#motherly eda

[dazeddoodles]

About Hunter and Amity. There are some mixed perspectives about them. Some people think that they don't like each other and some people think they are friends.

I think only judging the show without relying to headcanons or something, they are pretty much an acquaintances relationship where they help and tolerate each other just for Luz, Gus and Willow but they don't hang out or share anything because they bring each other toxic's traits because they reminds them their past dark times. At the end of the day, they mind their own business and try to be cooperate as much as possible for their friends but once the groups breaks, they will do anything in order to save their friends like how Amity threw a fire ball to possessed Hunter while everyone else were defensive.

Despite having an entire episode dedicated to each of them Amity is the only one in the Hexsqaud (not counting Vee) that Hunter doesn't have any bond with.

But because they're the most popular characters fans wants them to have the deepest bond. (I think they're the only one's of the Hexsqaud to have a friend-ship name. Rose Gold.)

You don't see anyone mourning over the fact that Amity and Gus interacted like twice in the entire show.

Or because of the similarities between Hunter and Prince Zuko, people want Hunter and Amity to be like Zuko and Katara.

Now I think the jokes about Amity having beef with Hunter are hilarious but if I'm being honest it's because it's the only interesting thing about their canon dynamic. And it isn't even accurate outside of one singular episode.

[owlbeastly]

A Coven Head's Apprentice is a collection of one-shots focused on the mother-daughter bond between Amity Blight and Lilith Clawthorne. Currently, there are two one-shots published, but I plan to write more. Their fanon-speculated connection is fascinating and I've decided to explore it because I'm weak for their motherly relationship.

Strains -- Amity pushes herself harder than she should've during training and Lilith is there to help.

First Spells -- A very tiny Amity is learning her first spells wand-free, Lilith decides to try a new technique to help her young student.

[demilypyro]

I really, really like this.

So often in these teenage-protagonist-coming-of-age type stories it's just kind of a given that kids are part of the conflict. There will either be no adults around, or they won't know about it, or they'll just offer support in some way. But Eda couldn't be like that. Eda is far too close with Luz and far too motherly to stand by as she gets wrapped up in all this. For all her shenanigans, she's a responsible adult, and Luz's guardian, and she wants to keep her safe no matter what. Even if that means sending her away. Even if that means giving herself up.

I really, really like Eda.

[demonic0angel]

EDA. I apologize in advance because ever since your Cutting Wit thing I've been obsessed with Motherly Secretly soft crush Talia Al Ghul. Can we see more of this precious Yuri?

Ps. (I'd also like to see How you draw Talia if you don't mind)

- A.E. 👻

I imagine that Jazz is oblivious to her own actions towards Talia and keeps accidentally seducing her 💀

Meanwhile, Damian is like :0 everytime Talia is revealing information about her beloved to him. He keeps connecting the wrong dots so he absolutely does not realize that his other parent is Bruce 💀

[xjulixred45x]

Its me or the collector/hunter would be such a mama's boy if they had one?

OMG THEY WOULD REAAAAAALY BE!!!

Hunter so SO needs someone who really cares about and loves him just the way he is, maybe a head of the Emperor's coven(or Even maybe Darius S/o??) or some older scout than the one who insists on treating him like a child (WHAT HE IS) and at first he doesn't have a clue or idea of how to act on this (thanks Belos) but eventually he becomes less rigid and rude and more a bit embarrassed but he doesn't avoid it.

Hunter would melt if a person he considers a mother figure gave him words of affirmation and told him how much he is worth, HOW GOOD HE IS and that she is PROUD of him. bby would start crying right there.

He would definitely be very protective of this mother figure, I don't think he would prevent her from going on missions or do her work, but he makes sure that they go together and he always goes in front of her, he will always defend her if things get ugly, he even received hits from her. He acts like it's nothing or that he's not being a favorite at all, but everyone knows it.

(If he calls her mama/mom/mother or whatever he BEGGS THE TITAN to swallow him and spit him out into the boiling sea. But maybe he'll talk to her about Willow for dating advice).

The Collector (or Collie) would definitely be another mama's boy, only obviously more extreme due to his almost god-like powers, but he could definitely use someone to guide him firmly but gently to learn mortality and family love well after the history. something like his own Eda.

Seeing it that way, perhaps this maternal figure could be 1- or one of the archivists who stayed with him in his days on earth (being more like brothers) or an older person very interested in the mythology of the titan and others ( maybe even part of the tribe that hunted them and that worshiped the collector, but on a much healthier spectrum obviously).

In any case, when this person is not only willing to listen to the collector's rants but even play with him as much as possible, without wanting to get rid of him and giving him mature and motherly love, he is surprised, yes, but he likes it! and wants more! so he even calms down a little with physical affection from this maternal figure.

Imagine if this mother figure sang for him to sleep🥹I think it would give Collie such a hit of dopamine that he couldn't sleep without her after that, at least for the first few months.

He doesn't like it very much when she scolds him for having been rude or careless, not only because he is a somewhat spoiled child with no sense of consequences, but because he doesn't like to think that his mother hates him :( if he thinks about it too much he will ugly cry.

although he definitely apologizes afterwards and gives a lot of hugs (please give him hugs).

Overall, GIVE THESE TWO LOVE. THEY DESERVE IT.

Shares, reblogs and comments are very welcome!

[teartra]

I used to wonder when did Eda get so motherly to her kids

Then after rewatching season 1, even in episode 2 (Witches Before Wizard) after Eda and King made fun of Luz because of the “chosen one” thing, Eda went upstairs to check on Luz right away

And she went into mom mode when she realized that Luz is in trouble

Her mom instinct is always there whether she likes to admit it or not

[cotton-fae24]

Chapter 2, 6/6

(Hello. So I want a little more time before I post the first part of chapter 3. So for Sunday, I’ll be posting a preview design for either Willow or Amity, as a sorta preview for the next chapters. Feel free to tell me who you want to see first in the comment section or the poll in the description. Chapter 3 will be posted on Tuesday.)

Eda has never been a very affectionate or motherly person. Even with her own son they interact more causally than you’d expect for a mother/son relationship. So Luz sobbing nonstop is incredibly uncomfortable for her. Eda ends up slightly snapping at her, telling her to stop it. This wasn’t a great approach and although Luz backs off, she’s clearly still upset. Eda realizes that she needs to step up a little, and actually act like the adult in this situation.

Eda ties up Luz’s curls in a half up/half down look and tells Luz she wants to show her something. Eda admits she doesn’t know what happened to Luz, and that’s she’s not entitled to know. However, Eda can clearly tell Luz is not from here, and that she didn’t come here by choice. She guesses Luz probably feels terrified, everything is so new and strange. Eda says that Luz is allowed to feel that, however she shouldn’t let that fear consume her. She shouldn’t let her fear blind her to what this world has to offer. As Eda places Luz on the tallest cliff, she tells her that if she decides to open up her mind, her heart to this new world, she might actually find it beautiful.

Luz looks in awe on the view and thinks about the words Eda had said. To greet the world with an open mind. Maybe she could give that a try…

Beginning:

Previous:

Next:

[lumitytakes]

The moments in which Luz thinks of Amity even though she's not around (Part 3)

Last but not least, the finale: Watching and Dreaming.

1. This box contains Luz's most precious items. Azura's book and figure which represent the bond between her and her father Manny. There's also Eda's jacket, which symbolizes the motherly and mentor/apprentice bond between Eda and Luz. And lastly, there are items involving Amity: the Grom tiara and the tamagotchi.

2. The L+A carving!!

Luz has carved this twice: the school desk and even her desk at home.

3. Earrings and necklace swap.

During her time at the Human Realm, Luz always carries the belongings that reminds her of Amity. For instance, Luz's graduation day is one of the most important events and she chooses to wear Amity's triangle earrings to feel as if Amity was there with her.

4. The light glyph is pinned on Luz and Amity's photo

Of all the photos, why does Luz pin the light glyph on her and Amity's photo? Because Amity is her light in the darkness, the one who supports her during the hardest times and shows her how to escape from the nightmare.

[arpans-posts]

I agree with your question in a post very much. I never understand why Lunter shippers keep claiming Caleb/Evelyn parallel on Luz and Hunter, even go as far as saying it's canon. It's just their interpretation while I myself never see it that way.

Evelyn introduces Caleb to wild magic while before meeting Luz, Hunter already learned about it behind Belos's back.

Evelyn introduces Flapjack to Caleb. Meanwhile, all Luz does is to take Flapjack back to the Palismen nest at Hexside, then Hunter comes and steals the nest. If anything, it's Hunter who makes the meeting with Flapjack happen. About Flapjack, he automatically gets close to Hunter because he looks like the Palisman's late owner.

Evelyn plays a part in turning Caleb against his ideology while Hunter is loyal to Belos till the very end, until he knows all about the truth. He leaves Belos's side because it threatens his life, not because of Luz.

Belos tries to separate Caleb from Evelyn, but he doesn't do that with Hunter and Luz. He wants to convince them both to be on his side. He tries to convince Luz since they're both humans. He only tries to kill her when she fights him. Belos sees Luz as another Caleb, whom he tries to convince to join his side and how bad witches are.

If anything, Eda and Luz's dynamic parallels Caleb/Evelyn the most, but in a platonic way. Luz is a human, Eda is a witch, a Clawthorne. Luz comes to the Boiling Isles thanks to Eda's portal and palisman, the same applies to Caleb and Evelyn. Eda helps Luz learn wild magic, which are glyphs. Most importantly, Eda helps Luz carve and connect to her palisman. Belos sees Eda as an enemy and a bad influence on Luz. When Eda is captured in season 1 finale, he addresses her like this. “...The wild witch of Bonesborough, the mentor of Luz the human...”

Agree.

Luz is more akin to the good guys version of Belos; a super smart and charismatic human.

Willow is Eveyln, a strong witch with a motherly demeanor.

Hunter is obviously caleb.

[darkmatter-nebula]

Belos kidnaps Colli and straps him back onto the machine and the little baby sits there for one full agonizing minute before the Owl Family come and rescue him. It’s very traumatizing.

Good morning, my dear @strawberryshortcake1495! 👋😊

Thanks for the request!

This takes place shortly after Eclipse Lake. Hunter is on a mission and doesn't know that his greatest treasure is being tortured.

Drabble: One Agonizing Minute

Emporer Belos decided to take matters into his own hands. The ruler of the Boiling Isles left the Castle and was looking for a certain small starboy with otherwordly fluffy lavender hair and a heart as pure as freshly fallen snow.

It didn't take long for Belos to find Colli. Colli was blissfully unaware that he was in danger. The kindhearted eternal little boy was on the playground. Out of a sudden, everything went black as Belos knocked him out.

The kids at the playground were too terrified to do something. 'Now you're mine again, my Little Battery!' Belos thought. His icy blue eyes were filled with glee. He used an teleportation glyph and brought him and Colli to the Castle.

Belos strapped the still unconcious Colli back onto the Draining Chair. Colli woke up as the same horrible pain shot through his tiny body he knew very well for fifty endless years. "I told you that you will always be mine." The puritan said, a sadistic expression on his face.

Colli couldn't hold back his tears. "No..." The cosmic little boy whispered. Colli was afraid. Would he see his family ever again...?

.

.

.

"LET HIM GO, BOO-LOS!!!!" Eda, in her Harpy form, was there! She wasn't alone, though. King, Luz, Lilith and Hooty were with her. Lilith had a bad feeling about letting Colli go alone to the playground. That's why she used the spy potion on him.

Belos was fighting Eda and Hooty. Luz, King and Lilith freed Colli from the Draining Chair. "Mommy!" Colli floated into his mother's arms. Belos didn't want anyone else in the Castle to know about what just happened. He let the Owl Fam escape. 'You'll be mine again, my precious Little Battery!' He thought.

Colli only was one minute on the Draining Chair. This wasn't enough time to weaken his magic again.

.

.

.

Back at the Owl House, the immortal celestial boy was comforted by his family. It was quite obvious that this day traumatized him. Eda showered her Little Star's adorable multi-colored face with lots of soft and loving motherly kisses.

King nuzzled softly Colli's freckled cheek. Lilith rubbed gently her nephew's back. Luz kissed lovingly her little brother's forehead. And Hooty wrapped himself around Colli for a tight yet soft embrace.

The End

[that-ari-blogger]

Imperfections Part 1 (Keeping Up A-Fear-Ances)

It is an understatement to say that The Owl House's second season has a focus on family. From just Luz's perspective, she has two different mother figure, one and a half adopted brothers, and a deceased father.

But here's my hot take: contrary to popular belief, Eda isn't naturally good at being a parent, and that's not a bad thing.

Eda spends the entirety of the series amassing a larger and larger family with her at the head, but she routinely has no idea what she is doing. However, that doesn't stop her from trying, and that doesn't stop her from learning and improving and being a good mother anyway.

Eda is the embodiment of the balance between found family and born family, and that is exemplified in her connection with her mother, Gwendolyn.

Let me explain.

SPOILERS AHEAD (The Owl House)

This is going to be a two-part post, with the second installment coming later in the series. I want to contrast Eda's motherly behaviours with those of Gwendolyn, and see what Eda learned.

Before hand, however, I need to do some recommendations. The YouTube channel Oakwyrm (@oakwyrm on Tumblr) has two videos that discuss Eda's curse through the lens of disability, titled Curse as Disability and Disability in the Owl House, which are phenomenal. The former of which delves into this episode in detail, specifically surrounding Gwendolyn's reaction to the curse.

In a similar vein, the channel Idlescree (@idlescree on tumblr) also has a video surrounding the disability, titled The Truth About Eda and Disability.

I say this because I will not be talking about the disability angle in detail in this post as I simply do not have the expertise or experience to delve into the topic. I recommend these videos because that angle deserves to be spoken about, and I guide your eyes to people who can and have given it the spotlight it deserves.

I will be talking specifically about the parenting aspect of this episode and what it means for the series as a whole, as well as the ways in which it is presented through cinematic techniques.

Speaking of which, the first thing that Eda learns from her mother is adaptability, and she learns it from Gwendolyn's decisions in this specific episode.

Gwendolyn is introduced as a less than stellar mother, she is overbearing and overprotective, to the point where that has cycled back to hurting her daughter. In the first moments of this episode, she gives the following line:

"My daughter is suffering and I want that thing out! Cut it out if you have to."

Not great. Gwendolyn is willing to hurt her daughter to heal her from something she has been told might not be healable. She isn't willing to stop and take stock of the situation, she wants to preserve what she thinks she has.

Interestingly, this forms a polar comparison with Lilith, of all people. In season one, Lilith made sacrifices for power, and convinced herself that she was doing it to help her sister. Gwendolyn, however, has convinced herself that anything is worth sacrificing for the health of her daughter, even her daughter. Hold on to this thought.

But then Gwendolyn changes, she realises the error of her ways, and pivots pretty quickly and harshly. It takes time to prove to her that what she is doing isn't helping, but once Luz gets through to her, Gwendolyn changes.

That is the adaptability that Eda learned. She saw her mother change her actions, but she also spend years with a mother who refused to change and experienced the effects of that first hand. Essentially, she learned from the example Gwendolyn set, avoiding the pitfalls her mother hit and replicating the successes.

Gwendolyn also showed Eda that you don't have to be perfect, you just have to listen. Even after Gwendolyn changes, there is no chance she will be an infallible mother. She will probably keep some of the tendencies that she has already displayed, but she will learn.

"She was trying to do her best."

Sometimes what you think is the right thing to do is not as clear cut. Sometimes you need to reevaluate. Being a good parent is understanding when you are wrong and adapting to fit that.

The column of fire is reminiscent of a phoenix, which, on top of being dope as all hell, has some implications I would like to examine.

To those who don't know, a phoenix is an immortal bird associated with fire and rebirth, as well as with the sun. When the phoenix dies, it is reborn from the ashes. As a side note, the sun thing is fascinating, as it has led to multiple different cultures developing a similar myth. When the sun is already associated with life and the sunrise has birth connotations, birds that sing at dawn get that symbolism applied to them as well.

Gwendolyn rekindling her bond with her daughters with that phoenix imagery then implies a rebirth of that relationship. She has destroyed it, and now she has to start again, this time better.

Second up, moderation. Gwendolyn's fierce loyalty to her family is both a good and bad thing. When she can't realise she is wrong, it becomes the bane of Eda's existence, but when she clocks on to her mistakes, it saves everyone.

Also, her fierce loyalty drives that change, in a weird way. Gwendolyn's priority is her family, first and foremost, all of the time. Even through it all, her pride is secondary to that loyalty.

"You know, right after Eda was cursed I joined the Beast Keeper Coven. I thought they surely would know what to do. But the beast keepers told me the curse couldn't be tamed. And the healers told me it couldn't be healed. Eda told me she found something that made it manageable at least. But I didn't listen."

Someone on the animation team really likes fire, because the animation from the moment Gwendolyn snaps is gorgeous and terrifying.

But the monologue itself is that moment of realisation, and Gwendolyn isn't too arrogant as to not know when she is at fault. Everyone told her she was wrong, and she did it anyway, and it hurt her family.

There is also something to be said about the direction of this scene, and how cool it is. That coolness has an effect, although its entirely based on vibes. It's memorable, and that's vital. "I didn't listen, and it cost me."

Also in this tiny scene, Wartlop is preying on Gwendolyn's insecurities and shortcomings as a mother. He offers her an easy way out and a clear solution to her problems, but that is a lie. It isn't easy, it isn't clear, and it doesn't work. Gwendolyn's monologue and fancy magic stuff is the confrontation of her desire for simplicity.

The monologue continues, though.

"My beautiful daughter's I failed you. Edalyn, you're in there, aren't you? I should have listened to you. I know now why you pushed me away. I made you think that your curse was something to be ashamed of. Whether we want it or not, it's part of you. And I love every part of you. I'm so sorry."

Realising you are wrong only works if you act on it, and people can see it. If Gwendolyn had intimidated Wartlop and then watched from the sidelines as Luz saved Eda and Lilith, that wouldn't have made any difference. But she chose to step in.

"And Lilith. You were always so self-sufficient. But, I didn't give you the attention you deserved."

Bear with me, I need to clarify some biases.

I think that Lilith was handled really well in parts of this episode, but not all of it. There are definitely parts of this episode, in my opinion, where Lilith's storyline could have been better. However, this isn't a series about what I liked and didn't like, its about what the series gave us, and what that says, so I will try to focus on the analysis until the end. I'm just being clear about some mitigating factors here.

With that being said, Lilith is the reason for Gwendolyn's self reflection. She is a side effect of her mother's tunnel vision, and the fact that Gwendolyn missed it is uncomfortable for her to realise. Lilith's transformation is the moment Gwendolyn realises exactly what she has sacrificed to get nowhere, and her maternal mind kicks in to scream at her that this was in no way worth it.

But the owl beast transformation isn't the only thing that Gwendolyn has inflicted upon her daughter.

The couch scene is half comedic, half very much not comedic. Lilith has zero coping mechanisms for stress. She has only just reconnected with her sister after a long time, and her mother, judging by what this episode has said, has provided next to no support for Lilith in her growing up after Eda's curse took hold. So, she gets drunk on icecream.

"Are you my mother? Because that is an aweful lot of judgement."

Holy moly. I know she's intoxicated and not thinking straight, but that is a hell of a thing to bubble to the surface. It could be one of two things, either Lilith has never emotionally developed past her teenage years and so she has the brittle and exaggerated worldview still heavily in effect; or she has matured, but she still associated Gwendolyn with unfair judgement more than anything else. Neither of which are particularly healthy mindsets, and I would hold Gwendolyn to blame for both.

Again, the phoenix and the restarting of the relationship is important symbolism that needs to be properly understood.

So, what has Eda learned from her mother? Always have your children's best interests at heart. Don't succumb to tunnel vision if things get tough. It's ok to be imperfect, as long as you recognise your failings and try to act on them. If something doesn't work, adapt and try a different way.

Oh, and don't give people your money in exchange for miracle cures.

Final Thoughts

This episode is complicated for me. I have stated my bias already, but other than the Lilith stuff (leaving the story like Poochie wasn't my favourite writing decision), I think that the episode was pretty good. The animation abruptly decides to stop holding back halfway through the episode, and Deb Doetzer's acting is brilliant.

Speaking of animation popping off, next week, I will be looking at Through The Looking Glass Ruins. Specifically, I want to look at self image and relationships with others and how Gus, Amity, and Luz explore that concept. So stick around if that interests you.

Previous - Next

[dazeddoodles]

Tangled AU: You said that Lilith is basically Maximus but not a horse. Can you expand on her role?

Is she still Eda’s sister in this AU?

Yes they're still sisters in this Au. Similarly to the show, one sisters became a criminal while the other became a guard and they're always running into each other.

Option 1 if I stick closer to the show is their parents are still alive and Eda ran away from home when she was younger

Option 2 if I stick closer to the movie is Eda and Lilith's parents died when they were younger and they were sent to the orphanage. Eventually Eda decides to run away and live as a theif.

(Also another reason for why I'm not sure if I should include Tangled the Series in the Au is because Eugene secretly being a prince complicates things)

When they were younger the sisters would read books about The Owl Lady. Who was a kind old woman who lived in the woods and helped runaway children by housing them and being a motherly figure. This is where Eda got her theif alias from.

[theworldasseeninbaybayin]

Eda Clawthorne as how the fandom views her: crusty, kind old lady, still very much a motherly figure even in her age as she keeps an eye out for her adoptive family; knows very well how to make people disappear without a moment of hesitation

Also Eda Clawthorne as how the fandom views her: one horny, sexy (literal) motherfucker who spends her entire time "dressing up and travelling together" with her reunited bard partner and quite possibly Luz's mom as either her ordinary self or as an owl-ified She-Hulk

[citadelredlightdistrict]

MILF TIER LIST!

Ok, so here's the criteria. 1: Fuckability 2: Tits 3: Motherly 4: Character Screen Time 5: Smart

S: Elastigirl, Queen Melromarc, Orihime, Susan, Maddie, Hinata A: Mrs. Elric*, Kali*, Aunt Cass*, Ino, Sakura, Toriel, Anne, June, Eclipsa B: Verdona*, Summer, Eda*, Nicole, Mavis*, Kushina, Bulma, Sandra, Natalie, Temari C: Willow, Tsunade*, Vomi, Mrs. Boonchuy, Mrs. Noceda D: Stella, Moon, Kaguya, Odalia

So, obviously S tier are the best. They have good tits, super fuckable, are awesome mothers, and get a lot of screen time. A tier are characters that have all of these, but are lacking in some way. B Tier are lacking in at least two ways or in one way significantly, C are ones that are lacking in a couple of ways, and D are just the worst mothers out there.

*: Ok, so Mrs. Elric, might be rated a bit too highly as she gets like no screen time, but she's got some tits, is a great mother, fuckable, I think it's fair. Kali doesn't actually have the tits that the fandom likes to give her, and has little screen time. Aunt Cass, not actually a mom, but is definitely a mother figure. Verdona is a mom, but she's a shit mom/grandma. Eda is also not a mom, but very motherly, and a bit too old for me to rate her higher, sorry this is a MILF list, not a GILF list. Mavis is a mom, but she's more the girl next door vibes than mom vibes, and she trusts her stoner idiot husband with their kid alone, so not a great mom. Tsunade is not a mom, doesn't belong on the list really, but if I didn't include her then like what's going on?

[mdhwrites]

Is TOH Worse By Having Character Arcs?

In a story theoretically about inclusivity, finding your space and accepting who you are... Is it right that so many people change as drastically as they do?

This is going to be a bit of an odd topic because pop culture nowadays reveres the concept of the character arc almost above any other aspect of writing. If your characters do not exhibit change, how can they be deep or interesting? Where is the story in a character who mostly stays static? And that's not a bad instinct because a character overcoming some major flaw or corrupted ideal they hold onto is very compelling.

However, character arcs are like any part of writing: They are a TOOL for the writer to use. Just like with any tool, it won't fit every job. Not every story needs large, grand arcs. So was The Owl House a story where this tool should have been applied?

I argue no, despite the fact that its character arcs are such a lauded part of it. This isn't entirely because there is no space for character arcs in its themes but that its goals are... touchy when it comes to the idea of change. That requires us to first ask what those goals are in the first place.

Well, the show isn't always very good at defining these but if I'm being generous, we'll go with: The idea that one shouldn't be ashamed for who they are.

The need for a space where you can feel safe and like yourself.

Self expression and self determination being the greatest virtues in both people and society.

As a base this isn't bad. The middle one is dangerous because it can very quickly become isolationist but they do all point in the same direction of a story that wants to make sure that 'the other' doesn't feel wrong simply for not conforming to what society expects of them. Whether this is stereotypes pushed upon them, anxieties over things like sexuality, generational gaps, etc. like that, there's PLENTY to explore. Even if you want to go less severe, there's just a lot of quirks, especially in modern society, that can lead to someone feeling fake or wrong or weird, including feeling like you lean too much on your own stereotype just because you genuinely like makeup or the like.

The problem for TOH becomes that only the more extreme version actually supports real, long term character arcs. Someone who is deeply entrenched in a toxic element of society figuring out ways to be themselves despite the prejudice before them. In the show, the only person who actually faces anything like this is Eda since the society of the Isles actually DOES push down on what she believes is her identity as a wild witch. Unfortunately, Eda's arc isn't about grappling with her position as a wild witch and how that separates her from the world and family but more about softening up, getting rid of the activities she used to love/kept her alive and becoming maternal rather than embracing the wild side that made her a wild witch in the first place.

In other words, her arc is about flipping her character around rather than about embracing who she is. Which, you know... Goes against the goals of the show.

Pretty much every arc is like this. Amity goes from being extremely driven about magic and caring about her future in this world, as well as having anxieties about her family to the point where she takes drastic action to get ahead... To caring only about her girlfriend and marginally about maybe keeping some okay relations with her family. Instead of any of her drive, intelligence, cunning, etc. like that being refined by smoothing out the rougher edges and realizing she shouldn't be cruel in order to succeed in her ambitions, her ambitions are blamed on someone else and otherwise her character entirely inverts for the sake of... Luz. Which, you know... Luz needing a maternal figure for her found family is much of why, in hindsight, it feels like Eda became motherly. For Luz.

Hunter becomes a soft boy because when he gets his staff back and reminds her that he is a loyal member of the EC, she disapproves. Hell, 90% of what Hunter ever does in the show is for someone else's approval or survival, with him even ending up following after an ancestor almost 1:1, making him probably the least self-accepting character in the entire cast. Lilith falls under similar issues. She was driven and even had appeared to have softened with age, wanting to usher in new witches into their best forms as part of her job, and then... She stops. She gives up on all of her ambitions besides a little bit of a grudge against someone else and is turned into a joke for the most part. Even her trauma is mocked which doesn't seem to have literally ever been something she would have accepted, young or old nor is it something a show about acceptance should include.

And you might notice that most of the problems for these characters I'm describing aren't for themselves. Solving them isn't about self actualization. At best, they are about getting out of shitty situations but you can do that without changing the core of the character. You can have Luz save someone from death but then have who they are reject Luz anyways because of her position in society. People are complex like that. After all, if you wish for acceptance for what you care about, you naturally have to extend that kindness to others and their interests (so long as those interests aren't hateful/harmful, etc. like that. Do not tolerate Nazis.)

Amity for example is at worst a bully. She isn't hateful, she's just mean as a function of how she sees EVERYONE as an enemy. A competitor who she needs to guard against. You can develop her, because not all development forms a character arc, into still being driven, still desiring to be better, but now she understands that she doesn't need to be an island. That she can drop her guard sometimes and when she needs to crush something, it's an actual enemy. Instead, her desires, beliefs, friends, family, etc. are all put to the pyre. They are not allowed to coexist with the 'correct' version of her, not without them having to also change in a similar manner to her. To a state that the show is willing to deem acceptable in a wider sense.

Why is that a thing in a show about self acceptance and realization? How is that self-expression or self-determination? How is that understanding?

And that's why I think in the end, The Owl House's character arcs hurt it more than anything else.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[starsfic]

while clearing out a room in the owl house for hunter with amity, willow, and gus, luz finds a photo album filled to the brim with king's baby pictures

"OH MY TITAN!"

The squeal nearly rattled the windows of the house. Luz didn't notice however, too focused on her prize. "What?" Gus rushed up with a box in his hands, he and Luz, with Willow and Amity, were cleaning out a spot for Hunter to stay in until Darius and Camila's custody plan was agreed upon. "What is it?"

Luz turned the book around.

"BABY KING PICTURES!"

-_-

"What was all the screaming about...?"

Eda poked her head into the room designated as Hunter's room and paused, eyes going wide. All four kids laid on the floor, all with faces in various expressions of fawning delight.

Luz was the worst, eyes so wide and sparkly that Eda had to poke her to make sure she wasn't dead. She let out a happy giggle, so that was a yes, she was alive.

"What happened here?" Before Eda could poke someone else, her eyes landed on what Luz held tight.

Once, in a burst of motherly feelings, Eda had scheduled a baby photoshoot. King had been so small and adorable that she couldn't help it, especially when she figured out that he wasn't some animal. It had taken a bit of work, since King was still obsessed with making little sculptures of what she now knew as Jean-Luc, but the photos had been perfect.

Too perfect.

"I thought I burned this," Eda closed the book and shut it, careful to not look at the forbidden pictures. "If you want baby King pictures, I have less perfect ones you can see."

Luz giggled again.