#just to be clear just bc i find a character interesting doesn't mean i fully support them

[sukibenders]

Aegon may have despised Viserys, and rightfully so, but it's so fascinating that, even if for such a short time, his parenting mirrored his father's. Like it just goes to show that, no matter how much he tries, he'll never truly be far from him in some way.

[running-with-the-feels]

okay, just had a thought but like

nothing Kuai Liang has ever done has actually been his choice prior to like, maybe, the second half of MKX.

I mean, think about it, he's kidnapped by assassins as a child and tortured and brainwashed into becoming a weapon. He's told that he can't leave or he'll be killed and even if he could he has no one to turn to in the outside world bc they killed everyone else and his knowledge of it is limited by the fact that he's not been in it since he was a child and is only allowed out for missions. If he doesn't do what he's told, they will kill either him or his brother, that is the very definition of Under Duress.

And then he's cyberized and Literally has his autonomy taken away, along with his body which is Horrifying, and when he gets his autonomy back, he's in the middle of a war and has no real choice but to fight for his life no matter what he wants.

Then he dies, and becomes a revenant and while its unclear exactly how much control Quan Chi had over them, it's pretty heavily implied that it was a lot, kinda like a semi-autonomous puppet situation, and is again made to fight and kill for someone else.

Then he's resurrected, and almost immediately possessed by Havik who canonically took full control of Kuai Liang and made him kill a bunch more people.

Even once he's freed, going after the cyber initiative might count as his first choice, but they are also hunting him and constantly trying to kill him so idk if that counts and then he's just sitting in his temple, minding his own business, when Raiden sends him a bunch of people to train and we have no indication that Kuai Liang intended to reform his clan at all until this happened, Raiden made that choice for him.

the man has never had any true freedom to choose in his life.

Meanwhile,

Everything Hanzo has ever done has been fully his decision.

We know that Quan Chi lied to him about who killed his family, and I will give him a pass bc nobody would be thinking rationally in that situation, but also, why on Earth would you trust the fucking necromancer? why would you not try to ask literally anyone else if he's telling the truth EVERYONE KNOWS THAT QUAN CHI IS A LIAR. but hey, maybe Hanzo doesn't know that, so we'll give him a pass.

But then, he still choses to serve Quan Chi rather than seek Bi-Han out on his own, he still kills Bi-Han even when he has a Massive incentive (the elder gods bringing his family and clan back) to leave him alive, and he chooses to keep serving Quan Chi after getting his revenge.

He even admits in the MKX comics that he was never controlled, though we know he was manipulated and he's probs not taking that into account, so at the very least the majority of the blame for his choices is on his own shoulders.

He also chooses to try and kill Kuai Liang in those same comics even as the cryomancer is kinda begging for his life and pleading his innocence. And he kills Quan Chi even knowing that it will damn the rest of the revenants to staying in hell forever.

Like, I'm not saying Hanzo is evil, I find all of his choices Very easy to understand even if they're the wrong ones, its clear why he does what he does, but he still makes a lot of bad choices that hurt the people around him.

And it's just like, do you think they ever talk about that? Does that affect the way they see and understand each other? Do they bring it up in fights and then regret it immediately?

Idk, I just think it's a really interesting parallel between their two characters.

[sweepseven]

Hi! you responded to my circus post like. forever ago and i realized i had a question that a circus person might know. (sorry in advance that this is long) (also that things are a bit vague bc im trying to explain everything with as little doxxing as possible) (if this is overwhelming or whatever you are not required to read it. just say like "sorry i cant deal with this" and ill be fine)

a little bit of backstory (because idk how else to explain) is that both writing and circus are very prominent parts of my life and for the past like. six months (maybe even year) the idea of a play (because i have written some 10 minute plays) that incorporates circus as a part of the formatting has been rotating in my mind.

I saw a production recently (ish) with my school that was a play, but really it was a musical that incorporated an aerial window and aerial ladders as both set-pieces and aparatuses. they used them as windows and ladders, but at a certain point in the play, when one character was describing something that had happened, there were aerialists performing on the aparatuses. i talked to my teacher afterwards and she also thought i should write a play that incorporates circus. and i dont mean as a plot point (like they go to the circus) but as a way of telling the story.

i also saw an opera recently in which the songs were the same, and the plot was essentially the same as when it was written (several centuries ago), but the setting and costumes were all more modern. someone would sing an aria and then draw three squiggly lines on the wall that, at the third line, became clear it was the body of a naked woman. another where i swear it was a legit clown skit (he climbed up the stairs. flumped down and gave up, then slid down fully flat on his back, climbed up again, slid off sideways, then crawled up, all while operatically singing (used clown rule of three etc)also it was very exciting when he spun a hat on a cane like plate spinning cuz id just learned how to do that a week before). it made me think of just the contrast between a formal format (like a play or opera) and modern, comedic, and otherwise circus-y flares.

ANYWAYS. the main question arose with a convo i had with my dad the other day about this same thing (we've taken to asking each other if we've been thinking abt anything interesting lately) and he knew someone who was in the circus. he asked if there was a structure of the circus (like the three act structure of stories) and the guy said yes absolutely. it was something like starting with the least amount of people each act and then ending with the most. however, i think there was more to it and i wanted to find out to see if i could work with that. unfortunately my dad hasnt spoken to this guy in years and doesn't want to ask again.

so the question: whats the structure of a circus performance?

Hi! Sounds like you get some really cool shows in your area!

Some shows vaguely follow the structure your dad's friend outlined, but I think he's speaking in the loosest possible terms. Yes, the finale act of a show is usually the biggest and grandest, both in terms of spectacle and the number of people involved. But many also open with an extra energetic first act to welcome the audience to the show and set the expectation for what's to follow (think Kooza charivari, Kurios Chaos Synchro, Echo cube suspension). You also see lots of acts opening with solos or duets (Mystere aerial straps, Quidam German or cyr wheel, Amaluna unicycles, etc.). It's definitely not a hard and fast rule, but it can be an element in deciding how a show is paced.

I'd say the most successful base structure is one that balances a natural narrative flow, human attention span, and rigging needs. I use "narrative" here very loosely, because a story isn't a guarantee in a circus, but like a story you don't want to go from nothing nothing nothing to ACTION ACTION ACTION and then suddenly it's all over. It's unnatural, unpredictable, and disengages the audience, and circus is trying to do the opposite. Similarly you don't want people to have to crane their necks for four aerial acts in a row - eventually they're all gonna look the same and people will feel bored. Acts that demand more complex rigging need to go at a point in the show where they can be gracefully set up and taken down without disrupting other things taking place. All these factors may change if your show has an intermission - if it does, you want a kind of "mini" flow that keeps people excited about coming back for the second half.

Alegria IANL is a good example. It starts with a bold opening number with lots of participants, which makes sense because it's a show about revolution. Then we slow it down to a solo act followed by a duet. Fire knife dance is a solo too, but it really ramps the energy back up. The first half closes with Snowstorm, which is a huge spectacle and makes us excited about what they're gonna do with all these tiny paper snowflakes in the second half.

Then you come back from intermission and discover the answer is: see the most gorgeous romantic aerial straps act of your life (a duet). More peaks and valleys follow in alternating smaller and larger acts, all of them on the ground, and all of them with distinctly varying paces. Then close with flying trapeze, which pulls the focus upward, has the most complex rigging in the show, and uses a net they can get away with leaving up for the finale. Tada! A tight, engaging, well-balanced show.

[not-scared-of-microwaves]

My Predictions for The Tortured Poets Department

I am aware I am so incredibly late to the party given when this announcement and then the track list dropped, but what the hell, girl hasn't given us any new information so I'm feeding myself. This is a conglomeration of other people's theories that I've melded and adjusted bc I don't fully agree with any of them, combined with my own personal opinions.

Title:

I do not have words to explain what the phrase "The Tortured Poets Department" does to me. More analytically, it brings to mind both The Dead Poets Society and a police department. This suggests she's going to be heavy on the story-telling aspect, as the title brings to mind both an investigation and a novel.

Announcement Instagram post:

First of all, this album cover is GORGEOUS. Now that that's out of the way, I find the framing really interesting. It's very intimate and vulnerable, almost sensual, with the pillows, gauzy black fabric, and the way she's positioned, but her face is cut out of it. She's vulnerable, but trying to protect herself, so I'm guessing very confessional songwriting. It's also very elegant, and the colors lend it toward a more muted vibe--it's giving orchestral sounds, heavy on the violins, etc, but also pop. I'm thinking something along the lines of The Upside by Lindsey Stirling. The colors, combined with the title, also give a very dark academia vibe, which brings me to violins again, as well as piano.

The poem. This...is interesting to me. The backdrop is of a file folder, so once again that idea of a police department comes up, and it comes to mind AGAIN with the first line of the poem "And so I enter into evidence." The poem uses a lot of imagery that brings back the dark academia vibe--tarnished coat of arms, talismans and charms, veins of pitch black ink. The contents also again suggests very confessional, but also abstract writing--we might not get clear concrete details, but we're getting the EMOTIONAL tea.

The sign off. "All's fair in love and poetry" suggests that she is going to be brutal. It's comparing poetry--her songwriting, maybe? no? just me?--to war. She's not holding back. All's fair in love and poetry. I'm not really sure what to do with the fact that she signs off with "the ChairMAN of the tortured poets department." It could be two things, in my opinion: either she doesn't mean she's the chairman, OR it's her way of being feminist (I mean, go listen to "the man," which is a bop but also not the most sophisticated view of feminism). Personally, I lean toward the latter.

Tracklist:

Note: bonus tracks will be at the end with their respective instagram posts.

I'm gonna get straight to the point: I believe this album is about Jover. we haven't had a breakup album from her in a while, she processes via song writing, and she was with Joe for six years--breaking up with him is going to be a lot to process. Ergo, breakup album.

Side A:

Fortnight (feat. Post Malone):

A fortnight is two weeks. March 31st, Taylor made a change to the setlist for the Eras tour, exchanging invisible string for the 1. Approximately two weeks later, two major things happen. On april 13th, Taylor plays in Tampa, where she calls Lover "just a love song" before playing it, after saying that some of her songs are about fictional characters, some about her life, but she hopes people can connect to them either way. On April 19th, Taylor gets dinner with Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, and suddenly none of Taylors friends are following Joe's instagram, nor is her brother. Interesting.

If the first date is what she's talking about, I don't know exactly what the song's about. If she's talking about the time between the 19th and march 31st, then I have some ideas. That's the day she let her friends in on the story, so is it her preparing to let us in on it? This is also supported by the fact the release date is on the 19th of April.

Of course, it could be neither but that's no fun to assume.

Also, I know precisely one post malone song so I'm essentially ignoring the fact that it's a feature because I don't know enough to base anything off of that.

Sonically, I'm expecting a sad bop, like Hits Different--if you listen to the lyrics, it's heartbreaking, but if you just listen to the music and melody, it's a BOP.

2. The Tortured Poets Department

I did not expect this album to have a title track. I honestly have no idea what to expect from this.

3. My Boy Only Breaks His Favorite Toys

this is gonna be a banger. It's gonna go hard. I feel like it's gonna be about a point in her relationship with Joe where she started to see some red flags, knew it was going downhill, but she was still in that "lavender haze." He's breaking her, but she's okay with it, because she's his favorite toy.

4. Down Bad

this is similar to the last one--she knows she's being irrational. She knows she's letting him get away with things. But she can't help it because she's down bad. Again, I'm expecting a bop.

Side B:

5. So Long London

Oh dear. a track five. And it's called So Long London. Hello, tears.

Seriously, this song is going to be heartbreaking. Side A was mostly bops? Not this. She loved a London boy, but now she's saying goodbye to London and goodbye to the boy.

6. But Daddy, I Love Him

The relationship is falling apart and people are starting to notice. She knows it's falling apart, that he's treating her badly, but she's still holding on.

7. Fresh Out The Slammer

Post breakup, and she's pissed. Grief has stages, and this is giving rage. She's fresh out of a relationship with Joe, and is suddenly realizing that relationship was holding her back, and she's pissed about it. This is gonna go hard. Once again, police department vibes.

8. Florida!!! (feat. Florence and the Machine)

Again, I have no idea what to do with the feature. That said, Florida is where she made that comment about Lover before playing, and was potentially the first Eras Tour concert she did post break up. Lyrically, this is gonna hurt.

Side C:

9. Guilty As Sin?

10. Who's Afraid of Little Old Me?

The entire music industry, Taylor, that's who. I'm getting Anti-Hero vibes. Potentially The Archer. She's talking about her self-loathing, etc.

11. I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)

This is when the relationship is still going, or potentially when it's just getting started. Joe...was kind of a sad boy. This feels like the precursor to Renegade--remember that? "Get your shit together so I can love you." He's a disaster but she can fix him!! (spoiler alert: no, she can't.) This is gonna be more low energy I think, not so much of a bop.

12. loml

Love of my life, but abbreviated. She's going to do something with that. I don't know what, but something. Other than that, I'm at a loss. About Travis? Ironic title about her relationship with Joe? Feeling like she's lost the love of her life in the breakup?

Side D:

13. I Can Do It With A Broken Heart

Spiritual successor to Florida!!! She's hurting, broken, falling apart, but she's gonna do it anyway. This is about her picking up the pieces and doing it anyway.

14. The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived

Some mockery of Joe, methinks. She's accepting the breakup, and can see that she was bigger than him, the smallest man who ever lived. Bop, bop, bop.

15. The Alchemy

I'm claiming this as my stan song right now. Folklore level lyricism, evermore style imagery, alchemical metaphors. Turning lead into gold--trying to make a bad relationship work, anyone? I feel like there's so much to do here and Taylor better fucking handle this well. Sonically, I'm thinking along the lines of the Mastermind or Dear Reader.

16. Clara Bow

Similar to the Last Great American Dynasty. Clara Bow was the world's first It Girl, and one of the few actors to successfully transition from silent films to "talkies"--Taylor, meanwhile, is the current it girl, and one of the few singers to successfully transition from country to mainstream pop.

The Manuscript Instagram Post

The fact that it says "file name: the manuscript" once again screams dark academia and police department. The visuals are very consistent thematically, so not much to say there, but the words in the left corner? I have thoughts. "I love you, it's ruining my life." I think she's talking about Joe. Loving Joe ruined her life, and now she's gonna tell us about it.

The Manuscript as a title is also seriously giving dark academia vibes, and Dear Reader seems an apt comparison.

The Bolter

I...have no idea based on the title. The words "You don't get to tell me about sad" say we're in for a rough one, though. Maybe a little bit bitter.

The Albatross

An albatross is both a type of sea bird, and a source of persistent, deep concern or anxiety. The words are "Am I allowed to cry?" I think she's asking if she even has a right to be upset about this when she knew the relationship was a bad idea, and maybe that weighs heavily on her. Maybe she thinks she did it to herself, in a way

The Black Dog

This is dark. These photos are much heavier feeling, with much darker colors, more black, etc. Then there's the fact that black dogs are said to be an omen of death, and the words "Old habits die screaming." the phrase "the black dog" has also been used to mean depression, so there could be something there. I don't know what this is gonna sound like, but it's gonna be heavy.

[eliotquillon]

PLOT: shelby/lucy. anastasia/nero. elena/nero. raven/verity >:^)

shelby/lucy: doesn't make sense, compels me. i have no idea why i latched onto them as a couple bc they hardly interact one on one (other than shelby technically being the one who introduced her to the others?) and realistically shelby/laura or lucy/laura makes more sense if we're talking abt ships that have any kind of foundation in canon. However this is maybe exactly WHY it compels me. i think they have a lot in common tbh (difficult family relationships, attempted concealed identities). and while i find shelby super shippable with every core four member i can never really see any of those relationships working out in the long run for her (shelby/laura i always see as one sided/laura choosing otto, shelby/otto is a short lived teenage fling that has tons of chemistry but is also super tosxic for them both, and bloodline epilogue kind of confirmed my 'shelby and wing go on a 'break' post graduation and just never get back together' headcanon), whereas with lucy i think i can? like they have a good enough balance of similarities and differences (whereas shelby/otto are too similar and shelby/wing are too different for me). idk obviously in canon it could never work because lucy fucking DIED but it's fun to imagine aus where she didn't!

anastasia/nero: makes sense kinda, compels me. im so sorry mark walden i say this w all the love and respect in the world you CANNOT tell me you wrote those books not intending us to believe anastasia and nero hatefucked nasty. the whole bucharest thing is so deliciously vague like...idk what else couldve gone on. my more 'fun' nerostasia headcanons (eg that anastasia and elena were the twins, that anastasia/nero had some overlap with elena/nero) are definitely way out of the realm of canon though so i think i can't say it fully makes sense. anyway yes it compels the hell out of me they are my ants in a lab!!! i think i don't enjoy them on their own so much as i enjoy them as part of the rich tapestry of Fucked Up Furan Dynamics like the two are inextricable for me. but anyway yeah i think one of my fave fics ive ever written was that bucharest nerostasia fic. they really get my brain goin

elena/nero: makes sense, doesn't really compel me. makes sense because the whole romeo and juliet thing and also in the wider fanon saga of nero vs the furans it is objectively funny and very in character for nero to turn around and make his nemeses' baby sister into a teen mom. however while i am incredibly compelled by nero and the furans as a family, and am SUPER SUPER obsessed w elena on her own, them together specifically is not something i'm super interested in. elena is so so fascinating to me and always has been, but not because of her relationship w nero. i think it's fun to reflect on how nero perceives and elevates elena after her death, and it's fun to talk abt the consequences of their relationship, but the actual relationship itself devoid of any of the furan Drama? eh. just not something that particularly inspires me i don't think

raven/verity: makes sense, UNFORTUNATELY DOESNT COMPEL ME. to be clear when i say makes sense i mean in a hatefuck-y way. they were definitely homoerotically obsessed with each other even before raven murdered verity's sister. i wish wish WISH this was something that got my brain chugging because on paper it ticks all my boxes (messy hatesex, lesbians, assassins) but in practice it's just never been something i've gone 'wow i need to write/think abt this'. DONT GET ME WRONG I LOVE READING IT HINT HINT but i dont think i'll ever write for it

[ginnsbaker]

i just binge-read the whole series and I'm losing it.

two characters that love each other so much yet can only hurt because of the current circumstances is my kind of angst

it's such a compelling story and i love the narration between these two 🥲

i'm also dreading Nat finding out the fuckery R has been doing and how she will react. like she knew that something like that could happen; yelena was too eager to start something with r, r was sorta interested but Nat could see how fucked up R was and i'm willing to bet she also knew that R was not done with the self-destructive behavior.

i def understand where Piet is coming from, whatever mistakes he has done in the past and whatever behavior he keeps up even tho he is engaged gets trumped by the fact that his twin sister is in a hospital bed after a s* attempt as a direct result from R's recent mistreatment of Wanda.

i get that he's a cheater, he knows that, he doesn't try to act like he isn't, ofc he's gonna be mad at R, he knows sort of knows how Wanda would feel and he knows that that fact doesn't excuse or make it 'deserved' to be treated like that. i'm just sad for Wanda bc she shouldn't take that treatment and feel like she needs the punishment. what she did was very wrong and fucked up, but in the end she agreed to the divorce, what i think she should've done was give R more time, it's clear that R hadn't fully processed her trauma - from discovering her spouse was having an affair to assaulting the other party of the affair to then getting a divorce (plus moving away, leaving a dog behind, etc.) - no one should expect R to be okay.

i hope that last chapter was Wanda wanting to take some time for herself, they both need to reevaluate where they are in the present, what they want and if it's healthy to pursue it.

also while i do think Yelena and R shouldn't be together I do like that we get to explore the 'could've been' bc as R said it Yelena was her right person, wrong time except maybe that was just R trying to understand her feelings at the time, of not being over wanda yet but feeling something towards Yelena. i don't think it's a case of right or wrong person/timing, it feels more like 'settling', they both like each other so they 'should' be together, it's something that i feel makes up all the 'boring' marriages out there. I'm in no way or shape an expert on love but I feel like a partnership shouldn't be 'easy' in the sense that it feels convenient to just be together, it also shouldn't be all about suffering, but somewhere in the middle where you challenge each other to be the best you can. anyway, I don't feel like that's what Yel and R are for each other.

also pls don't compare what R and Wanda did to each other, they are different things coming from different places; while R was clearly meaning to hurt Wanda and get her 'feeling out' on her, Wanda didn't act that way, in fact it was out of her lacking something within herself and as selfish as it sounds it had nothing to do with R. R's actions have everything to do with Wanda and her complex emotions towards what happened (but they're both So Not Okay)

ps. super excited for more 😃

I like what you said about the last part, that what they've done are not comparable at all. R's was reactive. Overall, it's just sad to see the repercussions of cheating in their lives.

I'm curious, how long did u binge read it lol? It must have been a lot to take because there's a reason why i update once a week, due to the angst.

Thank you so much for reading and for sharing your thoughts ❤️

[gideonisms]

I just finished some desperate glory the other day and I'm literally wondering the same thing. on the one hand there was that one offhand line about kyr thinking about yiso in the context of, like, finding people attractive--but then also didn't yiso say in a different part that they were possibly twelve or fifteen or twenty bc they didn't know how to do the math for another solar system?? like... if they are the love interest it is Weird to sprinkle in the possibility that they could be twelve, yk? also, unrelated, I kind of feel like the ending would've been more satisfying if they'd both actually died. it was such whiplash in the last couple of pages and the resolution felt cheap to me. the audiobook narrator was great though.

See I took that to mean they were 12 in their own years but 15 or 20 in Kyr's. Kyr is 18 at the beginning and the weird hand kissing doesn't happen until they've both aged by several years. To me based on the rest of the novel it's also pretty clear yiso is not intended to be a young child. But that whole character relationship did confuse me and the awkward wording in some instances did not help!

anyway you're probably right about the ending but tbh? by the middle I'd already decided it was better to turn my brain off and hope the plot twists kept me entertained and in that respect the ending fully lived up to my expectations

[showtoonzfan]

Ok I don't usually like to leave asks but there's something bugging me about the latest ep that I haven't seen anyone discuss. Blitzo killed all those people in the studio. Imps going to earth and killing people is already illegal but he did that with no contract and in front of Stolas, not even in self defense. Also the first people they've killed who you can't even say "deserve it" bc what did the audience do? I feel like that should be way bigger in the story and I got tricked into thinking it was consequential bc it started out really well.. But then in the next minute it turns into cutesy fanservice with Stolas thinking it's hot (even though he doesn't even fully know what just happened)? From his perspective this guy he hooks up with just had a panic attack and murdered a bunch of people irrationally? And I just realized while writing this it was also recorded??? Idk in a better show that would probably be interesting to build on

Sadly I’m going to stop you right there on the second sentence lmao, but I agree, this is so confusing, but here’s the thing. A lot of people assume that Imps aren’t allowed to go to the human world considering they’re low class, but we need to keep in mind that due to the shows shitty worldbuilding, it was never explained. We aren’t 100% sure wether or not Imps are allowed to go there or not, all we know is that according to Stolas, Imps shouldn’t be lended a powerful grimoire like his. Aside from that, nothing else was really explained, because Viv never wanted to revolve the fact that her main damn characters are considered low class in this world into her story. The funny thing is, they introduce the idea that Imps shouldn’t have the book and are at the bottom, yet most of Hell already knows the IMP business exists, so we’re lead to believe that no one bats an eye that these low class citizens are able to get to earth, especially by the hyper ups, whoever they are and what they do, something the show ALSO didn’t explain. They hint at the idea that the Imps and Stolas could get in trouble for this business, going to earth without a disguise and lending the book to a low class, but none of it is made clear on who they would get in trouble with, or why. I also especially find it hard to believe that the IMP business has been in the clear for so long with no obstacles whatsoever, because how is Viv going to say they’re at the bottom and possibly imply that what they’re doing is illegal, yet they haven’t gotten in trouble for it or faced any consequences whatsoever? How come Stolas hasn’t gotten in trouble yet? That’s why all of this is confusing, she sets up ideas for her world and it’s rules, but then just fucks off on a writing standpoint and none of it ever comes back or is elaborated on. I also find it funny that Viv describes Lucifer as someone who wants to keep the system where it is, and yet he MUST know by now that these low class citizens are making money off of sinners and going to earth to kill people. I know we haven’t met him yet, but still. But yeah, as far as we know, Hell doesn’t seem to care at all that they’re slaughtering humans on earth, wether it was warranted or not. The whole “they need human disguises” thing was bs as well, because by now they’ve roamed the earth without them, and haven’t gotten in trouble. As for Blitz’s outburst killing scene, it didn’t really mean anything important, it wasn’t there so you could think about what this would mean or if there’s any consequences to it, it was just there so Stolas can fawn over him as well as the writers showing us Blitz cares about Loona and is crazy.

[wallflowerfangirl]

So Felix has been on my mind a lot bc he's a very interesting character whose motivations aren't quite clear. So I was thinking back to the episode Felix (where he was first introduced), and obviously we know he pretended to be Adrien in order to ruin his friendships with the rest of the cast for some reason. We know in the past though that Adrien and Felix used to be close, as they had once pulled a prank on their parents by switching places for a week. So fast foward to when Felix gets caught. Chat Noir, aka the real Adrien, decides to call him out (as he should), and this line really stood out to me:

Though Adrien may not understand all of Felix, including his true motivation behind everything he does, he still knows him better than most of the cast. Now let's see Felix's reaction to that comment.

That looks like someone who just got hit in a sore spot if I've ever seen one. At this point, he is already caught red handed and thus has no reason to act like he's still Adrien. That was a real moment for him, and I'm starting to think the writers put that specific line in on purpose.

The likelihood of him being a senti and knowing that is very high (not gonna say it's official till it's confirmed on the show). I'm thinking that because he knows he's not like a regular human both in personality and in creation, does he want the Peacock Miraculous not only to ensure he has full control over himself, but also to make friends that really understand him? Is him being so rude and cold to most others because of the fact he is secretly jealous of them for being regular humans? Finding out you aren't fully human like everyone else around you is bound to do some psychological damage, and could explain how Felix did a sudden change from someone who was close with Adrien to like a total stranger.

Strike Back also confirms that Felix has had knowledge about the Miraculous jewelry existing since before Hawkmoth became a threat to Paris, as he is seen looking at multiple pictures from what looks like the same book as the one Gabriel has.

Edit: I totally forgot he stole Nathalie's tablet in Risk, but my point still stands that he most likely knew about the Miraculous history pre Hawkmoth because of the fact he knew that the book info would be on Nathalie's tablet. We've never actually seen him look through the book even though he saw it in Risk, therefore logically he would've had to have seen the book beforehand. Mind you, this book had been missing for a long time according to Tikki, so this type of knowledge isn't common knowledge. A lot of the Miraculous knowledge isn't super common knowledge even now in their world bc Master Fu kept the Miraculous hidden and unused for about 170 years. Also Alya can't share all the info she knows on her blog bc it could hint at the fact that she's a superhero (let alone Ladybug's closest helper as of recent).

I say this because of the context between the conversation Adrien and Felix had when they were in his room in that episode and he mentions his Dad's death like it's the first time they ever talked about that. This would explain why Felix was able to deduce that Gabriel was Shadowmoth as quickly as he did.

On the off chance he is not a sentimonster, then I think it would be because he had a similar childhood to Adrien. Though I do think that both him being a senti and having his Dad die could both be the reasons why Felix acts the way he is. Anywho, we know Felix did have a Dad who died around the same time as Emilie, and Amelie does mention the following at the end of the episode:

Based on this line, it sounds like those two had a similar relationship like Gabriel and Adrien do, as Gabriel is often controlling over what Adrien does. I mean, when Adrien talks about Felix's Dad (who is also his Uncle, mind you) he doesn't even mention his name, let alone personality. This is odd considering Adrien is the more sentimental type. Now if he was cold and distant like say Gabriel, that would explain why Adrien hardly mention anything about Felix's Dad as a person.

A theory I have is that based on context clues, Felix was also most likely homeschooled aswell and thus a lonely child. Given his behavior and how implied it is that Gabriel and Felix's Dad were quite similar, it makes sense to me atleast.

While they may have not had the best relationship, Felix still has emotions at the end of the day. I mean we all saw how in Risk he was terrified over seeing Emilie's corpse. He was alone then, so he had no reason to fake that reaction. Also, I don't think it was necessarily because she looks just like his Mom (although that is definately part of the reason). In the episode Gabriel Agreste, he is shown smiling at a painting that is clearly Emilie (as there would be no reason for the Agrestes to have a huge painting of his Aunt). Felix might be a jerk, but it is clear he liked his Aunt and feels bad about her death.

As someone who has had a parent die at a young age, it changes you a lot. Sometimes, it can make you a better person in the long run. Other times, it can turn you into a much colder and darker person. Psychologically speaking, Felix is a complex individual who appears to have gone through quite a bit. We don't know too many truths about him, but I wanted to analyze more of what we do know.

One thing I can say for sure though is that story wise, Adrien and Felix are perfect parallels of one another. For this, I'm gonna ignore the senti theory and just focus on the facts shown in canon. You have one boy who lost his loving Mom, and despite his colder Father, is able to remain positive even if times get rough. Another boy who lost his cold Father, found himself turning colder despite having a loving Mother by his side to support him. It's beautiful yet heartbreaking, and I really hope we truly get to understand Felix more in Season 5. I would definately like to see how he and Duusu get along, and what he does with the Peacock Miraculous.

Once again, this was just a string theories that came into my head so it might be wrong. Ik this post was a bit all over the place, but I hope you atleast understand where I am coming from. Thanks for reading!

[blazlngblade]

Hey, I've been really enjoying CotC and also reading through all the work you've done for the translations of the Japanese game, as well as your thoughts and analyses of various characters and settings. One of your earlier asks you mentioned Prome being a heretic, which is fascinating to me bc I have no idea how that'd even look with how the cleric class and religion in the game story seem to be set up (even Mattias arguably wasn't a heretic per se, since Galdera was still part of the pantheon of Orsterra's gods). However I have been unable to scrape up any other information on Prome past what you mentioned in the one ask and general stuff about his stats, and I was wondering if you could explain his character a bit more, since his character story hasn't been translated or uploaded, nor has like, the recruitment card. If you can't, no big deal, I know the gacha aspect of the game makes it hard to learn the story of every single character and I'm sure I can piece stuff together when he eventually gets added to the worldwide release if I'm patient, but what you said did get me pretty curious about him. Thanks for taking the time to read this regardless!

I am very glad you're enjoying playing the game and even more so that you have watched our videos and read my posts! That makes me happy to hear! Thank you so much!

Prome is an extremely interesting character, I did call him a heretic as it is true. But, also not true. The reason he is considered one is because his views on the Orsterran religions is not of the norm, nor is it accepted within the church, but he believes it all the same. To put it simply, he's a "heretic".

Since you asked for a translation of his summon card, this is what it says:

A good and sincere wandering priest. He is well-behaved and admired by the people.

However, in reality, he is a "heretic" who denies the teachings of the Church of the Sacred Flame and preaches his own doctrine.

Prome is very loyal to the teachings of the Flamebringer. He grew up in a home of other members of the clergy, but as he grew up, he began to believe in his own way. Seeing the fault in the religious teachings and trust me, there is a lot of fault, you'll find out in Bestower of All's chapter 6 Part II! he now wants to share his interpretation. He's not aiming to prove the other way of worship wrong, just doesn't believe in that way.

He believes that the Sacred Flame is meant to purify, which technically isn't wrong, fire is used to do this, as it's one of its symbolic meanings. Fire is also meant to burn away waste to cleanse the world and start anew. He believes that the Flame needs to do this more often, so in Aelfric's place, he chooses to do so.

Knowing about the Chosen One and the rings, he does seek them out in order to gain Aelfric's approval. Despite being a little irrational, for lack of a better word, Prome is very dutiful and chooses to listen to the Chosen One when they tell him that his way doesn't seem fully correct. What I mean about this, is it's probably clear that the Chosen One does half agree with Prome's way, as they have to stop evil as well, but if death was an option to be avoided, I'm sure they would avoid that. So if Prome could teach sinners a well needed lesson, but give them a chance to atone for their sins rather than ending their lives, it is a better option.

What's also kind of nice to learn is people like Prome a lot. He carries a very welcoming demeanor when he recites his sermons, and though people recognize the way as different, a lot of people agree with what he says about the use of purification and the Flame. He also loves playing with children, which I think is really sweet. He gets along well with them, and they enjoy Prome's company just as much.

Without too much spoilers about the whole story, as this one is going to be uploaded very soon. (October 23rd for the Recollection, and October 24th for the Traveler Story)

In his story, another priest chooses to try and frame Prome for murder on one of the many targets Prome has attacked, but didn't kill, simply because the Chosen One said not to. When this happens, Prome asks the Chosen One if they believe he never did it, and seems relieved when the Chosen One says they trust Prome's word. It doesn't take long for the two characters to figure out who does it, thanks to a list Prome has about past sinners he's met.

That's all I will choose to say about the story plot specifically as it will be uploaded soon!

And that thing about Prome enjoying playing with children. After being framed for murder, one of Prome's first concerns was not being allowed to play with the children again. </3 Poor guy.

By the end of the story, Prome chooses to travel onwards with the Chosen One, and Marlowe (the priest from Millard's story) trust that the Chosen One will watch over Prome. Marlowe is a past mentor to Prome and one of the few people Prome trusts to support him.

Speaking of support, that's really all Prome needs. Someone to help support him and know when he may have crossed a line. Both Marlowe, and now the Chosen One, have taken this place.

That being said, if for whatever reason you want to ship Prome with someone. It has to be someone pure hearted to kind of "rub off" on Prome. Basically characters like Millard.

If you or anyone is interested in one day going for Prome in the English version, he would most likely be added alongside arena characters L'eeto (4th Champion) or Gertrude (5th Champion), as he originally released with Gertrude, but both her and L'eeto are weak to fire magic.

I was going to go into more detail about Prome and his story, but it will be uploaded soon, so I chose not to. I hope this was enough to pique your interest more until October 23rd/24th. Thanks again for the support!

[sirdust]

so for a bit of context: lately, the favorite time-waster among me and my irl friends/roommates is to browse youtube for the most unintelligible algorithm bait we can find. this has resulted in the junk account we use having the 'recommended' page of a 10-year old with unrestricted internet access. needless to say the latest hb ep wound up on there and since my friends know i used to be into the show, we got to talking/joking about it.

the reason this is necessary to mention is bc when you're talking about the show out loud with people and trying to explain it to them, everything becomes even harder to translate out of the realm of "this was my special interest for 3 years and so i know every piece of trivia and lore dropped outside of the main series itself in that time". however! the latest episode makes the storyline objectively difficult to follow, even as someone who was fully immersed in theorycrafting and collecting tidbits of trivia for quite a long time. this is because there is no clear explanation of how the accident could have occurred in the timeline (and by extension, how mammon could've taken fizz under his wing, etc.)

the first thing that confused me is the stalker fan subplot. the first time we see this guy is when fizz is a teen, but that implies fizz is already well-known, to some extent, before he's sponsored by mammon. this is perplexing because the imp circus seems to be obviously struggling on the occassions we do see it. there's no reason to imply that fizz had any level of fame before the accident; though we know he was the standout of the imp circus, it seemed to be relative. but, like, okay. let's just ignore that for a bit.

what's stranger is the fact that fizz HAD to have started working for mammon after the accident. there were no hints in the s2e6 flashbacks that he had any contract with mammon by this point, and unless i've gotten this mixed up, he did ultimately gain his position under mammon through the clown pageant.

the reason this doesn't make sense is because there's pretty much no way fizz could have won the pageant without prosthetics. it's possible he had a set between the accident and the pageant win that we haven't seen, but prosthetics (even just one, let alone the two at minimum he would've needed to perform) are expensive, and fizz was poor. it's been confirmed fizz did not meet ozzie or get his robot limbs until after he started working for mammon. that leaves this period of his life a total mystery, and there is nothing in the show indicating that this will be addressed. it's a massive plot hole in fizz's story.

on a bigger scale, the episode fumbles so much of mammon's introduction and his backstory with fizz that it's kind of unreal. mammon is like every other abuser on the show in terms of personality (with fatphobia added in for flavor, i guess). if they were trying to set up a theme of the deadly sins not being as bad as you might expect, he breaks it in a way that doesn't feel unique at all. he's nasty and misogynistic (which is ironic, because the only female characters in this episode are slutty mean girls who exist to contrast with our suddenly wholesome jester). but what else? he has few other defining traits, if any.

those are my gripes with the character, though. the narrative structure is the real offense this episode commits, because it sets up this conflict between fizz and mammon (along with fizz's inner turmoil around the matter) only to resolve it in half an hour. this episode could be removed from the show and very little (if anything!) would change, because fizz's work for mammon has been flavor text up until now. mammon isn't even in his life, outside of this pageant, because fizz's life pretty much revolves around ozzie, and sometimes blitz. s1e7 and s2e6 both showed that his primary occupation is to serve as ozzie's business partner and MC.

the episode had nice moments. a couple of the songs were good! there were a few glimpses of meaningful insight on the experience of being disabled! but it was all drowned out by the pacing and implications for the story as a whole.

i just do not understand what the show is trying to be about anymore. i keep saying people say the show is about overcoming abuse, but if that's the case, the series is doing a bad job with it.

i have to get ready for work but i'll post my thoughts on the new ep in a bit here bc it was more confusing than anything else

[impalementation]

if you're interested, i'd love to hear your thoughts on That scene in empty places, bc the way that i've seen most people talk about it doesn't always feel very nuanced and like... i get being frustrated and i for sure think some extremely unfair things to/about buffy were said, but i don't think it's as cut and dry as buffy being totally blameless (even though i love her) and everyone else (particularly the main scoobies, who don't have her responsibilities but have fought alongside her and earned the right to disagree w her imo) being terrible. Like it may have gone too far?? But idk, I have trouble articulating why, but I think there's more nuance to the situation than people want to say, so I'm curious about your thoughts

Anonymous asked:

whats your take on empty places and the scoobs kicking buffy out of her house?

Anonymous asked:

Why did Buffy allowed Dawn to kick her out in Empty Places?

Wow, so many questions about “Empty Places”! Sorry, as ever, that these took me a while to get to.

I actually agree, I think there’s more nuance there than it’s given credit for. I talked about that a bit in this post a while back. I wouldn’t say that the character build-up to that scene is as well-executed as it could have been, but it hardly comes out of nowhere, and it’s not some random thing. Or, as I’ve seen people suggest, simply there to make Spike look good and push him and Buffy together. I’m sure their romantic arc was a factor in the storytelling, but to call that the only motivation seems to me a vast oversimplification and dismissal of ideas that were built over the course of the season.

Season seven is, as I’ve discussed before, about how the Slayer system is broken. It’s a system that isolates Buffy and puts all of the decision-making in her hands. Meaning that it’s a system that is neither good for her, nor good for anyone around her, no matter how strong and brave Buffy is. All season long, we see Buffy struggle with both the limits of her power, and the demands of her authority. She wants to be able to save every girl, and fight every ubervamp, but she simply can’t be everywhere and stronger than everything. She wants to be a caring friend, but when she’s the one who has to make decisions about whether people should live or die, she can’t always be. When she’s the one who has to make all the hard choices, that means the blame always falls on her shoulders. When she fucks up, there’s nothing for her to fall back on. The fact that Buffy is forced to be this kind of sole authority means that the people around her are right to feel that they aren’t being listened to, or fully considered. Because often they aren’t. They see the people around them getting maimed and killed and suddenly realize that maybe it isn’t right that all their eggs should be in Buffy’s basket. But at the same time, they’re wrong, because they’re the ones who put their eggs there. They’re the ones who kept looking the other way as Buffy made hard choice after hard choice on their behalf. They’re as complicit in (and victimized by) the broken system as Buffy is.

Keep in mind the season’s perception themes. Everyone gets mad at Buffy, and Buffy gets mad at herself, because they’re all too close to the situation to see that the problem isn’t really Buffy, it’s what being the Slayer has forced Buffy to be. The dynamic it’s forced between her and the people around her. Notice how in the very next episode, Faith finds herself dealing with the exact same problems that Buffy was. The same hard decisions, and the same ambient resentments. It’s actually very important that Faith has to be a leader for a bit, in order to show this--the fact that the problem is being the Slayer, not Buffy. I’d even argue that it’s the much more thematically relevant motivation for the scene than getting Buffy and Spike alone.

As far as thematic motivations go, I also think it’s crucial that Buffy is thrown out of her house. That is some powerful symbolism for a season that leans so hard into the symbolism of Buffy’s house in general, and it’s disappointing to see people ignore it in their eagerness to be mad at everyone. The house is a lot of things—the familiar, the stable, the normative, the safe—but most importantly it’s also Buffy’s self. Notice how Spike and Faith, both Buffy’s shadow at different times, hang out in Buffy’s basement: the realm of the id and subconscious. Notice how as the house breaks down, Buffy gets injured as well.

So for Buffy to be thrown out of her house, it’s the climax of the season’s isolation themes not just in terms of story, but also metaphor. She has literally been cast out of herself. She’s been banished from her identity and role. But at the same time, once she’s on the outside of that myopic, claustrophobic system, she is able to connect with her shadow (Spike) and see the situation with new eyes. The reason that Spike is the one who can talk Buffy back is that firstly, unlike the Scoobies, his later seasons arc is all about learning to not ask Buffy for things that aren’t appropriate--romantic reciprocation, moral structure. Secondly, he was once the tool and symbol of her isolation, the icon of her shame and guilt and belief that she needed to isolate herself. For her to make peace with Spike is about her rejecting that isolation and shame, and transforming it.

Of course, I can talk about symbolism all I want and it doesn’t necessarily matter if the writers didn’t make it believable on the object level too—the level of character and plot and all of that. It’s a regular problem on Buffy, the writing caring more about symbolism than sense. While I think that most of the characters have adequate motivation for the scene—really, it’s been building from the beginning; remember the confrontation between Buffy and Xander as early as “Selfless”? or Buffy fighting with Giles and Wood two episodes earlier? or the way she argued with everyone in “Get It Done”? or the Potentials doubting her from basically their first episodes?—the one character that seems truly undeveloped is Dawn. She got that warning from the First in “Conversations With Dead People”, but the season doesn’t follow up on it well enough to draw a clear line between that seed of doubt and her attitude in “Empty Places.” Given that Dawn is Buffy’s “humanity” or “youth” or what have you, it’s symbolically significant that she would be the final one to cast Buffy out. But that seems like a clear case of the story not earning its metaphor, unfortunately.

To answer the third ask: as far as why Buffy let Dawn kick her out, on a character level I think she was pretty defeated by that point. But symbolically, I think the part about Buffy’s human self rejecting her is important for that. Buffy has a tenuous relationship to her belief in her humanity at the best of times, so it’s pretty easy for me to believe that she would feel lost and numbed enough by being rejected by that part of herself, that she wouldn’t fight it.

(Controversial opinion, but I actually kind of like that “Empty Places” isn’t due to the First sowing obvious discord. I’ve seen lots of people suggest that that would have been the stronger and more believable choice, and I get the instinct. But if the point of the season is to show that the villain is the Slayer system, then it makes more sense for that to be the thing that drives the conflict, and not an external force influencing them. There might have been a way to use the First that was compatible with that, but it wouldn’t have worked if the problem was just The First. Imo, of course.)

All of which is to say, that if you see the season as being about faulty perception, broken systems, and the dangers of isolation, then “Empty Places” actually makes perfect sense as a climax of the season. The problem really comes down to whether you think it was earned enough (which in some cases I think it was, and in others it wasn’t), or generally handled well, and whether you think those ideas are interesting in the first place.

[charrfie]

Alright now that its officially Forzen Friday let's try this post again since it didn't show up in the tags last time-

I'M FINALLY MAKING A FORZEN HC DUMP (kinda AU-ish territory but not really idk exactly) AND NONE OF YOU CAN STOP ME

There are also a few other hcs sprinkled in here related to other characters (like Darnold and Sunkist for example) but Forzen is the main focus!! Despite him being a minor character I latched onto him and fleshed him out sm yall have no idea

Everything under the cut bc this shit is gonna be LONG (and there's also some more doodles that take up a bit of space!)

Also uhh if people like this I might take one for another hlvrai character later bc I have a lot to say about everyone!!

Forzen moved from France to the US with his parents when he was around 12 or 13 (yes, I'm aware that Scorpy and Holly are French Canadian and not France French but that doesn't mean Forzen can't be, I'm just being sure to say this now before someone says something to me about it)

He wanted to go to college and eventually become a game dev, but he didn't have the funds or the support for it (his family thought anything to do with games would amount to a career that would go nowhere).

Because of this, he instead was recruited in the US military. He originally had no intent to join, but after constantly being harrassed recommended to join and being entertained with the concept of being able to afford and pay for college, he caved (hence him telling the science team that his only goal is "to graduate").

He doesn't like his job very much if that wasn't clear.

And neither do most others that have the same job like him.

He was put on a "team" of his own, Team Nice, which was likely arranged as a guaranteed way to get Forzen in the way of danger, and with no one else fighting beside him, he would be easily dealt with- no one would have to worry about him bothering them again. However, he somehow manages to survive all of this, of course. Somehow. He likely knows the real reason he was assigned his own team (if you can even call it that), but refuses to fully acknowledge it for his own sanity, and instead pretends that he's some big, important person on a team that ranks so highly, he's the only one qualified to be in it. (I apologize ahead of time for giving one of the most shitposty and throwaway characters in hlvrai this much depth and angst, there was just potential there leave me alone)

Fast forward to the actual events of hlvrai though. This hc is a little outlandish but I really like the concept!!! So, at one point, Forzen is killed, presumably by some kind of creature that was out and about due to the RenCas. The science team + Benrey stumble across him (act 2 part 2 at around 13 min in for anyone curious), and Benrey decides to use the healing beam Sweet Voice on him. While Benrey and Forzen may not be on good terms anymore, Benrey still very begrudgingly cares about him and didn't want to see him get injured or die. Forzen wakes up a minute or so after the science team exits the room, assuming that he just passed out, nothing more, and goes along with things as normal.

He meets Darnold a while after his first (concious) run in with the science team. Darnold has recently dealt with the science team and helped them out, but is pretty bummed that he couldn't travel with them, as everything was far too scary and dangerous for him. Forzen, wanting to escape Black Mesa and the military altogether, ends up making a deal with him that he'll handle all the dangerous stuff if Darnold can show him a way out.

Now, meeting Darnold is a very new experience for him, since Darnold actually enjoys his company, and actually wants to befriend him! At first, Forzen openly tries to act as if Darnold is a huge deal to put up with- he goes along with with the whole "if you're escaping outta this hellhole with me, you better keep up" kinda deal (despite the fact that he kinda NEEDS Darnold to escape and show him the way out). His walls are still very much so raised, and he doesn't let his guard down as he's not used to others caring about him and his safety. But as time passes, he begins to realize that maybe Darnold DOES want to be his friend, and the tough guy act becomes less apparent.

To preface this next one- Sunkist sensed that something was up (he has a next-level sense of danger when it comes to Tommy's safety) and got to BM as fast as he could, searching every hallway for his boy. This is when Forzen finds him!! He figures that taking Sunkist as a hostage would be enough to get extra info out of the team that's been practically plaguing him lately.

Darnold doesn't know about Forzen's plans to take Sunkist hostage, so is completely fine with traveling alongside him. At one point though, Forzen and Darnold get separated (Forzen occupies him, makes sure hes safe and then runs off to deal with Sunkist). Darnold immediately uses his surroundings to model a quick little teleporter device to get Forzen back, because, you know, the man's a genius. Idc if its logical or not just go with it shhh I've gotta fill in the plotholes with something. That's why Forzen disappears all of a sudden after he's cornered by the science team. He just pops back in front of Darnold suddenly, all confused and loopy from the whole teleportation thing.

As things begin to wind down, Darnold and Forzen make it out of BM and start making a break for it, no idea how they'll get away from BM and to safety somewhere- they didnt really think things through.

Fortunately (or unfortunately for Forzen really), however, G-man picks both of them up. He means to drop Darnold off at Tommy's party, as he observed that Darnold helped his son to safety and is grateful for it. Forzen, though, he intends to "deal with" for messing things up so badly with Tommy, Sunkist, and all of Tommy's friends. This is where Darnold finds out about everything Forzen did and frankly gets really pissed with him since he thought he only had good intentions??? Luckily though, Darnold convinces G-man to give him a second chance, let him go to Tommy's party and apologize, and try things again. G-man, for some reasons agrees- probably bc hes in a good mood, as it IS his son's birthday.

The party is pretty uncomfortable to say the least. Tommy's extremely hesitant to talk to Forzen, but he does, and they end up on neutral terms by the end of it. Uneasy, but neutral. Tommy and Darnold hit it off though, and Tommy opens the invitation to Darnold that he can visit his place anytime now that everything at BM is over with.

As everyone's getting ready to leave, Forzen mentions to Darnold that he doesn't have a place to stay, seeing as the entire military was kinda. Yknow. Wiped out. Obviously wouldn't wanna go back to check anyways. And he has no interest in going home to his parents. So Darnold agrees to let him stay with him since they've become good pals over the course of everything.

Over time, Darnold visits Tommy more and more often. He starts bringing Forzen along, which Tommy is iffy of at first, but their dynamic starts to change and become more comfortable once Tommy sees that Forzen isnt interested in being enemies anymore.

Sunkist and Forzen still don't get along for a very long time. Or, well- it's moreso that Sunkist is very wary about Forzen, despite him not doing anything to harm either Sunkist or Tommy.

Oh yeah and almost forgot to mention one of my favorite hcs (that I PROMISE you started out as a joke but then I got attached) is Sunkist can talk!! So his first spoken interaction with Forzen after Forzen comes over to visit for the first time is literally just him being all threatening and laying down the ground rules bc he doesn't want Forzen to hurt Tommy at all in any way. And of course Forzen about has a heart attack bc "HUH??????? THERE'S A DOG THAT IS SPEAKING HUMAN WORDS TO ME"

UHH I HAVE MORE (I've written out so much shit about dynamics and what I'd think would happen even after all of this) BUT I DON'T WANT THIS TO BE TOO LONG like it already is SO I SUPPOSE I'LL LEAVE IT AT THAT FOR NOW!!!! I hope this isn't too ooc either, I just have Emotions about this series and write too much so why not share it yknow

[thethiefandtheairbender]

(1/2) is it okay to not like maiko but stan mai? i like both characters but everytime they were together i just personally found them really dislikable people, save for the "you miscalculated" scene. plus i wanted mai to have an arc outside zuko where she overcomes her apathy (aka emotional suppression developed in response to her traumatic upbringing). maybe she doesn't want tom tom to have to grow up in the world the fn is creating, forced to stifle his feelings and opinions like her.

(2/2) maybe she develops a hobby/passion that under the fn is disallowed. "i don't care about anything...except this guy" just doesn't do it for me, esp since she always had that exception for zuko since she was a kid so she didn't change much. i like kataang btw so it isn't some "get zuko free for katara" bs. anti maikos never wanna discuss these specific things and shit on mai (and aang) bc it's just about zutara.

of course it is! i would argue that through the course of the show mai does overcome her more outwardly apathetic nature in a lot of ways - but that’s mostly through her relationship with zuko. i also think mai makes it clear that, in some ways, she does care about some things other than zuko. she does care about herself and gets indignant towards him on her own behalf & despite being in abusive relationships with azula and her parents, mai knows how she does want to be treated and will stand up for herself in relationships where it feels safe to do so, which is impressive. she also defends ty lee on a number of occasions and it’s clear that they have a strong relationship. we learn a fair bit about her family: a governor father, her mother’s view on their political situation, a baby brother, and a revered uncle. she also does have some loyalty to her country, as she says to zuko, “save it? you’re betraying your country” when she reads his letter and learns he’s going to join the avatar. 

mai’s arc with zuko isn’t “i care about this guy more than anything”. because you’re right, mai in many ways already knew how much she cared about zuko. what her arc actually leads to is mai being able to express that and fully stand up to her primary abuser (azula) because of the love she feels for him, the conviction and trust she has that he’s not doing the wrong thing, and she finds a healthy support system (at first ty lee, and then the gaang in the epilogue) on the other side.

i also think it can be important to remove a sense of self sometimes, too. like, would i want a relationship like mai and zuko’s? no. does that mean they’re dislikable? no. some of their best moments are with each other. zuko awkwardly trying to woo her a bit, them enjoying each other’s company and being physically affectionate with cuddling, clearly one of them cares enough about art to get a portrait done, mai’s dry humour and also how she holds zuko accountable, zuko’s confidence in her own abilities: “trust me, she doesn’t [need protection].” 

Like I’ve said before, I recommend my meta here to anyone who loves Maiko or, really, to anyone who loves Mai. It may be able to change your mind. Maybe not. 

All that being said, while I don’t follow the comics, Mai is given an arc outside Zuko regarding wanting Tom-Tom to be raised differently, her family’s political stances, another love interest, and much more. But for the timeline ATLA was following of like, nine months or less in all of the characters’ lives, I think Mai’s arc within the timespan of the show itself was beautiful and perfectly suited.

[gunmetal-ring]

Here's the thing like I fully understand where people come from when they refer to caryl as mother/son (ageism and misogyny aside)

There have absolutely been moments wherein Daryl is desperate for guidance and comfort and a nurturing person, and Carol has been that person for him. They're fairly intimate moments, too, and it's always clear that she gives him exactly what he needs. There have been a few times when he's been so emotionally stunted and lost that he really does regress to a more childlike state, and during those times, Carol takes on a nurturing role for him.

I don't think anybody really disagrees with that - I think we've all had moments (or at least I have, bc maybe I'm just not well adjusted lol) where we've been so emotionally overwhelmed by some devastating trauma that we regress, and either a friend or family member helps us through it, in a similar way as to when we were kids and our moms hugged us when we got into a fight with a friend or whatever, idk. I've also been that person to plenty of my friends and family members in their times of need.

HOWEVER.

These moments - and they are moments, because Daryl isn't a child who needs a kiss on his boo-boo, and he's greatly emotionally matured over the past 10 seasons, and they're generally instances few and far between anyway - don't define their relationship. There's plenty of give-and-take between them, and plenty of moments when she comforts him in a way that a friend does, as equals. In the "damn, that sucks, hope I can be a shoulder to lean on" rather than a "let me take care of you while you repair your damaged psyche" type of way. And there's plenty of moments where he does the same for her, as equals.

I would also say that Carol's also had some of those moments wherein she regresses, and has that same sort of childlike desperation looking for comfort and guidance and someone to nurture her, and Daryl's tried to be that person for her. I don't think it's nearly as obvious, though, bc she's rejected it time and time again. She doesn't let him comfort her that way, even though in the past, he's let her comfort him that way. I'd say the only time she actually lets him do it is immediately upon finding Henry's head on the pike, tbh, and that's cut extremely short - much shorter than the filmed moments where we see the forehead kisses, etc.

Again, this is a really, really common (and normal, and can actually be healthy with obvious exceptions) dynamic between close, intimate friends, and even lovers, too. It doesn't have to be all-or-nothing - and it frustrates me that people can say caryl has this deep intimate abiding friendship and in the same breath say oh Carol's his mother figure. It's totally dismissing the complexities of what an intimate friendship looks like, and how layered people are.

Obviously a huge part of it is ageism and misogyny (carol has all-gray hair which obv means she's sexless, and daryl is 50 which obv means his romantic interests will be anywhere between 18-40, and Carol is a mother so that's all she's good for, and Daryl is the resident bachelor hottie so he's not going to jump on his best friend) but I also think we need to keep in mind that bc these characters are 10 years old, they're inherently going to be a lot more developed than, say, characters who have only been around for a year or two. So their relationship will be a lot more developed than relationships they have with newer characters.

[actuallylorelaigilmore]

Okay... going on a bit of a Schneider x Avery rant for a little bit. I've been reading some of your old posts about them and honestly I really do think they're endgame. If the show were to continue, I think season 3 would've been the closest we ever see Schneider to the family, but I think Avery (bc she doesn't have that much character development) would pull him back to the outer circle for season 4. I don't think they would've brought her back for the finale if they weren't endgame.

(cont) Schneider just barely makes the cut for family in this show. I mean I love him, but the show is about Penelope and her family. If they made too much noise between Penelope’s best friend’s love interest, who has no connection with the rest of the family, it would distract from the main characters too much. Nikki, Schneider’s only other “love” interest had a connection to both Penelope and Alex. But Avery’s there just for Schneider and I’m afraid it would stay that way.

hi anon!! i had to wait a while before answering this one because i knew i would need coherent thoughts and that hasn’t been working so well for me lately

you make two important points here, so i’ll start with the schneider side of it. i agree that s3 was the closest that we’ve ever seen schneider to the family, and that makes sense because honestly even as s3 progressed the storylines for everyone in the family, schneider kind of had the biggest, most consistent arc. (i think alex’s was the next biggest/most consistent. elena and pen and lydia’s stories were more episodic in s3 and sometimes connected more to previous season events than the preceding episodes.)

the showrunners/writers had been planning to address schneider’s sobriety for a while and talked a lot with the actor while they worked on it, and i think they handled it really well. but in my opinion, that all builds up to cementing schneider’s place in the family. not just pulling him into the circle, but making it clear that he belongs there–in a way they aren’t likely to go back on. 

we went from penelope shutting the door in his face in 1.13 when he’s telling her they’re like family, to elena joking about him NOT being family in s2 and him telling a comatose lydia that they’re his family while punctuating his grief with jokes…to the entire family rallying around him in 3.12 after they were all a bit more distant earlier in the season.

elena is the first member of the family to actually direct the word ‘love’ his way! penelope tries to make it clear that he’s important to her just as he is and that he needs to fight his addictions not just for his sake but because of her family, especially the kids! schneider interrupts his big romantic reunion with avery to focus on lydia officially claiming him as an alvarez!

this snippet of an interview todd grinnell gave after s3 mentions the tension between any future schneider would have with avery, and his ties to the family. i don’t know how much the plans for a potential s4 might have changed over time, but since we know the writers do discuss plot arcs with the actors in advance (or at least they have done so with todd before) i believe that when he said this, it was based off his awareness of what the writers were thinking. 

which means that avery could have been brought back to be a source of future conflict–and after schneider’s s3 declaration that ‘family is everything’ it’s not guaranteed that he would choose avery in that scenario. i could see him learning to balance and compromise, maybe, but schneider drifting out of the picture because of his love interest wouldn’t make sense for who he is–unless the actor was leaving the show maybe? i still wouldn’t find it very believable though.

i do agree that avery’s only connected to the show through schneider. that actually bugged me in s3, because they gave her so many little great moments in the beginning to establish who she was, and then she really never interacted with the family even when she was in scenes with them!! they either need to fully include her in s4 or keep her more separate; now that we’re more familiar with her, it won’t make sense at all for her to be in the apartment or at events and ignoring the rest of them most of the time. (unless that’s part of the plot, of course.) i think that avery won’t be likely to get much actual plot unless it starts to be about non-schneider things, like how she affects family members.

i honestly have no idea if schneider and avery are endgame or not. india is too adorable for me to be against it, despite my many objections to how avery was handled in s3 (so much potential after that meet-cute! i ranted in multiple essays about about it!). because the actors are married it wouldn’t surprise me if that’s what the show does, letting schneider’s storylines going forward be more about him maturing and dealing with his first serious lasting relationship. 

i think that how long the show gets to continue existing will also have a lot to do with what turns out to be endgame–if it ends on its own terms in a few years, then we’ll know what their intended endgame was. but if it gets cancelled then i’ll always wonder what they might have been really aiming for.

the biggest thing that you and i seem to disagree about, though, anon, that probably affects how we see the avery stuff playing out, is schneider’s role on the show. you say that he just barely makes the cut for family, and i would argue (as i sort of started to, messily, above) that in fact it’s season 3 that doesn’t just confirm but yells that he’s completely family. 

in the first scene of the season, he comes in and tells the rest of them who their own dead relative is, and in his last scene, avery passes along the news of lydia’s official adoption of him. between all of that, the family sees him turn into someone else while he’s trying to please his father–and they see the relapsed alcoholic he’s never been in their presence before–and they commit even harder to making him feel loved and like he’s a part of them. 

along those same lines, i’d also argue that schneider is a ‘main character.’ not only just technically (because he’s been included in things like promo images for the show since s1, where leslie wasn’t) but in terms of the story. if he wasn’t a main character in seasons 1 and 2, he definitely became one in season 3, when two whole episodes were formed around his arc in addition to his usual mini stories alongside the family.

tl;dr i have no idea if avery is schneider’s endgame but he is an alvarez now and i’ll believe him choosing her over his family when i see it