#one of my favorite book only characters honestly

[youwouldtreatittenderly]

It makes me so happy to know Jem is more appreciated now. I read the books as they were published, and I stayed away from online discussions because it really felt like it was only me and like three other people who preferred Jem and didn't think he was boring.

To me Jem has always been the character that proves that kind and gentle men can be as appealing as the sarcastic toxic bad boys. Jem could have been boring if he was only kindness and patience, but he's more than that. He's passionate and fierce as well, and because he's so good at controlling his responses, it's so compelling when he snaps and shows that other side.

That whole scene when Tessa finds him nearly destroying his violin and he's so angry and hurt is just...so raw. It feels real to me in a way Will and Jace's outbursts and speeches about their misery never have. And the combination of shyness and pure want when they're kissing on his bed perfectly conveys what I mean about Jem being both gentle and passionate.

I also think he has some of the most genuine romantic lines in the whole saga. The things he says to Tessa when he proposes and when he plays the music he composed as a wedding gift for her are such a stand out to me out of all the romantic speeches in tsc. Once again, it feels so raw and earnest. Just like Tessa, I felt so much tenderness for him in that moment. It's one of my favorite memories of reading these books.

I won't delude myself into thinking other people can't genuinely find him boring, but I honestly think for some it was a knee-jerk reaction to the tropes of romance in the YA genre. As if they weren't really seeing Jem the character, they were seeing "the nice one" of the love triangle and all the stereotypes that come with it even if they don't fit him.

i have to say seeing how popular jem is now, knowing he hasn't always been, is SO reassuring and relieving. not because other characters aren't great or have good values, but because it means jem's standout qualities – things like kindness, compassion, gentleness, being thoughtful – are being appreciated and seen as more important and that's SUCH a good thing. especially knowing ya's history of pushing forward the toxic-cocky-mysterious bad boy agenda… we're finally putting qualities like kindness above that, which is a really positive step forward. i know it's more nuanced than this, and tsc's characters are far more nuanced (jem's sole trait isn't being kind, for instance) but he wasn't always appreciated this much and as a longtime jem fan i truly love to see it. i grew up reading books where the mc always went for the mysterious bad boy character – ruder, testy, provocative – and often these characters were more popular because being kind was seen as 'boring' or meant you could only ever be in the friendzone. jem was one of the first characters i read who had this really horrible backstory, but throughout everything was genuinely just kind. it's really wonderful to see so many people appreciating that :)

[melioristicbeast]

“Sorry,” Stiles said, unsure of why he was apologizing. “I’ve never heard that song before. Did you write it?”  Derek looked uncomfortable, maybe a touch embarrassed, which was answer enough. “It’s good. I like it. It’s calming.”  The small smile he got in response melted his heart a little bit. Fucking hell, he was so gone for this asshole. Stiles didn’t know what he was going to do. He wished he’d never realized how much he loved him. Wished he’d just continued to think they were best friends and nothing more. It was slowly going to kill him being so close, and yet so fucking far. Clearing his throat, he brought the book back up to continue reading, muttering that Derek should keep playing. He did, his fingers plucking gently at the strings, filling the loft with soft music. It really was calming, and soothing. Stiles really liked it. He liked it even more when he realized Derek could honestly express himself with the guitar. It still wasn’t a voice, but it was something, at least. 

Actions Speak Louder than Words (ch18) by @isthatbloodonhisshirt

This fic is what spurred me to start doing sterek fanart back in the beginning of december - magic!stiles, cursed!derek, stiles/jackson terrifying everyone else as friends - an incredible 430K story with a completely endearing slow-burn and slowly unfolding exploration of the characters and their relationship, made complete with the perfect bow of cursed-mute-Derek because 'Derek's eyebrows have a language of their own but only Stiles is fluent' is my favorite and this author does it SO well. And gives Derek a guitar. Derek plays a guitar!!

Ella, consider this my loveletter to your works - they all, this one in particular, buoyed me through a tough time in my life and brought me back to a love of drawing that I haven't had in years and a fandom that has been so generous in their support of my silly art. Thank you for sharing your works!

And a huge thank you to everyone's support so far - the sweet comments in replies, the unhinged all-caps tags, yes-and'ing my silly ideas and headcanons, i'm just over here kicking my feet and giggling and definitely not getting teary-eyed over it no siree no lacrimal action happening here

[sunflowerandstrawberryspice]

What up y'all! I return bearing what was originally gonna be survival!shipping fluff (I sketch the face first and drew young Garmadon instead of his full Oni version) but morphed into this because my ass was listening to Ethel Cain and Flower Face while drawing. Honestly I took it and wound up playing rendering/color and quite frankly I'm actually pretty happy with how it turned out!

Translations: Vertical word- Destruction, bottom text- "You are no man, men don't have claws they can't cut."

Garmadon is my favorite character to use for these more painterly metaphorical art studies because:

A) He's my babygirl and favorite character, this is very well established lol

B) He's a fundamentally tragic character. He's doomed by the narrative in every sense of the word, he was a child when he was bit and after that he was left to deal with the fact that there was this evil snake in his head and his father as well as his brother (seemingly the only people he interacted with as a child) were now somewhat afraid of him. By his young adulthood his relationship with his family begins to strain due to their belief he's "turning evil" especially when going on the quest for tea leaves in Spinjitzu Brothers which shows he actually feels rather upset/angry that his brother and father believe he's turning evil simply because he experiences negative emotions (you know like a normal person) but then after he see's himself in the mirror in book three he goes on a downward spiral believing he's doomed to turn evil and be alone. We don't really know what happens after book four since the fifth and final book never came out but it's easy to assume that the tea didn't work and Garmadon is left all the worse for it coming out of the trip with his mental health in the gutter. We don't know to much about what happens in-between then and when he goes to Chen's Island but we do know that he doesn't seem to have gotten better since in Shatterspin he's still pretty self sacrificing and other people have begun to notice his less than stellar mental state.

Then we know what happens after the war, his mind is consumed and he is left to be less than himself. Even then when he comes back from the underworld we see that he still cares about his son, he kills the Great Devourer, he still wants to be a person. At the end of season two he gets what he wants, he cured, and for the time that he is fully himself for the first time in years he begins to apologize and try to make up for all that he did (even if it lowkey wasn't 100% his fault seeing he was being controlled by an evil snake), but even that didn't last. He dies, or moreover sacrifices himself to save Ninjago from Chen's Anacondrai army, but he dies a good person, he gets a memorial and family that mourns the truest version of himself. And then he was brought back again, ripped from the afterlife but only as half of himself, only the evil side, the side he spent thousands of years repressing until he couldn't anymore and regretted the second he was himself again. Despite that despite the fact it is supposedly only his evil side left he is still trying to be good, with the Garmadon comics showing his desire for redemption and his care for his son even in what he had thought to be his dying moments.

I think this is what makes one of the beginning lines from the Garmadon comics all the more tragic "Who knows what life he may have lived had he not been corrupted by the Great Devourer and cast into the underworld." He might have gotten to live a different life, he may have gotten to be happy and not fear what he might become, he might not have had to die multiple times over, but we'll never know because that's not what happened instead his fate was twisted by something completely and utterly out of his control.

So yeah he's a little fucked up and that's why he's my favorite! Hope y'all enjoyed my long winded rant, I have so many opinions on this man and don't even get me started on how much I hate crystalized for how it fucked up his development from the comics, but uhhh I think that's it!

If you want to you can check out my fic What Doesn't Kill You it's mostly me putting him in a jar and putting him under a microscope lol, other than that I hope yall have a great day/night and I'll see you when I appear from the mist again! PEACE OUT!

[magnusunpopularopinions]

Hopefully Protocol opinions are ok - also this might be very unpopular, but imo the Archives samcelia storyline in Magnus Protocol is less a lot interesting than the alchemy/OIAR/response department poltline, and a decent half of the TMA connections (Basira & trevor appearance, jonmartin mention at the end of an episode) feel like nostalgia bait to me, at least so far, because they feel like they serve no purpose & don't entirely make sense aside from just "Look! TMA character!" IMO, Gerry and Helen's cameos worked for me, because both progressed the plot, and both made sense where they were. It makes sense that an alt-universe Gerry is still tied to the institute, or that an alt-universe Helen is a real estate agent, but from memory I don't think its super set up for Trevor to be a government guy, or Basira working in child care, so both just feel like "Look!!!". And the jonmartin mention, while it does kinda work to close that thread for TMA fans, feels like its used as a cliffhanger, only to immediately be resolved as a dead end. Overall I just find the new stuff a lot more interesting than "lets go back to TMA stuff again because look!"

Thanks for sharing! Let’s chat!

Protocol opinions are just fine anon! And this one is super interesting!

Personally, I had a hard time getting into Protocol the same way I got into Archives. (I’m here now, but that’s not the point.) The “nostalgia baiting” was honestly part of what got me. I listened for my favorite characters, waited for familiar voices and something like a friendly face. It’s like when you read the Percy Jackson series and you get past the first couple and get to Jason’s book and go “Where’s Percy??” and you spend a minute going “Why should I care about this character?” and reading out of spite or for if Percy ever shows back up. I kept listening to Protocol to find a familiar character and then ended up loving Gwen, Celia, and Sam just the same as I ever loved Jon, Tim, or Sasha. So, I guess you could say I took the bait.

Past that, I’ve also been very interested in the OIAR response/astronomy/inter-world travel take they’ve got going on and with what that means for characters like Celia or Sam in the upcoming season. They’ve got me hooked now- past “nostalgia baiting”- and I’m locked in for this ride.

I like this take anon! It’s interesting and I can’t wait for the discussion around it with the rest of Tumblr.

Thanks again for sharing, and remember to keep your words kind!

-E

[thevoicefromanotherworld]

First of all thanks for the tag @themareverine you're the sweetest!

So here are mine!

Paul Atreides AKA The voice from another world, the character that gives name to my account. I feel deeply connected to him at levels that no one will ever understand but me 🖤

Maximus Decimus Meridius.

He's so special to me I can't even put it into words, he's so precious to me, I love him so much 🖤

Logan Howlett

All versions of him but specially dofp, old Logan and Origins. He's very important to me, I can't even put it into words, I love him so much 🖤

Dean Winchester

What can I say about him? Supernatural is my favorite show I binge it all during the pandemic. It literally saved my life and when I first show him for the first time I felt so connected to him, that omg i'm crying while writting this. The pain he was feeling, the grief but also the joy and happiness where feeling I was experiencing too during that time. I don't know how to explain it, but I'm who I'm and how I'm today thanks to him, he's the reason why I'm never going to give up on anything 🖤

Harry Potter

My first crush ever. This movies and this books are so SO important to me, you see, the Philosopher's Stone was the first book I read without images at the age of thirteen, and that I would never forget it. He's me I'm him 🖤

Loki Laufeyson

Let's not forget him, I can't explain my feelings for him, honestly. He's such a pure soul, who only wants to be loved and people who cared about him. I love him with all my soul 🖤

AND I'M GOING TO STOP BECAUSE I HAVE SO MANY THAT THEY WOULDN'T EVEN ENTER ME EVEN IF I PUBLISHED 1,000 POSTS LOL

Show your blorbos

Thank you for the tags, my loves @milla-frenchy @tateypots @sunshineispunk @sawymredfox @schnarfer @joelmillerisapunk @bonezone44 @itwasntimethatdidit40 💞💞💞

I feel like I’m doing everything ages later these days, when everyone’s already done with a game. But better late than never, right?😅

I’ll start with my favourite Pedro boys😍

Don’t glare, Joel! You’re always my number one😁

Joel Miller. He’s not my first Pedro love (it was Din) but the biggest one for sure❤️ (52 fics prove my obsession😅) I think we all feel the same about him so I don’t need to explain why I love the man. I don’t wanna start crying��� He deserves everything best. The love of my life❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

Din Djarin. He’s such a cunt lol but also soft, kind, brave, caring!! he’s the best dad🥹😍 His armor is super hot, his voice makes me weak but I lost my mind when he took his helmet off. He was so miserable and bloody, just my type🥺🥵 and Din brought me to fanfic so he’ll forever be in my heart🥹❤️‍🔥

Javi P. Do I even need to explain myself?🫠🫠🫠

Frankie Morales. When I need comfort, I write Frankie. My perfect teddy bear😍❤️

Tommy Miller. Gabriel Luna played him so well! he’s gorgeous and his kind eyes and sweet smile won my heart🥹❤️‍🔥

Dean, Sam, Cas. I put these three together because I love them equally (ok, I love Dean a liiiiittle bit more)❤️‍🔥

Jeff and Britta (Community) She’s a beautiful mess, he’s a lovable asshole, I wanna be their third❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

Love Quinn (You) I love her so fn much! She’s passionate, she loves hard and just wants to be happy🥹 She’s never done anything wrong😤

Chandler Bing. What an amazing character! Desperately looking for love and then being the absolute best tv husband😍 and his sense of humor is everything!! My favorite Friend for sure❤️❤️❤️

Kylo Ren. My baby😍 He’s just a hurt boy inside who wanted to be loved🥺 I’m pretty sure I was conditioned to love him harder by all amazing fics I read about him bc the movies left me disappointed tbh. Thank gods for fanfic and our talented writers❤️

Ahh I had so much fun thinking about my loves😍

Npt💞 @iamasaddie @toxicanonymity @604to647 @huskyfox5 @ellasinnombre @magpiepills @corazondebeskar @princessanglophile @evolnoomym and you🫵

[estrangedandwayward]

Genna Lannister

[watchoutforchildren]

So spoilers for Black Butler: Book of the Atlantic, but I feel like we don’t talk about Lizzie genuinely trying to murder a whole ass person enough.

Like, yeah, she’s a girl boss, love her, her whole scene with the swords was one of the best character redeems I’ve ever seen. But immediately after that she tries to stab Grelle in the NECK and NO ONE EVER TALKS ABOUT IT-

[waywardsalt]

picked up a copy of and read the king in yellow (signalis reasons) and going in was like hmmmmm this probably wont end up being something i take inspiration from for the fic it’d be too on the nose to take inspiration from the king in yellow and i dont want much horror inspiration haha. and then like half of the book is romance anyways im so fucked either way yayyyy

[my-current-obsession]

I am taking note of every single villager who honestly suggests that Micah's half-monster status might have given his chosen bride cold feet and led to her running away and they are ALL dropping several positions in my internal character ranking.

[wundrousarts]

Hey, Owl House fans that are looking for other media to get into now that the show has ended: check out the Nevermoor series by Jessica Townsend!

The series is about a young girl named Morrigan Crow, who is whisked away to the magical city of Nevermoor the night she is supposed to die. Once there, she has to navigate her new home in the whimsical Hotel Deucalion, her education at the prestigious Wundrous Society, and the truth about the mysterious and powerful legacy she belongs to.

The series is categorized as middle grade/~YA, so it's similar in how it can appeal to an all-ages audience. Like The Owl House, it balances lighter moments with darker, more sinister revelations (and they're just getting started!). The author is queer herself and openly expresses her thoughts against + directly confronts bigotry and hatred while also being just an all-around wonderful person.

It contains some classic tropes such as a magical school, found family, and corrupt authority figures, all in unique and fresh ways. There is a diverse cast of characters, including a sapphic couple where one of them works at a magical library (sound familar...? 😉). There are several multi-dimensional antagonists, and they all work to challenge Morrigan and the story in their own unique ways. Also: there's a giant talking cat! Love that.

The series has an interesting magic system + worldbuilding, with tons of lore and history to dig your hands into and theorize if that's what you like. The character development is so fun and interesting as Morrigan and her friends grow up and find their place in the world. The world is so fleshed out that you can easily pick a minor side character or a location that's briefly mentioned, and extrapolate on how and where they fit into the story and themes as a whole.

There are three books out already, out of nine planned books. The fourth book Silverborn comes out in October, so there's plenty of time to get caught up until then! I highly recommend giving it a try.

[scarlettfevor]

Looking back, the way Garroth was acting in the last episodes of season one of diaries was ridiculous. Like, you're a grown ass man WHY are you, as the head guard, sulking in your room all day just because you saw the girl you've liked for literally 2 months kiss another guy when your village is on the brink of war???

[grimm-the-tiger]

Studying Scandinavian history is downright painful sometimes. Excuse me, sir, I don't want to read about your weird opinions on racial superiority, I just want to read about Denmark and Sweden kicking each other around like footballs.

[scrambledd3ggss]

Charlie Thorne doodle <3 (featuring the shitty lighting of my book light)

[eyepatchdate]

read the death in the family robin lives and. man. only a few pages changed but the difference is just staggering, knowing the history. my heart breaks a little.

[xhda1449x]

ok apparently 30 tags is the limit on tumblr and I'm putting it here because I couldn't put it in the tags

for my own curiosity, because my tragedy enjoying boggles the minds of a bunch of my irl social circle.

[shitpostingkats]

An Asexual's love letter to Good Omens 2

There's an infamous quote by Neil Gaiman going around, regarding the general vibe of season 2, and many people (I believe humorously) yelling that it could not be further from the truth. Particularly in the last episode, where that happens.

I disagree.

The final episode of season 2 was deeply, deeply comforting to me. 

I am asexual. Have been my whole life. Even before I had the words to describe what that was, child-me had this feeling in their gut of being an outlier, that everyone was exaggerating, or in on some joke, that I wasn’t privy to. Because I was bombarded on all sides by shows and movies and books, telling the same story of love, again, and again, and AGAIN. It’s drilled into our brains with the same fervor as the days of the week, or the quadratic formula. Meet-cute -> misunderstanding ->declaration of feelings ->kiss. More or less steps can be added to account for runtime or complexity of narrative, but that’s the basic structure that a relationship follows. It MUST be, because that’s the formula every character who's ever been in a story goes through, often times when it even feels like an add-on, like it’s only there because this is a story, there HAS to be a romance. And it has to follow the steps.

For a long time, I felt love wasn’t for me, because if there’s only one way to be in love, I sure as hell wasn’t feeling it. 

Instead, the relationship I ended up in looked a lot like what Beezlebub and Gabriel go through. Meeting someone routinely until it starts to feel comfortable. Getting to know them and slowly growing more attached. Eating chips and listening to music.

We like to joke whenever someone asks us how long we’ve been together, because the answer is we just sort of slowly fell into it, and we honestly don’t know when the line got blurred between ‘friends’ and ‘partners’. And, at least for me, a good deal of that confusion, that hesitancy to label, came from the fact that what I was feeling, what we were, couldn’t be love. It couldn’t be romantic. 

We were just quiet and gentle.

And that wasn’t love.

Because it was slow, because it wasn’t physical, because there was no structure aside from consistency and companionship. Because it didn’t follow the Rules.

Then I found myself in stories, and it felt like a revelation.

Beelzebub and Gabriel aren’t the first time I’ve seen a love like I feel represented in a narrative, but it never stops feeling special. And I don’t know if I’ll ever stop celebrating it.

Throughout the sequence in the pub, I kept expecting them to “confirm” Gabriel and Beelzebub. A dramatic line, a kiss, a whatever. That’s what I’ve been taught to expect, after all, that’s the only way a relationship is “real”. Of course, this doesn't mean Crowley and Aziraphale sharing a dramatic kiss is wrong, or that I can’t see why it resonated with so many people, but for me. Those moments in the pub are worth so much more.The last scene might have been literally showstopping, but those handful of moments between the duke of hell and an archangel were the beating heart of the season for me. A simple love story in four scenes. No kisses. No ‘I love you’s. Not even any definition of what. The love Gabriel and Beelzebub have is strong enough for them to both want to shatter their worlds and flee their lives and it's just. 

It's just that. 

Two people in a pub, playing the other's favorite song, giving a little gift, buying a packet of crisps. 

That sequence means far more to me than any kiss ever could.

Love isn’t only real when it's hot and sudden and ephemeral, it can also be

Quiet.

And gentle.

And still romantic.

Still real.