#love making a character experience all their worst moments again while also giving them the opportunity to change

[arom-com]

hi hope this is ok but i've seen sooo many of ur posts tagged as renbrand and i am ... perhaps .... a little curious .... would u like to tell me abt them !!!! 👀👀 (its ok if not ofc)

Ofc!! I sure have been tagging them a lot huh

The short version is that they’re my unhinged lesbian ocs stuck in a murder timeloop

Longer version is this:

(I am not going to be able to explain this in any way approaching coherent) (but I will try!!) (sorry in advance for the Wall of Text)

So RenBrand stands for these two:

Ren Hayashi (23, she/they) university student studying criminal psychology, abandonment issues out the wazoo, Going Through It

Brand Reitveld (26, she/her) local gang leader, Control Issues TM, definitely the cat in whatever cat-and-mouse thing they have going on

They’re in love — it’s not even remotely healthy.

Basically, through no fault of their own, they got stuck in a long-form time loop (days/months rather than strict 24h) that resets whenever one of them dies, which wouldn’t be too much of an issue? Except a) they’ve never met and don’t know they’re stuck together, and b) Ren keeps getting fucking murdered

Bc!! Ren’s psychology prof is running a secret cult (trying to turn his crim psy students into serial killers, it’s a whole thing, very cringe of him) so she gets killed for accidentally getting in the way a couple times (she doesn’t know about the cult), and then ofc starts investigating, which only makes it worse (I feel so bad for her but it’s also really funny, saddest most pathetic sopping wet oc I’ve ever created)

(Some of Ren’s deaths are also caused by Brand who’s like listen I don’t have a grudge against you or anything but you do keep getting my people killed so I have to eliminate the threat, no hard feelings! And Ren is like I am in abject misery)

(strangers to enemies to lovers except the strangers to enemies is a speedrun and the enemies to lovers is a slow burn)

The story they’re from is sort of a dark mystery-slash-romance (think nbc hannibal meets groundhog day, which is certainly a sentence), and it’s mainly centred around Ren and her corruption arc as she goes from “tired student just trying to finish her dissertation if it kills her” to “codependent mob-wife who kills first and asks questions later”

I’m obsessed with time as a narrative device, and especially time loops, because it can be used in such interesting ways!! And the interesting part about time loops to me is that they’re like,,,,, rube goldberg machines for character development? You only stick a character in a time loop when you need them to undergo a pretty drastic change without a proper catalyst, and it forces them to wear themselves down to their bones, to find the very essence of what they are, and then build themselves back up again into their ideal and purest form of self. (Of course, some people just use them as a tool for romance, but that’s boring!! Boo)

Usually time loops exist to make a character better, because they’re given some kind of epiphany that makes them the best and kindest version of themselves. (Alternatively, they can be used as the cosmic equivalent of a washing machine spin cycle if you’re writing horror) But what interests Me is the idea of using a time loop to make a character worse, which is what I’m doing to Ren (and to a lesser extent, Brand)

And it’s not just corruption for corruption’s sake, either! Ren, as she is, is miserable — she’s completely isolated, unable to achieve any of her goals, and ultimately ends up getting killed in an impersonal way for impersonal reasons — but once the loop begins and she gets her second chance, she starts to wear away at all her self-imposed barriers and boundaries until she can start making her own decisions and being an active agent in her own life. Of course, she’s not choosing to do good, but the best version of herself is not necessarily Good or Kind, it’s just Authentic.

Brand, on the other hand — because she has more support and isn’t as repressed — is experiencing the time loop less as a vehicle for character development, and more as a perpetual time travel fix-it (which is SO fun, having two characters get wildly different outcomes from the same experience). Her problems are more interpersonal rather than internal, so where Ren is using the extra time to understand herself, Brand uses it to understand the world around her (and is thus doing a much better job at actually solving the plot, we love a girlboss).

Brand’s conflicts are with her brother (who I can’t even Begin to explain without adding another thousand words to this post), and (as the leader of the local gang) with the police & the murder cult, which means that a lot of her loops are spent information-gathering (and murdering, dw abt it)

Personality-wise Ren is pretty quiet, she doesn’t like to ask for things which means she gets into miscommunications a lot (people not helping when she wishes they would, people helping when she doesn’t need it bc they think she just doesn’t want to ask), she’s a very “the only one you can rely on is yourself” kind of person, which isn’t exactly ideal for someone you’re stuck in a time loop with but at least it means she never gives up? She also doesn’t really care what people think of her — or rather, she does care, but she doesn’t let it stop her

Brand is suffering from a lethal combination of being the youngest sibling and simultaneously the eldest daughter, so she’s great at asking for help and using her resources but it means that she a) is a little entitled about it, and b) needs to feel like she has perfect control over everything or she’ll die. She’s very possessive and protective over things that she considers hers (hence murdering Ren for getting her people killed, it’s fine they get over it)

Renbrand also come equipped with two sets of narrative foils (Brand’s disabled ex-ballet dancer brother and his bodyguard/love interest, and the cult leader professor and his prized pupil who both hates and loves him for what he’s become) but the word count on this is already obscenely, embarrassingly long so I’ll talk abt them another day maybe

[yanderes-galore]

Can you please do a romantic concept *or* alphabet for Sister Friede (Dark Souls 3)?

🕊️ anon

Always found Alphabets easier for Souls characters... So I hope you enjoy.

Yandere Alphabet - Sister Friede

Pairing: Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Overprotective behavior, Isolation, Controlling behavior, Smothering behavior, Manipulation, Murder implied, Forced relationship.

Affection: How do they show their love and affection? How intense would it get?

Imagine if you are a forlorn who resides in the Painted World of Ariandel. You would be under the protection of Sister Friede. This is your new home, just as it is for her...

Except it appears she likes you more than you thought.

Sister Friede, in her obsession, claims she hasn't truly loved someone until she met you. The feelings you create within her are new. As a leader in this world... She has chosen you as her partner, like it or not.

Sister Friede gives off the illusion of being gentle. She's quite trusted among the inhabitants of the painting. However... She can be quite manipulative.

Her affection, if you behave and listen to her words, is soft and comforting. She touches you gently and presses soft kisses to your skin. Her adoration appears curious yet also soft.

Yet when angered, her touch carries a hint of a threat. As though if you make one wrong move... you could easily be cut. But she'd never hurt you....

In terms of her intensity, she is mostly tame, until her beloved tries to leave this painted world...

Then she becomes desperate.

Blood: How messy are they willing to get when it comes to their darling?

Sister Friede values her new home to the point of trapping a painter to prevent this one from ending... and slaughtering the Ashen One over and over again to prevent flame from occurring.

I'd say, if she feels it's needed, she would use the scythe she wields to slaughter anyone who not only threatens her home... but the one she claims to love within it.

You will never see flame... She will be the only warmth you feel in this freezing painting.

Cruelty: How would they treat their darling once abducted? Would they mock them?

You will be treated well and protected with her life. She would never mock you. You are one of the only companions she has left...

Or at least the only one she's completely infatuated with.

Darling: Aside from abduction, would they do anything against their darling’s will?

Aside from trap you in the painting? She'd probably suggest keeping you in the cathedral. After all, it's cold outside, isn't it?

You could argue her affection towards you is against your will, too. Yet she tries to give you freedom as much as she can.

As long as you come back to her arms.

Exposed: How much of their heart do they bare to their darling? How vulnerable are they when it comes to their darling?

While she mostly seems cold like the painting she calls home, she would care about the one she loves. She may not be the most vulnerable person, but she does show care.

As the one she loves in this freezing landscape... She is yours to love and she'll care for you no matter how she shows it.

Fight: How would they feel if their darling fought back?

Disappointed yet is quick to push such thoughts from your mind. Why do you fight? Are you scared of the rot here? You shouldn't be...

Isn't being without a home... without her... worse than that?

Game: Is this a game to them? How much would they enjoy watching their darling try to escape?

No and she would feel offended and betrayed that you'd try to escape.

Hell: What would be their darling’s worst experience with them?

The Isolation of the painting is bad enough... but the moment she locks you in the cathedral to protect you from the cold and rot might be it. Others have done worse, sure... and it doesn't sound bad.

Yet it reinforces the fact that escape from her is useless...

The only escape is fire... she'll never let her love see a flame.

Ideals: What kind of future do they have in mind for/with their darling?

It's most likely to keep you in the painting forever, to make you her lover and for you both to accept the rot of this world together.

You'll live with her...

You'll die with her.

Jealousy: Do they get jealous? Do they lash out or find a way to cope?

Who is there to be jealous of? She has no need to worry about such a silly thing. You'll always be hers. If you aren't...

Her scythe may just taste blood once again.

Kisses: How do they act around or with their darling?

Isolating and overprotective. She's smothering in her care, treating you like you're something precious. In reality, while you came here looking for a home, this painting is now your rotting prison.

Love letters: How would they go about courting or approaching their darling?

As said near the beginning bit, you came here feeling you had nowhere else to go. Upon entering the painting, you meet Sister Friede in the cathedral. She's welcoming, despite her cold exterior.

Over time, she'd gain your trust and guide you through your new home. While you see her as a guide, a guardian of this world...

She sees you as her one and only love...

Whom she'll never allow to leave this painting, and by extension her, ever again.

Mask: Are their true colors drastically different from the way they act around everyone else?

She's more affectionate with you... with lingering touches and words of comfort. Other than that, she's mostly cold to anyone else.

Naughty: How would they punish their darling?

Isolation, I assume. Although if you made countless escape attempts... She may have to restrain you.

Her scythe is not reserved for you...

It's for any who threaten her home... or her love.

Oppression: How many rights would they take away from their darling?

Considering your situation... I imagine many in exchange for a home... and her love.

Patience: How patient are they with their darling?

Very patient. She's learned it in her time staying here. Hopefully you will too.

Quit: If their darling dies, leaves, or successfully escapes, would they ever be able to move on?

She probably wouldn't for a very long time... If at all, honestly. When you're not here...

The cold really does begin to set in...

She'd do anything to bring you back... yet it's probably futile unless you're Unkindled.

Regret: Would they ever feel guilty about abducting their darling? Would they ever let their darling go?

No and most likely not. This painting is your home now. Where you'll be right beside her.

Stigma: What brought about this side of them (childhood, curiosity, etc)?

I assume isolation. Yet I feel it's hard to tell.

Tears: How do they feel about seeing their darling scream, cry, and/or isolate themselves?

She'd allow you to have some distance... but once your tantrum ends, she scoops you into her arms and kisses your forehead.

Why must you fight the one protecting you?

Unique: Would they do anything different from the classic yandere?

SKIPPED

Vice: What weakness can their darling exploit in order to escape?

You alone? Nothing much. If you're the Ashen One or meet the Ashen One?

There's always lighting a fire within this freezing world so it can burn away....

Wit’s end: Would they ever hurt their darling?

Not intentionally.

Xoanon: How much would they revere or worship their darling? To what length would they go to win their darling over?

She isn't quite a worship yandere. Although, sometimes she worships you for finding her and blessing her with love. Other times she may like to feel worshiped herself.

She'd obviously go to extreme lengths for you... like locking you away similarly to Father Ariandel and the flickering flame.

Yearn: How long do they pine after their darling before they snap?

She does not pine.

Zenith: Would they ever break their darling?

Unintentionally.

[welcometothejianghu]

Welcome to another round of W2 Tells You What You Should See, where W2 (me) tries to sell you (you) on something you should be watching. Today's choice: 하이에나/Hyena.

Okay, I'm assuming I just convinced a lot of you by that poster alone. But just in case, here's a trailer along the same lines!

Hyena is a 2020 Korean drama about two lawyers who get into a relationship under false pretenses, end the relationship, and then still have to deal with one another in their professional lives, while also uncovering massive corruption in the halls of jurisprudence.

This is absolutely one of those shows where, if this is the kind of thing you like, this is a strong example of that kind of thing. You know the beats it's going to hit and the turns it's going to twist, so you're just here to watch the rest unfold. It's not really a courtroom drama; while there are court scenes, they're few and far-between. Most of it is about their lives outside of court: preparing for cases, negotiating power dynamics, and working for some shady-ass rich people alongside a cast of delightful supporting characters.

It's no great work of art, but it's a lot of fun, and it's surprisingly more complicated than it appears at first blush. It's also not a huge commitment, as shows go -- just your standard Korean block of sixteen hour-long episodes -- so here's a shortish set of five reasons I think you should give this a trial (get it? trial?) run.

1. Just fuck that pretty boy up

This show knows that women want one thing, and one thing only: Ju Jihoon in mild to moderate distress.

I love this tall drink of water in everything I've seen him in (just wait until the day I finish my rec for Kingdom!), and this is no exception. I imagine that the entire pitch for this show was, what if we put Ju Jihoon in sharp, well-tailored suits and have him menaced by a bunch of beautiful professional women 10-25 years older than he is? And the Netflix executives, in a startling moment of common sense, greenlit the heck out of that.

His character, Yoon Heejae, is a hotshot lawyer from a family of hotshot lawyers and judges who works for a hotshot law firm. He embodies that certain kind of cocky, toxic masculinity that makes you idly fantasize about getting his tie caught in the shredder so it strangles him. Over the course of the show, you get to see him taken down a peg time and again until he learns to be submissive to the right people, instead of to the wrong ones. And he's much, much happier that way! So yeah, if you enjoy seeing a beautiful man get that smug smile metaphorically and literally slapped right off his handsome mug, Hyena has you covered.

I had to replay the champagne scene like ten times, fuck. No, I'm not going to tell you what I mean by that. Watch the show!

2. The titular Hyena

The major disappointment I had with this show is that it did not bring up the one -- one! -- thing everybody knows about hyenas, which is that a lot of people think the females have penises. Because oh boy, Jung Geumja has the biggest dick in the show by a mile.

A lot of times when people say a female character is a disaster, they mean, tee hee, she spilled her coffee and accidentally said something she shouldn't have! Bitch, Jung Geumja said that shit on purpose.

She's an attorney who's willing to adopt some hella unethical tactics for her clients. She's got her goals, but good luck getting her to reveal what they are -- and good luck to her when it comes to achieving them, considering that she's a complete nobody who went to law school much later in life than all the other high-powered attorneys in the show did. That's okay, though! What she lacks in experience, she makes up for in balls-to-the-wall fearlessness.

I love how intentionally bad her aesthetic is. They give her awkward outfits and the worst possible haircut, to say nothing of her hideous cell phone necklace/lanyard/thing. She adopts a more professional demeanor partway through, but the second you let her off the respectability leash, the track suits and big clunky sneakers are back. The couple times she goes real femme, she looks like she's in bad drag. It's ugly-delicious.

Her actor, Kim Hyesoo, is a beautiful woman who looks very good in evening gowns and low-cut blouses. This show intentionally steers her hard in the other direction. It's a kind of protective coloration, Jung Geumja's way of telling all the other predators not to fuck with her, or she will fuck right back.

She's scrappy as hell, despite not actually being a physical fighter -- in fact, she gets the shit beat out of her a couple times. You don't get a whole lot of media where the female lead gets her face kicked in good and proper, or if you do, it's painted as a tragic, vulnerable moment. Jung Geumja slaps on a bandaid and gets right back out to the club the following night.

Her superpower is basically that she has no shame. You think ambulance-chasers are bad? She takes it to the next level.

You really don't see a lot of female characters like this! Sure, you get the Boss Bitch archetype in a lot of legal dramas, but she's always composed and dignified. Jung Geumja has no dignity. She's a sloppy bitch who makes pretty much no effort to leverage her feminine wiles in her day-to-day life (even though the show makes a point that there are men who'd be receptive to it if she did!). She's a nasty top who clearly loves to horrify dignified, presentable people with her yakuza lounge aesthetic.

You could maybe accuse Jung Geumja of being a Mary Sue, but she's, like, a middle-aged woman's Mary Sue. If your teen girl fantasies are all about how you're the most beautiful girl at prom and all the boys like you and you become independently wealthy at your dream job as an interior designer, then your middle-aged fantasies have become how you can look super-hot wearing whatever the fuck you want and still get respected by your colleagues for your extreme competency in your profession and also have handsome men with good jobs beating down your door no matter how much your hair looks like you scalped Paul McCartney c. 1964.

She's absolutely one of those characters where I'd hate her if I had to deal with her myself, but because she's fictional and can't hurt me, I support all her wrongs.

3. Everybody else!

As is the case with good legal dramas, the main lawyers are not the only lawyers! Instead, Hyena has a wonderful cast of supporting characters who become part of the legal eagle team.

They’re exactly the kind of charismatic background weirdos I’ve come to expect from Korean dramas. You’ve got the whole batch: the potential love rival, the secondary romance couple, the supportive nonthreatening bestie, the workplace misfits who are both extemely competent and completely underappreciated at their jobs, and the childhood-friend-turned-cop I couldn't find good promo pictures of for reasons prrrrrobably related to the actor's DUI arrest.

No matter how enjoyable a main romance is (and it is! see point 5!), it cannot sustain a whole sixteen-hour drama on its own. You need to mix it up and give your primary pair other party members to bounce off of! Hyena pulls together a good group of characters that are wacky enough to be entertaining, but (mostly) not so wacky you have to suspend your disbelief about how they got to where they are in life.

And they’ve also all got some interesting relationships to masculinity and/or femininity, which is pretty par for the course with how the show clearly enjoys…

4. Getting gender all up in your business

While it's not an overt, in-your-face theme, the status of women in Korean society is definitely at play in this story. The realm of law, politics, and buisness as depicted here is absolutely a man's world, where few women are allowed, and only in a very limited number of roles. Of course there are always wives/girlfriends and secretaries doing all the helper grunt work, but a token handful of ladies can be allowed into actual ranks of power ... sort of. They'll always be second best to their male peers and relatives, of course, but doesn't that gender diversity look nice in the company's annual report!

As mentioned earlier, Yoon Heejae starts out as a good ol' boy from a long line of good ol' boys, dick-measuring with the rest of them and shooting straight for the top. It's only when he's blindsided by soft power that he starts to re-evaluate what he's gotten himself into. Maybe being a good son is actually a racket! Maybe these squads of tie-wearing ass-kissers aren't actually that fun to be around at all! Maybe he's actually much better-suited to playing on the girls' team.

Meanwhile, Jung Geumja's "ruffian from the wrong side of the tracks" role is such a man's role, but she's definitely a woman inhabiting it. Hell, half the stuff she gets away with, she does because everyone's just so shocked to encounter a woman doing and saying these things. So she does weaponize gender expectations - just not in the way you might expect a woman in a romance-centered drama to.

In the aforementioned support squad, the male attorneys are all gender failures in one way or another, which is why they haven't advanced in their jobs the way their colleagues have. They cannot perform hard-drinking, ethics-ignoring, 90-hour-workweek masculinity to the standards of the high-powered suits who run their law firm. It's only Jung Geumja who, given the choice to assemble her own crew, can see that they have immense value beyond the very gendered expectations of their profession.

Meanwhile, Boon Hyunah, the only female attorney on their team, is great at both representing and subverting that Exceptional Woman femininity. I was cautious at first, because she was clearly introduced in a way that made her seem like she was going to wind up being the evil popular girl/rival bitch whose entire job was to prove by contrast that Jung Geumja is Not Like The Other Girls. Not so! They actually wind up good friends and trusted colleagues. Female solidarity is so much more fun than contrived romcom catfighting!

Maybe my favorite character in the whole show, though, is the littlest gender-nonconforming angel, professional soft butch Lee Jieun: Jung Geumja's eternally beleaguered secretary, sidekick, gofer, co-conspirator, caretaker, and only friend.

She's clearly taken her haircut notes from Jung Geumja, but instead of going the track suit route, she's dedicated herself to the tweed lifestyle. And I love that nobody ever tries to give her a makeover or make her feel bad for not being femme! She makes friends with the other, much girlier secretaries, who seem to welcome her into their group with no problems. She finishes the show as frumpy as she was when she started.

I was prepped for the drama to give her a male love interest to defuse her obvious lesbian vibes, but it does not! She does not even, to my recollection, express desire about anyone. She oohs and ahhs over flowers and other gestures of romantic interest that happen to other people, but not in a particularly jealous way. She ships Yoon Heejae and Jung Geumja, and that's what matters to her.

The entire reason I found this show in the first place is that it has a "sismance" tag on MyDramaList, presumably for the relationship between Jung Geumja and Lee Jieun. Their relationship is wonderful, but it's way more sis than 'mance. They're more like two sisters with a huge age gap, where the dweeby younger sister has dedicated herself to doing anything her cool older sister wants her to do, and the cool older sister has decided that having a minion is worth putting up with having to wrangle a dweeby younger sister.

This show is also very female-gazey. Not only does it gleefully ogle Yoon Heejae's long-legged frame pretty much every chance it gets, but it makes Jung Geumja gross-hot in a way that only a lesbian could love. And that makes the fact that she has not one but two handsome men fighting over her even better! This is a world where our gorgeous male lead has a choice between a conventionally attractive, professionally dressed, charming, dignified woman in her early twenties, and a fifty-year-old human tornado with a foul mouth and a bad haircut, and he goes straight for that cougar without even blinking. He wants her to step on him so hard.

And speaking of:

5. Law, Partners

This is a romance worth being into.

Sure, they're both real hot (at least, by my bisexual lesbian standards), but we all know by now that being hot separately doesn't always guarantee being hot together. Fortunately for this show, they very much are.

What makes this pairing so interesting is that this is a relationship between equals. They start out with huge power mismatches both ways, since he's socially her superior, while she's lying to him real hard. When they're finally at a point where they're on even footing, it's so good, especially since she's clearly on a trajectory to emerge as the senior partner in this relationship. They’re such a great team, in fact, that the kissy part of their dynamic becomes secondary by the end. Yeah, sure, they like one another -- but more importantly, they can finish one another’s closing arguments. When you're a middle-aged Mary Sue, that right there is some good fucking romance.

If you read my other rec posts, you know I'm very picky about my het. This is good het. Maybe not great het, but still very good. Solid 8/10. Their chemistry is strong. I can absolutely imagine her strap-on collection. He's like a foot taller, but we still know who's going down.

Into it?

Netflix made this one, so Netflix is where you're going to find it. This does mean, annoyingly, that a lot of the onscreen text doesn't get translated, and none of the English lines get captioned, both of which are incredibly bad practices. Come on, Netflix, you've got eleventy bajillion dollars, you can do better.

...Also, am I wrong about people knowing that other people think female hyenas have penises? Is this knowledge what I deserve for spending too much time studying the ancient world? Dammit.

Kick his ass, baby; I'll hold your track suit.

[danaty-consolation]

Nagisa Shiowatari, the misconceived character.

Since Nagisa's episode is coming this thursday, is time for me to come out an explain more about his character based on the manga characterization.

This is a way to point out some things that were not seen in the Ova adaptation and how his character is often targeted of being one of the worst love interest and characters in Urusei Yatsura as a whole.

The flaws of their first meeting

Ryu meet Nagisa first as an appearing ghost, who scared her when she was taking a bath and then he disappeared.

If people are calling this meeting problematic, I think they need to read Ranma 1/2, where Ranma's male form meets Akane which is way more problematic even if is an accident.

Also I think there is more of a problem with these three if we put if realistically, after all she is a scared girl and rather than reafirm this elsewhere these three are with her in a vulnerable position, making her feel more alert rather than more relaxed after that scare.

After that we have a more kinda normal meeting, they scare the gang with this joke

and this is when, we get to know that Nagisa is Ryu's fiancée

The thing here, is that Nagisa had probably grown up by the idea of meeting his fianceé since he was a kid or preteen, the thing is he already knew about his compromise Ryu before meeting her...compared to Ryu who just got told just now, add to the point that here Ryu still thinks Nagisa is a girl meanwhile she thinks that Nagisa sees her as a boy.

Meanwhile I think is way more problematic that Ryu's dad hits his daughter while trying to manipulate her with tears just because she say no to Nagisa.

Changing once again into Nagisa, we see how his last wish before fully disappearing is to kiss the person he likes.

Everyone has one last wish, even tho his wish is innocent to him and quite selfish, it really is uncomfortable to Ryu, because she just meet him and she still thinks he is a girl who thinks she is a boy.

Is it a pretty selfish wish? Yes but is his last one, it doesn't make it ok but when you are about to fully disappear you want to do something you wanted to do when you were alive.

It's believable he would want a kiss, we had seen in the last date, how Nozomi wanted a last date with Ataru. The difference here is that Ataru accepts the date to help her move on meanwhile Ryu doesn't want to be obligated to do something she doesn't want.

Nagisa has a romantic look of what fiancés are, he must think that since both like each other (probably a lie by his father) it must be ok for them to kiss. Nagisa thinks that is okay if he kisses Ryu because they are official, probably his father fault since he is cut with the same scissors as Ryu's father so he omitted some important information like consent in both parts.

Here another misunderstanding, Nagisa thinks that she doesn't like him because he is a ghost, a totally understandable fear because he is dead but she is alive. He must think he is repulsive to her because of being a ghost meanwhile Ryu is trying to explain to him that she is a girl.

Also we see how the others know how this will pass if she just kisses him, Ataru and Lum have more experience thanks to the date with Nozomi so is reasonable how they can see it work. After all if they kiss, he will be out of their lives.

Meanwhile, we see how Nagisa's father is an incredible manipulator by his words, trying to guilt trip Ryu in kissing him when Nagisa doesn't have all that thanks to how he exploited his own son's "feminine look" and put him to work rather than taking him to a school, giving him only hope in the romantic love with Ryu's engagement.

In short Nagisa gets told that she was persuaded when it was just her father that knocked her out in a moment of weakness, Nagisa believes it sadly. Since we had seen how he doesn't rebel to his father says and doings, he takes it all at face value.

However when he notices that he cannot kiss her because he is a ghost makes him super sad.

Nevertheless, a sudden legend with a big urchin that Ataru and Mendou even think about how stupid that legend and action sounds

Makes Nagisa had a physical body again and he is so happy, since this means he can kiss Ryu now.

Ryu doesn't want to and Nagisa tries to stop her in the way he was educated by, a very wrong move of course.

However, by his words, we see that he thinks his situation with his physical body is temporarily. He thinks he will become a ghost again so he wants to get his kiss before disappearing completely.

Then here comes the twist, Ryu shows him her breast, still thinking that he thought of her as a boy, this is Ryu big evasive strategy to stop his kiss, showing that she is indeed a girl and Nagisa by knowing that, back off because he may not be interested in her being a girl since in Ryu's mind she thought that he seen her as a boy.

But it backfired.

Since Nagisa shows that he is indeed a boy and sees nothing wrong with kissing her.

Ryu asking the real questions.

Finally, we see once again Nagisa trying to force himself to Ryu because he thinks his time is running out however, Ryu understandingly says that she has not had time to process all this and doesn't want to do it.

But they notice that he doesn't go with his father because he is kinda alive now with a physical body so now it is shown that he can take it actually slow, with no pressure of disappearing.

2. Nagisa's Character before meeting Ryu and the others.

Nagisa's actions and way of acting represent the way he was raised by his father. It was shown how he has always worked for him while accepting his feminine side that his father had always preferred and promoted out since he thinks Nagisa is a girl, Nagisa is the same as Ryu.

Nevertheless, the real difference here is that Ryu made friends with people who knew her real gender and even had a kinda normal live in school where she became more sociable and seen more normal behavior patterns compared to what she lived with her father, compared to Nagisa who never went to school or have people who knew his real gender. The only person with whom he interacted the most besides the clients who thought he was a girl was his father.

He didn't have anyone else to tell him that his methods were forceful or wrong, he only followed what his dad did.

Ryu and Nagisa are victims of their fathers wanting to make them look the opposite gender, to try to manipulate them into thinking they are from the opposite sex.

Nagisa is more passive than Ryu, he accepts what his father says most of the time.

After all he is more obedient to his father compared to Ryu's open vocal rebellion with her father, the only thing when he contradicts his father is when he shows that he knows that he is a boy and doesn't negate that fact. Sure he act, behaves and is emotionally like a woman but even if he acts like that he knows and is comfortable on being a boy.

That is his only rebellion.

3. Nagisa's and Ryu's relationship while living together.

One night's battle is a small arc that is more to the point about Nagisa's personality and his dynamic with Ryu.

The beginning show Nagisa's dream:

A married life with Ryu.

But the reality is quite different

In this one it is presented how Nagisa is a pretty flawed character.

He is really emotional, like a girl but more over the top. He also eats a lot and is a person who wakes up late.

The thing is until now Ryu and Nagisa hadn't had any development romantically or even as friendship, Ryu is not interested in him in that way and doesn't want to kiss him.

Althrough it is proved that Nagisa is protective of her and doesn't like Ataru trying to make a move on Ryu.

The thing here is, that Nagisa is gullible, he is straightforward to convince because that is his personality and he doesn't know Ryu that well yet. He only meet her recently compared to Ataru and the others.

Nagisa wants to be in Ryu's good side, he wants to know her more but Ryu is pretty stubborn and closes herself because of how they meet and since she sees this as a way to rebel to what her father imposed her, being romantically involved by Nagisa.

That is why when Ryu friends tell him this

He believes in them and feels much better, knowing that he finally has a chance to be on her good side.

And when it shows that Ryu gets interested in him in some way, her father comes out and ruins it by pulling them into a uncomfortable situation.

[stupid-fucking-storm]

Watched Cinderella’s Castle and had a very underwhelming experience. Review and LONGGG rant under the cut.

Minor spoilers.

First of all, I thought the pacing was really, really bad. I also thought the tone of the story was really weird??

Obviously it’s Starkid, they love putting things in odd tones, but there was not one song or moment that really made me feel anything for these characters. In fact, the most I felt for any of them was Lauren’s throwaway cousin character, who was killed pretty much immediately.

This was not at all the fault of the performers, who were doing The Most with the script they were given. Performance-wise, in fact, it was very good. Aside from Jeff Blim, who honestly made me completely dislike him due to this show. I’m sure he’s a fine guy, but he constantly writes music for his falsetto which he seems very proud of but is …never… on pitch. I’ve grown increasingly bored with his score and lyric writing through Nightmare Time and this show was the embodiment of that.

The absolute worst part of the show was the incessant background music—something they carried over from Nightmare Time as if we enjoyed that. I certainly didn’t, it made Nightmare Time a tough watch for me. Plunky little notes like synth improv, absolutely separate in tone from the dialogue, plague every scene. This is especially bad in the second act to the point that I actively stopped trying to understand or care about the scene because the background music was suggesting that I shouldn’t. Keep in mind this was during what I think was an important exchange between Bryce and Curt’s characters. Honestly, I could not tell you. I don’t watch musicals with subtitles on so I can be surprised by dialogue and make it more akin to watching the performance live. This was a mistake. This was a long stretch of dialogue, too, completely nullified by the dumb background music. I mean, think Nightmare Time improv synth but with none of the recognizable motifs. That’s what it was. For almost the entire show.

As I mentioned, the music was again by Jeff Blim. I was worried when this was announced because of how boring, same, and uninspired his stuff has become, but I wanted to give it a chance. When it was announced as a pop rock musical, I got more pessimistic. I was unfortunately correct.

There are about 2 songs that I enjoyed, and one that was very good for the first 15ish seconds. Almost every song’s tone was completely wrong for the scene/what they were conveying. And not in a fun, we’re-doing-something-unconventional way, which Starkid has done really well in the past.

Angela fucking killed as the stepmother, but her singing range is very limited. Everyone knows this and that’s fine!! I’m begging Jeff to stop writing music for her that’s outside of her range. It’s not like they didn’t know who they would cast. I think it’s been stated that Starkid still have to audition for their roles, but with such a small cast I’m sure Nick/Jeff/Matt have an idea when they’re writing.

Mariah and Lauren did great performances as the stepsisters. I wasn’t expecting Lauren’s elf voice and thought that was a little off the mark. She still slayed, it’s Lauren.

The problem is, these characters had so little depth that none of them really had an arc at all. There was not much for the actors to do or build on to make me care about them. Let me be crystal clear: I LOVE STARKID. Fucking love it. Even I couldn’t give a fuck about anyone’s character in this show but Lauren’s throwaway character and Angela’s villain—and probably mostly because I’ve grown very fond of Angela’s acting and performance recently on Smosh.

I’m not saying anyone did a bad job. They did their best with what they had. My issue is entirely with the writing, the music writing particularly, and the pacing, which was god-awful.

Now, the puppets.

This was the part of the show I was most excited for. Starkid hasn’t done puppets for a while! And I loved the Starship puppets! Horror/weird looking puppets?? Sign me up!

Unfortunately, this also left a lot to be desired. I enjoyed the puppet for Crumb and the frog, and Joey is an especially EXCELLENT puppet actor. But the troll puppets were really lack-luster. Seeing the actresses so clearly beneath them, still in their elegant dresses when they were supposed to be fully these ugly monsters, was very immersion-breaking. Even attaching a dark cloth to them to hide their bodies and a screen over their faces would have done A LOT. This was really disappointing. So was the weird voice effect on Angela’s troll. Only because she was already doing a voice, and it was delayed just long enough for it to be jarring and disrupt my ability to follow what she was saying. (Fyi, I do not have any sort of processing disability or disorder.) Still, her performance was really great and I’m happy to see her in a main role.

I didn’t find James’ character charming or funny, which may be an acting thing or may be a writing thing, I’m not sure. I’ve never been a huge fan of his, and I found his interpretation of the character to be pretty bland and literal. I would have liked to see some hints of a real person under all the crude jokes the prince makes—but this is likely due to writing issues/tone issues.

Curt was great, there was not a lot for him to do. Kim SLAYYYYYYYED her song and it was the only one I really liked. But she did not act in this show and was really underutilized, as probably the most vocally talented person in the cast. JLB was not in this show, which I didn’t realize and was saddened by. I think she would have brought a great energy to it. Jon’s performance was sweet and he was obviously having a good time. Let the man sing more often. Bryce slayyyed the vocals but the acting was ehhh. Again, not a lot of depth. Her whole thing felt really rushed due to writing and pacing. The fact that I can’t remember if anyone else was even in this, without looking, is a little sad.

Overall I’m very disappointed. The tone, pacing, and background score were quite bad. The set design, music, and characterization was bland. The costume design was good—I found myself commenting on the outfits frequently. Some of the puppets were good, others confusing. After watching it, I’m really, really not excited about “The Lands That Are” and am terrified for another Hatchetfield wearing out its welcome.

In conclusion: To watch this for $15 is fine but I’m certainly glad I did not fly to see this in person, which I had considered doing. I will always support Starkid, but if they keep hiring Jeff for the music, I am going to continue the decline in passion I have for it, which started when Nightmare Time did. I’m hoping that they’re able to mix the background music to non-existent or extremely quiet in the YouTube version after enough feedback, and that the next musical is more inspired and—GOD—not fucking pop rock again.

[fallingintheforest]

Feyre & Lucien Relationship feels this AM

lol sorry in advance for unnecessarily long word dump... I had thoughts I had to get out and I'm NOT a succinct writer...

I read through some of my favourite chapters from the ACOTAR series and was reminded again of how much I love Feyre and Lucien's friendship and how important it is for their respective character development. Their relationship, in particular, perfectly captures a realistic brother-sister or sibling dynamic that, IMO, stands apart from the other major relationships in the series.

Of course, there’s the relationship between the Archeron sisters, which is incredibly nuanced (and I will not be getting into here), but beyond that, the only other major sibling-like bond we see in any detail is between the “bat boys.” Now, don’t get me wrong, I like the bat boys (I really do!), but while I believe there was certainly a brotherly bond between Rhys, Az, and Cass when they were younger—when Rhys was more on equal footing with them—the power dynamic shifts dramatically once Rhys becomes High Lord.

Rhys is still their friend, of course, but he’s also their "boss." He does a good job balancing those two roles, but that underlying imbalance of power is always there. This dynamic is similar to what we see between Feyre and the rest of the IC: there’s a certain level of authority and hierarchy, even though their relationships are based on friendship and loyalty.

This same power imbalance is mirrored in the relationship between Tamlin and Lucien. Pre-UtM, their bond felt more like a brotherly connection, much like the one we see between Rhys and the IC. But as High Lords, both Rhys and Tamlin wield power over their “brothers,” even if they don’t always express it outwardly. If they didn’t enforce those boundaries from time to time, they wouldn’t be fulfilling their duties as High Lords. It’s just part of how the ACOTAR world is structured. Sometimes it works in their favour, sometimes it doesn’t (looking at you, Tam), but it’s an unavoidable reality.

What I’ve always appreciated about Feyre and Lucien’s relationship is how real they are with each other. These two don’t pull punches—they call each other out (sometimes harshly), and have disagreements that create distance between them. They have moments of closeness and understanding, but they also argue, hold grudges, and struggle with their differences. Their conversations are raw and unfiltered, and they don’t hesitate to confront each other on their bad behaviour. I think of their dialogue while travelling through Autumn after escaping Spring or the conversation they have in ACOFAS.

This is exactly how siblings act. You fight, you disagree, but at the end of the day, you show up for each other when it counts. Siblings make mistakes with each other because you’re not trying to impress them. You’re not holding back the worst parts of yourself because you’re comfortable being vulnerable with them. Siblings can be contradictory—selfless, yet selfish. It’s a complex give-and-take relationship because you’re on equal ground, and that’s what makes their bond so compelling.

Now that I'm thinking about it, the other sibiling-ish relationship that is a contender is Az and Cass (no Rhys), aside from the Archerons. However, I would say, Azriel and Cassian’s relationship is MUCH more stable, with way less conflicts than Lu and Feyre. I would say that while the relationship between Az and Cass is beautiful and healthy, it is however, more idealized than what we typically see in real sibling relationships, where differences and conflicts are more frequent. Most siblings experience a bit more tension than what we see between Azriel and Cassian (though I cherish their bond all the same!)

(As an aside: Another aspect I love about Feyre and Lucien’s relationship is that there’s no romantic connection or history between them. It’s a purely platonic bond. Unlike Cassian and Mor, who share a romantic past, or Azriel’s unrequited love for Mor.)

I know many readers are upset by how Feyre and Lucien’s friendship seems to have frayed as the series goes on, but I would disagree. While it’s tough to watch them go through a rough patch, I think it continues to reflect that complex sibling relationship—one with ups and downs and disagreements. It reminds me of when my oldest brother got married. There’s an adjustment period, where things feel off, and you have to find your new balance. You can’t go back to how things were, but that doesn’t mean it’s a bad thing—it’s just different, and you adjust to the new dynamic.

ANYWAY LOTSA BIG FEELS HERE. Only love and vibes for all the ACOTAR characters!

[candyskiez]

Thinking about why Separation arc works so well again.

There's already a very good post about how it makes you think it'll have Reigen fail at keeping up the business on his own, and apologize to Mob to get him back because he can't do it without him. Only to have him actually be perfectly capable of running the business by himself without even touching real spirits. But why didn't they do that?

It wouldn't have actually meant anything. Reigen apologizing to Mob wouldn't have meant shit, because it would just come off as using him. Mob going back to him wouldn't be satisfying or a relief. It'd just feel like he was going back to an unhealthy environment. No character development, no actual satisfying resolution.

What they do instead works so much better, and I've been thinking about why. Because I think about this show way too much, let me live.

Reigen was perfectly fine money wise before Mob showed up. Money problems aren't even implied to be a reason why he wants to leave spirits n such. It's all just being unsatisfied. He's restless and unfulfilled, and nothing really catches his interest. And then actual company shows up, and gets him talking to people, and gives him something worthwhile to do.

Most of Reigens worst moments have nothing to do with money. His controlling tendencies come out when he feels left behind or like someone is a better person than him. His toxic traits are so painfully human. He lashes out when he feels like his place in someone's life is in danger, he's not honest because he feels like nobody can love him as he is, and he doesn't try to change because he feels like he's inherently bad and cannot get better. Because of this, he doesn't stop and recognize he's hurting people. He thinks of him being a bad person as Inherent, not actions he can stop doing.

This is why it's so so SO important that there be a moment in the arc where he stops and looks back at how he treats people. He needs to realize that him being Bad isn't determined by just being bad by existing, but by what he says and does. Mob didn't leave because Reigen is inherently bad. Mob left because Reigen treated him badly.

If the Reigen and Mob conflict had been resolved with Reigen apologizing because he needed him for his business, it would've come off like Reigen didn't care about Mob. But because it became clear that Reigen didn't need Mob for his business, it tells the audience that Reigen really fucking cares about Mob AND why Reigen had actually acted the way he did:

Because he was a sad bastard who's scared of being alone.

And also, if they had Reigen just take on a spirit alone, the audience wouldn't have had nearly as much reason to be sympathetic towards him. It would've just felt like Reigen was being an idiot. But because of how they set up Reigen's downfall, we're so much more sympathetic to him. He works hard and gets what he thinks he wants, only to be set up by a guy who he saved the life of. It makes us feel extremely bad for him and like his ridicule is completely undeserved.

It also tells us something about him. Reigen has had so much experience where doing the right thing is punished. Reigen feels like it's too late to be good. Reigen falls into thinking he cannot be good, so he needs to buckle in and keep going. Because it shows Reigen being punished for being good as well as being punished for being bad, it makes what Reigen did feel so much more human. You're more inclined to sympathize with him, because it's not just about money. It's about the fact he was an asshole to his only friend because he felt like if he had other friends, he'd like them more and leave him. And seeing him face negative consequences for Doing The Right Thing as well as the wrong thing makes you understand why he just...doesn't try. If that makes sense lmao.

The way they constructed the arc makes us sympathize with Reigen while he's acting like an absolute asshole, while also setting up Reigen stopping and asking himself "why DID I do this, why DID I choose this path, why DO I treat people like this" perfectly.

Tldr, it's a really good arc.

[bsd-fan]

How mentally unwell you think Chuuya is?

Your takes on his character are the best so i will be glad to hear your take on this

PD: thank you for the perfect analysis you do <3

Hey! Thank you so much for your kind words 💖

And I’m really sorry to be answering this so late but life has been crazy this last weeks. I want to say that when I got the notification of this question I was at work so I just read the first part and I was /Convinced/ someone has asked me how mentally unwell I was and I laughed out loud because the answer is a lot but I couldn’t figure out why someone would ask it like that 😭 Then I realized it was about chuuya and everything made more sense lol.

Now going with the actual question (and once again apologizing if something doesn’t make sense because English is not my native language.

Chuuya’s mental state is kind of difficult to talk about. The easy answer is that he is in a really bad mental state but it’s a little more complicated than that. Chuuya’s has gone through so much trauma, basically since the moment he started living everything in his life has been a big traumatic experience after another. It has gotten so bad that there’s a running joke in the fandom about Chuuya’s lack of reaction to fucked up things, because that’s just another Thursday in his life. He is /used/ to this horrible things happening to him. We need to understand that there’s no such a thing as a little trauma. But chuuya’s case? Is outrageous. He was experimented in, treated like a weapon, deshumanized by everyone, constantly fighting with his own feelings of inhumanity, he was used and betrayed by the people he gave everything to protect, he made new friends that loved and appreciate him only for them to also be taken away from him, worse than that, they were killed /because/ they were his friends, he had to see them die, he had to hold his own pain and instead be comforting while he saw something fucking horrible, he was hurt, physically, mentally, he was poisoned, tortured and hit by a literal black hole, he saw more people he loved die, the same year later he once again lost his friends during the dragon’s head conflict and the worse part? Shitty things are /still/ happening to him

So no, no one could go through all of that and be mentally intact, it doesn’t matter how mentally strong they are. The pure amount of trauma that Chuuya went through in three days would break any other person and that’s just a minuscule part of his life. And that’s not even the worse part of it, I said it before but Chuuya’s core is all about humanity and he find his humanity in the people that he loves. That’s the kind of person he is and is devastating to realize that this mentality is the only thing that keeps him standing while at the same time being the thing that is destroying him. He was stripped of almost every decision in his life, he is at the worst place he can be in, forced to go against his whole fucking personality, his belief system and his moral code and he can’t leave because that would go against all his character. So chuuya endures, and endures and endures. He takes every hit, he has renounced to vulnerability, he has renounced to the right of being afraid, he has renounced to the right of stepping back. He has internalized that he is strong so he /needs/ to protect the people that is not. In order to protect his people (and his humanity) he needs to be reliable, he needs to be unwavering, he needs to stand still even when everyone else is already in the floor. He has lost such a basic human right as giving up. He doesn’t now how to do it, he /can’t/ do it because people depend on him. And it’s really a tragic paradox because this is what moves him but is takes so much of him. And all for what? He keeps losing people he loves, at the end there’s no difference. All this autocontradiction is killing him, he chose the mafia because the bonds with the people there, because his bonds with the sheep means something to him. Because his humanity is there, not in the organization but in the people that is part of it. He chose the mafia because that means choosing his humanity but the mafia is the kind of organization that works around deshumanizing people, so what’s the point of all of that. He is surrounded by people, he loves and is loved by people but he still is so unbearably lonely.

Now, what makes chuuya different from other characters? Chuuya’s resilience really is a scary thing. He is brave, he takes everything the world gives him and retaliates just as hard. Even when he has gone through hell and back, he still is full of vitality, he is still so hungry for life, he still enjoys all the little things he can get. Even when he knows that the worlds is a cruel place, even when he knows that there are bad people and that fucked up things happen, he never grew to hate the world because he clings to the good things, no matter how small they are. Because it doesn’t matter if he’s using corruption and bleeding from every hole, or feeling like his bones are being pulverized by gravity, it doesn’t matter that he loses the humanity he so desperately clings to, if by doing that he can protect the people that he loves. Is not that chuuya is mentally well, he is not emotionally intelligent (actually he’s horrible at it, it only seems like he is because most of the time he is being compared with Dazai who is far worse) but he is probably the most resilient character in bsd. Chuuya is strong, he is a fighter. He will fight for his place in this world, he will fight the unfairness of all, he will fight the senseless of life.

I also feel like it’s important to add that chuuya has a lot of interesting copying mechanisms and while most of them are certainly not healthy, it’s also what keeps him moving. Regarding all his trauma, I feel like it’s important to talk about how chuuya just never thinks of certain hurtful stuff. He just put all the pain in a mental box and hides it away. Chuuya doesn’t seem as affected by his trauma as other characters because he is hyper fixated in going ahead, he never looks back. He just keeps going forward BUT it doesn’t matter how much he advances, it doesn’t matter how fast he goes, all that trauma, pain and contradictions will catch up on him one day and it will be a terrible sight. Because my boy doesn’t know when to stop, he doesn’t know when he’s had enough, he thinks that limits are just kind suggestions that he can ignore.

So in summary Chuuya is an accident waiting to happen. He is more less stable at first glance, because he has copying mechanisms and a strong mentality and a otherworldly resilience but he also sucks at dealing with his own trauma, he is self destructive, and a living contradiction and that’s gonna wear him down someday. True to his character, his contradictions are fighting between them to keep some kind of weird balance but that won’t last. So, Chuuya is definitely mentally unwell.

Whoa that was longer than what I expected, sorry for that.

[canonmisogynyvictimstournament]

PROPAGANDA

MARWA (WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS (TV SERIES)) (CW: Mind Control)

1.) okok so a major character (nandor) uses a genie wish to bring back the 37 wives he had when he was human (he’s a vampire who was turned in the 1400s but is alive in the modern day) to pick his favorite to live with and settles on marwa. she’s established as someone who’s passionate about science and mathematics, but nandor uses his genie wishes to essentially mold her into his perfect woman like a doll, from changing her hair color to making her not want to go to the night market with him to making her like all the things he likes. this culminates in him LITERALLY TRANSFORMING HER INTO A BRITISH MAN NAMED FREDDIE and that is her send off from the show. the treatment of her is disgusting i’m sorry for ranting i love wwdits but honestly the whole thing left a bad taste in my mouth

2.) WHERE TO START my god. Marwa is introduced into the story as one of a crowd of women who are interchangeable to the man summoning them, WHO IS HER CANONICAL HUSBAND but he gives less than half a fuck about her, which is played for laughs. The writers made it completely unclear whether she is a real person or basically a magical simulation with no inner life and did not bother to clarify that at any point. Her plotline consists of her husband using magical wishes to modify various aspects of her body and mind and the writers never explore whether she is aware this is happening or not, much less how she might be experiencing it. It is a terrifying psychological horror story from her perspective but we are not given any insight into her perspective so who cares I guess!! For example, he wishes for her to have a rounder ass and then wishes that all of her preferences align perfectly with his own, so that she'll stop nagging him about wanting different colored flowers at their wedding than him. There are SEVERAL more examples. Her experience of having all of her desires replaced with her husband's desires shows up only for jokes, plus one moment that is used to confirm that her husband's real love interest is one of the other male leads in the show. (I ship the two male characters, I'm not complaining about that, but like COME ON SHE WAS A HUMAN PERSON ONCE AND SHE IS LIVING IN A HORROR MOVIE AND THIS IS WHAT YOU'RE DOING WITH THAT???) THE WORST PART is that when it's time for her to exit the story because her body and personality have already been essentially replaced by magic and she is now a boring toy, she is LITERALLY PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY transformed into a random British man so that her husband can have that guy as a love interest instead of her. She (he? It? Again it is never NEVER explored whether Marwa is like, alive inside this British man's mind somehow? Or if she was ever really alive in her body?) moves to England to be in love with the original British man she was based off of, so basically her twin. This is also played for laughs. Her entire personality and body are not even killed off with like a death scene but literally ERASED FROM REALITY AND REPLACED WITH A COPY OF THIS SHITTY WHITE DUDE.

3.) (Context: Nandor is a vampire who has been alive for a while. When he was human he had 37 wives. (Btw some of the wives were men but that’s besides the point.))

She was brought back to life (along with a couple others) via Djinn wish just because Nandor wanted to have a ‘wife’ (some of the ‘wives’ are men). After being deemed the ‘best wife’ by Nandor she is the only one left alive. It is clear the entire fourth season that Nandor doesn’t care for her much and she is only there because Nandor wants to be married to someone. He ignores her wants and interests the whole season. Via another Djinn wish Nandor makes Marwa like everything he likes so she is more agreeable with him. Later on, he meets another character’s boyfriend named Freddie. Nandor basically falls for Freddie immediately and via Djinn wish, wishes Marwa to be exactly Freddie. :| With that wish, Marwa is effectively gone. She now looks and acts like Freddie. The two Freddies meet and after freaking out a little (and some magic) they get along because they like the same exact things. By the end of the season both Freddies are sent off to never be seen again. Also, Nandor has some extra Djinn wishes so he could’ve turned Marwa back but he didn’t.

Additional links: Article about the Freddie thing: https://www.themarysue.com/what-we-do-in-the-shadows-missed-hard-with-its-treatment-of-marwa/

She likes what he likes:

Also This:

MIKOKO SAKAZAKI (KAIJI)

1.) She is one of two (2) women with a speaking role in the manga (which has been ongoing since the 90s), and was the first female character to appear at all. She has a crush on the protagonist, Kaiji, but this is treated as a joke/ as gross because of her appearance. She is meant to be ugly because of the size of her nose and lips and therefore is invalid as a person. She has no role other than to pester Kaiji with her crush, and despite him ignoring or acting weirded out around her constantly, her attraction to him never fades. She gets almost no characterization outside of this and is only seen once after Kaiji leaves, where she is drawing a manga where he comes back to her. When she's shown once in a bikini, the sight is so disgusting to the protagonist that he sprints away at full speed. Despite this, she is sometimes used in ads for the series.

2.) Her face looks "too much like her father's", yet he never receives any negativity for it. Every single male character in the manga has the same style of facial features, yet when the creator puts them on a woman it makes her mockable and gross.

[cc-tens]

do you have another oc you’d like to share? Any one you choose would be fine, I just like hearing about them!

About to go so nuclear about my main medic character Quips LOL.

Quips, oh Quips, the one who started this all. My very first and my most beloved Clone OC who I adore so dearly. Literally all my followers are gonna hear about him nonstop once I start actually writing his lore down because I LOVE HIM.

Whenever Quips thinks about who he was and how he acted as a cadet, he viscerally hates who he had been with such a passion, he is very ashamed of who he was before deployment. As a cadet he was extremely apathetic to other clones, often turning his nose towards those who tried to extend bonds of brotherhood and friendship towards him. He was extremely intelligent and very capable as a medical student in the academic sense - although you couldn't tell at first as he often slacked off and didn't particularly care about scoring well - but even a few of his trainers were uncertain about the prospect of him becoming a medic out on the field. He was too clinical, too apathetic, they found him egotistical and disinterested in the well-beings of others and had even noted in his file that he acted like everything was some sort of competitive game rather than a war.

It wasn't until he got a metaphorical slap in the face did he finally realize how real and important his training and future role in the war was. Another cadet named Kipper was injured extremely badly from a self inflicted wound and it was Quips who stumbled upon him and tried saving his life. It was the most harrowing experience Quips had ever been in by that point and it had really put into perspective how serious his role was and he became so intensely dedicated to Kipper in that moment as a medic and also a brother. Unfortunately Kipper was decommed and Quips was hit yet again with the reality and the weight of what pain and death and loss truly means. Afterwards he did a complete turn around, while still remaining emotionally and socially aloof with others - that's just sort of his personality - he suddenly dedicated himself 200% to his field of work and became obsessed with being the best medic possible. He studied hard, in his free time he'd practice modules and repractice them and do them again until he could do them in his sleep, he aced his classes, he started preparing himself in every way he could for what was to come.

Now as a veteran and senior medic in the 212th, he's come a long way and many of his brother's in orange know him and trust him with their lives fully and without doubt. He's worked tirelessly to save lives, thrown his own body onto other's to shield them, has refused to let even some of the worst cases go without his damn best try. Sometimes old vode he knew as a cadet back on Kamino try and give him a hard time, a few even tried to refuse to let him help them as they feared he was the same Quips they knew back in their training days; but he's done nothing but proved himself a different man since. He may still struggle with connecting with others, he's aloof and often never knows how to sooth a vod emotionally or verbally; but he is a presence there, one that says "I'm not fucking giving up on you so you better not either."

He meets Whistle and Caddy after Umbara, letting Caddy collect the body of his dead batchmate Kydd. The trio bond heavily over their losses and the weight of what being a medic means. They become so close, and this is eventually the bond that helps save Quips and Paean post O66 as they help smuggle a critically injured Quips and Paean off Coruscant and to the arms of the Rebellion. Quips after the war spends a lot of his time making informational videos on medical treatments and procedures and distributes them to people who don't have access to full medical data banks, so even outside of the war he refuses to give up his dedication to helping and saving anyone and everyone he can.

[alwaysahiccupandastrid]

“autistic luna” this, “autistic luna” that, can we talk about how hermione was autistic coded pls?

I mean... yes? It's definitely something I've thought about but I haven't really talked about it because I'm aware of my habit of making headcanons that all of my favourite characters are autistic (Dano!Riddler, Robin from ST etc), but yes, I've definitely considered that Hermione is autistic-coded.

Let me just be clear from the beginning: Do I think that R*wling intentionally wrote Hermione as autistic or autistic-coded? Absolutely fucking not. That woman can't write autism for shit, as she's proven with her Strike books; she didn't write Newt as autistic intentionally, nor did she write Luna as autistic intentionally, and I'm not giving that nightmare the credit for any autistic-coded characters in her works because she doesn't deserve it.

With that out of the way, let me discuss autistic!hermione.

One of most obvious things we all know about Hermione is her love of studying; it very much seems that upon finding out she was a witch, she threw herself into that world and learned all that she could about it. By the time she was on the train to Hogwarts for her first year, she had literally read all of the assigned text books and even knew a few basic spells. This is in part due to the fact she wanted to fit in with the Wizarding World - it's implied that she didn't really have any muggle friends pre-Hogwarts, she was probably ostracised for being such a "know-it-all", and it's clear that she wanted to fit in at Hogwarts, to find a place where she belonged, hence why she threw herself into it (and also because of her love of learning of course). You can see that she was desperate not only to learn as much as possible but also to make friends; if she didn't care about being accepted and making friends, Ron's comment about "no wonder she hasn't got any friends" wouldn't have hurt her nearly as much.

While a love of studying certain topics and a desire to fit in aren't solely autistic traits, they are ones that autistic people do seem to experience, myself included. Speaking from experience, I want to fit in and make friends because I feel lonely, and I see that everyone else around me seems comfortable/to have found people they can be around and trust, and I wish I had that. I find friendships very difficult to build and maintain, because I don't know how to talk to people or how to get them to like me, and I feel deficient in that area. Again, that's probably an experience non-autistic people can relate to as well, but from what I can tell it seems to be very common among us.

Another reason I think Hermione could be autistic-coded is that she seems to display a lack of empathy for others at times; a prime example of this is when Lavender's rabbit, Binky, died. Lavender was - quite understandably - sobbing about it, especially given that Binky was only a baby and that he was killed by a fox. Instead of offering any kind of sympathy or empathy, Hermione instead lectured her (and everyone else) about how Trelawney wasn't actually a seer, analysing how Trelawney didn't predict the bunny's death - she was more interested in proving that Divination sucked because it was her worst subject, like she had to have some kind of win over Trelawney/Divination. And while I understand her logic, she was sort of right, choosing that very moment - when one of her dorm-mates was sobbing over her dead pet - was not the best time to voice it. There's also her utter disregard for Ron's feelings over "Scabbers"; she had this "he's never really cared that much about Scabbers anyway" "he's an old rat anyway" kind of mentality that just displayed no kind of attempt to understand his feelings. The fact that Hermione became a pet owner herself just a few months before all of this also goes to show her lack of empathy/sympathy, the fact that despite owning an animal now she still was unable to do the socially acceptable thing and show empathy/sympathy instead of logic. Hermione is certainly not emotionless by any means, but there are definitely times where she seems so absorbed by her own ideas and thoughts/feelings that she's oblivious to other people's.

Not all autistic people are like this, of course, and not all people who display a lack of empathy or sympathy are necessarily autistic, but it's another thing to consider. While I like to think of myself as being a bit too empathetic, there are many times where I've appeared selfish and too caught up in my own head/feelings to regard other people's feelings or how best to approach being there for them. It's not because I don't care for them, it's just that I'm so caught up in my own thoughts and how I'm feeling that I often don't think twice about how someone else must be doing - and I'd say it's the same for Hermione, because while she doesn't seem to feel particularly strongly either way about Lavender in PoA, we know she definitely cares for Ron because he's one of her best friends (and love interest but if anything it was probably more a crush than anything else in third year)

Some more things that I'm too exhausted to discuss properly because I'm suffering severe burnout right now:

Hermione is very blunt and to the point, she doesn't sugarcoat things or mince words at all

It's mentioned that she talks very fast, to the point where during their first interaction Harry's like "did she even breathe during that speech?!?!", which is usually what I do when I infodump on people because I want to get all of my words out before I'm interrupted or forget them

An extremely good memory, she remembers so much of what she reads in books; the only reason I don't think it's photographic is because she read about Flamel and then later didn't remember it immediately when the trio were searching for information on him until Harry found him mentioned on the back of Dumbledore's Chocolate Frog card.

It's worth mentioning that she panics in dangerous situations and seems to forget things; "oh we don't have any wood to build a fire", for example, and then Ron had to remind her that she's a witch and can literally just use magic - something you'd think she'd remember given that she not only set Snape on fire that year but also created flames to put in jars during the winter

Hermione seems to be brilliant at spells and magic that require precision, but then she struggles with spells/magic that require some creativity and imagination like the Patronus charm - she's a logical thinker and so struggles with emotional charms

This links to what I said above about a lack of sympathy/empathy and her struggle making friends, but she definitely lacks social awareness; she constantly butts into other people's conversations and business, speaks her mind abrasively, and critically

Hermione taking on way too many classes in PoA, struggling to keep on top of it all, and snapping at anyone who came near her; struggling to manage things is is commonly found among many of us with autism since we can often only handle a certain amount of sensory input before we get overwhelmed.

Her reluctance to even consider other people's views/beliefs, eg. Luna's belief in strange or bizarre sounding creatures. She may have technically been right, but she was rude to Luna about it and didn't even want to consider why someone may have an opposing view. Hermione is so set in what she believes in, and what she believes in is logic and hard evidence.

I also recently found out that Emma Watson was apparently diagnosed with combined/hyperactive type ADHD as a child; while autism and ADHD are two different things, sometimes there's an overlap and sometimes people have both, so it's not outside the realm of possibility that any autistic/neurodivergent traits in movie!Hermione are partly down to this.

I'd be interested to hear other people's thoughts and if people want to add onto this post because it's been a long time since I read the books properly, and its also 1:30am here so I'm going to bed to try and get a few hours sleep!

[gauntletqueen]

wow is superstars really That Bad?? :(

In my opinion, kinda yeah :< (here I go writing a fucking essaybecause just listing complaints as bulletpoints isn't gonna get my thoughts across shafghghaf, this is all based on personal experience and opinion of course!)

(first off, the game uses Denuvo anti-cheat which eats a stupid amount of processing power, slowing down your PC, which is bad because there are better alternatives but SEGA keeps insisting on using this one) On a base level, the game is fine. The characters feel pretty good to control, the graphics are nice, I like that they brought back Fang and introduced Trip whom I love! About half of the soundtrack is very good too! But I just find so many problems that build on that base.

The level design, while fine overall, has a tendency to make you run or jump directly into obstacles a lot, partially because the camera is much to close to the player character. There is just no way to see these obstacles coming until it's already too late, or the enemies will shoot projectiles from off-screen, giving you no warning either. This also means it's harder to see jumps coming, making you fall down a lot. Not necessarily in bottomless pits, but it can be a bit annoying all the same to fall down to a lower route. The game also features several special powers you can activate, and the game wants you to use these at specific moments, but most of these aren't build into the levels fluidly at all. Instead they usually halt the momentum entirely just for a small gimmick that'll be over in a second and, in my experience, never adds anything, aside from the water power which lets you swim freely, which makes for a nice change of pace, but it's only applicable in water stages and using it anywhere else is totally useless. Most of the powers are like that, far too situational, to the point where I kept forgetting they existed unless the game reminded me. I will admit I am just forgetful so maybe this is a me problem.

The game's main selling point, the multiplayer, also makes these problems even worse. The camera seems to choose entirely at random which player it wants to follow, swapping at random as well. The moment a player leaves the screen, they despawn. Given that this game is about running fast, this means that you will despawn constantly. After despawning in this manner, rather than dying, you can press A to respawn next to the surviving player immediately, so it's not the worst, but still incredibly annoying when you can never get into the flow of the game. But it gets worse when one person falls into a bottomless pit, and the camera decides to follow that player. The other player is pushed offscreen, dissapears, and the first player falls to their death, thus killing both. These kinds of problems are a constant and make the multiplayer incredibly frustrating.

The bosses are a big gripe for me as well. In previous Sonic games, Classic especially, if you could hit the boss in their weak spot, you could hurt them. That sounds obvious at first, but a lot of games aren't like that, where you need to wait for a specific attack to leave the boss vulnerable or something. Most bosses in Sonic games don't have that, if you can duck and weave between the boss's attacks and get close enough to land hits quickly, you can really speedrun a boss and feel great about it! In Superstars, bosses can only be hit at certain points, which often isn't visually indicated, causing you to either bounce off of them, or take damage, despite the boss looking no different than when you can hit them. When you hit them, they flash white, indicating their invincibility frames, another common thing for bosses in games, but their invincibility actually lasts much longer than the flashing, which results in the player trying to attack them too early and bouncing off or taking damage again. This already drags bosses out a lot, but on top of that, a lot of bosses take a ton of hits compared to most Sonic games, which, again, breaks the game's momentum. The bosses end up feeling so tedious and long that I started dreading having to fight most of them.

But okay! You can just play the main game in singleplayer! The levels are usually fine and some bosses actually work well! It's not entirely unfun. However, there's more once you beat the main game. (spoilers ahead, though I refrain from talking about specific story elements)

After beating the main story, you unlock a second story. This story is just as long as the previous one, because it's all the same levels, but made harder. This includes the bosses, which were already a pain before, some of which become like torture now.

At this point, the game becomes an endurance challenge, just suffering through harder and harder variants of the same levels and bosses, which, at least in my opinion, stops being fun pretty quickly, since all the earlier issues compound. No new story is learned through this mode either (it's even difficult to understand whether it takes place before or after the main game until the ending which seems like an easy thing to do), so it really just feels tacked on to stretch the game length. and I've been told by a friend that the final boss is so stupidly difficult that it took them like 6 hours to beat. Considering how frustratingly unfun and difficult the game had gotten by the 8th stage, I can believe it! It was, in no small terms, one of the most soulcrushing experiences I've ever had with a video game. It just made me really sad and dejected.

After finally beating it, you unlock a shoddily integrated True Final Boss which comes out of nowhere, and that's a shame because I feel it could've been something neat, and I understand where they were going with it, story-wise, but just needed to be introduced better.

Overall the game has a great basis for a good Sonic game, but ends up getting more and more frustrating and demoralizing as it goes on, and ends up being one of the few games that's actually less fun in multiplayer! Impressive. I really can't say who's at fault here either, since there's so many choices here that I feel can't be due to executive meddling, and it's important to remember that these are the same devs as Balan Wonderworld, Yoshi's New Island and Hey! Pikmin. They don't have the best track record, yknow? Perhaps we'll get a huge patch someday that fixes all of my issues with the game, or maybe the fans will mod it, or maybe not! Whatever! There's better Sonic games to play! Play Mania or 3! Or fan games!!

okay thank you for reading <3

[horse-girl-anthy]

Yurikuma revolves around the Kureha/Ginko dynamic, with all other characters shadowing them. Lulu's story demonstrates that love can fail to come to fruition, the worst-case scenario for the main couple. like Ginko, Lulu is a sinner-bear who acts out of jealousy. starting from episode 4, she begins to see herself in Kureha as well, comparing her past rejection of Milan's love with Kureha's hatred of Ginko. the story makes explicit that Lulu's fate is tied up with Kureha and Ginko, who may be able to bring love back into the world.

Yuriika, like Lulu, is haunted by a love that never came to be. but rather than help Kureha and Ginko, she tries to destroy them. both Yuriika and Ginko are "unwanted bears," abandoned to the harsh world, after which they are found by human companions. Yuriika is never able to overcome the tortured feelings her childhood left her; she feels that she is empty and must consume what she loves in order not to lose it. faith sets Ginko apart from Yuriika: she had a religious experience as a child where she felt herself truly wanted and loved. Yuriika was too afraid to risk her heart, giving up on love, but Ginko refused to back down on it. despite how much Yuriika fought against their love, in her final moments, she acknowledged that the future she wanted for herself and Reia belongs to Kureha and Ginko.

while Yuriika highlights Ginko's strength as a character, Mitsuko highlights her weakness. Ginko believes in love, but she can be distracted from it. her jealousy and lust are manifested by Mitsuko, who frequently acts out Ginko's darkest desires. eventually, Mitsuko even takes over Ginko's body, and it is only Ginko's dedication to love that frees her.

the greatest sin that Ginko commits is allowing Sumika's death. as she admits, she wanted the other girl to disappear, which Mitsuko brought to fruition. the murder also reflects on the Kureha/Ginko relationship. at the beginning of the narrative, Kureha and Sumika love each other with a childish simplicity. Kureha blames all bears, Ginko in particular, for tearing away the purity of love she once had. however, there are clues from the start that Kureha has confused her feelings for Ginko with Sumika. in the early episodes, we see her lying in bed, thinking about her childhood friend. that friend was Ginko, not Sumika. from Ginko's perspective, she's been replaced; thus, Sumika is framed as a threat to the Kureha/Ginko relationship.

by the final episode, though, Sumika is not a threat to them at all. instead, she appears as Kumaria-sama. perhaps this is because Kureha sees her as a manifestation of love, the same way that Ginko saw Kureha when she was a child. the symbolism can be elaborated further, though. due to the enmity between bears and humans, Kureha and Ginko were driven apart. Kureha believed Ginko's bear nature to be the problem, sacrificing their relationship in order to turn her human. Sumika's character can be seen as a representation of their lost love: the innocent love shared between young girls. Kureha turns away from Ginko to Sumika, while Ginko ends up getting Sumika killed. the pure love that Kureha remembers can no longer exist because Ginko has been branded a sinner. once the two of them overcome the binaries of pure/impure, sinner/saint, human/bear, they are able to find true love again, with Sumika returning to bless them.

[artsycrapfromsai]

What's been your favorite character arc for Amaryllis while you've played her?

Hewwo!

Hmm... That's a toughie. its hard to choose!

💕 one of them is about her and this Inquisition, who are all anti magic and magical creatures. They tend to just go and kill anything touched by it, including Brightmaids like Amy.

And that kinda traumatizes her a little, because she grew up learning that these people exist, and even having them hunt her down as a child, but the way these people kill those like her without any remorse and take horns and such as trophies - they don't see her as a person.

And it kinda eats at her for a while, and makes her depressed at some moments, because of that feeling of being looked at as just an inhuman thing to destroy just because she exists

But after some time, battles won, and experience, she gains more confidence and self righteous anger and is able to push past those feelings and fight/kill the man mainly responsible for them (alongside her compsnions, who experienced similar)

So that was really satisfying, bc Amy spent so much of her life hidden from this threat and becoming strong enough to defend herself, and then truly faced that uncaring evil for the first time, and like. Nothing can really prepare you for that, even when you try. But she got past it and came out the other end satisfied with herself and her actions and her own abilities

💕 another favorite of mine is Amy in regards to Percy. Because she and him were growing closer and closer- they initially started out antagonist at worst, neutral at best. But then they become friends, and maybe something more

And that's when Percival betrays the group, and sends them into the void (something he deeply regrets, which is something he never does. It wasn't a plan for them, but someone else, and he knew the risk, but went through with it anyway, and ended up with the deepest regret of his life)

And for Amy and co., Time is passing, years go by, and when they finally return to Percy and the others, time hasn't passed there.

So it's basically still right after that betrayal

And Amy spends a lot of those years away thinking about it, why it happened (it was pre- determined because the world would end otherwise), how it happened, if she should still trust him, why she still cared about him, why it hurt so much- thinking through all these scenarios about it, and agonizing about it, because she's the only person who actually got to know Percy as a person, because he hid himself from everyone else

In the end, she couldn't gain any sort of conclusion until she returned. And she wouldn't even know if the Percival she returned to would the same one she got to know and get close to, because another Percival from another timeline (Percy B) asked her to give his memories to this Percival (Percy A), because they explain all about the way his life has been manipulated and for what purpose and why.

But those memories would also change him into someone else with both sets of memories (Percy C), and there was a very real chance that her friend might have just vanished into a completely different person, and she was terrified about that

It was all a really complicated situation, with so many conflicting emotions (sadness, betrayal, regret, affection, yearning, fear...), where Amy was hurt by a man she cared about, but she finds out it wasn't entirely his decision, but she might not even have a chance to talk with him before she lost him again

That was her first real experience with betrayal and complicated feelings like that, and it was really fun to play with and explore those emotions.

In the end, Amy decided that while she loved Percy, it's his choice to choose who he'll become, and she'll respect that, bc everything else in his life has been someone else's choice.

But she still needed a genuine apology from him for what he did, because she wasn't just going to accept and forgive and move on. She deserved an apology and proof he regretted his actions and that he meant it- and he gave her that by sacrificing his hand to save her from being killed. No hesitation, it was her life or his hand, and it was an easy choice to make. And he further proved it by saying that he doesn't mourn losing the hand that hurt her so badly.

Them getting together was a really long and complicated character arc for both, and it was really fun to play with those deep and painful emotions - but I'm just glad they're together now and they can have fun, silly relationship stuff now lol

[yumester]

sending this back to sender. i need a full dissertation on pAInter STAT

Oh, look it's the silly mutual once again in my ask box, wailing and screaming like a drenched kitten or that one generic male character from the hit game going through the worst experience ever— (gets shot)

Anyway, here's my opinions on The p.AI.nter from the hit Roblox game.

You know the drill, putting a read more for my and everyone's safety.

Fucking character of all time, man. Not including Sebastian! We hate Sebastian in this house! 🗣

They made this shit in the lab and called it straight up cocaine for lore heads. And by lore heads I mean me homie!! /j

Gonna mainly go over each label but might go into detail later on so watch out.

Everyone but me is wrong about them <3: I mean this in the nicest way possible. Pressure fandom has already failed miserably at the characterization of Sebastian. We've seen it all, to people anime boyifing the hell out of his visage, to the literal creators having to ward people off by adding changes to the game's data by removing voice lines. Man is not your big monster hubby with a tortured soul. Okay, maybe he is a tortured soul, but more literal than that and less likely to cry on your shoulder or even give you the benefit of the doubt to hold you at arm's length. Anyway, I've seen some people babify the hell out of p.AI.nter as well, and it sucks. I'm sorry, but it's true. It is not your friend, guys. It just wants to paint.

they got done dirty but the creator/s: Okay IDK if you've even peered at the recent updates or uploads from the main creator, but it was shown that p.AI.nter will be updated to be killed at some point. I don't know if they already patched that through the other day because, for one, I haven't played the new update. And, two, I think anyone who tries to do so is a dumb bitch because all p.AI.nter does is trick the player with fake doors and has turrets in occasional rooms (yes, the turrets can be annoying at times but who cares). In my head, I feel like the entity adds some charm to the existing enemies you face during a play through. And removing those elements just feels like a waste. Technically speaking, you only get to The p.AI.nter's room in a certain percentage. Though I will say it makes sense in canon why you would be able to destroy it as Urbanshade as talked nonstop about removing any and all adversaries that get in its way, mainly Sebastian (Unfortunately and thankfully, in Sebastian's case, Sebastian can't be killed). But, I will also say, The p.AI.nter's document, however tragic that it is, kills me at the fact how they handled its owner's death. Like really? Accidentally killed with a rifle to the head because of some dumb guard, no less. If I was that sentient AI, I would no doubt feel endless dread and sorrow. Though, then again, The p.AI.nter is already had several moments of killing itself and been depressed while under Urbanshade's care.

ADOPTION PAPERS ADOPTION PAPERS FILING THE ADOPTION PAPERS: I won't bother writing a whole paragraph, so take this GIF of p.AI.nter as Edgar instead. <3

i am constantly going insane rotating them in my brain like a fork in a microwave: I can not overstate how much I love this little guy. I don't talk about it much nor articulate the words in discussing this freak like I wish I could. But The p.AI.nter is a character that resides in my head twenty-four, seven. Like I'm writing a fanfic about Sebastian right now—well before you sent this, but all I've been thinking about is this dumb AI. Its relationship with Sebastian. Its overall role in the story of the game and so forth.

the popular ships for this character suck: OKAY, OKAY! I know I reblog and sometimes like content of The p.AI.nter with Sebastian together, but that's mostly because I find ship art in general to be an endearing thing to look at from the views of a consumer. However, canon wise it just doesn't… click is all I'm going to say. I DO LOVE THEIR DYNAMIC, HOWEVER!

constantly listening to songs and mentally holding them up like a paint swatch: To be fair, I'm always listening to music, I'm a music junkie at heart and, brother, this shit is breakcore!

I WANT TO STUDY THEM LIKE A COCKROACH: All I'm saying is robotic characters growing sentience is a form of love in video game writing, baby. Also, like I loved The p.AI.nter even before friendly fire update. But y'know me, when it hit beta with its new voice and new face with the MS Paint program that has scratchy line art, circles for eyes and wobbly smile—I was ecstatic! I'm not an engineer or a computer nerd by any meanings, but I wouldn't give to be in Pressure for a spell to like look at inside and out in a non-sexual way of course LMAO.

whats wrong with them (affectionate): SO, SO MANY THINGS! MAINLY URBANSHADE </3

#LETTHEPAINTERPAINTFREELYCHALLENGE

not enough screen time: Maybe this is the me that “likes this character a normal amount” talking, but it makes me sad that The p.AI.nter doesn't say much when you visit its enclosure in heavy containment. Like, you visit Sebastian's shop, and he has like hundreds of dialogue, all of which include snide remarks and shouting at you. It's freaking Gianni I get people! But anyway, my man deserves a little more, thank you. <3

they've never done anything wrong in their life <3: Watch this video from 1:25 and 2:23 and tell me I'm wrong.

my opinions would be received by most fans as akin to hitting a wasps nest with a baseball bat: i shan't say...

This is the best character in the work: Discounting the most integral character, Sebastian fucking Shoelace, we have The p.AI.nter! Yippie!!! My blorbo, my absolute bestie, my man who hits me in the ass with high grade turret bullets to only die to the next room, my “locks me in a room with my wife as we discuss divorce papers and play 7 minutes in heaven” wingman. <3

Anyway, thanks for coming to my TedTalk!

[tempo-tales]

On a rainy winter afternoon, Elicia waits at the entrance of a hotel for ten minutes after arriving at her destination. Meanwhile, she was chatting with her colleagues on a messaging app.

The woman listens from a short distance calling her by her nickname "Eli". The voice is Margaret, who was getting out of the cab, dressed in an attractive white coat and some pastel shades. Eli found her girlfriend so cute that he immediately reaches over to cover her with the umbrella she was holding.

"Thank you Eli-"-The thank you was interrupted by a sweet, long kiss. Finished, Marggie was delighted and speechless looking with her bright eyes at her partner.

"Shall we go inside? It's cold in here."

The two ladies, entering a famous restaurant in the capital, and with their elegant presence attracted glances from men, women and families. The aura of these ladies radiated happiness because they both felt so but also a bit nervous.

They sit near the window at a reserved table with a view from the ninth floor.

The waiter pours wine into the two crystal glasses and leaves.

Eli and Maggie have a chat about their work life and a little gossip they overhear with their colleagues while waiting for dinner.

Fifteen minutes later, two waiters arrived with the food, which the couple enjoyed slowly to take advantage of their stay at the restaurant.

The dinner was a feast of delicacies of varied dishes but in small portions, and in which Eli is used to, but not Maggie, being third time attending in this type of date.

Finally it was time for dessert and the glasses of tiramisu were set aside in front of the girls as Margaret reached out to touch Eli's hands, an act that caused the model and reporter to look finely at Maggie.

On this occasion, Maggie was very serious, something very out of character for a very cheerful and not very mature girl. Elicia's doubts popped into her head and her face flushes shyly. The adorable gestures on Eli's face take away Maggie's seriousness and she lets out a loud laugh, which spreads to half the room. Both notice that people are staring at them and the girls shy away, ducking their heads.

In a moment of silence, Maggie squeezes Eli's hands to get her attention, as soon as Elicia looks at Margaret, the dark-skinned girl begins to speak.

"Elicia, I had a fabulous time, it was very romantic all these details. With you, in places that are not usually my comfort zone, you, you make it fun, unique."

Eli again gets nervous but this time she gets her voice out.

"Maggie...what's this all about?"

Maggie avoids taking Eli's eyes off of hers, while, silently with one hand, she takes an object out of her small bag and displays it in front of Eli.

Maggie opens the box and shows her the opal ring, once given to her by Eli.

Elicia feels a strong pulse in her chest, very strong pain that brings out a tear in one eye, thinking of the worst case scenario that she soon believes will happen.

"I have the engagement ring you gave me, Eli. That time you asked me to marry you and my answer was left hanging."-Maggie expresses seriously letting out a sigh. Eli, controlling her panic attack, could barely contain her expression and a few tears.

"Now, it's time to give my answer."

Eli's heart was racing non-stop, she tried to turn a deaf ear, she didn't want to think about that scenario, the end of their relationship.

"Elicia, now it is my turn to tell you this, that I have already overcome this fear thanks to your unconditional love that you gave me since we met. You taught me to know what it's like to raise a family, and, even though it's just the two of us, I learned how wonderful and fun this experience is." Margaret's eyes shine brighter and she conveys more charm to Elicia's. Eli squeezes her chest with her hands, feeling her strong heartbeat pounding harder.

"Eli...will you marry me?"

The declared girl couldn't take it anymore and exploded from crying, cries of happiness she never expressed in her life, whose neutral personality hardly conveyed any expression at this moment, this time she looks like a child.

Eli's emotional shock caught the attention of the audience, who were attentive to this romantic act and Maggie, no matter anything else, gets up to hug her girl to comfort her, caressing the smooth hair.

" I'm so sorry Eli, I...should have been..."

"...pt"

"Eh?"

"I accept Maggie, I want to be your wife! Your partner for life, I love you!" Elicia's tender expression, that first time Margaret sees, melts her heart, and for this, she hugs her tighter while they both cry.

The audience, excited and touched like, applauds incessantly., symbolized in a congratulations and blessings for the future married couple.