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#more shapeshifting shenanigans
five-and-dimes · 2 years
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Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: The Sandman (TV 2022) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Dream of the Endless | Morpheus & Hob Gadling, Dream of the Endless | Morpheus/Hob Gadling Characters: Dream of the Endless | Morpheus, Dream of the Endless, Hob Gadling Additional Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen or Pre-Slash, it's pre-slash in my heart, but can be read as platonic, tagged as both, you've heard of meowpheus now get ready for, mousepheus Summary:
There is a mouse in Hob Gadling's apartment.
(Dream feels small, and dirty, and unwanted, and unloved, and unsafe. Sometimes his form reflects that.)
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puppetmaster13u · 5 months
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Prompt 282
Billy is… having a lot of fun actually. Which isn’t something he was expecting today, but y’know what? Why not. Why not get dragged into this game with interdimensional beings? 
Why not join a class of semi-primordial beings by getting smuggled in one of their hoodies into shapeshifting class because he’s ‘just a lil guy’! The Phantom siblings and Amity are great! And Solomon hasn’t told him not to yet, nor has the sort-of Marvel hivemind, so honestly nothing could go wrong here. Oh hey Freddy, you got grabbed too? 
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yeyayeya · 5 months
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Will forever be mad that MXTX dropped the fact that Hua Cheng had a female form and refused to elaborate
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collectorcookie · 1 month
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Did you know that in a card story, white turns into a rat to prank owen
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Hermie helps out his dad the only way he knows how; through shapeshifting trickery and shenanigans. You wouldn’t want to risk accidentally killing Hermie, right?
… right?
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tev-the-random · 2 years
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*tears all my headcanons about angsty family backstory and travelling half-elf sun champion and stuff*
GODDAMNIT, GEM-
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socksandbuttons · 2 years
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yall are not gonna get awa from ME and tall lunar content
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apocalypsegay · 15 days
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PLEASE i need to knoe more abt the grunkle fucking twink
OK OK OK. let's start. where it all began.
it all began when ff14 put this fine dracula-looking motherfucker in its heavensward expansion. well it happened a lot later than that actually but eventually, i decided this senior citizen of an elf should put all that retirement free time to good use
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at that moment the Grunkle Fucking Twink, back then only a Retired Count Elf Fucker, was born, and his job in the ecosystem of my OC bullshit is fucking old men. milfs too. but mostly old men.
his name is Wari'to (accent on the WA) and just because he's literally a jrpg bishonen doesn't mean he can't fuck an old man from an american childrens cartoon
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much like everything in gravity falls, He Is Not What He Seems. he can shapeshift, but he can only hold it so long. imagine it's like holding in your gut.
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(his shirt says CORNFEST '99. he trimmed it into a crop top.)
things advance enough that he gets into shenanigans, of course. mabel made him a fool-proof disguise :)
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things even get so serious stan makes him 😳 fake IDs
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everyone's happy!
everyone..............
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seagiri · 1 month
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hi youre not annoying for ocposting. this is your house. keep sharing those guys i want to see more them
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SWEET this is their shapeshifter shenanigans
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thatdeadaquarius · 5 months
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Topic: Genshin impact.
au: Sagau.
idea: So what if you had the powers of every character you played as in every game you played and then get isekaid into genshin impact with imposter au. I imagine it goes smth like
Zhongli: “I will have order!”
reader, Who played Roblox as someone who lagged the game (explanation: I’m pretty sure ping is also how time works in games. If you can control the flow of ping you can control the flow of time in games.): “ZA WARUDO!”
Heyyy!! Thanks for waiting for the reply/response from my slow ass :0
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So they did clarify what they meant/expand so imma just copy paste that here!
“k now I remember. So basically imma write it here since it’s easier: Basically you don’t have to (but you can) transform into the character that has those set of powers but if you do those powers are enhanced.”
Sun: Reader (”you”/they/them)
Orbit: Headcanons-ish, Light Imposter AU (as in, NOT Yandere/Dark), mild crossover elements bc Shapeshifter Shenanigans™️
Stars: bro idek
Comets & Meteors: Content Warnings: mild cussing, genshin typical mild violence, & Trigger Warnings: none known.
Please comment if I missed any. /gen
so fair warning,, ive never seen jojo bizarre, but i appreciate i come off well-read/watched? LMAO
so im just gonna kinda,, guess? like just cycle thru diff. random media, and im hoping both me and you reading this will have a fun time (as this is a little challenge, but i like it so ill give it a shot, dont kno if its a good one but- 😅)
so to set the scene, of how u got to this point, ykno of running like ur life (maybe?) depends on u running around different teyvat countries,
u thought it was weird everyone knew a little too much about you?? (ofc theyve heard u during gaming, they know u the same way we all know Markiplier, get it?)
then a bunch of NPCs/Vision users/Archons?? were REALLY invested in talking to you, which freaked u out even more
and by the time you saw Zhongli, yknow, just the oldest god in game, making a fast-walk towards you, ykno the retired god who didnt move an inch when an old water god attacked Liyue for a test, is now hurrying to you???
ur logically get so fucking scared sm shits abt to go down, u just start running
it isnt until ur reaching for a ledge and some webbing shoots out of ur arm (from a glitchy little spot on ur arm, where it could be coming out of ur skin, but sometimes its a blue and red bracelet)
it latched onto the nearest building, and thats how u find out u can grapple ur way, literally Spiderman style, out of the harbor
and bro, idk if it would be fun, or confusing and stressful, or maybe both?? to just find out u can use any video game power from any game youve played before as you go running from countries bc for some freaky reason they know too much abt you/are pursuing you-
dUDE- they had small statues of you in like every little section of their cities
u head to Mondstadt and as Venti comes screaming and flying at you (in excitement, but ur freaked), u go to hold a hand up and suddenly ur holding a heavy stone tablet that unleashes some holographic yellow chains that freeze him in place-?? why is this familiar-
oh my god u have the sheikah slate from Breath of the Wild,
and as ur booking it out of there, u manage to get ahold of a sword, and u know exactly how to use it to knock back favonius knights trying to stop you (they are concerned for their god who is just unleashing random powers on ppl, pls let Grandmaster Jean just talk to you Your Majesty-!!)
by the time you teleport ur way to Inazuma, (bc u still have this worlds access to ur player/traveler’s powers), ur trying to find a nice place to stay for a little bit
at least in that sweet spot of the Raiden not noticing/finding you, while things cool down on the main continent, before moving on,
and u get some tools to help fashion just a little shelter, bc u dont have any money/mora rn, and ur able to literally build a house???
a mailbox pops up and thanks you for renting with Tom Nook???? As in Animal Crossing-
and rlly if the BOTW/slate thing didnt clue u into video game powers, then this definitely would tbh lmao
right as u see Yae Miko circling ur house, with an armful of books? ..is she planning to thru them at you??, u get the hell out of dodge before her favorite god can follow along
(she knows ur prefrences in books and got authors/trends to start so youd have plenty to read, and she was making sure it was ur house before politely dropping them off! how was she to know thatd spook their favorite God, Ei?!)
u get to Sumeru and think ur safe, hiding in an abandoned forest watcher outpost (1 person treehouse rlly) when Nahida shows up in ur dreams,
and u just,
walk out of the dream, into reality, and possess a nearby ruin guard so u can sleep in peace, bc she cant access a robot,
that one baffled u as you re-possessed ur own body before realizing-
Five Nights at Freddy’s. 💀
U cant do that forever, so u try Fontaine, hoping Neuvillette/Furina wont rlly give af abt you, plus theyre the latest region, so maybe they have the least exposure to whatever the other archons didnt like abt you??
u get there and are immediately summoned to court, and right as the mekas show up to escort you, jfc they have a mecha army
(meanwhile, theyre thinking, yknow. high profile guest/our god of gods. ofc we need state of the art mekas to escort them, its only polite-)
meanwhile ur cape has now become wings, and a mask covers ur face as you glide and fly ur way over the city in an attempt to get to where u assume Snezhnaya is
it doesnt occur to you the game until ur running out of stamnia and catch ur reflection in the waters of fontaine, Sky: Children of the Light
u hope the Tsaritsa’s dislike for other gods/Celestia doesnt extend to ur otherworldly presence so ur just hoping for the best atp tbh
tbh youd forget what all powers you have, and the absolute chaos ur causing urself as u try to desperately rememeber what games youve played thru ur entire life is NOT helping to reduce confusion when u randomly wake up with elf ears (legend of zelda/botw) or get dragged into another ruin machine when u fall asleep/faint/do smth u guess mimics death lmao- (fnaf) 💀
(meanwhile the Tsaritsa does get wind ur coming this way, and just, makes the people have a parade/festival to celebrate you coming,
she did also have to get Pierro/Captaino to physically restrain some of them from going ahead to meet/escort you to the palace, she’d heard how the others scared u off, and was, ironically, hoping the warm welcome would clear things up)
well that was, something. 😃🫠
sorry lil car, that was such a fun idea idk if i did it justice!! i thought itd be too op to include every media youve consumed ever, so i kept it to video games, (which, could u cheat the system if youve played smash bros??)
i hope it was at least a decent read, and sorry im half asleep so i was not v funny this time around, but, again, hope u got smth out of it 😭
</3
on another note, im having my wisdom teeth surgery this friday, send whatever u got my way, prayers, blessings, good vibes, ill take anything im nervous 🙃
have a good week guys!
Safe Travels Lil Car,
💀♒
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haladriel · 10 days
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Devourer of Light: How did Sauron regain his power in the Second Age?
So @cassey-fitzcassey and I have been doing some musing.
Since the end of the first season of Rings of Power, we’ve known that Sauron has been hiding under the guise of human Halbrand. 
Since the beginning of the second, we’ve known this isn’t by choice: that Sauron slid straight from powerful would-be ruler to powerless goop, festering in darkness before absorbing his way up the food chain, the passing of an unfortunate rat the true catalyst in this story.
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‘Sauron lives because of you!'
When Sauron finally hijacks a body with functional hands, face and legs, the relief on his stolen face is clear. He is free from his squid ink spaghetti prison. And, for better or for worse, from his former life.
But Sauron has been debased: a great Maia, heir to Morgoth, forced into the body of a mortal man? Oof. If he had the power to do so, I have no doubt he would have changed his shape immediately, from the humiliation alone. 
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But he doesn’t. Which means he can’t. 
When we see him having to warm his pitiful human body in the Northern Waste, he is dispirited. Resentful of his debasement. Rueing his sworn enemy who he’s had hundreds of years to bitterly, goopily hate.
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When he meets the Southlanders, they’re heading away from the orcs: chances are he’s on his way to encounter Adar.
To what end, we don’t know. I’m not sure he does either. He’s almost visibly single-minded on this task, using the trail of humans as a wayfinder. When the Southlander with the sigil shares his wisdom, Sauron is surprised to be approached. He is apathetic towards the conversation, but his curiosity — or opportunism — is piqued enough to turn, and follow. Sauron’s opportunity weather-vane in action.
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When the sea-wyrm (hi Ossë) attacks the Southlanders’ ship, once again, we do not see Sauron shapeshift into something more useful. Implication, he still can’t. Or, he’s committed to giving this good human life thing a go. Coin toss, but let's be honest, in such a situation, with no one watching me, I'd probably scrap that plan and disappear stealthily into the depths.
So when does Sauron regain enough power to do all of his usual shapeshifting and other demigodly shenanigans?
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Well, by the second season, Sauron is able to put on The Jesus Show™ for Celebrimbor.
At this stage, he can do pretty light displays, give himself a booming voice, change his clothing and physical appearance (to an extent; presumably a vampiric bat is still beyond him) and perhaps (as some have suggested) even control the weather to make Brimby feel bad for him. So when did he regain power? And more importantly, how? 
Theory #0 Horror movie Sauron
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It’s true that we have seen Sauron regain shape and form by devouring other beings.
But, presumably, this isn’t how he continues to regain his former strength, which continues to grow throughout Season 1 and into Season 2 — otherwise Rings of Power is at risk of becoming something a lot more sinister than it already is.
This gruesome mechanism seems more of a primitive way for a discorporated Maia to regain a physical form, not to reclaim all that Maia energy that burst from his body — something akin to morsels versus the feast, or long-term nourishment. All in all, while this might be how Sauron starts the process of regaining his strength, it feels unlikely it's how he continues, as any power from everyday creatures and humans simply wouldn’t be enough to restore him to his former self. But the possibility’s still, technically, on the table.
Given this is a high fantasy show, and (mostly) not a cosmic horror one… at this point, it’s worth consulting the source texts. What do we already know from Tolkien about Light and power in Aman and Middle-earth?
Elrond's Lore Interlude: Light and Darkness as interchangeable power sources
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Anyone who’s read The Silmarillion remember Ungoliant, ancestor to Shelob? When telling her story in The Silmarillion, Tolkien has some interesting things to say about Light and Darkness: 
There … the shadows were deepest and thickest in the world … secret and unknown, Ungoliant had made her abode … She had crept towards the light of the Blessed Realm; for she hungered for light and hated it.  In a ravine she lived, and took shape as a spider of monstrous form, weaving her black webs in a cleft of the mountains. There she sucked up all light that she could find, and spun it forth again in dark nets of strangling gloom, until no light more could come to her abode; and she was famished. A cloak of darkness she wove about them when Melkor and Ungoliant set forth: an Unlight, in which things seemed to be no more, and which eyes could not pierce, for it was void. — J.R.R. Tolkien, The Silmarillion, 'Of the Darkening of Valinor'
In brief summary of What Goes Down, Morgoth promises Ungoliant all her desires in exchange for her service, and they temporarily ally to launch an attack on the Two Trees Laurelin and Telperion...
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...causing the Darkening of Valinor:
…when both Trees were shining, and the silent city of Valmar was filled with a radiance of silver and gold … in that very hour Melkor and Ungoliant came hastening over the fields of Valinor, as the shadow of a black cloud upon the wind fleets over the sunlit earth… Then the Unlight of Ungoliant rose up even to the roots of the Trees, and Melkor sprang upon the mound; and with his black spear he smote each Tree to its core, wounded them deep, and their sap poured forth as it were their blood, and was spilled upon the ground. But Ungoliant sucked it up, and going then from Tree to Tree she set her black beak to their wounds, till they were drained … And still she thirsted, and going to the Wells of Varda she drank them dry; but Ungoliant belched forth black vapours as she drank, and swelled to a shape so vast and hideous that Melkor was afraid. So the great darkness fell upon Valinor.
Why is this relevant? Ungoliant shows that Light can be converted into Unlight, or Darkness. (Side note: Anyone read the Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson? Yeah. That’s where he got it from.) Tolkien makes this relationship even more explicit in the next paragraph:
The Light failed; but the Darkness that followed was more than loss of light. In that hour was made a Darkness that seemed not lack but a thing with being of its own: for it was indeed made by malice out of Light, and it had power to pierce the eye, and to enter heart and mind, and strangle the very will.
And, importantly, Ungoliant grows more powerful by consuming Light.
So, back to Sauron. How might he regain his lost power?
Sauron, Devourer of Light
If Ungoliant’s example is anything to go by, it could be: simply, from encountering things that have Light in them. And devouring it. But what things, and when?
Theory #1 From the Mithril
So, @cassey-fitzcassey had the idea that Sauron might have regained his power when he touched the Mithril during the making of the rings.
Timeline-wise, this is certainly possible, as Sauron does not demonstrate any significant unseen-worldly powers until after meeting Celebrimbor (The Raft: Reprise). But given Sauron wants the rings to be as powerful as possible, there was only a small amount of Mithril available to he and Celebrimbor to work with (hence why it must be magnified using the ring shape), it’s less plausible he would take too much Light power from the Mithril, lest he weaken the end result. Still, however, a possibility.
Theory #2  From Middle-earth, including Lindon's tree
In his time spent as human Halbrand, as part of ‘the residue of evil’ that Morgoth had left behind, Sauron could have been slowly siphoning power off the land and its peoples.
At the beginning of the events in the Rings of Power, the whole of Middle-earth is at peace — the Light of the Eldar is the Light of Valinor, responsible for sustaining their immortality — and it follows that there would be Light both metaphorically and, in the Tolkien universe, literally saturating the lands and its people.
But that light is fading, and there is a blight upon the Great Tree of Lindon.
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Darkness is seen elsewhere in Middle-earth, too. In the first scenes in the Southlands, Arondir examines a cow oozing black goop; she has been grazing in lands where there is Darkness, triggered — or, if Sauron himself spent this whole time quietly radiating Darkness from under his icy fortress, exacerbated — by the presence of the orcs.
The implication made clear here is that Light and Darkness can exist inside beings, and that the levels can vary. But, like trying to drink from a trickling creek, Sauron supping Light in this way enough to regain his former powers couldn’t happen quickly. So, given he shows no signs of using those powers in the Prologue, why the apparent acceleration after the shipwreck?
Theory #3  From the Lady of Light herself
You can see where this is going.
Galadriel is the Lady of Light, and lore goes the gold of her hair ‘was touched by some memory of the starlike silver of her mother, and the Eldar said that the light of the Two Trees had been snared in her tresses' (Unfinished Tales, 'The History of Galadriel and Celeborn'). 
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In Tolkien’s world, where Light can be a source of power for a creature of Darkness to grow stronger, the Light in Galadriel is unlikely merely metaphorical.
The Eldar contain the Light of Valinor and bring this Light to Middle-earth: Galadriel, as one of those who basked in the Light of the Two Trees themselves, will contain more than most.
So when Sauron encounters her, with all her irresistible Light, he’s discovered a deep well of convertible power. Even a bit of her Light might have sped up the process. And, well, while she’s busy touching the darkness, she’s not going to notice a bit of it going missing, is she?
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Bonus Theory: Reverse conversion
This has little bearing on where Sauron regains his power from, but as a thought: does Light replace Unlight, or Darkness? Or can it be internally converted?
As his discorporated form shows, Sauron is — spiritually speaking — made of Darkness. He is black ooze personified. Or Maia-ified. Maybe, just maybe, in a world where Light and Dark aren’t only metaphors for morality, Galadriel and Sauron spark a conversion reaction inside one another. Their internal battles become metachemical, with a little of Galadriel’s Light turning to Darkness, and Sauron’s Darkness… turning to Light. 
That may be stretching the bounds a little. But, either way, Sauron lives and regains his power because of Galadriel. And the rat.  ________________________________
Disclaimer: I haven’t read all of Tolkien’s legendarium yet. He wrote a lot of stuff. If there’s anything that’s been missed, I’d love to hear about it.
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dahfloofysmol · 6 months
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HELLO. This is the official post for YouTube kids’ surprise party on the 27th of March. Any and all gimmick blogs welcomed!
Some roles we need are:
-DJ [real-pollo-campero]
-great DJ (as per requested 🤨) [spotify-kids-real]
-video jockey [buildabearfr]
-Someone to make the cake [forever21-official]
-Puncher server [big-mayo-official]
-Decorator [barns-and-noble-official]
-Party crasher(s) [officialtinder and youtubefr and actually-kroger]
-Corner Person [Pinterest, yahooo-official, reallytimhortons]
-Person who’s dealing with a crazy sugar high [firewaysubs and zotap]
-Emotional support [walmart and def-bjs-guys]
-Mom [Krista the art program and Canadian tire] AND dad friend
-Birthday person IS taken (obviously lol)
-Someone to bring snacks [incognito-mode-official]
-Ring Leader (person in charge of the games) [totally-official-yahoo]
-person who performs a special but confusing (and overly translated) version of happy birthday [google translate ]
-piñata [firehouse-subs-fr]
-setting off fireworks [google-news-official]
-here for the food and bringing tWO DOGS!!! OMG DOGS!!!!! [swearification-and-cursing]
-person currently trying tO EAT THE CAKE!! STOP THAT!!! [shakespeare-official-account]
- stopping the Cake Eater [wow-google-maps]
- putting spiders (?????) under the cake [true-blue-straya]
- the person that is every bisexuals awakening [it’s-target-official]
-pops in for the last 5 minutes with a card + a store bought cake [the-real-google]
- gay wine uncle [the-McDonald’s]
- creepy uncle (???) [rick-e-chedder-official]
-single rich aunt who disappears every night at specifically 8:00 pm [totally-not-kraft-mac-and-cheese]
-shapeshifts between wine aunt and vodka uncle, and the comic relief [the-one-and-only-duckduckgo]
- bringing lights so we aren’t all dancing in the dark [real-vivaldi-browser]
- summoning Satan under the table with a bottle of whiskey and pancakes (??????????) [definitely-canada]
-person asking weirdly specific and absurd questions [actual-aspec-military]
-the COOLEST cousin [support-speaks]
-cousin who hangs out in the corner and looks like they know something you dont [the-official-publix]
-person who hits on everyone at the party even though they’re already dating 2 ppl [fr-winn-dixie]
-contributes Ziploc® bags [totally-scjohnson]
-bringing burritos [the-real-chipotle]
-YouTube's kids southern aunt who blesses everyone's hearts bc they think theyre dumb most of the time [i-bless-your-heart]
-middle school cousin who argues with anyone and everyone to look cool [wallyworld-the-unofficial]
-gives oil (?????????????) and branded pens as party favors [truly-jcjenson]
-the strange neighbor kid who talks to no one but sings the loudest and brings a weird yet tasteful gift [the-real-aperture-science]
-bringing Walmart sugar cookies [not-really-discord]
-guy bringing the Knives [wheatley-labs-official]
-joining in on the games [totally-official-yahoo]
-the disco ball [jollibee-real]
-that one uncle with lore of untold numbers of deaths involved, and that includes guns [partycityistotallyofficailguy]
And any other role I haven’t stated!! I’ll accept pretty much anything
In case what you pick is already chosen, tag your second option ;p
—>The biggest part of the surprise party is wishing YouTube kids a happy birthday, but in the most creative way possible. In the “ask me” works, but literally anywhere; on your blog or on a post from anywhere (that you know they’d be okay with a little shenanigans) works wonderfully.
->Also, saying happy birthday is awesome, but spicing it up would be more fun!!! Day Of Birth, One of Awakening, Oh Child of the 27th, and any other batshit way to say “happy birthday” would both be awesome and absolutely hilarious.
Again, invite any and all gimmick blogs, and feel free to let me know what you’d want to do! We attack on the 27th >:DD
ADDITIONAL NOTE: sometimes there will be more than one person in each role! I do actively encourage for people to come up with silly and niche roles if you think of one ;D
ON THE 24th I WILL NO LONGER TAKE ROLLS!!!! Spread the word please!
@barnes-and-noble-official @basically-bumble @totallyofficialtacobell @totally-official-yahoo @totally-bing @officialtinder @officially-google-translate @officially-ikea @official-fedex @incognito-mode-official @forever21-offical @officialkfc @kfc-official @k-f-c-official @life360-i-swear @xgames-blog @cars-official @big-mayo-official @bingle-official @the-real-google @the-real-firefox @nasa @wow-google-maps @wallyworld-the-unofficial @walmart-the-official @realgoogleslides @realgoogledocs @yahooo-official @unfortunate-wattpad @firewaysubs @firefox-official @pinterest-real @spotify-kids-real @duothelingo @definitely-wikipedia @firehouse-subs-fr @google-2point0 @gimmick-thief
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creaman · 6 months
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—BECAUSE KUNG FU PANDA 4 KILLED MY GRANDMA, OKAY?
To preface, I watched this movie and I'm genuinely tweaking right now so I had to write down a very brief (lie) criticism on this film — which you should boycott, by the way.
Starting with the things I liked, before briefing my primary points of criticism:
Po's Character Regression
Po and Zhen's Dynamic
The Chameleon
I'd also yap about Lord Shen and the death of the art style and the entire narrative and pacing and use of the staff of wisdom but my therapist says being such a hater is 'unhealthy' or something. My heart is full of hatred.
SPOILERS for the entirety KFP4 for the 2 people who care.
KFP4 undermines and ignores the previous three movies — Unwriting character developments, outright removing the Furious Five, straying from the character design philosophies and is completely inconsistent with the established lore.
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Things I Liked About Kung Fu Panda 4
The Chameleon's character design
Visual gag in the Tavern where Po uses a recently thrown axe as a hat rack (made me laugh)
When Mr. Ping did this:
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so cute! the little heart!
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Po — Character Writing
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Po, as established in the previous movies, is confident in his abilities and identity — he’s learnt inner peace, he’s matured as a character. However, in KFP4, his character has completely regressed. He’s immature again (such as KFP1, possibly worse) and says verbatim, “only knows kicking butt and taking names” — UNLEARNING inner peace and insisting that “…being the Dragon Warrior is all I know.”
It’s childish, and sort of Hotel Transylvania-esque.
Which isn’t helped by the comedy, the dialogue — a large chunk of which are jokes in the style of:
Master Shifu says something philosophical
Po quips off of it / doesn’t get it (i.e. Whoa!! beat I don’t know what that means.)
Oh, it’s great, yeah, very tolerable. Po’s shenanigans are normally reeled in by the presence of the Furious Five who are generally more serious in nature, creating a much needed balance in the dynamic — So without them, it’s just Po becoming increasingly obnoxious and insufferable with every consecutive quip throughout the screenplay.
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Po and Zhen — Character Dynamics
[No more graphics sorry I'm too angry]
As if it wasn’t obvious that Zhen was going to be the next Dragon Warrior the second she was introduced.
Zhen, as a character, has no depth besides being a quippy thief. She quips, she steals. This character has no motives — it can be assumed that the writers intended on a ‘change of heart’ thing, but she isn’t established as evil, her working for the Chameleon is written as a (albeit poor) twist reveal.
By which point, her taking either side wouldn’t make sense, given that she has shown no loyalty or attachment to either Po nor the Chameleon.
The movie artificially strengthens their bond by having Zhen start opening up about her backstory out of nowhere for no reason but they have done nothing to grow closer to each other.
Small tangent, her backstory is exactly what you’d expect it to be with no subversions or even emotional weight. Woe is me I was so small and hungry I had to steal to survive. Glossed over in about a minute.
The majority of the dialogue between Zhen and Po is spoken exposition — explaining how powerful and badass the Chameleon is, explaining how ‘we have to go here to do that’ and ‘this place was cool until the Chameleon did such and such’, and the rest of their time together is spent engaging in filler chase sequences and fight scenes.
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The Chameleon
Where do I even start…
This is where it becomes apparent that the movie relies heavily on telling rather than showing —
She is the weakest villain by far, not only in universe but as a written character; which is particularly disheartening because I genuinely adore her character design and feel as though a shapeshifting character has great potential.
The movie artificially inflates her power by insisting through exposition that this is the most capable antagonist thus far (lie).
The audience is TOLD by Zhen and various restaurant patrons that the Chameleon is a powerful shapeshifting sorceress and that she 'dominates the city' whilst the film does nothing to showcase this.
'Dominating the city' meaning letting her henchpeople run amock and bully the civilians just like Lord Shen's wolves in KFP2... uninspired.
I just realised they didn't even give her a NAME what the FUCK is going on
She describes HERSELF as ruthless, clever and unsentimental when comparing Zhen to herself.
She says HERSELF that she’s “Stronger than every opponent you’ve ever faced.”
Let’s see what vile reprehensible things she’s done, shall we?
Gently push someone down some stairs
Her first appearance is through Zhen’s exposition, as opposed to the dramatic and memorable entrances of the previous villains. Her motives or character aren’t established until the final third of the film. She doesn’t even FIGHT anybody until the final third of the film; and even then, her fight sequences are uninspired and she never really poses a real threat. (She goes down in two hits.)
That being said, WE CAN STILL SAVE HER GUYS WE CAN STILL GET HER OUTTA THERE I'M COMING FOR YOU CHAMELEON I'M GONNA DRAFT YOU A PROPER BACKSTORY AND MOTIVE AND YOU'RE GONNA BE THE MOST THREATENING VILLAIN THUS FAR
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There's a scene after the climax of the film where all the kung fu masters and previous villains from the spirit realm bow to Po. I'm not going to provide my thoughts on this because I fear I may burst a blood vessel. Good day!
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Closing Statements
To put it simply, Kung Fu Panda 4 was my Megamind 2.
The film rejects its predecessors in every way. It really feels as though they brought in somebody with no prior knowledge of the franchise to direct the movie.
It's a film that relies heavily on telling rather than showing — banking on the previous three movies to carry it through the box office.
It's just really disheartening to see studio execs turn one of the best franchises into a safe sequel cash grab and regress every character's development.
Nevertheless. I do adore the chameleon's character design so I might do my own take on her character.
As far as I'm concerned, there is no fairy godmother, there is no tooth fairy, and there is no kung fu panda 4.
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lokh · 5 months
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what do you think toshiro's version of laios would've been like if he was still with the group during the shapeshifter shenanigans
there have been a few speculations in the tag and among the fans and they are all very good SO i am going to take this opportunity to insert a bit of my shipping bias as i like in my interpretation LMAO agdsfgdfgv
i noted that in actuality shuro seems to have a very good grasp on laios' character??? this is most obvious in the manga later on but even seeing how he criticises laios in their fight... iirc nothing he says is actually untrue or wildly exaggerated, and while he does express frustration over something he feels like laios Should have control over (noticing his cues), he is also aware that laios isnt being malicious and that hes Just Like That. what i mean to say is that while i think his version of laios may seem more pushy and in-your-face, i dont think it will be overwhelmingly so. if its post-fight, i think the idea of laios (and marcille) being willing to do anything to get falin back made a big impression on him, as well as the idea that they need to eat and rest in order to succeed in their goals, so those aspects would be prominent in his version. he seems pretty observant, so i think for the most part the physical traits would line up, but i think there would be specific things that stand out to him that would appear strangely striking on his version of laios (like. idk something about his eye colour or the subtle contrast of his armour and chainmail. he seems to have a weird sense of aesthetics if extras are anything to go by lmao). if hed actually been paying attention all those times laios had gone on about what the hell ever, then it might be even MORE hard to tell apart his version since he would also have a good grasp on what laios should know. so either his version of laios is pretty difficult to pick out, OR despite the character being accurate his appearance is too. stylised lmao (exaggerated features or something) OR!! they just get him to pull out his monster gourmet guide thing and are able to tell from there. iirc everyone was surprised at its appearance so its possible toshiro had also never seen it before
IN MY IMAGINARY SHIPPING SCENARIO............ lets say that his laios isnt able to be picked out immediately and that the monster guide thing also doesnt immediately occur to anyone. what the real laios Specifically notices is how close this other laios keeps getting to shuro. and hes like. ??? why is he getting so close to him, theres no way i get that close to him??? but no one else seems to be picking up on it as weird, so hes having a small crisis like do i REALLY get that close to him???? and now that hes on the outside he notices shuro subtly leaning away and he feels both a wave of shame and..... protectiveness??? (JEALOUSY??????) and he immediately steps in and grabs him like Hey!!! cant you see hes uncomfortable???? weve been through this already!!! and like. ok i cant believe im doing this again but i need to separate this into different endings
a) the whump route: i dont think shuro ever envisioned Actually Telling laios about his frustrations outside of being basically cornered into it. has he ever spoken up against what was expected of him?? has he ever been confrontational???? i think part of what held him back from expressing his frustrations, along with the cultural norms, could be fear of what the reaction would be. if he had done the same in any other aspect of his life (his family, his inheritance), i think he would expect disappointment, disapproval, more proof that he doesnt add up to expectation. to be honest i dont think he Truly believes that laios is the type of person to react like this. but it was strong enough to prevent him from acting and i think would be projected onto his image of laios. maybe fake!laios says something dismissive like Well if it really bothered him hed say something right? what, he cant even stand up for himself? cmon, shuro, prove that you cant handle it just like everything else. and thats pretty much the fastest giveaway that it isnt really laios. of course this would be a HUGE tonal departure from what the actual episode/chapter was, so:
b) the dumbass route: both laioses break into fisticuffs, and, yes.... barking. and so they speedrun the entire encounter as the shapeshifters true form appears and, after laios points out that thinking too hard about others versions of you can tear apart groups and peace of mind, they pointedly do not speak of it again. they think about it though. a LOT
c) the normal route: both laioses argue normal like and the group ends up being able to tell them apart because the fake laios goes on a little too long about how theyre all here for falin and everyones like ok its not like he DOESNT love his sister but.......... the rest of the scenario probably goes like canon, though then i would want to see what everyone Else thought of shuro
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jesncin · 8 months
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Does your take on J’onn and Ma’al lead a bunch of different lives like we are shown J’onn does in Son of Mars?
Yes! John and Malcolm Jones are their main personas-the ones most reflective of their true selves, inspired by Saul Erdel and his family. He taught them that the forms they'd take on carry history, so they must honor the bodies they take on and be responsible with how they represent it. The brothers have different approaches to their personas!
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Ma'al is more fluid with his idea of himself. On Earth he takes on various other personas to earn money while J'onn is being a detective. Ma'al does several odd jobs (especially ones where his tech knowledge comes in handy) that give him eyes all over Denver, making him a valuable perspective for some of J'onn's cases.
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J'onn is a different story. For his first few years on Earth he keeps to his John Jones persona, feeling that unlike his brother who missed out on all those Martian life milestones, he knows who he is and doesn't need to explore other personas outside of a quick disguise. After the events of his Epiphany arc though, J'onn realizes that having been forcefully split into multiple identities allowed him to explore and discover new things about himself. After that arc, he begins to expand his personas, starting with Amrit Jayanthi, a child psychologist.
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The two brothers aren't immune to some shapeshifting shenanigans though.
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(Justice League Doom has cursed me with a joke only I will find funny)
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fryingpan1234567 · 8 months
Text
canonically Jason and Tim have motorcycles, right? and B and Duke too but the other two are more well known I think
ANYWAYS what if everyone in the batfam had one tho? because. the potential.
Dick takes his off of roofs sometimes, but it’s built for it. before all his modifications, it was just a blue and black chrome Yamaha sports bike, nothing special. he added a Nightwing sticker on each side, a bunch of weapons (mostly electricity based), grappling hooks, Nightwing things. there’s even a sidecar for Haley.
Babs (before the wheelchair days) had a purple and yellow one that matched her suit perfectly. it sort of meant she couldn’t use it during the day, but occasionally she rode it to work with extensive concealing of the random dangerous gadgets. hers was also a Yamaha (same model ^^)
Jason canonically has a black shapeshifting one like some maccadams shit but it’s fine— it’s loud as shit, so he doesn’t really use it for patrol, but he loves it during the day. because it’s just black, it’s pretty easy to take it out for completely non-suspicious speeding law breaking joyrides. no harm done!
Cass has a jet black Ninja, and her reputation on the streets is about the same as the nightfury’s at the beginning of the first httyd. dark, deadly, and it’s even quiet in Gotham’s busy streets. watch your back for her.
Tim’s got the BATCYCLE it’s CANON. it’s also canon that it’s got a liquid-cooling engine and a Robin-themed paint job, but fuck that, I say it’s dark red and electric and he rides it to work. so sometimes (most of the time) he pulls up with ruffled clothes and helmet hair, which Conner nearly fainted at the first time he saw it, but we don’t talk about that. he doesn’t use it for patrol because Kon said he’d carry him everywhere if Tim gave him rides in exchange. on the bike. he has said on more than one occasion “wear the helmet, ride a biker” and Tim punches him really hard
Steph’s bike is purple, and the wheels do the hover-shift-glowy thing like in Mario Kart (also purple). she’s not scared of you or anyone; she will ride that shit to school and use it on patrol with the hovering and distracting color and everything. fight me.
in canon, Duke’s bike is electric with a bunch of lights and black and yellow and lowkey built like a tank. I kinda like it! I think it’s a fabulous bike for a fabulous man so therefore he gets to keep it I won’t be taking criticism
Damian gets a green and red and black electric Ninja, plus a helmet that he painted with feathers and paw prints n shit. Jon likes the spare, which is just black but has a red mohawk. what more could you want? he could fly everywhere, but he also could just have his badass motorcycle bf drive him everywhere while he wears his dope ass helmet and vibes to whatever 2000s pop shit Damian lets him play. he’s a professional backpack.
did you think I’d stop at the Batkids? sorry imma keep going
I like the idea of Brucie having a black sports bike that’s 90% modifications like in the movie. no one remembers what it was before he took it all apart and added Bat-stuff, but it looks great now! it’s blown up more times than you can count, just because it’s a really good target for rogues.
Kate has one that’s almost exactly the same, except hers is maybe a little closer to what it was originally. she doesn’t quite have all the same stuff Bruce does, but they’re the same vibe!
anyways that’s the vigilante weirdos club, so like it’s expected that they’d all have a dangerous vehicle. slightly less expected— Alfred freaking Pennyworth has a Harley with tall handles and sparkly black paint, but nobody knew that for such a long time because he barely leaves the manor. all the kids lost their minds when they found out. what can I say
anyways some Bat-bike shenanigans that have ensued:
street races between all the Batkids at least once a week, whether that be on patrol or in civvy clothes
Jason obnoxiously revving really loud whenever he sees one of them in the street, on a date, when he’s picking them up from something, just as often as possible. obnoxious revving. old people hate him
cool lesbian aunt Kate picking up kids from school with her badass bike and epic helmet
sometimes Dick will be talking about “his child” or “his baby” and no one’s sure if he’s talking about his dog or his bike
bike-related thirst traps on social media
“race you to the next light”
not a single one of them has left a Gotham speeding law intact even once (not even Alfred, although he won’t admit it)
Wally likes to get Dick to race him on his bike even though he knows he’s going to win
both Jon and Conner have said something along the lines of “I bet I could pick up the bike with you on it” as a show-off attempt, but Damian and Tim love their paint jobs too much to permit them to try
Batfam on bikes❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
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