#love is the ultimate power babey!!!!!

[thotvevo]

this graphic novel is the set up for really emphasizing a long-running theme, that love has been the most powerful force in the universe. if you even care

[tsuchinokoroyale]

if you were in hxh what do you think your nen affinity would be? … what would your hatsu be…

Ooooooo what a fun question!

Based on hisoka’s personality divination, I’m most likely a manipulator: Logic driven, protective of loved ones, stubborn.

I’m bad with directions, but I’m not navigationally incompetent. That is to say, street names are secondary to me because I prefer remembering how one location flows into another over a sequence of street names. I literally couldn’t tell you the names of most of the roads I take to go even grocery shopping but could probably sketch out the trip. My hatsu, which I would call 「Thinking of a Place」 / World Weary Vagabond would reflect that mentality. I would imbue road signs with my aura, allowing me to superimpose myself on every similarly named road sign, letting me choose which intersection I want to step out onto. Instead of moving about the world in physical sequence, I can stitch together my own flow through the world. This is restricted via A) the need to touch the signs to activate and B) the need for roads to share a name, but essentially gives me a global teleportation ability. Like, if I come into contact with a sign for Main St. I can go basically anywhere in the world. By focusing my aura into other people/objects they can come along with me with my side ability 「Carry On」 / I Wanna Be With You Everywhere.

[livingthedragonlife]

honestly something so brilliantly exemplified by the winged lion's whole... Thing... and dungeon meshi as a whole of course is that what you want is not necessarily what you need. having what you desire will not necessarily solve the problem you want it to solve.

mithrun wanted a second chance with the one he loved, a second chance at the imagined life and happiness he thought it would bring him. what he needed was to move on and find happiness elsewhere -- which he realizes by the end of the story, but too late to stop him from becoming a "leftover" dungeon lord.

thistle wants nobody he loves to ever die again, protect his country and its people. the lion gives them all immortality and "safety" within the dungeon. and they're all miserable and hate it and some of them die trying to escape. thistle ends up killing the people he wanted to save when they act out against him. what he needs is to accept the reality of loss and tragedy, to face the fact that nobody can avoid death and sometimes bad things happen for no reason. that doesn't make life pointless, it makes life meaningful.

marcille wants something similar, for everyone to live the same length as her so she'll never be alone, or have to see everyone she loves grow old and frail. but like laios points out, she'd be making the exact same mistake as thistle. she'd be forcing everyone on the PLANET to live according to her whims, whether or not they actually want to. there's a common theme here of refusing to accept loss, instead moving around it, trying to find a reality in which bad things will never ever happen.

laios wants to become a monster. humans are cruel and unpredictable and not nearly as interesting to him. life as a monster would be so much better than being a person, he doesn't fit in with other humans anyway, he'd be better off as some ultimately powerful creature, and never have to feel hurt by humanity ever again. sound familiar?

it's all unprocessed trauma babey. your trauma brain does not know what is good for you, even if it sounds appealing. even if it sounds like the exact thing that will fix your life. even if avoiding pain forever seems more doable than learning to live with it.

because if all you have is that one desire, who are you when it's taken from you?

[hazbinhazbinhazbinreblog]

I LUV Ace Vox and Al

Vox: Hey babey you know what I wanna do tonight

Alastor *Already leaving*

Vox:Homicide

Alastor:...

Alastor:... you have my attention

All their dates end with mass destruction. Charlie is torn between happy they are happy and oh god please stop there is so much blood please. They're also sappy and romantic while doing it so like 'aw they're so in love' and 'OH GOD EVERYTHING'S ON FIRE'

ULTIMATE POWER COUPLE.

I like to imagine that's the first conversation they have that actually works, like after a long time of Vox accidentally ending a conversation bc he said something too suggestive and then being told 'hey u can just not do that and still have a relationship yk' this was his way of testing that theory and when Alastor responds with interest he's just like holy shit that actually worked what do I do now

✨️murder husbands✨️

[em-writes-stuff-sometimes]

✨ Send your friends a question you've always wanted to ask them. To keep the game going, ask another 5 people a question. ✨

My question/s for you: Is there a single action (or a few actions) that you think Babey could have done in order to prevent the Dance? Or was it set in stone before she could do anything?

I know this is so late AAAAAA, but thank you so much for the question!

To be perfectly honest, I don't think Babey could have done anything to change things. She has no real influence in comparison to the other major players of the Dance, and really the only way the Dance could have been avoided would be if Viserys never remarried after Aemma's death. I think it would've even happened, or a version of it, if he'd gone with Laena instead: the outcome is always inevitably that Viserys gets a son from a new wife, and Rhaenyra and that son are swept up in the feuding and factionalism that follows. Sure, she could have not told Viserys she liked Alicent when she was a teeny child, but even that is a bit of a cop-out because we see in canon that Viserys marries Alicent without any constructive input from a family member.

It might've been averted if Babey married Aegon instead? But that's a big 'if', because Otto always intended to use Aegon as a pawn to further his political and personal agendas. It really depends on how constructive that marriage would've been--if Babey could potentially wield more influence over Aegon than his grandfather (which relies on factors like: does Babey love him? Does she develop enough of a backbone to go against Otto? Does Aegon love/respect her enough to prioritise her voice over a career statesman like Otto?)--and whether or not Babey would be afforded the ability to become more than a convenient, child-splooting accessory for Aegon/Alicent/the greens in general. And also, the line of questioning ultimately falls to whether or not Babey's allegiance would even remain with Rhaenyra if she's married to Aegon.

It's strange. Babey wields so much symbolic power--she's the second daughter of Aemma and Viserys, Rhaenyra's universally-acceptable heir and thus arguably second in line to the throne among those who consider Rhaenyra's claim legitimate but simultaneously believe her sons to be illegitimate--but wields little practical power. The people around her don't consider her a threat because she's quiet and soft-spoken and generally non-confrontational. Ultimately, I think this is how I've managed to get away with pushing ahead with the Dance while including an OC/readeresque figure. And I think there's a tragic sort of poeticism in this inclusion still leading to the same violent result, despite the differences that it makes--something something about the unavoidability of fate.

But I suppose, in conclusion, that large-scale conflict always going to happen. Dragons are too great a power, and that power in the hands of the wrong people (which House Targaryen completely are) can lead to limitless atrocity. Add some good ol' sexism and the intersection of race (Targaryens as foreign interlopers naturally othered by the people they rule, Targaryens as sub- or super-human entities segregated from the Westerosi populace, Targaryens as colonial invaders oppressing the native people, Targaryens demoting native people to lower classes and establishing themselves within the highest social tier) and culture (dynastic incest, individual language system, magic, dragons, differing faith), and you get the Dance. This was beyond Babey--this was beyond them all. The Targaryen dynasty was never sustainable.

Thank you for the question!

[lavenderbright]

please share your pye and idaea headcanons

SO GLAD YOU ASKED. i think about space goats way too much

idaea:

he was around 9-10 (or the nomai equivalent) when the vessel crashed. grew up on ember twin, didn't undergo the quantum trials until he was already an established adult

privet is the older sibling and they would both die for each other

he is THE top mechanical engineer in the Eye project. this is why he was asked to work on the sun station despite his obvious stance against it

he also worked on the construction of the orbital probe cannon, black hole forge, and high energy lab

used to get made fun of as a kid for not understanding sarcasm and social cues :(

has always been somewhat combative and contradictory. no one was really surprised that he didn't like the sun station idea

cannot stand the heat. was always jealous of the nomai who lived on icy brittle hollow. the first thing he did as soon as the sun station was built enough was install the universe's most powerful air conditioning

halfway through the construction of the sun station, idaea had a slight breakdown. he wondered if what he was doing was Reckless and Immoral and started having doubts. at one point he seriously considered sabotaging the construction of the station to make it fail on purpose, but ultimately decided to have faith in his clan and continue as planned. he only ever talked to privet about this

when the sun station failed anyway he blamed himself, wondering if he subconsciously messed up somewhere along the line. he was pondering how to make it up to pye and the rest of the project for his shortcomings when the interloper cut that thought process short

pye:

was born a few years after the crash. she is the oldest of three children

she was absolutely dogshit at any literature or history based coursework in school but was a prodigy at physics and mathematics. she breezed through the quantum trials like no one's business

got along with virtually everybody. was friends with her peers, impressed the elders, and was great with kids

spoiled the hell out of lami and laevi whenever she had the chance. she loved her niblings so much. she was the one who told them about the "other way" to get into the statue workshop, much to phlox's displeasure

had a big fat crush on ramie but had no idea how to express it or even identify that what she was feeling was romantic attraction. coped with it by making up excuses to do science with her in the high energy lab. (ramie guessed that pye liked her, but didn't reciprocate and never brought it up. on the other hand, poke actually had a crush on pye, who had literally no idea)

you know when pye said that she was only calculating shuttle trajectories to the sun station as an exercise? yeah that was just to get yarrow off her back, she was definitely planning on trying

she absolutely hated that she couldn't crack idaea. genuinely wanted to be friends with him at first but gave up after the 75th annoyed glare. however, she always admired his work. she studied several of his inventions and publications in her higher education

was never known to cry over anything. failed experiment? that's how you learn babey! seriously injured? walk it off! only cried twice in anyone's memory: the first was when lami and laevi were born. the second was when the sun station failed

volunteered to explore the interloper before yarrow could even finish his sentence. she really needed a distraction

her last thought was that she really hoped poke would get away in time

[asoftspotforangels]

so I was tagged three times lately so I am putting it all in one post XD

from least to most difficult askfhjadkhfjkdlhaf

from @hardboiledteacozy 💝

⟡ rules : answer + tag 9 people you want to get to know better and/or catch up with!

⟡ fav color : green 💚

⟡ last song : Moment's Silence (Common Tongue) by Hozier

⟡ last movie : Barbie (I haven't seen any movie since last year lol). tv series - 1670

⟡ currently reading : I just finished I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy and started 1F: Fukushima I Nuclear Power Plant Work Log by Tatsuta Kazuto

⟡ currently watching : Dungeon Meshi 🍳

⟡ currently craving : some nice juicy oranges 😔 if anyone has tips on how to choose the best oranges, let me know pls

⟡ coffee or tea : I like coffee only if it's a sweet treat (so with milk and sugar or some sugary syrup); tea, however !! 🥰 a few days ago I opened a blend I got who knows how many years ago and from where or from whom, it's green and white tea, and it's soooo gooood~

from @minnichan 💗

Rules: pick a song for each letter of your url and tag that many people. my url is too long for that lol

I have a playlist for songs I currently listen to, let's see if it's enought to complete this game… there's not a huge variety of artists tho ^^"

A - Appaloosa by Lor S - Sinktank by Inabakumori O - Overdose by Natori (hi minni!!!! I saw a cover of it in one of your asks lately!!! :3) F - fanfiction by Lor (yes, that's a lyrics video on their official channel xd) T - Tail by Sunmi (when will she come back to Poland TT__TT) S - Sweet Dream from Alien Stage by C!naH / by BL8M (I have both versions on my playlist, yeah) P - Post Shelter by Inabakumori O - Order of Silence from Genshin (ost from Cyno's demo) T - Trafalgar Square by Lor F - FightSong by Eve O - Overture from Jesus Christ Superstar 1996 R - Ruler Of My Heart from Alien Stage ( ‼ spoilers from Alien Stage here ‼ cw: blood, violence, death, panic attack) A - agaki (亜ガキ) by Ora (sometimes the background music skips between left and right side and I love it) N - Nonsense Bungaku by Eve G - A Gentleman's Fantasy from Honkai Star Rail (amazing boss theme!!) E - Ezra Was Right by Grandbrothers (this one starts quite slowly, if you're impatient you can start at 3:15 xD) L - Lagtrain by Inabakumori S - $hrek 2 by Lor (cw: guys without shirts fighting at school)

Lor is a Polish band that I recommend with my whole heart :3

many Eve's MVs are like short animes, I love them so so much

the whole Alien Stage is quite short, because it's basically made of music videos and there's less than 10 rn (here's a playlist for anyone interested) (but it can be quite triggering sometimes)

fuck gachas and their gambling, but genshin and star rail have amazing music

here's a very fun fact: I started listening to Eve and Inabakumori last year on April 17 and May 4 respectively, so about a year ago!!

from @dangerliesbeforeyou 💖

list 5 topics i can talk on for an hour without preparing any material

this one's difficult!!!! because I can endlessly talk about my fandoms and blorbos........only. I don't feel knowledgeable on anything specific, but I could, however, ramble on about my interests

I'm back to that Stardew Valley Grind™ rn so I could talk a lot about my farm. my first farm. year three, winter, and it's probably the ugliest farm you've ever seen. and. and also. my cyhaino sdv au brainrot. 😳

genshin, especially my ultimate blorbo Alhaitham 🌱 idk, I just like this guy, I saw first leaks and I was like 👉 this guy. this is my dude.

my babeys blue lions from fire emblem 3 houses 😭 I chose them in my first playthrough and I still do NOT care about anyone else (that's an exaggeration, I care about others, but... not as much... 😔) also, Sylvain is there and flirty red guys are my ultimate weakness. I know he can, just, switch to your house if you're playing female Byleth (lol), but I don't want to separate him from his friends 😭 they're all traumatised and need hugs

painting and drawing! lately I fell back in love in traditional art and I picked up acrylic painting, and I'm watching a lot of videos and learning a lot - by my own trial and error too, but it's fun!

various handcraft I learned - embroidery, crocheting, knitting, punch needle, sewing - and stuff I created. I don't do all these all the time, only when I feel like it so.....irregularly lol! but I have lots of ideas and some plans, and unfinished works

tagging: @natowe @one-trash-alek @hardboiledteacozy @dangerliesbeforeyou @minnichan

@vanyafresita @giosele @shuuenka @thebrokenwriter911

tagging everyone for everything, do whichever you want or nothing at all, no pressure ✨

(but I love reading other people's answers :3)

pretty dividers from @cafekitsune (x)

[possibilistfanfiction]

your latest rebloghad me snickering i never have understood the obsession with her. anything youve been listening to lately that you rec for someone looking for something new?

ok before anyone comes for me lmfao i do want to say that i generally find her music mostly fine, sometimes good, occasionally a song will make me absolutely feral for no discernible reason lol. i think she's an eco-terrorist basically but like... her music is fine & ppl being normal fans is... normal lol

what is BEYOND to me is when ppl will literally like... post abt her like she's their friend, or defend her music when like sometimes artists u like make mediocre shit! that's fine! lol like i have two lorde tattoos & i do think overall as a project solar power is beautiful & cool but was it earth-shattering like pure heroine or melodrama? no! which is fine! i don't need it to be! i also have no idea what lorde is doing day to day lol

also i will say i love pop. i love being a fan of pop. i think the world runs on pop music & it should! i named my dog after charli xcx! not everything i listen to (or consume in general) aligns with my personal politic of a free palestine & a free world! my ultimate weakness is drag race! so the level of insanity surrounding taylor swift (& beyonce tbh) by (at least in my community) gay white men (or gay men trying to perform whiteness / gain proximity to it) is just... bonkers! i could go on about this forever but i will not lol. [if u like podcasts tho, a bit fruity did an ep on the political power of taylor swift which is quite interesting. their episode becoming a woman with miss benny also talks abt gayness, femininity, & pop (in an illuminating way!!) -- check them out if u want!!]

ANYWAY SORRY. some stuff i'm currently loving:

tierra whack's new album whack world. super funky, smart, heartfelt, she's the weirdest in the game & we are all better for it

BRAT ERA BABEY aka charli xcx's new singles. my favorite is club classics atm but B2b & von dutch (& the remix w/ addison rae) are summer bops. can't wait to be drunk on the beach listening to them

constantly going back to ethel cain's preacher's daughter, especially when i'm in nature w/ char. it's one of my favorite albums of all time; so fucking beautiful. hymns.

as the world's no1 bangerz apologist, & bc of jojo siwa being absolutely delulu & kind of iconic lately, i've been returning to 2013 miley for a laugh, & bc that album is so good. feels rly sad now? idk. her cover of jolene ate so hard no one will ever come close, sry

random but a cover of breezeblocks by taylor rae

honestly also whatever i loved II MOST WANTED lmao. it's gay. the only reason ppl are saying it's not is bc beyonce is on the track. it's gay i will die on this hill

lastly listening to a lot of lonnie holley

[sllowshow]

jameson and orla :)

how did they meet? it's not incorrect to say through their siblings dating, but they weren't technically introduced by zoë and monty. while maybe it was their being together that had made jameson follow zoë on instagram. it was fate, something bigger than all four of them that compelled him to check his instagram stories while he was waiting in a fortnite lobby, and get his first glimpse of her: a picture of orla and her sisters, at the beach, all tagged. she sat on the edge of their picnic blanket, sunkissed with curls peeking out from beneath her hat. he shut his xbox off after a minute or so of scrolling through her grid. it was simply time to lock in and slide into her dms posthaste. and he's got the game of a man who's too dumb to care if he sounds cringey. the rest was history <3

who is more affectionate in public? in private? probably jameson for both. i think he's kind of touchy and like will not be stopped just because they're in public versus private. within like reason (although i'm sure her parents would disagree. sure they've probably seen more than they'd care to one year after the sun went down at aaron's famous fourth of july party.

who is the bigger romantic openly? secretly? i think orla both. i think jameson claims loverboy status but like. i dont know i feel like his love is very of the moment if that makes sense. but orla's got a more romantic view of like the world at large. like she's got the heart for beautiful spring days and fresh fruit and im maybe too high to be doing this. it's okay.

who is more likely to plan something big for valentine’s day? not to immediately pull a Both but both.... i think they get excited about planning stuff like that together. like orla's researching restaurants they can try and get a seat at, jameson's all excited to take her roller skating or something corny like that. like i think they loveeee a good date night. and trust they're all well documented. these people have the most massive digital footprints.

who is more likely to initiate hand-holding in public? handholding specifically? probably orla. i think that feels sweetie and fun and her style. jameson's more inclined to like arms around the waist or shoulders.

who is more likely to make huge declarations of love in front of other people? i don't think either of them would like particularly struggle with that kind of thing. but i do think jameson is one of those guys who gets wasted and feels the need to give a speech about the girl who changed everything. so do with that what you will.

who developed a crush on the other first? jameson he was simply down bad from square one. because he's been generally stupid and impish in the past, i think they were a pair that raised some brows at first, but she literally held all the power there babey.

who is more likely to send cutesy texts to the other? orla. jameson lacks the reading comprehension. but again i cannot stress enough she is adorable.

who spends time reading their zodiac compatibilities? orla again! mama's in tune with the universe. she's keeping an eye on what the stars have ordained. jameson will proudly claim he is aries, the bull.

who tends to get sick more often? who is better at taking care of the other? jameson gets sick more often which works because orla is better at taking care of him. he's well intentioned but ultimately would need to be like. explicitly told what she needed in the way of care when i imagine she'd already have the perfect soup in mind from the first sniffle.

who believes in soulmates? they both do and i mean it. i think in their own ways they share a very similar philosophy and part of that is having always believed their was someone they were meant to be with, someone that makes them a better version of themself, someone they can share life with. like corny on purpose what they believe. and i think its beautiful that they found each other.

who cooks the dinner, and who washes the dishes? orla cooks ^^ jameson has never eaten this many vegetables before in his life. its overwhelming sometimes. he will wash the dishes tho.

who does the majority of the driving? jameson simply insists that is his job. and she's his darling passenger princess.

whose family do they celebrate more holidays with? orla's. the hanna's have a massive gravitational pull. but for real, i think like the reids are decently close but definitely not as tight knit as the hannas and their web of family friends who all want to celebrate together. i think for a number of holidays, they're happy to invite his parents to join them as well, but i think they've staked the claim on hosting.

do they have any personal holiday traditions together? they're matching christmas pajamas people and they're gonna stay in those pajamas for as long as physically possible whenever they're celebrating. its that, cookies from the hanna family baking sesh, and cartoon christmas movies all day.

if they get married, what was the wedding vibe? summer wedding. ceremony maybe even on the beach. i think she wore some gorgeous drapey gown and he probably didnt wear a jacket or maybe even a tie. twinkle lights at the reception energy. i dont think they really stressed on it much. like i think they were mostly just excited to be doing it and having a party with all the people they loved so the details didn't matter as much.

how did they decide what to name their child(ren)? i think jonas and emmeline were both proposals from orla. i think jonas pretty closely aligns with jameson's sesnsibilities, but he is the culprit behind calling her emmy.

[strangesmallbard]

it’s wild to me that tom managed to fool so many people pre s4 that he 1) lacked ambition in favor of shiv’s ultimate goal 2) was wholly subservient in the relationship. beyond how he lashed out at greg when he can’t lash out at shiv—and stopped paying attention to greg altogether when he started lashing out at shiv—i think matthew macfadyen played tom of tomshiv with distinct insecurity and frustration. regardless of his real affection for shiv, he was also plotting from day one; he romanced shiv at her most vulnerable, ensured she’d rely on him emotionally. he ingratiated himself into her family.

tom also expected her to have his children, eventually. like logan (and many guys,) i think he genuinely expected shiv to change her mind about having children + fall into the motherhood role after giving birth. in that context, it makes sense why he played the beta to her alpha. one day, he’d be the father and she’d be the mother. on the surface, sucking up to logan doesn’t fit with this pov. however, i think tom realizes that to earn logan’s approval, he needs to be the yes man and the patsy. approval isn’t quite respect, however—that came, i believe, when tom sold out his own wife to come out on top.

going back to shiv + tom’s subservient role: i think shiv’s request for non-monogamy really shook up his plans. it also showed the cracks in tom’s performance. he says it himself: he’s traditional. he wants a traditional american white heterosexual marriage. man and wife, to have and to hold, one leads and one follows. in tom’s view, shiv cuckolding him makes their power imbalance tangible in a way he can’t process or tolerate. if he expresses this view, however, she might dump him for a guy who will follow her lead. and where would that leave tom? so he tries to fit the non-monogamy into his longterm plan, but epically fails because it’s irreconcilable, fundamentally.

tom also loves her, genuinely. and she loves him. that makes it all especially more volatile. this is why tom looks like a husk after achieving his ultimate goal in the finale. it’s why he reaches for shiv’s hand in the end. it would be a dream come true if it weren’t such a fucking nightmare.

but anyway! really wild that people believed tom when he said and did all that. he was a logan kinny from day one babey

[celine-song]

I know I am probably in the minority here but I never saw Rebecca and Ted as more than really good friends! I love their platonic relationship and I am very glad the writers didn’t make them a couple. We need more friendships like theirs in media. I also always thought that Ted was going back to the USA because of his son so I wasn’t surprised by his decision. And I don’t know why think that going back means he is getting back together with his ex-wife. There was no indication for that. And while I thought that Roy‘s and Jamie‘s fight was dumb I like that it shows that growth is not a linear process. Sometimes you go forward sometimes back. It’s what you of your mistakes that’s important. I guess what I am saying is that while there some things I didn’t like and some things I wish we had seen I didn’t hate the finale and most things wrapped up in a nice way. What are your thoughts?

i never shipped ted and rebecca romantically either, there were some moments where i thought it could be good if the writers went in that direction but ultimately i think their connection IS powerful and soulmate-y, it's just not romantic.

did people think ted was going back to michelle? that bridge has been burned for sure sdkjvnksdfj

the roy and jamie thing was kinda unexpected tbh bc i thought they'd emotionally matured enough already not to do the cliche "we will decide who the girl gets to be with without even asking her or considering she doesn't want either of us" but keeley kicking them out was really funny so i'll allow it kdsfvnsjkdfvn

honestly what got me most emotional is not the ship-y stuff but nate......... the way they accepted him back the way he too can still the sign even when it's not there the way they used his play the way he cried and cried and cried because they saw him at his worst and they forgave him and they took him back. that's unconditional love babey!!!

[frogtanii]

I have a slightly controversial question: who tops in LevYaku?

LMAO ITS YAKU you cannot tell me that feral lil man would not LIVE to put lev in his place i mean cmon??? plus unpopular opinion but lev does not have a dominant bone in his body SORRY I DONT MAKE THE RULES

[daylighteclipsed]

Are there any Soriku / sasunaru parallels in particular that make you lose it?

Okay there’s at least 15 that have been rattling around in my brain for months, but this post would be a mile long. So I’m gonna pick out the 7 that slapped me across the face the most upon first going from Naruto to KH. Let’s start with this one cause I sorta mentioned it not long ago:

My Riku / My Sasuke

If I had a nickel for every time a usually cheerful protagonist searching for their broody best friend who tried to kill them snapped because some slimy scientist who likes to play god spoke possessively about their best friend, I’d have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird that it’s happened twice.

Screenshots cannot do this justice. You have to see Sora literally bent over shaking in rage to understand why this is a remotely applicable comparison to Naruto going 4-tailed Kyuubi mode on the bridge… I hit the 10 pic limit, so iykyk… Also interesting how both boys have a demon form that’s triggered by rage, though Sora doesn’t have Rage Form yet in CoM.

The Dark Margin / The Valley of the End

Honestly, what beats finally starting to share your feelings and understand each other after so much conflict, which is meaningfully reflected by the setting — a place where two opposing but complementary forces meet and reconcile? Saying, “I love you,” without having to say it? At peace with dying because you’re finally together? Nothing. Nothing beats this. Together at the end of the world. Together at the end of this life, to walk side-by-side into the next one.

Yin and Yang, babey

Naruto and Sasuke quite literally possess the powers of Yang and Yin, respectively, to save the world. They get these sick sun and moon tattoos. Their chakras — yellow, hot, bright/purple, cold, dark — also reflect this dichotomy. Sora and Riku have the whole Symphony of Sorcery, which is very day, sky, warm/night, ground, cold — visual representations of their complementary heart songs. Their [light and darkness are] Eternal Session. The Gayblade.

What’s nice about Sora and Riku is that it’s more obvious that they work in yinyang, though. During Eternal Session, for instance, they switch between who uses light and dark abilities, whereas Naruto and Sasuke’s chakras are strictly light and dark, respectively.

Taisetsu [na hito]

“When a person has something precious to protect, that’s when they can become truly strong.” Riku and Naruto actually share this parallel — becoming strong to protect their precious people (Sora and Sasuke). This is a core aspect of their characters and respective arcs. It’s pretty self-explanatory.

But this theme applies to Sora and Sasuke, too, as the ones who first show Riku and Naruto this strength of heart — they “save” Riku and Naruto, literally and figuratively, and this is part of what drives Riku and Naruto to return the favor when it’s Sora and Sasuke in need of saving.

Additionally… Sasuke has to kill the person most precious to him to achieve ultimate power but can’t no matter how hard he tries because he loves Naruto more than anything. This is the final tie to his heart, his humanity, that he just cannot sever… Sora spends all of CoM trying to find his most precious person. His memories are completely scrambled by the end and, amidst the chaos and lies, he clings to a singular truth, the only tie he knows is real — a promise to protect his most precious person. A promise, as it would turn out, he exchanged with Riku… Naruto and Riku are the final ties to their hearts and selves. That’s what I’m saying.

Riku and Sasuke laughing

…because of Sora and Naruto :) The two’s earnest foolishness, like making a funny face or still caring about a childhood rivalry on their deathbed, breaks through Riku and Sasuke’s doom and gloom, and for the first time ever we see them laughing! Despite everything that’s happened, everything they’ve done, there are truly some things that never change and some bonds that are unbreakable… It’s unconditional love, Sora and Naruto’s stubborn refusal to treat their beloved friends any differently, that warms Riku and Sasuke’s cold hearts.

Kakkoii

A Japanese term used to describe someone as cool/handsome/good-looking… and the word both Sora and Naruto use when they let slip that Riku and Sasuke are attractive.

Sora does this when he remarks that he’s not as handsome/good-looking as Yozora (though the clothes kind of match), to which Goofy is quick to point out Yozora looks a lot like Riku. In the EN dub, Donald simply agrees — but in JP, Donald actually teases Sora, “Very good-looking, huh?”

In early Shippuden, after Sai is introduced to the team, Sakura remarks that Sai looks a lot like Sasuke. Naruto, who wants nothing to do with Sai, is quick to scoff that Sasuke is way better looking than Sai, before he realizes what he said and quickly tries to backtrack.

It’s also worth noting, in earlier concepts of Sasuke’s character introduction, Naruto’s initial reaction to Sasuke (in this case, after being saved by him) is blushing and thinking, “Sasuke kakkoii…”

“Your hearts are always in tune, so they’re free to sing.” / “I know your heart, and you know mine.”

Homoromantic quotes that more or less mean the same thing… and more or less reveal how both pairings can sense/feel each other in different worlds, dimensions, etc… things that make me crazy. The Naruto series uses chakra connections, while KH has connected hearts. Naruto/Sasuke and Sora/Riku take those connections a step further… basically giving you the series’ equivalent of soulmates.

Each relationship is also the heart of their series. They embody the themes, the messages. They are the emotional core. They are what the story is about… And that story is undeniably a love story, regardless of what kind of love you see it as. ❤️ While there are many parallels between Soriku and SNS, they are by no means the same. But I adore both relationships.

[frida--y]

it’s showtime

Never used two pics for my final thoughts prelude, but it’s cause wizard is so good.

Wizard. Is so good. Before i even finished 10 episodes I already deemed it my top favorite. Haruto putting on himself that responsibility of being wizard when it was placed upon him during a time of a near destruction of his body. The use of this role to protect others, to not let what happened to him happen to others. Becoming that hope through the pain. Being scared despite of it.That’s Kamen rider babey!!!!!!

The importance of choice and fate in wizard is very good. none of the wizards had the choice to decline to become a wizard, it was ‘fate’. It was placed on them. It’s the same with despair as well, the way depression can take everything from you that you become something not even human if it wins is!!!!!!!!! oh my god...

I love wizard, the show really shows how important hope is. It’s something I think everyone can personally relate to, I’ve thought back of how I used to feel at times when I was alone with my thoughts. I’ve... felt so alone before n it used to it hurt of how empty my body felt. It’s honestly kinda crazy how happy I feel rn at the moment!!! It isn’t about dwelling on those feelings forever, it’s about accepting those feelings and having the strength to live in the present, of moving on towards the future.

I’ve always been attached to stories that show how important kindness is, how even the smallest, “Can I see you again?” can save someone for even just the day.

Holding on to those memories, to your connections, to your hope and fortifying those memories so that they are the things that keep you living is.. great.

THEM!!!!!!

episode 31 babey... I love that Haruto gets his ultimate power from crying and wanting to protect Koyomi and how it becomes his strength for never giving up. The beach location, being the same one where they both steeled themselves after having their hopes and dreams (and life) violently taken from them… the sea.. the sea of hope.

Man those two images make me cry every time!!

I just, love stories about healing.

In the end thats what it was about, accepting Koyomi is dead. Accepting her final wish and fulfilling it. Living on with the hope you gained from others.

god. gonna be very normal about this! (crying rn)

Then we got Sora!! wow, I honestly thought he was going to be over and done with before the finale n still thought he was killed so close to the end! His reveal of being a serial killer of women was done so well, just jeezus christ this man is a monster.

Both Haruto and Sora had their humanity taken from... or did they. Sora tries to say that him and Haruto are the same, after all they both suffered through the Sabbat, BUT Haruto used that even to help others, retaining his humanity and saving others, while Sora (already a monster) continued to lash out and wanted to “become a human again”. Something he could he never do as even when he was human, he already lost his humanity by killing women that looked like the one that rejected him.

There’s always moments where I wish the series monsters could have a “saving arc”, but in series like Kuuga and Wizard, it sort of destroys the narrative if you dare put that in the story. Phantoms are the shell of a person, the worst aspects of humanity, violent, cruel, without hopes and dreams. The only Phantom that has sympathy isnt even a true one! It’s fake! Artificial! Fueki places the Phantom on himself to manipulate others all because he cannot get over the fact his daughter is dead. He’s willing to make everyone suffer for it.

It’s cruel what he does and I hate him for it!!!!!!

There’s so much to love in Wizard.... Haruto’s teacher telling him to cry if he feels like, Ms. Donut Manager’s hair style, Shunpei’s fashion... I haven’t even talked about the supporting cast cause that’s how strong Wizard holds up. I can talk and talk for days about the depression and healing allegories in Wizard before even going, “i like the mayo boy, he’s handsome :)”

The supporting cast is so fucking strong, they are the ones Haruto saved not only by his magic, but by his kindness. It’s the person he is. He.. survived an accident in which his parents perished, to which in the hospital on their death bed thanked him for being alive as he’s their hope. Haruto wants to be people’s hope cause he doesn’t want anyone going through the despair he went through. He shows them that through the despair there is hope, there’s more to life than the past.

....oh yeah I was gonna talk about Nitou

Just what a secondary! Super funny and cute! I love that he dares to take risks, dares to take the burden of living day to day, not knowing if he’s gonna die- and sees the brighter side of it. It shocks even Haruto! Haruto who took on being a wizard by acceptance and Nitou who “begged” for it. I love that line above... so fucking good. Dare to take risks!!!!

Great chemistry from these two, they get it. Also love it whenever Haruto spews this line back to Nitou

GOD There’s soooo much!!! TO SAY ABOUT WIZARD!!! From the mages, to especially Mayu’s character!!!!!! TO WAJIMA ACTING LIKE REAL FATHER TO BOTH KOYOMI AND HARUTO!!! TO SHUNPEI YELLING AT NITOU AND HARUTO WHEN THEY WERE TRYING TO LURE OUT THE WHITE WIZARD TO RINKO BEING SOO FUNNY (FAILMOE) AND BADASS AND SWEET ALL AT ONCE, JUST BEING SUCH A GREAT FEMALE LEAD!!!!!!!!!!!! AAHHHHHHH!!!!!! 

I love Wizard!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

last talk since this will really go on forever..

this fucking suit babey.

bonus images for loving:

bonus images for crying:

[sortasirius]

“Inherit the Earth” and the Fakeout

Absolutely genius.  Amazing, iconic, legendary, something only our showrunner Andrew Dabb can pull off.

"But Lilly, the episode was so bad!  It was just the brothers, they didn’t look for Cas and Eileen!”

YES.  THAT IS EXACTLY THE POINT.  THIS WAS A FAKE ENDING, THE END OF THE SEASON, NOT OF THE SERIES.

Let’s get into it.

An empty world.  No one left but Sam, Dean, and Jack.

So Dean ran, he somehow managed to pick himself up off the floor of the dungeon and meet up with Sam and Jack.  That jacket was this silent reminder.  Remember what I’ve been saying, Cas has occupied the negative space all season, this is no exception.

Dean can’t look either of them in the face, he’s doing that thing, where his eyes move everywhere BUT where he should look. 

“I couldn’t save anybody.”

Sam couldn’t save the world and Dean couldn’t save the one person that means the world to him.

“Where’s Cas?”

“Dean?”

I think it’s there, in that pause where Dean tries to push down the emotions, continue the fight, not think about the memories he left in the bunker, that Jack realizes what must have happened. Jack is the only one that knows about the deal, he has to know what Cas not being there must mean.

“He saved me.  Billie was coming after us.  Cas summoned the Empty.  It took her...and took him.  Cas is gone.”

This may shock you, but I am GLAD they didn’t talk about Cas, especially with what happens at the end of the episode.  Cas is allowed to just take up unsaid space.  It’s obvious he’s missing with the way they blocked things, obvious he’s missing here.  This whole “oh well they don’t care about Cas because they didn’t talk about him”?  Malarkey.

“Jack I’m sorry.”

Guilt.  Regret.  Pain.  Dean will carry this with him for the rest of his life.  Not only that he lost Cas, but that Sam lost Cas, that Jack lost Cas.

That SHOT, with the distance between Jack and Sam where Cas is SUPPOSED TO BE, and then a zoom out to...THE WORLD.

Okay, as usual, Bucklemming has the subtlety of a sledgehammer lmao.

Jack crying???  Praying to Cas????  Bruh?????

Also it’s just straight-up frightening for everything around my boy to die he is my baby son.

Also not to point out the incredibly obvious, but Dean starts drinking immediately, and continues drinking throughout the whole episode.  Grief arc 2.0 babey.

“We can what, Dean?  There’s no one left to save!  Everybody’s gone!”

“You can’t just give up.”

“What other choice do we have!”

Idk why, but for Sam, who’s the constant, the one who’s always had hope, through everything, through all these years, when he finally says this, when he finally loses his hope?  It hits the hardest.  Sam is the leader, so not only is he grieving the loss of Eileen, he is a general grieving the loss of his soldiers, his friends, the world that he feels the duty to save.

When they go to meet Chuck, I just can’t get that image of Dean, leaning against the car, handprint still on his jacket, staring at the ground out of my head.  It takes him a few seconds to catch up to Sam, like he’s pulled out of thoughts like deep dark water.  Remember friends, it doesn’t have to be loud to be powerful.

Chuck wearing BLACK?  FEAR.

“That’s right, the whole Cain and Abel thing.  Us dead, whatever.  I’ll kill Sam, Sam’ll kill me, we’ll kill each other.  Okay, you pick.  But first?  You gotta put everything back the way it was.  The people, the birds...Cas.  You gotta bring him back.”

Willing to kill his brother.  Willing to die.  Tears in his eyes, begging God to bring Cas back.

And Chuck?  Chuck doesn’t care about their surrender, he knows he’s already got them beaten.  He cares about their pain, he cares about them suffering, because to him?  That’s the entertainment.  He’s not entertained by their found family, by their happiness, by their joy.  He wants them to suffer, all of them.

“Eternal shame.  Suffering.  And loneliness.”

And he leaves them with just that.  No hope, no family, just the three of them, broken, alone.  Jack locked in his bedroom, Sam trying desperately to make life “normal” again.  And Dean.  Dean who drank so much he passed out on the floor.

He doesn’t feel terrific, he feels like shit, because not only is he dealing with the shame of an empty planet, he’s dealing with the guilt of being back in the place where the Empty took Cas.

This whole thing with the dog was just absolutely heartwrenching shit and if I didn’t hate Chuck before, him snapping Miracle right in front of an already fragile Dean would seal that deal.

I just want everyone to know that this is a Jake Abel stan account.

“Daddy’s boy” is a big insult for my boy Dean to use considering his own past with his trash abusive father but I’ll allow it.

I do think it’s interesting, ending of his arc aside, that Michael is willing to help them now.  What changed?  Sure, he ended up trying to help Chuck, running back to his father, but why get back in the game?  I wonder if it has anything to do with the loss of Adam.  It’s an interesting parallel, a man loses his angel while an angel loses his human.

Everything is so DARK in the Bunker now too, even the lighting is loud.

When I tell you I lost my shit when I saw Cas was calling Dean, when I heard Misha’s voice??  I knew it didn’t make any sense but I didn’t care, I would’ve been one step behind Dean as he sprinted towards the door.

Fuck you, Eugenie.

I mean it’s torture not only to Dean, who looks beyond fucking crushed when it’s damn Lucifer at the door, but for us too.  Who the FUCK wanted Lucifer back?  And to tease Cas???  Garbage.

I mean...fam.  Listen, we know who’s writing this episode, this whole Betty thing is just like blatantly unnecessary but again, Eugenie loves Lucifer, gotta distract her with a shiny toy lmao.

It was cool to see Michael and Lucifer onscreen together.  It was a cool dynamic that we rarely got to see.

The whole episode is just twist after twist.  Listen, it’s their last episode so I guess they needed to fit in a season worth of twists in one episode.

Bye Lucifer.  We know Eugenie can’t bring him back.  Blessings to all.

This scene with Adam is the FOURTH scene where Dean is drinking...big yikes to my guy’s liver.

Here’s the thing about Michael.  He’s a mirror for Dean in season 5.  Loyal to an absent father.  He has never changed, but Dean has.  Dean is able to acknowledge now, the trauma that his father put him through, he was able to move past the need for pleasing him at any cost.  Michael and Chuck?  Are John and Dean, if Dean had never been allowed to grow.  And Chuck proves, like John did, that he would always put his wants (in John’s case “the mission”) over his children.

Also not to beat a dead horse but Michael’s death was also peak Eugenie.

Sam getting to punch Chuck in the face?  Thank you, he deserves that.

Obviously I don’t love any scene of my boys getting brutally beaten.  But what I love, what I will always love about them, is what Chuck hates about them:  they won’t ever give up.  They know they won’t win against him, they don’t even land any hits, but that’s not what matters.  What matters is their controller doesn’t control them anymore, that they really are free.  No matter how hard they get hit, the get back up.  It is their choice to stand up to him, no matter the cost.

The moment where Sam and Dean are supporting each other, covered in blood, and they look God in the face, and they laugh.  That is why I will love them unconditionally for the rest of my life.  That is who they are, they will never cow to the villain, whether that’s Azazel or Alastair or Zachariah or Lucifer or Amara or Death or Metatron or Cain or God.  They will always choose to stand up.

“Why are you smiling?”

“Because.  You lose.”

Chills.  What a line.

And Chuck is left, small, human, no longer a villain, no longer anything.

Gotta be real, woulda been nice to, idk, not see all this essential plot in a flashback, but I know I can only ask so much of Bucklemming.

For Dean to walk away from killing Chuck, right after he’s called him “the ultimate killer” is quite simply the most beautifully heartwrenching thing I could ever ask for.  Because that’s who Dean was under Chuck, that’s who Chuck wanted him to be.

And he would have before:

But he’s heard some things since then, heard some things about how others see him.  Not as the killer, not as a monster, not as angry and broken or his daddy’s blunt instrument:

I’m not saying that Dean doesn’t kill Chuck for Cas.  He doesn’t kill Chuck because he doesn’t think he has to anymore, he doesn’t kill Chuck because he listened to Cas, he took Cas’ words to heart.  He made the choice not to be the killer.

“See that’s not who I am, that’s not who we are.”

And Chuck is angry, because he thought, after everything, even after losing, that he would still know Dean well enough to know that he would kill him.  But Chuck has never really known Dean, he has never understood where he’s really come from.  Cas understood, Sam and Jack understand, but Chuck never did, and writing off Dean as angry and broken is his biggest mistake, because that’s never been Dean.

“It’s not his power anymore.”

And it’s not just his physical power, it’s his power over the story, over the boys that’s the real power taken from him.

For Jack to be the one to bring everyone back, for him to be the hero of the story?  That’s poetic right there.  Now, I will say, I don’t think this story ends with him as God, because for him, the child, to take on this burden, it doesn’t make a ton of sense to me for his arc, but we shall see next week.  It felt pretty tied up, but there’s one major loose end: and that’s Jack seeing Cas again.

“Just you and me, going wherever the story takes us.  Just us.”

“Finally free.”

This doesn’t feel triumphant to me, it doesn’t feel like relief.  It feels like they’ve settled, like this is the best they’re going to get, so they might as well make the best of it, at least they have each other.

For Cas and Jack to be carved into the table?  I cry.

And for the montage, very similar to “Swan Song” to be set to “Runnin on Empty”?  Sorry but that’s just too sus to be ignored.

They packaged this episode as an ending, because for many, it might be.  The season’s story, the season about fighting Chuck is over.  So, you might be asking (or, well, screaming, judging by my replies lol), what’s left?  And that’s a good question, Chuck has been defeated, so what is left?  What’s left is what’s really mattered all season: the relationships that have been crafted over the years.  Dean and Sam’s unhappiness at the end of the episode, where “just you and me” sounded more of a grudging acceptance than anything else, is one of the clues that has to be looked at.  Why didn’t Sam find Eileen, why didn’t Jack bring back Cas?  Those two characters specifically are the ones we need to watch out for.  As I’ve said over and over again, peace, contentment, satisfaction, those don’t come from Sam and Dean on the open road together anymore.  They have a family, more of a family than they did when they started hunting together all those years ago, and that family is what holds them together.  They need each other, of course, but each other isn’t enough anymore.  Sam needs Eileen, Dean needs Cas.  That is where they will find their peace.

This episode, as many written by Bucklemming was sloppy, rushed, packed full of shit, and had little gems that we can talk about forever, but that was the end of the season, and next week?  Andrew Dabb brings us home, where Dean and Sam will finally be able to choose what they want for themselves, and that, my friends, is Eileen and Cas.

[ballistabeats]

Here Is The Post Where I Have Really Specific Opinions About Bang Dream Covers

ok but i'm just saying they gave the YOASOBI covers to the wrong bands

to date, Bang Dream has covered 3 YOASOBI songs: "ano yume wo nazotte", "kaibutsu", and, of course, "yoru ni kakeru". the first two went to Poppin'Party, while "yoru ni kakeru" went to Pastel*Palettes. here is the post where i explain why bushiroad is wrong

"yoru ni kakeru" is a melancholy song with a distinctly dark bent (the story it's based on, "an invitation from thanatos", is more explicitly a tale about the positive embrace of suicide in a way that i found surprisingly uplifting). despite Aya (Ami Maeshima)'s voice being a good match for Ikura's, she adds a little too much sweetness to what should be a bittersweet song at most. while the arrangement is very typically Pastel*Palettes, it isn't a particularly interesting arrangement, and the keys are relegated to more of an ensemble role instead of the driving force behind the music. the pasupare arrangement, with its bouncy bell synth subbing in for the piano, effectively strips it of the melancholy air that makes it so compelling a song. (i think pasupare covers have a history of not always having the best or most interesting arrangements; i feel strongly this way about their "lum no love song" cover as well. seriously what is with that intro) also, i KNOW Ami Maeshima can put a lot more power into her voice, but i feel like her vocals on this track are a little weak compared to, say, "sobakasu".

"ano yume wo nazotte" is one of the two Poppin'Party covers (and notably, importantly, my favorite song off YOASOBI's first album), although it differs in that it features hololive's Tokino Sora as well. honestly... it's Fine. i don't dislike it, exactly. vocals-wise (like many popipa songs) it would've benefited massively from Aimi being allowed to step outside her Kasumi voice a little to use more of her vocal range, and Sora's voice sounds a little too similar to Kasumi for them to really pop as a duet (although they do sound really cute together). the arrangement is solid — Elements Garden usually does a great job arranging keys-heavy songs for popipa that incorporate the guitars without taking away too much from the keyboard. it's a fine cover. it's nice.

"kaibutsu" is the other Poppin'Party cover and listen. once again, it's fine. once again, it would've been better if Aimi could've flexed her voice a little more. i think the best part of this cover is really the arrangement — unlike the pasupare cover of "yoru ni kakeru", this manages to preserve the original mood of the song in Poppin'Party's own musical dialect. but it ultimately really suffers for the vocals, which lack the force behind them to keep the song really compelling. which is a shame because we all know Aimi is capable of SO much vocally. oftentimes her Kasumi voice is wonderful, perfectly suited to the music, but in this case, it feels like a mismatch.

Now If I Were In Charge, Here's Who Would Get To Cover These Songs:

"yoru ni kakeru" - Roselia ft. Mashiro. while i've talked in the past about how Mashiro (Amane Shindou)'s vocals can come off kind of weak, especially in Morfonica's early releases, she would be perfect for this song, actually? Morfonica already trends toward the melodramatic, and Amane Shindou's voice has a softness to it that cuts down on the sweetness. the only trouble is that Morfonica is, notably, the only band without any kind of keyboard or keyboard-sound-producing setup, and "yoru ni kakeru" is a very keyboard-fronted track. i think the keyboard melodies would translate beautifully to violin, but i also don't think a solo violin could carry the musical weight that the keys do for the whole song. what's another band with a bit more of a dark tone that is also notable for its use of keyboard? it's Roselia's time to shine, babey!! while i think Amane Shindou could carry this track on her own vocally, Yukina (Aina Aiba) would ALSO sound incredible singing this whole song. i think the two of them would sound even better together! there's a concern that Aina Aiba's incredibly Powerful voice might drown out Amane Shindou, but i actually think that together they'd really be able to bring out the best in each other's voices. also, i just think this song would be really neat as a duet! and a Roselia arrangement? darken up those guitars a little, mix in some of their hallmark synths with the piano, yes??? reblog to agree that i'm correct

"ano yume wo nazotte" is the cover that should have gone to Pastel*Palettes. wistful without being sad, sweetly nostalgic... i think Ami Maeshima would have no problem knocking this one out of the park. i have zero difficulty imagining the refrain in her voice. it would sound great! and there's always the hope of a more interesting arrangement. this song, at least, would benefit more from the idol pop treatment than "yoru ni kakeru" imo.

"kaibutsu" RAISE A SUILEN RAISE A SUILEN HOW DID THIS NOT GO TO RAISE A SUILEN. i think bushiroad owes me emotional damages from not getting to hear LAYER (Raychell) belt out this song. this feels like such a massive missed cover opportunity i'm still not over it. just devastated tbh. the synths-into-piano and dissonant vocal harmonies are RIGHT up RAS's alley. they could have gone really synth-heavy on the whole and it would have sounded really cool.

this does leave popipa out of the mix, which is obviously not allowed, especially since their artist tie-up was Ayase, and if i had to pick one of the three for them it'd be "ano yume wo nazotte". however i submit an alternative: Poppin'Party cover of "haruka". the mood is perfect for them, and Aimi has already done a wonderful cover herself. that said, although her lower vocal range is criminally underused in Bang Dream, i think this song would come out perfectly fun in her Kasumi voice.

anyway in summary im going to need bushiroad to consult with me when they decide who should get to cover "suki da" (the only correct answer is pasupare)