#like. my mom just BLATANTLY doesn't trust me

[castrotophic]

I trust you

I LOVE YOU 😭

[poppytuft]

the bear s3 spoilers

below the cut! thinking about claire and stuff we saw this season re: carmy/syd/the restaurant/donna, just finished the season so itll be a mess and also im comin in way too hot on this so my bad

sometimes...... sometimes i believe you guys are all watching different tv. im not sure how this season didnt feel like a direct through line from s2?? and im not sure WHY everyone is SO MAD about claire LITERALLY "haunting" this season. girl. come on. we need to have a sit down talk about how the berzatto generational trauma is the real meat of this show (this will make sense, just trust me). thats the MAIN EMOTIONAL POINT. syd's relationship with her dad, marcus and his mom, richie and evie, even tina and louie are all examples of parental relationships that are tender, sweet, supportive, etc. these are INTENTIONAL!! by creating these relationships we see PLAINLY how fucked donna is and how much she fucked up all of these kids. thats why "ice chips" was such a FANTASTIC episode. there was SO MUCH unpacked, so much revealed, so much worked through with sugar and her but at the end of the day she's still learning how to unlearn all of this horrific narcissistic bullshit. SHES STILL UNLEARNING THOUGH. thats where fucking DONNA of all people sits right now——somehow, she's learning how to heal. EVERYONE IS LEARNING. that's also what is so important about that episode.

now lets look at carmy. in "ice chips" we are LITERALLY told about how each berzatto is born: mikey fighting against the idea of being alive at all, nat into a quiet, soothing room, and CARMY is fucking born into EVERYONE SCREAMING and ARGUING and FIGHTING. we are BLATANTLY told that all carmy has ever known is HELL and all he's ever known how to communicate is through exploding. this is so violently against what we also know about his personality from childhood in "fishes" (anxious growing up, arts-oriented, had a hard time making friends). now, he works a violently stressful job, processing the trauma from both his mother (and chef fields [joel mchale], realistically) through the high-stress environment.

NOW. ENTER CLAIRE.

HOW is she not fascinating to you all. we don't see her whole story (because the bear, duh) but we are given just enough pieces here to put together that her story runs parallel to carmy's. how are you not getting this. walk with me.

claire. glasses, nerdy, quiet, sweet, girl next door. family friend! cute, but considered mid for a long time by everyone at school, but suddenly the berzatto men all badger carm, "oh she got a glow up, oh shes looking for you, she wants to see you," etc etc etc. what happened in between?

she finds herself. she finds the stressful thing she LOVES, which is the hospital. her job is objectively more stressful than carmy's (illustrated by that scene earlier in the season but i forgot the episode, where claire talks about the girl who got her shit wrecked by the glass table), and while we don't have an exact understanding of what her home life was like, we understand that her and carmy both have a level of internal anxiety that thrives on the stress of their careers. HOWEVER, claire does it because she loves it. carmy just doesn't know how to stop.

this is what makes claire feel like "peace" to carmy——because her high-stress job is a choice, an active choice she is making because it fulfills her. it's not to prove her dead brother wrong, or to honor his own legacy, or to prove that dickbag boss wrong, or to leave a mark on the world, or to make her own life worthwhile, or to prove that she doesn't need anyone else. she genuinely enjoys helping people even when the days are stressful, or scary. he's obsessed with this. he wants to know how she does this. every day she leaves that stress at home——and he wants to learn how to do that too.

claire is VITAL to this season and to understanding carmy's stress——and how far back he is in his healing process. it should only become more and more apparent, as we see characters like tina (the beef/the bear became vital to her success/development as a chef AND person, both for the people AND her love of food), marcus (not hiding his grief, but using it to help rationalize how much his mother loved him and wanted to be surrounded by people that love him), and richie (finding a purpose through service/expo and understanding he can start over again) push through their own traumas and struggles to become better people. if donna can be not only present at sugar's bedside during labor, but WELCOMED at this point in the show, it makes carmy's inability to heal all the more present. claire is an important part of this puzzle: she helps us see a window into a world where carmy is balanced emotionally, but unbalanced professionally, because he has no idea how to make the two coexist.

however, the idea that he can be balanced emotionally at all is so fucking enticing——with the help of someone who experiences stress in the same way as him (and who is familiar with his familial trauma), he has the opportunity to grow up and move on from his family trauma and wounds perpetuated by the industry he works in.

on the flip side of this....... his inability to process any of this is starting to impact syd. and frankly, that's some bullshit. his lack of communication, inability to community build/trust ANYONE, and his violent stubbornness is pushing her into the same space that he was in under chef fields, in a much slower, more subtle manner, and for slightly different reasons. her panic attack at the end of the season could read in two directions to me: her stress over the responsibility of changing so many people's lives has boiled over once she remembered that the beef once was truly great (hey five star review on the fridge!), OR, she realizes how much she isn't in it for the food. fuck a Michelin star: she wants to cook with her family. chef terry says at the end of "forever", in the garage with carmy, that she's so grateful she got to do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted, where she wanted, with the people she wanted to do it with. sydney is so close to having those things at the bear——but carmy's dysfunction is keeping it just out of arms reach. the two of them are now on opposite sides of the approach from last season: syd dying for a star, and carmy dying to cook for the woman he loved. now, carmy is hungy for recognition again, desperate to prove something, and sydney is remembering (thanks to the conversation with other chefs during the ever funeral service) why she loved cooking in the first place. so this leaves us to wonder: should she stick it out? for the people? or make something of herself? is she carmy, or is she terry? i guess we will just have to see.

all this to say: every character is connected. the bear is a show about family, found and blood, and the choices we make for, with, and because of the people we love, for better or for worse. food is only the center of it, because it's the center of all of our lives. you can't hate claire without understanding where she sits in the web of the berzatto family. and really, you can't hate her if you understand what her presence means for carmy, for syd, and the restaurant as a whole.

[seventeenlovesthree]

Digi Dynamic Shipping Game

Send me two names among the following 12 and I’ll write a short analysis post about them:

Taichi Yagami | Yamato Ishida | Sora Takenouchi | Koushirou Izumi | Mimi Tachikawa | Jyou Kidou | Takeru Takaishi | Hikari Yagami | Daisuke Motomiya | Miyako Inoue | Iori Hida | Ken Ichijouji

Whether canon provides input on them or not.

The first Adventure season is very adamant about making sure that the viewer identifies Sora as the "mom/big sister" friend of the group. This becomes mostly apparent when she is consistently protecting and/or taking care of Mimi and Hikari - but also Takeru. As I had pointed out in the post about the family angle between Sora, Yamato and Takeru, the latter functions as a bridge between the broken family dynamics they all appear to have at this point. Since Takeru is the youngest member of the group for the majority of the season, he is the most vocal about Sora basically being a motherly figure - which is even more blatantly stated in the English dub version where he straight up tells her that he doesn't "miss his mom so much" when she is around. And it makes sense that he perceives her that way, considering how she took everyone under their wing, including him, functioning as the voice of reason to prevent the others from fighting - especially when his brother is involved -, supporting them in the back however she could. And since Sora herself is struggling with her own sense of obligation, questioning her intentions and ability to love - is it really surprising that, the moment someone like Takeru finally reassures her, tells her that he likes her and doesn't want her to disappear, she immediately stops crying? Finding her composure again, regaining her positive outlook?

Both Sora and Takeru need validation, this becomes quite clear and is an ongoing theme between them through the course of Adventure - there is a reason why Takeru immediately becomes more serious and determined once Sora (and Taichi too) tells him to take care of and protect Hikari. He craves to be needed, he doesn't want to be a burden and actually being trusted by someone like Sora (and Taichi, again!), someone he greatly admires, is a huge boost for him. Maybe even the central motivation he needed (aside from Yamato's reassurance) to not give up, to "fulfill his responsibility", on his way to let Angemon evolve to HolyAngemon. Just like Takeru's words may have been a little stepping stone for Sora to activate her own Crest as well...

After Adventure, there aren't a lot of visible cues that indicate the same/a bigger level of closeness between these two (even taking into account that Sora and Yamato had been dating through the course of 02), but there are little tidbits here and there that do indicate care between them. It's when Takeru protects her from a Snimon attack in 02 (once again showing that he is responsible and protective!), it's when Sora calls him to ask whether he is okay in Tri (still showing off her caring attitude towards him!)...

One might argue that all of these framings are entirely familial, since there is so much focus on the family angle, especially when you keep the age gap of three years between them in mind. However, the reason why I chose the screenshot(s) above may indicate another meaning after all... Because similarly to my previous Daiora analysis, people tend to mainly focus on Sora's romantic potential with Taichi and Yamato - even though there may be other candidates who are potentially just as - if not more - emotionally compatible with her...

Whether I think why and how they’d work.

A famous callback Tri pulled on Adventure is the awkward silence between Sora, Taichi and Yamato in the fourth movie - mirroring the scene in which Sora runs away from the group, unable to tell them why she wanted to be by herself and why she considers herself "unable to love". In Tri, both Taichi and Yamato are at a loss, they have no idea how to deal with her. When they were still kids, all it took was for Takeru to approach her, thank, reassure and tell her that he "likes" her - which is probably why Yamato's instinct as a teenager at this point seems to be the following: "Shall we ask Takeru?"

Takeru, as opposed to his big band leader brother, has a so called "ladies-man-persona" in Tri, he's got a reputation of having dated several girls and appears to be very friendly with Meiko, much to Hikari's jealousy amusement. However, romance is not Tri's strongest feat - and just like we never learn whether or not Jyou's girlfriend is real, we also don't know what exactly Takeru has been doing all this time. He's famous for wearing a mask consisting of smiles and one may or may not be worried about him developing unhealthy dating habits that never result in long-lasting relationships....... OR we stop assuming the worst and take things at face value for once: Takeru Takaishi is a very kind person at heart, and even if he hides behind a mask, has a very big soft spot for reassuring girls around him.

Do you know who also has a soft spot for reassuring others while hiding their feelings behind a mask at times? Sora Takenouchi. They are both incredibly observant of the people around them and very keen to put them at ease, mostly through words - and just like we have seen above, they NEED that kind of validation. It's why Takeru notices that Sora got a new haircut and points it out to her, whereas his brother hadn't seen it at all. It's why Takeru tries to keep track on everything that is happening, not only because he's on his way to become a novelist, but because he cares and even if he probably still can't be honest about his own feelings - he knows that it doesn't hurt to notice and compliment others, he knows that he can make others feel good by being kind like that. Just like Sora is proooobably aware that her caring nature may not be the healthiest self-care approach, but at least puts smiles on everybody else's faces.

Again, this may not sound like the most stable foundation for a relationship, but I could actually see it working out for them. I'm not saying that I want them to "parent each other", but maybe together, they could reach a state where everything gets a little bit easier. Crying together, opening up to each other about how difficult it had been to always uphold that friendliness because they may have felt responsible, even if there were moments when they both would just have wanted to curse and scream... They both love their friends dearly, but may crave to allow themselves a shoulder to lean on. From someone who understands the struggles. I think it could be a great lesson for both of them as consenting adults, trying to live their own lives - having Sora tell Takeru that he doesn't always have to be the strong one to keep everyone together, that he is loved for who he is and that he won't be left again (because his abandonment issues may still be pretty strong). And simultaneously having Takeru tell Sora that she needs to look in the mirror to realize that she deserves to be loved for who she is as well (especially because her flight instinct might still be pretty strong). And that she deserves someone who actually TELLS her that...

Whether I’d prefer them as platonic or romantic ship.

I had thought about Takeru as analogy to Yamato before, simply because he is so much more vocal towards Sora. And while the age gap and mother angle may make things a little bit difficult and even though I had never thought too deeply about the romantic side of Sokeru... I can understand why they used to have their niche here on tumblr. Art of Takeru protecting Sora for once ("I am not a kid anymore!"), art of him letting loose in front of her... The appeal is definitely there and I am a big fan of mutually reassuring ships, so while I usually go for them platonically, I do have a bit of a fondness for their romantic potential now! So it would be nice to see how their relationship may pan out in canon in "the future".

[13eyond13]

13, 16 & 20 for the ask meme please?

13. What can make you excessively angry?

People being extremely lacking in common sense when it comes to taking care of the vulnerable little creatures they're responsible for, especially kids. Most recent example I can think of is my aunt being an asshole to my cousin by blatantly favouring her son over her daughter right in front of them, even going so far as to tell her daughter that she loves her son more. I get so upset on the behalf of the kid who is getting the raw end of the deal, because it is incredibly unfair, and I know the daughter is internalizing it and thinking it's her own fault somehow, even though it's not, and it's just basically her mom being an immature loser most times...

16. What is a skill or talent that you've completely lost or overlooked? Why did that happen?

I used to be great at drawing whatever was in front of me with a pen, and did it constantly in my sketchbook. Particularly when I was sitting in a classroom or something, I'd always be drawing the backs of people's heads:

It would not look that good if I sat down to try it again now. What happened is just that I used to practice it every single day, and now I go months at a time without drawing at all. There's really nothing magic about being able to draw well. It's just muscle memory and the discipline to consistently practice at it, like anything else.

20. Tell me what you think others think about you.

I think I'm considered quite challenging to get to know by most people who haven't spent a ton of time with me, actually. I'm very quiet and private in real life, take quite a long time to get to know or trust people, and err on the cautious side with what I choose to say. I usually find it difficult to pipe up and share more about myself in social situations, and I do a lot of listening and furtive people-watching and mostly keeping to myself. I can sense the vibes that people like my coworkers often don't really know where to begin when it comes to making small talk with me, and they've made remarks within hearing distance of me before along the lines of "she doesn't want to talk to us." And though it bothers me to realize that I come off this way to them, I also find it very difficult to change my personality into becoming more of an open book. And sometimes I don't know if it's something I actually DO need to change, or to just work on accepting about myself a bit more. I usually just hope that the more intuitive ones sense that I'm not trying to be snobby so much as I'm just shy and not much of a chatty person most times. I often feel like the online friends I make probably have an easier time getting to know me well than people who meet me in person, actually...

People who have known me well for years say I'm bright, funny, gentle, easygoing and kind, so at least once you get past the inpenetrable walls there's that, I suppose 😅

[deep asks that get uncomfortably personal]

[medievildead]

for the ship opinion bingo kratos/heimdall 👉👈

HOOOO BOY SORRY THIS TURNED INTO A RANT however you did ask for my opinion and this is my blog so you know what. I am gonna post it. And this will be the only time I talk about it.

I reeeeeally don't like kradall it creeps me out and I don't understand it at fucking all. I see people try to make Hear Me Out posts about them and AUs about them and it just makes less and less sense to me (and I KNOW this is bold ass words coming from me I KNOW) but the canon dynamic that does exist for them at no point to me ever at all in the slightest tipped me off or made me think to ship them. Never clicked.

Then again you gotta remember that I'm someone who has been autistic about Kratos since 2005 and I am so incredibly damn picky about shipping him unironically with anyone. Shipping Kratos with Heimdall knowing the kind of person Kratos is and what hes gone through to Become his new self in the norse saga just doesn't make sense. A lot of kradall I see (that isn't non/con honestly another huge reason I don't vibe with it is that a bunch of people use it as a bolt for r/pe stuff in the early moments of Ragnarok fandom) is just them in a very ooc marriage situation I can't wrap my head around. Throwing Kratos into a heavy intense relationship is dumb to me like it took him centuries to fucking get over Lysandra and then moving on to Faye and I'm expected to belive the Hear Me Out posts about why Kratos would be in a long term relationship with.... Heimdall? The guy who is a complete prick to giants? Who actively said misogynistic shit about Atreus' mom who Kratos still loves with his whole heart? And threatened to actively kill his 14 year old son? Kratos's son? Kratos who has lifelong trauma about his child dying from war? I'm not buying it im sorry. No way you cook it will convince me.

In the early points of the ships existence honestly felt to me like people who were into Heimdall just wanted to explore a crutch for brat breaking. But its just genuinley not something I'm into. I'm a firm believer of ship and let ship as long as its harmless and for the most part it is! It's people having fun but it's not for me and never, ever ever will be no matter what and there is a reason I don't talk about it on this blog.

I've been in this fandom a long time and let me say Kratos x Heimdall reminds me a lot of when GoW3 came out and people started shipping and writing tons of Kratos x Hermes dubcon stuff for the sole reason of yaoi fujoshi people wanted to fetishize the gay male power dynamic. Its like I honestly feel some people see a big muscular man and a smaller effeminate man and are like "oh I need to make one a submissive girl" like again I know its just words and pictures on a screen but I have been here long enough to be Very Tired of seeing my sexuality get used as a fetish tool sjshskdnks

And. And ill be honest. And this is petty and trust me this is literally just me and my opinion but I cannot fucking stress how utterly confused and flabbergasted because FREYR IS RIGHT FUCKING THERE. HE IS RIGHT FUCKING THERE. BLATANTLY INTO KRATOS, A COMPLETE KIND SWEETHEART FULL OF LOVE, EXACTLY THE KIND OF GUY THAT WOULD SHOW KRATOS A GOOD TIME AND HAS AN ADORABLE ONSCREEN DYNAMIC THAT DOESN'T EVEN NEED TO BE AU'd OR CHANGED TO MAKE SENSE AND THIS FANDOM DOES NOTHING WITH IT. I see so many AUs where Heimdall survives to get with Kratos and valid but you know what??? I am gonna be angry, WHERE ARE MY FREYR LIVES AUs. WHERE ARE MY AUs WHERE FREYR LIVES AND GETS KRATOS ASCENDED ON THAT VANAHEIM ZA???????

LIKE FORREAL. I honestly feel like this fandom gets so blindsided by Heimdall and wanting to put him in situations and hell I'm guilty of it too, but I have genuinley met GoW Heimdall likers that straight up forgot Freyr existed and it shocks me. I don't get it!!!!!!

Theres a reason I ship Heimdall x Hermes together and its because their individual dynamics are so unbelievably compatible and I like to explore that. But I get people wanting something more realistic in universe as a muse. When it does come to shipping Heimdall with someone else in canon that makes absolute dynamic sense to me, I gotta be honest, Heimdall x Gná is the only "heimdall gets a dom" pairing that I can realistically get behind. Since they both would actually like each other despite being hated by all their peers for their devotion to Odin. Is it healthy? No, but Kradall isn't exactly peaches and cream either. So we work with what we got babey!!!!

[uzumakichcined]

"He really did all that?" It's surprise, not doubt. He's not calling her a liar.

"From where I stand he's tried to destroy my village, my home. He's body snatched people. Killed innocents. He killed our Hokage, and a lot of the people died in his attack. He created the chaos for us that he saved you from.... well. Some of it. I can't even imagine...." He swallowed hard thinking about her words. Her story.

"No one.... likes to think their hero is capable of bad things you know? And I'm not... I don't know a lot about history in the village. I kind of failed a lot of my tests. It's hard to be interested in the history of a village that makes you an outcast..." Besides that they never really taught the realities of war. It's hard to get kids to grow up wanting to be shinobi if you tell them the truth of it all.

"I guess for you it's hard to care about a village that didn't care about you." He's starting to understand.

"I'm sorry..." Naruto stated. Eyes starting to water. Then came the tears. "I'm sorry that I didn't know. I'm sorry that I couldn't help you or your mom." How could you have you didn't know they existed??

"I'm sorry the world is so evil sometimes and I'm sorry that people let it happen to you! When I'm Hokage I'll never turn my back on people who need me! NEVER. NEVER. HOW COULD I?"

Naruto has always struggled with investing too much too quickly into strangers. Every kid who's alone. Every person looking for a home. He's wanted so badly to help them. It's not in him to walk away from someone who needs someone. He puts his trust in anyone hoping that they'll be someone who deserves it, and it's gotten him burned so many times, trusting the wrong people. But how can he ever stop? If he does then there's the chance he doesn't help the people who really need it. He'd rather be betrayed a thousand times than EVER let someone in need suffer when he could have helped.

" Yes. Lord Orochimaru treated me well, fed me, praised me, rewarded me when I had done well and helped when I made mistakes. Kabuto was my mentor as well and while we didn't have as close of a relation, they never made me feel like I was nothing. I was important to them, they always made sure I knew that. " Karin couldn't even look at him now, instead she kept her gaze away from him as the tone of his voice wavered with tears. Tears she'd seen a lot growing up from families she'd torn apart and experimented on, something she'd grown numb to for the most part.

" I know people can be good and bad, no one can be entirely good and no one can be entirely evil. People, animals, and things in general are too complex for that. The only reason I even know I'm an Uzumaki is because no one would shut up about it. My red hair brands me as one, as many Uzumakis have it. It's how they were able to find us, and kill us. They'd pull on it, drag me around by it, constantly remind me how it makes me a monster just for being born and that I'm worth less than a dead body. "

" How many genocides has Lord Orochimaru conducted? Is it wrong to fight against a village that is blatantly causing people to die from their inaction? Force them into acting by bringing the fight to them? Do you think that's wrong? " Karin huffs, crossing her arms.

" Maybe killing your Hokage was the only way to get Konoha to actually do something for a change, rather than sit on a high throne and act better than everyone else. Really open their eyes to how everyone else is suffering like I am right now. Since you never would have known otherwise, would you? Until someone else makes you listen. You already did it once, and you haven't changed since then so why would I ever believe you? "

Karin wanted to twist the knife in deeper, make him feel worse. Finally she wasn't the only one who had to suffer like this, and she took satisfaction in kicking someone else for a change.

[septembersghost]

I know you must hate talking about this subject and you've given some really good advice for ignoring things, but just wondering if you have an opinion on the new sofia coppola interview/article on the movie from a day or so ago? I'm trying so hard to not care, but it really broke my heart. There's already so much bad press about elvis and this is killing me and making me so sad. It just seemed so different than the article from last week in tone it surprised me and took me off guard.

it's okay, i'm touched you trust and confide in me, even though i know there's not a lot i can do to assuage this as a whole, just having someone listen can help sometimes. tbh i'm not following press about this at all, so i only know anything when someone tells me. i'm not completely sure which interview you mean? in the most recent one that came up, she said:

"“I didn’t want to villainise him,” says Coppola, but she has been fairly honest about his flaws. “It was the most non-Elvis movie about Elvis. But I didn’t want [the film] to be about a drug addict. I like to leave things to the imagination. It’s just not my style to be in your face.”"

the article itself is what characterizes him in a particularly negative framing, but sofia doesn't actually say that? (and editorializing in articles like this is simply so annoying - when i googled this interview, a different article about the film came up which included a sentence saying elvis "blatantly stole his music," which is totally untrue and an incorrect framing, and i've read enough terrible/inflammatory/poorly fact-checked/unkind articles at this point that my brain shuts off when i see something i know is inaccurate or coming from a place of bad faith).

additionally, she said: "She was reminded of “my mom’s generation, and how my mom grew up with a big force of a husband”, but also the feelings that surround an early love. “All those stages of transition, from girlhood to adult womanhood. I felt it was relatable,” she says."

"I just put myself totally in her perspective and tried to make a film about what if you were her. I didn’t think too much about all the different perspectives. Yes, it was a different time, different culture, but there are elements that remain the same."

we know he could have a fiery temper (yet was always quick to apologize), we know he could get into dark moods and low moments of creative frustration, we know about the issues he had in romantic relationships, we know he struggled with his health, both physically and psychologically, and with managing that in various ways, some tragically damaging, and none of that erases that he was also profoundly kind, generous, loving, funny, spiritual, talented. so i hope it keeps that dynamism. i'd imagine it has to in some way, coming from that feminine perspective that everything is noting, doesn't it have to in order to understand why she fell in love with and was captivated by him, why she continues to love him and speaks highly of his legacy to this day? i know i don't necessarily have a...favorable...opinion of the casting choice here, but if he really does turn out to be that one note figure, it will entirely eliminate the power of the story, even for priscilla too.

my best recommendation is not to read the negative and salacious press and be aware of preconceived biases and misinformation, but i understand curiosity gets the better of us sometimes and we want to know what's happening, even if logic is telling us it'll make us feel worse. i'm so sorry this is making you sad! i know i always go back to elvis and his outlook/relationship towards fans to try to offer comfort with this, but i truly believe he wouldn't want our hearts to break over things we cannot control or change, over perceptions of image (as he himself said: the image is one thing, and the human being is another). his goal towards fans was always one of connection and happiness and the power of music. the focus on highly personal, intimate details ultimately makes me a little uncomfortable because it wasn't what he wanted us to hold onto. like i've said before, you don't have to fight battles for him, you can just keep whatever joy and emotions you feel towards him for yourself. outside opinion on most anything is varied, even divisive, but it doesn't change what you find - that's the sacred thing.

[dirtyoldmanhole]

ch23 opens with one of the funniest moments in a video game ever despite the morbid conversation.

ryoma opens with something he's been pondering over.

extremely reasonable, and he's already pretty sharp for a FE protagonist for noticing this, and not glossing it over like corrin just did. (when ryoma x alphonse 'we notice shit no other FE lead does?' forging bonds in FEH?)

(worth noting that leo and takumi have probably been thinking about this too, but left the floor to ryoma to broach it with corrin, considering his closeness with scarlet.)

...........

..........................................

Corrin: That can't be! Ryoma: Think about it. We were the only ones who jumped off that bridge. Gunter: And you said yourself that you and Scarlet were attacked as you were falling, milady. Corrin: Ah, I see now what you mean... Ryoma: For you to be ambushed as you fell... The killer must have jumped with our group. You've wanted us all to trust each other, so I didn't want to say anything... At least, not until I was certain. Corrin: I appreciate that, Ryoma. Ryoma: However, it's possible that we'll encounter even stronger resistance from here on in. We may even reach Anankos soon.

...................................................................................................

i can't. I cAN'T

you know the funniest thing about gunter

the man has the dryest, sickest sense of humor i have ever seen. HE SAYS THAT WHEN HE NOT ONLY KNOWS buT IS PLANNING ON BETRAYING YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

YOU FUCKER

....

honestly this screenshot's pretty priceless too

YOU

ARE

STARING AT HIM,

GIRL

GOD! GOD!!!!!! I CAN'T!

the man frikkin full on trolls the absolute shit out of every royal in that little scene. and he doesn't just go 'gee i wonder :D' all nodding thoughtfully along. NO THIS FUCKER HAS FUN WITH IT. 'it would be tragiiiiiiic' MY ASS

[tearfully muffled between my hands] god i am in so deep in this brain rot

....

ANYWAY

ch23 ends and

hoooooooly shit

there's crazy symbolisim with these camera angles i completely missed the first time around. the scene is arete's real death, right (azura's mother, since possessed by anankos. we're gonna see a lot of possessions coming up.)

guess who was blatantly right behind arete's sprite in the opening, in a total blink-and-you-missed-it-moment .5 seconds right before she popped up?

... wha-ba-ba-bam!

now, could me frantically pointing at the shot symbolism here be coincidence/me reaching?

I'd probably agree if this shot was in a vacuum, but given the parallel of azura>possesed mom, and corrin>possessed(psuedo)dad, and the chronological order that this + the possessions are going in, plus some more angles below, I genuinely think this is intentional. "layers" of possession, if you will, and anankos steadily working his way closer to corrin's inner circle.

ryoma calls out- "it might be a trap!"

(WHICH IS ANOTHER ECHO.... OF GUESS WHICH UPCOMING SCENE.....)

(second screenshot's of CORRIN DOING THE EXACT SAME THING WITH HIS POSSESSION YEAH.....)

holyshitholyshitholyshit

and then if the action / script echos wasn't foreshadowing enough you get THIS freaking angle right after arete's death with gunter unsubtly, and "weirdly" enough (to most players) very much front-frame focused all the sudden.

...........................

[weebsinstash]

I'm probably going to tune in for a few more chapters but I'm dropping True Luna already so, here's my synopsis/ragging on that I guess lmao. Honestly thank god it turned out to rub me the wrong way because it's over 100 chapters and momma needs to save her chapter-unlock coins for some REAL juicy shit kwim

(Is it just me or do the eyes on the woman seem. Off)

-I picked this story up because it was a rejection story, like I was on YouTube and got an ad for chapter 3 when she is rejected, and I'm dropping it because she's apparently falling in love with the rejector who i think is a coward honestly. I'm 26 chapters in and trust me, if there was another love interest, he would've appeared by now and they wouldn't be focusing so heavily on the rejector, Logan

-plot is this: protagonist Emma is the sister of the pack Beta, Andrew (shit they never even give the pack a name now that I think about it). Their parents were killed by rogues when Emma was little and her brother had to help raise her and they grew extremely close, im talking after their parents died they shared a bed for a whole year because Emma was too anxious and traumatized to fall asleep alone. Along with Andrew, there is also her friends Jacob and Amy, as well as the Alpha Logan, and his and Andrew's childhood friend, Sienna

-Sienna is this tale's white lotus aka the girl who's super sweet when people are around and an absolute demon when she's alone with Emma. She calls Emma names and insults her, but when Emma tried to tell Andrew in the past when it began years ago... he accuses her of being jealous of his childhood friend, the whole 9 yards of "just because I'm spending time with her and not you doesn't mean you're not still my sister"

-you would think like, they would respect Emma enough to put two and two together, "hey Emma isn't a dishonest person, even if she doesn't like Sienna she doesn't blatantly make things up" like Emma, as the pack Beta's sister, is in a sort of semi-authoritative position and has been studying pack law and rules and training for years to be as strong as she can for her pack, like her friend Jacob is a warrior who helps train her in secret and the current Luna, Logan's mom, is like a mother to her and thinks she's a great pack member like lowkey that's her adopted daughter

-before I get further I should mention the weird relationship dynamics. Emma is in some sort of, I don't even know if they're having sex but she's having some sort of relationship with Jacob and he openly tells her he loves her, but they haven't found their fated mates yet and chosen mates are looked down upon. Emma wants to give herself a little more time to see if she finds her fated mate before choosing Jacob, which is who she would have chosen if she had a brain and she even admits she loves him. Meanwhile, in her internal thoughts, she also admits that she wouldn't mind being Logan's mate and saying how well they match up with each other

-also. Uh. They say in this pack, the pack elders and such frown on chosen mates but. Like. It's kind of quietly snuck in there that people in the pack do still, you know, have casual sex and stuff, and I feel like that's extremely contradictory? Not to circle back around to my opinions on "if my fated mate was running around having tons of sex instead of like waiting for me" buuuut.... Emma even says she would be sad if her mate was a player who's been with a lot of girls

-so on your 18th birthday is when you get your wolf and earn the pack mindlinking powers and all that. Only those you invite to your first shift are allowed to attend, so she goes with Amy, Jacob, Andrew, and the Luna, and when Emma shifts, she is a pure white wolf, which is unheard of as all white wolves have colored spots or at least different colored paws. Her wolf's name is Eliza.

-sigh. After both wolves have had their first shift is when you can sense your mate and all that. Emma is, in her own home, which by the way, brief detour, because Sienna is Logan and Andrew's childhood friend the bitch is constantly in Emma's house so she can't even be comfortable when she's at home, but, she's in her room and she hears a knock on the front door and goes downstairs, descending the stairs and "smelling the most delicious scent I had ever experienced", she comes face to face with. Logan. Who is visibly tense and even looking angry which confuses her because she can tell the moment they lock eyes that theyre fated mates. Andrew tells her to go to her room and she complies but stays at the top of the stairs to eavesdrop

-I wouldn't describe it exactly like 'incestuous' but I personally really do not like how her brother uh infantilizes her tbh, like if i were to look at this from a human perspective i would say he struggles to separate from his role as her guardian (as in parent) and protector once she becomes an adult. Technically she just turned 18 and that's still young right but that IS a legal adult, and Andrew literally has a conversation with Jacob about how he can't chose Emma as his mate, that Emma is young and needs a few years just to see if she can find her fated mate, and I'm just sitting here extremely uncomfortable because there are SEVERAL TIMES Andrew uh, basically, I don't even know if it's because of pack rank or duty or whatever but there are multiple conversations with Andrew basically guarding her chastity??? Hes hsing language like "i wont allow it/id be ok with that" like she needs his permission or some shit and Emma is 18 and can make her own choices thank you??? It's kind of gross her biological brother is talking to men behind her back about how HE won't allow her to do this or that and he's. Talking about her having relationships?

It's controlling and creepy in my opinion like if you asked me to write a hypothetical platonic yandere sibling figure, I would choose a sibling who controls who you hang out with and doesn't let you date at all and just, eugh it just grosses me out. Even later in the story a character looks at Andrew because they were talking about Logan rejecting Emma and this person says "and you LET that happen?" Uhhhhhhh not to defend Logan but he had his own choice, so like why is the tone of the conversation "oh Andrew gets to pick and choose his baby sister's mate" as if Andrew could even decide whatever the fuck Logan does too

-anyways Emma overhears them talking and the conversation is so fucking stupid. There have been increasing rogue attacks and they even have a leader, called only the Rogue King, coordinating large attacks and the pack needs to be strong more than ever. Logan claims Emma is too young to lead as Luna and not physically strong enough, even though when it switches to Logan's POV he outright admits he loves her and thinks she's beautiful and cool and all that. he, in my opinion, decides to be a little pussy and "oh, I must do what's best for the pack, SIENNA will make a better Luna" and I think he's fucking her anyways so. Emma overhears her own brother agree and say she isn't strong enough even though Emma has been secretly training with Jacob and is actually much stronger than they think. And uh. Gee the rejection is still the DAY OF her birthday. Like I'm on chapter 26 and all thats taken place in like a week, in between a couple days before Emma's birthday up until like 3 days after

-the rejection honestly fucks up her mental health so bad she doesn't eat or sleep for 2 days straight even though she tries, she just lies in bed staring at the ceiling having racing thoughts because her brother and her mate don't believe her and her bully is threatening to exile her when she becomes Luna, which, after Logan chooses Sienna as future Luna she escalates and outright states she could have Emma killed and make it look like an accident

-because she is so stressed and sleep deprived, Emma gets visibly scratched and beat up during a training. Her internal monologue is that her brother and Logan will see her extremely rare temporary weakness and it will enforce their opinion she's some fragile loser and they made the right choice. She is entirely correct and it is so fucking depressing, like the author honestly kind of went too deep in having them just genuinely look down on her for me to like either of them, I was listening to this story legitimately wishing Emma would leave the pack entirely to get rid of Logan AND her brother like I am still, genuinely, genuinely, hoping like the rogue king or some fucking idk lycan will show up and Emma gets a new mate but, I can tell it isn't happening

-there is so much I genuinely don't like about Logan. A lot of stories describe the mate bond being able to make you more jealous and possessive or Alphas being excessive about it but there are times when Logan is growling because "oh no a MALE is near MY MATE" and its just in really GENUINELY INAPPROPRIATE TIMES like when Emma is getting examined by A DOCTOR BECAUSE SHE'S INJURED and even HER OWN BIOLOGICAL BROTHER. Like Emma zones out during a training and doesn't block a hit and she gets two of her ribs broken and btw Logan can feel things through the mate bond so of course they come bug her when she is already tired and stressed and cranky and doesn't want to see them

-"oh no Emma is too tired and weak to walk home" cue Logan insisting it's him and stopping her friend Jacob from doing it "because no man will touch my mate blah blah blah" like fuck you I am literally the Reader and even I don't want you touching her. Why not have her brother carry her. Just another obligatory forced touch to further brainwash them both with the mate bond

-I really don't like a lot of Logan's internal dialogue either, or perhaps it's the way packs are written in this story. Everything has an air of... no free will? A cult that beats you down and leaves no room for you to decide for yourself? Alpha commands can physically force you to do and say things and they can even make them hurt, and Logan occasionally will think shit like "he can't speak to me like that. He'll be punished for this". great example is before Emma breaks her ribs but after her birthday, once when theyre alone, Sienna shows up and mocks Emma "i always wanted to see the face of the pathetic bitch whos opportunity as Luna i was taking away (as in whomever turned out to be Logan's mate regardless), but its a treat that its you!" and mocking her for being rejected while Emma is trying to stay calm.

Sienna pushes and pushes until Emma finally calls her a bitch and oh no, that's when Logan and Derek magically conveniently come in to berate Emma and Sienna whips out the fake tears, "oh she must not be taking this whole mate thing well, im sorry, it's not her fault she just needs more time, although not to be mean, she DID just insult her future Luna 🥺" and apparently even just something as small as that, Emma calling Sienna a bitch, is worthy of 'a punishment' because, even though Sienna is not even officially Luna yet, because she is going to be Luna IN THE FUTURE, Emma has to be punished for... oh no calling her a mean name? Logan literally tells Andrew or says internally, "she'll have to be punished later"

-the very next day Sienna comes into her bedroom and basically breaks healing ribs a second time. She tells Amy and Jacob, who she always tells about being abused, but she lies to Andrew and Logan because she knows they won't believe her. Like. It made me want to cry, Emma has been called weak and been rejected and her brother won't believe her and he asks "why won't you talk to me? What's wrong?" And she just quietly asks "why don't you believe me about Sienna" and he just. Shuts her down with his fake support "you just need to give her a chance, she's really great, I don't know why you're doing this but blah blah blah" I legitimately wish she would have abandoned her brother and left him with nothing but he helped raise her and they're traumabonded

-ugh. So. It's minor but I still hated it: Emma is angry and upset and stressed and wants to be alone and her brother essentially forces himself into her bed to sleep beside her to help her sleep like she was younger. It does help her and she still loves her brother but to me as the reader this was infuriating because from my standpoint she is literally not being allowed to make any decisions for herself in any way whatsoever and can't even have space in her own fucking house, in her own fucking BED?

-wanna know the biggest reason why I'm so mad. Wanna know. Because Sienna's abuse escalates even further. Sienna has Emma KIDNAPPED by a rogue with every intention of having her killed after Logan marks Sienna, because once he's formed a new mate bond he won't be able to sense Emma being. Raped and then murdered. Like Sienna says it outright that the rogue can do whatever he wants once she gets marked. And you know what Sienna's plan is. It makes me want to fucking shake. She has the rogue beat her up and runs back to Logan and Andrew and claims "I didn't even do anything, Emma just saw me and screamed I took Logan from her and she attacked me"

And

They

Believe her.

INSTANTLY, NO HESITATION, BEWILDERED AND SHOCKED BUT THEY BELIEVE HER just throw both goddamn men away at this point smfh

Logan is one thing but her own fucking brother who helped raise her???? Like Sienna's master plan is to claim Emma said she'd rather be a rogue than have Sienna as a Luna. Andrew and Logan don't believe THAT PART, because her parents were killed by rogues and that would DEVASTATE Andrew, but they both 100% accept at face value that Emma must have attacked Sienna who is literally described as having a large wound on her head. Like. It drives me fucking crazy. Emma is restrained and dosed with wolfsbane, eventually going to be killed, and meanwhile Logan is all "she has to be punished for attacking Sienna but I won't allow her to become a rogue" uh to be honest I think being forced to stay in a pack where an Alpha can literally basically mindcontrol you and finds it fit to assault you for hurting his feelings would be worse than being a rogue "but wolves are pack creatures, social animals, we have to live in communities or else we get lonely and could go crazy" and you all obviously treat each other SO well don't you 🙄

-Jacob mans up and tells Andrew and Logan to their faces that Emma tried to tell them so many times about what was happening and they never believed her. He says outright, "if Emma dies the blood is on both of your hands" meanwhile Logan is just thinking like "I should kill him for disrespecting the alpha" nd Andrew just breaks his nose and it's like, awwww are you mad because he's entirely correct? Poor delicate insecure little wolves

And guess what. Before Logan and Andrew were alerted about Sienna being "attacked" they were literally having a meeting with another Alpha (who by the way? Biggest fucking cockblock. They mention his name as early as like chapter 4 or 5 and I was getting excited because it was so early in the story I thought "oh she was just rejected and now another Alpha is suddenly visiting, he's her second chance mate" but nope.) and this Alpha's name is Drake and his Beta is Josh (dont think i dont see what you did there) and Drake is like "hey we captured a rogue and interrogated him and he told us the rogue king's goal is there's a prophecy or some shit of a powerful shewolf mated to an Alpha, A TRUE LUNA, who draws power from the love of her pack, who will be strong and wise and lead like no other Luna, her pack will be truly strong and she will birth a new, stronger generation of wolves and the rogue king wants her as his mate and also we hear she's supposed to be pure white?"

So, brief pause because I especially hate the emphasis that she's destined to birth a new generation or whatever because I personally am against uhhhhh her being used as a glorified breeding whore after she was rejected for perceived weakness "oh we treated you like shit BEFORE EVEN GIVING YOU A CHANCE TO PROVE YOURSELF but now that you're strong and convenient to us now we want lots of babies out of you" fuck off, like genuinely

In a better story Logan would have his nose rubbed in the pissed stain carpet of his failure of rejecting Emma when she takes another mate and he finds out too late that he had a strong wise Luna right beside him all along, but no, before Sienna pulled her kidnapping fuckery, they had a brief make-out session at a party and, she's obviously falling for the bond and all that and I refuse to read this to the end 🙄 I don't like Logan, I don't like Andrew, I really don't like that from a narrative standpoint Logan is not actually really suffering any consequences for what he did, he just gets to, hurt Emma and throw her away and then he gets rewarded with her anyways? Geez. I keep finding good stories that have actual female empowerment and they lull me into a false sense of security and I wind up being disappointed when I find things like this 😩

[traumasurvivorshelpingsurvivors]

Tw emotional abuse, I suppose

Hi, I have a very bad relationship with my bfs mom since the beginning of our relationship. (She was emotionally abusive towards him too so, it's wasn't a "one time" thing).

At the beginning of our relationship I was commited to a clinic because of my ED and my mom was certain that I only did it, to make her mad. To talk bad about her with strangers and to make her colleagues think bad of her. So she kicked me out. She "offered" that I could live with friends of her, who's children just moved out, and I did. These friends know very little of my mental issues and don't believe me either but okay. At some point, after several weeks, my mom wanted me to come back and when I refuaed, she told her friends lies about me, until they kicked me out. I was together with my bf for 5 months maybe at that point and he asked his mom, if it would be okay for me to stay with them for 2 or 3 weeks. And it was fine for her. I had only met her twice before. This is where the story starts. Ah and, we've both been 21 at that time. I've been at his moms house for 2 weeks at that time.

So my bf had a hard time finding a job, since his mom lived outside nowhere, and at some point he considered coming to my city (2h away) and looking for a job there. We could find an appartment together and just live our lives. He asked his mom, what she thinks about it and she got so mad. She started yelling at him (idk what) for several minutes and when he flew into his room (where I was at that moment) she followed him and continued yelling "And I am not a fucking open house for some fucking dirty hobo" which was referred to me. She only knew that my mom and I needed some time seperated. My bf entered his room, locked his door and his mom continued yelling for one hour straight (I don't remember what, I covered my ears most of the time) and came back every hour and yelled again for 10min (at some point because we refused to open the door to have "a serious and open conversation".) For like 6 hours until she went to bed.

She also said, I had to leave the next day and I did. But my bf came with me. He found a job, we found an appartment, it went well. It's been 5 years and she doesn't remember. I am always very shy and closed when talking with her (she's anyways always criticizing me) and at some point she asked my bf, why I was like that and what she did wrong and he just told her "You've insulted her pretty badly" and she was like "I don't remember. But I am sure she deserved it".

But whenever I look at her, talk to her, I know that I can't trust her. Because she's shown how fast she can switch and what she really thinks of me. And she's been really affectionate and hugging a lot etc and I am on one hand sure she means it. But I always think "Stop pretending!!" when she hugs me and idk if I can ever have a neutral relationship with her. Sadly, she's too "perfect" to have an earnest talk about my fear. She has said some other stuff... that was mostly well meant but sometimes just yelling at me for no reason (like, she believed I didn't do something, I said, I did, she said I lied). Etc. Idk, it is hard. I'd love to never have to see her again. But I don't want this to affect my relationship with my bf so I just shut up and join him visiting her everu now and then.

Hi anon,

First of all I'm so sorry about everything you went through. You did not deserve to be treated those ways, and I'm honestly appalled that both your mom and your bf's mom have said such blatantly rude things about and to you. There is no reason to speak to and about anyone that way.

It hurts when not only your mom, but your mother in law disapproves of you. It makes family functions needlessly more complicated. That being said, I do think you deserve to both set strict boundaries with these people and also have those boundaries respected. So for example, you say you'd love to never have to see your mother in law again, and that's okay. That could become a boundary where you say "If you're going to see your mom, I'm not coming. She has disrespected me and has now lost the privilege of my company."

Your boyfriend should be more understanding and supportive of you. When I put myself in his shoes, I would think it's completely valid why you don't want to see her. I wouldn't make you go with me when I wanted to visit her, I would simply respect that boundary because of my love for you, and so I'm curious why your boyfriend still makes you go along. It may be necessary to have a conversation with him and just explain to him that you love and respect him and his family but because his mom has hurt you so unapologetically, you don't want to visit her again, but remind him that he's free to visit his mom by himself whenever he pleases.

Obviously avoiding her won't be completely possible, but you deserve to respect your boundaries where you can, and if you really don't want to see her even at family functions, you may just want to keep a distance from her.

If anyone else has any suggestions, please feel free to add on. Otherwise I hope I could help, and please let us know if you need anything.

-Bun

[cringiestcroissant]

It's fucked up man. This whole situation is so fucked up.

For almost 2 years we've been the best of friends. You were there for me the most when things were so hard, and I tried my damndest to do the same for you. I've never felt this way for you the way I've felt for anyone else. We were two peas in a pod, you and I. When I told you in May of last year how I felt about you, even though you didn't feel the same, you were so understanding and wanted to stay close friends. And the hug you gave me that night, the hug…I cherish forever. We seemed to grow closer since then.

When you went to go to dayshift, yes I felt my abandonment issues coming up, but still you were so understanding and you kept that friendship with me until I came over. Please, please believe me when I said I felt my feelings were back to being platonic before I came over, I really thought they went back to that. I really did…but when I came to days, they put me with you that whole first week, and I thought to myself "Oh shit, they're not…I still love you…" I tried so, so hard to keep my feelings down from then on. Sure I talked about it to others, but I tried so hard to keep them from you. I didn't want to ruin what we had at the time. Everyone told me to give up, to give up the notion that maybe you felt something for me, even though…even though you gave me so many mixed signals that indicated you felt something as well.

I suspected she liked you too from the beginning. But I trusted her as a good friend. She and I talked about her being affectionate with you before, and I said I didn't mind at first because I didn't want to ruin anyone's fun. I didn't want to ruin things. The day you, her, I and our friend went to the park and had fun at the lake, it was one of the best times of this year for me. I got to spend time with you while we paired her and our friend together. Her and him, you and I, the time we spend cuddling at her house afterwards, it seemed so perfect…

The day, I send her the text telling her I wanted her to stop being affectionate with you in front of me…because it hurt so much…

I was wrong. I know that. I had no right to tell someone how to act with others in front of me. I get that. But, soon after that, I realized I was wrong, and I tried my best to right my wrong and apologize and fix things. But, it's not my fault she reacted the way that she did. That you reacted the way that you did.

That day was the worst day of my life. The day you cut me off because I just got a little jealous…I agree with everyone when they say you overreacted. I had never felt that kind of pain before…not even my ex hurt me this much, and you know how badly he fucked me up.

But…

For you two to get together…that hurt more than anything in the world. And you can't convince me you didn't get together in part to get back at me, for several reasons. For one, you never wanted another co-worker relationship. Two, you two had stated you had a father-daughter relationship, which makes this weird…Three, you told both of us the day after the day at the park that you didn't have romantic feelings for either of us…

And…because when she told me you two got together…she blatantly bragged about it to me, rubbing it in my face… "Oh well I met his family and they love me and his mom wants me to move in and his sister is so talkitive to me~" ….

….

It doesn't matter that she was excited. She knew what she was doing. She knew how much I cared about you. She knew she was hurting me in turn.

That's just…cruel.

You will never know the amount of tears I've cried over you, the pain I have felt over losing you. You know how bad my abandonment issues are, how bad my suicidal tendencies and self harming is, and when I sent you that text saying I was going to end it? You didn't do -anything-. You didn't call anyone, you didn't text anyone, you didn't do shit.

…

I guess I held onto my feelings because I truly didn't know how you felt about me. You did and said so many things that made me really question how you felt. Holding hands at our friend's friendsgiving? Our legs always touching when we sat next to each other outside the workplace? You having to tell me you didn't have romantic feelings for me, punctuating it even though it was established earlier that you didn't feel that way?….On one hand, I want to ask you how you truly felt, but on the other I don't. Because if you did, then I know that I fucked everything up like I do with everything. But if you didn't, then I would know that I was just delusional and that I truly don't know how to love someone.

I know I get jealous now. That I get obsessive and possesive, and now after this i really don't trust myself anymore. That I don't trust anyone anymore. I do not dare put myself through this again, and do not dare put anyone through this again. Yes, I just messed up, and it could've been easily fixed. But you? You fucked up. You ROYALLY fucked up. You fucked me up more than anyone ever has. You hurt me more than anyone has in my past.

I still love you. I know the person I fell in love with is still in there somewhere. But you just, make the stupidest fucking decisions that hurt others so much. And I cannot have someone that would do that to me in my life. I can't…

I hope you're well. I hope you're happy, I hope you're with someone you can be with for the rest of your life. Her, I don't care about her. I don't give two shits, I feel NOTHING for her after what she put me through. But I hope that you get what you need most in life, even though I'm not around to see it…

…honestly, I'll probably never get over you. To me, you're the one that got away. The one that I truly thought I could see being with for the rest of my life. But when things got out of hand, no matter what we've been through together, you left me in the dirt when I needed you most. Friend or more, you left. And I'm not saying you can't cut someone off when they get bad, but you KNEW I WAS BAD BEFORE ALL THIS. I TOLD YOU I WASN'T TAKING CARE OF MYSELF BY NOT TAKING MY MEDS AND HURTING MYSELF LIKE A WEEK BEFORE THIS ALL HAPPENED. YOU KNEW, YOU KNEW I WASN'T OK AND WHEN I SAID I WAS GOING TO TRY AND DIE YOU DIDN'T DO ANYTHING. HONESTLY IT'S A FUCKING MIRICLE I'M STILL HERE RIGHT NOW WITH HOW MANY TIMES I HELD THAT BLADE TO MY WRIST, WITH HOW MANY CUTS I ADDED TO MY BODY, WITH HOW MUCH HATE, DISGUST, HUMILIATION AND GUILT I HAVE TOWARDS MYSELF. BUT NO YOU JUST LEFT. You just left…

…

I…don't want to try this, ever again. I don't trust getting this close to someone ever again. You've shown me that I cannot trust myself or anyone. I give up. All because of you.

I secretly wish I could've talked to you one last time, just to have some closure. To let you know the hell I've been through this whole year, not just from you, but from how everything in my life fell apart after you left. Karma really got me in the end. But now you're gone. You don't work there anymore, and I don't have any way to get to you. It's over. And it's the most painful thing I've ever been through. So thanks. Thanks for making me so confused, thanks for letting me feel what being in love really felt like, thanks for being my best friend, thanks for leaving me to rot while my other friends picked up the pieces you left behind…just thanks…for everything, for the memories…for that's all I have now….hopefully one day I'll stop thinking about you, about this whole situation…if you're still with her I hope you both are happy…hopefully one day I'll be happy again…

...I really did love you...unconditionally and wholeheartedly...one day I'll move past that....

...you were right. I really do have bad taste...I wish I could just hold you one last time...

but for now…goodbye, Adam…you meant the world to me…

[ghostietea]

Furuba autistic headcanons

With it being April, or autism acceptance month, I wanted to finally drop my list of characters from Fruits Basket that I read as autistic! This is based a lot on my own experience, as well as that of other autistics I know or have seen talk online. I hope some people can get something out of it, feel free to tell me what you think 😊, though please refrain from getting upset that I would dare suggest your fave is autistic.

Hanajima

Before becoming able to better control her powers, she would be constantly overwhelmed by the things she heard to the point that she couldn't even really go out in public. This reads a lot like sensory overload.

Constantly picked on in school because other kids thought she was weird. Eventually reclaimed this weirdness and turned it into a whole persona.

Seems to talk usually in a relatively flat tone.

Had trouble socializing with no friends outside her family until middleschool.

Has a very funny, dry sense of humor that I find very similar to a bunch of autistics I know, including myself.

Hatsuharu

Listen. You have seen the funky little man, you have seen the way he talks, the way he acts around others. He is, and I mean this in the best way, a weirdo. I do not know how you could look at him and see a neurotypical.

Once again, like Hana, Haru is funny in a way that feels very autistic.

Very flat, dry, tone delivery. Sometimes just Says Things that make everyone else go huh??? Suuuuper blunt. Doesn't emote facially a lot of the time.

When this man sees a social norm he doesn't get he WILL NOT follow it. Pierces his ears just because his hair got flak, defends Momiji wearing whatever he wants because sometimes y'know the social rules are just dumb and don't make sense. Especially dress codes.

Sometimes says things not befitting the current tone of the situation.

Represses (masks) a lot of his emotions, leading to outbursts that seem uncharacteristic.

His main childhood trauma revolves around adults branding him as "dumb" and ridiculing him. Haru, however, is super smart and wise!! Just in an offbeat way that not everyone may get.

Machi

Reads as very "flat" emotionally to the point that others would call her boring. Also has a flat vocal delivery.

Relies on specific habits or ways of doing things or else she gets super upset (her hatred of imperfection.

Has trauma surrounding adults completely misconstruing her intentions and thinking she's doing something malicious when she's not.

Generally behaves in a way that's hard for others to understand, one of her formative moments with Yuki was him saying he wanted to "see how the world looks" through her eyes.

Once again, trouble socializing.

Tries super hard to please her parents but in the end they still see her as somehow inherently "defective."

Listen. A lot of this one and the last two are mostly vibes, hard to verbally define. You just have to look at them and trust me.

Tohru

Displays behavior very reminiscent of masking throughout the story, a huge part of her arc is about how she hides a lot of herself and has a very controlled persona. I think it would fit very well if she had other autistic behaviors that she suppresed also it helps explain why she is relatively socially adept, it's learned behavior to make people like her more.

Yes she is very good at saying what others need to hear, but especially early on she is pretty blatantly imitating her mother's words. She only gets better at getting through on a more personal level later on (see her with Rin and Akito v. early series Tohru). She does this by relating her own experiences, a very autistic way of showing empathy that often gets us written off as self centered. The way she relays things her mom said could also be seen as this, and she even worries at a few points that she's being insensitive for going on about things like that.

While emotionally repressed she is hyper empathetic and feels other's emotions so strongly she cries.

Her speech patterns are all imitated from her father and she often copies verbal things from others (see Ritchan-san). Noted in canon that people think her way of speaking is slightly off/not befitting of someone her age. Additionally, her father was polite more sarcastically, while she plays it straight and sometimes takes things very literally or fails to get the message, indicating trouble with reading tone. Has numerous strange verbal tics, including saying parts of her internal monologue out loud without context.

Very expressive with her hands including waving them around and flapping them up and down.

Does have a bit of trouble with accidental insensitivity in social interactions, like how she constantly fixates on her mom and realizes that might bug the Sohma.

Has trouble paying attention in school since it doesn't have much to do with her interests

Her only friend until she was a middle schooler was her mom

Has a pretty unique outlook on things compared to others, people seem to think she's pretty eccentric. There's always a "this girl is nice but in an odd way, she's our weirdo and we love her" vibe.

Sometimes has an "inappropriate" emotional response to situations

Has a lot of trouble with change, similar to Akito. Which oh, look at the time, next hc coming up.

But first, a disclaimer. It is cathartic for me to read Akito this way, but with that reading comes the baggage that she would, mayhaps, be showing a more negative side of things... It doesn't bother me since it's a joint hc with other characters and she does develop at the end but yeah, general villain hc baggage. This is in no way me trying to excuse her being The Worst being autistic doesn't absolve you of being able to do wrong . Also, a lot of these points can and do have other explanations related to her upbringing, but things can be for more than 1 reason. With that said, she really strongly comes off as autistic to me, in a way that's sorta hard to explain. I wrote a lot more for her than the other, both because I felt I needed more to convince people and that this headcanon was more sensitive and I needed to be careful in my explanation. Also hey! She's my special interest within a special interest.

Akito

Shown to have a dislike of summer weather due to heat and brightness, could be due to sensory issues in tandem with sickness things. Also covers her ears when people raise their voice sometimes which is partially her trying to shut down opposition but also 🤔 can read a different way. She'd also avoids louder Juuni like Ritsu and Ayame because she can't handle them.

Wears pretty much the same outfit every single day. Said outfit is also pretty loose fitting.

Always seen sitting in a pretty unconventional way. Evidence:

Of course this is also the isolated in a cult thing and there is a level of her purposefully doing things to intimidate but: doesn't follow a lot of social rules (overly touchy with strangers, legit doesn't get that what she's doing is wrong, ect.). Repeatedly confused when people indicate she should act otherwise without explanation. Has a breakdown when this comes to a head and approximately says that "they" shouldn't expect her to know "common sense" if "they" never explained it to her, that the way that she was was her "common sense."

Often talks in a way uncharacteristic of her age when shown as a child in a more faux mature/pretentious way. Might just be the translation and idk how to explain it but her speech as an adult also seems off from what one would normally use in conversation. Additionally, when she tries to fake being friendly in her intro chapter, it comes of as extremely stiff and unconvincing.

Generally displays behavior that could be thought of as childish as an adult, but a lot of this behavior could also read as autistic (covering ears, emotional deregulation and meltdowns, ignorance of basic social norms, ect.). It's also important to note that she knows that this behavior makes her seem younger and more helpless to the older zodiac and uses it as a manipulation tactic. Has issues regarding people treating her like a child or only hanging out with her because of pity. While she does weaponize it, we can tell that this grates on her, as seen with her finally blowing up on Kureno, which is partially triggered by the maids saying some sorta infantalizing stuff about her. Irl, a lot of autistic adults and teens struggle with being infantalized for our behavior generally or treated as little babies that can do no wrong. Even in fandom, you see people doing stuff like jumping to call autistic adult characters, such as Entrapta from Shera, "minor coded." It is also common for us to have at least one bad experience with someone hanging around us out of pity. This is something that really gave me a similar feeling in Akito's arc. She's not a baby and she can understand and do better if she is given the chance to learn and break from all the freaky cult indoctrination she's been subjected to instead of just being constantly enabled. In the end, a lot of her growth is represented by her showing that she is capable of changing and being independent.

Shows particular difficulty with socialization, often sits by herself spacing out at social events. A lot of her fear is rooted in the fact that she doesn't know how normal relationships work, becoming overly reliant on the curse because she doesn't know how to make friends.

Clings desperately onto the notion of being "special" and in some way superior to others to be worthy and to make up for perceived inherent "flaws." It's the nd gifted kid burnout vibes for me.

Easily bothered by things that don't bother others. Feels emotions very strongly to the point of getting physically ill and has bad emotional regulation.

Relatively good at reading others in an analytical sense (though has more trouble when it comes to seeing how they feel about her since she's wildly delusional) but brings up her observations in a very cold, detached way and hurts people even on the rare occasion she didn't mean to. Has extreme trouble connecting to others and understanding their point of view. This makes her come off as pretty unempathetic even though that might not fully be the case. Also thinks that people like Momiji are trying to look down on her when they try to empathize with her. A lot of why Tohru can get through to her is that she manages to convince Akito that she's not condescending by relating shared traits and experiences. As I said earlier, autistics often empathize by sharing their own experiences with someone, and I know I often have an easier time confiding in other autistics because of a fear of being seen as lesser by those that don't understand me. I think the connection between these charachters and the way that Tohru manages to reach Akito like that while others couldn't makes a lot of sense through an autistic lense!

Additionally, when Akito herself gets around to trying to help others instead of just projecting trauma, she tries to reach out to the old maid by relating back to her own experiences. This however, doesn't work.

Has "cold" emotional reactions sometimes even to things that do make her upset. For example, how sort of calm and detached she acted after her father's death can make her seem uncaring. However, we know that this event did mess her up a lot and she is still (poorly) dealing with a lot of grief from the death of her father years later.

Copies mannerisms from others, the most blatant example is with Ren, who she directly parrots lines from as a child to Yuki.

Partly just her posturing, but gestures a lot with her hands when she talks. Also seen several times clutching her hands in her hair.

Deals extremely poorly with the idea of things changing to the point that it is a driving force of the story.

Does not understand when people tease her.

Ect. Ect. Ect. Listen, I could go on for ages but just trust me, the mean gremlin lady is autistic.

[kae-karo]

for director's cut asks, how about more than that?

ahhhh excellent choice, tyty anon dear!!!

for context - send me a fic you want director’s commentary on!

more than that - bakutodo

He’s not sulking. Katsuki is appropriately pissed off

baku is SUCH a great pov to write from, like, generally? cause while he's definitely really conservative about some of his emotions, i think he lets himself get all pissed off and riled up inside his own head, and it's a case of there being so much more going on in his thoughts than he ever puts out into the world. and that makes for a super rich inner dialogue, which tends to be where i work best lmao

He exhales a heavy breath - he trusts Deku, though he’s loath to admit it.

baku having this inseparable soft spot for deku was kind of super critical to me during this whole story and fleshing out their relationship/his relationship with todo/etc? just like. almost not really knowing how to be apart from him, having to worry about him even more now that he's not here, etc. having to hand over trust, which he doesn't do easily - he strikes me so much as a character who needs control (oddly enough lmao) like, he needs to be the one doing things because he knows he can do it

“Reward me with information,” he says against his own will

although i find him more prone to inner emotions, i think his outward control is actually pretty meaningful? he knows what he wants, but unlike some other characters who are prone to acting heavily on emotion, i think it's a rarer thing for baku? when he has control over himself, at least. while he wants todo, he still has fair insight into the overall situation, into what could potentially heavily involve him, and he still makes that a priority? i find it rare in characters that i enjoy writing tbh, because for the most part, i like a character who acts on their emotions (or in direct counter to their emotions, ie a character in denial or pointedly trying to fight their emotions and reacting accordingly) - level heads (can't believe i'm using that to refer to baku but here we are lmao) are rare for me to enjoy writing

“She would like to meet you, I suspect.”

i knew from the start that once i got todobaku together, todo would want baku to meet his mom. and while it didn't end up working out in the second part of the series (in part due to the sheer freshness of their relationship), i'm glad i was able to put it in here. it also gave me a good chance to explore the implications of baku's status and personality, and his reservations about appearing/acting 'royal' enough to be with todo - which, now that some of the more pressing issues have been dealt with, he can actually think through now

“I was told you’d be a bit more...abrasive,”

okay tbh i actually love writing rei? she's fun as hell to build out as a character, i really like giving her some of todo's sassier personality traits, making her a bit of a gossip, and almost always letting her see through facades or other characters' obliviousness. i really like using her as a vector to bring light to other characters, or to open their eyes to things that they haven't noticed yet, and i adore her being blunt in a very wholesome, kind way

“Not for one fucking second,” he says, and takes Shouto’s stupid arm anyway.

can you tell one of my favorite tropes is 'character claims not to trust the other one while blatantly acting with the utmost trust toward them'? skfldjjklsdf really though, i think baku is the type to make well-considered judgments about whether a person is trustworthy and to what degree/in what situations, and he has that all filed neatly in his head for reference. and then todo comes along and gets slapped with 'trust at all times, always' and he kind of hates that, but his stupid intuition has never been wrong before

“This is your fucking coronation.”

i actually had this concept for a one-shot in mind from pretty early on, because i'd built sort of this whole domino effect that needed to collapse and have todo take the place of the king at some point - without trauma, ideally. but it allowed this really huge culmination of baku making some serious decisions about how he feels about todo and all of this, within the context of like. actually having to consider the royalty aspect firsthand. and ofc todo wouldn't just tell him, he'd make him decide on the spot sdflkjkdlf run away, or don't. and baku isn't a fan of running

“But the thought of your subservience,” his face twitches with clear distaste, “does not appeal to me.”

while a little bit of this is personal preference, i actually think...two things, really. the first, that todo genuinely doesn't want someone to blindly obey him. and, as such, he chooses his companions accordingly - people who respect him, people who want to support him because of that, not because he's the prince (or king). the second, that baku actually is kinda into being ordered around - provided he's allowed to fight it a bit before giving in. he strikes me as the kind to take control in every aspect of his life, but to give that control to those he trusts in moments of pure privacy. and i think it would kill him to ever admit that out loud lmaoooo

“This life is overwhelming. I am aware that I can also be...overwhelming, in some ways.”

i think todo really struggles with this, actually - like he's acutely seen the effects of him being the crown prince, the way it changes how his friends can interact with him, how he's expected to interact with the world. and it scares him, that baku might not be okay with that. but it's critical that he's allowed, uninfluenced, his choice. especially when it's this big, because it's one thing for someone like kaminari to sneak around and hang out with todo, but another entirely to subject baku to all the formalities required of the crown prince's....person? consort? whatever he is lmao

“I had hoped to find a more eloquent way of wording that.”

speaking of characters who act on emotions, todo is definitely that kind of character more often than not. and i like the idea of his life of underwhelming bullshit to be interrupted and turned on its head by the overwhelming presence of one bakugou katsuki, leaving him making all kinds of wild decisions driven mostly by the idea that he wants baku, and he's going to figure out how to have him (as long as baku wants it too)

“I fuckin’ hope so. All that coronation bullshit is gonna be really hard to backtrack on.”

y'know i actually did toy with the idea of ending this story at baku's 'more than that' comment, but it felt important to let todo say his piece. also, it's critically imperative that i let todo tease baku a bit lmao. i do also like to let baku get called out on things he's insecure about? which, while not really an issue most of the time, the 'acting like a royal' thing definitely feels like a shortcoming for him when it comes to being with todo. so having todo reassure him on that felt like a meaningful addition. and having baku reaffirm to todo that he's in it, come hell or high water, was definitely important. i like giving baku the chance, when he feels safe enough to do so, to open up and be a little vulnerable with the people he cares about

send me a fic you want director’s commentary on!

[sparkanonymous]

Time for more!

⚠️ Spoilers for episode 4-10!

Episode 4: Beyond Madness

Lloyd making fun of Jay to try to teach Arin a lesson is fucking funny.

I wish I was smarter. This show was made for children and it's confusing me just as much as it would for a child. They knew that kids would be confused about Sora's powers, so they decided to go more in depth, and - unfortunately - I needed that.

I like how they're also giving more depth to the other ninjas' power. When reading fanfictions about the ninja using their powers, they always feel it in their hands. Here in Dragons Rising, Nya is the one that can feel it in her hands, while everyone else feels their powers differently. Cole feeling the powers in his gut makes sense, and so does Zane feeling the powers in his mind. Now I want to know how Lloyd feels his powers. I also want to know if they talked about this in the original show and I either just missed it or didn't end up watching that season. (I made it through Kai's chapter, but Zane's Never Realm chapter was kinda boring and made be lose interest in watching the rest of the show.)

Ooh, is Kai back?

Damnit.

That "ow" from Sora was so late lmao

Arin, there's no way that Kai's dead. Be for real. These guys are invincible most of the time. Even if he was dead, they'd just come back from the dead.

Sora is not suited for the ways of being a ninja.

"Wait-" You waited way too long to tell them not to go. Come on, Lloyd, you've been around your brothers long enough to know not to wait 5 minutes after they say they're gonna go.

NYA!

Nya getting after Lloyd for being stupid.

I would've been a lot happier if Nya had called Lloyd her brother.

Poor Ryu...

Kai and Nya reunion...

I like how they try to convince you that Kai might be dead... then immediately follow that up by showing that he is very much alive.

Kai immediately assuming that Lloyd is a babysitter now.

RGB sibling fights lol

Of course you like Sora, Nya. She's practically you in another universe.

Aw, poor Sora.

Episode 5: Writers of Destiny

Arin trying to get "The Zane" really just instills my headcanons lol

Nya making fun of Kai's haircut.

Don't say stuff like that, Arin. You just jinxed yourself.

Bullshit. Arin wouldn't have been able to do shit without hitting someone with the grappling hook.

Kai pouting about fire proof monsters.

The beast is totally in cahoots with those two random civilians.

Air ninja? Flight ninja? Who are you?

Wind ninja? How the hell?

You didn't close all the way, dumbass.

Fucking poor Arin. He so quickly bought into the writers of destiny despite all of the OGs practically spitting on them, just so that he can feel like he has more of a chance at seeing his parents again. That's fucking sad.

Ooh, so that monster thing is gonna cause trust issues between the new ninja and the OGs.

It's always the bookworm pun.

Lmao the way Lloyd immediately tried to get Kai away from the bookworm as soon as it started listing embarrassing things.

Why is wind master so whiny.

Arin, she described why she doesn't want it. Were you not listening?

Euphrasia... hm.

The lead monk guy sounds very familiar... is that the man with the yellow hat's voice actor?

Wait, how did Arin escape from that bookworm thing?

So we leave Nya again...

The absolutely flat expression on Lloyd's face when he tells Kai to stop calling him mean names.

Episode 6: Return to Imperium

In a society blatantly against dragons, wouldn't protecting them put the ninja on a wanted list? They're not strangers to fighting against the law for what's right, not even the new ninja. I'm just saying that people are bound to not enjoy seeing them at some point because of their actions.

Kai biting the dust, 4K

So this is just a Sora backstory episode?

Is that Trixie's voice actor as Sora's mom?

Kai laughing after Lloyd pointed out Arin punched himself in the face earlier.

Kai's Wu impression is kinda impressive lol

Getting rid of Kai already? Goddamn.

That poor lab dragon...

Wait... I completely skipped over the fact that Sora's name was actually Anna.

Goddamn, poor Sora...

Oop, I guessed right. They are wanted because they fight the dragon hunters.

Lmao Lloyd's fake name.

Ooh, is that Wyldfyre that burned Lloyd there?

Episode 7: Mindless Beasts

Vanisholigists. Lmao

The cleaners' song is not catchy.

One of the cleaners reminds me of early Jay.

Arin letting the power get to his head.

It is Wyldfyre!

Why does literally no one recognize the green ninja.

Good on Sora tricking that asshole lol

Nya figured that out a little too quickly.

Ooh, Arin slowly being convinced to want to join another group... that'll come back to bite his ass, right? Like... his naivety. Not his dumbassery.

Lloyd is such a dumbass.

Lmao Rapton getting offended over being called a fool.

Sora threatening them so easily. They are really so dumb.

Oh dear, she's gonna get called out on her bluff.

So she did learn something during her ninja lessons.

So does Wyldfyre understand dragon? Does that mean she would be able to communicate with Ryu?

Ugh, poor fucking Sora. That's gonna be weighing on her conscious for forever.

Episode 8: I Will Be The Danger

Oh, the Wyldfyre backstory episode. I didn't expect it so early.

They reused the baby Wyldfyre laugh twice in a row. Lmao

So she just randomly woke up in the middle of the night because the fire was calling to her?

Aw... that's so cute.

"I am danger!" Life goals.

The robot caregiver is still really sweet. I love that.

Why did Lloyd touch the hand pad? That hasn't worked at all the last few times.

There is a lot of people that hit themselves in this series.

"The large house of many houses." Lmfao

The city's lord's flier covering the eyes of the little cleaners is very ironic.

I hope Rapton escapes the capture of Lore Raz and just leaves. He gets insulted too frequently. He;s too dumb to be taken seriously.

The video games coming back. Kai is an incel.

Why do the whispers sound like Wu?

Flat on his face. Lmao

You've been stuck alone in a monastery with a ghost before Kai.

"It knows my name... I'm famous among ghost!" He's such a dumbass

Why does Arin feel the need to say he lost Ryu? I feel like that's pretty evident.

Arin... has face blindness? That's very clearly not Kai, dude. Does he recognize people by the colors they wear and their elemental powers?

Ah, here's the trust issue subplot.

Okay, but why would Sora make the fail safe reliant on her powers? She knows she can't control them, we've had at least 2 episodes previously discussing that. So what was she thinking?

So now the monastery is connected to the Cloud Kingdom? I'm confused... just like they want me to be, but still.

Episode 9: The Calm Inside

I think I see little Lloyd in the thumbnail for this one...

Yup. There he is. And his voice does not fit his child self.

Baby Lloyd would not have learned that listen so quickly.

Self care Kai.

Man, they are speed-running this season. It feels like all the lore is being shoved and shoved to overwhelm us.

I fucking knew it. The whisper-y voice was Wu. How did they not recognize until now?

Poor Lloyd getting overwhelmed.

That was a bit long-winded, Lloyd, but whatever.

Nice going, Kai.

ZANE!

No, Zane hasn't been conscious in years. That fucking sucks...

Why is Zane acting like he knows everything when he hasn't been around in ages? Just because he was plugged in to the computer doesn't mean he wouldn't be surprised. I love Zane, but come on.

Episode 10: The Battle of the Second Monastery

"Another merge-quake?" "Feels different. Maybe it's... hope!" Lmfao

Some random girl picking Sora as her life-long enemy. The only realistic way to become enemies. Lmao

Wyldfyre inadvertently insulting Kai.

Kai and Wyldfyre beef.

Kai and Wyldfyre besties. That was fast.

Sorry about not taking as many notes now. I kinda don't know what else to say. Plus, I'm kinda just relishing in the fact that Zane's back.

That poor power dragon... oops, source dragon.

So... Lloyd is having a vision. Is that about having to live the rest of his life alone, after everyone inevitably dies?

Good catch, Zane

Kai gaslighting Rapton.

What the hell stopped Rapton.

Wyldfyre destroying Wu's carpet.

So now from dragon hunting to ninja hunting. It was gonna happen eventually.

Raz being betrayed was kinda obvious, but it still seems stupid.

Current progress:

It's finally time for me to watch Dragons Rising!

Time for some incomprehensible note-taking while I ink the last WIP I posted.

⚠️ Spoilers for episodes 1-3!

Here's what I know:

The OG 4 (+ Nya I think) have been lost to time. It's actually the main reason why I didn't want to watch it back when it first came out; I didn't want to watch the series without the characters I loved. (Not the biggest Lloyd fan, so he wasn't enough for me to want to come and watch it.)

The main 4 are found, but Jay is like... brainwashed or something, and works for a facility or whatever.

Cole basically has a boyfriend and kids now.

Geo is adorable.

Kai is also kind of a father figure to one of the new ninja characters. I think her name is Wyldfyre.

The Cole and Zane reunion was ass. You're telling me that, after they couldn't find each other for however long, they didn't go and squeeze the life out of each other? I saw a clip and it bugged me so bad- it looked like they just... clipped two separate clips of Cole and Zane seeing each other and lost the first clip's amount of emotion. Cole was running to go and greet Zane, and then he just puts his hand on his shoulder? Nah. (Maybe it's because I'm a massive Glacier fan, but ugh... I can't help it.)

They kind of made up for it when Zane called puppy Cole cute. That was adorable, especially with how Cole looked up at Zane after turning back into a human.

Okay, let's get this show on the road.

Divider made by steddiecameraroll-graphics

Episode 1: The Merge (1)

Alright, so we're just immediately getting into the merge. Not even minute in, lol okay.

The intro to the ninja was pretty epic.

Standing that close to an explosion... that would've lead to some terrible injury for Arin... (that's his name right?)

Okay, but to watch everything you ever knew and loved just... vanish? That would fucking suck. That probably led a lot of people to go down their villain path.

That zoom in and that angry look on Arin's face... is he gonna become a villain?

So Arin is definitely a kid when the merge happened, given that he has those little Lego legs. So, now, he's at least a teenager. It's definitely been plenty of years. (We're not even 5 minutes in yet.)

Cute puppies at the junkyard.

For everything bad that Ninjago writers do to the series, the animators always pop off with the visuals. The lighting is immaculate.

Arin's voice... it feels familiar. NO FUCKING WAY HE'S CHEF FROM THE TDI REBOOT????? No, how... HOW

Okay... so Arin knows a little bit of Spinjitzu... how? I thought you had to be taught the ways of Spinjitzu before you could learn it. Sure, his role models are the ninja, but there's no way he would've been able to pick up on the tiny things just by watching them do it.

Little dancing robots lol

No matter how many years it's been, hearing the phrase "BFF" be said out loud still makes me cringe, no matter what show I'm watching.

I like that he's a little baker.

Dumbass villain lol

No matter how good of terms I would be with anyone, even a frog anthro, I still would not be cool with them using their tongue to give me a high five.

Why is Mr. Frohicky so adamant about them dropping out?

So the Never Realm is connected to this universe because of the merge. Can't believe I didn't think about that. Could definitely lead to more Zane-Never Realm angst.

That's Starlight Glimmer. Kreel is Starlight Glimmer. Wow.

Oh, Kreel is so cheating.

Yep. AND attempting murder.

So that little dragon gifted Sora with powers? That's pretty cool.

What do you mean "how'd you-"? You know that your spinjitzu is terrible.

So were Sora's powers given to her or already within her?

LLOYD! I already knew we'd see him eventually, but it's still good to see him.

I feel like Lloyd's intro was kinda... rushed? Like, we had less than 30 seconds before the credits and then he suddenly appears? It kinda makes sense, but... idk

Episode 2: The Merge (2)

I miss you, old theme song. I want you back.

So Lloyd saw Arin do spinjitzu, but didn't see who did the spinjitzu? It was clearly weak, and orange, and while [I think] Kai's spinjitzu is orange, he's definitely not weak. Lloyd would have known it was Kai, or any of the ninja he knows. This was clearly just for the reveal to Lloyd, and probably to measure up his disappointment if he ever admits it later on, but like... come on.

Sora becoming a fan while watching Lloyd fight is kinda cute.

Arin, you nasty; wash the mask you put on your face all the time. I bet he's gotten sick countless times because of that thing lol

The fact that Arin immediately calls Lloyd "Master Lloyd".

So Lloyd can't hear Rapton yelling, but he can hear footsteps behind him from an equal amount of distance? Damn, he must've gotten good at ignoring villains' monologues.

Poor Sora... second hand embarrassment is terrible.

The new theme song... no. I don't like it. I'm sorry.

Okay, so the dragon is giving Sora it's powers?

So messages can go anywhere? I don't know why, but I thought that the places that the other ninja were stuck in were completely unreachable, because they were separate universes apart. ... I did notice that there was an unstable crack in the sky in the last episode, when Raz got a hold of the Sora and Arin, so if they are universes apart, maybe that's how they would send messages to each other?

How many times has the Destiny's Bounty been rebuilt.

MASTER WU!

Lloyd believing Wu is just immortal. I kinda get it, but like... look at him. He's gonna blow to dust in - at most - a couple more decades, trust me.

Goddamn, why is Zane full tits out in the flashback?

Okay, so the dragon they found is a "Source Dragon" right?

Lloyd beating the shit out of Kai without even thinking.

Kai and Lloyd's little spin hug... that's cute. It's nice to see them being close.

Yeah, you already said the merge-quakes were getting worse, Lloyd. I don't think you needed to reiterate that lol

I like how Arin's spinjitzu mess ups still end up helping out in the long run.

So is Raz hunting down the ninja?

Ah, so the power is within the ninja and the dragons just enhance the amount of power they have on it by like... 10x.

I like that Lloyd stayed humble and just became the new ninjas' teacher instead of calling himself a master.

Ryu staying with the ninja over his own family feels kinda fucked up... I think the better excuse would be that Ryu's family need to keep Ryu safe while they look for a new home, and the ninja can protect them from danger. The decision Ryu made shouldn't have been up to them, with them being so young.

So, no, they are still hunting dragons, they're just using the ninja as a tool. Got it.

Episode 3: Crossroads Carnival

Sora's not gonna like being a ninja.

Lloyd's gonna be a little asshole lol

Those mechanisms haven't been cleaned ever, Sora. Don't get your hopes up.

Yep, Lloyd's pushing it and trying to be Wu lol

Lloyd's incapability to grow facial hair is more canon than anything lol

How did Sora not get set on fire?

"Without tea, I literally have no idea if that was fast enough-" So Lloyd's just a massive dumbass who looks too far into Wu's teachings? That's funny lmao

Why the fuck would you bring a dragon with you? That's literally the worst idea with dragon hunters around.

Oh, skeleton characters are back! I haven't seen them since... the episodes that took place before season 1? Has it really been that long since they were last used?

"Oh, come on, we never would have done that to Master Wu! ... That's a lie." Lmfao

How does Arin's grappling hook literally grapple onto everything?

Lobo is great actually.

Oh great, Kreel character redemption. That came out of fucking nowhere and feels forced as hell.

"My... only friend." You're calling this person "Targy" or whatever. There's something going on here.

The ninja tribute... that's so sweet.

Wait, so they know who Wu and Nya are, but they don't recognize Lloyd? The green ninja? The guy that is literally supposed to be the most powerful ninja?

The non existent beard strikes again.

"Do not type cast me!" I like this guy's dramatic flare.

"This is like that nightmare I had-" Funny, but does this say something about Lloyd's character?

Raz just goes and hires random fuckos? Hm... Is he connected to Jay in that aspect then?

I'm having a pretty good time with this so far! I don't like the theme song, though; it reminds me too much of She-ra and the Princesses of Power theme song, which also bothered me.

Current progress on the piece I'm inking:

[free-boundsoul]

Let’s never find out, Freelancer.

Oh, let me count the words… Vulgar? Cocky? Uninhibited? Obnoxious? Overly demonstrative? Unconcerned with societal expectations? Big-mouthed? Braggadocious? Perhaps I should crack open a thesaurus… Oh my gosh, he’s in Lasko’s class? That seems like a disaster waiting to happen. How is Lasko feeling about that? I’d PAY to sit in on that class. Oh, you really think he’d ask me for fire pointers? I mean, daemons are so powerful. I’m not sure what sort of advice I could give him, but he’s more than welcome to ask me anything he likes.

Great minds think alike! Your grandmother comes up a lot. She’s really an important figure in your life, isn’t she? I can tell how important she is to you. No, I’ve heard of them before. Ever. Must be something specific to your region.

Well, yes, as long as the class isn’t full. Anyone who has already completed 30 credits, which is equal to about a year of course, is free to audit a one class per semester, so you and I could audit, but you absolutely should not, Freelancer. You shouldn’t! This is only your second year. There’s no need for you spend all that time and effort towards one class when you still have so many to take for an actual grade. Especially if that class is taught by a professor with blatantly discriminatory practices against students like you. Why subject yourself to that bullshit? I don’t want to drag you into my schemes and risk your education. You’ve worked so hard! I’m sure there will be other humanborn or shifter students in that class. God forbid there’s a humanborn shifter… Unfortunately, I think I’ll have plenty of opportunities to gather evidence.

You know me, Freelancer. I’m always game to try something new. What kind of icings are you thinking? We’ve already established I love chocolate and peanut butter. And, we could always get really crazy and add sprinkles. What do you think?

-Damien

Oh, trust me, Damie, you're nice to me. You're not gonna get away without a fight.

Braggadocious? I like that one, hehe. Bring it out if you'd like, I like learning new words. Yeah, he's in Lasko's class! I'd love to be there too. But I'm sure we'll get all the juicy details right from their own mouths. There's no way Gavin wouldn't boast about flustering Lasko in public.

Why wouldn't he? Just because he's a daemon doesn't make him all knowing. You're super advanced with your fire control, Damien. I know it's your element and all but it's still amazing to watch. If Gavin asks you, do you mind if I sit in for some pointers too?

Oh, yeah, she is. Sorry I bring her up a lot. I must miss her more than I realize. Its kinda crazy how desserts are localized, isn't it? Are their any unique ones from where you're from?

Alright, I won't audit, but I'm staying in the class. I already texted Lasko to cancel the change. I don't plan on failing his class, even if he intends on making it hard on me. And your schemes? It was my idea first! I'm dragging you into my schemes. If you're going in, so am I! What if he knows who your mom is and tries to make things hard on you because of that? He'd probably love to drag you down.

Oh, I was thinking chocolate, but we could also drizzle peanut putter on top. Or maybe even make peanut butter donuts? Or we could have crushed up peanut butter cups as like, crumbles on top? Do you have a favorite type of donut? I really like the Boston creme ones myself.

[lady-of-the-spirit]

It's almost 2021 so I watched the live action Aladdin and here are my thoughts throughout the movie!

I wonder what focusing on the big boat and then showing the smaller boat could possibly mean, story-wise???? I Wonder. /s

Who's the third guy on the ship? A friend? Assistant? Did Genie and Dalia open their relationship to a third person?

The opening scene with the camera moving throughout the city and showing us the characters but never showing their faces was actually pretty cool

Cannot believe we didn't get to see the cave of wonders rise out of the sand. LAME.

So the first shot of Jasmine is of her in the streets, with no setup to her character? Bummer.

Still makes no sense that Jasmine wouldn't take any money when she goes out into the city.

The trust me scene doesn't feel as natural here.

The song and the chase scene don't feel as authentic either. They're too limited by the live action.

The costumes are gorgeous. I'm not sure about the accuracy but they're beautiful. Especially the women's.

Turning "I'm a fast learner" Jasmine into "can't do this" Jasmine bums me out too.

Spelling out Jafar's motives and backstory in the very beginning instead of letting them naturally come out over the movie... *sighs*

At least they explain why the mom is gone instead of just handwaving her absence away.

The visuals of Jasmine standing over Aladdin and then Aladdin walking up the stairs to her was cool.

I REALLY wish that for Jasmine's intro as a princess (as she was walking down the stairs) they had played a more regal song instead of a softer romantic one, since I think they were trying to make her more of a leader than a romantic interest

Jasmine calling bs is cool

I feel like the assault of a foreign prince is something to be concerned about

Jasmine calling bs AGAIN is cool

When Jafar stopped in the hallway when he saw Jasmine I thought he was doing my thing of waiting until the other person kept walking so they wouldn't see me

I don't like Jasmine's pink dress as much as I like the outfits of the women in the streets

How tf was it so easy for Aladdin to sneak in to the palace

"Yes you're getting married but it's not like you'd have to talk to him!" I love her already

Jasmine and Dalia are amazing

You'd think Aladdin would wonder why the handmaid is dressed better than the princess

Jasmine sharply breathing in when he brushes her hair is absolutely a Mood. Like same.

I get it would be hard to cgi or find a shit ton of gold for the Cave but i found the cave kind of disappointing? Like it's too dark to see how much treasure is in there so it's not as awe-inspiring. The lighting is the true problem here.

Jafar is just BLATANTLY telling this kid he's got plans and not hiding his identity instead of disguising himself and it's actually kind of funny

Jafar is hot and I'm not afraid to say it. Tbh most of my desire to watch this movie today came from him being in The Old Guard.

How is Abu knocking over a whole dish of coins not touching anything

CARPET

How is he not supposed to touch anything if every step and crevice is covered un jewels and gold? Or is it only "touch" with an intention to take?

There wasn't any sound for the lava bursting through the walls... no explosion noises or anything. This unsettles me.

Carpet getting smashed by that rock and Aladdin getting thrown off made me laugh and it probably shouldn't have

Genie doesn't look as bad as I thought

Genie's looking around and I can't tell if he's trying to remember what he's supposed to say when he comes out of the lamp or if he's trying to find his new master

Aladdin's *noise* when the genie comes out made me laugh

"Giants are not real"

Like Maui spent at least twelve making the choreography for Your Welcome, Genie spent at least a hundred years on the song and dance. He was WAITING for a master to not know who he was.

The gold amidst the lava is cool. I wish it looked more melted into the rock because I'm still seeing the coin shapes.

Will Smith clearly made the character his own instead of repeating Robin Williams and I'm happy about that

The OG style and characters in the Genie's drawing I love it 🥺

Carpet making the sandcastle 🥺

Why does Genie want to be human?

Kinda boring loophole Aladdin used, instead of talking his way out of using the first wish. *sigh*

Genie telling Aladdin about the Very Specific Wording rules of genies is nice.

Aladdin has Zero idea what's going on and I appreciate it

The woman who appeared right as people started clearing the streets for the parade was very pretty.

I like that Aladdin tosses some coins and then it hits him like he can TOSS ALL THE COINS TO THE PEOPLE. HE CAN GIVE ALL THESE PEOPLE MONEY.

"Spoons!" "Yam jams!" Dalia is wonderful.

The dancing is so fun! I love it!

I'm not really feeling the friendship between Genie and Aladdin which makes me sad.

Genie couldn't knock himself? He had to make a knocking sound with his magic? How is he gonna survive as a human?

I'm trying not to say "this scene was better in the og movie" but Aladdin jumping off the balcony and Jasmine's reaction to it and Aladdin popping back up like "what's wrong?" Was better in the og movie

Not sure I really vibe with the changes they made in Jasmine's motivation. Maybe I'm just being a purist but also it just doesn't quite feel right. I think they just didn't do it well.

They're still cute though.

I assume that they brought Dalia in as a character for more female characters. It's weird that they do that and the movie still doesn't pass the Bechdel Test - every conversation Dalia and Jasmine have are about men.

They're just gonna assault and murder a Prince in broad daylight????

Why'd they have to tie him to a chair? Why couldn't they just stick with the chains? To make it look less violent to the kids watching? They're already trying to drown him.

Why did Jafar think he would be saved? Did he think Aladdin was keeping it on him at all times? But he didn't stick around to see if he lived.

The purple dress is cute. Very nice.

This reveal deserved to be more dramatic. I'm upset that it wasn't. It was kinda boring.

I like that Jafar appeared snake-like as he was using his powers. That's a cool touch.

I didn't really feel like the friendship between Aladdin and Genie developed naturally so I'm not as sad about their fight as I could have been otherwise.

"I haven't changed!" *immediately gets robbed with the most obvious tactic and doesn't notice like he did at the beginning* I see what you did there

What made Aladdin change his mind? Two seconds ago he was like "I haven't changed" and showed no signs of changing his mind. The next time we see him he's done a 180 without any hints about what made him decide to be honest. No shot of him walking around his home looking at his few but precious belongings, or speaking with whatever friends or acquaintances he may have had on the streets. Nothing.

There's a reason Jafar was sitting on the steps when he overthrew the Sultan. Like, a visual, film reason. I don't know what it is, though. Maybe a literal "started from the bottom now we're here" moment, like Aladdin moving up the steps towards Jasmine at the beginning?

I like that they gave Jasmine a powerful moment and put her in the chase scene instead of. You know. Red bikini.

Not gonna lie when the Sultan knocked Jafar's staff over the side and yelled "you're nothing without it!" And then Jafar raised it back up to his hand with magic I yelled "HA BITCH!"

DID THEY FUCKING KILL CARPET?!

I screamed "NO!" when it ripped I was so upset

I do kinda love how Jafar and Aladdin are foils for each other

Did Genie say "what the hell"

Aladdin talking Jafar into defeating himself doesn't work as well when there wasn't any initial setup of him being good at tricking people. No tricking the vendor into thinking Jasmine's his crazy sister, no tricking the genie into getting them out of the cave. Everything is just about his sleight of hand

Is there a law that genies must be shirtless

Oh good Carpet's okay.

CARPET AND ABU'S HUG WAS ❤

So was Genie born a human and turned into a genie? Is that how it works? Or did Genie use the grey area of the wish to turn himself human?

Genie's relief to be human and his and Aladdin's hug was sweet

Dalia and Genie was rushed but you know what? They're cute so I'm fine with it.

There's not even a reveal that Jafar killed the mother????

I do like that it was Jasmine becoming sultan that changed the law instead of Sultan just going "fuck it! Why not!"

Imagine not seeing your princess for years and the first time you see her she's kissing the street rat you saw thrown into mud only a few weeks earlier

The dancing is really fun and I love it.

Overall there were parts of it I didn't quite like (mostly noted above) but it was enjoyable.