#like yeah hes also good looking but hes such an interesting character

[glitter-stained]

I always feel like a little sad seeing posts about how Jason's character is inherently tragic and that's what makes it good, how him being unloved, a tragic consequence of his own actions, is inevitable, and how that shouldn't change because any change on that regard is a fundamental misunderstanding of his character. Yes, Under the Hood is a tragedy. Yes, Jason survived and for a long time people have been pretty confused at what to do with the character that survives the tragic ending. That doesn't mean he should continue to be trapped in the tragedy, that there's only value in him as long as he's unloved. And maybe that's me preaching and being a party pooper again but the idea that the teenage-to-young adult character with a mental illness that has damaged all his relationships is doomed to be lonely and have bad/upended relationships forever, that he's only good as a character as long as he's hurting others and/or himself (and usually both) and isolated because of this... It's sad, at the very least. I refuse the presumption that tragedies are the only stories wise and worth telling.

Also I personally really dislike the idea that Jason isn't and shouldn't be anyone's favourite, because he made himself nobody's favourite on purpose. Did he make himself a villain on purpose? Fuck yeah. Does any of his early attempts at reaching out to people hurt them? Indubitably. I maintain that this is because he wants to be someone's favourite as he is, at his worst, with his hands covered in blood. And I think he should be. (Without contradicting or damaging, by comparison, the relationships between other characters, that's the tightrope we need to be weary of when making such things, of course.)

It's like this: love, in most relationships, is conditional: you don't owe your friend or your partner to continue to love them if the relationship changes, if you change, if you become violent etc. If my girlfriend started murdering puppies, I would stop loving her. Ideally, however a parent's love for their child is unconditional. That's very often unfortunately not the case, but ideally it'd be, it's really not great for a kid to have zero parents that love them unconditionally. And most importantly, it's not just about actual unconditional love, it's about it being perceived. So it doesn't matter in the debate if Bruce actually loves Jason in spite of the murder, it matters that Jason asks for confirmation of it at the end of UTH and receives a negative answer. (similar arguments to be made about Catherine loving Jason and dying of drug overdose and Willis going to jail and dying - it's the potential perceived abandonment of it that would matter, not their agency and actual love. And it's not a question of whether he would be angry at it so much as that he'd yearn and hurt for it. And of course Sheila didn't love him at all.) That's why he, upon learning about Mia and reaching previously unknown to man levels of projection*, tries to rally her with the hope that, because she's "so similar to him" she would understand him. That's why upon learning about Dick "killing" Blockbuster Jason, again projecting more violently than a bullet, Jason makes Dick into his new favourite person (god, the concept behind BiB has so much potential why did it have to suck so bad...) Anyway, Jason to me is a character with a very intense, very overwhelming conception of love both in who he loves and how, who struggles to understand that other people love and show it differently, and it makes so much sense for him to keep looking for a person who will love him unconditionally (something that's both very rare and not necessarily healthy since, again, most relationships aside from parent-child relationships do not and probably should not include unconditional love). This is particularly interesting in the context of him having bpd (again, using bpd because i'm focusing on the interpersonal dimension that's been mostly studied within that frame) because BPD often functions around a vicious circle of "is afraid of rejection/abandonment -> does maladaptive behaviour in attempt to prevent rejection/abandonment OR protect oneself by being the one to leave first" which is what leads to the instability in relationships. It's a doomed prophecy: i have maladaptive patterns that make me think my girlfriend is gonna leave me at any time, I keep demanding to see her phone, assuming she's cheating everytime she leaves and thus demonizing her even though I was glorifying her five minutes earlier" then she's going to leave me, which is gonna reinforce my thought pattern that everyone always leaves me. But that also means that in rare instances in which the other person in the interact, for whichever reason, sticks around through that, then these incorrect thought patterns begin to change through the sheet logic of extinction: if i think that people always leave me because of something fundamentally wrong with me and people don't leave then eventually the idea that people are doomed to abandon/reject me is going to lose its power. That's, btw, an important part of why therapy works.

(*that one's a joke, btw. He's not projecting onto mia and dick to levels impossible to mankind, just pretty intensely. Very human levels of projection, might I add'. Just to clarify.)

Now, be mindful: I'm not saying make Jason an abusive boyfriend. I'm not saying put him in a relationship where the other stays because they're afraid of him, that's not unconditional love or acceptance that's just fear. Of course, the ideal version of it would be Jason goes to therapy but because dc hates me specifically this is never gonna happen, but imagine him being in a relationship, romantic or otherwise, with someone who is as intense and "unwell" about him as he is about them. I'm not saying it would fix him (again, get him so goddamn therapy jfc) but it would change him. And just as it doesn't have to be healthy it doesn't have to be tragic.

I was asked a while ago my thoughts on Jason's current stagnancy as a character and if I thought he could become interesting again, and I said yes and talked about the directions I dream would be explored with his character and their potential. My answer hasn't changed, and it's completely compatible with this, but I will add: I think Jason as a character has largely and for long enough been defined through his yearning to be somebody's favourite, and that if you want his mode of interacting with others and dynamic with different characters to change then this is a very logical way to do it. And it would make a lot of sense for it to be the catalyst for other changes in his character (ie in his name or philosophy).

Get that boy into a super intense long-term codependent situationship, is what I'm saying. Please.

[frogaroundandfindout]

I used to give the 'lazarus pit madness' trope for jason so much shit unless it was a REALLY good fic that did something interesting with the idea. But the more I read of pre52 red hood the more I'm just like "yeah no I have absolutely no idea how I'd reconcile all this heinous shit he's done without finding a way to make it not his fault actually"

I hate the 'jason was always a monster and bruce couldn't save him' nonsense so much, he was literally just a homeless little boy. MY BUDDY LITERALLY WILLINGLY WENT BACK TO BEING HOMELESS BECAUSE HE DIDN'T WANT TO HURT PEOPLE FOR MA GUNN EVEN THOUGH IT MEANT GIVING UP FOOD AND SHELTER AND DECENT TREATMENT

jason sweetheart I'm so sorry dc butchered you like this my god

When the characterization is so inconsistent the fandom has to resort to literal magic to explain it.

But seriously, I haven’t read a whole lot of Jason as Robin but from what I did read he was so tiny and just wanted to do good. It’s a disservice to every character involved for Bruce to adopt him because he thought he’d be a criminal otherwise. It implies Bruce thinks of every kid living in poverty as a shoe in for crime and not as some of the most vulnerable individuals in low SE areas. Which is just…so bad considering he’s 1) a rich white man stereotyping a large group of people and 2) someone that fights crime because of an act of violence commited in front of him as a little boy. A Batman that doesn’t believe in the goodness of a child (especially one like Jason who, like you said, gave up basic necessities for the sake of his morals) and protecting it in a way he wasn’t protected is a very very weird Batman to me. So it turns Bruce into a white knight and redhood into confirmation of Bruce’s stereotyping and paranoia.

If it was just Jason thinking that’s why Bruce took him in it would be a completely different animal. I might have even enjoyed reading about how Jason rationalized their changed relationship after he came back swinging (literally) and thinking that it’s some innate characteristic about him that drove the wedge between him and Bruce before he even realized it was there. But it’s very much not just Jason. EVERYONE. FUCKING. SAYS. IT. And tbh that kinda ruins everyone just a bit in my eyes. If not agreement and support for Bruce’s bs, they’re at least silently complicit in perpetuating it.

But beyond that, it also makes me think of Devin Grayson’s run where she kept talking about how dick was “meant for crime” or would have obviously been a criminal if it wasn’t for Bruce. This was built on frankly awful stereotypes regarding Romani people. I bring this one up because the combination of the two does not make Bruce look as good as the writers seemed to think.

But if we ignore the bs involved and take the reason for Jason’s adoption at face value, I think it offers an interesting comparison between him and Damian. Jason is presented a child destined for a life of crime who eventually became one of The Villains despite Batman’s efforts. Damian was an heir destined for crime who eventually became one of The Heroes because of Batman’s efforts. Idk it’s just interesting to me.

[pharawee]

Maybe it's because I don't mind unhappy or open endings, or maybe it's because I had no expectations whatsoever beyond being entertained, or maybe it's because I enjoy detective fiction a lot...

But I genuinely liked Spare Me Your Mercy beginning to end. I enjoyed the characters and the presentations of their struggles, flaws and convictions, and I also don't think that it's a mark of bad writing or narrative structuring when characters are unbending and stand by said convictions. I like how the outcome was inevitable pretty much from the beginning because every character was on a set trajectory. And I also liked how the "big bad" was unveiled/dealt with way before the show was over because Boss was never the real obstacle anyway.

Spare Me Your Mercy was never going to be a romantic thriller driven by character development, and personally I feel it's a bit unfair to judge the show by the standards of a completely different genre. To me it was a morality tale/crime thriller and imo it did a very good job in that regard. Plus, if you take Thai censorship laws/conventions into account it was never going to openly support Kan's approach to euthanasia. It was always going to end with the status quo being upheld. They went about as far as they could, given that this is a mainstream production aired nationally on television. I actually find it very refreshing that they tackled this topic at all, and I really appreciate that they were incredibly nuanced throughout all of it, from the inclusion of a living will (which is indeed a topic that surprisingly few people even know about) to the monk's approach, but also how it showed that loved ones too have every right and the room to disagree.

Because euthanasia shouldn't ever an easy topic. It should be discussed, always, even in countries like Switzerland and the Netherlands where it's already legal.

(This is also ultimately why I sided with Tiu/Wasan instead of Kan because, yeah, Kan did consensually ease the suffering of a lot of people and we as the audience know that he has the highest of moral standards - which is exactly why it's better to channel all of this into starting the democratic process of legalising it. Kan meant well, and maybe Kan was right, but you only need to look to Orn and Boss to see how easy these things go off the rails. Hell, even Kan slipped when he shot Boss in the back, and you can't justify that one at all.)

Plus, in the end I do think that Kan manipulated Wasan as much (or imo even more) as it was the other way around. To me a relationship based on so many fundamental lies was never going to be possible - which also explains the dissonance in their (romantic) behaviour. Attraction is easy (which is why I don't think it's far-fetched at all that they fell for each other) but sometimes love alone just isn't enough.

I won't begrudge anyone their dislike of the show or its characters. I think it's very valid especially given the sensitive nature of what euthanasia should and shouldn't be. It's just that I read so many disappointed and negative takes on the ending of the show in the past 24 hours that I wanted to add my own - and like I said, personally I enjoyed myself a lot (even if it's of course not a perfect show and there certainly are some details that feel very hamfisted and even harmful and stereotypical). To me, it's a well-made and narratively sound piece of television with interesting characters and an entertaining story, and I'm glad we finally got a good genre BL offering in the form of queer detective fiction.

[ropebunnykant]

Apologies for the incoming essay... Re. Kant and choices and him choosing to involve Style - look, nobody's out here trying to say Kant's eligible for best friend of the year! But there does seem to be a lot of retroactive woobifying of Style, attempts to exempt him from the current tangled web, etc., when, lest we forget, he agreed to try and seduce a man FOR A CAR. He then proceeded to stalk said man, and to disrupt and exploit a grief counselling session FOR A CAR. Of course Kant shouldn't have involved him (but when your options are limited and you're desperate, you're not always thinking straight), but it was Style's own a) automotive greed and b) bruised ego (after their vehicular run-in) that got him where he is today. It was a bargain that he himself suggested - it wasn't even Kant's idea! Let's be honest, he could've just said nah mate, you're alright, and what could Kant have done about it? Style is not untouched by the taint! And that's okay - let him be messy too (the fact that he'd already had a couple of fraught encounters with Fadel even before Kant introduced them was a deliberate decision on the writers' part)! He had his own agenda going into this which he'd need to apologise for regardless of the added assassin shenanigans, and once he's in the know, he becomes as responsible as Kant for what happens next - they're both faced with the same choice: confess in order to try and keep the brothers out of jail, or stay schtum, despite their misgivings, out of fear for their own lives. And they both chose the same path. All four of them have been lying to each other from the get-go, for multiple complex reasons, some maybe more valid or understandable than others, but point is that none of them are squeaky clean and ALL of them bear at least some responsibility for the colossal shitshow that they now find themselves in! And that's what makes it good TV!

(I'd also like to point out something I find interesting, which is that Kant's rhetoric with Style has always been about looking out for number one - he tells Style he's doing it to clear his record, get those charges off his back, outside the restaurant he talks about having to prioritise saving your own skin over everything else, even though that makes him sound a bit cold...but he's not doing it for himself, is he? He's doing it for Babe. He's doing it because of the repercussions that would fall on his little brother's head if anything were to happen to Kant, whether that be jail time or an early grave (though I'm not saying he'd be a-okay with either regardless!). Babe has been his driving force the entire show (as yours and others' beautiful meta has explored) - Kant does the OPPOSITE of prioritise himself, and has done so since his parents died, and that's why HE'S in this mess in the first place. But, to the best of my recollection, he never invokes Babe when he's trying to win over Style, and I can't decide if that's because it's a line he won't cross (though he did sort of cross it when using Babe as an excuse at karaoke, or does that not count cos it was a lie?), or because he truly doesn't see himself as self-sacrificing so wouldn't even think to frame it in those terms to someone else. Or a combo of both!)

I think part of the reason the Kant slander (by which I absolutely don't mean legit critical analysis or taking the well-earned piss out of him!) bothers me is because I'm conscious that First is, at least to a degree, aware of the negativity (and tagged into some of it because ppl suck), which is why every time I look online he seems to be apologising on his character's behalf. And yes, it is in jest, but, knowing he's an inveterate people pleaser, I also get the sneaking suspicion it's also partly genuine, which makes me sad.

yeah, aaaabsolutely agree with everything you’ve said here. like i think the argument about style has more merit too it, but at the same time im still sat here thinking, what was kant’s other option? because bison gives him this stipulation: if you want us to date, you have to find someone for fadel. and kant cant just cut his losses and say okay, then i guess we won’t date. he has to get close, he has to get this information. so he has to involve someone else, retroactively. and we can argue about if he should have told style the full truth from the beginning, but not only do we see the captain specifically tell him not to do that, but i think kant is well aware it would not have worked if he did. style would have blown the operation out of the water way too soon, if he even agreed in the first place which the odds of him doing without having some investment into fadel would have been very slim! like it sucks, but realistically, what else could kant have done that would have allowed him to do what he needed to? what other choice did he have?

and like you said, style is far from innocent! none of them are innocent in this! thats the whole point! and that’s the big thing, too, because it’s meant to be this complicated messy thing. they subbed in the women from taming in the shrew for assassins because it allows for this intense sort of courtship that was brought on by misogyny in the play, while also allowing us to understand that fadel and bison aren’t innocent, either. that they’re all fucked up and messy in their own ways.

and yeah, i think getting into the babe of it all just isn’t something kant is willing to do for the most part. i think he tries to keep babe out of it as much as possible, but using him as an excuse to get out of there was the most realistic thing he could do, especially when bison has already seen that protective brother side of him. and i also think that kant just doesn’t view himself highly in general. he doesn’t think of himself as selfless or self sacrificing because he knows the awful things hes had to do in order to keep babe safe and in his custody - and while maybe for other people knowing it’s for babe would help his case, he doesn’t feel that way. because obviously he wouldn’t change it, but it doesn’t mean he liked doing any of it, that he likes the lengths he’ll go. especially when i think he thinks if babe knew, he wouldn’t like any of it, either. babe already didn’t like just the lying to bison. can you imagine what he’d think if he knew kant had drugged him once? if he knew all of it was built on a false start? kant probably thinks babe would hate him for it all as much as he hates himself for it.

and as for the first of it all, i do hope despite the media literacy some people lack in it all that he knows he did a fucking incredible job with kant. i say this as someone who has been making detailed posts about first’s acting since the eclipse, but i genuinely think this is his strongest and most nuanced performance. hes made kant so, so clear and easy to understand if you’re paying attention, and i love him so dearly for it.

[burningcheese-merchant]

PLEASE MERCHANT LISTEN TO ME

I started watching Burning Spice Cookie's flashback in the game and suddenly I started thinking "is that all? How stupid" because there are characters older than him and who apparently haven't had this problem of "boredom from "same old thing" so he leaves the Burning Spice Cookie thing as childish. but then I started thinking, what if I developed this? You see, if a person doesn't have a proper childhood they can develop psychopathic traits (more or less what I've seen in Burning Spice Cookie) so what if he and the other Beasts didn't have childhoods? We are not given any clue that they have grown, which gives us to understand that they appeared among the common cookies as adults.

Imagine that you barely have time to know your own name and suddenly you are thrown into... (I don't know, a battle?) expecting you to help calm everything down. What if, as soon as Burning Spice Cookie was born, he began to be burdened with many responsibilities and having to fight to unify Beast-Yeast into one nation? It would be a good reason why he "got bored" with everything, since some psychopaths have that trait of enjoying causing harm or hating monotony and social rules (it could also be an explanation for your au's Burning Spice Cookie).

I am SO glad someone else sees the problem with Burning Spice's "boredom". We have a million immortal characters in this universe and not a single one has had this issue with their lives. The Ancients live forever thanks to the Soul Jam, and they don't seem bothered by it at all (hell, look at Golden Cheese. She is actively pursuing immortality, for herself and especially for her loved ones). The Elementals are immortal, and they have zero complaints about it. Millennial Tree and Sugar Swan are older than the world itself, do you see them crying about it? Nope. They live and carry out their duties happily. You don't even see this with the ones that actually WERE mortal once. Fire Spirit? He loves who he is now, he's said so out loud in cutscenes in Ovenbreak. Sherbet? Though he misses being with Cotton, he otherwise loves being free to travel and see the world almost entirely unburdened, the way he always dreamed. Frost Queen? She adopted her role and upholds the balance of nature with grace. Life and immortality are only what YOU make of them. The Beasts are a bunch of stupid, selfish babies. The end.

"Not having a childhood" IS an interesting point to raise, though. You're absolutely right: having a tumultuous youth can and often does lead to psychological issues of all kinds, big and small ask me how I know lol. And for all we really know, they WERE born adults right from the jump. How Cookies are born and how they age are SUPER weird in this series and neither is ever explained properly besides "baked in oven", so... What's keeping anyone from imagining characters just born fully grown right away?

With this in mind, and with the points you've raised, we can maybe look at the Beasts like this: people who were brought into the world without being asked (although no one is), and burdened with nigh-impossible responsibility right away. Immediately told to sacrifice themselves for people they do not know or care about, who do not know them or care about them. To uphold a balance they may not understand, nor did they create themselves. Never having been allowed the chance to live and grow as all sapient beings are entitled to; to go out and have fun and be foolish and make mistakes that they end up learning from. They were born abnormal, and they never never allowed to escape that abnormality once. They live only for others, never for themselves, not even for small things. One has to wonder if they even counted as people at all in the eyes of those they fought for, or if they were just archetypes whose faces and actions were used to placate and justify whatever anyone wanted them to.

... Yeah, that sounds pretty shitty when you put it that way lol. It just goes to show how the Ancients are the true rightful owners of the Soul Jam, in my opinion. They EARNED that power, it was not given to them on a silver platter. They were able to live life as regular mortals for a while, then actively sought out that power and proved themselves worthy of it. Hollyberry united an entire region of warring houses. Dark Cacao tamed dragons and brought peace to a long-devastated land. Pure Vanilla endured the many arduous trials of the Sugar-Free Road in pursuit of truth and enlightenment. These are all things that require hard work, dedication, humility, and a certain wisdom that you gain from experiencing life in general. Wisdom that the Beasts may or may not have possessed, because they may or may not have ever been able to attain it in the first place.

As for my Yandere AU Spice... Yandere Spice is well and truly a psychopath (all the Yandere Beasts are). It's the thing you see often with actual stalkers: he's more in love with the IDEA of Golden Cheese than the woman herself, as she actually exists. It's all about what HE wants, what HE needs, what HE expects from her. Pure, utter selfishness, projection and delusion, as psychopaths are fundamentally incapable of empathizing with others (that's what marks them as psychopaths in the first place). With the Accidental Yandere Golden Cheese one, he's the same, but A) leaning a bit more into his bloodlust/enjoyment of harming others (which is also common in psychopaths, like you said), and B) him actually being clever/manipulative enough (at least to some degree) to know how to play into Golden's wants and feed her ego in order to sway her (Golden in this AU is also just kind of a fucked up person on her own, independent of Spice, so it's an unlucky combination). She's not "boring" like everything and everyone else is. She captivates him, she surprises him, she keeps him on his toes. He "loves" her. Therefore, he owns her and vice versa, and he will do whatever it takes to have her all to himself, up to and including hurting and killing innocents (it's not like they mattered, anyway). What caused him to be this way ultimately does not matter; maybe it's that overwhelming burden of responsibility and lack of a choice or a chance to live life that we addressed earlier. Perhaps he was just born broken. Whatever it is, he's a bloodthirsty, selfish, uncaring monster and it is Golden Cheese that he has chosen to make pay for it, unfortunately.

TL;DR Not liking immortality is a skill issue. The Beasts are dumb little crybabies. Yandere Spice is disgusting and should face a wall. I like writing deranged people far too much. I enjoy engaging in meaningful conversation with others about things. Thank you for the ask, I vibe with your thoughts and ideas, I hope you find lots of money on the ground today

[roseniceblade-blog]

₊˚ʚ ᗢ₊˚✧ ﾟ. first impressions ╭──╯ . . . . .

russell adler x oc

summary: returning to the job you love, after some unsettling events, you try to welcome new changes. Some more mysterious than others....

authors note: Okay, I know this should be on my writing blog, but I have more Adler stuff on here, I think. I'm also still working on my Crossover story that more chapters are coming out. To be honest, I had the oc idea for a while but didn't know how to execute, so this is just a little snippet drabble of that idea.

“They're late.” CIA Russell Adler commented to his fellow teammate Alex Mason as Adler took a casual puff from his cigarette. Amsterdam; 1981 — they're moving on a target but someone's missing.

“They'll be here.” Mason assured.

“Are you sure about that? How do you know your friend is trustworthy?”

“Trust me, she's one of the best.” Adler gave him a confused look.

“She?”

“Problem?”

“...Nope, not at all.” Adler trailed on as sees the contact they're meeting with, however, someone was by their hip. He had to do a double take when he glanced her way. He would never admit it, but he could've sworn she almost took his breath away.

“Well, Mr. Hans, here is my good friend and his colleague. I'm sure you know them well.” You greeted the two men. You wanted to start off strong since it's been a while since being in the field. Hudson did you a kindness after something happened to you recently. He's helped you before, so you helped too.

“Come on. Woods is itching for a dust up.” Alex's friend said. “Don't want to let him down.” This is the first time you met him and he's…an interesting character. All three of us walked out but you managed to time an interception by clearing your throat. Alex turned behind him, owing you an explanation since Hudson didn't explain EVERYTHING to you.

“Oh yea, forgot.” Alex chuckled as you playfully whack his shoulder.

“Dude!” He feigned getting hurt but you knew he was just messing with you. Like old times…God, you'd miss that. More than they'll ever know..

“Sorry ‘bout that. Adler, meet Vanessa Hansley; one of the best people you'll ever meet. Vanessa, meet Russell Adler.” Alex introduced. Looking at this mystery man, curiously. It was took dark out so you couldn't see his face that well.

“Yeah, we'll do introductions later. Let's get Qasim.” Adler brushed off, walking towards Frank.

Huh, some guy.

╒══════════════════════════════════════════════╛

Within a few hours, you're donning your old combat gear, boots, the whole shebang. It's been a long time but luckily it still fits. You're about to put on your “war paint”; Frank recommended it years ago and helped. Starting until a certain individual in aviators appeared from the side.

You know you're doing it wrong, right?” Jolting, you turn towards the direction of the voice and was a bit relieved. “Jumpy, huh?” He teased. You scoff at the false claim.

“No, I'm not jumpy. Also, I actually am doing it right.” Ignoring him, you continue. He walks closer and sits down in the mundane motel room we're using to prep for the mission at the airport.

“I can see your face still…I can help.”

“No, thank you. It's just —”

“Just come over here.” He insisted. Not wanting to argue further, you walk over to sit on the bed and Adler brings the chair over to sit in front. He doesn't say a word. Just placed the paint jar on the small nightstand and began working. He was…gentle? Of course, her first impression was that of he's the type of guy who puts business/work before everything. Especially of how he brushed her off when they first met. But now he's this close to you, definitely not what you thought originally. ‘Not that bad looking either’ you thought. God, Vanessa, get a grip! You just met him! You were able to get your thoughts in check as he continued to take his time.

“I'm sorry that you got to do this.” You speak carefully as the paint doesn't get in your mouth. “Usually I can do this — done it plenty of times in the past but…I'm a bit rusty…” Alder gazes at you, saying nothing for a few moments.

“Rusty? You didn't seem that way back on the rooftops.” He said. Chuckling, you sigh at the mayhem of what just occurred the past few hours.

“Well, yeah but to be honest, it was just mostly adrenaline. Anger too…”

“Really? Why?” You're hesitant to reveal such sensitive info to a stranger, hell you haven't told Mason and Woods yet. However…

“Yeah…a lot's happened in the span of like 2 days. Also I was supposed to “resign” but Hudson never finalized it.”

“Now, why resign?” Adler asked, curiously.

“Oh hey now, this isn't ‘20 questions to only one person’. What about you, what's your story?” You asked. He sadly went silent again as he finished up. Apologizing again for intruding, he just gave you a small smirk. He could see why Mason was so confident in you and your skills. “Well, I do think of myself as an excellent listener. I hope we can be friends…you need them in this line of work.” You confessed.

“Hmm…maybe. Who knows?”

“Oh, who know?” you mocked, “I'll have you know I'm so fun to be around! Like uber fun!”

“Yeah?” He playfully rolled his eyes.

“Uhhh, yea and —” A knock emitted behind Adler, cutting off our conversation.

“Yo, hurry up there, we gotta go!” Frank yelled out, disrupting the awkward tension. You gathered the rest of the necessary equipment and started to walk out.

“To be continued..” Adler said as he opened the door for you, both of us walking into who knows what for this mission.

[iamnmbr3]

I was reading the wiki page on Occlumency for a fic and now I'm even more confused why JKR thinks Draco can't be redeemed (or whatever she's said on it, I don't care too much for her words).

She literally acknowledges in a quote that Draco is so good at Occlumency because he can compartmentalise his feelings well, and gave as an example that he's such a 'good' bully (good is kind of contested because I really don't think he was that good lol) because he can suppress the pity he feels. Like, she basically says that he does feel bad for (some) of the things he did (or at least has the capacity to), and he just forces it down. I'd imagine an actually 'good' bully wouldn't even feel pity to begin with.

She also says he shut down his compassion to be a good DE, which really just sounds like he tried to shut it down and failed in the end, because he's awful at being actually cruel and doing things the other DEs do. And overall, most people don't hold out for very long when they're actively suppressing or shutting down emotions, and I honestly think it's very possible that Draco struggled more and more with that near the end of the War until it all fell apart at some point.

Of course, this is all just post-books quotes, and fuck JKR, but it's so interesting that she acknowledges that he can (and maybe actively does) feel pity and compassion, which would be such a good set up for a redemption arc imo!

I'm mostly asking this here because your analyses are amazing and you're by far my favourite drarry blog (even though this is only Draco, oops), but I'm curious what you think of this since I don't think you've said anything on this yet (correct me if I'm wrong lol, I could be).

yeah exactly. (for those who don't know - on wizarding world there's this whole long incredibly pretentious and condescending essay that she wrote about how draco didn't get a redemption arc and fans better not like him or else which is hugely contradictory and literally describes how he got a redemption arc - and drops some cool additional lore that makes him even more interesting and complicated - all while trying to get fans not to care. it's wild.) a while ago i started a meta breaking it down but I never got around to finishing it. I really should dig it up.

and yeah I think that whole essay provides great additional backstory that adds depth and interest to draco's character (love the bit about him keeping dark arts relics in a glass cabinet as a reminder - to look at and never use) and is literally the opposite of what jkr wants it to be. she literally describes how he had doubts and had to suppress parts of himself to go along with something he knew was wrong (something that bellatrix or even lucius very obviously didn't have to do) and how ultimately his morals won out, he spent the rest of his life regretting his actions, and fought with his family in order to raise his son with different values. I.e. he CHANGED HIS MIND AND HIS ACTIONS...aka a redemption arc.

the essay is great till jkr concludes with 'so this is why draco is irredeemably evil and fans shouldn't like him'. um ??? the??? why didn't u write him that way???? her lack of self awareness is bizarre.

[evenmyhivemindisempty]

Which of the Boyds would be best friends? Which ones would hate each other?

Steve Murphy

Who he likes best: Quinn! They’re both annoying in similar ways, and although they’re generally sticklers for the rules, they both get the importance of going off-script sometimes. Quinn also doesn’t require any small talk from his companions, or expect Steve to be anything other than what he is.

Who he can’t stand: He finds the Corinthian appalling both because of all the murders, but also for making him question his sexuality! Beyond that, the Corinthian also just tends to lay on the charm in a way Steve finds off-putting and fake.

Donald Pierce

Who he likes best: You know, I think it’s actually Steve? Pierce genuinely thinks Steve’s kind of cool, what with the chasing down drug lords and the working with black ops militia groups and stuff. He’d love to take Steve out for drinks and listen to his stories. Steve also presents fairly masc, but not in an especially threatening way. He’s a specific kind of dad-coded that doesn’t *quite* match up with Pierce’s darkest kinks, but it is enough to make Pierce hungry for his approval. Pierce also wants to make him hotter. He begs Steve to let him buy him a new wardrobe. And stop shaving his damn hairline! They can figure this out together!

Who he can’t stand: He finds Quinn an utter pain in the ass to work with. Quinn’s competent, but he doesn’t like taking orders he disagrees with, which definitely results in the two butting heads and getting into a few heated altercations. Quinn’s tendency to bluntly speak his mind is also absolutely gonna result in Pierce getting his feelings hurt sooner rather than later.

Cap Hatfield

Who he likes best: He likes Ty! He appreciates how family oriented Ty is, and he likes that he’s more capable of living off the land than a lot of the Boyd characters.

Who he can’t stand: Cap recognizes a predator when he sees one, and he instantly distrusts the Corinthian. None of the Corinthian’s methods of charming his prey are effective on Cap at all.

Clement Mansell

Who he likes best: Haha, Clement thinks the Corinthian is super cool! He loves his style, he thinks he’s a blast to hang out with, and he likes how agreeable the Corinthian is. Sure, the Corinthian is down for a concert! Yeah, he wants to try out that new steakhouse too! He’s so ready to hit up a dance club after!

Who he can’t stand: He genuinely cannot be around Danny. Clement delusionally thinks of himself as a struggling musician who’s only doing crime to pay the bills until he makes it; meanwhile, Danny’s a rich kid who grew up eating caviar and lobster, who’s got no logical reason for doing any of this crap. He doesn’t know the struggle at all! Plus, he’s got a daddy that loves him, and he’s still a brat! Clement would do anything for that kind of fatherly love!

The Corinthian

Who he likes best: Oh, he adores Pierce. He’s such a delicious mess of insecurities and trauma he’s staunchly avoided confronting for decades! And he was so damn pretty when he was younger. Exactly the Corinthian’s type!

Who he can’t stand: He thinks Quinn is deeply unfun. At least Steve has some tasty breakdowns and self-worth issues to exploit! Quinn is too sure of himself to be interesting, and he’s also not exciting in the ways the Corinthian likes.

Eli Klaber

Who he likes best: He likes Cap best, mostly because Cap’s fun to go to the shooting range with, and also because if Cap sees him in a pretty dress he’ll instantly think of him as a woman, without Klaber having to say anything at all.

Who he can’t stand: As far as he’s concerned, Steve is a tedious control freak with the blandest and most boring outfits known to mankind. Sure, Klaber dresses similarly when he’s out and about, but Steve seems to genuinely think those ugly suits look good! Horrifying.

Danny Maguire

Who he likes best: Haha, he likes Clement best! He kind of looks up to Clement in a weird way, and thinks his schemes are next-level impressive. He kind of digs his outfit choices too, and he really vibes with some of his music tastes. He’d love to do karaoke with Clement! He can bring the weed and the coke! Once Clement responds to his texts, they’ll make this happen!

Who he can’t stand: Yeah, definitely Steve. He’s DEA – that’s kind of Danny’s natural enemy. Beyond that, Danny also just thinks Steve is a giant buzzkill and an unpleasant workaholic/alcoholic.

Ty Shaw

Who he likes best: Haha he honestly likes Steve! He thinks his crime-fighting stories are super cool, and he’s an excellent guy to go duck hunting with!

Who he can’t stand: Danny’s probably the guy he most dislikes on the spot, but if he gets to know the Corinthian better, it’s definitely gonna be him. He thinks he’s stylish and erudite at first, but when he eventually clocks him as a threat to his friends and family, he’s gonna want him as far away as possible!

Quinn McKenna

Who he likes best: Cap. He’s just an easy guy to kick back with, and maybe go on some nice camping trips with. There’s not many people in Quinn’s life that are down for roughing it in the way he prefers, but Cap is totally fine sans electronics, making fires, and navigating by map and compass!

Who he can’t stand: Clement is an unpredictable criminal and liar, and his out-of-tune singing gives Quinn the worst headaches!

[millylotus]

I got the full We Are Robin series for chirstmas! So here are some random silly things I noticed

Though I don't have any of the Robin War crossover or tie-in issues, which is a bummer but still.

Duke is like a self certified adrenaline junkie & says as much within like the first few pages

So yeah I get it. Mortality. It's about survival. Spent so much time surviving lately I feel like I've gotten addicted to it. To the Rush. I mean, I know why. It's all endorphins and adrenaline. I shouldn't trust it I shouldn't love it this much in all it's chemical falseness. But I'm a junkie now. worse stuff to be hooked on I guess. Issue #1, Page 4

Riko like definitely had a crush on Duke at some point and the angst is only further fueling my mind

Not crazy about the alternative cover to Issue #9B[right], it's cute but it feels like it belongs to another plot idea, #9A[left] looks more inline and it's just genuinely one of the coolest covers for this series

I really liked how it felt like all the Robin kids where pretty equal in page time & relevance to the story, I would have like some more of Riko in the later Issues but she did get a whole one to herself with a completely different artist

Focusing on that, Issue #4 is fucking gorgeous, like Jorge Corona's style is so much fun and comicy but the combined work of James Harvey, Diana Egea & Alex Jaffe brings to life a completely different type of very comic/graph novel style. Along with the fact the busyness of it reflects off of Riko's own personality & mentality. The two page spreads, the lack of barely any panel lines b/c each panel just looks that different from each other, the colors & pattern overlays, it's gorgeous and I could go off on a separate post about it another time. It's a shame I don't have all the covers with their style!

Though having Babs specifically be Riko's batgirl doesn't make much sense in a real world timeline but this is comic time soooo, i still would have like Steph to be her batgirl!

Duke has watched the Hobbit, and he thinks of himself as himself as more of the sword guy but he also like Legolas b/c he thinks he's cool & honestly that says alot about Duke's personality

Always thought of myself as more swarthy sword-weilding badass with the five-o'clock shadow. Or at least that elf dude. Yeah... that elf dude had style. Issue #1 Page 3

I've already read these volumes a couple months ago, so coming back to them was refreshing and I'm glad to have them physically, makes them alot easier to read and understand when I have 'em there physically

Also made me learn more about Troy, I thought he was a bit full of himself at first but he was genuinely just a good kid trying to do good, and his failure to do so resulted in his death and it's one of two things that breaks down our group of Robins [the other being Gordon's robo-batman denouncing the We Are Robin movement as a whole]

Troy Walker...Above average student with interests in political activism, history, and philosophy. Issue #4 Back Page 2

I'm pretty sure Duke is the youngest of our group of Robins, like the character summaries at the back of Issue #4, Duke-16, Riko-16, Dax-17, Izzy-17, Troy-17, Dre-17, which I think is one of best realizations I had about this story

No Duke isn't really the leader of WaR I'd say but the end of the series he's more just a working member of the most active group of Robins

By #12 they're very much a "We" "Us" "All" sort of group and saying they have a distinct leader would do them a disservice, though if I remember correctly there was some sort of hierarchy mentioned in the Robin War crossover issues, but we're gonna work around those for a second, at least until I get me hands on them/reread them again

I'd say the leaders are who ever is most determined to be a Robin within the moment, which Duke isn't at the beginning but is later on [round #6 #11 & #12] and even then he's often sharing that drive to be Robin with another Robin [usually Riko honestly]

And I'd say the Robin with the biggest & consistent want are Riko, Shug & Dax, in that order but mainly cause Dax had an era of doubt after Troy died & Robo-Batman denounced them

Riko hallucinates Batgirl and I need that to be talked about, like the hallucination isn't all that strong, purely visual, but it's high-def and it moves like a person and reacts to what she says to it [in the middle of class while a teacher is trying to get her attention mind you] I think the spread where it happens is the 2nd one I put up top

Izzy is actually a very emotional person, and I think she's the first character to cry in the series, [they are literally disarming a highly dangerous explosive and I think that's so valid for her] and honestly non of her emotions are like unwarrented, she's constantly on her last fucking leg, between late nights at her family resturant, combined with homework till 3 and chronically late to school to the point it might get her held back or expelled she's pretty tired with it all

I think my favorite moment for her was when her brother Hector [who she despises but also that's her brother so like] died to that weird Owl-Man Talon thing [which like I'm pretty sure died in Robin War], and when Talon-Man was about to kill Duke & Riko, like her black mascara/eyeshadow tears as she held that thing at gun point where devastating, not to mention it's goading her on & Duke & Riko are trying to get her to drop the gun aswell

Talon: Yes! this one understands the true nature[kill or be killed] of things! Izzy:...Gonna...gonna bury this creep. Tryin' to sell us the future Duke: C'mon, drop the gun! Talon: Pull the trigger, my beautiful killer. Take your first step towards a new world. Izzy: I'll so it...come any closer an I'll-- Issue #6 Page 7

This Issue also cements our Robins and their relationship to batman some more

Riko, Duke & Dax are the leaders in this Issue, more so the 1st two cause Dax doesn't have much page time, but still the sentiment of them not being wannabes/worshipers Batman's like everyone thinks and instead their own group is important here

Talon: Your code...the Bat's code...it is folly...He won't help you. Issue #6 page 5 Riko: Robins don't kill Izzy. You know this. Remember who we are. Talon: Young fool! Your false idol will be your undoing. Riko: Not trying to be like Batman. Trying to be better. Issue #6 page 10

I like Dre he's actually a really interesting guy, and you have to look past all the walls he pulls up [which are interesting in'n'off themselves] and see a kid who wants to be a vigilante, he's one of the leaders for Issues #9 & #10, being his own vigilante & operative after the Robin Laws are passed, he doesn't back down one bit & stays steadfast in his want to help people, going against Smiley in his Joker era as the first Robin to do so

He's just honestly cool, and I like the way he starts as a pessimist to the idea of Nest, but that doesn't fully stop him from wanting to help people, he gets back into it the moment he pulls himself together

I don't think I've brought up Dax properly yet but he's definitely one of the connectors of the group, [the others being Shug & Riko], once he gets out of his early bought of pessimism after Robo-Bat disavows them he is a consistent leader within the group and pushes the others to fucking do something, but his connecting work is mainly done for Izzy & Dre, Izzy when she's in her slump later on, & when Dre when he's running solo without the others, he pulls the wayward birds closer to the rest of the flock

Having read this series & reminiscing on "Batman & The Signal" & "The Outsiders" I don't like the way they portray Duke much at all

Lee Bermejo gets Duke in a way I don't think the other writes really do, this Duke, WaR!Duke, would not have become The Signal, he would have been Lark, and I mourn the lose of what he could of been had he not been pushed into become The Signal, it would have been interesting to see Damian & Tim share Robin with a kid they had to actually deal with, it might have actually forced Tim to move on completely from Robin, it might have gotten Damian more friends, it would have given Duke a more interesting story in my opinion

Okay I'm tired now, so i'm just put my fav covers of the ones I have from this series in left to right descending order of favorite-to-least favorite.

Goodnight! & Happy Holidays everyone!!!!

[giurochedadomani]

I really, really, really like this take. I believe s2 could have benefitted from this. Yes, Silco (and I'd argue, Jinx) don't really change throughout the show. I think they're prime examples of 'characters with characteristics considered good or bad exclusively depending on if they stand with the 'good guys' or against the 'good guys', which is nice in such a heavily political show. We can assume that Silco has always been extremely intelligent, extremely committed to his ideals and extremely ruthless. From Piltover's pov he's a monster, but from Zaun's perspective... it's easy to imagine why people flocked to him and how he probably started out as a community leader, like Vander. 

I really like your idea of Vander cutting a deal to keep the lanes safe. I can imagine the council saying: okay. we agree but kill silco. I can picture the council really digging into the fact that Silco's a 'dangerous loose cannon who's trying to make the whole undercity rise up'. It makes sense from their position. So maybe both Silco and Vander were given the impossible choice of getting what they've always wanted and giving up their loved ones and....... they chose differently (because no questions asked, like. there's no doubt that silco wouldn't have given jinx up. that's what makes his death so tragic) 

And then perhaps Silco and Vander both showed up at the bridge bc the rebellion was unstoppable (I can't decide if it's better if Vander couldn't stomach to really kill Silco or if he thought he did). If that had happened, Vander writing a shitty letter in which he said that he was sorry but also kinda sorta blamed Silco for the deaths of their besties as a justification would have truly been a very massively shitty apology. 

That would have been great! A nice parallel to when Vander surrenders to the enforcers to protect Vi in s1. At that early point of the series, Vander looks heroic for doing so. But it would have been interesting to have as a context that the last time he tried to cut a deal with the enforcers he tried to murder his brother in arms? bestie? lover?

Also it could have made a really nice parallel with Jinx in s2, when we as an audience know that she's more than the 'dangerous psyco' the enforcers keep defining her as (like yeah, she does a lot of horrible things, but describing her as a 'dangerous psyco' is oversimplifying her and totally ignoring the history between piltover and zaun. it would have been GREAT if we as an audience found out that they tried to do the same with silco. And it would have been great if this rift between silco and vander continued with jinx and vi, really driving home the whole 'two cities always at war'). 

Idek, idek, I totally agree with the fact that Silco wasn't so bad and Vander wasn't so good if they were, afterall, so close, and that the show would have massively benefited from showing that.

so. okay. the lanes are the result of silco & vander's smuggling operation according to one of the writers. the one who let them make money other than miners. we also know that they were friends in the mines.

my question is: were they friends before the smuggling opperation or they became friends through it? Bc I've just pictured Silco approaching Vander a bit à la Luke Skywalker approaching for the first time the very charming pilot willing to deliver cargo and I really like that insane level of gayness.

like. was vander in sevika's possition back in the day? in the sense that silco seems to always have been the mastermind in the shadows, with sevika as the more public face of his whole enterprise. did he have the same thing going on with silco back in the day? Because I also really, really like that level of gayness.

anyway. I need to know more about them.

[cyborg-squid]

Just finished watching Nosferatu (2024), and one of the really interesting things about it is how it layers like multiple aspects of vampire 'history', from the original 1922 film to Bram Stoker's Dracula, and, it seems, to even early vampire myths. And the thing about the Dracula similarities, and this is odd to type out, but it's almost like they pared down some of the action-adventure elements from Dracula in favor of more horror elements, which is typically the opposite in book-to-movie adaptations. Gone is cowboy Quincey and the hyper-competent Van Helsing, replaced instead with an occult obsessed (yet still empathetic to the female lead's plight) Willem Dafoe (what do you mean that's not the character's name?!). No horse chases after Dracula's carriage in the Carpathian mountains either, which is good because that would have felt very out of place in this movie. Just very interesting to look and go "Oh yeah, huh, the book was the one with more action than the movie."

It also extends a lot more empathy towards it's female lead, Ellen, than I feel Dracula was to both Lucy and Mina, though since it's been a while since I read it, I may be wrong on those accounts. The most striking difference is the death of the vampire, and how in the book, Mina is on the brink of being turned and it is the combat efforts of the men that lay low the vampire, while in Nosferatu (2024), it is Ellen that kills Orlock, albeit at the cost of her own life, utilizing the connection that awoke him in the first place, and turning his own lust against him, keeping him away from his grave-earth until the sun comes up. And it's a little bit of a tricky read on the themes here for me, since she does unfortunately sacrifice herself to kill him and it was this supernatural 'thing' shes had since birth that woke him in the first place, this could read as a typical (of the time of Dracula and the 1922 Nosferatu) sort of 'complaint against woman sensuality and irresponsibility' of the time, but Ellen within the movie is consistently portrayed as a victim of Orlock's rather than his enticer, as he and others claim. She too confesses her own impurity and has that claim refuted by her husband (who is less interesting that Dracula's Johnathan), who himself has also been rendered 'impure' by Orlock's sexual assault of him. And her strengths are recognized by Dafoe, who on first meeting her rejects some of the methods used by not-Seward, like binding the limbs while sleeping and the heavy use of ether, which would have been rather common methods of the time (Europe in 1838) for subduing disorderly women, and it is he who does believe and validate her claims of a darker power at work, rather than mere melancholy or hysteria as others initially thought. And he recognizes that the men in the story are not, physically or supernaturally, capable of killing Orlock and that it must be Ellen and her unique connection who does it, but it is as a sacrifice, and that is where the tricky part lies. Because while it does have Ellen finally switching from prey to predator, from victim to victor, it is at the cost of her own life, and I don't like the idea of her mistake as a youth (which resulted in Orlock's pursuit of her) only being rectifiable through her death. But then on the other hand, this is a horror story, and frankly there is no way it could have had a 'better' ending.

As a side note, and this complaint really isn't with the movie itself, because it is a good movie. And that's all it needs to be. But it almost like... didn't need to come out in the modern day, if that makes sense? Like, to have trailers and a Christmas Day release date and a coffin shaped popcorn bucket and 1 million cast interviews, all that shit is unnecessary and doesn't really suit the movie that it is, though I can hardly blame the director and the other artists involved with it for that.

Also, I love this dumb fucking headline about the movie: me when I'm a fucking idiot who doesn't get it. Real "point and laugh mockingly" at it hours. fucking lol

[avnasace]

its very irritating interesting to see a lot of people hating aventurine, like yes hes sly and seems like this rich guy who cares about nothing else but money, but ironically he hasnt really lied to us so far, or screwed us over, in comparison to some other characters hes actually been honest and helpful and at least we know his motives.

also theres the whole 'he was a slave who didnt get an education and his family probably died horrible deaths' thing, and after all that he managed to crawl his way to the top of the ipc ladder by himself, aka the people who (presumably) enslaved him.

like??? of course hes not going to be a warm person helping you out of the kindness of his heart, he (presumably) got enslaved and most people who meet him are racist as fuck like???? what do people expect

also ironic the amount of people wanting darker/morally grey characters and moaning theyre not all Good or simping over TB 24/7

like just say you cant handle complex characters and go.

[lala-blahblah]

I will never make this because it would be for an audience of one (me) but ever since reading "If we Were Villains" (story about serious drama kids in college who perform shakespeare and deal with a murder) I have been entertaining the thought of a crack fic crossover with High School Musical The Musical The Series where the staff decides they will no longer put on shakespeare after the tragic accident that happened at Thanksgiving, because Shakespeare plays would only increase the tension and drama. So they hire Ms. Jen who decides their spring play will actually be High School Musical (which exists in the 90s in this universe) and it ruins the vibe so much that everyone gives up on being dark and mysterious because they're universally pissed at Ms Jen for making them learn choreoraphed basketball dancing.

[nerdy-hyperfixations]

It's hard being someone who does genuinely get infuriated with Ford's actions and acknowledges a lot of his flaws and the people he hurt, while also liking (and relating) to his character enough that I would like him to have nice things sometimes and don't believe he's satan

[thedrotter]

as a little treat i am sharing with you little Aya doodles I've done over the last few days to unwind ww just little expressions based on lines in-game because those are always fun to draw. nothing too special just biscuit

it's Aya because upon doing bizarrely throughout playthroughs of the game for still unspecified project purposes I've gained a soft spot for her she's my daughter now my mental tier list on my favorite characters is so confusing right now

[moeblob]

Karen: LMAO every guy I meet reminds me of my big brothers that's so funny except if Paul is already my brother and you're also a brother that's a bit awkward, huh Hot bartender: THATS MOVING REALLY FAST AND I LIKE YOU AS A PERSON BUT - Karen: having my brothers date would be SO WEIRD Hot bartender: Well on the bright side I literally cannot speak more than five words to him so we aren't dating because he's so cute

(Everyone else: that is somehow the most depressing bright side we never want to hear)