#mostly bc of all the new deity stuff and Those implications

[yb-cringe]

my brother in christ ARE YOU OKAY. do u realize what that looks like to a non smp'er. its gonna be alright bro were gonna get you some graass

😭😭 tina … smp’r…….

I AM okay actually the funniest thing about this is that i made this and then i had friends who went ‘oh wow the autism rly popped off huh’ and i deadass turned to them and went ‘im not autistic’.

long story short i may have changed some opinions about myself

[teruthecreator]

okay. thoughts on the grad finale

gonna slap it under a readmore bc i’m Sure i’m gonna ramble. 

uh spoiler warning for the finale of taz graduation, as well as spoilers for the season in general.

also, these are my own thoughts of how the season went, what the themes were, etc! if you don’t agree with me, that’s fine! but i don’t wanna have a convo w you in the replies about it i’ll be honest. if you want to share your opinion so badly, make your own post, alright? that good? we cool?

aight. so. finale thoughts.

to make it short: i think the finale was a satisfying end of a very good arc. 

to expand upon that, let me share what i think the themes of graduation were and why the finale satisfies those themes. 

i made a post about this a while back (here it is if you want) but my honest belief was that the theme of graduation was self-reliance: the concept that you don’t allow yourself to be governed by forces that go against your own beliefs. this concept was coined by essayist ralph waldo emerson to talk about how the american people shouldn’t allow the government to create laws that go against the will of the people. now, understandably, this feels very anti-capitalist which is what i think a lot of fans believed was reflected through the season. 

but, in reality, self-reliance has more to do with being active in your government and making sure you’re being represented the way you want to be by your representatives. that’s sort of the vibe emerson was going for in his essay, and i think. in a sense? that translates to graduation. but i took self-reliance in the more metaphorical about breaking away from those things that are controlling you. which, in graduation, was A Lot Of Things. 

the way i saw it, there were two major groups that inflicted order upon the world and the thundermen--conveniently separated as order and chaos (not the deities though, just the concepts). 

the order half of control existed mostly through the school and the HOG. the HOG created the economic reliance on the heroes and villains system, which removed all literal meaning from those terms and turned them into bureaucratic titles. society existed under these very strict checks and balances; heroes and villains supplied money to the kingdom in terms of entertainment, which then boosted that kingdom’s creditability and allowed them to contribute more to nua’s economy, which then led heroes and villains to have a higher demand, thus perpetuating the cycle. it’s important to note that this term does not represent the sort of morality we expect for heroes and villains--hell, even the term “evil” turned into an arbitrary term used to show those heroes and villains who failed the system. this is the more prominent representation of control that the thundermen break away from in achieving their own self-reliance. they don’t see the value in a system that holds no real moral code (fitzroy Especially, but i’ll get into that in a bit), and can’t help the public when there’s actually a serious situation. as we saw with althea in the beginning, the HOG had no way to help the thundermen when they were dealing with the whole Demon Prince situation (as he had already placed some of his own people in there, proving these kind of systems are easily corruptible). so this wasn’t a system meant to Actually create heroes and villains--it was just a way of boosting the economy. 

the chaos half of control existed primarily through grey and Chaos. grey represented how chaos could be controlled, through various means. he planted that tree for the centaurs to fight over because he knew it would constantly create conflict, which he enjoyed. he kept the school under a watchful eye to prevent anyone from stepping out of line with his grand ideas, and used several manipulation tactics to try and get his way (most notably, his own admittance of grooming fitzroy into joining his side, which didn’t work). grey was the perfect example of how chaos does not automatically mean a lack of control. he was very controlling in how he did things because he had an endgoal: find hieronymous and have a war. but he didn’t even realize he was contributing to a greater idea, that being Chaos’s insistence on causing general disarray. as we realize now, Chaos’s plan was both for them and Order, but i’m leaving Order out for a second because they only really rear their head in towards the end. for the most part, audiences were led to assume that Chaos was the Big Bad(TM); they were the one pulling the strings, allowing things to happen to cause general chaos and disarray. them supplying random mortals with their endless power was a way to plant chaos into the world of nua; but it was a chaos they controlled. fitzroy resisting them was not simply a refusal to bend to Chaos, but it was resisting the control put on him through his magic. 

these systems were constricting the thundermen on both sides. when they thought they’d find help in one side, they were disappointed to find that there was nothing anyone could do. the only people who could fix their problems were...them. so they forged a new path, set new ideas, and became self-reliant. that’s what i think is the most important aspect of graduation; not the anti-capitalist implications of turning over the economic and political systems in place, but the idea that if nothing that is supposed to help you is actually helping that you can just...do your own thing! 

and i think that’s what the finale really shows, at the end of the day. that these forms of control were not doing anything helpful, and were in fact ruining the fabric of space-time! that’s where i think Order comes in because Order is really...the ultimate culmination of control. they are aware that Everything being done will benefit their cause. the HOG? well, they make sure everybody’s so incompetent that they can do their work. grey? well, he’ll contribute to the plan without even realizing it. they even manipulated Chaos and enacted their own form of control over Chaos to make sure that they had no reason to believe that this plan couldn’t go wrong. but Order knew. Order always knew there was a chance for error, and that chance was very great. but they didn’t care! so long as they had control of things, they could try a hundred times to get it right. they had no care for mortals, unlike Chaos. 

the thundermen showing Chaos the truth is the final jenga piece that collapses this tower of control. which is why the finale is so great. 

travis does a phenomenal job of incorporating chaos (general chaos) into the battle mechanics. it may be stupid and slightly arbitrary, but having them change forms randomly and having to adapt to those new circumstances really does exemplify the season!!! the thundermen were constantly forced into new situations (being sidekicks/henches, fitzroy becoming a villain, being let in on the heiro dog situation, the unbroken chain trial, joining forces w grey, etc.), and in all of them they simply found a way to adapt and keep working their way. which made the finale generally interesting and also thematically interesting! 

i think my favorite part of the entire fight scene is right at the end, when argo chucks the shark’s tooth necklace at Order. and time stops. and they’re given a choice. 

the fact that they leave it to a coin toss?? oh my god...how fucking FITTING!! like, that’s disorderly. that’s going your own way. it’s new, it’s terrifying, it has DIRE UNKNOWNS ON EITHER SIDE, but it’s what they do! and...it ends up working out! i think it would’ve worked out either way, but the fact that they left it up to chance really shows how they aren’t allowing anything to control their actions. 

AND THEN WE GET TO THE EPILOGUE. MY GOD I LOVE THE EPILOGUE I’M GONNA GO OFF SO MUCH. 

first off, i loved hearing how Nua adapts to losing this very significant form of government/economic contributor and turns to more people-based work. citizens uniting together, fixing things, making amends, THAT’S SELF-RELIANCE BABEY!!! THAT’S THE WHOLE EMERSON SHIT! HAVING A SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT THAT ACTUALLY HAS THE INTERESTS OF THE PEOPLE AT LARGE!!! YEAHHHHHHHHH THAT’S THE WHOLE SELF-RELIANCE THING!

now, i’ll break it down by characters: 

fitzroy

GOD. LOVE IT. FIRST OFF, absolutely ADORED how his character arc involved him stripping himself of these self-assigned titles because he actually has an identity that is all his own and he doesn’t NEED arbitrary titles to prove his worth because HE HAS IT IN HIMSELF. not to self-plug or anything, but that’s ssoss!fitzroy’s WHOLE SHIT. I’VE ALREADY BEEN ON THIS TRAIN, BITCH, AND TO KNOW I GOT IT SO RIGHT...GOD. FEELS GOOD. 

but also, i just really enjoy how his ending went in general. the fact that he doesn’t really know what he wants to do, so he just...does stuff he likes to do? that’s so good! because, if you remember, fitzroy had a Very set schedule of life events when the campaign started. he was going to get his wiggenstaffs degree, go back knight school, get his knight school degree, and then go to goodcastle. but all of that was based on a very limited understanding of himself. 

fitzroy’s character arc has primarily focused finding himself, specifically in terms of identity. for someone who was bullied for his past, the present formation of himself was Extremely important to fitzroy. he thought that shutting out his past and taking on this grandiose title of knighthood would make him something more than himself. he would no longer be fitzroy; the poor, country kid trying to make it in a big world. he’d be Sir Fitzroy Maplecourt; respected, honored, revered, with a title to prove it. 

he explains to fauxronymous (pre-reveal grey) that the reason he wanted to be a knight was because he wanted to assist in doing good. morally good. fitzroy has Always had a very clear sense of his morality; this comes through when he refuses Chaos on the basis of many people having to die if he agreed. but being a knight also had the added of bonus of a very respectable title that no one would want to look beyond, which fitzroy felt he needed because...i don’t think he Saw anything beyond that. in himself. he wasn’t himself for a very long time, and i don’t know if he ever thought he would be again. he’d wear this new identity, start a new life, and be happier....he hoped. 

then, things changed! and he started to realize that arbitrary titles don’t do shit because plenty of people with Big Important Titles ended up being Awful People! so he started to value himself For Himself; his wit, his humor, his strength, his magical prowess. and, i think, he started to wonder what knighthood was Really about. was it about upholding a moral good? or was it just another bureaucracy filled with people who won’t do shit when things get bad. 

i think this is why him becoming a lawyer is fitting. especially because of the reasoning he gives sylvia nite. now for A LOT OF PEOPLE, i’m sure they hear lawyer and assume some corporate hotshot who doesn’t give a shit about people. but fitzroy is Not applying to be a corporate laywer. he SPECIFICALLY telsl sylvia that he wants to help people who cannot help themselves, and he wants to do good in that way. THAT kind of lawyer is more of the pro-bono, district lawyer. the ones that don’t make crazy amounts of cash, but help those who cannot afford lawyers and represent them when the government is fucking them over. those lawyers don’t rely on title, they rely on principle. 

that’s the perfect representation of fitzroy’s growth. holding his identity within himself, while still trying to do good by those who need it. 

firbolg (aka gary) 

i think the firbolg’s ending is so unique but so...right for him. his character arc has really been focused around finding his family. he had one, in the beginning, in his clan. but that didn’t end up, y’know...working out that much. so he had to go out into the world alone--something that firbolg’s are rarely--and try and navigate these foreign spaces all by himself. 

we see very early on how he latches onto the idea of groups. he likes being considered a part of the thundermen; he very much hoists himself upon the CFO title and wears it proudly. i think, where fitzroy needed to find identity within himself, the firbolg needed to find it within other people. which is completely okay! he’s still an individual, but you can tell he finds comfort in numbers because that’s what he is used to. 

him going back to his clan was, i believe, his finally severance with his identity as “firbolg”. he would never be welcomed back to his clan, and one of the few people in his life who supported him was now dead. but his father was proud of him; his father was happy he seemed to find his own clan, even if it wasn’t with other firbolgs. from that moment on, i think the firbolg begins to try finding himself within the thundermen. within his friends.

so his epilogue is neat! it definitely captures the loneliness he feels on his own, and how he feels lost with himself without others. i think it might seem silly to some that he would become a gary, but i think it’s fitting. the garys were always present in his time at school, and they were always helpful. they didn’t mind how long it took him to talk because the gary’s are stone gargoyles--what the fuck do they care about time? it was a group that the firbolg saw as familiar to him--always willing to help, slow, stony, and attuned to a larger group. 

and i think the way gary takes this idea of unity and family and puts it into financial assistance just...it just ties everything together! we saw how attached he got to the concept of finances, thanks to his very confusing accounting class. so he had all of this new knowledge--this knowledge that represented a separation from firbolgs--and this new clan. and he used it to help other clans and families!! i think the fact that the Garys financial advice works specifically with groups is what makes this so fitting. because gary wants families to feel stable within themselves; he understands how finances can create struggle and divides, and he wants to provide relief. 

giving financial advice to communities so they rely on themselves and not the government (aka inviting them to be controlled once more) is a VERY self-reliant concept. not that i think gary’s goal is to have no social networks to exist, but he wants to give communities the ability to rely on one another and foster that feeling of togetherness. so groups aren’t fighting over things, but are trusting and loving and relying. 

just like gary’s always wanted. and just like what he has with the thundermen.

argo 

argo’s ending is probably the funniest, but also the sweetest. i think that argo’s character arc revolved around finding his place. we see how argo’s early personality and motivations revolved around his past. he very much had a revenge story since the start; he wanted to enact revenge on the commodore for murdering his mother, no matter what it took. which made him very limited!! in terms of the self. he saw himself less for what he was now, and what he was then. and what he couldn’t do then. 

we see how much he finds comfort in being a part of the thundermen, but also how he feels...out of place. i think this is because a part of him is still attached to his past and doesn’t think he can do anything beyond his set plan. the unbroken chain certainly contributes to this, by not only separating him from the trio but also reinforcing his connection to his past through his mother’s involvement in the unbroken chain. 

the commodore also being a part of the unbroken chain is, i think, what causes the shift from past to present within argo. his life’s goal is standing right in front of him--attached to the group his mother once was a part of--with his friends at his side. letting the thundermen in on his history is the start of bridging these two halves of argo. and the fact that the thundermen are so willing to helps makes argo feel more a part of the team and more a part of this reality. 

when he kills the commodore, it isn’t intense. it isn’t overly dramatic (minus the fight prior, which was BADASS), it isn’t crazily staged. it is argo, staring down the commodore who lies prone on the ground. 

he kills himself unceremoniously and completes his life-long mission. 

what becomes of him in the epilogue is the culimination of both past and present. he takes what he knows and loves (the sea, the mariah, sailing) and blends it with what he’s come to love now (his friends, this adventure, and making people happy). there are SO many instances where argo uses performance to his advantage. this man is piloted by clint mcelroy, of COURSE he’s going to have a flair for the dramatic. 

so for him to open up a themed cruiseline, based on the stories of him and his friends? SO FITTING. and it isn’t forcing himself to leave his past behind or to completely ignore his present circumstances. because he’s found a place in the now, in the merging of these two sides. and by merging them, he paints a bright future for himself. a future that is partially known, partially not. partially old, partially new.

but it’s all his. 

after that, i think their final scene is just...sweet. a nice, jovial, joking send-off to a nice season. it proves these people have grown and will continue to grow, even when we no longer see their story. it does exactly what graduation does--shows you a struggle, a triumph, and a glimpse into the future. 

i’ll miss it so much, but there’s nothing more i could’ve asked of this ending. it was exactly what it needed to be; nothing more, nothing less. 

[floralkittygambler]

Shit to add: 1 - Fanservice is getting as far as some of the artists lowkey getting shipped with characters [fine as an inside joke but Ive seen it highly public too, mainly with probablyfakeblonde and Valentino - its a little awkward after a bit]. Likewise, glorifying abuse and sexual harassment, Stolitz, HuskerDust implications [even though Husk’s being harassed and is clearly uncomfortable... Just like Blitzo and Stolas, which can be even more offensive to those who worship the deity/demon of Stolas irl]. Notice how Charlie/Vaggie’s account [aka the mains] are mostly inactive. Most of the female cast’s stuff is rarely touched on. Only cringy fanservicey ship shit is. 2 - I used to pay for one of the highest patreon tiers. She’s meeting even LESS of her initially promised demands to the point the patreon is rarely updated. When it is, we get half promises [even voting on monthly arts as secret gifts to those paying, we get to vote occasionally and see results even less. The most recent was October I think? Between Mil x Mox and Chaggie, Chaggie won btw and we still havent seen it], there’s no more behind the scenes, in fact the streams show more behind the scenes as youd never be notified there - not even about surprise streams or new merch, nothing. I pay less now but still enough for the Discord and they had to ban one fella who I could see the MOMENT I JOINED was a bit too obsessive [Im keeping his privacy, so please dont ask me to do that to him.] yet he was given many chances. We’re given quite a few rules on being courteous yet many are kinda rude imo- the people, I mean. I expressed some of my issues with HuskerDust as well as briefly that Ive been through unpleasant harassment like that, yet one member specifically who adores that ship fuckin ripped into me and constantly started talking about it in the chat despite me politely asking her to take it elsewhere [as this is for questions, canon shit, voice calls with viv and fans], yeah she didnt respect that at all and I got a member DM me apologising for her behaviour but that she’s normally argumentative and to ignore her. I appreciate their kindness but they dodged the question as to why she’s still allowed to be that way in a PAID DISCORD. It’s like paying to be kicked in the dick. Also some of her friends were cheering for her. Thanks for allowing bullying. Canon info changes like the sea and contradicts, Viv needed help with... Ok she didnt want it public BUUUT Ive seen many public posts about it now as people found out anyways. Her dA was hacked and she wanted the old account deleted [none of her old shit was on there anyways]. So I filed the issue to dA on multiple platforms for her and a contact file [only the direct contact did I give her identity fyi]. Yeah many in the group treated me like shit for it - either I was simping hard for viv [fyi when youre a public figure, it’s more imperative you file yourself otherwise public complaints mean fuck all so I had to claim we were good friends bc that’s how these things work. Ive done this legal shit for others before on deeper levels], or that I didnt use her full name on the file [I prefer that when it gets to EMAILS as some complaint files go to public forums - since Fiverr nearly got me fuckin doxxed that way, the bastards], or for other stupid reasons. I told them to stop working at theyre looking at a day or two at MOST for it to be removed, whilst encouraging Viv to submit her own file. Apparently I wasnt empathetic over the situation and didnt care enough. No, Im a fucking adult who’s dealt with technical shit and files so much that I know how they work, how long they typically take and that worrying about something outside my control causes harm to me and no good in solving shit - even the guy who eventually got banned ripped into me. Most there are ‘stans’ and quite... Aggressive too- I know this could be seen as breaching my side BUT Viv’s already breached her own patreon rules by under supplying based on her Tiers rewards, spoiling things publicly only for us patreons to find out later, getting info that we cant even rely on usually, and just... If she cant meet those demands as shes busy [understandable], she needs to either lower prices, change rewards, schedule better and lessen her load overall OR put her Patreon on Holiday [this means she wont get paid but fans then arent paying for nothing - fyi Im paying $50 for a chatroom that can be quite toxic or entitled and the info we do learn is... questionable at times]. Likewise, she’s missed some of her patreon calls or came but just for a short chat and go. It’s honestly a shameful mess... 3 - Remember that stolen pin art? She confessed in the group she was dealing with it with the artists privately and that she wouldnt publicly address it as it would hopefully die down. Yknow, the ONE bit of information that SHOULD BE PUBLIC. She seems to mix up what should be exclusives and what NEEDS to be publicly addressed. It’s a mess and really unprofessional. Plus many of her VAs, Artists, team, etc post a lot of non-canon ships they favour [which are quite ooc from canon despite it be something theyre working on], have a lot of oc inserts [interestingly Faust admits her and Viv shipped Tyco with Angel but due to copyright works they couldnt be arsed to go through that to give Viv the rights to Tyco and make it canon? What? Even though one of the art pieces in the background feature tyco’s hand holding the glass angel’s in- I know that cameos dont mean you own that character but with the oc thing it’s... messy. Fine lines], probablyfakeblond and val [thats all I need to say there, it’s like the IGs are fanon rp accounts, but Ive seen many fan ones run better and more canonically accurate], speak a lot of their thoughts/hcs which is a breach of confidenciality plus odd considering many of these dont work close enough in the departments to even have these says then fans take it canon, jokes end up canon that shouldnt be, facts being muddled, if anyone working happens to like something as personal preference its treated as gospel, I could go on but overall it’s such a fucking mess and a shame- It makes me angry because it has a LOT of potential. You can see preferences and bias, how easy fans can influence the series [MINUS petitions] and how fan works become canon [Addict was a fan song, Viv in discord confirms that it was a fan running Cherri’s IG and was found out late - not publicly addressed when it should have been and played off publicly as Cherri having troubles based on Angels selfie with her - kinda fucked up and kinda insensitive way to portray personal struggles], have a habit of deleting IG posts and act like they never existed [odd move tbh- yet keep up naked stolas- likewise some of the posts dont suit the characters personalities], overall everything is a clusterfuck that’ll only tangle more the way YanDevs YanSim is and itll get worse and worse until real action takes place. The IGs could be an AR oppurtunity to learn about the characters, their friends, their life and interests. Nah, just make it fanservicey and ship fuckery. A character doesnt show interest? Awww they’re playing hard to- *No*.  Hazbin will either not come to be OR will emerge as highly flawed and mediocre [the way YanSim’s goin] if this keeps up. But with the odd sprinkle of attempted self improvement, only to be immediately dismissed the next day on the character IGs for fan service [Stolas in Ep 2: I’ll never leave my daughter, improve for her and show that I wont run off with Blitz and leave her! Stolas next day IG: Ill call you daddy Blitzy~ xxxx <--- Seriously how blind can you be? How weak do your character development skills have to be to put a fuckin reverse uno that quick? Why should we pity and side with this disgusting cheater when he and his wife are both fucking up their daughter?]

Wait a FUCKING minute didn’t Hazbin’s pilot release in October? (I believe the 31st or something?) Ok, so where the fuck are the updates on ANYTHING? Those comics? Anything at all? It’s been nearly a year, and it’s just been radio silence aside from a few small updates here and there? Go on girl, give us nothing! ❤️