#ml catharsis

[ninadove]

Felix never once acted out of jealousy.

His Awful Terrible No Good introduction episode temporarily led us to believe otherwise, but it was a red herring: Felix never wanted his cousin’s life, in fact he actively believed it was his responsibility to free him from what he perceived as a miserable existence.

What he is motivated by is a longing for safety, for freedom, for love. These are things he doesn’t want to steal from others; instead, he strives to create them for himself, and share them with the people he cares about. Even if they don’t want them, even if he has to burn the world down in the process.

Kagami is the jealous one.

She doesn’t want to be, but it always comes back. It is at the core of all her akumatisations: she wants to be the best, wants her friends to make her a priority, wants a form of love she knows they can’t give her.

Hey Miraculous team, I’ve got a wild concept for you: how about you leave her the fuck alone from this point onwards please and thank you

It makes her miserable, and she doesn’t want it to make her a bad friend on top of that. So she tries again and again to suppress it: rejecting the akuma, consolidating bridges that were almost destroyed, burying her feelings in the hope that it will never happen again. Because she hates that part of herself, and how it seems to always find a way to consume her.

You know who should be terrified of this trait, but isn’t?

Colt’s jealousy is the reason Felix was brought into a world he has no control over; the reason he has known nothing but pain and fear and anger for the first fourteen years of his life. But emotions - a concept he embodies as the Peacock holder - are just that: emotions. What an individual does with their negative feelings is entirely up to them: it does not have to, and should not, result in unbearable harm to others. So when he sees Kagami struggling to keep a lid on her own heart, he doesn’t flinch and recoil in terror like one might expect; he finds it admirable.

They are not what their parents made them from. They are not what their parents made them for. They both chose, separately, to break the cycle of abuse, but it’s a hard and messy and painful endeavour, and they only truly succeeded when they found each other and agreed to walk this road together.

So much care and love went into telling this story which is absolutely not getting the appreciation it deserves, but that’s OK. It makes all the difference in the world to these characters and, most importantly, to the children in similar situations who will grow up with their example, and to the adults who get to find some healing through them now.

They made it. So can you. ❤️💜

[obstinaterixatrix]

sometimes when I’m starting a pretty long m/f or m/m and I get fed up by how much a character sucks or how boring it is I skip 30-50 in to see if anyone’s eating shit. paid off in this bl because the love interest is getting dumped lol into the crematorium with you. this doesn’t usually apply to f/f because we don’t really get the crematorium in f/f

[uptoolateart]

S5 Finale Re-Write Fic

I wrote what I thought was a one-shot after Representation, called ‘Who We Really Are’. Then the S5 finale crushed my very soul, so I’ve rewritten it and tacked it onto the supposed one-shot. It’s now 3 chapters of catharsis. I’ve taken the script and adapted it so that Adrien / Cat is PART OF THAT FINAL BATTLE LIKE HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN. There’s an identity reveal. There’s confrontation. There’s all the stuff I was hoping for.

PREVIEW:

As Monarch got to his feet, she charged at him. ‘Reconfigure this!’ She whacked him so hard that he flew through the air, crashing through yet another wall, and another, into his office.

Cat stared at her in awe, his breath catching for a new reason.

Yet his father had never known when to give up. Already, Cat could hear him shouting, ‘Venom!’ He charged back at them, portalling and appearing behind her – prepared to hurt her.

Prepared to hurt her….

Cat hit him this time, relishing the satisfaction of catching him with his stick, whacking him into another wall.

Ladybug gave Cat an appreciative look, then hurled her yo-yo, wrapping Monarch in magic string. ‘Life is like fashion. All we have is the illusion of choice – as you put it so well, Mr Agreste.’

Cat blinked at her.

Monarch gasped in shock. ‘How did you know?’

‘Luck! I hear it’s one of my superpowers.’ She started yanking him in with her yo-yo.

Somehow, now that he’d been named, it made all of this so much more real. As she pulled Monarch closer, Cat’s head throbbed harder, hit worse than ever with his nightmare. Because whether he was Adrien or Cat, his nightmare was the same man.

A man who had locked him up every way he could.

Who’d taken advantage of the unsuspecting public, who’d used them to fight his battles while he hid perhaps within this very mansion.

Within my home.

Who’d never had time for him – no doubt because he was absorbed in his double life. Too absorbed in being Monarch than being his father.

Who lied. Who said he wanted nothing more than to fix things, to make up for all the time they’d lost together, while privately planning his next attack.

Who’d hurt Nathalie.

Who may have hurt his mother.

Who was trying to hurt Marinette.

Who was hurting him.

‘No, no, no, no, no!’ He dropped to the floor, hunched over and groaning in pain, eyes clenched shut and teeth gritted. Because he was angry. The world was growing red again it was too easy to imagine that black energy pooling in his hand, seeking a way out….

‘Cat!’ Ladybug cried.

That distraction was all Monarch needed. He unwound himself from the string and laughed. ‘Too bad you’re not invulnerable to your nightmares. And too bad I’m invulnerable to your luck!’

Cat fought down the growl in his throat, his chest heaving and the rage boiling in his veins. He turned his glare on his father. ‘My true nightmare…is you! And it stops right here! Cataclysm!’

He slammed his hand down on the floor and the floor broke apart. In a plume of dust, his father fell right through – and so did Ladybug.

She screamed, and Cat hurled himself at her, grabbing her hand, just in time to be dragged down under the floor with her, the tiles raining down on them.

Keep reading at Ao3

Tags:

Identity Reveal

S5 Finale Rewrite

Fix-It

Episode Fix-it

Conformation and Re-Creation IF CAT NOIR HAD BEEN THERE

lots of kisses

Adrien confronts his father

Adrien goes into that basement like HE SHOULD HAVE DONE IN THE EPISODE

I demonstrate that all of this could have easily been done without adding to the runtime

And without changing the fundamental script

And without changing the ultimate ending

And I fit the whole damn love square in there

Catharsis

Sentimonster Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir

[drawing2cope]

the pain of watching a 00’s-10’s romance anime where all the likable characters completely stagnate or regress due to stupid misunderstandings in the 2nd season

[samsimisauser]

Why would you make it worse?

Isn't he suffering enough????

I've seen some disagreements about whether or not Adrien's still under that nightmare curse after Ladybug purified the akuma.

Honestly, I think he is.

Not only did we not see Ladybug actually cast Miraculous Ladybug (the thing that actually repairs magical damage, which simply capturing an akuma does not), but Ladybug has been unable to cast Miraculous Ladybug before. Those cases are in Destruction, where she lost the Lucky Charm that she'd made during the fight, and the New York special, where she explains "Miraculous Ladybug repairs damage caused by a villain.... but the villain is already gone".

I think the way it works is that she cannot use Miraculous Ladybug unless she's using a Lucky Charm that was created in the battle. In Destruction, she lost the only mid-battle Lucky Charm she had, and in New York special, she never had a chance to enter the battle at all.

This..... also very much applies to Representation, no?

(do not interact w this post to talk about/hint at leaks, please!)

[generalluxun]

So as to not step on toes I make my own post. Of course this means the folks who I might wish to engage in dialog with won't see this. We're just two people talking at opposite sides of a public square.

Social media etiquette is counterproductive.

Miraculous Ladybug is a show with lots of characters, characters we love. Characters with displayed wants and needs, who get put in situations that emotionally resonate. We latch onto these characters. We pick them up and draw them or write for them. We flesh them out. We connect the dots we are given, wether we are meant to or not. We are human, humans find patterns in chaos. We are human, humans often seek to make emotional connections with things. The online sci-fi tale of 'knifey and stabby' is spot on, if you know it.

This is a good thing and says a lot about us as people. I think the combination of this impulse with the ML characters has created amazing things.

ML is *not* a character driven show. The creator has said as much. The show bible says as much. The creator says it's his job to draw things out. If a character would make a choice that would resolve a plot too soon, they simply won't. It is written that Marinette *must* make a mistake every episode. It's written that Adrien will never find out his father was Hawkmoth. If it's a choice between catharsis and drama the choice will be drama, because as the creator has stated 'It is his job to give us what we need, not what we want.' That is, what we need to keep us coming back.

Miraculous is also a children's show. 'The moral of the episode' is a long standing tradition in children's shows and one ML honors for the most part. It keeps the funding coming in.

None of these things make ML bad, they're just how it works. They are what motivate choices in the narrative. Understanding this is the way to avoid a lot of character salt. Is a character acting strange and seemingly out of character? It's because they have to be for that episode to work. Is there a complete lack of communication between two people who should communicate regularly? That's because if they communicated the problems would be resolved. The writing room has decided the problems can't be resolved as long as more seasons are in the offing.

Now, nothing will be completely static. Eventually some problems are resolved, eventually new things must come up. If it feels like pulling teeth though, that is by design. It's not Marinette's fault she doesn't tell anyone. She's not *allowed* to make the right choice. Don't salt her for it.

It is possible to assemble a coherent narrative, if you cut and sew, to explain her actions even. However in doing so, you have to ignore some things in the narrative too. That's okay! You're allowed! Again- the ability to do that and produce copious amazing art and narrative is something that makes the ML fandom amazing. Just- know what you are doing. Know that the narrative comes from you and your connection to these characters. Make those connections! But, don't confuse a narrative you can divine character in from a character *driven* narrative.

It will be easier to set expectations from future installments.

[amanitaknowsbest]

Been reading Not Your Typical Reincarnation Story and it's been both incredibly frustrating and hilarious

Feustrating because it's a weekly release and we are currently at the "Heroine at her lowest" stage, so no catharsis yet.

Hilarious because this series gets a decent amount of comments and even the die-hard ML are turning against him. The family has had almost no redeeming moments (aside from the MIL, surprisingly) amidst their paranoid suspicions around Edith, and its so bad that people are rooting for the FL to get with the butler.

I've been hoping for that for a while, Rhynon x Edith for endgame

Anyway, you know the situation is dire when we're 27 episodes in and the ML consensus is "throw him in the trash" I hope the writer has a fucking incredible plan to turn this around

[familyagrestefanblog]

I think I know which post you're talking about, but in general, yeah, it feels...very dishonest to automatically categorize every fic that has even the most basic level of negative emotional consequence from - for example - Adrien towards Marinette immediately as saltfic. Even the ones that are literally just 'Adrien gets upset for 5 minutes for something anyone would get upset about, they talk and Adrien's feelings aren't swept under the rug. That's it."

I find it extremely concerning that people aren't even allowed anymore to write any kind of fanfictions to deal with their grievances with Canon ml through basic emotional catharsis (which is what fanfictions are for), especially when it's about Marinette, without being called a salter.

Absolutely everything besides fluff and sugar is automatically salt now. There is hardly anything in between anymore. And people wonder why the Ladynoir July for example wasn't as well-participated as it once was.

I'll tell you why: it's because people know exactly that any mentioning of especially Marinette's shortcomings is a mine field now, but for most that's what would be needed to at least some level to create even positive fan content. I know that's what happened to me again. I WANTED to participate in it again. I MISS participating in it and tried it over and over again to keep the content in a vague vacuum but I simply couldn't manage to not include at least some layer of emotional catharsis through Maribug wanting to make up for her undealt canon faults/ shortcomings

Because for me canon feels like salt now for having Marinette NOT do that. So of course any Ladynoir shipping fic I'll write will have Marinette characterized as the Marinette I loved for so long who genuinely loved her Chaton enough to bring up important stuff she wants to set right and listen, and not keep hiding behind her free passes on his expense, endangering his life for her personal needs to not feel uncomfortable in a conversation.

Sorry that my Marinette wouldn't do that and I can't bring myself to write her as her canon self or leave that unchallenged because it literally goes fundamentally against what the Marinette I still hold dearly in my heart stands for.

So, yeah, count me as upset that any fanfiction now counts as SALT where Marinette is asked to deal with the fact that she unintentionally hurt a person she supposedly loves dearly and it lead to him being justifiedly upset for once in a way that isn't priorizing her over his feelings and entire personhood. Because that shouldn't be salt and I really don't believe that the qualification for salt is THIS abysmally low when it comes to the other characters' honor.

Rarely any of the season 4 'saltfics against Ladybug' I read DIDN'T literally end in a happy ending. Because that's what we wanted too. We just wanted emotional catharsis and explore interesting ideas as well, sorry that your and Canon Marinette can't handle that anymore

Mine can.

I saw someone refer to the fics that came out where Chat finds out about Ladybug telling Alya her identity in Gang of Secrets and gets upset about it as "saltfics" and... I guess? You could consider any of the "Adrien finds out that Ladybug lied about how Gabriel died and/or that he's a sentimonster and she didn't tell him and gets upset about it" fics to be saltfics as well, if you're defining saltfics to mean "any fic that criticizes a character's actions." Which WAS what it was taken to mean when it first started being used.

Thing is, when I use it, that's not what I mean? Just to be clear, criticizing and analyzing a character's actions, and even being negative towards them as a result, is generally okay in my book. When I say that I hate saltfics, I'm more talking about Ron the Death Eater stuff.

Like for me, what I have a problem with is more fics that

A. Criticize characters for shit they never did. Like having Alya ostracize Marinette, outright try to bully her, fics that make Adrien tell Marinette not to make a scene even when Lila's clearly maliciously, intentionally hurting Marinette right in front of him (as opposed to that possibly being just collateral damage of a non-malicious lie), stuff that didn't canonically happen, you know?

B. Inflict disproportionate retribution for things the characters did, whether it's canonical or not. A fic may only be criticizing Alya for asking for evidence that Lila's a liar or is at fault for something before jumping to conclusions, but if Marinette's response to that reasonable request is to cut off her friendship and revoke her miraculous, then that's still very salty.

But yeah. The vast majority of "Adrien gets upset with Ladybug for hiding things from him" fics don't qualify as saltfics by my own personal metric, because most of them are only faulting Ladybug for things she actually canonically did, and usually have a pretty proportionate response - especially for season 5 aftermath fics. Lying about to your boyfriend about how his father died, what kind of person he was, and not telling him he's a sentimonster IS fair reason to be angry.

I generally like fics to still have them make up, but I don't like putting those fics on the same level as the "Alya leads the class in beating up Marinette and yelling insults at her while Adrien just ignores her cries for help even while she's being physically hurt" fics, they're on such WILDLY different levels that it's comical.

[gale-gentlepenguin]

ML Arcade mode Endings (Paris Special edition)

Betterfly ending

(Defeating Monarch)

Gabriel did his best to dedicate himself to doing what was right after his Wife's death. But he understood how easy it was to have fallen into another path, so it was not surprising to learn that the Evil butterfly user was actually an alternate version of him.

He never hesitated on doing what was right, but knowing that putting this version of himself away would mean that the adrien of this world would lose a father... But for the greater good sacrifices needed to be made.

After helping Ladybug regain all the miraculous, Betterfly returned home, he still had the Supreme to deal with... but first he would make sure his son was okay.

______________________________________________________________

Shadybug ending

(Defeating Bug noire)

Her goody two shoes counterpart wasnt all that tough, even with both miraculous, Shadybug knew she had the edge in brutality. And now that she had both of this world's miraculous she could wish the life she always wanted.

She switched places with her good counterpart and then ditched the girl in her previous universe. Shadybug would enjoy the freedom she had along with all the things she was deprived of in her world. As for her other self, well if she doesnt toughen up the supreme will take her out... but that wasnt her problem anymore.

She even let her loser partner stay in this world, cant have him telling the Supreme what she is doing, it would ruin her slice of paradise. She would even let his mother as long as he doesnt ruin this for her.

(Defeating Monarch)

Shadybug was on a mission to take a Butterfly miraculous, but she didnt expect to take the miraculous of another universe. Though it was different. She was fighting the evil version of the butterfly man. And defeating him was... good. She was doing good and it felt good.

Shadybug decided that maybe she could defeat the supreme, if she had help. The words of her other universe counterpart sunk in and she decided to be the change she wants to see. Shadybug... no, Ladybug would be the one to help save her universe from the supreme.

And with Betterfly and her once reluctant pain to loving partner. She can defeat the supreme and make a world where no one would have to feel as lonely as she did. That was a promise. Watch out Supreme, your days are numbered

______________________________________________________________

Claw Noir ending

(Defeating Bug Noire)

Claw noir had to admit there was a lot of Catharsis in besting this world's ladybug, and taking both miraculous. Now he could finally bring back his mother. But then something popped into Claw noir's head. He would just be bringing her back into a world where the Supreme was in control... hardly a happy life. So what would he wish for?

He wished for his mother to be revived in this universe and to take the place of this world's adrien. He had his family back and no Supreme to worry about. And with his mother the father in this universe seemed to be way more attentive to everything. Sure the world was a bit to peppy for his taste...

He even was nice enough to let shadybug live in this new world with him, afterall, he didnt want her telling the Supreme on him. Plus, if things do get too boring... having someone to go on a rampage with could be fun

(Defeating Monarch)

Claw noir finally did defeat the butterfly miraculous holder... just not the one he was intended to beat. Still, finding out that the villain butterfly of this world was his own father... was amazing! This really helped him work some issues out. Maybe being the good guy was the right move.

Though this did make him realize that the good version of the butterfly was likely his father. Who he did talk to after and he confessed his reasoning. The Supreme was responsible for the death of his mother. And here he was serving that Jerk!

He would no longer be Claw noir, the lackey of the supreme. He would be Paw noir, the hero that would deck that arrogant mother murderer in the face! His world was a mess and he was going to save it with his father and his crush. Watch out Supreme. your days are numbered

[princess-of-the-corner]

A question has popped into my mind.

Are there any ML salt fics you enjoy?

It's..... hm.

I have my limits.

Sometimes I do enjoy the catharsis of characters being called out on the mistakes they've made and facing the larger consequences that can go wrong.

But I do have limits and a lot of saltfics just. Make everyone so fucking awful.

And that's not an ml-specific thing either. Back in my mlp days I read plenty of anon-a-miss fics and by fuck those could be dark as hell too.

[jacquesthepigeon]

Re:suffering

First the caveat that this is writing choices and not meant to address the character's *personality*/core.

I think one of the big reasons you get people arguing in favor of the suffering thing comes down to catharsis and reprecussions.

Adrien's plot is suffering, like, you legitimately can't put a kid through what he has canonically gone through without issues. A literal property for his father's fashion empire, schedule controlled to the minute, mother dead, isolated from the world, yeeted into superheroing, the various things involved in that. A girl both frenzying at him and running from him, him being fairly useless in relationships having had almost zero and yet multiple people wanting one with him mere weeks after his emergence. His father's descent into madness, whatever the hell was going on in S5.

It's all there. Yet as you say it never seems to really *hit* him. This is because he needs to be a 'perfect' trophy for our lead heroine. After this much time being denied catharsis it no longer feels like he isn't affected, it feels like the best 'smiling through the pain and slowly going mad' riff you have ever experienced.

Meanwhile we see Marinette suffer alllllll the time. Dragging Marinette is this show's favorite thing next to beating the dead Chloé horse. Yet... It's always performative. Marinette suffers...but it almost always just works out fine when push comes to shove. She wants a boy and he is unavailable? Here's another boy. That one won't work out? He's the first one back, and a couple girls on top. Take your pick.

Lost Fu? Okay but now you have access to all the miraculous and here's Alya too. Lost all the Miraculous? Don't sweat it Monarch is going to go back to generic akumas. Lost the wish? Don't worry the results work out in your favor.

Nothing ever sticks. The show wants you to sympathize with Marinette (hence making her suffer) but won't let her actually fail/have a meaningful setback. She is required by law to girlboss by the end of every episode.

So all that just sets up a lot of cognitive dissonance. People express it ... Poorly.

See, I have to disagree on a number of points.

When it comes to Adrien, it does come across as him simply not caring rather than trying to smile through the pain, at least to me. His lack of significant interest or reactions in most of canon combined with the WOG knowledge that anything that could challenge his worldview and pure-heartedness is to be avoided and never acknowledged as a possible factor in his behavior gives me no choice but to read him that way. The crew won’t even acknowledge Gabriel, or any other parent for that matter, as being abusive so according to the universe’s rules and intentions, while Gabriel is extremely overbearing and controlling, no one, in or out of the ML universe, is meant to interpret that as anything other than misguided forms of affection. As a result, while Adrien is canonically traumatized in that he feels caged, he can’t resent his father for more than an ep at a time and truly recognize how bad his situation is. In addition to the fact that we’ve had a couple of scenes of Adrien confiding in Plagg about his upsets, he rarely mentions difficulties coping with family, instead focusing on his romantic pursuits. Just look at how his main daddy drama in S5 was about Gabriel disapproving of Marinette rather than the lifetime of isolation and the cover-up regarding his own mother’s mysterious disappearance.

And don’t get me wrong, I’ve made posts about his fixation on romance being a bad coping mechanism and what it would imply for his character, but as far as canon interpretation goes, he acts like The Problems don’t even exist and only seems to care about getting a girlfriend 99% of the time. WOG pretty much confirms that.

As for Marinette, I think implying that having a support system negates suffering is incorrect on many levels. It helps with coping, yes, but does not negate the hurt. And it’s not like she got 1:1 tradeoffs either so none of the events can be considered bittersweet in regards to their effects on her. The writing being Lazy and Bad does make it not as bad as it could be, but it’s still undoubtedly bad.

[silviakundera]

Joy of Life S1 Episode 34 liveblogging

watching for the 1st time, no secrets please ;)

we meet saintess Haitang Duoduo! So Uncle Wu is keeping both her and Gu He busy, good for him

wait uncle wu, you really are gonna let her leave?! too good to fight the peons. so pretentious.

Come on Fan Xian & Si Lili, make friends! 🤝

Xiao En ready to start shit, ok let's go

UGH not Commander Yan again. I've had enough of this guy. 💤

ML decides to respectfully poison Xiao En to his face rather than subvertly

Xiao En using magic qi to escape, aided by adorkable bodyguard's jinx

Gao Baokun assassins are somehow going to be helpful, right?

💤💤💤💤💤

Si Lili and Fan Xian! 🤝🤝🤝🤝??? yes??? or not yet, if he's letting her massage him then he's fucking with her and she's pretending to be dickmatized

I appreciate the juxtaposition of her massaging him vs him massaging the wicked witch

YEEESSSSSSS confront her. catharsis! Then eventually u can ?? 🤝?

She's really Li Lisi?? and a royal from beiqi

oh no she has a lil brother, if that isn't a lie he's totally gonna end up roped into a rescue mission. I wanted a bromance but at what cost?

yes girl, Fan Xian has a gf he's absolutely stupid about, so just let all the honeypot schemes go

Go Baokun continues on his comedic hijinks subplot. I am trusting in the narrative that there will be a wacky payoff at some point

Yes nothing makes sense so I can't help thinking that the vague connection between mom and Xiao En is in play here.

You can't make me stop loving Chen Pingping, I support all his rights & his wrongs

wait, now the subtitles say Xiao En TRAVELED with mom. not 'from the same line'. damn it I should have translated the characters myself! Ok MTL says "once traveled". omfg mom really got around

[cherchersketch]

Writing my Male Lead’s Happily Ever After / I Will Take Responsibility for the Welfare of the Male Lead

It’s the same artist as  50 Tea Recipes from the Duchess :3

Summary How do all these authors end up isekai-ing into their own novels? Lol That’s what happens to our girl, but she finds out some details in her current life aren’t anything she even wrote about? This villainess suddenly applied to be the caretaker of ML’s (adopted) children?? She tries to screw up the interview until she sees how the kids are getting punished, so of course she has to intervene. Our girl’s the new caretaker now! And of course, to quash rumours of the duchy’s downfall, the ML proposes a ~contract engagement~. This will totally not come back to bite him in the ass at all.

Tropes   - isekai-ed as the villainess   - yo some details ain’t adding up from the original novel (even though she’s the OG author?!??)   - original character and isekai character actually meet   - just throw this whole family away   - cute babies doing cute baby things   - 21st century thinking in a historical setting   - this is a totally FAKE and not at all real RELATIONSHIP   - what do you mean I’ve drastically changed the plot the original FL and ML definitely still belong together

FL - Lady Laria Sherwood

 - it’s fun to write the *~angst~* until you’re the one having to live through it ;w;  - shoulda finished writing your novel, girl.   - conveniently a preschool teacher in her past life. yey  - of course there’s always a depressing backstory. why else would she attempt to write a hurt/comfort novel for ~catharsis~ 🙃

ML - Grand Duke Nocturn Blackwell

 - *real nobles* don’t know what ~proper childcare~  - hereditary ~madness disease~ mmm the backstory angst is *chefs kiss*  - him eyes glow when him ANGRY  - I love it when a guy do the blushublushu ///UwU///  - the guy always falls in love first ;w;  - mans gotta keep them yandere tendencies in check tho

babies - Mikhail Blackwell, Janet Blackwell

 - why is it always the (dead) older brother’s kid(s)  - sweet summer children precious cinnamon roll  - protecc the cinnamon rolls  - manhwa children always be a mix-and-match of the parents’ hair and eye colour

Rating: I enjoyed my time reading this It’s a fun little read Status (as of 23 Feb 2023) Ongoing. Nearly 60 episodes in but there hasn’t been any sign of the OG!FL (yet).

Same Same but Different  - Author of My Own Destiny  - I found a Husband when I picked up the Male Lead  - Daisy - How to become the Duke’s Fiancee

full rec list

[kimberlyannharts]

misc thoughts on Issue #116 -

= still by far the best issue of the event but admittedly it's only so good because the DrakkonSlayer parts are so great. Everything else was kind of meh. Especially since the mission side can be summed up with "they went to Safehaven! Then they immediately left"

= even then I feel like it's only so good because DrakkonSlayer itself is such a complex and interesting relationship that you would have to like. actively TRY to fuck it up in order to fuck it up. I am genuinely surprised to this day that they outright confirmed he was in love with her, but I'm glad they finally stopped beating around the bush with it, and it allowed for a stronger confrontation and emotional catharsis. I just wish there had been more buildup to their relationship and confrontation beyond just The Coinless book, but......"i wish there was more buildup/more time for different character dynamics and motivation" is kind of the theme of Darkest Hour

= Why was Kim morphed in this issue when last issue she had gotten demorphed. How did she morph again without getting corrupted. Why didn't you guys corrupt Kim. I'm sorry I keep bringing it up every issue but IT WAS SO OBVIOUS THAT'S WHAT SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED

= Going along with that this is also where they made the mistake of including Harturian Kid with the escaped Rangers when future issues will confirm he was supposed to have been shown captured. Which I think adds to my critique that Kim should have been among those captured and corrupted; we technically lose some "major players" here, but they're all.....side characters. Coinless Bulk, Yale, Harturian Kid, and Scorpina. (And obviously Drakkon straight-up dies.) Scorpina was the only one who felt kind of important with her bond with Coinless Trini, and obviously the books want us to consider Yale and Harturian Kid major characters, but like......they're still clearly The Expendable Ones compared to the actual MMPR characters, especially in this framing. Even with Drakkon, considering as ML's review stated, he was just written as the guy no one likes up until now, and the plan to find the Emissaries and Morphin Masters ends up being for nothing anyway. If they wanted to make this feel like a huge loss, we should have lost like.......some actual MAIN characters. (Even Rocky and Adam barely count.) The loss of Tommy is the one we're getting the most genuine emotion out of, and we know that he's not going to be corrupted and will be freed in a few issues

= All in all I do think this was the best possible way for Drakkon to go (if he IS gone. I know the main series is confirmed to be done so who knows what state the Coinless characters will be in, but I still find it hard to believe they'd give up Drakkon and Ranger Slayer) - I'm glad they made it about him and Ranger Slayer since they were the heart of the Coinless story. I just wish it wasn't a small piece of this giant event. (Especially when Drakkon's death won't be like.......announced? or really reacted to by the other characters. Not even by Tommy.)

[dedud3d]

ml au rewrite thing:

the ladybug/yang miraculous is the conduit of 1st tier kwami, tikki; kwami of creation, light and fortune.

current holder/wielder: light fairy

their known abilities are:

sentinel: creates a creature with special powers that is loyal to them and their champion(s)

miraculous cure: either fixes all damage caused by a threat that was overcome, or fixes all damage that happened in less than 24(?) hours. the order is unsure which one it is as the latter's time can be increased by getting stronger and its possible to have both.

potentially:

lucky break: increases the holder's luck to absurd levels

weapon: unknown, and as tikki is the kwami of creation, it can be anything or even more than one. the default is supposed to be a yoyo with infinite string that can be used as a grappling hook or, by pulling the yoyo's sides away from each other, a staff. apparently it can also transform into a shield by growing or a sword in a way I couldn't imagine how until I was shown a drawing of it

notes: the order seems convinced that the hol wielder holds terrible intentions due to them being very secretive and never showing up in person. only dealing with the other rogue wielders and criminals through their champions and sentinels but if I'm being honest, I think they're just being paranoid since they never harm civilians. maybe the order doesn't like how strong and popular they are while they have no control over them

the black cat/yin miraculous is the conduit of 1st tier kwami, plagg; kwami of destruction, darkness and misfortune.

current holder/wielder: neko noir

her known abilities are:

cataclysm: destroys whatever she wants as long as she's touching it. the turtle and ladybug miraculous have the most resistance against this ability but the other miraculous are also somewhat resistant.

cat walk: allows her and others with her to travel through shadows/darkness.

catharsis: absorbs nearby destruction and turn into power. also called the yin version of the miraculous cure.

weapon: an extendable baton with a blade inside so it can turn into a scythe.

note: neko noir seems to have been raised in the order but maybe not necessarily by them as she seems to be in touch with technology and society. though it's high society she seems more familiar with.

the turtle miraculous is the conduit of 2nd tier kwami, wayzz; kwami of protection and perseverance.

current holder/wielder: koki marina

her known abilities are:

shellter: creates a barrier that is either very resistant to physical damage with a minor resistance to special abilities or the opposite. the barrier can take on any shape I the holder wants and surround a person while allowing them to move with it, not unlike the barriers a certain hedgehog uses, or traps them inside it.

weapon: shield. captain America and naofumi would be proud

the fox miraculous is the conduit of 2nd tier kwami, trixx; kwami of illusion and delusion.

current holder/wielder: imbrogliona

her known abilities are:

mirage: creates an illusion of anything she wants, though, the illusion can be broken very easily via a solid hit. how real the illusion is seemingly fluctuates on how familiar she is with whatever she's conjuring. I could smell gun powder after her shot with an illusion gun but her illusion of a garbage monster didn't smell or weigh as much as it should. though her illusions can be broken via a solid hit, that's only by miraculous standards. normal people need a gun to break them as far as I've seen.

fox (faux?) fire: allows the wilder to conjure orange fire that allows them to control the senses of whoever is inside them. it can even stick to people to allow them to, somewhat, control their mind. can effect cameras and sensors but unknown if its the same with ai. uncanny valley or markov could confirm this

weapon: extendable flute. thankfully, this can't turn into a scythe

note: she's might be very vain, poor or a kleptomaniac as her primary motive for using the miraculous is to steal jewellery, money or anything of value. her personality leads me to believe the first guess is the most likely one as her successful heists should have given her enough money to last her a while but she seems to show no signs of stopping this any time soon.

the peafowl miraculous is the conduit of 2nd tier kwami, duusu; kwami of divination and desire.

current holder/wielder: argos

his known abilities are:

foresight: shows him visions that either relate to him avoiding danger or help in achieving his goal. they're usually very straightforward but they can become very vague when concerning other miraculous.

weapon: folding fan. the feather are very sharp and they shoot out to wherever he waves the fan at. they can also be plucked and if argos holds them by the quill, they grow and can then be used as a sword

note: his dreams have a high chance of being prophetic as well. he also seems exhausted but I'm not sure if this is due to his abilities taking a toll on him or his homelife as he is unwilling to talk to anyone about it. at least, to neither me or neko.

the butterfly miraculous is the conduit of 2nd tier kwami, nooroo; kwami of transmission and transformation.

current holder/wielder: light fairy

their known abilities are:

metamorphosis: the wielder releases a butterfly that flies away to a selected being with emotions(?) and allows the user to grant them powers by transforming them into their champion. the stronger the emotion, the stronger the champion.

weapon: cane sword that can transmit its attacks through space or air. (supposedly)

note: this miraculous and its ability is how light fairy manages to use their abilities without being present and remain completely hidden. I was a champion once, the powers were awesome but the order doesn't like light fairy so we're not allowed to accept their powers now.

the bee miraculous is the conduit of 2nd tier kwami, pollen; kwami of subjection and synergy.

current holder/wielder: light fairy

thier known abilities are:

promotion: grants the holder the ability to grant themselves or an item a chosen ability. if the ability is granted by another kwami/miraculous then the other kwami's ability will be superior.

potentially:

hive mind: the ability to release a horde of bees that can take control of someone and turn them into their drone if they sting them.

weapon: spinning top, trompo specifically, that can be used like a rope dart or grappling hook via a string, and as a foil/jousting sword by pushing the top of it which causes the bottom stinger to grow. (supposedly)

note: the order thinks light fairy is using hive mind on all their champions via the metamorphosis butterfly even though there's so much proof they aren't. I just realised that I should have put all of light fairy's miraculous together... oh well

the goat miraculous is the conduit of 3rd tier kwami, daizzi; kwami of force.

current holder/wielder: bouc

his known abilities are:

ram: releases a huge amount of kinetic energy from his body. his step caused earthquakes that completely totaled Paris in his first appearance but luckily, light fairy's champion forced him to flee and the cure fixed everything. I wish I won.

weapon: a staff with a goat head at one end. it's like a battering ram.

note: completely ruthless and doesn't care about whoever or whatever gets destroyed. a monster who doesn't care about anything except getting the ladybug and cat miraculous so he can get 'the perfect world he earned last time but was stolen from him' or whatever. if not for light fairy making a champion that reinforced all of Paris and built many shelters after his first attack, Paris would be corpse filled rubble every time he attacks.

the ox miraculous is the conduit of 3rd tier kwami, stompp; kwami of determination

current holder/wielder: oxcellent

his known abilities are:

manifest: allows the user to use their will to control a light emnates from them and have it transform into whatever shape they want and if its transformed into items, it can preform the same things as that item. It's like a green lantern rings

weapon: huge hammer

note: seems to use villainy as stress relief or something.

[weebsinstash]

Bully romances are an entirely different can of worms, I love hate-reading them. It’s so frustrating cause the FLs always think with their vaginas even when the guy is their fucking bully/abuser and 99% the dudes are like. Committing felonies against the FLs/other students. The classicism also, cause most of the time it’s always a poor FL getting a scholarship to attend this super rich exclusive academy and she’s treated like shit cause they din’t think she deserves to be there freeloading of the “paying students”.

The synopsis always say “they tried to break me but I’m already broken by my shitty life dancing as a stripper as a 15 year old to support myself after the tragic death of my parents, they don’t know who they’re messing with” or “I’m feisty. I’m defiant. I’m not submissive like everyone else and I’ll fight them” and the book is them being walked all over and doing exactly the opposite. Like I understand not standing up to your bully because you’re afraid and you’re in a position where you can’t do that but girl do you HAVE to suck his dick the first chance you get???? It also has the same issue of 18-year-olds being sex gods who are like. Fucking teachers and getting away with it because money.

Anyways once I read a book where the guys where some on “next leaders of the world” bullshit so their parents would abandon these children in forests and have them fend for themselves and also learn to kill people and fly helicopters I shit you not. Ngl the “rich yandere bullies you, poor scholarship student” actually kinda 😳 juicy with the drama and toxicity potential but those books are just SO BAD.

Part of me is like, i feel like some bully romances could work but, idk, it depends on what you're consuming a story for? Like how sometimes we read angst and stories that are sad and have no happy endings because that's a different form of entertainment and catharsis you know? But if you're writing a story where the bully is the LI then at some point you have to confront all the horrible things they did and make them have consequences, otherwise you just have rhe protagonist getting, basically worn down until they're succumb in my opinion? Like that's one thing that bugs me when the bully aspect is brought up in these werewolf stories because they'll literally use pack dynamics and the mate bond to like brainwash their lovers against their will. Like there was one story I never even posted about that I dropped very quickly because the plot was "girl with strong wolf literally gets drugged with pheromones to have sex with her notoriously mean Alpha mate, she really doesn't have a choice, he wears her down enough that she isn't resisting by the time he decides 'oh I won't mark you by force I want you to want me'" but like, I'm trying to remember all the heinous shit he did? She didn't want to have sex with him and he orders her on her hands and knees and literally puts pheromones inside of her so she's aroused enough for them to have sex like that's drugging and coercion and rape like he literally puts her in the dungeon for a time out "until she learns her place"? And HES THE ML???? IM SUPPOSED TO LOOK PASSED THAT? Sorry I don't care if he spends 20 years apologizing. What is this mindset that some horrible things can be undone, like sometimes the fact you did it in the first place is enough to warrant consequences

You're hitting the nail on the head with that synopsis description bc before I pick a story I usually read the description and my god are some of them baaaaaad, and no grammar sometimes too 🙄 what is the vetting process for some of these? Some concepts just sound so kooky and also as an adult it can be skeezy when a lot of these stories are like, talking about minors in high-school having sex? Like sometimes they emphasize werewolves are naturally beautiful and sometimes they'll just basically sleep around with humans just for some warm holes that adore them and theres some fucked up mentality in that.

(As a side note I just found another audiobook thats like appropriate length and it seems high production value and even like the skill of the author is standing out to me 😳 but. I think the protag is the man in the relationship and I prefer when it focuses on the ladies but, lmao I guess more werewolf drama posts coming soon? Wow they make this girl bathe in the river and use an outhouse and she's the previous Alpha's daughter and an Alpha herself :/)

Tbh now that I'm, you know, getting older and I'm 26 now I don't mind toooo much when the male love interests are young but like don't throw that "he's only 20 and he's the richest ceo in the entire world and he owns a private island factory and owns 50 Bugattis and his dick is 10 inches" shit at me ok, and he's 20 and to me that means he might as well be like 16. Give me a man in his 30s or 40s. Where are the silver foxes. Let me fuck someone's fit grandpa. Reinhardt from Overwatch can still get in these guts

But yeah I really need to actually back into my phone bookmarks and catch up on all my manhwa again because a lot of them were really cathartic in terms of getting revenge and also, I didn't have to pay by the chapter for those 😅