#ml Kuro Neko

[thimbleb3rries]

This show gives me so much to think about omggggg

Kuro Neko....... 😃cat walker.....

I drew him with his hair loose for two of the doodles because it gave me trouble when it was tied back shhhhh

Also??? The weird little stray pieces of hair that just kinda float around where his hair parts??? I had to simplify them, I couldn't figure them out 😭

[howtotrainyouragents]

By the way, Kuro Neko makes the most sense when you realize it’s about how Ladybug is in love with Chat Noir

[thecoolcatstuff]

Here I am a year and half later and Im still salty about how Kuro Neko couldve easily been the best Chat Noir-driven episode ever made but it was ruined because the narrative kept pushing how the whole issue was about Chat Noir's love for ladybug when it should have been about him being prived of sensitive information and how Chat Noir, as a hero, needed that sensitive information for making independent calls and actually helping save the world beyond being the meat shield and pep talk guy.

Im still mad how Adrien depression was treated as him being weak and overly sensitive.

Im still mad about how this was all solved by Adrien having to suck this up and "get a grip".

Im still mad how the messed up ramifications of having LB swooning about the gabe-approved corporate-molded Adrien were simply ignored and never brought up again.

Im still mad how that episode didnt change Ladybug nor Chat noir, nor their dynamic in any substantial way even though it should have.

Im still mad how Kuro Neko was the breaking point for me, and when I realized the writers had absolutely no idea what they were doing even with so much potential in hands.

[miraculousfanworks]

Fanfiction Prompt

Kuro Neko au where, when trying to trick Marinette into letting him take the ring back to Adrien under a new guise, Plagg accidentally lets slip some of how his holder is actually feeling. Marinette bribes the real story out of the kwami and is horrified by her partner's self-worth issues, so she decides on a better plan: they'll become Lady Noir and Mister Bug again for a while. Hopefully intrusive thoughts about not being needed will be easier to counter when the Ladybug is absolutely pivotal to every battle, and Tikki's more supportive style might be good for him to get a taste of until the kids can repair their partnership. But. Tikki: If you ever even think of leaving my Miraculous on a random rooftop instead of just telling your partner how you feel, you will find out why Plagg is afraid of me and not the other way around. (Plagg has mixed feelings about how things turned out. On the one hand Marinette spoils him with love, attention, and cheesy pastries, she's a lot more chaotic than Adrien, and she's fun to tease. He also still gets to spy on his kid at school, and he can see the progress Adrien is making. On the other hand Marinette has much higher expectations for him than Adrien did... and all the other kwamis clamoring around is both a blessing and a curse.)

Prompt by techRomancer

[wackus-bonkus-maximus]

Same anon who just asked about why you placed Adrien as a 7 instead of a 2, only to look deeper in the reblogs of your ML enneagram post and see you already answered it haha!

In friendly defense of 2!Adrien, I’d argue that his reactions to being stressed coming off as more of a 7 rather than a 2 is actually a perfect reflection of the effects of his abuse; it’s fear that drives his non-confrontation tendencies rather his own nature. I think Risk highlighted that a bit in revealing how Adrien does desire confrontation, even if he doesn’t act on it.

(I have always found it interesting to consider the role that trauma/neurodivergency plays in shaping a character’s personality, since it’s one of the flaws I feel most personality assessments can’t really account for.)

I also think Chat’s arguments with LB were more like to be confrontational than avoidant (thinking of the times he’s called her out and his romantic pursuit being the primary indicators), up until she became the Guardian. So then with S4, I’d consider it to be a gradual relationship shift that leads to Chat no longer feeling safe and secure enough in his position to confront her the way he once did, which is why he only tries a bit in Kuro Neko before running, and then doesn’t try at all in Strikeback.

I hope this doesn’t come off as too preachy or anything, just wanted to share my 2¢! Cause either way you slice it, your Adrien has always been brilliantly written and incredibly in-character to me, so you’ve clearly got a rock solid understanding of his character. ❤️

hello november anon and sorry for the delay! thank you so much for the ask and also for going back and looking through my prev posts. you know my teacher heart loves it when you do the readings! 😌 also you're definitely not the only one who believes adrien is a 2 rather than a 7! and while i know there are good arguments for both sides, i'll explain in depth my position on adrien's personality.

part 1 of the ask:

so here are the reasons i think adrien IS an enneagram type 7

adrien's motivation seems like that of a 7 to me: he wants to experience everything and be satisfied in every way he can. if he had a disney princess "i want" song, it would be "i want to go to school, i want to make friends, i want adventure in the great wide somewhere., i want to have fun."

the literal first shot of him in the show (if we use origins as a starting point) is adrien running away. nathalie asks him to please reconsider, he knows what his father wants, and adrien says, "but this is what i want to do." according to the enneagram institute, "sevens do not see themselves as the center of a community or family, but as members of a free-floating band of fellow adventurers whose own enjoyment is enhanced by being with others." going to school and having a new experience with new people is what's going to enhance adrien's enjoyment of life - not being the center of his family unit or the apple of his father's eye.

a 2's motivation would be to be as loved as possible and to make themselves neeed by those they most care about. while adrien definitely shows a desire to be loved and needed, especially by ladybug, i think his primary desire is for experience, and it's this from which all his actions- not just characteristics - are based. take for example his reaction to getting his miraculous vs marinette's (also in origins):

adrien is excited and intrigued and ready to go, as a 7 would be when offered a new experience - and a new way to satisfy their desire to try everything. marinette, as a 1, is quite the opposite: she is being put in a situation where she must do something right or fail, and therefore is stressed tf out. while marinette's motivation to be good/perfect fuels her anxious reaction, adrien's motivation to experience everything and be satisfied fuels his thrilled and slightly reckless reaction. that's why he charges out into battle without listening to all the instructions; his motivation was to escape the restraints of his life and try something new.

in growth, enneagram 7's take on the positive traits of 5's. in stress, they take on the negative traits of 1's. i have seen adrien exhibit these behaviors throughout the show on many occasions!

according to the enneagram institute, "Sevens have fear about their inner world. There are feelings of pain, loss, deprivation, and general anxiety that Sevens would like to stay clear of as much as possible. To cope with these feelings, Sevens keep their minds occupied with exciting possibilities and options— as long as they have something stimulating to anticipate, Sevens feel that they can distract themselves from their fears." therefore, while one can argue that adrien's wealth of knowledge and fun facts is a result of everything gabriel has forced him to learn (mandarin, piano, fencing, medieval horse colors), we can assume he at least was interested in it - and that seeking new knowledge like a 5 kept him from lingering in his sadness.

"i'll help you learn mandarin marinette" "i'll show you how to fence marinette" "most people think henry iv's white horse was white my lady" "do you need subtitles my lady i speak several languages"

now as to how adrien moves to the low parts of type 1 during the show: i think the main examples of this are the instances he adopts rigid, critical, and judgemental characteristics, which is potentially unpleasant for anyone who has to be around him.

first up, adrien's akumatized forms: chat blanc, ephemeral, celesticat

i bring up the akumas because, though adrien isn't in his right mind (by hawkmoth's akumas), they are examples of adrien being in extreme stress.

as chat blanc, adrien wants to either right the world or destroy it for being wrong - the critical supreme judgement an unhealthy 1 is capable of. he lashes out when contradicted, and is quite ruthless even to marinette, who he loves, in the name of executing judgement.

as ephemeral, adrien seeks to control time. (however, this is probably the weakest example because adrien was being amok-controlled in this instance and was acting on shadow moth's will, not his own.)

i include celesticat because while this is an example of a "good" akumatization, adrien was still under so much stress that an akumatization was able to take place. yet even while being in "good" stress, adrien still shows characteristics of 1: perfectionism, righteousness, taking control of the situation. he literally turns into a pure white angelic being, an embodiment of perfection. it's what he believes he has to do in order to salvage the situation. it's one of the more healthier moves from 7 to 1 i have seen depicted in media and is entirely plausible concept under the enneagram's theory! this just goes to show the depth and richness of his character.

next, we will discuss adrien's various alter egos:

cat walker

i've said it before and i'll say it again; cat walker is another move from 7 -> 1.

as chat noir, adrien is at the height of his 7-ness. he enjoys the freedom that his miraculous powers and secret identity gives him, and uses it as a means of escape from the regular constraints of his life and obligations. then in kuro neko when ladybug slights him, she denies him the fulfilment and satisfaction in reaching his full potential as chat noir (e.g., being of equal importance on the team as her) that he should be allowed. of course he becomes hurt and angry! she's stepping on his core desire in life.

according to enneagram coach dr. tom lahue (my favorite enneagram guy ((also a 7)), "type 7's typically deal with anger by trying to avoid it or deflect it. that really is the anger type of a 7 - deflective. deflecting things away." that's what i believe cat walker is: a stress reaction, a deflection of his anger with ladybug. he deflects his painful emotions into something he thinks is positive; a new start.

adrien is usually so joyful and optimistic, but this was a huge blow for him. dr. tom says the best way for a 7 to handle this anger is to be "real and genuine" when coming to terms with it, what does adrien do instead? he turns to a new alter ego. he chases the experience of fulfillment, only he does so by adopting a persona who is serious and perfectionist. obviously this was neither what adrien or ladybug needed, and that is because cat walker is a stress reaction who adrien cannot sustain without continued levels of unhealthy self-denial. this is the hardest he has gone to 1 in the show and what it took to snap him out of it was a level of reflection, analysis, and objectivity (that this was an unhealthy behavior) indicative of a type 5 - and which shows his progression to growth.

2. aspik

one can argue that aspik is more proof of adrien being a 2 than a 7 actually, as his motivations for becoming aspik were to woo ladybug. however, the stress response of a type 2 is to move to the negative qualities of type 8, which is to lash out at those who they believe have taken them for granted.

according to the enneagram institute,

"Average to unhealthy Twos seek validation of their worth by obeying their superego’s demands to sacrifice themselves for others. They believe they must always put others first and be loving and unselfish if they want to get love. The problem is that “putting others first” makes Twos secretly angry and resentful, feelings they work hard to repress or deny. Nevertheless, they eventually erupt in various ways, disrupting Twos’ relationships and revealing the inauthenticity of many of the average to unhealthy Two’s claims about themselves and the depth of their “love.”

as aspik, adrien was never resentful of ladybug for taking him for granted or making him feel rejected. as aspik, his goal was never to make himself needed by her. as aspik, he maintained some extreme levels of optimism that ignored the rational conclusion that he should give up for several thousand time loops. as aspik, he was able to let go and displace his hopes in himself to someone else - and run off to his responsibility as chat noir with high spirits (though i'm sure the ladrien kiss helped)

3. griffe noire

this has got to be the most stressful stress reaction i've seen on adrien. and you might say "but wackus he looks nothing like a type 1" and i say "JUST HOLD ON

going back to dr. tom's analysis on type 7's in anger, he says, "7's typically express their anger indirectly, e.g., through sarcasm, like 5's - like 6's sometimes... but they quickly try to move on and reframe into a more positive way." griffe noire, rather than telling jokes and puns to lighten the mood, mocks and ridicules poor toxinelle who has not convinced me she doesn't have a crush on him. 1's actually do the same thing when they are unhealthy; they criticize and blame and nag others for not being up to par, and by directing his anger at his situation onto toxinelle, griffe noire is doing the same.

dr tom goes on to say, "in some cases [7's] might take impulsive actions to try to free themselves from this feeling of being trapped... engaging in frenetic escapism in behaviors or addictions or substances to try to distance themselves from those who are frustrated with them... or their own anger/pain in life." we have seen griffe noire engage in multiple frenetic behaviors while running amok (haha), all of which are clearly attempts to redirect his pain and anger/ keep it from consuming him. for example, griffe noire takes chat noir's cataclysm to the chest as though it's a game. for another, he openly threatens to destroy the entire world with his super cataclysm. and of course, he is constantly abusing his miraculous by over-exerting his powers in a way only adults should. yet all of these destructive behaviors are still adrien's way of escaping his normal life, and his everyday pain. it's almost like his self-destruction is his addiction.

and yet by the end, it took the introspection of type 5 for griffe noire to realize that his behavior was unhealthy. he observed, he listened, he showed an inquisitiveness that brought him back from the brink. and he also upgraded his outfit so if that isn't a type 7 path to growth i don't know what is!

now i know i won't have convinced everybody, so i just want to drop this section from the enneagram institute's text on misidentifying 2's and 7's:

Although both types are gregarious and enjoy being with people, their interpersonal styles are noticeably different. The Two... would like to be the heart and soul of a family or community, the best friend or confidant everyone comes to for attention, advice, and approval. Twos want to be significant to others and on intimate terms with them, although sometimes they go too far, meddling too much and being too solicitous to make sure they are needed.

adrien is not focused on being needed by anybody, not even ladybug (although due to his romantic interest in her, i can understand why people think so). being the heart and soul of the team is not what motivates him; primarily, i think he just likes having all the experiences he wouldn't otherwise get to have without being chat noir.

By contrast... Sevens do not see themselves as the center of a community or family, but as members of a free-floating band of fellow adventurers whose own enjoyment is enhanced by being with others.... Sevens may thus exhibit a certain generosity, although their motives may well have less to do with helping needier friends than with making sure that they themselves have a good time by having others around.

this isn't to say that adrien is just focused on having a "good time." i see that his enjoyment is amplified when he is surrounded by people he loves and cares for. he is motivated to have good experiences, and be fulfilled by trying everything, and becoming close to people and forming loving relationships is just a happy byproduct of that.

now there ARE several caveats to my analysis which provide potential arguments against typing adrien as a 7 - and which i can touch on briefly before i close:

adrien's abuse: i understand that trauma and anxiety can affect personality deeply. i'm not qualified to speak on this, or on how it should or shouldn't affect any personality type. i can only say that i think adrien has acted pretty consistently under stress as far as the show depicts

inconsistent characterization: i think we can all agree that ml won't be winning any awards for its consistency in characterization. which i know sounds contradictory to what i just said about how it depicts adrien under stress, but i think there IS a lot of discrepancy in this show and over the course of 9 years with different teams of writers all trying to execute one person's vision, inconsistencies are bound to happen.

thank you again for the ask, anon, and thank YOU if you have read all the way through! tell me your thoughts, if you make it down here - whether you agree/disagree or are just nodding along and letting me indulge in my enneagram brainrot! this is an entirely in-good-faith interpretation of mine, and i'd love to see other opinions if you have them!

[bittersweetresilience]

my secret server gift exchange for @sleepysebris: a kuro neko amv!! my ladynoir one was actually also inspired by me thinking of what to edit for you, but i was so excited about how it turned out i wanted to post it straightaway. this one is a bit simpler but i hope you enjoy 🥰

[adrinoir]

Headcanon: Adrien Agreste is Trans? (Part 6)

First things first: Happy pride month to everyone in the community!

If you’ve followed my blog for a while or fallen down the rabbit hole of this headcanon at some point, you’ll know I’ve supported it for a long time. Sooo, welcome to part 6 of the Adrien being trans headcanon.

Here are the other parts of this headcanon if you’d like to read those: part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | part 4 | part 5

Usual disclaimer: this is just for fun! Obviously cis boys can have these same qualities and traits. Don’t take it too seriously. These are all just things I’ve noticed. Also, I use the term "sentibeings" vs "sentimonsters" because I personally feel the canon term has a negative, dehumanizing connotation - please keep that in mind, too!

Sentibeings develop their own lives & identities

I feel like this shouldn't have to be said, but in case anyone feels Adrien being a senti-human debunks the hc, I'm writing this as an important reminder. Although they were developed through a miraculous power, Adrien, Felix, and Kagami are very much still human. Felix has made it clear that people of his kind are dehumanized, seen as "monsters," and taken advantage of which is something that upsets him greatly, and rightfully so.

This in itself is sadly something a lot of trans people can relate to. We're often dehumanized for not being "normal" and having unique/different identities in comparison to cis people who identify with their assigned birth gender.

But, I do want to focus more on the fact that sentibeings who were developed into humans are humans, meaning they develop and function the same way all humans do because this is important when talking about this hc. Adrien can still very much be trans considering he's a human with his own life and identity.

Felix had the dramatic presentation of him and Adrien's life story. Yes, he addressed Adrien being a boy the whole time, but also consider that he's going to respect his cousin's identity if he is trans. If this headcanon was in fact canon, Adrien would very much be closeted, and it isn't up to Felix to reveal his identity to others. Saying Adrien was born and raised a girl would not have added anything to the backstory, anyhow.

Gabriel could be controlling for other reasons, too

As we are all aware, Gabriel is a very controlling parent. We're directly shown that he's this way because Adrien is a sentibeing who he can control through his ring, and he's an evil, narcissistic person who doesn't care about others, including his own son. However, it is very much possible that there are other underlying reasons why he's as controlling as he is, let alone towards his own son. Like, why would he not love his own son?

There could obviously be hundreds of underlying reasons why Gabriel is so careless and controlling, but one of them could be that he may not love his son since he's trans. I briefly mentioned in part 3 of the hc that Gabriel could be unaccepting of Adrien being trans, so I'm going to build off of that.

Gabriel may not have always been quite as controlling and neglectful. Maybe before Adrien transitioned, he was a gentler, more caring father. However, we're shown in Wishmaker (yes, I know I always reference this episode lol) from Adrien's perspective, that his parents have always had certain expectations of him, most of which he's followed. So, if Adrien went against their expectations and transitioned to be their son instead of their daughter, that could've easily set Gabriel off (maybe even Emilee too, for all we know).

Why does Adrien tolerate the way Gabriel treats him?

To build further off of my last section, Adrien is aware of his father's terrible behavior and accepts it for what it is throughout a good portion of the series. But, why does he tolerate and accept it? There could be many reasons why, but I'm going to focus on two particular possibilities.

First of all, I also mentioned in part 3 that Gabriel seems like the type who'd gaslight Adrien, saying things like, “you have it so good here! I didn’t kick you out and I use your right name and pronouns!" If he is like that, that could be what makes Adrien so tolerable of his controlling behavior. He may allow this neglect and control because his father is "accepting" of his identity, enough to use the right name and pronouns.

OR, maybe Adrien thinks his behavior is acceptable due to internalized transphobia. Internalized transphobia is sadly a very common thing trans people experience. If this is something he feels, he may think it's right of his father to be unaccepting because "trans people (like me) are not worthy of others' acceptance."

Adrien's vision of the ideal man

This is another thing I've talked a bit about, but I think it's important to talk about in depth.

We see Adrien in many different identities. The ones I'm going to focus on in particular are himself, Cat Noir, and Cat Walker.

Adrien seems to have this idealistic vision in his mind of what an ideal man is supposed to be like. When he plays his role as Cat Noir, he's very over-the-top: flirtatious, strong, protective, destructive. It doesn't mirror how he acts normally, which as we see is the version of him that conforms to most of his parents' expectations. And, when he plays the role of Cat Walker -since he got the sense that Cat Noir was neither an ideal man nor heroic partner for Ladybug- he tones a lot of that down and acts the way he feels she'd like him best for, very laidback, a bit seductive, and helpful, following her ideas.

Why does he have these odd, idealistic versions of what a man should be and tosses his identity around so much? Let me explain.

Adrien hasn't had a good father figure in his life. So he most likely has had to develop this idealistic version of what a man is and follow that, switching it when he has the ability to live his second life as a hero without needing to conform to his father's standards. Adrien wants to be a man but he has no one to follow for that, especially if one of the main reasons for his father's neglect is due to unacceptance of him being trans, Gabriel will hold back as much as possible on being a good father figure and being a positive influence in his growth into manhood.

[asukiess]

i'm gonna hc that these are questions she always wanted to ask chat

[lady-de-mon-coeur]

[iwasbored777]

Pls don't take this the wrong way I'm not one of the "Adrien is a sexual harasser" salters nor Adrien salter in the first place (you know me), but I think his experience with Ladybug was beneficial to his patience with Marinette because in some episodes like Glaciator 2 and such Ladybug was angry with him asking her to kiss him and later when he saw that it doesn't work he decided to change his method and be more of gentleman.

And in Kuro Neko he saw how much Ladybug likes respectful guys and him realizing that she cares about Chat Noir wasn't the only thing he learned here.

Ironically, the two episodes that are widely hated were crucial for his character development and not just for his identity crisis but for his later relationship too (which is something I don't see mentioned that much, everyone's only talking about the identity part). And now when he is going out with Marinette, who needs time and time before she feels comfortable with him, he knew what to do and how to behave around her because he learned.

In Glaciator 2 he could notice that the pressure of public is what angered Ladybug too and now with Marinette he knows that this is most definitely what's upsetting her. And he was right, they were happier alone than with everyone watching (who WOULD be happy with everyone watching?).

And it also helped Marinette fall for Chat Noir too, remember when she confirmed why she didn't want to give him a chance earlier.

(Pls don't hate her either for saying this, she was trying real hard to be good enough for Adrien too, they both did but this a story for another time)

Not that Adrien's behaviour was extremely disrespectful earlier but it did anger a person he tried to impress and it took him time but he learned how to improve himself. He wasn't problematic, I don't mean that, but he learned how to be more respectful and when it comes to love you need to respect your crush's boundaries and give them space especially if they request for it. Marinette has shown to love gentlemen since forever. She's a hopeless romantic. And Adrien really worked hard to make himself as good for her as he could. That's truly beautiful.

[wield-the-mighty-pen]

Do we think that the Ladrien dynamic in season 6 is going to be similar to that of Ladywalker?

Think of it like this:

Ladybug is still very much in love with Adrien, yet has to be covert about her feelings for him to protect her identity.

Adrien, on the other hand, is now in a very happy, committed relationship and therefore doesn't feel the need to flirt with, or become moony-eyed over Ladybug.

Ladybug can't seem to stop blushing and getting distracted by her boyfriend, whom she is currently saving and therefore can't have feelings for him right now. Adrien, on the other hand, who is very confused by her strange behavior, is behaving in the politely stoic way he uses interact with people that he isn't so close to.

However, this is merely an act, Adrien is close to Ladybug and knows her incredibly well and closely. In interactions, he is constantly having to keep himself in check and make sure he doesn't reveal that he knows too much, that he's aware of too much. He cares about her, but he has to make it seem like its a detached care. He has to treat her like a hero of Paris and not like one of his closest friends and partner.

The tension of identities and secrets gets so thick, that it begins an unraveling in their interactions that can only be resolved either with an identity reveal, or, the same way that Ladywalker ended, with them parting ways indefinitely.

[jennagrinsoverml]

Got any Catwalker fic recs? Haven't found many yet but the angst and identity shenanigan potential from the setup makes me wanna read more, and your recs are top notch.

I really wish there was more Catwalker fics! Sadly there aren't very many still. I feel like, in general, there just wasn't as much fic for season 4 as for prior seasons (and it's only gotten worse for season 5...) With that said, here are a few I enjoyed.

Walking a Fine Line by @11jj11​

Ladybug learns that Chat Noir was Cat Walker. Emotions ensue.

One-shot. I think all of us are itching for some good ladynoir confrontation considering canon events and how much they did NOT get into the nitty gritty of the conflict. So read this awesome fic that starts off light and leads to these two screaming at each other and then…well, I don’t want to spoil, but it’s absolutely beautiful 💖

another side of you by @emsylcatac

"Did he..." Chat Noir started, searching for the right words. "Did he like puns, my Lady?"

Ladybug frowned, clearly confused by the question. "Um, I'm not sure? He didn't laugh at mine, but—"

"Then it's a no," he grinned.

"What?" she scoffed. "You can't say no just because of puns, Chat Noir!"

"And why not?" he crossed his arms. "If I need a replacement, I need one who can fit my role perfectly. And the basic requirement to be a good Chat Noir is to like puns, which this Catwalker of yours clearly doesn't seem to meet."

One-shot. Ladybug and Chat Noir discuss the possibility of bringing back Cat Walker as Chat's emergency back up. Although Cat Walker doesn't make an appearance, the discussion is amazing, especially with Ladybug's crush on full display. (But of course Chat is Adrien and as oblivious as ever 🤣)

Marinette Considers Giving Cat Walker a Miraculous by Hadithi 

“I should probably figure out whoever Cat Walker was and give him a miraculous,” Marinette jokes.

Her hands are covered in flour because she’s kneading dough, and she’s kneading dough because she found out last week that Adrien buys his bread at the grocery store. Her boyfriend is rich, and he could buy nice bread, but he doesn’t. Instead, Marinette bakes bread from scratch and knows that Adrien is always touched by gifts that aren’t paid for.

“You never found out?” Adrien grins as he leans across the counter.

One-shot. This is a cute post-reveal established relationship fic where Marinette finds out her boyfriend was Cat Walker too--and he teases her mercilessly. It's funny and sweet and it makes me happy to think something like this could happen one day.

The Sun is In Your Eyes by @deinde-prandium

The morning after they’ve revealed their identities to one another, Ladybug and Chat Noir have a much-needed talk. Post-season 4.  

One-shot. Oh man, I love this fic a ridiculous amount. We get post-reveal pre-relationship in the aftermath of all of season 4′s angst and it’s beautiful!! Chat trying to hold back because he doesn’t want to pressure her, but his feelings haven’t changed, of course they haven’t. It’s post-reveal, but we get a Cat Walker reveal too!

Runaway Catwalker (ML Comic) by @runawaycatwalker​

After Chat Noir's identity is discovered by Mayura, the only person left for Adrien to be is Catwalker...

Takes place post-Kuro Neko, pre-Risk/Strike Back.

Comic. This is a WIP! But it’s so good and I’m enjoying it immensely. You can also read it here on tumblr at their username. Everyone is really in character and there’s really excellent exploration of the fallout of Chat Noir’s identity being discovered, as well as his turn to being Catwalker full time. I’m excited to see how it all plays out!

[gameguy20100]

Do you think Adrien was justified for the events in Kuro Neko

Yes, yes I do.

Depression and abandonment issues are really hard to deal with.

How would you feel if every part of your life was micromanaged to absurdity. You couldn't even tie your shoes without your father's permission.

But you have an outlet, a friend who you love, respect, and would do anything for. You help people and feel like you're making a difference.

But they not only call on you less. They replace you with a bunch of other people. And even say, despite the fact you've been by their side on this since day one, they regard you as "Just like the others."

Depression twisted Ladybugs words in his mind. What he heard was " He's replaceable. He's not special at all."

It's a massive kick to the ego to realise you mean less to a person than you thought. In Adrien’s case, the only person he felt he could be himself around.

So yes. Yes, his feelings were justified

[celestiall0tus]

Kuro Neko Half Notes - All That Remained

I can't do it! I fucking hate this episode! The writing is so fucking garbage! I know fucking 12 year-olds smarter than these 14-15 year olds.

Prepare for the utmost salt since, what was it? Migration! That one!

I will preface this saying that yes, I do know the main conflict of season 4. Lady is Guardian and Chat is getting shafted. But holy fuck is it so fucking bad.

First off, the role of Guardian should never have fallen on Ladybug. Master Fu was an irresponsible, horrible mother fucking adult for pulling that stunt. Marinette is still a fucking child and shouldn't have all that responsibility thrust on her shoulders. I don't care how special a ladybug she is, absolutely awful. Shame. Shame on all y'all!

Adrien, buddy, read the room!! And again, another instance where I can see the trauma peeking through but it still doesn't feel right. I can give it to him that his first thought would be to overreact, thinking he wasn't needed and have that absolutely crush him. That I get, but not that reaction. For the abuse he suffers as per the writers of the show, you'd expect a more taken aback, heartbroken response. Him not letting her see him break down, renouncing his kwami without a hint of what he was doing, and running off. With his reaction in the episode, I was honestly waiting for him to throw the ring in a dumpster. Enjoy dumpster diving, m'lady.

Then there is the conflict of Plagg not knowing how to fucking just say things plainly to a fucking child. And darling Marinette just assuming that Chat being in love with her was the entire problem. That was part of the problem, but again, a double edged sword. On one hand, Marinette, for all her "maturity" should have had some inkling to Chat as a partner and friend, but feels like she disregarded him. Then ol Chat. We need to working on timing, response, and a level of emotional maturity that is sorely lacking. Again, he feels more like an entitled little bitch ass white boy than an abuse victim. Maybe Daddy dearest doesn't love or spend enough time with him, but not how Gabriel is supposedly treating him.

Oh! And let's not forget the absolute best part of the damn episode. Seeing that Ladybug's "ideal man" is just Adrien. Ultimately proving at this point that she really doesn't love Chat Noir or his antics and is utterly obsessed with Adrien that you're only perfect if you are him. Fuck you, Astruc. You hear me? Fuck you.

I hate Kuro Neko. I fucking hate it so fucking much.

[wehadabondingmoment]

Catwalker and Velvet Paw (French Dub) were both excellent name choices for Kuro Neko because they have simultaneously the same and the exact opposite meaning.

In this (totally over-analyzed) essay I will-

[character-fan19]

MLB Season 4 Character Analysis: "Kuro Neko"

Introduction

After a long break, I'm finally back to making these posts and I'm glad. In case you are new to this series, here I look at the perspectives of different characters in every individual episode of season 4 in order to show people that why these characters act the way they do and today it's episode 23.

Finally we are at this episode. I been waiting to do this ever since I first started this series. It was the entire reason I wanted to do this series in the first place. 99 % of people who watch this episode either ignore Ladybug's POV, ignore Cat Noir's POV or just look at the episode at surface level and it broke my heart to see the hate on these characters. Then the remaining 1 % of people such as gentil-minou here on Tumblr and u/Faulan1 on r/miraculousladybug inspired me to start my own series of posts explaining why the characters behaviours are only humane when I saw they're takes on this episode. So let's get started with explaining why Marinette and Adrien's behaviours are humane in this episode as well.

Character POVs

Adrien/Cat Noir

"But does that mean Cat Noir is who I really am? Deep down inside?"

Well since this episode is mainly about Cat Noir feeling left out of battles, we're going to start with him. From the starting of the episode we know that he has been skipping out on battles and a lot of people have given him hate for this but I believe that they have forgotten about the continuity. For the entire second half of the season, we've been building towards this about how Cat Noir has been feeling useless and "Ephemeral" was the last blow when Ladybug called upon a team of superheroes when he didn't show up. This is what happens to someone who suffers from clinical depression.

As he was suffering from clinical depression he assumed that Ladybug didn't need him, focusing on the fact that he was being left out than focusing on why more heroes would be useful and believing that he is useless whenever Ladybug and her team win a fight without him. So when Plagg encouraged him to go out there and talk to Ladybug, he assumed that she would know his problem without him telling her and tried to get the answer he wants to hear out of her but since Ladybug isn't a mindreader and Cat Noir is an expert at masking his emotions it doesn't go so well and ended in Cat Noir giving up his miraculous when Ladybug told him that he was wasting her time because according to him all his beliefs about what Ladybug thought of him was confirmed and she didn't need him at all.

After this he goes into a depressive episode but when Plagg returns he gives him the idea that if he acts like the person he believes Ladybug wants as a partner, then Ladybug will like him but when that epicly fails his distorted thoughts about what Ladybug wants of him was proven wrong and he learns that Ladybug doesn't want the perfect Cat Miraculous holder, she just wants Cat Noir and we're going to get to her in a minute.

The reason Cat Noir never told Ladybug about how useless he feels is due to his abusive father who never listened to what his problems to her so Adrien only knows what it's like to listen but not to be heard and also feels that his emotions are invalid due to Gabriel always making him feel that way. Now let's move on to Ladybug's side of the problem.

2. Marinette/Ladybug

"It's useless. The problem is that Cat Noir is in love with me and since I can't do anything about that I'll keep on breaking his heart over and over again. Maybe Cat Noir is right. We should split."

I've seen a lot of hate on Ladybug for being "unnecessarily mean" to Cat Noir this episode and "not caring" about him and I want to end that now. We see that Ladybug has been fighting akumatized villains with a team of superheroes rather than Cat Noir and this is due to her need for control. When Cat Noir is with her, he's always whatever Ladybug needs him to be and makes her feel confident in her abilities and in control but when you remove Cat Noir from the equation she no longer has him to fall back to so she needs another way to feel in control and that's by getting a team of Miraculous holders so that she can feel that she can do it now that she has a team of superheroes under her command.

Her behaviour this episode towards Cat Noir was not due to her not understanding his problem, it was about her not being aware of his problem due to Cat Noir never telling her about it. She even asked Cat Noir in "Rocketear" if everything was fine and he said that it was so when he was not showing up for battles she projected her need for a break onto him and decided to get a team of heroes to make up for his absence because Cat Noir is just means that much to her. She also has to put up a confident front to the public so that Shadow Moth can't see that she is afraid and use that to his advantage but didn't mention this to Cat Noir due to her believing that leaving him in the dark would avoid another Cat Blanc scenario.

When Cat Noir shows up to talk to her, she had no idea what was wrong with him and was just doing her job. She tried to be nice to him by telling him that he could leave now and that she had to urgently go and collect the Miraculous back from their respective holders but when Cat Noir kept insisting that he help even when she told her that it would take up too much time to tell him about all the rendezvous points she lost her temper which was understandable because I could feel her urgency when she said that she was in a hurry. When she realized that Cat Noir was actually going to give up his Miraculous it was already too late and she broke down and being overwhelmed by all the holders urging her to get their Miraculous and since Marinette is a logical person, she pushes aside her feelings to do her job.

Instead of looking at what she's afraid of she blames it on Cat Noir's feelings for him due to her trauma when Cat Blanc said that it was their love that got him akumatized. She tries to find a new Cat Miraculous holder who is not in love with her because that's what she believes is the problem. When Cat Walker is going to show up, she tries to do everything in her power to make sure it's doesn't go wrong like with Cat Noir and when she sees Kuro Neko her trauma comes back into play again when she believes that it was Cat Noir who got akumatized because of her and when she tries to fight Kuro Neko with Cat Walker she realizes how much she misses him and how much she wants him back and by the end of the episode Cat Noir returns and they finally communicate to some degree with partly solved the problem and Ladybug came to the conclusion that she needs to make Cat Noir feel like he's needed and we'll see her apply that in the remainder of season 4.

3. Plagg

"You're not Cat Noir but you're not Adrien either. You're both. You're the perfect son who's extremely successful in everything he does but you're also Cat Noir who just wants to enjoy life and have fun. One can't exist without the other and I sure am glad to have both of you back."

And Finally we end off with Plagg, the hero of this episode who got back Cat Noir by convincing Ladybug that he knows another holder who is not in love with her. When Plagg came back to Adrien, he used a real life therapeutic technique called behavioural activation to make Adrien start participating in life by giving him the idea that if he acts like someone he's not, Ladybug will like her when in reality that's not the case.

When the plan didn't go as well as Adrien thought it would, Plagg revealed that the plan actually worked better than he thought and by this he means that Adrien's distorted thoughts about what Ladybug wants from him were proven wrong when he put them to the test and it made Adrien realize that Ladybug doesn't want the perfect Cat Miraculous holder, she just wants him as Cat Noir. Plagg also made him realize that both his Adrien side and Cat Noir side are a part of him and helped him progress in his arc of figuring out who is.

Conclusion

Well, that's about it for "Kuro Neko". It's glad to be back making these posts. About "Qilin", I'm going to be reposting that right before the finale so that we can have the full picture before we get into the biggest finale the series has had yet. So with that out of the way, I hope you enjoyed reading this and I'll see you next time.