#like what aspect of his characterization leading up to that moment makes it take you by surprise or think it's ooc

[the-unconquered-queen]

Because I'm seeing cakegate on my dash again, let's stir up some old drama

[melanodis]

🐰👨‍👩‍👧‍👧 :]

🐰👨‍👩‍👧‍👧 (the Afton Family; what were they like?)

They were as close as you could get to the nuclear family stereotype. William arrived from overseas to attend college in the States, where he would become well acquainted with Henry and Adelaide. He had a rather dreary home life on the English countryside, living in practically a ghost town by all accounts; so getting to leave to a more lively place was a rather welcome change in pace. He had an interest in creating music, though had no prior knowledge of music theory or what have you, instead preferring to play things by ear and self teaching. While he prefers the guitar, he has some skill in playing piano. This would lead him to connect with Henry, who wanted to scrabble together a small band comprised of himself and Adelaide, the two who were practically conjoined at the hip. He has a habit of taking facets of others and absorbing them into himself, leading to his interest in the mechanical. He found himself in some sort of strange relationship between them both. He did love them both, equally. But ultimately ended up choosing to marry Adelaide after they found themselves with their first: Michael. William was truly a loving father at some point in his life, but after the first springlock incident and Evan's death, things started to simply go downhill. Fast.

Adelaide herself was an only child that was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. Not that she abuses this power by any means, but others would in her early life under the guise of “friendship.” A relatively good relationship with her parents, though there were a few disagreements about her choice in career. They wanted her to be a doctor, but Adelaide found much more joy in the performing arts, most particularly dance. I don��t really have them characterized as I don’t like to delve too deep into stuff like that. Hauty, disdainful of the people she chooses to surround herself with, (“a hick and a brit? you’re better than that.”) and completely disagree with her choice in… husband. But… whatever makes her happy, they surmise. She certainly played favorites with Evan with him being the youngest, but none did she love unequally. She kind of favored them all for particular reasons. Elizabeth was the only one with her rusty ginger hair, but Michael was their first, and also had her curly locks even if he was still a brunette like his father. I won’t lie, she became standoffish with Michael after the whole Bite of 83, but came around eventually. Holding them even closer after Charlotte died. Elizabeth enjoyed doing makeup and hair, Michael actually took an interest in her ballet teaching, and Evan really wanted to help with cooking, more particularly playing around with ingredients and dough.

It was when Elizabeth, too, died to another one of William’s damned death machines that she held onto Michael like a lifeline, her eldest and only remaining child. Michael... well, Michael was an attention seeking child from the very beginning. While Adelaide typically stayed at home to care for him while William worked, all he wanted was to have his father's attention, too. He wasn't necessarily a trouble maker by any means, but once he had two more siblings he felt as if he was invisible to them. Oldest sibling syndrome. He loved them, too, he helped care for them, but there's no doubt that in the back of his mind he felt uncared for at points. This would be what led him to take on a more aggressive out look, bullying their youngest out of jealousy. Elizabeth tried as she might to diffuse it, but she could only do so much as their parents were constantly too busy trying to keep things held together to keep a keen eye on them all. "I was kind of an asshole as a kid."

Elizabeth, however, wasn't completely innocent herself. She was very clearly William's favorite, and she reveled in this every moment she could. One could consider her a carbon copy of him in every aspect save for appearance. And also a brat. But not necessarily in the traditional way. She knew she was the "golden child", and often used this to her advantage just to one up Michael. She could practically do whatever she wanted with zero consequence, but she didn't really use this for bad things. However, she did enjoy using it in order to help Charlie, usually just urging William to get her gifts and the occasional toy that Henry wouldn't have otherwise. Many of her crayon drawings served to become inspiration for many of William's machines. Even in her death, she continues wanting nothing more than to impress him, finding safety in refusing to understand that their father had long stopped caring for them all. While Evan didn't really get to grow up enough for a more distinctive personality to shine through, he enjoyed more hands on arts and crafts. Think macaroni and glue, play-doh, even making things out of clay that Adelaide would cook to concrete them. Mugs, little trinkets, all things that she continued to hold onto after his death. I imagine he would've loved to get into pottery or even woodworking when he got older.

[aihoshiino]

(I had this crazy moment when thinking about ONK today and wanted to tell someone)

If your speculation on the HKAI "I cannot love you" moment is correct, I wonder if the AQRB confrontation re Ruby's request to be seen (and loved) as Sarina to Aqua's Gorou will lead to a similar respond. Ie "I cannot love you the way you want me to, even in the scenario you just described."

Because at the end of the day, if I'm reading it correctly, Gorou was never serious in his "till you're 16" response to Sarina. They both knew that she wouldn't live past 12. Sarina/Ruby is delusional but only in a way a girl (sick and fated to die at 12 with the only person kind to her being her doctor) who didn't get to mature in her thinking could be. And imo that parallels to Hikaru, who's experience in "romance" was offering himself in exchange for "love". (Airi's defense for herself was that they were in love, which I suspect was something she told Hikaru, too.)

Tldr: Ruby in her right mind would not proposition her brother, just like 15YL Hikaru in his right would not think grooming is a form of romance. And it is the other person's responsibility to say "no, I can not offer you what (you think) you want".

Another response that's ultimately too late oops… I do still have a lot to say on this topic tho so I hope it's still interesting to read!

Message from future Claire after they finished writing this ask: tehepero… this one turned into a huge ramble so um. please forgive me. Also, spoilers for Usagi Drop made their way in here, if someone somehow doesn't know the big twist of that ending in 2024…

RE: Gorou and Sarina, this is for sure the intended read of their relationship to a degree . Spica downplays/sidesteps this aspect of their relationship a lot but even there it's said explicitly that Gorou was one hundred percent aware that Sarina's long term prognosis was basically non existent. It definitely makes him way more indulgent of and receptive to the "omg Sensei marry me stuff" but even then it's pretty clear that it is, again, just indulging her.

The manga by contrast is much more strongly characterized by this sense of shared but unspoken preemptive grief for the inevitable, where both of them understand but don't really want to talk about it out loud. It added an interesting wrinkle to their relationship that I liked a lot and was disappointed to see Spica iron out but ironing out the interesting parts is kind of what Spica does in general and isn't specific to Gorou and Sarina lol

BUT UH my point is that because of this shared sense of grief and awareness of Sarina's mortality I never really got the impression that she was under even the slightest illusion that Gorou was serious which is why later materials' framing of her as being convinced she can and will be in a relationship with him feel so weird to me. The SENSEI KEKKON SHITE thing doesn't even really feel like Sarina herself is all that serious about it - the energy is almost more like a running bit. Obviously her feelings for him were very strongly and sincerely held and I do think it makes sense for her to jump to actively wanting to be in a romance with him and thinking it was plausible post 123 when her brain has been ensoupened but again, there's that backfill in both Spica and main story material that implies she was ALWAYS that hung up on and deluded about him and tbh I don't really know what to make of it.

In an exclusively post 123 context though, I do really agree with this take on Ruby! This is obviously not a healthy response nor is she thinking at all realistically about what she's propositioning, especially given the kind of weird energy in 143 where she just never even acknowledges Aqua's existence as her brother. Honestly the way OnK has handled AquRuby since 123 and its reluctance to actually acknowledge the incest when it bothers to take Ruby's feelings is very strange to me and I can't quite tell if it's intentional or not yet.

If it IS intentional, then I think it's the set up for Ruby being smacked in the face with the reality of what actually being in a relationship with Gorou-via-Aqua would would actually mean. Because like, regardless of how you or me or anyone feels about incest as a fictional device, in-universe Oshi no Ko is essentially set in our own world - a dramatically exaggerated version with supernatural elements, sure, but still paralleling our own closely enough to comment on real world issues. For OnK to treat most of the other taboos and issues it addresses as seriously as it does and NOT do the same with incest would be incredibly jarring and deeply incongruous.

If you'll forgive a tangent within a tangent, this is a big part of why the infamous ending of Usagi Drop comes off as so fucking unhinged. It's not just that the story twists itself into a pretzel to hook up Rin and Daikichi (though, you know… that), it's that everyone in the cast acts like a fucking space alien on service of making it happen and it occurs with no conflict or consequences. There's this bizarre energy around the cast interactions that's hard to accurately convey, but every time someone in-universe finds out about Rin's feelings for Daikichi, it's immediately treated like them hooking up is not only the obvious and inevitable conclusion but that Daikichi is somehow obligated to enter a romance with Rin purely because she has feelings for him. Daikichi's own feelings on the matter are irrelevant. As far as the story is concerned, him going from seeing Rin as his daughter to seeing Rin (very explicitly and textual) as a romantic and sexual partner is as easy as flipping a switch and it's purely macho stubbornness that keeps him from doing so. It's absolutely mind boggling to read.

Anyway. Oh my God. To cut my EXTREMELY long rambling short and actually loop back around to the point of all this: Because of ^ ALL THAT ^ and the way the story has very conspicuously dodged around the HKAI breakup and suddenly swerved to 15YL's depiction of Ai's time in hospital, I'm still pretty certain that the "I can't love you (like that)" is going to be the main emotional capstone for Ruby's own character arc within the Movie Arc as a whole and possibly the emotional climax/resolution of wtfever OnK is doing with AQRB (& GRSR through them) right now. Given how much weight was given to that scene in particular way back when I'd be shocked if we skipped it and I do think there's some merit to the reads of Aqua and Ruby each paralleling the 'opposite' parent, so to speak - Nik (@akane-kurokawa) even pointed out in their 143 review that while the AquRuby kiss is paralleled by the in-movie HikaAi kiss, Aqua is in Ai's position and Ruby is in Hikaru's.

I do hope that this is something intentional and that we'll see something come of it - if nothing else, seeing Ruby have to deal with her relationship to and feelings about her father and the knowledge that he killed her beloved mom is something I really wanted out of the Movie Arc and I've been sorely disappointed by it being reduced to gag fodder thus far. But like I always say at this point, the Movie Arc is such an unfocused clusterfuck I have no idea if this is something we can rely on to be a long term theme.

[bylerfields]

the ask you answered about not seeing dominant mike is really interesting! i feel like a lot of people fight against a more dom will bc they assume people took “buff byers” and ran with it, ignoring characterization, but this take on it, will being the same will regardless of his looks and it fitting mike who’s just more gentle by nature makes so much sense.

thanks anon!!! waaah i’m glad someone else sees it like that, i feel on an island most of the time

the hc that mike goes back to being his gentle s1-2 self once he has nothing to be so wound up about might be the closest one to my heart, it’s really important to me! people always talk about going back and watching will in the show in defense against buff byers and pointing out how he’s just as soft, which i agree with obviously. he didn’t change in s4 because of his looks.

the way i look at it isn’t that will suddenly rose up to mike’s level and made them both balanced masc dudes in s4 - it’s that they started out on the same level and mike has gone out of his way to rise up past will, and he’ll eventually come back down when he settles into his identity. idk if that makes sense.

kinda sidenote mike character study but this is also why it’s funny to me how his brattiest most bottomy moments are showcased during s3, because it’s also the season where he’s conforming the most. the dichotomy is fun to watch, and while i don’t think this dynamic stays put when he grows up, it says a lot about mike i think. the whole “will isn’t a good partner for mike then if you think he’s characterized like that” claim is interesting to me bc its

1) so limiting and (dare i say) so sex focused, like you think they wouldn’t be able to figure it out at all if they wanted different things in bed? 10+ years of close friendship? will’s head over heels for mike. not the idea he has of him (even the painting even the knight stuff etc etc etc - i think he’s right about mike and the show is obv telling us this. my point is that, it’s a s5 plot point. it’s not informing every aspect of their dynamic like most assume). and again, i simply have trouble believing will’s desires would be so concrete when this is mike, it’s not a fantasy it’s his best friend who’s also gay and comes with his own baggage. which leads me to point two

2) it’s ignorant of any potential depth mike has. there’s the argument that will’s needs and traits are ignored when people write a more subby mike. i think more often than not, mike’s areas of depth, esp areas where he wouldn’t be as compatible to will, are cherry picked out. and i don’t think this is too far fetched to think because of how many have said they see him as just a love interest for their favorite character. there are for sure aspects of mike wiiiiidely accepted that are fanon and people don’t even realize bc it just fits will so perfectly. and tbh! fanon is fun au’s are fun so idc! but let’s call it what it is i guess and not be the canon validity police for other things.

i’m also incredibly bored of the idea that “leader” is a masculine role.

tldr; will’s more dominant side doesn’t require him to become more aggressive than he is to power over mike, bc a mike who’s accepted himself, settled, regulated, and with will doesn’t need his power taken away. he’s just chilling 💞

thanks for the ask sooo sorry for the essay answer <3

[digitalagepulao]

Ok I am snooping on your AU but I would like to ask- how is everyone’s dynamic with each other ? Is it essentially the same as in JTTW or do you have different relationship dynamics between all of them? Or do you have special little quirks they have or do, interesting headcannons, little fears or even gripes that the pilgrims may have ?

BDJHBWAJDBAWHDA HIIII TvT

mmmmm there are a lot of similarities to JTTW but with some nuances since i do focus on the interpersonal aspect more than the allegorical on my au!

For instance, Longma is still a stand-in for the human will, but he's more active in the story. He's often the one pushing the others to keep going, encouraging them to come up with plans or not give in on a fight, he keeps them from wasting time but doesn't step in unless he has to. The fact that he's not always in his horse form also goes a long way xD

The fact that in my AU he's also the head disciple makes for an interesting dynamic shift. The others often turn to him for advice or well, to Do Stuff, but he's still a prince and very good at delegating jobs xD He's also the last line of defense for Tripitaka, so when he's not outracing demons, he's the one putting up a fight to keep any kidnappers away. Stallions can be quite terrifyingly protective when they need to be, after all!

Wujing is the second disciple and it shows. He often uses his impressive size for shelter from the weather when none other is available. Due to his higher status after Bajie and Wukong get recruited, he wasn't the luggage carrier for a long time, the task falling on Wukong overall. However as the relics begin to pile up and the dangers get worse, he kind of takes up the mantle out of practicality. He has a severe fear of bladed weapons due to his punishment, and though he has no visible scars from it, the mental toll is very heavy on him. Despite all that, he takes his role seriously and is quite reasonable on his requests from Wuneng and Wukong, so their antics get toned down thanks to him and Ao Lie.

As for the other two welllllll, they are still very close and very prone to squabbling. Think youngest and younger sibling dynamic, one moment they are at each other's throat, the next they are trading quips, the next they are fighting over the last slice of food, and the next they are swearing undying loyalty to each other. Often they are left to their antics unless it affects the rest of the group which, happens more often than not.

Wukong is very close to his characterization in the book, equal parts rowdy grandpa and puffed up teenager, wearing his heart on his sleeve and always surprising the others with his moments of wisdom and clarity. Same thing for Bajie, he's very much a hardworking being and has an exasperated fondness for Wukong under the bluster and whinging.

Wukong is much more tactile in my au, which took the others some time to adjust to, as well as his (seemingly) random acts of incredible violence and ruthlessness. Before he's a demon or a man or an allegory for the mind, he's a monkey. They bite and screech when angry, they steal and hoard food for themselves, he lived 500 years as a wild animal and it colors his morals and thinking a lot. Most of what the others can deem as his evil nature is just brutal nature practicality, and as the others are either human or have memories of their past as nobility or celestial beings... it leads to quite a bit of conflict.

Aaaand then there's Tripitaka trying to keep his gaggle of apprentices in line xvx

My Tripitaka is closer to the historical Xuanzang than the fictional one, he's the son of a nobleman who chose to live as a monk and took the journey illegally. His call to adventure came through his own frustration and sadness over the lacking scriptures available, and he requested the emperor to go many times, always denied. One day the emperor gifted the abbey a cassock and staff from the West, in a not-so-subtle hint for him to just stop asking and move on. To everyone, they seemed like your average items, but he could see their sacred nature. Guan Yin then came to him in a dream, saying that whoever left for the scriptures should take "whatever they needed" and go. Tripitaka argued that the emperor forbade anyone to make the trip, but Guan Yin just repeated herself and left it at that.

So he did the reasonable thing, plotted with his older brother who lived in the abbey with him, gathered resources and bailed to the west, stealing the cassock and staff on his way out. He thought he was failing a test when Guan Yin appeared, but she reassured him he'd need the relics' protections on the journey ahead. Still throughout the journey, Tripitaka lies and cheats and steals, whatever he needs to continue the journey, and those sins weigh heavy on him. Especially with the sort of disciples he was given. He desperately tries to be a role model for them, but those moments of weakness feel three times worse than they should.

His relationship with Wukong is very hot and cold, seeing an almost paternal figure on the monkey at times but also knowing that the demon could kill him anytime he dropped his guard - and in fact even tried to once! Wukong has a lot of issues to work through and sadly a lifetime of violence makes for a very jumpy and tense monkey, which is a bad mix for the squishy human of the group. He tries his best to comfort the monkey despite the very obvious discomfort he brings him, and Wukong does the same for him... in his own way.

They get along the best when Wukong shares stories from his past or teaches him new things he never learned before, particularly when they get together to work on translations. Ao Lie is also a savvy person, and is often the one helping Tripitaka earn favor with the local kings and nobles to get their "papers" stamped and approved, or yknow, very plainly forged.

Wukong also gets saddled with matters of food more often than not, and he always surprises the group with how delicious the food he can come up with just by foraging ingredients. He's a very good and dedicated cook! It's also fun that Bajie had to go vegetarian on northern Tibet in my AU, cus the communities there are mostly pastoral so most foods are meat-based. He wasn't joking when he said he was rather starved by the time he got recruited, but Wukong luckily gets him back on track.

Wujing is, rather reclusive unless he has to interact with the others. Him and Tripitaka have a lot of baggage to work through, what with the whole eating-his-sifu's-past-incarnations situation. Coupled with his own sword trauma, Wujing and Wukong are on the same level of "unnerving threats" for Tripitaka's subconscious. It's very slow and wobbly progress between these three, and it's thanks to Bajie's jokes and Ao Lie's drive that they keep pushing on.

On the bits where my Expedition and Sun Clan AUs intersect, Tripitaka, Ao Lie and Wukong have a lot of filial guilt to process as well. Wukong may flaunt how they are the ones who left the family and how they must act for it, but the Havoc in Heaven and the siege on Huaguoshan clearly weigh on him and it very much shows when he thinks the others don't notice. Meanwhile Tripitaka feels guilt for involving his own brother in his planning for the journey, knowing that if he's found he'll suffer for it, and likely his father and mother too. And Ao Lie well, he's effectively in exile until the journey is either complete or well, he serves his death sentence. The occasional times when the group's path crosses with his father or his uncles is also a... tense bit for him. Needless to say, pearls make him very twitchy xvx

Oh dear this got.... very long i'm so sorry TvT anyway this is, what comes off the top of my head tbh!

[corner-stories]

jk 3

Types Of Kisses Prompts

3. Hesitant Kiss - The type of kiss where their lips brush against each other’s a few times, breath fanning across each other’s faces as one waits for the other to make a move.   trying my hand at the celebrity!AU

She won't say that she hates premieres, as any gathering to appreciate art has its purpose — but things like the flashing lights, the constant presence of cameras, and the neverending stream of reporters takes a toll on her.

The mask she wears feels heavy, a cloak characterized by designer clothes that don't belong to her, a plastered smile, and various emails from her publicist. Apparently, she needs to work on her interview etiquette — her whole gist of timidly mumbling her replies doesn't seem to be mitigating her reputation as a shy, awkward actress when out of character. Being more outgoing could benefit her career in more ways than one.

Jean has his arm hooked securely around hers as a reporter in an evening gown asks a barrage of questions, a cameraman stands nearby to eagerly record the answers. Mikasa tries not to look too uneasy when the lens is on her, much preferring the attention to be on Jean despite her face being on the various festival posters.

She can't help but envy the confidence he has when in front of the camera, despite making his career behind it. The irony of it all is not lost on her. With the natural charisma that imbues every word that he speaks, one does wonder why he made the jump from acting to directing in the first place. Him looking rather dashing in a suit that also doesn't belong to him simply adds to the fact.

After Jean jokes about the sleep he lost when directing the feature, the reporter turns her attention to Mikasa. The question thrown at her pertains to what her favourite part about being directed by her boyfriend is, and to that she has to catch herself from saying "He doesn't yell at anyone on set."

"He's nice to me," ends up being her actual response. The boring, publicist-approved answer seems to win over the honest one.

The interviewer lets out a stilted, forced laugh while Jean manages a chuckle, but at least Mikasa can recognize the sound as what he does when he senses tension on her end. She shifts a bit so her hand finds his and like clockwork he interlaces his fingers with hers.

When the interview ends Jean leads Mikasa away from the army of cameras and she lets him. It's hard to find a moment alone on a red carpet, but he takes her a point far enough removed from the reporters that he's able to talk to her. The world around them is loud and filled with flashing lights, yet he manages to find a moment to stand in front of her, face-to-face.

He looks her in the eye and asks — "You alright?"

His forehead touches hers and for a moment Mikasa feels like he's going to kiss her. She can feel his breath on her face and even closes eyes for a second, anticipating a familiar sensation, but he doesn't and she understands. Not with the cameras around, as both their publicists would prefer.

Jean's persona as a cocky, hotshot indie director tends to overshadow other sides of him, particularly the one that often checks on his partner to see if she's alright.

Mikasa gives him an honest smile. "I'm fine." Maybe it's not the entire truth, but nervous as she is she'll survive the night.

Jean nods his head. "Okay, just tell me if you're not."

He kisses her for real this time, but it's simply a quick peck on her lips, something that has undoubtedly been captured by one of the photographers in the sea of people. In their strange world of personas, publicists, and media training, it's nice to know that some aspects of their existence are truly genuine.

[lullaebies]

How do you wished helaegon would be written in the show? Their characterization and their relationship as well?

Oh, this question... I have a lot to unpack here, haha. Get ready for an essay, this is going to need a readmore. This may come off a bit as a surprise, but I wouldn't necessarily want them to be a very romantic pair. In my own writing, my favorite aspect of them is that they are kind of groomed into their circumstances and left to deal with the consequences and the exploration of it, which applies here too. My main thing would be to establish them as a contrast to Rhaenyra and Daemon, while also being empathetic about it. We are speaking here about two children, brother and sister, forced into a marriage by either House Targaryen customs +/ political ploys to establish legitimacy (depending on if you speak of the books or show).

While Rhaenyra and Daemon tap into the Targaryen incest, hammer it in with the extra grooming aspect of it, I think I'd like Helaena and Aegon to be established as a couple who are aware that their circumstances led them to the forced marriage. They would struggle as children, but they enter the marriage knowing this is not what they chose, and they bond more as parents or life partners rather than romantic partners.

They should be friends and have a good enough relationship before the marriage where they can still trust each other, but it should be difficult for them with the extra layer of being husband and wife to represent how the sibling marriage tradition is not good and should not be glamorized. Aegon would struggle a lot because he feels like the only firstborn son in the realm that can't give his family anything. Most brother-sister marriages in the Targaryen line so far were either out of love or preparation to be ruling monarchs - and he can't give Helaena a crown or be the love of her life. He can't give their children lands, and their prospects will never be as good as princes of Rhaenyra's line because again, they are not the main line. which is why he finds himself more away. For Helaena, she also tries to cope and relish in the good moments they have as partners, but she struggles because the way things ended up, the children do grow up in a tough situation and she doesn't feel like she's good enough a mother no matter what she does. Sometimes she doesn't feel good enough a daughter in comparison to Rhaenyra, even. And then Viserys dies, and suddenly Otto and Alicent are propping them as King and Queen. And they're both terrified, because it's everything all at once and they are scared of their TB relatives due to... Daemon being Daemon, and well, the Driftmark incident. Criston tells them their brothers and children will be put to the sword, it's terrifying. And then they suddenly have hopes, however. They can make their choices, now. That nobody will ever look down on them again, that their children would be free to marry who they want unlike them (the Queen's leave would be required for royal marriages, and it's not likely Daemon would allow their children have good marriages to houses that may lead to a rise up against the crown imo), that they can make a happy life for themselves - it's within reach. Nobody will speak about their children, or brothers, or mother again. [ I imagine Aegon would convince Helaena in it - she would be more of a pacifist]. And they take up the King and Queen titles, in an attempt to make good lives for themselves and their children, in complete fear of what has been told them was going to happen if they don't.

It all shatters in B&C - as any hubris to take up the crown is met unkindly in ASOIAF stories, and their pain and grief and wroth eats them alive. Aegon's resentment and hate towards Rhaenyra festers as he thinks back how everything was taken away from him and how if he could do anything to turn the wheel he would've, and the story continues as it does. TL;DR: I want them to be a commentary about the Targaryen sibling marriage system. I want there to be sibling love muddled with their relationship as husband and wife, which they learned to vaguely embrace but not fully - and I want them to find their independence to say I don't want the same for my children, but in this lifetime this is what we have - each other. When it's all ruined by B&C, it's their greatest pain - they wanted the exact opposite and were left with nothing once more. ⁕ EDIT NOTE: I do also want to say Aegon can certainly be a nasty piece of shit in this case anyway. Helaena does not like it and speaks against it, but in this case, cheating that isn't expressed via sexual harassment is not relevant to how they feel about each other because they have an established relationship about it.

[tealmoth]

also "darkfic au that got out of control" is such a funny description to me 😭 im curious as to why you think so personally i thought it was pretty balanced in heavy and lighthearted moments and considering the themes like the effects of imperialism i dont see why it wouldnt be handled as such. havent watched in a while tho idk

oooohh okay so this’ll be a fun thing to answer because i’ve been desperate to ramble about ‘03 plot points to anyone who will listen all week. so for me, honestly, the darkfic vibes come more from how deeply it dredges into the dark aspects, if that makes any sense?? most of what’s “dark” in ‘03 already exists and is explored in brotherhood, like the imperialism aspects as you mentioned, as well as grief and trauma and everything else that comes prepackaged with fma’s core story. but brotherhood handled these in a very shonen way (which is to be expected, of course). the darkness pushes the characters forward, makes them fight on. even when they’re at the brink, they’re called back by a loved one, or by their own convictions, and it retains an overall positive feel.

meanwhile in ‘03, i get the specific vibe that the writers looked at the story they already had, and asked themselves “how can this be worse??”

(inserting a read more because i’m about to go on a MASSIVE tangent, sorry.)

and so, here are some of the specific darker aspects that stood out the most to me:

the build-up to nina is given far more screentime and its place in the timeline is totally different. not only are the elrics so much younger here, but they’re also essentially a part of the tucker family for the better part of several months iirc. they also witness the direct aftermath of her death at the hands of scar (which is also implied to be FAR more gruesome here), whereas in brotherhood they find out from riza the morning after it happens.

there’s the whole barry ordeal which afaik doesn’t serve much purpose other than it, well, being kinda neat to see pre-armor barry. and i could totally be misremembering here and/or missing something important but the whole episode just stands out to me as “hey, i don’t think that ed’s had enough trauma yet. let’s sprinkle in some attempted murder.”

everything with the laboratory, holy shit. tucker’s reappearance, the attempts at recreating nina, the prisoners, everything with kimblee, the way ed almost activates the array, ALL OF IT is insane in this version.

al’s doubts about his memories and his origins is a longer arc and leads to more conflict with ed in this version.

mustang and winry’s parents. mustang’s suicide attempt. everything with mustang that’s not comic relief (which there’s still plenty of).

as stated in the tags of my first ‘03 post, the utilization of rose’s character is a really intense departure (while interesting!!) that completely took me aback.

the entirely different lore surrounding the homunculi is both incredibly fascinating and a lot to take in, and it leads to them being far more mentally vulnerable and tormented characters than they are in brotherhood. the contrast alone between the development greed gets in brotherhood (using him as an example since he effectively has the most character growth out of the homunculi there) and the development that lust, wrath, and sloth get in ‘03 stands out the most to me.

sloth in general. it’s a wildly fascinating take and, in addition to REALLY hammering in the themes surrounding their mother’s transmutation, also stands to provide even more trauma for the elrics.

and on that subject, the adults are far less present for the boys in this version. that’s not to say that they’re like “parents” or anything in brotherhood, but they’re a lot more openly concerned for them in a personal, affectionate way in that show. whereas here, especially in the early segments, i’m pretty sure that ed could have died in a ditch somewhere and they wouldn’t have noticed for at least a week.

scar’s characterization is more vulnerable here and both his death and the events leading up to it are insane.

and that’s not even getting into everything with dante, which deserves its own post.

with all that said, i’m also not even done with this show yet. i still have four eps left!!

but, all rambling aside, that’s what specifically gave me the darkfic sort of vibe. not to demean the show or reduce it to fanfic terms, or anything; it’s still very interesting and competent writing. but it just gives me so much whiplash when compared to brotherhood’s overarching feelings of hope and the ability to fight back and change the future for the better. it feels soul-nourishing to me, in a way. meanwhile, ‘03 is like a cavalcade of trauma, all provoked by the question “you know what’d be really fucked up??”

[orpheusilver]

care to elaborate on the miles venom arc?

YES okay so. the thing abt the symbiote is that (like any good corruption arc) it feeds on and amplifies the worst traits of a character, which is pretty straightforward in peters case - his biggest issue is his anger, usually manifesting via retribution (eg. "i missed the part where thats my problem", hunting down uncle bens killer), so his origin story is always the great power/great responsibility thing so he learns to temper that rage. what the symbiote does, practically, is force him to unlearn that foundational character arc and regress to his worst self

since the symbiote really really loves aggression peter parker is literally its dream guy but miles is a little more complex. hes definitely susceptible to that same anger (eg. wanting to "make kingpin pay", the entire sm2 martin li arc) but not as often and nowhere near as hardcore, so the peter playbook wont work as well for him (and also it would be fucking boring. weve seen that shit like 8 times already (not saying symbiote peter is boring i just think modern iterations need to explore new aspects to avoid treading the same ground constantly (sm2 does this very fucking well (also yuri lowenthal is a great va for peter like right up there with josh keaton (i think this many parentheses means im off topic (the adhd demon got me))))))

SO. whats miles' major issue he needs to overcome in his origin story? full disclosure i have not read the comics (but i heard they had some issues with his initial characterization anyway? which is fair enough tbh writing the successor to such an iconic guy is Fucking Hard) so TO ME PERSONALLY!! spider-verse miles is the definitive iteration of the guy and like. we all remember the whats up danger scene, his origin arc is overcoming self-doubt and learning to believe in himself ("its a leap of faith", "youre on your way, just keep going") which, alongside social anxiety (eg. the itsv "everyone knows" scene, sm2 "are you mad at me? it sounds like youre mad at me" dialog), seems to be part of some general anxiety issues. this is pretty well supported by the recent "the spider within" short film (which funnily enough is very fucking reminiscent of some sequences in kravens last hunt, not relevant but kinda cool) which also shows how miles responds by self-isolating, similarly to ps5 miles when peter ignores him

the symbiote can exploit his self-doubt pretty easily, the inherent power boost will do most of the heavy lifting to make him feel like hes not good enough without it - what if he runs out of web at the worst moment? what if hes not strong or fast enough to save someone? what if hes caught mid-costume change because hes so used to the suit changing itself? the more valid the (inital) concerns the better imo

the social anxiety is a tricky one but i think if miles traps himself in a doom loop of self-isolation he might spiral into genuine paranoia, which combined w/ the patented symbiote rage could lead him to lash out at people around him. "everyone secretly hates me so im gonna avoid being around people" -> "i feel alienated from everyone i know so im gonna avoid them even harder" -> "am i 'okay'? why would you care? what are you playing at? fuck off and leave me alone" -> "nobody wants to interact w/ me so everyone who does must have ulterior motives and is therefore a threat to me/my family/my city" -> "im completely isolated but bad things are still happening so people must be conspiring against me w/o my knowledge" -> "literally everyone on earth is out to get me and i need to fight them about it"

from there i think the ideal conclusion is pretty self-evident - miles takes a metaphorical leap of faith (calling back to the lesson learned in his origin arc) by actively choosing to trust someone, reach out and ask for help w/ removing the symbiote and dealing with the contemporary big bad (potentially his local peter variant bc hes got experience w/ symbiote removal and it would tie into the "leap of faith" motif but idk)

so tldr: a miles symbiote arc would be different to peters arcs in some (very interesting) key ways - rather than unbridled aggression he could be characterized by intense anxiety, manifesting as paranoid self-isolation and a sense of dependence on the symbiote suit, and would end the arc by reaching out for help in a symbolic leap of faith

[kanalaure]

1, 7, and 16 for the violence asks?

thank you dear 💖

1. the character everyone gets wrong

caranthir. oh my god it's caranthir. i swear the narrator specifically hates him. the parts about the haladin basically go:

-green elves: told them to fuck off, not chastised for running people out of the area, whole thing is portrayed with a neutral tone

-caranthir: brought his people to the haladin's defenses and offered up land for them if they wanted to go a bit north, and the narration slaps "and seeing, over late, what valor there was in the Edain" on him for it

-doriath: initially told them to fuck off even though the iathrim didn't actually live in brethil, and finrod had to talk his great-uncle around so they could stay. they had to pay rent (read: guard a river crossing) as part of the bargain to live there, and however that agreement was phrased caused her to go 'they killed my father and brother, what, do you think i'd be friends with the orcs? elves are weird if you think that's possible.' (honestly that response makes me laugh, but wow.)

i don't take anything the narrative says about him at face value, particularly the bit about him and dwarves, specifically because of this. because if the narration is going to put the sort of spin on a situation that makes the only one who actively helped them look bad, then how can i trust that the rest isn't just wildly overblown rumor and bad faith takes? he definitely got into an argument with his cousin, but in that same meeting maedhros called thingol an ineffectual loser and somehow came out looking good. so. -shrugs-

to bring this back to the actual question: that ^ is what canon says, and a lot of people seem to take it at face value that caranthir is the evil, mean, bad-tempered one of the bunch. even though he is also mentioned as an influential trading partner (you need diplomacy in order for trade to work). even though HE didn't forment any coups, or try to keep anyone prisoner, or directly lead to any of his cousins dying horribly. even though he largely minded his own business, he gets written as the mean one

i'm not bitter

7. what character did you begin to hate not because of canon but because how how the fandom acts about them?

okay, i gotta preface this by saying i dont hate him, i'm just. tired of his face

maedhros. he's fine??? i just don't think he's all that much more interesting than the rest of his family, and i feel like everything that could be said about him kind of already has been?

also since i know fandom at large is never going to stop talking about him, ever, i wish folks would back off of the (imo baseless) third-parent thing and spend more attention on his cheeky-bastard aspect. telling the king of the continent he sucks at his job is one of the most interesting things he did, even if it wasn't particularly advisable, diplomatically-speaking

16. you can't understand why so many people like this thing (characterization, trope, headcanon, etc)

i do not understand diva!maglor characterization at all. the self-obsession part of it in particular. this boy's entire thing is that he is so stupidly loyal he followed his family into exile, an inadvisable oath, and kinslayings, plural, because he loves his family. he was so against going after the silmarils in eonwe's camp that there is a recorded argument about it with actual direct quotation, but he went in the end. because his brother asked him to

this goes against the prompt a lil because i've only seen it a few times and i don't know that it's all that popular, but each of those instances stands out in my mind because, again, it makes absolutely no sense to me. any sort of characterization where he thinks of himself first over his family or his people goes directly against his actions. he's specifically the one mentioned as having a personality closest to his mother, lady "desired to understand minds rather than master them." he has the most moments focusing on his emotional state of anyone in this book (i don't know where the post went, but someone did actually check this) and it's usually about being grieved and tired and wanting to go home. notably, the word "cherish" is the one used to refer to how he treated elrond and elros

i literally have no idea how you get "vapid and snobby diva" out of that. i do not

ask game here

[obsessivelollipoplalala]

Overall review/summary of the 2023 Broadway revival of Sweeney Todd with Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford

With Groban and Ashford leaving this production in January, I thought I'd finally make a post talking about what I thought of this revival as a whole when I saw it on 7/15/23 and 8/26/23.Total rating? About 8/10.

First of all: for all intents and purposes, this revival felt faithful to the original production and like it was bringing that vision to a modern stage, which I really appreciated. There were minor changes here and there, which I'll get to, but it didn't try to do anything crazy and forced edgy/~artsy~. The source material is strong enough on its own and there's no need to deviate much.

In terms of casting: Josh Groban was a great Sweeney Todd and Annaleigh Ashford is pretty much the epitome of taking things too far with Mrs. Lovett, and not knowing when to stop.

Let me explain:

Main Casting:

People are clowning when they complain about Groban's Todd. From a vocal standpoint, you cannot argue he doesn't have an objectively skilled voice, and he hit every note perfectly on the soundtrack and in both live performances I saw. In terms of vocals, this has to be one of the best Sweeneys out there. Regarding his acting, he was good! Groban always seemed like he was in this brooding daze, like he wasn't all there, and I think that's a crucial aspect of Todd's character. The actor needs to showcase that this man is gone in his own world of bloody fantasies and mournful memories, and I think having him seem detached from reality does that. Groban did the angry moments well, too. They didn't seem forced, which is the trap Sweeney actors can fall into. I remember sitting there during "Epiphany" and watching him totally lost in the drama of the moment in the middle of the stage with the razor literally glistening in the spotlight, and again, I felt like the whole thing captured just how removed from reality Todd is in that moment. He had his sad moments towards the end, too. He was really solid, plain and simple.

With Annaleigh Ashford...I wrote an entire breakdown of why her performance undermines Mrs. Lovett's character lol, which I'll link here, but the best summary I can give is that she turned Mrs. Lovett into a British Harley Quinn. She turned her into the caricature that Angela Lansbury and Hal Prince feared the character could become. This is not an actress without talent, but man, she didn't know how to control herself, and it wound up hurting Mrs. Lovett's character, because she isn't a clown, she's the true villain of the show. It was like watching Mrs. Lovett on The Office with the winks to the audience and constant comedic shtick, and that lessened the dark tone of the entire show. If Ashford had been a stronger Lovett, I'd give this production a 10/10, but she's too big of a character to ignore. Thankfully, the source material is too good for her to have seriously damaged the show. Plus, her understudy was really good!

I saw Jeanna de Waal fill in for Ashford during the second performance, though, and she was very good. She retained some of Mrs. Lovett's more annoying, shticky stuff, which suggests at least part of this characterization is the fault of the director, but in general, de Waal toned it down enough without losing the comedy in appropriate moments like "A Little Priest." She has a great voice, I sat close enough to be able to see the subtle expressions on her face, and I think she could have a leading role on Broadway. My family and I enjoyed her very much, while my friends and I found Ashford grating by the end.

Supporting Cast:

I have quicker notes here: I only saw Daniel Yearwood as Anthony, because Jordan Fischer left by the time I went to NYC, but Yearwood was really good! Great voice and acting. I liked how this version of Johanna seemed especially unstable, with jerky, neurotic mannerisms when she sang. You really get the sense that this girl isn't right.

I saw two Tobys: Gaten Matarazzo and Nathan Salstone. I didn't see a huge difference between these two actors' portrayals tbh, both were solid Tobys, but Salstone toned down Toby's insanity at the very end of the show, which I preferred, simply because I've always thought that was the weakest part of the musical and I genuinely dislike it and I'm glad the movie cut that part out entirely lmao.

Everyone else was pretty much fine tbh. Nicholas Christopher was really funny as Pirelli, and John Rapson had funny moments as the Beadle. I did think Jamie Jackson came across as kind of bumbling as the Judge, and I don't think that characterization is quite right for a raping pedophile, but, eh.

Changes to the Production:

I need to start with one thing I totally disliked: how they staged Lucy's rape during "Poor Thing." I know that sounds like a weird thing to complain about, but the problem was that if I didn't know the story beforehand, I would've had no idea what happened. Lucy and the Judge/Beadle/etc. are up on a platform, above the pie shop where Mrs. Lovett is singing, and the lights are out on them. We can only see shadows. The Judge like, extends a hand almost Bela-Lugosi-Dracula-style and Lucy, trapped up there, is weak to his power. She's picked up and carried off to him. That's it. I swear. It's not that we need a graphic rape scene--not even the film showed any nudity--but it's too vague. Everyone who saw the show with me agreed that they wouldn't have picked up what happened if they hadn't seen the film before, and this is a big plot point! It's part of why Lucy poisoned herself, why Sweeney wants revenge, and what an awful person Judge Turpin is. It shouldn't be left to ambiguity. I don't know why the director (I'm assuming) made this decision, but it genuinely hurt the storytelling. It's the only change I completely disliked, but I just don't understand why they did it this way. Just have the partygoers gather around the Judge and Lucy to conceal what's going on and have Lucy scream, like most productions do.

They sped up the tempo for "Johanna (Reprise)" by a hair. I honestly don't know why, and it doesn't ruin the song for me, but that's one of Sondheim's most beautiful and underrated songs, and I prefer versions that take their time. That's not nearly as noticeable as the key change for "Not While I'm Around", though! I don't know why they did that, but I don't like it. Changing the key changes the notes, and changing the notes makes the song sound a lot different lol. It just feels like an unnecessary, negative change

They added a scene of dialogue with Johanna and the Judge. It seems like this was adapted from the dialogue which was originally meant to happen after the cut version of "Johanna" performed by Judge Turpin. In the original dialogue, the Judge offers himself to Johanna. This new scene plays out similarly with the Judge commenting on how Anthony has been hanging around all week, and he's found a suitable man for Johanna: himself. During his spiel, we see Johanna take a spare key behind his back and then hide it, giving the audience a hint as to how Anthony will get in the house later. While the scene wasn't totally necessary, it served as a nice little gap in between musical numbers and set us up for Johanna planning to run away with Anthony later because she's in a panic over the Judge's proposal.

They added women walking in the background during "Ladies in Their Sensitivities." It's a small thing, but honestly a nice addition, because it gives the audience something to look at on stage while the Beadle sings a slower, quieter song. Honestly, just having the Judge and Beadle stand on a bare stage during that song was kind of the stage equivalent of dead air before, so the women in the background gave your eye just enough to look at.

They also made the company walk onto the stage and stare blankly as the Beggar Woman sang her, "Quick, miss! Run and tell!" etc., etc., bit during "Johanna (Reprise)." Making the company come out on stage that moment was nice, too, because the Beggar Woman being able to see them shows how far gone she is.

The company also had choreography. It wasn't dancing, but planned, jerky movements, similar to how zombies would move, in a way. They would almost tip over, breathe heavily, crick their necks, and generally appear like they were undead. It was just enough to make the company even more unsettling during the ballads without going too far, so I liked that decision a lot.

Miscellaneous

I liked the set design with the barber shop being a platform above the stage, as opposed to that one, big, rotating set piece with the barber shop on top and pie shop at the bottom that's often used

I liked the backdrop they had during night scenes with a big moon in the background

I liked the light design with the lights going red when Sweeney kills for the first time, and this dramatic green lighting coming from beneath Sweeney to illuminate his face like in a horror movie when he yells, "You?!" at the Beggar Woman when he returns to the barber shop, timed with a loud, dissonant chord

The company was lively in this production, too. I adored "God, That's Good!" with the energy from them and the main cast. It's such a strong opening for the second act on stage

I liked Sweeney and Mrs. Lovett walking off together at the end of the final ballad and jumping into the abyss together. It's fitting

I kind of like that both Ashford and de Waal played Mrs. Lovett as being afraid of Sweeney at the end and being aware that he was coming after her now. I like the totally delusional portrayal in that moment, too, but yeah

SO yeah, extremely solid production, it felt respectful to the original and it was incredible seeing a full-blown Broadway production of this amazing show. I just wish Ashford hadn't been mistaken that she was cast in a musical comedy instead of a musical thriller

[dailymichifer]

do you ship midam?

short answer: I like them a lot but no, I can't say I actively ship them. It's more of a fun ship-in-law.

long answer:

I'm not very invested in it. I kind of wish I was! I read fics that include them, but I don't go looking for stuff that focus exclusively on Michael/Adam romance (unless I randomly decide I want to read pwp, or if it's a fic rec/a fic written by someone I really like/trust with the characters).

I AM interested in their dynamic, but mostly the non-romantic themes (friendship, vesselhood, etc) and most of the time I'm much more invested in Michael (= what it means in terms of character development for Michael in general) than Adam... If I had to choose a Michael/human ship I would probably pick Michean or Michael/Sam because I'm much more interested in these human characters and the character development that would need to occur for them to end up with Michael.

One big turnoff for me is that a lot of fanon Midam dynamics are based on late season canon (which makes total sense since their only real interactions take place in S15), and I dislike most post-Kripke era characterizations, especially Buckleming!Lucifer, meaning Cagefics/Cage hcs are a bit annoying to me in the context of Midam in a corner + Buckleming!Lucifer who is mostly ignored or used as a plot device for Midam angst (trying to torture Adam or whatever); I also dislike how Buckleming!Lucifer's unidimensionality leads to a less complex interpretation of his dynamic with Michael, which flattens Michael's character as a consequence (e.g saying S5 Michael was lying when he told Dean he didn't want to kill Lucifer, etc.) that's a big nope for me - not matter the pairing/story, if your version of S5 Michael is completely indifferent to the idea of killing Lucifer then it's not Michael to me (and the swan song script agrees with me!) - and I'm not interested in him.

Speaking of flattening, that's another aspect that turns me off... there's nothing wrong with liking that, but the "pure, healthy unproblematic cinnamon rolls" interpretation of the ship does not appeal to me at all. I do like fun normalcore domestic aus, but only with some spice you know? Not necessarily angst, drama and heavy codependency, but at least something that addresses that the characters are more than y/n + y/n-with-wings in a coffeshop. (The same could be said for Michifer ofc, there are some popular fics/hcs about Lucifer being a smoll bean who did nothing wrong/etc.)

I don't think the "100% unproblematic" interpretation I just mentioned is the most common though, I've read great fics/hcs/metas that explore their characters in much more compelling ways... and in general I think Midam is fun and has a lot of potential for all types of interesting dynamics!!

However, looking for Midam 'content' is like a dodgeball game to me because of the headcanon incompatibilities I just mentioned (and the ones I kept to myself djfkjd), and at the moment the ship's potential doesn't motivate me enough to fuel me with the energy I would need to actively, regularly thread my way through this part of the fandom to look for things that tick all my boxes. Add Lucifer to the mix and it changes everything though; Midafer ftw 👑!!

[windor-truffle]

ok vent post time, time to be a cheria/asbel hater 😩 I really don't want to rip apart this ship considering I like both characters and think they have the potential to be interesting if handled well... I just don't think canon handles them well 😓 For now I'm just going to look at them from the context of where I am in the story rn (their fight after Raymond's failed blackmail attempt), but maybe later I can do a follow-up post covering the whole game (and L&L which iirc does a better job of writing them romantically, if only marginally):

I have to lead this off by noting this is a terrible display from Asbel 😩 he's acting just like his dad did, being angry at the person for making him worry, though at least he hasenough sense to not fucking hit her over it -_- Yet here Asbel's being almost more unfair, as at least in Aston's case his 11 year old son had snuck away unsupervised and had his friends lie about where he was. But Cheria's old enough to not require adult supervision and mature enough to decide what degree of personal risk she's willing to take... and like she says, it's not like she even meant to be in danger in the first place, she just heard something she wasn't supposed to and got caught at it. But I'm not here to bash Asbel's character, in fact I think it's great that they're showcasing his flaws in this fight. Asbel is consistently characterized as someone who gets angry when he's really just feeling upset (*coughtoxicmasculinity coughmencan'tshowfeelingsbesidesrighteousanger*) and it makes sense for that negative trait to make an appearance in this circumstance.

It's pretty clear that both sides are fighting because they care about each other but rather than admit that, they're angry at the other for making them worry. But i'd say it's more or less healthy to air out these riled up emotions first so they can get to the heart of the matter that they've been avoiding:

This is all good! They needed to talk this out, even if it required them hitting a boiling point of emotions first. But the problem I have here is that this is only the beginning of an apology from both sides. They're finally being honest about why they did what they did, the choices they made seven years ago, but even though they're admitting it there's no evidence in this moment that the other actually understood, empathized, or forgave the other for that. There IS some evidence in the moments leading up to this, gathered rather piecemeal-y:

(I swear there's a line where Cheria admits "I know why you had to leave" but I can't find it 😩)

But in this moment, this fight and subsequent conversation and chance to make amends, neither one manages to verbally accept the other's feelings. Asbel doesn't acknowledge how the repercussions of the choice he made 7 years ago affected those he left behind. Cheria doesn't recognize that Asbel's method of coping with the grief of losing Sophie due to his own helplessness was to take action, to do SOMETHING because he couldn't then and is terrified of losing someone again. He was hurting, but so was she, and maybe they could have healed better with each other's company, but the actions they took and feelings they felt were completely justified to them at the time.

But like I said before, my issue is with how they end this argument and "fix" their relationship. Maybe it's foolish of me to expect a clear and explicit apology from these awkward teenagers' first attempt at romance (couldn't help but note that neither one actually says "I'm sorry" though), or lazy of me to expect the writers to spell it out when I so happily read into the subtext for other aspects of the story, but to me, the resolution of this fight implies that the underlying issues, though aired, have not been resolved. Since they never actually apologize, the part of the apology where you make plans to improve yourself and avoid hurting each other in the future has also been skipped. Instead, they've decided to simply drop the issue. This isn't a bad thing, as sometimes it's better to just drop it and move on, but that feels like a surface-level manner of resolving this personal grudge and subsequent dispute accrued over seven years, and it mostly functions just to keep the peace in the short term. We're supposed to believe that these characters have or want an intimate relationship in the long term, but they fall back on prideful denials and awkward smiles instead of clear communication. It's like they're in love with the idea of being in love with each other, without the underlying love. Attraction, sure, and affection, but not the kind of selfless love where you want what's best for the other. And for me, it's hard to get invested in that not when Richass is right there

I hope to come back to this topic because with careful examination I do think that the subtext for a healthy or at least interesting relationship is there, and I don't want to be uncharitable toward these characters just because of my bias for the gay pairing. This ship, though canon, is generally unpopular with the fandom, and I'd like to explore how much of that is justified, and where it went right or wrong. So... stay tuned for a follow-up? ^^' (<- the face of one with good intentions but bad executive function)

[thewatercolours]

There is so much expressive body language in this one! it's so visual! The way Rosella slumps, and fidgets, and goes limp like a puppet, and crosses her arms - her current mood is so apparent, and so is the way she feels she can completely let her hair down around Ken. And the way he recognizes her physical vocabulary because he's known her since she was born, and can so easily read it. And Ken is of course more upright and proper but also shows his comfort around his princess, leaning forward on his hand and so on. It's great - I can see every moment with my mind's eye. Good characterization, good description.

Hmph. Rosella, Ken's five steps ahead of you. He knows exactly what this is about, and so did I when I started reading it. (Bless you, Mickey. I start enjoying Edgar and you give me some Edgar-related stuff.)

Ha. So ready to help and so wry, at the same time. That's why she goes to him. Her folks might get too soppy about it all.

“Not really… he’s been kind and considerate. Absurdly so, really." I believe it.

Rosella stopped flicking the feather and let out a quiet ‘huh’ before sitting up a little straighter. Oh my dear young lady, you never thought about whether you liked him before you considered whether you could love him? I understand of course, how it might be easy for her to overlook the friendship aspect given both their situations, how they met, and so on. But oh, honey, thank goodness Ken's bringing up to you now because that's huge, and can make or break a relationship.

Hm - yeah - I guess the relative isolation of Daventry/the castle would also be a factor in how Rosella relates to the opposite sex.

And he returned her hug, even though he's far from a huggy kind of guy! He's such an uncle to her.

OK, I really love this exchange:

“Yeah, but Edgar outright asked to court me!” Rosella countered, also dropping her quiet and demure voice to her natural tone. “Why would he want just a friend?!”

“Because you were the first nice person he has met that hadn’t bloody kidnapped him?!”

i get it from both their perspectives. And oooh - also, Number One, I need to see you having a conversation with Edgar some time, because yeah, you get it.

Eh, I have to admit I lean more to toward Ken's side as far as language goes.

I love how he encourages her that she doesn't have to stick to whatever expected framework she has in her head for how this has to go. That not only does she deserve to colour outside the lines if that's where her mind and heart and leading her, but she really doesn't live in a context where the rules often apply anyway. Thinking outside the box is her family's whole culture. She doesn't have to aim for normal, and her family will support her in exploring beyond expectations. That's a really good tack for Number One to take - I think it catches her off guard, and convinces her with its solidness.

And aw - he returns her hug, even though he's not precisely the world's most huggy guy. I love this uncle-niece way of relating they've got - and you right it so well Mickey. Thank you so much for this prompt fill! <3

Ficlet prompts:

-Adult Rosella is home for the first time in a while, and is facing some kind of problem, and seeks out Number One’s advice. He’s a bit surprised, because of course he was always there for her when she was little, but didn’t think she’d want his help now.

OR

- The Three Adventurers are in unexpected difficulty due to getting a couple of potions mixed up.

Did the first prompt! Took a while but we're here~

---

Number One sat at his desk with his chin propped up with a hand, staring at the woman in front of him who was laying her head on his parchment-covered desk flicking back and forth the feathered pen that was in the ink jar. 

He hadn’t seen her in well over a while, knowing she had been courted by the prince of Etheria, Edgar and had been spending time with him in his kingdom, but her mannerism was just the same as when she was a child. This particular mannerism, Number One recalled, could be one of two things - either she was bored or she was going through some form of a conundrum and needed his help without outright saying so.

Considering her current predicament of the aforementioned courting, Number One figured it was the latter. 

And he was never going to shoo Rosella away. 

Rosella let out a sigh, flicking inadvertently loose blonde strands from her face as she continued to flick the feather while Number One merely raised a brow out at her.

“You wish to talk about it, your highness?” He asked.

“No.” She paused, blue eyes looking at him and then back to the feather. “...Yes. I dunno.”

“Should I guess? Or will I decipher the conundrum through your humming and huffing?” 

Rosella snorted but kept her focus on the quill. She knew just as well as he did that he was going to guess correctly. He always does. This was just his one offer to let her beat him to the punch and not feel so, as she once complained, ‘thoroughly and utterly humiliated’.

She opened her mouth to answer but her face scrunched up and soon closed her mouth once more, sighing. 

Alright, guessing it is, he thought.

“Is it about Edgar?” He asked.

Her finger froze and Rosella looked at him momentarily. The answer, though silent, was loud and clear. Number One, however, frowned. 

“Did he do anything to upset you?” He continued.

“No.” she answered, moving her head so that her chin may lay on her now crossed arms. “Not really… he’s been kind and considerate. Absurdly so, really. But I fear that I’m… well, still not sure how I feel about him. That my feelings aren’t matching with him.”

“Hm.”

“I’ll just say it. I need advice.”

“If it’s about romance, I will have to point you towards Number Two or Kyle and Larry.” He reminded her. “With age comes wisdom, but tragically romance still eludes me.”

“I know, but I need your advice the most.” Rosella said, frowning a little.

It saddened him to see her like this, he thought she loved him… or at the very least grew some form of attraction. Then again, he wasn’t exactly hawk-eyed when it came to romance, according to Number Two. He sighed himself and lowered his arm to the table, leaning slightly on his desk as she kept toying the pen. 

“And you want my advice?” He reiterated. 

“Yes, because I know you’ll be straightforward with me.” She tapped her finger on her arm and looked away, trying to think. “Even though I know you’re going to judge harshly.”

“I have an apparent notoriety for it, regardless of you.” He smirked just a little.

“My point is proven.” She smiled briefly before sighing once more.

“Alright… I’ll give it a shot.” He readjusted himself, glancing around the room to find his words before looking at her. “From my knowledge, Edgar is kind, considerate, and to quote Number Three is absolutely head over heels for you… but as you said now, you’re not feeling the same.”

She nodded.

“And it’s not as though you had denied his courtship before…”

“I did it twice.”

“Yes. Yes you did.” He recalled Valanice being respectful of her daughter’s choice, but he could see the look of slight disappointment, especially when Rosella’s twin brother had already found someone as quickly as he did. “Do you even like him? Aside from a potential suitor, but just as friendly company?”

Rosella stopped flicking the feather and let out a quiet ‘huh’ before sitting up a little straighter.

“Wait, has that thought not come to mind?” Number One, however, blinked. “Has no one asked you that?”

“N-no. No, I mean, well–”

“Rosella, have you never viewed him as a friend first?” Number One leaned forward. 

“No! Why would I? Every man I have ever met has either tried for my hand, is my father, twin, or you. Why on Earth would I ever view another man as just a friend?”

“Because that’s a perfectly normal thing to want? A friend? Not everyone has some ulterior motive??” He was slowly losing his formal tone in favor of his more loose tone. One he tried to reserve exclusively to Number Two or Graham behind closed doors. 

“Yeah, but Edgar outright asked to court me!” Rosella countered, also dropping her quiet and demure voice to her natural tone. “Why would he want just a friend?!”

“Because you were the first nice person he has met that hadn’t bloody kidnapped him?!”

“I–” A pause and her eyes widened before she swiftly smacked her forehead and slouched on the chair. “Oh, BOLLOCKS!” 

“Language!” He scolded. “I did not assist in raising you for vulgarity!”

“I’ve heard you say worst things.”

“Lies.”

“Starts with a female parental figure and ends with ‘er’.” She said, hand still over her eyes from the initial slap.

Number One shook his head and sighed, propping his head up once more. “So potty mouth and stupidity aside, have you seriously never contemplated on the off chance to have Edgar as a friend first? See if maybe the feelings blossom into something genuine?”

“...Admittedly no.” She confessed. “I’ve always just assumed courtship was all at stake for me.”

“You of all people should know assumptions and expectations don't work with this family” He said. “In fact, when have the rules of conduct ever been followed so closely? From your father who won the crown instead of being born to it to your mother who freed herself from the tower with the help of those she loved and even your own twin who rescued himself from his kidnapper. Why should normality be your thing? Why not have your means of finding someone be on your own merit?” 

He scoffed and Rosella lowered her hand, looking at him as he had a playful, yet soft, smile to him. “Normality does not run in your blood, Rosella.”

She smiled back and sat up right.

“Befriend him– explain it, of course, don’t leave the poor man hanging, but try befriending him. If it works, it works. If not, well, at least you have a new friend.”

Rosella stood up and went around the table to properly hug Number One, knowing fully well that the old Captain was not one for physical touch but smiled from ear to ear as he held her close.

“Thank you, Ken.”

“Of course, Rosella.”

[sugirandom]

Ranting about Sonic X, a lot of critical stuff so feel free to skip if you like Sonic X XD, I might even go into some personal stuff later so yeah... this was longer than I intended ha ha

So, my best bro and I have been working through watching Sonic X and we’re nearly finished the season 3... Sonic X has frankly been a chore to get through at times...especially season 3

Of all the Sonic cartoons/anime I had the highest expectations for Sonic X because it was (and as far as I know still is) the adaptation that’s closest to the video games in terms of the original Sonic characters, the Japanese version having the original voice cast also helps.

But honestly the need to place Sonic in the ‘human world’ has always been very strange to me because there are humans in Sonic’s world in canon and this seems to be forgotten constantly, with Sonic X being the first offender of this and the live action movies doing their own version of the same thing.

So,there’s that and thanks to that most of season one was dedicated to getting us attached to the human characters, of which some are interesting, but the human lead, Chris, is not...he’s 12 but he acts 10 so I honestly flat out forgot 12 was his canon age. He’s a privlaged rich american kid who acts like he’s all alone despite his maid and butler doing a good job of raising him while his parents are pretty much absent because of their work and when tyhey are around spoil him...so yeah there’s that.

He forms a bond with Sonic and honestly the tone often feels kinda romantic, at least of Chris’ end. I don’t think they intended it that way but I mean...I’d take Sonic 06′s Elise over Chris any day (the one they actually acuse of pushing a relationship with Sonic and a human lol). I guess I’ll stop my rant about Chris here because there’s more that I wanted to say but... I don’t want this to all be about him...I just want to add one more thing...the end of season 2 ruined any chance Chris had of me liking him...

On ocassin they miss the mark with the actual Sonic characters too, often flanderizing certain aspects of them, for example, with Amy Rose...she has more to her than just loving Sonic obsessively but especially when we get to season 3 it becomes her entire character. I’m not saying the video games are completely innocent of this (see Sonic Heroes) but it’s a bit of a nitpick...

As much as I love Rouge being chaotic neutural by season 3 they seem to abandon any bond she developed with the other characters (except her bond with Shadow, which is great!).

There’s also a huge genre shift, season 3 is it’s own Sci-fi story with aliens they completely made up and a saving the galaxy from these aliens who are stealing the life force of other planets...for reasons (the main villain hasn’t revealed why at the point we’re watching this). I honestly think this idea may have come from another anime that the team working on Sonic X couldn’t get approved or it was a case of “make it Sonic” XD

Ironically I’ve had an idea forever for a Sonic fanfic...series that I have yet to write involving aliens but mine are humanoid and their focus is just on Earth so it really made me question why we were all longing to have Sonic fight aliens so badly lol

If you guys want to hear me rant more about Sonic X let me know. If I feel really brave I might share some of my story ideas too but...for now... I’ll list a few things I like about Sonic X so I don’t sound like a complete jerk.

Quick list of some positive points: Eggman’s characterization is, for the most part, interesting and close to the video games so I do like that, he’s evil but he has his moments where he’s more complex. 

Some of the supporting human characters are interesting but the plot doesn’t always know what to do with them

Sonic is hilarious and entertaining, I like the Engrish he uses, very memeable but not cringe and genuinely fun (applies to the Japanese version only obviously)

Some filler episodes did have good plot ideas (not all but a few)

The designs of the Sonic characters were done well

Shadow is badass but honestly for the most part you have to be trying to mess Shadow up. 

That’s all I can think of for now and I’m tired of typing but I wanted to get this off my chest!

[dr-drea]

Adding to that whole Finn characterization thing, the writers also broke with the Skam tradition of the typical narrative structure of the seasons, where at least in one episode, the love interest is in focus. I guess most of you are familiar with this anyways, but i'll try to shortly explain how a Skam season is (typically) structured.

Episodes 1 -3: establish our main and their character traits, the situation they find themselves currently in, their family background, their hobbies etc.; they also hint at potential struggles, which is why a lot of theory making by the fans is happening here; and, of course, they show us who is going to be the love interest.

Episodes 4 - 7: we can see our main struggling with the themes established before, but also some achievements and happy moments (usually the first kiss, or getting together with the LI); there are some up's and downs in the plot and at the end of this bumpy ride, we also have a pretty clear idea what the love interest is like, and we are guessing about their central struggle.

Episode 8, also known as hellweek: Now, our LIs struggle is clearly pointed out, leading to an accumulation of both the main's and the love interest's problems; this is leaving the main as desparate as never before. Gradually tho, they manage their way out of the mess so that...

in Episode 9, the love interest is in focus. In the case of newly established relationships, we see the main dealing and overcoming their own problems, and then fighting for the Love Interest, to get back together with them (the only exeption here is the Hannah/Eva season, which ends with a breakup, but we still learn a lot about Jonas' character and background story in the last two episodes).

Finally, Episode 10 is where all storylines come together, eventual side conflicts are resolved, everyone is happy.

Let's go back to the current season and how Finn is (not) in focus here.

The topics established in the first three episodes can still be considered the main topics of the season, though we all agree they were handled messy and weirdly. And I do think, up to episode three, the season was quite okay.

But episode 4 - 7 do not provide us with a coherent 'up and down' of the Failin relationship, but rather with a messy, incoherent construction of both characters and that love relationship, which also in later scenes seemed underdeveloped. That resulted in almost nobody rooting for them to get together.

Both episode 7 and 8 seemed like hellweek for Mailin (and Zoe), and while Mailin got really tangled up in her own problems, I don't see a central struggle for Finn.

That Mailin is avoiding him? That's HER problem, not his, anyone would have been annoyed by that.

Him feeling like a 'tryout boyfriend' is also not really his problem, but kind of the conclusion of how Mailin has treated him so far.

So again, a reactive characterization.

And now we are at the end of episode 9, and I don't see the drama ending?? And I also don't really see Mailin 'fighting' for Finn, or how the plot takes Finns feelings/struggles into consideration. It is all about Mailin.

And that might be one of the central mistakes that were made during this season. Having it solely revolve around a white, skinny, heterosexual, neurotypical girl, a character who we have seen over and over in the media landscape. Making her BY FAR the most privileged character in the series, by also giving her a high socio-economic status, and then barely reflecting her privileges. And that, while having an extremely diverse friend group around her, whose stories even centered around not having these privileges, being discriminated against and disadvantaged. And on top of that, having these characters doing nothing, but praising her.

With everything happening, the writers and creators of S8 are completely ignoring thoughtfully made casting choices and previously established storylines.

I'm so done with this season, and tired of criticizing it, but especially the last aspect I wanted to point out again, as it bothers me a lot.