their apart of.

-Rather handy with his shots, but better at driving. Also has a bit of a name for himself.

-Cannot actually believe how his brother acts around Beige from time to time. He's judging his brother immensely everytime. Just let her clear the hyperdrive so they can go!

Moon!

-It should not be a shock he's still a scientist in this au. (Mad scientist Sun would say...)

-But in part of that, its due to being part of a Space Camp. He's suppose to be in charge of the sciences of how rockets run. However he uses most of that to make his own things.

-It usually does end up with the kids handling it. Unless Sun gets involved. Kids love the anti gravity chamber a lot.

-Also in this AU he is still AroAce.

-However since Sun and him are under a company, they don't usually leave the Camp. They can't really.

-Moon has made a Star.

Sun, sweetie my darling.

-Although him and Moon run the Camp together, Sun mostly handles the kids. (Although, Sun more or less just doesn't want them getting hurt cause of Moon's experiments.) -He's been having trouble with some outsiders makings noise lately but it's usually something he can handle. The dome around the place keeps the camp relatively safe (and Safer with Moon's additional technology)

-He goes by his own checklist, although the one from the higher ups isn't something he wants to fully deviate from. It's kept things running, and their own job secure.

-He may be dressed up as a Spaceman, he's uh... not actually one. At least not by astronaut standards.

-They don't talk to other models of themselves.

-Earth and Sun usually can talk for hours. However, he tries not to keep her too long. She's got others to check in.

Bloodmoon, yes it's him!

-The possibly second youngest.

-He's the only model of his type that... well Ruby's seen actually.

-An avid fan of Invader Zim, due to many movie nights he's had with Ruby. (In an effort to help him learn some things about people...without being near too many.) -He doesn't understand why he needed clothes, unaware of his own autonomy.

-Unfortunately for everyone, WAS destroying planets and ships, destruction in his wake. No one could keep him contained. Until Ruby. But she's not really trying to contain him.

-His curiosity mainly keeps him in check, at least in regard to his learning program. He still seeks some chaos, even if it is on a isolated ship in the meantime.

-Comet Boy! Danger, do not engage.

Angel, y sweet sweett bababyyy

-Probably the oldest? He's quite a mess it's hard to tell.

-Has been passed around here and there from job to job so he's very well versed in many skills!

-Earth finding him again was a blessing. She thought she lost him. Incredibly thankful for Cosmo.

-Is far more interesting in helping Cosmo than being helped. He's survived quite a bit!

Killcode, don't you forget my giant man.

-Was made by Moon, or from Moon. In doing so, he's got a few quirks he picked up.

-Such as... He's actually less violent. However able to withstand radiation, rocket blasts, high velocity impact, mundicide... Assumingly.

-Incredibly Tall. A normal person would maybe feel incredibly intimidated by how much he towers.

-A darling cook, he mostly has to kneel for that though. Not many ktichens he's been in are for his height.

-He's a rather calming personality, has no qualms to start fights.

Earth and Solar Flare (or welll... the ACTUAL Sun)

-Two AI's made for well.. as you guess the Earth and the Sun.

-Earth is as expected to be motherly, warm, stern with her own wants. While SF has less expected results of being rather recluse, cold, to the point and selective in their interactions.

-Earth is partly why the actual planet is far cleaner. With her being actually forthright about the planets condition. It helps if theres someone who may be disappointed if you throw your trash on the ground, or company's dumping waste. She may have been made, but she more or less is her own being. Most don't mind since her main concerns usually fall with her own planets affairs. That doesn't mean she doesn't have concerns of other places.

-SF was made as a safe bet to monitor the sun. However, hue to unexpected AI developing their own personality. SF doesn't fairly speak to much anyone aside Earth. He rather feels she's better at relaying information than he is. Ironic, they find.

-Recently some reptilian android has started to make some impressions on Earth, SF doesn't normally hear her talk about individuals like this aside the 'children' she oversees.

-Earth also ended up supervising the celestial and eclipse models. Attaching to them far more than expected but due to- [The Rest is too glitched to make out.]

Well that was more typing than I thoguht it'd be. But me and Neko have quite a bit of art. The main inspiration for a lot of it is retro futurism. But thank you for asking! You also got Earth in there too. My sweet lady I love her.

[duhragonball]

So now that you've finished the Eva TV series, is there any character in the cast who you'd call a favorite?

Misato Katsuragi, easily.

It took me a while to realize it, but in a cast full of traumatized children, amoral scientists, and big-rigged mahoneys, she's the only one who really feels like a hero in an sci-fi adventure story. She supports her team, taking charge and boosting morale wherever she can. She never despairs in the face of danger. She takes responsibility for the kids when no one else will, and she doesn't just shrug and accept NERV's bullshit as a "necessary evil".

Oh, and she's constantly struggling to find out what the hell is going on in this show. She asks questions, gets answers, and follows up on Kaji's investigation after he dies. It's not clear that she was looking to betray NERV; she just wanted to know all the facts so that she could do the right thing as effectively as possible.

I think the only negative for the character is this fan theory I found on one of the wikis that suggests she was going to have sex with Shinji to console him after the apparent death of Rei in Episode 23, which I find ridiculous. The reasoning seems to be based on the way Misato is regarded as some sort of nymphomaniac, and so that's her default way of dealing with loneliness and grief, and... no, that's stupid.

Both endings of NGE seem determined to assert that Misato is some sort of sex addict, and that this is a terrible character flaw. Meanwhile, the only person we know she's had sex with is Kaji. They dated in 2007, and then they got back together over the course of the show. I despise Kaji and his punchable face, but I don't think having sex with him is some sort of crime. It's not like she was cheating on someone else while she was doing it.

Evangelion seems determined to demonize Misato for being too sexy, which is pretty rich considering she seems pretty monogamous and professional throughout. Meanwhile, the rest of Evangelion seems obsessed with the idea of putting teenagers in suggestive poses and minimal clothing.

For a time, I considered using this ask to make a whole list of characters I liked, but no, Misato is too far ahead of the others to bother with runners-up. I can appreciate Shinji, Asuka, and Rei as protagonists, but they're so friggin' childish that it gets on my nerves. You can't even get that mad at them, because they're children.

I liked Ritsuko, but her character arc is almost nonexistent. She mostly typed a lot and ran tests, and then she finally got pushed too far and turned on Gendo and... it didn't really affect anything.

Gendo Ikari is pretty fascinating, and I suspect he may be the model of this trend I've seen in American comic books, where fans and writers act like Batman, Professor X, and Mister Fantastic are actually ruthless, manipulative monsters instead of well-meaning hero types. Blame it on pop culture's intolerance for nuance, but I suspect that Evangelion came along and people started to try to fit their favorite characters into Gendo-shaped holes. It's refreshing to see the real thing, though. But he's still kind of a dick.

The unseen gunman who murdered Kaji is pretty cool, I suppose.

[ink-flavored]

inferno, ignite

thank!!! the OC Roulette has given you Asim from the Unnamed Dream WIP!

INFERNO - What if the cruelest thing they've ever done?

Asim really isn't a cruel guy? Not on purpose anyway. He's had to make some tough decisions as the dedicated problem solver, relationship counselor, and Suspicious Things Investigator in his village, but I don't think any of them could be considered deliberately malicious. Like, if a couple comes to him and says "Speaker, solve our argument," and he goes "Okay, I think you're both wrong, and also a little bit stupid," I think that's the meanest he gets lmao

IGNITE - What inspired you to create this character?

As the title might suggest, he came to me in a dream...

Basically, Asim was the "protagonist" of my dream when I had the dream that would become this WIP. It wasn't necessarily like... a "first person" dream? There was a "camera" and I could see him in the third person. He wasn't me, is what I'm saying. I wasn't seeing things from his perspective, but as an outside audience member, which means I had a very clear idea of what he looked like even when I didn't know anything else about the story.

As for the rest of him, I wanted him to be a sort of... soft-spoken mad scientist if that makes any sense. I wanted him to be a "heart of gold" type that genuinely wants to help people, but also willing to do almost anything in pursuit of knowledge. Both for plot reasons, because he would need a reason to want to stay in the capital and research, despite everyone hating him, instead of going home to his village, but also because I think he needed to be a little fucked up!

[send me a fiery ask]

[ckret2]

Wait what's up with Dr. Horrible?? (I never watched it I just know of the song Brand New Day and that's it)

Okay so short plot summary: the main character is a mad scientist/aspiring supervillain who's presented as an earnest, nerdy, likable guy. We're intended to find him sympathetic; his villainous goals are comically cliché and he has some moral standards he sticks to, like we mainly see him commit property crimes but he refuses to kill people.

He has a crush on a very nice idealistic girl who wants to feed the homeless.

His nemesis is a smug handsome dudebro superhero whose collateral damage from his fights is arguably worse than what the villain himself would have done. The superhero ends up dating the idealistic girl after saving her from a near-death experience he himself caused by breaking the villain's machinery.

The superhero says some douchey misogynistic things about his new girlfriend to Dr. Horrible in private, so, naturally, he decides to compromise his values and murder the superhero. Through no fault of Dr. H's own (the narrative would like us to believe), the superhero makes the weapon malfunction in a way that, instead, kills the girl. Dr. H is broken-hearted and despondent but finally recognized by society as a true supervillain.

So, good nerd "villain" VS bad jock "hero" and the nice girl takes the douchebag with muscles.

This was several years before the "incel vs chad" meme took off—but it's hauntingly familiar in hindsight.

The thing is, even though the main character does have his "villain" moments, the way it's written makes it pretty clear the audience is supposed to be on his side. His evil is cartoonish and funny rather than things that actually tend to bother viewers, we're supposed to want to see him win over the girl and be mad that she went for the jock. Not only is HE your typical "nice guy (who isn't nice)" who doesn't understand why he skeeves out girls—but the STORY thinks he's genuinely a nice guy, too*.

(*This is the part that's controversial. Some people think "nah, Joss Whedon knew exactly what he was doing, we ARE supposed to recognize that he's really just a creep in defiance of how the narrative frames him, it's an unreliable narrator thing" and other people think "Joss really thinks Dr. Horrible is a tragic underdog who deserved to get the girl." Personally, I think the truth is somewhere in between, but it's closest to "tragic underdog.")

Except, Dr. Horrible is a supervillain! That's what makes the whole thing extra interesting. On a surface level, this is your basic role-reversal type story, "the supervillain is actually the hero and the superhero is actually the villain"—but once you recognize Dr. Horrible isn't quite as much a decent guy as the narrative paints him, the role reversal reverses: "the villain really is villainous, he's your typical vengeful entitled incel, but seeing the story through his eyes he can't see himself that way."

It's really a masterfully done unreliable narrator story breaking down the toxic incel "girls only don't like me because I'm nerdy" "they go for bad boys with muscles" "if I can't get a girl it's my right to lash out at the world" viewpoint, done convincingly enough that you can totally buy into the narrator's skewed perspective. (Like, it took years before I started seeing this "it's a breakdown of nerd culture toxic masculinity" interpretation of Dr. H in mainstream discussions. Some people might've been saying it at the time but it was nowhere near as widespread as it is now; when it first came out, just about every discussion I saw took it for granted that the narrative considers Dr. H the "good guy.")

But, on the other hand, it's only an okay trope role reversal story. Like it's pretty good? It's all right. It's fine.

The story is better if you look at it saying "Dr. H really is the bad guy here, but is so deep in his head neither he nor the narrative sees that" and worse if you look at it saying "Dr. H is a misguided good guy stuck in a tragedy."

And yet, I'm pretty confident "misguided good guy" was the authorial intent. For other folks who believe that was the intent, in order to let the narrative truly flourish, they have to interpret it in a way that directly defies what they assume the author wants; in order to say "the main character is blind to his true nature" they also have to say "the author is blind to the main character's true nature." And I think that's fascinating.

[arsonists-oatmeal]

I had finished watching Transformers: Earthspark yesterday. Got a few notes, spoilers below:

-"Malto-bots" awwwww my heart -shit starts ramping up after the halfway mark of the season. which is classic and I did not realize how much I missed that type of pacing -oh, hello body horror in a kids show, didn't expect to see you here! -did not expect to get as invested as I did in the human parts of the plot, like how the rest of humanity is reacting to the Terrans. I think for a kids show they wrote that bit pretty well -speaking of: its clear from the get-go that the whole Terran plot is allegorical to a lot of things. Immigrant families, biracial families, being a first generation citizen, etc. I've seen a lot of media try to use aliens as a plot device for "bigotry is bad", but very rarely have I seen it actually like, show how it hurts people and effects how they see themselves, and show that you have to shut that shit down if you want to be an ally, and not just tolerate your racist uncle, friend, etc. I think this show did a pretty good job of that. It had made parts of me feel seen and heard for the first time ever. -The way they handled the Starscream thing was kind of weak though, imo -Man i wish we got to see Hashtag having more moments with the seekers, she'd fit right in -Nightshade!!! I like Nightshade, I think some parts were a little on the nose (like how they're the only person who introduces themselves with their pronouns), but its not as some people are making it out to be. Idk if its just me but I also feel like they got sidelined more than the rest of the characters, which is suspicious. But anyways, every group needs a mad scientist character who can be slightly unsettling and I'm glad Nightshade is there to fill the role. -Ok i get this is a kid's show, and there was already more nuance than i expected (which was none) about the decepticons, but I do feel like they didn't make the final leap in logic here. -"Ok not all decepticons are bad, but we still wont stop surveilling and locking some of them up because they chose to do bad with their second chance". Has anyone here heard of the word "REHAB"?? -Megatron is cool. Cool theme, no comments there -Really liked the fight scenes as well, especially the shots of the transformers fighting it out in the background where the camera focuses on the humans running away. It really shows the scale of things. Small detail but the fact that we've got several bots using their inbuilt guns' recoil in fights is really cool! Megatron essentially did a rocket jump. One critique however is that nothing really looked like it had weight. -Also I wished that they kept Karan Croft as the lead antagonist till the end. Like idk, show that this whole oppression thing is systematic in nature. Could have had Dr. Meridian change sides given the fact that he was being put in a similar position to the transformers by the humans in charge (he was also fighting for basic resources to live after his first defeat). -Also this one may be unpopular: It looks like at the end the Terrans get their own symbol/badge. Which I think sorta breaks the whole "the war is over, there's no more sides and factions" things that they keep repeating throughout the show. It just feels like they've created a third faction now, and the continuing dynamic is now autobots vs decepticons vs terrans. Which, no. You're going to replace your war with another.

Overall, good show, 8/10, I think it fumbled the ending. I know im not the target audience here but also its not like kids are stupid.

Also representation matters. The choices of having the lead human characters be a non-white biracial family, having the first nonbinary transformer, having the terrans be allegorical, it may not mean anything to some viewers, but for others it could be the first time someone has actually acknowledged them, has said "I see what you've gone through and I know it to be real and I will take it seriously". The diversity in the show only serves to make it better

[4rainynite]

Danny Phantom Enemies Headcanons

This headcanon is gonna be about the many characters from the series Danny Phantom and see what their relationship with Team Phantom would be in the series ranging from: ally, neutral, and enemy. Now, it’s time for the enemys, enjoy. Allies here and neutrals here!

P.S. Sorry this took so long to due, real life comes before making headcanons. Enjoy!

Warning : Some character explanations will be super long, mentions of death, and other things rated PG-13.

Enemies:

Skulker - He was one of Team Phantom's first villains and was obsessed with hunting Danny for his pelt (GROSS!) and for being a Halfa. Skulker obviously doesn't care about who or what he hunts especially if a child or an endangered animal is his target. Once it's revealed that Danny isn't the only Halfa around (Not just Vlad and Dani) I can see him giving Danny 'the reason you suck speech' about how Danny is no longer special or worth his time hunting, which is a relief for Danny, but they'll still fight each other. Skulker may over time have a villian's respect towards Danny and Team Phantom, but will never admit it. I have a theory that the only reason he never hunted Vlad is because Vlad bribed him with endless weapons if Skulker never hunts him and Vlad pays Skulker to hunt things for him. On the scale of villiany in the show Skulker is #4 seeing as he hunts for sport and how he has been dangerously close to killing Danny and others.

Nicolai Technus - As much as Technus is a mad scientist type guy, he didn't really have the drive to be evil until Danny planted the idea. Once the idea came to mind Technus went through without hesitation, he could've changed his mind anytime. He defiantly embraced his villainous role by manipulating Danny and Valerie's emotions to like each other knowing that Valerie likes Danny Fenton and hates Danny Phantom (a bold move, I must admit). Ans in the bad timeline he teamed up with Skulker forming an even bigger baddie. So, yeah, he's an enemy.

Walker - For a guy who's a warden and expects everyone to follow the rules he's a hypocrite. He makes his own rules for others to follow, kidnap children, putting that shock collar on Wulf and almost putting it on Sam, and framed Danny and made him public enemy number one in his own town! If the series continued like a court episode revealing that it was Walker who attacked the ex-mayor and his police ghost possessed many citizens. Thus, clearing Danny's name and some high council in the Ghost Zone (not the Observants one, but like a lower division council that handles the different ghost jails and domains) remove Walker from his position as a warden and he is a prisoner of his own jail. He'll obviously blame Danny and Team Phantom and wants revenge.

Penelope Spectra & Bertrand- Oh my gosh, where do I begin with her? After the trauma she caused during her first episode she's #3 on my DP deadliest villains chart. Before she even set foot in Caper High, Spectra has gone through many different schools sucking the students' of their misery/energy to make herself and Bertrand stay young by lying and humiliating them, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if those poor kids ended up committing suicide because of her. Heck, she tried to kill the students of Casper High in 'Doctor's Disorder' and Jazz during the pep rally in front of everyone to create more misery. She made Danny utterly miserable, tried to turn Danny against Jazz, and tried to vaporize Jazz, and made Danny question himself as a Halfa by calling him a freak. As for Bertrand he's basically her lap dog and has no problems resulting in killing to get what he and his boss want. I think we all can agree that these two need to stay away from everyone, but mostly children.

The Guys in White - Let's face it: Amity Park hates these guys! Every episode that they're threatening citizens and ghost. They seem to have no problem with collateral damage seeing how that tried to kill Gregor/Elliot thinking he was the ghost boy and destroyed the observation station. Unlike the Fenton's who'll pay for the damages they caused, the Guys in White refuse to pay a penny and use the excuse that they work for the government. The worst thing they ever committed was them trying to blow up the Ghost Zone which would destroy our world too. Overtime they'll waste too much money on ghost catching equipment and the citizens of Amity Park will get sick of them causing the organization to disband. With only Agents K, O, and the leader guy still around trying to capture Danny or any other ghost.

The Other Ghost Hunters - After, their encounter with Danny Phantom they most likely felt humiliated, and it only fueled their hatred towards ghost. But seeing how popular Danny Phantom is in Amity Park doing anything against him is a big no-no. So I can see them waiting for Danny to screw-up so they can catch him.

Control Freak and Lydia - Seeing as Team Phantom have ruined his circus and plan to take over the world it's a given that he's an enemy. He probably spent years going to every town with his circus stealing from banks, museums, and jewelry stores only to be stopped by a couple of teens would make anybody vengeful. I doubt he remembers that Phantom and Fenton are the same person after Danny erased everyone's memory, but he does remember the events. Seeing as Lydia and Control Freak are a couple she seems cool with whatever evil scheme he comes up with. I believe the two were dating before her death.

Prince Aragon - Let's see arrogant, was willing to marry a child (I'm aware that was a practice back then, but today absolutely not!), kept his kingdom imprisoned in time for hundreds of years, and was abusive towards his sister. I see him having more of a vendetta over Dora and Sam than Danny.

Hotep Ra - Was a backstabbing advisor who tried to takeover world.

Vortex , Undergrowth, Nocturn - All three are powerful elemental: weather (Vortex), earth (Undergrowth), and dreams (Nocturn) that connect not just the human world but the ghost world as well. In each of their appearance all three were able to takeout Amity Park in a short amount of time and gave Team Phantom a run for their money, until they learned a new skill to defeat them. Seeing how the Observants had Vortex on trial it's obvious he is super powerful! I wish there was a special episode where all three combined like Skulltech 9.9 to see what kind of damage they could do.

Pariah Dark - Guy was a tyrant king who ruled with an iron fist and was so powerful that a group of ancient ghosts had to imprison him in the Sarcophagus of Forever Sleep to stop his reign of terror. He doesn't care if you're human, ghost, or halfa in his eyes he's above all. The guy transported Amity Park into the Ghost Zone and lead an army that could've destroy everyone and the world! Heck, Skulker didn't want to confront him, SKULKER, that really says something! Hopefully, no one will be stupid enough to wake him up again.

Dan Phantom/ Dark Danny - He has no humanity in him, destroyed most of Amity Park (and most of the world), committed two thousand evil deeds, and even tried to kill his family and friends. Dan Phantom has no redeeming qualities and seeing how the observants couldn't take him out without Clockworks assistance shows how powerful he is. Inever believed Danny's ghost side was bad; Danny is Danny whether he's Phantom of Fenton. I believe the guilt and stress of losing everyone he loved and the fusion with Vlad was what form Dan Phantom. Heck! If it were reversed and Danny killed his ghost half, he would've been Dan Fenton human serial killer. For everyone's sake he needs to stay in the Fenton Thermos forever!

Master's Blasters - Okay, we all know season three and the last episode were to put it lightly -something. But I have to ask: where did Vlad find these guys? I mean honestly, a trio of ghost hunters pop out of nowhere, are better hunters than Valerie and Danny, the second they arrive Amity Park just eats them up and are willing to pay for being saved despite how they feel about the GIW, seriously? If it weren't for the cancelation, I would've built them up that Vlad staged their hunting/ rescues to make them look better than Phantom. As Danny slowly doubts himself as a hero the Master Blasters start charging for the rescues. At this point of time Phantom and Red huntress are nowhere to be found so the citizens of Amity Park have no choice, but to pay. Skip forward to the ending (minus Danny and Vlad revealed to be halfas) where the Fentons, Phantom, and Red Huntress team up to protect Amity Park from both ghost and human threats it's revealed that Master's Blasters aren't as good as they appeared without Vlad's trickery. They most like vow revenge on Team Phantom and try to outdo them only to fall flat.

Vlad Masters/ Plasmius - Where to begin with, Vlad? Oh, wait, I know! Vlad had this whole scheme to keep Maddie to himself, make Danny and Jazz see him as their father, created clones to make a new family, take over Amity Park, and tried to kill/humiliate Jack on a number of occasions. Even in the alternate timeline when he finally marries Maddie he is crazy controlling of her. He's doomed Amity Park/ the world numerous times for power, attempted to kill Danny, Jazz, Sam, Tucker, and Dani who are children (would've killed Valerie too if he knew about her finding out his secret), has tried to discredit Danny, taken over Amity Park via cheating, used his ghost powers to gain his wealthy, the list goes on. Vlad does seem to have some regret which is something most of the villains of the show don't seem to grasp. His older self in 'The Ultimate Enemy' realized the error of his ways and helped Danny return to his timeline (Vlad did state that he could've killed Danny instead but choose to do the right thing). And judging from the end of 'Phantom Planet' and the cover of the book ' A Glitch in Time' he seemed remorseful. He's done many things that have endangered both ghost and human life just to mess with Team Phantom, only time can tell if he deserves redemption.

[dualiti-real]

OC-tober Day 5: Relationships

I was going to do a chart but I have too many characters and I haven't introduced them all yet so instead I'll take this as an opportunity to introduce two OCs at once, my two absolutely terrible guys, Laurel and his husband Faust!

(warning for brief mentions of mind control in the context of Laurels powers, lemme know if there's anything else in here anyone would want a warning about that I missed)

Laurel is the closest thing Dualiti really has to a villain, as mentioned in his neocities blurb. but due to Dualiti's very static state of being, he's mostly been bothering the same places and people for the last 1000 years, the only thing changing being who's being sent to fight him. either way, he is extremely content with the status quo he's in, where he has a lot of control in his little bubble and can do basically whatever he feels like. He and Vex have a very complicated rivalry, but that's a whole different quadrant- *I AM IMMEDIATELY DRAGGED OFFSTAGE BY SECURITY*

His husband is Faust, a mad scientist who is the absolute worst. just about everyone who meets him is immediately repulsed by his personality, which is "I am smarter than everyone else and anyone who claims otherwise is stupid and wrong, even when I am actively failing at something". somehow, though, Laurel is absolutely charmed by his cringefail demeanor. it also helps that Faust is equally head over heels for him. they are both completely terrible but I guess somehow they cancel eachother out, so that's nice? I'm glad they managed to find eachother.

Laurel Fun Facts:

Though Laurel looks like just a really tall elf, (he is 7'6". elves in the universe of Dualiti do not get that tall ever.) he's actually a sentient magical organism that is puppeting a corpse to function as his main body. that organism is the slime, which manifests on his body as the hair coming from his head.

when Laurel (the magic organism) consumes matter, it produces more slime, which can be used as structures, weapons, and as means of controlling others.

He can make hunters by basically infecting people with himself, (someone ingests the slime, it gets into an injury, ect.) and puppeting them from the inside. once he's infected someone, they're basically already on his network, and he can step into the controls any time. (you know, like vris- *I am once again dragged offstage*) he doesn't use it a lot unless he has to, though. he likes the challenge of convincing people to work for him.

(also just to get it out there because I mentioned Laurels powers and I want to make it clear that, no, Faust isn't being mind controlled or anything. he just encountered someone who actually genuinely liked him and went full Gomez Addams about it)

He is very much inspired by my love of classic disney villains. always love a character who is awful and is having so much fun with it. Shoutout to my girl Maleficent she inspired SO much about Laurel without me even realizing it.

as mentioned, he and vex have sort of a weird rival thing going on. do they hate eachother? are they best friends? something else? fucking. I don't know man.

(shout out to Hark a Vagrant by Kate Beaton for the reference)

you can tell thats old art because laurel doesn't have his cape yet. anyway, now we're moving on to

Faust Fun Facts:

Faust is very much inspired by characters like Doctor Robotnik, or Berdly of Deltarune. basically characters that are very confident in being super smart even when they probably aren't actually.

this isn't to say he's bad at what he does, he's really good at making robots and doomsday devices and the like- he's just bad at realizing that maybe he shouldn't keep putting in the function for them to explode randomly or at the slightest interference. high intelligence, fucking AWFUL wisdom.

He and Laurel met when Faust accidentally crashed his egg-mobile type thing into Laurels mansion and DIRECTLY onto the table Laurel was having tea at.

it's honestly a miracle Laurel thought he was funny and didn't end up killing him.

Faust does smoke, even though as a hunter/undead he doesn't really like, get any of what you would get from a cigarette. old habits die hard. (maybe he just likes the taste.)

as mentioned he is absolutely hopeless over Laurel. Laurel could literally do anything and Faust would think it was great. thankfully Laurel likes him just as much right back, which means that Faust can fuck up his evil schemes as much as possible and Laurel will not even care. he loves his silly little idiot so much.

[cursedvibes]

for the blorbo bingo: what’s your opinion on kabuto (from naruto) ?

Oh, that's interesting

Boy, do I have a lot of thoughts about him. I used to just like him as this funny, nerdy guy that's also the lab assistant of my favourite nonbinary mad scientist (in Naruto). I love his dynamic with Orochimaru. He might be technically lower ranked, but he has a lot of freedom in how he talks to others, to Orochimaru and the things he is allowed to do/the responsibility he's given. He's the only one Orochimaru allows to be close, even when deadly sick and he's also responsible for Orochimaru kinda sorta changing a little bit.

The Fourth Shinobi War made feel really conflicted about him. Him wanting to become a better Orochimaru came kinda out of nowhere to me, especially because he never seemed the power-hungry type, but with his grief and loss of direction it does make sense. His fight against Itachi (& Sasuke) is what really changed my perspective on him and how I invested I am in him. I found his identity issues very interesting and he brought up once again the theme of hard work vs innate talent/genetics. Unfortunately, Kishimoto came up with the worst resolution for this. Hard work doesn't matter, it's all about genetics. If you weren't born with special eyeballs or descended from some ancient family line, then fuck you, you can achieve nothing and will always be inferior. And then Itachi used Brainwash no Jutsu to make Kabuto belief this and also rewrite his personality. (this is one of the main reasons I hate Itachi so much) Oh, you have identity issues? Well, godly gifted Itachi will just force one on you. Which in this case apparently is being a nanny....I can belief that Kabuto wanted to honor his mother, but taking care of kids? Really? So far he always seemed to hate them to varying degrees and even if he put on multiple personas, that didn't change that. He isn't even independent from Orochimaru either. He still looks like him for some reason and he's now stuck babysitting all those Shin clones for him. What amazing character development.... But yeah, it's pretty clear that Kishimoto lost interest in him and half-assed the end of the story. Plus, some very backwards worldviews.

[primalruination]

Character Profile - Nehra Mewrilah

figured it was about time I got around to making profiles for my OCs so introducing my WoL, Nehra! still a work in progress but I wanted to at least have something. SPOILERS FOR ALL OF FFXIV!

BASICS//

Name: Nehra Mewrilah

Name Meaning: Nehra = "fondness" in Hindi

Unsundered Name: Atlas

Age: 26 as of Patch 6.2

Nameday: 3rd Sun of the Second Umbral Moon

Gender: Nonbinary and Trans Masculine (they/she)

Race: Miqo'te

Tribe: Keeper of the Moon

Nationality: Garlean

Languages: Eorzean Common Tongue and possesses the Echo

Profession: Warrior of Light

Education Level: Studied with conjurers for some time

BLOODLINES//

Father: unknown

Mother: Unnamed Miqo'te

Adopted Siblings: Lina and Mujih Mewrilah

Extended Family: Y'shtola Rhul (sister in law)

Children: Y'tali Mewrilah (Tali)

ROMANCE & SEXUALITY//

Sexual Orientation: Sapphic

Romantic Orientation: Sapphic

Significant Other: Y'vdola Vongola (Dola)

Past Relationship: Ysayle Dangoulain

RESIDENCE//

Place of Birth: southern Ilsabard

Current Residence: small cottage in Ishgard

TALENTS AND SKILLS//

Canonical Jobs: White Mage before 6.0, currently Sage

Good at: botany, mathematics, cooking, animal caretaking, magic, bug collecting

Bad At: melee jobs of any kind, heavy lifting

APPEARANCE//

Hair: messy, shoulder length, black with green highlights

Eyes: blue

Lips: Small, thin lips

Complexion: fair

Blemishes: very distinct white freckles on cheeks

Scars: cut on left cheek from tripping on a rock. top surgery scars. deep, long cut on outer right thigh from having a sword thrown at her while possessed by Zenos. huge scar along back from fighting off a sin eater.

Tattoos: a doodle of a carbuncle drawn by their daughter, Tali

Height: 5'4"

Weight: 135 pounds

Build: average

Usual Hairstyles: parted it to the side up until Shadowbringers, when they just decided to stop styling it

Usual Face Look: doesn't wear any makeup

Usual Clothing: light, breathable robes when out in the field. just wears handed down, beat up clothes when at home

Face and Voice Claim: Currently Undecided

PERSONALITY//

Extroverted

Positive Traits: affectionate, centered, charming, easygoing, empathetic, focused, happy-go-lucky

Negative Traits: disorganized, gullible, impulsive, insecure, withdrawn

Fears: losing her loved ones

Aspirations: growing a family with their wife Y'vdola

Traumas: Huge fear of losing her loved ones due to the death of her girlfriend, Ysayle. this was further deepened when Zenos nearly killed Nehra's wife while he had possession over Nehra's body.

Hobbies: triple triad, botany, entomology

Vices: Anger

Faith: The Twelve

Temperament: Sanguine

Soul Type: The Sage

Tropes: The Chosen One, The Mad Scientist, Believer, Devotee, Emotionally Repressed, Eternal Klutz, Peacemaker, Surprise Genius, Tortured Superhero, Troubled Vet, Unlikely Hero

Character Inspirations: Adora from She-ra and the Princesses of Power, Josephine Montilyet from Dragon Age, Wyll from Baldurs Gate 3

FAVORITES//

Deity: Menphina the Lover

Holiday: Starlight Celebration

Month: 5th Umbral Moon

Weather: A warm, clear spring day

Time of Day: Morning

Places: Old Sharlayan, The Black Shroud

ARR: Accidentally getting wound up in the Scions of the Seventh Dawn, Nehra reluctantly joined them in their fight to save Eorzea. They felt like an outsider in the group.

HISTORY//

Pre-ARR: Nehra was born in a small Keeper of the Moon tribe in Southern Ilsabard. They were conscripted into the Imperial army at the age of 8, being used as a trauma healer for soldiers. They had frequent interactions with Zenos and developed an intense fear of him that stuck with them for a long time. When they were 15 they were finally able to escape being a soldier and immigrated into New Gridania, where they made friends with Mujih Mewrilah.

Heavensward: Grew deep, lasting friendships with Tataru and Alphinaud after the Bloody Banquet. Also became overly protective of the two, aggressively berating Estinien out of fear his thirst for revenge would endanger Alphinaud. Fell in love with Ysayle and formed a relationship with her, only to lose her shortly after her sacrifice is Azys Lla.

Stormblood: In the hopes of liberating the Ala Mhigans, Nehra journeyed to Rhalgrs Reach only for the crown prince of Garlemald, Zenos yae Galvus, to personally strike down the rebellion. During his attack, Nehra spots Zenos and freezes in fear. He doesn't recognize her at the time, but he quickly takes advantage of her moment of hesitation and attacks. Just before Zenos landed his final blow on the Warrior of Light, they are shielded by a Miqo'te named Y'vdola who takes the blow for Nehra. Nehra would later visit Y'vdola in the infirmary any time she could and the two fell in love. They then married after the Warrior of Light liberated Ala Mhigo.

Shadowbringers: WIP

Endwalker: WIP

NOTE: Nehra's story follows all of the major events of MSQ as they are the Warrior of Light.

[nuranalknowsall]

.....

hot take: but i think the reason why pulp is addicting is because it delivers in action but when it ends, its just empty thematically and thats how it leaves you wanting more? if that makes sense?

like i just finished reading the comic 'my name is chaos' and conceptually it had a lot of potential but it went unfulfilled and left a lot to be desired... the art was good. afaik there was no continuation tho smh so there were a lot of loose threads.

The art was gorgeous like most sci-fi stuff during the early 1990s.

I personally don't see the point in the violent development in Steve's experiments tho? Or why they were there in the first place? Were they suppose to be a parallel to the martians? and why even bother to mention moron's intellectual upgrade at all, if the upgrade wasn't on panel?

like most stuff written in the 90's, the way women were written made my eyes roll... even tho sarah arguably and barely passes the ailia test, she's still used as a prop for man pain and jealousy and doesn't have any agency whatsoever. I was also confused on whether or not Thomas was even aware that his wife used to be together with his brother Steven?

As for Stevens arc itself, he plays the typical mad scientist role. He does display emotions, in a cold and distant way. He also does act as a leader tho and stages a coup against the primary government of mars. Personally, i would have liked to have seen his accident and his reasoning on why he didn't want his family to know why he was dead. I also wanted to see more of his estranged relationship with his brother, Thomas. The themes of humanity having things out of their control could have been leaned in more, with Steven and his origin accident story, and perhaps even provide a deeper motivation?

Ok. Now onto thomas. I will admit, it was drawn to the cover of my name is chaos because it made it clear that the protagonist was going to be a black man. But I think it's safe to say that his role was race neutral? (like he would have been switched with a white man, and the plot wouldn't be impacted is what i mean.) And we do need more sci-fi stories set in the future ft black people just existing and facing other types of conflict. there is one trope I disliked tho and see trending in different characters of colour, and that is, thomas is moved out of his own body and switches with a martian but doesn't seem to be himself, even tho his conciousness is suppose to be unaltered otherwise? idk just a trend i've been noticing.

Like i've earlier, i would have liked to see thomas's relationship with his brother, steven explored a bit more. You get to see the strain when steven controls where thomas goes and spends his time. One part that did strike me as interesting, was steven mentioning his respect for thomas's work bc it also set up a sort of rivalry aspect? Which would have been better and make way more sense then them fighting over a woman, because there's that intellectual aspect too.

I also would have liked to see thomas's connection with nature specifically, talking to whales, be more in depth. Especially on a dying, dystopian Earth. (idk maybe i just like the implication that the whales are evolved versions of the martians too.) His ascension into a high consciousness by being connected to aliens was surprisingly not v colonizer-y. up until he was like 'yea they want me to be their leader.' (eye roll.) And the burning of the martian's bodies too was kinda unnessecary imo. i can definitely see this having influence on that 'blue avatar ppl movie.' I def liked his ability to feel Mars as a living being.

While the last page hinted that steven's conciousness was still around, i think, if this series had continued, I would have liked it to be more about the aliens and them fighting for their sovereignty against a colonizing earth, and more development in thomas's connection with nature and the universe.

[hotvintagepoll]

Marius Goring (A Matter of Life and Death)—as a murdered french aristocrat doing business for heaven in A Matter of Life and Death, he’s channeling Lestat if Lestat were dressed entirely in party city bargain bin items, played by Lumiere from beauty and the beast, and drenched in cheese. Goring could not have done a worse job and I love him for it.

Dwight Frye (Dracula, Frankenstein)—he's my babygirl please please please please please i want to baby bird feed him flies and spiders and pick him up and make glitter edits of him and give him gross forehead kisses like he's my cat. in dracula he was so incredibly creepy that he was typecast as madmen for the rest of his life and he fucking hated it but by god if he didn't do a fantastic job. he steals the show every time he's up on screen just because he's so fucking deranged. i need him

This is round 2 of the contest. All other polls in this bracket can be found here. If you're confused on what a scrungle is, or any of the rules of the contest, click here.

[additional submitted propaganda + scrungly videos under the cut]

Marius Goring:

Dwight Frye:

He absolutely owns the entirety of Dracula (1931). Compared to the novel, his part is massively expanded and it's clear why. He's magnetically unhinged and his facial expressions are pure scrungle. And in Frankenstein, he begins the archetype of Frankenstein's assistant even if the character's name there is Fritz. He'd still go on to play other scrungly guys in later Frankenstein movies. But he's kinda the archetypal and progenitor of the scrungly lil guy. The scrungliest guy ever to scrungle. He's pretty much the blueprint for every mad scientist's assistant, and he's the best part of every movie he's in. He manages to make you feel sorry for the creepy little dudes, even when he's eating spiders and crawling across the floor. [editor's note: content warning for the "hunchback" stereotype and "madness" in the clips below]the "Rats" soliloquy:

I saw him in Dracula and frankly he has me bewitched. I could watch him do his silly routine forever. The gay tension with Bela Lugosi onscreen was frankly unparalleled. Kirk and Spock levels. I am chewing on the furniture

Played the weirdo little guy in Dracula AND the weirdo little guy in Frankenstein in the same year. Iconic.

The scrungles to end all scrungles! There's a reason why this man codified the manic vampire's familiar and the hunchbacked lab assistant for generations, because by God can this man be feral and scrungly: Whether he's soliloquizing about rats as Renfield, scurrying around Frankenstein's lab like a spider as Fritz, or skulking around dark alleys (and scaring the hell out of little baby me) waiting for a fresh heart to steal as Karl, if you want a scrungly little man for your classic film, Dwight Frye is your man. He has the range to play varying kinds of scrungle, with his wide eyes, his manic smiles, his soft, breathy voice, he is truly an undisputed scrungle master.

I honestly think it would be a crime to ignore Dwight Frye's scrungle factor. He played two of the prototypical creepy little henchman as Dracula's lackey Renfield and Dr. Frankenstein's hunchback servant Fritz, and I believe that his excellence in these roles absolutely shaped the future character tropes of the "Igor" type as much as Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff shaped the future understanding of Dracula and Frankenstein's monster. He's got it all from the looks, to the manic energy, to the crazed laugh, I'm telling you right now that I think he could win the entire tournament.

[kanohivolitakk]

Rambling about Bionicles incoherent worldbuilding in terms of rigid morality

So, I was rewatching Legend Reborn the other day when I remembered an issue that bothers me about Bionicles writing so so much which I have wanted to talk about here at some point.

And that’s just how not only the series functions on a "your moral alignment is decided for you upon your creation and cannot be changed because the nature of a being is unchangeable and because destiny" logic, but how that logic clashes with the series central premise on "the world is inside a giant robot and every single character was created to aid said giant robot."

First things first, a lot of my detestment of this decision comes from personal preference. In fiction I tend to dislike rigid moral boxes and black-and-white-morality where the good guys are 100% good and bad guys are 100% bad with little to no nuance in-between. Sure it can work for some stories based on the plot, tone and themes, but in general I think that kind of storytelling is really limiting and boring. It puts things into clear cut boxes when real life is not so simple most of the time. I find morally complicated characters and even things like flawed heroes or villains with a few redeeming qualities more interesting interesting than a simple good vs evil story. These types of characters give the story more flavor and intrigue by showing that things aren’t black-and-white and that more complex shades exist.

But even my personal preference in storytelling aside, I think that completely black-and-white morality where a characters alingment was chosen upon their creation doesn’t just work with Bionicles setting and the Big Twist. Because like. This is supposed to be a world inside a giant robot. Every single character we meet during the first couple of years exists to fulfill their purpose and to help the giant robot to fulfill it’s task. In addition, most (if not all) of the characters originally had next to no sapience til one of their creators who was secretly inside the giant robot decided to make them sentient because why he was getting bored being one of the 5 sapient beings on this robot spaceship.

So if this is the case that MU inhabitants were created to aid Mata Nui, then why are some beings in this world created evil?? What kind of benefit would creating malicious beings bring? If every character is in one way or another supposed to help the GSR to fulfill it’s mission, then why on earth would you creating something that could easily sabotage and backstab you?

To be fair, there are traits we usually associate with evilness that aren’t inherently evil by themselves, like ambitiousness or being selfish for instance. These traits can be useful in certain situations. It’s very possible that Great Beings didn’t design MU inhabitants to be evil, but rather gave them those traits as a way to aid them in whatever purpose they were created for. These traits just ended up corrupting them because that easily happens. And honestly I really like that explanation. It explains why a lot of MU inhabitants are evil without going “they were designed to be evil”. And just feels very nice and satisfying. But at the same time...idk if giving like most living beings those traits make any sense if you know what I mean.

There’s also the argument that the reason the world is like this is because the Great Beings are these mad scientists who like making things dramatic because they are too confident in their abilites and because they can. But honestly that feels like lazy writing for me. Handwaving the implications by going “yeah the Great Beings did so because why the fuck not” makes the Great Beings seem far more incompetent than they probably were meant to be.

Idk I just...like Bionicle but sometimes I wish it’s view on morality was a bit more flexible than “toa good everyone else evil”. But that’s just me

[rezzyromance]

Ooh can you do the smooching one for heisenberg too? That was so cute. Moreau needed some lovin

Absolutely I love this stupid metal man.

The entire factory had been silent all day. Well, about as silent as it can be when you ignore the constant ambiance of machinery. But unlike most days, there was no loud banging sounds. No screeching sounds of circular power saws slicing into things. No noises of new construction. For the day, Karl decided to sit down and try to do some research on something that was beyond you. All you knew is it had something to do with his metal army. There was a common malfunction taking place in some of his recent creations, but he was struggling to pinpoint what it may be.

You hadn't checked on him all day. He's made it clear to you many times in the past that he doesn't like interruptions, but you always wondered how he never gets lonely. Sometimes he'll spend weeks just exhausting himself, draining all of his energy into his work, all while secluding himself from you. You felt bad not being able to help with his frustrations, so you decided to make yourself useful.

Since he hasn't stepped away from his desk since he sat down, you knew he must be thirsty. You fixed a fresh glass of water and made your way to his office space, knocking on the door gently. "What is it?", he bluntly asks. You slowly open the door and peak inside. "Thought you might be thirsty so I got you some water. Any luck on figuring out what's wrong?", you begin to make your way over to him after shutting the door behind you. He was hunched over at his desk with a couple of books piled around him. He had one in his hands that had something to do with electricity. His desk was covered in scattered notes. His brow was furrowed harshly and he looked as if he was about to rip the book he was holding in half. His hair kept falling in his eyes, blocking his vision. He, to put it lightly, looked pissed.

"What does it look like? Does it look like I figured it out?", he retorted. You learned soon after meeting him to not take his harsh tones to heart, so his sudden aggression didn't phase you. "I'm guessing no.", you set the water down on the desk and stand behind him. You take a hair tie from your wrist and begin to pull his hair back, attempting to help aid his blocked vision. "The fuck are you doing?", he grumbled, flipping to another page in his book in hopes to discover something useful. "Fixing your hair so you can actually read.", you say before finishing up a messy ponytail. He didn't admit it, but it did relieve some of his frustration.

"This is bullshit. According to this book, it's not an electrical issue.", he shuts the book aggressively and tosses it onto his desk with the others. "And the mechanical aspect of it isn't an issue.. so what the fuck is it?!", he threw his hands up in disbelief. "I must be fucking stupid or something.", he rests his elbows on the desks and lays his head in his palms. It was rare to see him so defeated. In fact you've never seen him like this before at all. And it wasn't like him to say self-deprecating things. Your heart sank a little at the sight of it all.

"Karl fucking Heisenberg don't you dare call yourself stupid!", you move some of his books out of the way and sit on his desk, facing him. He lifts his head up from his palms to look at you, confused by your encouragement. "The fact that you're able to read these books and actually know what they mean proves you're not. The fact that you've come this far along with building a fucking metal army proves you're not!" He raises an eyebrow, not taking your words as seriously as you'd like. You grab him by the chin and pull his face closer to yours. "You're a goddamn genius, you hear me?", his eyes widen at your boldness. You place a quick kiss on his lips before pulling away. "A.", another kiss is place. "Goddamn.", another kiss. "Genius.", and one more kiss. "And don't you dare convince yourself that you're not!", you let go of his chin sit up straight. The room was silent. He had no idea how to react at all. He never in his life had someone so encouraging and optimistic around him, especially encouraging towards him. Something inside him burst with joy at the realization that you thought of him so positively. "What did I do to deserve this praise?", he thought to himself. Finally, he snaps out of his shocked daze and looks down at his notes, suddenly coming to an understanding. "...The wires weren't connected correctly.. I know how to fix it.", he points at something in his notes that you didn't bother reading because you knew it wouldn't make sense to you.

"See? A fucking a genius.", you step down from his desk and give him another kiss before turning around and walking away. You don't take a lot of steps before you feel him grabbing your wrist. You turned face him and he looked away slightly, hoping you won't notice his growing blush. He wanted to say thank you without actually swallowing his pride and saying thank you. "Do you uhh.. Do you really think I'm a genius?", he clears his throat and quickly straightens his back in attempts to regain his bold and charismatic character. You smile and pretend to not notice the redness in his face. "In a crazy mad scientist type of way. Don't let it get to your head.", you joke and watch as his usual, smug grin makes its way onto his face.

[wisteria-lodge]

Archetypes: Sorting Hat Chats

I’ve been asked about my rationale for naming different primary/ secondary combinations. I did this originally as a tool to help me sort characters - I wanted to see how these types tend to be used, so I could more easily see what subversions looked like. I'll run through my thoughts, but know there’s a lot of variation within each category. But even WITH that variation, I do think that each one has its own specific energy that makes it interesting to talk about. An explanation of the terms I'm using.

DOUBLE LION “THE REVOLUTIONARY”

Pretty straightforward. The Lion primary knows something is wrong, they know it in their bones even if they can’t articulate it, and they’ve got to go out and do something about it. Probably charging at whatever power structure is directly in front of them. It’s unlikely you find a character leading a revolution who isn’t a Double Lion. These guys are intense, inspirational, single minded.

The villain version of the Lion primary tends to be the person who “went too far" or "became the monster they were trying to fight.'' But I think that the much more interesting Lion primary villain trope is the Traitor. Since Lions work from their feelings, and their philosophies can’t necessarily be articulated or linked to individuals outside of them - they can definitely have their head turned while still feeling moral about it.

One of my favorite examples of this Revolutionary archtype is actually Christian Bale‘s character from Newsies. He’s the spark that starts the unionizing revolution, but 100% needs his Badger and Bird lieutenants to keep him focused and keep him from defecting

LION SNAKE “THE ROBIN HOOD”

These guys are similar to the Double Lion - they will recognize a cause or injustice revolutionary style - but Robin Hood doesn’t go up and bang on wicked Prince John’s door. His move is the snake secondary one: confront the problem indirectly. Undermine the regime by stealing tax money and re-distributing it to the poor. Be simultaneously Robin Hood the outlaw and Robin of Locksley the noble, infiltrating and getting information. The Lion Snake is more likely to work within society (or deliberately separate from society) versus just breaking everything down.

LION BIRD “THE LAWMAN / THE VIGILANTE”

The fact that the Lion Bird can either be the Lawman or the Vigilante shows off the very clear hero/villain split you get with Bird secondaries. We also see this with the Snake Bird (simultaneously the Mastermind and the traditional Villain) and the Double Bird (either the Scientist or the Mad Scientist.) This is why I think I had such trouble naming the Badger Bird. I wasn’t leaning into the duality of the Bird secondary enough. The Badger Bird can be the King Arthur, or he can be the Mob Boss, and he’ll look kind of similar either way.

The Lion Bird also has that Lion primary conviction and drive, but they want to follow up on it with investigation, evidence, and plans. I actually think there need to be more stories about Lawmen turning into Vigilantes and vice versa. Because Lion Birds are their Cause no matter what external alignment gets attached to it.

LION BADGER “THE LINCHPIN”

This is my own sorting - although when I came up with this name I still thought I was a Double Bird. The linchpin is the pin-axle thing at the center of a wheel that prevents the whole thing from falling apart, and I think it's a good way of talking about the energy of this combination. The Badger secondary means they’re a lot less single minded than the other Lion primaries: their power comes from being part of a group. They become the emotional “heart” a lot, and have a way of quietly keeping things together just by existing. They can be leaders, but a Double Lion will lead from up front while a Lion Badger will lead from in the middle (if that makes sense.)

I do think it’s really funny that this is a common sleeper villain trope. Peter Pettigrew, Prince Hans, and Randall Boggs of Monsters Inc. all became integral to a group, and then exploit their position within it. They’re kind of the evil bureaucrat. Maybe that's a good trope for children’s media

DOUBLE SNAKE “THE TRICKSTER”

This is another straightforward one. Double Snakes are in it for themselves (and maybe like three other people.) They're going to be clever and tricksy about how they get what they want, and will not mind doing things backward and unofficially. And they won't mind if you know that's what they're doing. There’s something very unapologetic about the Double Snake which makes for very attractive characters. They are consistently voted the sexiest... and when they’re villains they’re fun villains. You know what they want, and what they want is not that complicated. I think that’s a big reason for the appeal of Snake primaries in general. They’re the easiest primary to understand and explain.

SNAKE LION “THE LANCELOT”

I used to call these guys “The Rebel,” which... is too generic, doesn’t really mean anything. So I started thinking about the Lion secondary as the Knight secondary, and I liked that. Double Lions are the Crusader Knight, riding for their Cause. Bird Lions are Grail Knights, riding for their own personal truth. Badger Lions are Champion Knights, here to help the helpless and defend the innocent.

And if that's that case… Snake Lions have to be the Knight Errant, the knight who rides for his lady. It is that simple. Lancelot might be a Knight of the Round Table, but he’s riding for Arthur the person, not Arthur the King. And for his lady, Queen Guinevere. I feel like his dilemma is one that’s common to a lot of Snake Lions: what happens when they’re forced to split their loyalty? It’s tragic, but Lancelot can’t have Arthur and Guinevere simultaneously.

(At least not until my awesome Arthur/Guinevere/Lancelot OT3 which I will totally write at some point :)

SNAKE BIRD “THE MASTERMIND / THE VILLAIN”

The classic. We see a little more of the Bird Secondary split, and well… this is your stereotypical villain. They want power. They’re going to use an elaborate plan to get it. There’s a lot you can do with this sorting, but I actually do think it’s fun that whatever you do, this slight undercurrent of villain and/or mastermind… never quite goes away.

SNAKE BADGER “THE LOVER”

The Love Interest sorting. Chances are very good that if there is a love interest (who does not serve some other role in the story...) they're going to be a Snake Badger. Devoted to one person, solving problems by caretaking. This is the Badger secondary who is likely to have the smallest group, which is just going to make them look excessively devoted to their friends. This type is pretty gender neutral, which is fun. A lot of female love interests, but also your Mr. Darcys and Peeta Mellarks.

One of my favorite things about this trope (mostly just because I think it’s funny...) is that if you write a character who is not supposed to be a love interest, but who is a Snake Badger... subconsciously I think people are going to read them as a love interest anyway. Looking at you Jaskier, Horatio, and even Captain Barbossa.

DOUBLE BIRD “THE [MAD] SCIENTIST”

I think that (especially if you aren’t a Bird Primary yourself) your response to hearing a fictional Bird Primary’s motivation is kind of …huh. That seems random. Or oddly specific. You get your Hannibal Lecters, whose entire motivation is... wanting to eat people while drinking nice wine.

Double birds seem especially unusual, just in terms of society. They are Bird secondaries and they interact with the world through gathering data, but their Bird primaries mean that data can literally lead them to any conclusion, no matter how potentially wacky. These guys consciously build themselves from the ground up, and that can make them kind of detached - either in a logical way, or an unmoored way. They're written as either really stable, the rational mentor figure. Or really... not. And that’s how you spot a Bird villain. They’re not after money/power/safety, they’re after something weird.

BIRD LION “THE GRAIL KNIGHT”

This is the trope of Perceval or Galahad, questing after the Holy Grail chalice... which is really just meaning, and truth. It’s a personal quest. Grail Knights tend to ride alone, and a lot of the things that concern them are metaphysical, to do with identity, purpose, things like that. You can have extremely different Bird Lions, but I do think there is a sort of spiritual core there. Doctor Harleen Quinzel sees freedom and truth in whatever the Joker is doing, and then once she recognizes his hypocrisy, has to go build her own meaning.

I actually think these guys are pretty easy to spot because of that Lion secondary. When they change direction, they change direction, and there’s probably a period of despair between the direction changes. I’ve talked about how Bird Lions having a habit of falling apart pretty dramatically, and that’s where this idea comes from.

BIRD BADGER “THE SURVIVOR”

A rare sorting, but an interesting one. I call this one “the Survivor” or “the Last Man Standing” because, well, they seem to be. They seem remarkably stable. This is the Bird primary least likely to be a villain, and maybe the sorting least likely to be a villain. I think what’s going on is that they are grounded and integrated in whatever community they happen to be in (because of that Badger secondary), but they can define themselves and rebuild themselves in the Bird primary way. This makes them uniquely suited to building a new version of themselves for whatever situation they happen to find themselves in.

Maybe a better name for these guys would be “The Adapter.”

BIRD SNAKE “THE ARTIST”

Like all Bird primaries, these guys are inspired by their own projects and their own worldview, but because of that Snake secondary, Bird Snakes have a more easy-going ‘take the world as it comes' kind of energy. They are “the Artist” because everything they do is art: they want to use themselves and the world around them, put all of that towards whatever their Bird primary happens to be interested in.

You can have villains like the Nolan Joker, or the Talented Mr. Ripley, who kind of turn the world into their own personal philosophical social experiment. Or Scotty from Star Trek whose meaning is solely the well-being of the Enterprise. Maybe they just like traveling, and that's all they need. (It's a way for the Bird primary and the Snake secondary exist very happily together, so I wouldn't be surprised if that was pretty common.)

DOUBLE BADGER “THE PEACEMAKER”

Badgers are interesting, because while I think they’re generally regarded as “correct,” they’re also seen as kind of boring. That’s the case with both Badger primaries and Badger secondaries, which means it is doubly reflected in the Double Badger. They often get written as simplistic, the sweet Jane Bennet type who loves everybody and caretakes everybody and just wants everybody to get along.

They are often the targets of what TV Tropes used to call “Break the Cutie.” What could be more interesting than making this character, who wants to be happily part of a community, be forced to build protective models, be all tortured and angsty? I actually think we’re seeing a return of the Double Badger as an interesting character in their own right, with people like Aziaphale, and I'm here for it.

BADGER LION “THE PROTAGONIST”

What can I say? There are a lot of protagonists that are Badger Lions. They want to help the group - so we know they're the good guys - and then they charge and make stuff happen. Lion secondaries are very useful in fiction - you drop them into a situation and stuff just happens. I also think of this as the Starfleet officer sorting - because if you’re a Starfleet officer, either you are the sorting, or can model it really well.

I will say that this is kind of the stock Protagonist sorting, the way that the Snake Badger is the stock love interest and the Snake Bird is the stock villain. There’s just something sort of generic good guy about this one, which is why I want to see it used as a villain sorting more. Badger villains - mostly people who define ‘human’ very narrowly - are insanely terrifying.

BADGER SNAKE “THE ADVISOR”

Possibly “the Power Behind the Throne.” This is another one I had difficulty pinning down. I called it “the Politician” for a while, which unfortunately came off as a little bit more negative than I meant it to, since I think this sorting has a lot in common with Lion Badger, the linchpin of a heroic team. The difference is that Lion Badger takes on that role kind of unconsciously, while the Badger Snake does it very consciously.

Their loyalty is to the group, but their skill set is all about subversion and different ways of going around the group, which is why there’s an interesting contradiction at the heart of Badger Snake. A lot of real life Badger Snakes struggle with feeling like “bad people" and it's too bad. These guys are ridiculously powerful and competent when they are sure of themselves, and I love seeing them in action

BADGER BIRD “THE KING / THE MOB BOSS”

Another difficult one, despite (or because) I really like them. I was calling them “the Architect” because “The City Planner” sounded too boring… but that’s what they do. They’re all about the community but they problem-solve the way all Bird secondaries do, by prepping, and gathering knowledge. I talked more about this in the Lion Bird entry, but Bird secondary seems to have this villain split going on, and that’s what I see here too. This is a controversial love-them-or-hate-them sorting, and I think that’s why. There’s a lot of room in whether or not you see this sorting as villainous.