#kind of a rant at the end but not really

[sameboot]

Simon petrikov coping FAIL compilation

[soren-apologist]

time for more soren character analysis:

petrine’s battle conversation with soren in chapter 23 has always been a favorite of mine, and now that i’m looking at it again i noticed a few extra details:

it’s important to mention that this battle takes place directly after ike and soren’s a-support, in which soren confesses he’s a branded and expects to be shunned, only for ike to tell him that it doesn’t matter and he wants soren to stay by his side regardless.

anyway, besides “Now let me show you true fear!” being a really hard line, it’s really cool to see how soren’s reaction to his branded status being pointed out changes so sharply over the course of a handful of chapters. i already analyzed his reaction to nasir’s betrayal where he’s agitated over the fact that he could have prevented it if nasir hadn’t threatened to reveal him being branded to the army, so seeing him being so confident in himself is great, and i’ll touch on why here.

one of the reasons i like to say the game treats ike and soren’s a-support as canon is actually this particular conversation. soren, having just been reassured that ike will always want him at his side regardless of who or what he is, now suddenly has had his biggest fear and insecurity taken off his back. he doesn’t need to hate himself for being branded because ike, the only person who’s ever truly mattered to soren, doesn’t care at all.

back to the conversation, soren’s judgment over the situation at hand is no longer clouded by his own self-loathing. instead of comparing them as branded and seeing himself as just as horrid and disgusting as petrine (tiger branded, fun fact), he’s able to instead compare them as individuals and realize that what he’s done up to that point will never measure up to the atrocities she’s committed. i think the best part personally is just how disgusted soren looks by the notion he and petrine are the same, because he’s right— him being cutthroat and pragmatic is nothing compared to everything petrine has done in daein’s name— and the fact he can clearly see this means that, for the very first time, he’s finally starting to heal from the mental wounds inflicted upon him by his childhood.

overall, i like this little nod to soren starting to learn to grow and change from who he was at the beginning of fe9. it’s more clearly seen in radiant dawn, where he’s calmer to the point ranulf even comments on it, but these little inklings implying the start of soren’s healing are really cool to see.

[kaleidoscopeminds]

♡ ⋆｡˚ ❀

[ovenproofowl]

wouldn't be a Moffat Episode™️without reducing every character to a one-dimensional furniture piece to revolve around a version of the doctor that hasn't existed since 2017 🍾

[tepli-mravenci]

do you ever have a problem you want to vent about on tumblr so you start writing the post but you end up ranting so much that by the time you finish the post you've had an epiphany and basically solved whatever problem you had and now you're like well I don't have to post this anymore cause the problem is gone so you just delete the post and the world will never know

[louisinart]

PSA for folks who just got a cat/dog or are considering getting a cat/dog from former vet receptionist:

As early as you can, sit down and ask yourself the question: am i willing to let this critter get very ill and/or die without medical intervention? Am i willing to watch them decline (or choose euthanasia) and not take any steps to prolong their life? I know it sounds harsh, but I've met people who both love their pets and don't see the point in putting a dog through chemotherapy. Personally, I don't see the point in casting judgement on those people -- including if you discover that you're one of them. If this is you (and you're really, really sure about it), you're all set.

If instead you end up deciding that the life and wellness of your pet is worth fighting for, sign up for pet insurance. Do it right now. Do not pass go, do not collect $200, and (if you can) avoid the vet until you have. Many pet insurance companies refuse to insure animals with a preexisting condition, which means anything that the vet finds could damage your ability to get covered. Even if they were examined at the shelter, there's a chance the shelter vet missed something that your neighborhood vet won't. Don't take that risk! It's better to have insurance when you don't need it than not be able to get it when you do.

And I can hear you asking: what's so important about having pet insurance anyway? And the answer is something every pet owner will eventualy learn: Vet bills are medical bills. At the vet i worked at, check-in appointments were $75, meds could run you anywhere from $30-100 a bottle, and most non-routine surgeries (which are the majority of surgeries) cost thousands. I once watched a family rack up $16,000 to bring their dog back from liver failure. In my personal life I've met people who are saddled with thousands in medical debt for a pet that didn't end up making it. Vet bills are medical bills and, like medical bills, they can ruin your life if you're not ready for them.

At the end of the day, when you adopt a pet you are also committing to care for them when they're old and sick. It's not a question of whether you'll need to get medical care for your pet but when, and its Very Easy to only realize you need pet insurance when it's already too late.

Short of hoping they go missing when they're still young, in my experience you have three options: get pet insurance, commit to not treating medical issues, or take on thousands of dollars worth of costs. How you navigate that choice is up to you, but I would strongly advise avoiding option 3.

[noys-boise]

i think the most annoying part of amatonormativity is that not only do you NEED to feel love, and not only is there an order your relationships must follow (romantic/sexual partnership above all, then family, then friends) but the fact that other people HAVE to be your top priority. like even if you feel all kinds of attraction, if you dare put anything else above your relationships they consider you evil. god forbid you enjoy your hobbies more than being around your friends even though how much you care about something is completely outside of your control. it's the worst.

[rainingincale]

[fawcetttweets]

Sorry if this sounds rude, I don't mean it that way, but now that you found the dsmp fic you were searching for could you perhaps take it of the Fawcett tweets blog?

I'm glad you found the fic and if you need to use the boog this way again please do, it's just that dsmp gives bad vibes to some and this is such a good vibe blog that it's sad?

I don't know how to explain it properly, I have anxiety, sorry :(

Ah, I was a bit worried this would happen.

Warning for bad vibes in this post. I’m not very happy in this one.

This ask was pretty upsetting to get for many reasons, but I won’t get too into it because I don’t want to be rude and I’m afraid I may not be able to say what I want to without it coming across that way.

Though I try to stay positive, this is my blog and I don’t owe you ‘good vibes’. If you aren’t happy with seeing posts about certain topics, there is a way to block those tags. Please do that.

I understand that this wasn’t meant to be rude, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t hurt.

[oleanderspride]

“You need to be respectful towards people who aren’t comfortable sharing their F/Os, they have boundaries that need to be respected just as much as anyone else’s” and “While it’s completely fine to keep your distance from people who share your F/Os, you shouldn’t be putting them down just because they’re fine with sharing and you aren’t” are sentiments than CAN, and moreover SHOULD coexist

[lale-txt]

it's been over a week but i legit haven't stopped thinking about this

[rhysintherain]

@blackjackkent's liveblog of BG3 has inspired So Many Thoughts about the Emperor and Raphael and how they compare as characters.

It's come up that the Emperor's character writing could be intended to portray very different motivations based on how the player character responds to it, but personally I don't think that's it. At its core, I think the Emperor is being honest about its motivations: it only wants to survive. What it's not saying is that it will do anything to achieve that end, at the cost of anyone in its way. And the best tool it has to do that is the protagonist.

Its conversations with the protagonist always remind me of abusive relationship dynamics. it plays nice as long as that works, and changes tactics when nice doesn't get what it wants. It constantly reminds you that you need each other, that you couldn't survive without it, that it is the only one you can trust. It offers moments of vulnerability to lure you in, then tries to cut you off from any allies or courses of action it doesn't approve of.

The thing about abusive relationships is that they only turn violent and confrontational when the abuser doesn't get their way. Violence is a last resort, and most abusers prefer to manipulate people without it. Some people go years without discovering their abuser has the capacity for violence, because they never confront them on the control they exert.

And that's exactly how the Emperor relates to the protagonist. If you never question it, never choose a path it doesn't like, you never get pushback. As long as you play by its rules it has no reason to change tactics, because what it's doing is working.

It's only when the protagonist's aims clearly don't match its own that it resorts to threats. It's only when you call the Emperor's bluff, tell it you know it doesn't care about you, that it shows you the truth about its relationship with Stelmane.

Because the truth is, it only cares about its own survival and freedom. And it's very skilled at the game it's playing. It has a profound ability to judge what the protagonist needs to hear, and show them what they want to see. If you want to see a friend who transcends what a mind flayer is supposed to be, it plays that part flawlessly. If you see through that, it has other methods of control at its disposal.

And the Emperor is brilliantly written as a manipulator. It can convince you that it's been on your side all along. It leaves just enough doubt that you might never know the truth. It preys on trust, and exploits the protagonist's willingness to believe in the inherent goodness of people. It expresses trust and vulnerability to the protagonist, anticipating that they will return that trust in response, regardless of whether it can be trusted.

And the cool thing about Raphael is that he's a very similar type of character. He also knows that being nice gets you further than being dangerous. The difference between them is that Raphael isn't quite as good at it: he has a temper, and is quicker to drop the mask. He has an ego that won't let him tolerate even the slightest resistance without breaking character. He believes in bribery over trust, and it makes his act easier to see through. The protagonist can express the same doubt in both of them and get threats from Raphael and disappointment from the Emperor, which pushes them away from one and towards the other.

And one of the striking things about BG3 is the sheer range of dangerous people it throws at your party. You have the tyrant queen, who took power through betrayal and maintains it through disinformation. The power-hungry boss, who offers what you want only until his rise to power is threatened. The abusive parent, who sees his children as possessions who exist to entertain him. The political climber, who treats his loyalists as pawns in a long game of personal gain. The sadistic elite, who's never had to hide her cruelty to those she controls because that's what authority means in her social circle. The loving father, who cares so little for the rest of the world he'd burn it all down to keep his daughter safe.

It's all excellent writing, but the Emperor might be the masterpiece. You can play out the whole story without clearly seeing how it fits the pattern. It can be your loyal partner, standing at your side and protecting you from all those dangerous people.

But it doesn't have to be. If you question its protection and loyalty, it can also be your worst enemy, determined to use all your shared struggles and deepest secrets to tear you apart.

[otiksimr]

Really crazy seeing a bunch of hate for nonbinary people, like god damn you're okay with trans people but not nonbinary people? Woah geez buster sorry I didn't realize it was wrong of me to want to feel comfortable in my own skin.

Sorry buddy I didn't realize I had to cater my existence to what you feel comfortable with, really wont make that mistake again. Like god damn do you just hate people? Do you- do you hate it when people feel comfortable around you?

Like there are some people really acting like they/them can't be used in a singular context, goodness gracious.

[shadowshrike]

I promised myself I wouldn't get mired in the weird moral chaos that is bg3's fandom, but I have a legitimate question: for a lot of fans, is this the first time playing with Choose Your Own Adventure stories?

The writing seems to be classic CYOA in the epilogues, at least with the evil post-game companions I've experienced. If you roleplay someone happy with your choices, the game generally reflects that those choices were satisfying in the exact way you'd expect. If you roleplay someone who regrets your choices or has doubts, it usually reflects that you should regret those choices. Either way, the "reader" is given a predictable response in order to fulfill their desired narrative.

Don't believe me? Go through the epilogue and try to play a character who both likes and hates every companion or where they ended up. Some changes are subtle while others are more dramatic. A few quick examples, all from a single save: Playing a character who hates Halsin, though you romanced him, your conversation is short, civil only because Halsin is too mature to rise to your insults, and stilted. He's a distant companion that you've pushed away successfully.

Playing a character who loves Halsin and romanced him, the conversation between you is extraordinarily long and sweet, and you are written as dear to each other. It includes, potentially: sharing stories and teasing him about his more salacious ones, talking about his love of children (and them loving the bear), learning how he's settled into his new life, hearing about him finally finding happiness, being welcomed into his community, welcoming him to share in drinks, and even joyfully adopting an owlbear. This image is just the very beginning of it.

Playing a character who disapproves of Shar but encourages Shadowheart to follow Shar anyway, you get a zealot's lecture about how you're being naive, thinking that Shar's exploiting people, likely confirming your feeling that she's a lost-cause cultist now. The happiness in the conversation is one-sided (from Shadowheart).

Playing a character who is fine with Shar and encourages Shadowheart to follow Shar, you get a short, sincere thank you, and she immediately starts trying to bond with you. The tone of the conversation remains upbeat as she expresses how pleased she is with the church despite its difficulties and how she'd do everything again in a heartbeat.

Playing a character who doesn't like being an immortal consort, but ascended Astarion and agreed to it anyway, gives you an Anne Rice-like fight between bitter eternal lovers. You also get some petulant dragging of your friends.

Playing a character who loves being an immortal consort and ascended Astarion gets you the dark fantasy of all-powerful monsters in love, gleefully ruling and exploiting the world (along with your friends and probably each other) together.

These are all valid endings to the exact same story with very different implications for the future. It's easy to muddy the potential narratives if you try to hold all the unique, mutually exclusive dialog options together.

Remember, at the end of the day, this is written as a linear experience. Everyone's epilogue choices are self-contained in their own story, even if it's possible to reload and choose a different final page. Have fun fishing for unhappy endings if the drama gives the flavor you enjoy, or seek out happy endings if you want to feel fulfilled by your choices. Just know that not everyone will experience or want to experience the same ending for an otherwise identical set of choices in game. That's the cool part of getting to choose your own adventure.

[silentsockfeet]

i really think that like 98% of my problem with the final lines of arcane would be solved if they'd just. switched who said each line. because at the very least it would be a much more solid way to really round out vi and caitlyn's arcs

vi's arc s2 was "who would she be if she had no one left to fight for" and to me i feel like the natural conclusion to that is you find something new to fight for (and yes i know the real answer presumably is "she would fall in love" but the issues i have with that are a different rant aside). if vi was the one who says "are you still in this fight" it's proof that vi has found something worth fighting for again, and more importantly, i feel like it would make the whole "is jinx alive" thing SO much more grounded as a theory. the implication being that vi knows jinx is alive and wants to go find her, and she's asking caitlyn if this is something she'd be willing to help her do, given the history

and caitlyn being the one to respond "i'm the dirt under your nails" is so much more subversive imo. caitlyn is the prestine perfect topsider, caitlyn is the one who really has to put in the work building something better after everything she tore down in the previous acts, so it feels more acute to have her being the one sticking to vi. and now vi is asking if she's willing to help her fight for jinx too. and it would be understandable if cait said no, but her agreeing that she'll be by her side would really hammer home the point that she really has moved on, and that she is choosing vi and her happiness over any bad feelings she might still harbor over jinx.

it's just. frustrating to me how weirdly dissonant the lines are as they stand with the rest of the messages the show is trying to say, and i feel like there's so much more that swapping lines would help with - the weird power imbalance, the implication of vi being dirt under cait's nails, the general loss of vi's personality s2. etc etc

[miraluking-respectfully]

felix being referred to more or less exclusively as "your soldier" in-game speaks to how little the writers put into his character beyond his noggin full of sith secrets & his relationship with the consular; still, i do find it kind of sweet and funny, in a way. he's not a republic soldier, not even your personal bodyguard; he's your soldier. the consular is a small nation-state in and of herself