#one of them even impersonates anime characters!!!

[sskk-manifesto]

Ep 5!!!

[residentwordsofaffirmationdealer]

hi guys. i keep seeing posts about damian talking about how he's kill-happy, or is he the most likely to break bruce's no-kill rule and here's my comprehensive reply, as a damian scholar:

damian has already made the conclusion that killing is bad (and has adhered to that for over ten years). he does not kill anyone anymore. he is not a "feral demon/gremlin". his (current) morals are very similar to his allies + family but in total, i'd say most like cass & bruce.

he is a very complex character who is NOT a remorseless, violent killer but rather a child who was trained to be a warrior (and arguably a weapon as well). he DOES feel very intense remorse and guilt for his actions, and is also very genuinely compassionate and cares very deeply for other people and animals!!

main themes that are often emphasized in works centered around damian are redemption, acceptance (from his family & allies), atonement, and forgiveness. damian will work to redeem himself not because "bruce told him to do it" but because he knows it is the right thing to do!! anyway, not to understate bruce's role in making damian who he is, as of course damian does look up to bruce a lot, but ultimately, damian made his own choices about who he is and what he stands for.

i know he makes a lot of statements about killing and violence but it is a facade he puts up -- often times he will mock or ridicule dick (whom he has mockingly called the angel on his shoulder) because damian will say something like "i'm going to kill x person" and then dick will reprimand him but they both know damian would not have done it anyway -- in the 2016 nightwing, there's a scene where damian says he will kill dinesh, a robin impersonator, but when dinesh is killed, damian gets mad at his attacker, lunging at him while yelling "he was just a kid!"

also, i stated earlier how he is a lot like cassandra in terms of morals. this is because she, like batman, truly believes in redemption and seconds chances. i'd argue that one of "the batman's" defining value is his belief in redemption, not his obsession with vengeance. a fundamental part of his character is the belief in second chances. he will always be there to help the people of his city -- whether it be saving kids or defusing bombs or providing support for the rehabilitation of villains -- think of the BTAS scenes of two face saying "good old bruce, he was always there for me" or how many times bruce has supported harley quinn in her journey to redemption or in general how many times he's rescued the joker instead of let him die out or how many times bruce has forgiven jason. cass is also very obviously similar to bruce. in the batgirl (2000) series, there's an issue where she tries to "rescue" a man who was sentenced to death. she rescues him because she truly believed he was capable changing -- even if he was a murderer. she, too, was one but has learned and grown, but he'll never get that opportunity. similarly in shadow war (2022), damian has a similar crisis where brion markov (geoforce), pretending to be deathstroke, assassinates ra's al ghul. in the major confrontation scene, damian lunges at him, yelling "you killed my grandfather!" as they fight, brion compares himself to damian and tries to manipulate him into disliking the al ghul side of his family. brion says "i was also trained to be a weapon. but i did it out of love for my country. but you? what your mother and grandfather did to you. how they tried to kill you. and here you are defending them. seeking revenge? protecting killers?". damian's response to that is "it doesn't matter who they were. you killed people. your actions led to the death of others. people who never had a change to change." this is especially interesting because it shows his growth -- he understands that people will always have the chance to grow, and he wants to encourage that, not take lives -- it's also almost exactly the same conflict cass had like 20 years ago!!

also, its super interesting from the point where one of his major inecurities is people not thinking he's good enough -- and good as in pure/moral etc. he (for a long time) has hesitated to call himself a hero, and has had nightmares about dick thinking when damian died, he went to hell, and so on. all damian wants is to redeem himself and be accepted, and he's scared that the people he loves the most do not think he is capable of that, and he's especially scared that they think he belongs in hell. more than anything, he wants to prove himself to them, and he tries and he tries and he tries. he'll never stop trying, even when bruce tells him that he's selfish, uncompassionate, and untrustworthy. even when he's hurt that tim puts him on his hit list. even when he thinks dick is replacing him by having his a new kid.

in all, he, like cass and bruce, very strongly believes that everybody is capable of redemption and he worries that him killing maya's father (a supervillain) means that he took away any possibility for her dad to turn his life around. most importantly, as much as he believes in forgiveness for everybody else, he does not believe he deserves forgiveness -- he is not a heartless killer/feral demon child etc etc.

[mirror-to-the-past]

People weren't kidding, that really was one of the most Xingyun moments ever, lol.

Aside from Xingqiu stammering and blushing at Chongyun's compliments and the absolute anime romcom trope-iness that is Chongyun obliviously asking why Xingqiu's face is red (we win! we win!!), can we also talk about how damning Traveler's teasing was?

"His yang energy seems to be surging, too."

Traveler is clearly very tongue-in-cheek about this, knowing full well Xingqiu doesn't have the same pure-yang disposition as Chongyun, and therefore won't blush because of it. However, given the multiple occasions Hoyo has gone out of their way to utilize Chongyun's condition in the past as a medium for tropey, anime-like responses of embarassment (i.e. Chongyun's pure-yang energy giving him a nosebleed when Xingqiu tried to sing to him in the "If You Were Rex Lapis" stream), it does come across as pointed observation from the Traveler to subtly mess with Xingqiu and Chongyun alike about the ways they willingly and unwillingly fluster each other.

So yeah, very cute. ^_^

Aside from that, can I just say I absolutely love this event and want it to be a cemented feature for the rest of the game's runtime? I'm not seeing enough people talking about it! It's really the perfect solution for the gacha game dilemma of chatacter oversaturation.

I, as much as the next person, wish for all our faves to have the most perfect epic event quest tailor-made for them, with character depth, development and all. However, since:

1. Hoyo is allergic to sustained character development, even in the event of characters getting a really cool, awesome 10/10 event or story quest, and...

2. Characters will likely not get attention unless it is for a promotional thing such as an outfit, banner rerun, or character debut, which exponentially decreases the likelihood of non-new 4 stars getting any attention. (The summer events are pretty much all we can rely on for a random scramble of characters coming into the spotlight after being shelved without it being sales related, haha!)

...I think this is the next best thing!

Giving us little canned, slice-of-life looks into the character's day-to-day, without a grandiose story or threat, is such a wonderful way to see the characters act in low-stake situations that aren't centered around having a hangout that's focused on them acting as a host to the Traveler. Instead, we're checking in on *their* affairs and goals, and even having little snippets into their interactions with other characters outside of just what we may read about their relationships in the Character Story!

I absolutely LOVED the cutscene with Yao Yao and Qiqi where Qiqi mourns the fact that her memory issues will cause her to forget the episodic experience of every lovely memory she has with the people she cherishes, and that she'll be forced to only relive them through her impersonal journal records. When she was talking about forgetting the green of the leaves, the breeze, and the feel of Yao Yao's hand, I felt my heart break a little bit. It's some of the most compelling on-screen discussion of Qiqi's condition since, well, as far back as I can remember!

And they didn't need a big Qiqi-centered SQ or event for it- they pulled it off with nothing more than a handful of small cutscenes that clued us in to the more intimate parts of Qiqi's life.

If we keep this kind of event present in the game, and switch it up between prior regions, I think it'll help so much with keeping the world feel alive, and keeping the players still compelled by their favorites from previous regions without necessarily stealing the spotlight from whatever focal point region is active at the time. I love reminders that our old friends are still up to their own affairs, struggling with new day-to-day problems, and missing us while we're away- but still entrenched in their own goals and relationships (and not like. ceasing to exist when the Traveler is gone, lol).

So anyway, I hope to see the playerbase giving this event some love so it may come back due to popular demand, this time having more Inazuma and Sumeru characters!

[weebsinstash]

Can you make pretty please write some yandere thragg headcannons

Sure can! (Also some minor spoilers with a like more mild spoiler that's in an image so like, it's censored but poorly so, yeah just a warning!)

- first and foremost to give some very minor future spoilers, there is something you have to understand: even by Viltrumite standards Thragg is considered Way Too Hardcore and there are men like Conquest who are even worse, more shortsighted, and bloodthirstier than him. There ARE Viltrumites who think their society is way too unfeeling and heartless and they DO want to love and be normal and have loving families but this is a... a society with an ancient culture with traditions that are being upheld by force that keep the general Viltrumite populace living in misery and Thragg is a huge enforcer of this unhappy lifestyle. Like shit in one of the newest episodes of Invincible a bunch of Viltrumites rocked up to Mark and beat the absolute shit out of him and Kregg (eyepatch guy) was like "yeah you survived getting the shit beat out of you which proves you're strong and worthy of your viltrumire heritage, so I'm drafting you into the Viltrum army, do what we say or we'll beat the shit out of you" AND THATS ONE OF THE GOOD VILTRUMITES. Like literally Viltrum society is terrifying and once you start learning the lengths with which they enforce their beliefs and rules you'll see why Nolan was like, trying to force Mark to be like him; you resist and they DEMOLISH YOU. Nolan was and still is TERRIFIED of Viltrum and rightfully so

- a yandere thragg is quite literally a character who does not know affection or how to display or receive it in any way whatsoever because his entrenchment in the "traditional viltrumite mindset" and his own greed for power and absolute control makes him incredibly impersonal. Like I'm serious even with the like magical yandere cooties that make him finally understand what love or obsession is, he will literally have to learn the ropes of caring for you as another person and this is a man who has been taught empathy and kindness make you weak so like. Yeah. Like we're talking about a guy who at some point is gonna watch his hybrid children literally splatter as he throws them, literally throws them, at enemies too strong for them and then blames his kids for not being stronger, like. Thragg is a monster and there's no ifs ands or buts about it

-the most romantic this man can come up with is walking straight up to you and telling you "I want to mate" to your face and having gifts made for you from planets he's conquered or things he's killed and that's the best he's got. He doesn't understand the more emotional psychological side of love but he at least understands that sex is something mates do and that it's a bonding experience between you and him and it's a physical pleasure, vulnerability thing. Mated animals have sex and human mates have sex so the two of you are going to have sex alright? He also won't admit it but like. Holding you after sex or letting you rest against him afterwards is the closest you'll get to cuddling because like. He's not gonna ask to cuddle with you just for the sake of cuddling. And even if he ever wanted to (the desire grows with time lol), he would just sit down beside you and pull you into his lap, he wouldn't ask your permission

-like seriously you'll be in bed and it's like 2 am and you'll be woken up by him suddenly rolling you over without any sort of warning, "i want to mate" and that's just. It. You get to lie there as he folds you like a pretzel

-this man fucks just to cum and I think the only way he could be a good lover is if he's big with stamina and you'll reach orgasm through sheer overstimulation and time dedicated because, you want me to believe this man knows foreplay? You think Thragg can eat ass? Please. I feel like in the depths of. Yandereness he would develop a taste for giving oral but like I'm, I'm pretty positive you would be the first ever person he's done that to

- thragg showing affection is like. You're taken along with him to where he works and you walk into the room and he's just absolutely soaked in blood and there's some sort of creature being dismantled in front of him and he turns to you, "this creature has a carapace that can be crafted into fine armor. does its color please you" "y-yes?" "Very well. We shall have a matching set ready by the evening and then we shall mate" "o-ok... thank you Grand Regent" "begone, this area is not safe for you, return to the central hall and await my return" "ok, sure, yeah... I mean, yes Grand Regent"

- yes, even as his mate you'll be calling him his title all the time, although I imagine once he starts really "softening up" he'll demand you call him his name or even "husband" and not doing so and using his title on purpose in defiance will anger him

-absolutely convinced I shit you not that Viltrumites have a duality of "their photos/shrines of you have you either looking as soft and harmless and helpless as possible or they have entire collages of you looking absolutely pissed or doing violent shit" and I'm convinced Thragg would find you being angry hot. Idk. I feel like it's entirely contextual. You give HIM too much lip, he may have to physically punish you, but maybe you get furious at someone else and start tearing into them, even wanting to fight? Obviously depending on context he'll encourage you to tear that person to shreds

- I'm stuck on whether he's a "will watch you get your ass beaten because he wants you to toughen up/fight your own fights" or "if anyone scratches you they're paste" kind of guys. Like can you imagine some, tenured centuries old Viltrumite manages to just absolute piss you off and you're yelling and screaming and swinging on them (maybe you're a human, hybrid, Viltrumite yourself, whatever) and they're just. Forced to stand there and take it. Because the SECOND they so much as GRAB YOU, there's the Grand Regent to absolutely beat their ass. You could almost kill them and Thragg is like goading you on but if they BRUISE YOU like, that's it, it's so one-sided

-I'm just saying, like. Nolan literally used Mark to tear apart an entire subway car of people and was casually offing humans left and right because his status as an almost immortal alien has made him kind of indifferent to other forms of life so like. What the fuck would Thragg do to a Reader who just got their powers and didn't want to work for the Empire or be part of it or even be around him. You cannot convince me this man wouldn't kill so many people directly in front of you. Or even just as a human yourself. Imagine him just tearing through tons of other people because he's trying to scare you onto line. I mean. Nolan was literally ripping people's heads and faces off and tearing out chunks of their body with their bare hands. These people casually break each other's bones and CAN SURVIVE DISEMBOWLING EACH OTHER like. You cannot tell me Thragg wouldn't just literally tear a human in half right in front of you like a kid with a butterfly.

- Thragg is absolutely on that "goes from being extremely distant and nonverbal to all but spending every second of the day with you and gets agitated if you're in a different room for too long" yandere pipeline. This man goes from not knowing how to properly hold a conversation with you to Oh My God If You Don't Sit In My Lap During My War Council Meeting I Will Be SUCH A Bitch About It

Can we like. Can we like talk about THIS

Did he like. Did HE decide this. Is this a Thraxan custom without his input amd this is just a thing the monarch gets. I mean. Comic readers know this man gets MAD pussy for the sake of breeding but like. Is this HIS harem. Did HE build this. Did he tell them to dress like this or is this a Thraxan tradition and he's just like so unbothered by the ass and tiddies. Is this just so people can tell these are His Designated Hoes. Like. Is he secretly being horny on main and pretending he's not a perv or was this done for him and he's just like meh. Yandere Thragg who absolutely HAS to dress you up in custom Viltrum wear or armor or cloaks that match his own, like literally him decking you in armor or like a nicely padded flightsuit is like his version of, giving you lingerie or publicly marking you idk. Like is seeing you covered in sweat and blood just as hot as a normal person would find like, nudes. Lmao

- LASTLY I'm sorry long post. I know I said something conflicting earlier in a different context but. Oh my gosh this man would be THE WORST but also dedicated yandere father. Oh my fucking god. Helicopter parent. Let's just say if you're shooting the shots, you can impregnate as many creatures as you want but if you're the one capable of being pregnant he doesn't want to let you do SHIT because he doesn't want his baby carrying inferior spawn or having a risky pregnancy. Like seriously you could be his son and fucking like as many fucked up weird looking aliens and impregnating all the chicks you want and Thragg doesn't care, and as his daughter it's "father when will I be allowed to date, I came of age over a century ago" "quiet, I have yet to find a suitable mate for you, just continue being obedient and accompany me on this mission" "yes father...."

I can't even imagine like. Being his kid and being powerless, or like temporarily powerless. You have one of those manhwa level neglected childhoods and you grow into a depressed husk and suddenly your powers appear and you're naturally gifted and like above average in everything and Thragg wants to suddenly bond with you and you just look right through him like you wouldn't care if he suddenly dropped dead right in front of you. Someone disrespected you and you just take it because you still remember running up to your father as a child and being shoved away amd he literally doesn't even understand why you have no respect for yourself so he then tries to smother you to make up for lost time

Idk. I'm caught between multiple ideas because I like the idea of Thragg going "oh so you're fragile and powerless? You're literally never leaving my side ever again, if something wants to harm you they'll have to kill me first" and this extends to you just having no life of your own. Maybe he forces you to be a clerk or something for him, papers and desk work and whatnot, something that keeps you safe and close and if you get so much as a sniffle there's an entire array of royal doctors to treat you

That being said, daughter, son, wife, husband, partner, whatever, you're not getting away from this guy. The only things capable of hurting him are essentially alien technology, Viltrumite strength, being a species stronger than a Viltrumite, magic, like... he's invulnerable, he's invincible, he's way too strong, way too fast, and way too mean. He'll keep you on your toes and he'll casually pop heads in front of you like it's talking about the weather if it keeps you in line. If he wants you to be his soldier, you'll be his soldier. If he wants you to be his personal guard, you will be. His mate? No objections need be considered. He's always taken what he wants - that's how he was raised and what his society encourages - and that means acquiring you and absorbing you into his life is no different

[rainfeathers]

Love getting attached to a character who doesn’t even show up in the game ever. Real Zilch nation where you at.

A few headcanons I’ve got (chapter 5 spoilers)

The ears are real. They’re just a hat for the hitman, but actual Zilch has them (and maybe a tail). How does that work? Not a damn clue but if Yuma can have a death god girlboytoy Zilch can be a furry irl.

In his last moments he wasn’t scared for himself, but for his animals. Would they understand what happened, or would they just realize slowly he’s never coming home? He dreads the idea that they might think he abandoned them.

his demeanor and personality is much like hitman’s. Given the hitman’s talent is impersonations, I figure his impersonation of Zilch was accurate.

He was meant to be Yuma’s mentor. Decided by Yuma himself pre-amnesia. I saw this mentioned in another post somewhere and it makes sense. Why were no other detectives clued in that a trainee was coming along? Because Zilch was, and then he ate shit and died. Even if he wasn’t specifically a mentor, I like to imagine he was in on the plan. (Maybe not of the number one/yuma switch, but that a trainee was coming along).

Side note: I feel like I’m getting a little more comfortable with human art. This didn’t take me eight hours so we r winning.

[folcanta]

rewatching Cowboy Bebop as i recover from surgery.

it's really cute and somewhat bittersweet to see how Sunrise got there from Escaflowne... (Watanabe also boarded on Escaflowne and you can reeeeally tell in episode 5.) those delicious dutch angles. they're not "cinematic" in the sense of being nice to look at, although they are. they're cinematic in that they both literally pull from film theory in their compositions and cuts, in a way that sets them apart from pretty much everything else. Jet's episodes are mini Michael Mann films and they're really good lol, clever beats and editing. overall extremely well-directed, tightly considered, and both stories have a huge, endlessly sympathetic interest in humanity. Sunrise is the Wow Cool Robot factory and they're still being Wow Cool Robot'd up to 2025!!

by the esteemed titas vilkaitis

maybe it's just my interpretation, but by watching this i think you can tell how much they loved Escaflowne + were jilted by its unlit brain reception. Bebop too sought to completely break/redefine the boundaries of genre but it's so much more bitter/cynical and imo emotionally withholding— and ancillary deaths have little meaning and there's usually something to take the attention/edge off of sad and sombre moments. which is nothing like Escaflowne, where emotions are allowed to hang in the air as atmosphere.

Escaflowne is a fantastical but dystopian distant past (war-torn, creating huge weapons of war by ripping energists— an analogue for both oil and nuclear energy— from the natural world) with a difficult but defined fix/conclusion, if the characters can gain unclouded awareness of themselves and each other. Escaflowne believed in utopia, one that is very much possible when disarmed, built with focused intent on mutual respect and commonality— communistic, even if we don't know what exactly happens with the royals of the story, we can see what's truly valued and status is not it. Cowboy Bebop sees itself beyond utopia; the time for utopia has ended with people so scattered and severed from one another, at once stratified and classless, where classlessness of this kind is not freedom. Bebop is a fantastical but dystopian distant future with no fix/conclusion, as the characters reject themselves and each another. both stories are about how the past walks with its characters, how it lives alongside them and how they're stuck— willingly and very much not— in its cycle. there's even an eye motif, one which began with Escaflowne ;^)

i love Cowboy Bebop, i have it memorised forward and backward on the inside of my eyelids, but the stuff it's critiquing is so similar to Escaflowne it does make me a little sad how shallowly these stories were taken and then iterated upon with such diminishing returns. you can't so easily iterate on something that commented on and predicted not just the future of storytelling, but also us as people— and now we just try to rehash the old instead of making predictions/engaging with the present and future ourselves. or even the past, really. stuck in suspended animation trying to regurgitate what worked once for a world that decided none of it was needed anymore, and opted for the cheap, the easy, the impersonal. you can't just thoughtlessly breathe life into something that entire systems have deemed dead unless you also seek to confront, dismantle, and work outside those systems as much as possible— otherwise you're reanimating a corpse.

does anyone really give a shit about the live action Bebop remake? does it really hold a candle to the original? what's the point? why bother making bullshit if you could make something beautiful instead? WELL, because companies want more money. your nostalgia is someone at netflix's paycheque as they delete entire libraries of film from their catalogue. please god never remake Escaflowne. the circumstances which produced it are gone. we have moved on. it's horrible and unfair but that's what happened. we're in schlock city now, baby.

like just read the full text from the Bebop interstitial,

Once upon a time, in New York City in 1941... at this club open to all comers to play, night after night, at a club named "Minston's Play House" in Harlem, they play jazz sessions competing with each other. Young jazz men with a new sense are gathering. At last they created a new genre itself. They are sick and tired of the conventional fixed style jazz. They're eager to play jazz more freely as they wish then... in 2071 in the universe... The bounty hunters, who are gathering in the spaceship "BEBOP", will play freely without fear of risky things. They must create new dreams and films by breaking traditional styles. The work, which becomes a new genre itself, will be called... COWBOY BEBOP

that is a STRONG manifesto. nothing in Bebop or in Escaflowne is random. it is written and designed to be signfiicant, but that light shines more or less strongly on different elements within each. maybe if Escaflowne had outright stated its aims and ideals in this way, more people would've understood and appreciated its range and depth. maybe. maybe.

in either case, it's sad and disappointing that works of art made in a time where art spoke directly to us and asked things of us were/are sidelined. we weren't being condescended to by the art around us. we were being instructed to have standards and aspirations and conversations. i look at these beautiful, heartfelt pieces with wonder. i can't love them as mere slivers of their whole because i can see that those pieces aren't disparate, nothing exists on its own, every person and every relationship, every action and reaction, everything is important. pulling it apart only reveals more of how it's connected.

oh but look at this...

:^) cute

[cyranonic]

Dragon Age: The Veilguard, a Belated Review

Well, I finally finished playing Veilguard and I've got some thoughts. For context, I'm a big fan of the previous 3 Dragon Age games and of fantasy RPGs in general, so my review is very much informed by that. The TLDR is: Veilguard isn't the worst game ever, but I really did not like it and I feel like it exemplifies a lot of my problems with the modern media landscape. Full explanation below the cut:

There were definitely some things in Veilguard that I enjoyed. It looked nice; combat was intuitive and snappy; VAs did great work. But I am fundamentally more interested in story than technical stuff so I want to focus on that. Some individual story arcs were fun out of the context of the whole. A few of my favorite parts:

Assan!!! Cutest baby boy!! His bond with Davrin was probably the most emotional part of the whole game for me lol

Emmerich's personal quest overall was enjoyable in a zany, campy way. I adopted the skeleton. No regrets.

Solas memory quests! I liked how we kept seeing him sacrifice his own people for the greater good. Set up the theme of the story well and allowed for some good Dreadwolf tricks and gambits.

Bellara taking up the Varric mantle, except that she write romance serials made me laugh (no one tell Cassandra about this; she will lose her mind)

It was actually really sweet when Lucanis and Neve got together

However, even the things in the game that did work for me were all slightly tainted by some bigger overarching issues I have with the tone, lore, companions, and execution of the story overall.

Problem 1: Tone

A lot of other reviews have mentioned that the tone of Veilguard feels cartoony or simplistic, and I unfortunately agree. All of the dialogue has this slightly obnoxious, Marvel movie-esque, jokey tone to it. Serious moments are often undercut by Rook's quip-heavy responses and there is a lot of that irony-poisoned, insincere, self-awareness that would be great in a Deadpool movie, but not a Dragon Age game.

I'm not against humor in a Dragon Age game and, in fact, I love and cherish the comedic moments in the earlier games (purple Hawke forever haha). I think the difference is that earlier Dragon Age games took the story, world, and characters very seriously. The humor was the characters themselves being funny within that very serious world, not the whole tone of the game itself being light-hearted and wacky.

For example, let's examine Johanna Hezenkoss, the villain of Emmerich's quest. I overall enjoyed the quest a lot, but one cannot ignore how silly the tone of it is. Johanna is a necromancer who is now half-lich--the classic Dragon Age trope of a mage gone wrong. However, she is never really treated as a seriously disturbing threat or a genuinely tragic figure. She is basically a wacky mad scientist, complete with a funny crawling hand gag. It isn't bad writing, exactly. It did get some chuckles out of me. But it does exemplify the tone of the game overall--nothing feels like a big deal because it all seems vaguely silly and self-aware and on-the-nose.

In a less fun example, I am quite unhappy with the ways that this game tries to avoid dealing with the canonical racism and social inequity that previous games established. Like yes, we get some mentions that the Shadow Dragons work to free slaves in Tevinter, but no characters or quest lines ever really make the player confront that reality. It feels distant, impersonal, and stripped of complexity. I will readily acknowledge that Dragon Age hasn't always dealt with elf racism plotlines perfectly, but I respected them trying and messing up more than Veilguard just... not trying. For example, the animated show they made (Dragon Age: Absolution) dealt more maturely and interestingly with Tevinter's slave society than any part of Veilguard and I wish we had gotten more of that in a game that finally brings players into Tevinter as a main setting.

Problem 2: Lore

It would not be an exaggeration to say that a huge part of the appeal of Dragon Age as a game is simply the world that the writers created. Earlier games developed a Thedas that felt big and epic and complex. They created a setting that gave players a true fantasy experience, full of mysteries and unique societies and fun languages to learn and a rich history.

Veilguard feels very strangely uninterested in capturing that epic fantasy feeling. I cannot count the number of times that characters talked about concepts or used terms that sounded incredibly modern and bizarre given what we know about Thedas. In scenes with Morrigan, it was so obvious how older games were far more comfortable with characters sounding more archaic (dropping a 'tis on us occasionally).

Additionally, some aspects of lore were simply brushed over in very weird ways. For example, why did the Venatori so eagerly join up with elven gods, when in prior games they were, um... fairly anti-elf??? Also, why did everyone in Thedas apparently forget about the concept of Mage Circles? Did anyone give a single flying fuck about the Chantry in this game? Not particularly. Why won't anyone just call the Evanuris "the Evanuris"? Are you embarrassed by your own made-up words, game? Why does every character call them "the gods," even if they are not an elf??

One aspect of the game where Veilguard's disinterest in building its own lore really bothered me was with Taash's quest. Obviously, I have no issues with an non-binary character appearing in a fantasy setting. But the fact that Taash just kinda independently developed the term "non-binary" was very immersion-breaking to me. This might sound lame, but I want to learn some sort of cool fantasy term or an ancient pre-Qun concept of third genders or something. Just give me more fantasy stuff in my fantasy story please!!

Also, I know this controversial, but it also breaks my immersion that even playing as an NB character from Tevinter, no one ever brings up how canonically homophobic Tevinter is (thinking of Dorian and Krem here!) I think there is definitely a place for games that depict queer characters in fantasy settings being happy and accepted, but I don't think Dragon Age has ever been the franchise that people went to for comforting and hopeful visions of a fantasy society. Thedas has always been a dark, brutal, borderline dystopian world, but it still has the potential to tell queer-affirming stories about the struggle against oppression and living in defiance of your society. I wish Veilguard had done that.

Another part of the lore that felt very poorly done was the Titans. I loved the hints we had gotten in previous games through characters like Sandal and quests like The Descent DLC. But when the reveal happened in this game, all the characters kind just went "oh. huh. wild." Also I found the confrontation with, uh, evil red Harding to be very confusing and anti-climactic. The writing of the scene did not clearly telegraph what the red Harding thing even was? And then all of the rage of the Titans was very easily suppressed by Rook saying... "remember you are still you"??? Huge anticlimax that was poorly built-up and all the characters reacted to with little more than a shrug and a "dang, sucks for the Titans. I'd be pretty steamed too, I guess!" I want confrontations with the Titans to feel alien and epic and dangerous (and definitely not easily resolvable through a single dialogue option).

Problem 3: RPG elements

I feel like the developers of Veilgaurd did not want it to be an RPG and instead pushed the writers into created a more generic action/adventure game, but dang it!! I play Dragon Age because I like RPGs! I like to make choices that feel important and complicated! Veilguard gives the player a few significant choices, but I did not like them much and here is why:

Firstly, Minrathous vs. Treviso. This choice feels very forced. You have no real reason to pick one over the other unless you are planning to romance Lucanis or you are trying to role-play as a character from one of those cities. And you have no other options. I like RPG choices that either feel tactical or rooted in the lore of the world, and this is neither. The choice does not impact the game's outcome; no matter what option you choose, you can still ally with that faction and everyone will just kinda forgive you. From a role-play perspective, the game goes out of its way to reassure you that the city you Blight will eventually rebuild through grit and tenacity, etc.

Secondly, picking a character to die heroically. I hate this one because it feels like the game is trying to give you some "real consequences" and play into the larger theme of regret and leadership. But it once again, picking feels random! The game telegraphs very obviously that your choice will probably lead to this character dying or getting injured, so it isn't even shocking when it happens. And, yet again, everyone forgives Rook so quickly and immediately after the death. I actually liked the Bellara vs. Neve choice way more because I was surprised by the outcome, and that gave it more emotional weight. I thought it was just a random call; I didn't know one would be kidnapped!

Finally, the multiple endings. This was a choice that was not actually a choice. Getting the "true ending" was not based on decisions; it was just a check to see if you actually finished the game you just spent a bunch of money on. Like... yeah, obviously I finished all of the companion quests and faction quests?? I paid a lot of money to play this game so I did, in fact, play it.

For comparison, I thought a lot about BG3, which is another fantasy RPG that I played recently. That game allows you to make lots of choices that feel like part of the role-play and impact the ending of the game (is my Tav evil? Does my Tav want to rule the world with the Absolute's power or do they want to save it? Is my Tav willing to compromise with evil in order to make life easier?) Veilguard does not let you role-play much with Rook. You cannot create an evil Rook. You cannot play as a Rook who wants to tear down the Veil or side with the Evanuris. That's fine, I get that BG3 was a really hard game to make, but it makes Veilguard less of an RPG.

A closer comparison might be to look at a choice from a previous Dragon Age game. One decision that comes to mind was the choice between the Mages and the Templars in DAII. This isn't a particularly tactical choice (you still have to fight both bosses regardless) nor is it a choice that significantly changes the ending of the game. But it is a role-playing choice! By that point in the game, the player has gotten tons of information about the mage/templar conflict. They have seen multiple perspectives on the issue and seen the problems with both points of view. Therefore, the choice is fun because it feels like a declaration of belief. You, the player, are forced to pick which organization you see as less flawed or more ideologically valid, and by that point in the game, you care about that choice. Your companion characters are deeply invested in this conflict too, and so, if you care about them, then you care about the decision even when it doesn't change the ending.

With the choices in Veilguard, I was either not invested in the choice because the situation felt so arbitrary, or the choice was not really a role-play choice at all, but simply a sign of completing the game.

Problem 4: Companion Characters

Perhaps the most disappointing part of Veilguard to me is the characters, because I feel like they all had potential to be fascinating, but the writing played it way too safe.

A lot of the companions were strong concepts (a noir detective from Minrathous! an assassin possessed by a demon! a scholarly necromancer!) but I feel like their storylines never gave them much depth and often felt strangely unfinished. I think Lucanis and Harding suffered the most from being incredibly underwritten (Lucanis' Spite plotline feels like they just forgot to add another mission in?). Other characters had personal quests that were oddly paced (Bellara's brother is dead! Wait, no, he's alive. But we might have to kill him! Just kidding, we don't have to kill him. Oh no, he still died!) or with stakes that were not properly set-up (why does Neve care so much about a random templar guy who we never meet or learn anything about prior to her telling us that he died?)

Ultimately, I think the biggest issue I had with the companion characters is it felt like the writers never wanted to take any risks. There were no genuinely surprising twists like with Solas or Anders or Morrigan. There were no major RPG decisions like with Alistair or Isabella. There were no characters who were genuinely unlikable or flawed or at least morally ambiguous. I'm not insisting that companion characters all be dicks, but flawed characters feel more real, human, and therefore more empathetic to me. I love Cassandra because her faith and devotion to her cause does blind her to injustice. I love Fenris because his trauma has made him so defensive and prickly. I love Zevran because his survival strategies are horribly messed up.

I wish Veilguard had given us characters that felt more flawed. I wish they had been brave enough to show us companion characters acting terribly--lashing out in pain, or struggling with their core beliefs, or even fully betraying the party if their approval was low or the player made certain choices! Let me make Lucanis evil if I destroy Treviso! Let me see Neve genuinely go down a dark path and become the dark mage she has always fought against! Let me see Davrin truly asking himself if the Grey Wardens are a cause that he has the heart to fight for anymore!

In general, while it was cool to explore lots of different factions and parts of Thedas, the game never really put those perspectives into conversation. The threat of the Evanuris was meant to be so overwhelming and apocalyptic that in-fighting wouldn't really make sense. But I want in-fighting! I want the Veiljumpers to have serious issues with the Lord of Fortune surrounding ancient artifacts! I want the Grey Wardens to distrust the Antivan Crows because they are criminals. I want the Mournwatch and the Shadow Dragons to debate about what types of magic should be forbidden. Let things be complicated!

Veilguard, I beg you, let situations be emotionally difficult. Allow the player to be uncomfortable at times. Trust that the story will be better if the characters do not constantly announce to the player how they ought to feel and what is the Right and Correct Perspective.

Problem 5: Theme

This last point is less of a criticism and more of a diagnosis of sorts. Veilguard clearly has a theme relating to regret and how leaders are forced to bear the burden of regret for their decisions. Overall, I think the theme was pretty solid and I actually really liked most of the parts about Solas and Rook, their bond, and the Varric twist. No complaints there (although a symptom of a larger disease that Solas and Varric, characters from prior games, were my favorite parts of this game).

However, I think the rest of the game would have been so much stronger if the writers are really honed in on this theme in the side-quests and companion quests. In general, a lot of Veilguard felt slightly directionless and lacking cohesion. If other story arcs and faction quests had also shown the player different examples of "regret as a prison," that could have been a cool way to make those parts of the story feel more meaningful.

But even if the theme were more fully explored in companion quests and side quests, I still think that the game needs more focus in order to tell an effective story. Honestly, if I were writing the game, I would have limited the setting to Tevinter and the conflict to the issue between Rook and Solas. The Evanuris are fine villains, but immediately making the stakes so massive and global makes the story kinda scattered. I would have waited until the endgame to let them out.

If anyone ever wants to read by in-depth "how I would fix Veilgaurd" post, please let me know lol. I have many ideas.

Conclusions:

I don't want to jump on the Veilgaurd hate train too hard, because a lot of people have not been making their criticisms in good faith. But I do feel disappointed by this game, not just because I am a fan of the franchise, but because it feels like it plays into a bigger issue with narrative art today.

Veilguard fails because it feels deeply corporate, sanitized, insincere, and pathologically afraid of getting messy. Even if that means its lows are never that low, I would prefer it to swing hard and miss hard. I like art that actually has something to say other than "hello, here is more of the thing you like, please give us money." Some games are giving us these amazing stories, but not many of them are coming from big studios. I wish Dragon Age had gone in the direction of being a smaller, shittier, but infinitely more loved franchise. I wish the graphics still looked like ass, but I could fall in love with a mass of horrible polygons anyways because the writing was so compelling.

Instead, we got this glossy, over-worked, and pretty underwhelming game. Veilguard is a game for the modern era of soulless, irony-poisoned, pandering capitalists and I hate it, thanks. I hate it.

[zeebee3]

Dramione Month is upon us and I hope to write a few pieces for it (some impromptu drabbles, a pre-written fic or two). Here’s the first!

Day 3: finite incantatem

Rated E

❗️major character death, brief gore, dead dove, wartime, secret relationship❗️

This is an idea that has haunted me for a while and it was time to get it out. Sorry in advance! 🫂 please mind the warnings.

“Look what I found!” Fawley announced.

Draco turned to the entrance of the parlor, watching as the Death Eater dragged a struggling form across the room to where he and Dolohov were standing beside the fireplace, a map of Order safehouses spread out on the table before them.

“We’re busy,” Dolohov snapped. “Go show your rat to Wormtail.”

“You’ll want to see this one, Dolo,” Fawley jeered. “Caught this pet just for you.”

As the pair came closer, the light of the fire illuminated the scarred, smug face of Fawley and the terrified face of Hermione Granger. It was tricky to restrain his reaction, but Draco just barely managed it.

Fuck. Fuckfuckfuck.

“Found her crawling around in the bushes. Covered in the mud and muck like a fuckin’ animal.”

With a shove, she was sent sprawling over the stones, the momentum taking her almost to Draco’s boots.

No. Her soft skin, scraped over stone. He bit the inside of his lip, hard enough to keep from dropping to his knees to help her up.

His heart was pounding, mind racing as he tried to figure out what to do. What was she doing here? She was reckless to a fault but if he knew her at all – and after a year of covert rendezvous, he thought he rather did – then lying in wait outside of a known Death Eater stronghold would have been too foolish even for her. What the fuck was she doing?

Dolohov tilted his head, inspecting her. “Is it? Looks nothing like the brat I know of.”

He was right. Hermione’s normally soft, bouncy curls were coarse and matted, her jaw swollen and disfigured. But it was the flatness in her eyes which sent a dizzying burst of relief through Draco. Even in the worst of moments, her eyes held unquenchable fire.

She blinked, taking in her surroundings like a wild animal, and when her eyes met his, he was sure.

He scoffed. “It’s not her.”

“Of course it is,” insisted Fawley. “I know Potter’s Mudblood when I see her.”

Draco pointed down at her. “This is obviously not Hermione Granger, you fucking idiot.”

“Yes it fucking is,” Fawley insisted.

Be it on his head, then. Draco waved his hand dismissively, his relief making him flippant. “Fine. Take her to the Dark Lord, then. See what he thinks of being tricked.”

Fawley glared but reached down to get a fistful of the creatures hair, hauling her up to her knees. The flat brown eyes met Draco's icy grey, panic flaring in them.

“No, don’t take me there. Draco, please. It’s me. Don’t let him take me to him.”

It was her voice, though scratchy and hoarse, but they were not her words. She only ever breathed his given name into the crook of his neck, sweet and secretly, on those nights where their last names were left at the door. To use it here, so publicly — he knew it wasn’t her. She would never betray him like that.

But…

Anyone who’d dare impersonate her would know better than to assume they were on a first name basis. To the world, they were enemies.

Which meant that someone had her. Had her, and had managed to claw their secret from her so that he might trust this shell; might try to protect it and bring it into the center of the Death Eater nest. His name wouldn’t have come easily from her lips – she’d have fought with every bit of herself to keep their relationship hidden, to keep him safe.

Dolohov was here and not gloating, which meant it hadn’t been him to torture it out of her. Avery? McNair?

The bead of relief that she wasn’t actually here was a drop in the ocean of his unfettered rage at knowing she was out there, being harmed.

In his head, Draco began making lists.

Out loud, he lifted his chin, curling his lip at the pathetic creature at his feet.

“Imposter,” he said coldly.

Dolohov sighed. “A shame. I’d have liked to have another go at the Mudblood. Though I suppose I still could pretend…”

His hand rose but Draco caught his wrist in a tight grip, not looking away from the pitiful thing wearing her face. Daring to use her against him. Daring to expose the only part of himself he actually liked; the part she'd found within him.

Magic was coiling hotly in his wandhand, crackling with an urgent ferocity to be unleashed. With a slow inhale, he set it free, brutal energy cascading out him, channeled through blood and sinew and unicorn hair.

A burst of green light, and then the whimpering mass was inert.

Fawley swore, stepping back and letting the corpse fall flat on its face, the sound like a vase slipping from a sideboard; a sodden, wet crunch. Draco swallowed reflexively against the bile brought up from using the killing curse, a familiar taste in the back of his throat. Chest heaving, he raised his wand again. Time to see who had dared impersonate her, and therefore discover a clue as to who might have known about them.

“Finite incantatem.”

Apart from a burst of blue light from his wand, nothing happened.

Had the spell been miscast? He tried again – and then a third time. Nothing. For a moment, it didn’t register.

And then Dolohov whooped.

“Fucking Salazar, it was the filthy Mudblood! Wait until the Dark Lord hears about this, Malfoy. You’ll be in deep shit for stealing his prize away.”

Fear was as familiar to him as the taste of the killing curse. Thick at the back of his throat; saline and sour and suffocating. He wanted to gag – to choke on what he’d done – but even breathing felt impossible. His gloves creaked as his fist squeezed around traitorous hawthorne, jaw aching with how hard he was clenching his teeth.

Hermione, face down at his feet. Never to get up.

He fell to his knees then, breath leaving him in a rush, gasping, his entire body trembling

What had he done? What had he done whathadhedone–

Like falling into a cool lake, he bowed his head and dropped behind his Occlumency walls.

It hadn’t been him to cast it.

It couldn’t have.

There wasn’t a single cell within him that wished death on her – it should have been impossible to cast it on her. But it was her – and the magic had completed its evil purpose, which meant it couldn’t have been him to cast it.

The concept was impossible.

As impossible as casting a killing curse on oneself.

That had to be impossible, hadn’t it?

Which meant that there was no way he was himself. There was only one way to prove it.

Deep in the quiet of his mind, he turned his wand on himself.

———

[spam-monster]

Drawtectives S3 EP2 theories/stuffs:

okay 2gene fake which is kinda disappointing but lookit our little guy go!

JANCY DELIQUENT ERA REAL THO?! I need so much fanart.

Yeah that case seemed too easy - was expecting it to lead to bigger case tho, not be a whole fake (but butler guy was funny).

We get Harper name-dropping Jancy, so they've kept in touch and Harper knows Jancy is on good terms with these guys...thinking Harper comes here to do community service for her "crimes"

(also as I said on discord; Rose going all squee when her girl crush shows up even as Harper continues to be trash is peak. good for her.)

That Jane Coulson is sus tho

Current theory is that she impersonated the silent guard at some point and is Up To Something - but was she being her at the begining of the ep, the end, or the whole way through?

lots of animal motifs - rats and snakes, but also bugs and a guy named Bat and Night Owl Books

maybe rats and snakes opposing "gangs"/bands? Friendly rivalry turned deadly?

"utopia"/community oriented society invaded by greed and capitalism?

Orc guy at community outreach table interesting - nametag says "Bat", has rat tattoo, might be the Dan Stitch on the poster? (also has Dwarf bf?)

I need to see those poster assets, I wanna read them all

also there's a lot of hot people approaching (new parents for Eugene? new kids? new people to ship with each other?)

bookstorebookstorebookstore

ANIME ANIMATED ENDING YAS

...we don't even know the actual crime yet...just that there's been a mess at the art gallery...

(...small fake crimes all tying into one Big Crime?)

characters in credits: hot orc pizza guy, cute bookstore gal, slug costume man? (prediction: Garrett is slug man)

also i'm gonna be in Japan for the next ep and we're getting a guest star and aaaaaahhhhh hyper

uuuuuhhhhh tldr

Jancy deliquent, mystery sneaky banned actress, animal motifs, dragging son around to find new parents, art gallery?

[bibibbon]

me: they’re my baby girls!!

the ‘baby girls’ list of crimes:

General Crimes

Terrorism, Stalking, Kidnapping, Mass murder, Vandalism, Mutilation, Torture, Unethical experimentation, Jailbreaking, Theft, Propaganda, Arson, Blackmail, Conspiracy, Torture, Psychological abuse, Incrimination, Sabotage, Assault & Battery, Mass destruction, Grave robbing, Enslavement, Impersonation, Abuse of power, Corruption

Member Specific Crimes

Shigaraki: Mass property damage, Terrorism, Assault & Battery, Kidnapping, Torture, Theft, Mutilation, Conspiracy, Vandalism, Sabotage, Familicide, Manslaughter, Animal cruelty, False imprisonment, Psychological abuse

Dabi: Attempted familicide, Torture, Arson, Psychological abuse, Destruction of property, Kidnapping, Terrorism, Vandalism, Incrimination, Public endangerment, Conspiracy, Blackmail, Stalking

Himiko: Serial Murder, Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, Identity theft, Burglary, Stalking, Assault, Mutilation, Fraud, Terrorism, Possibly cannibalism

Mr. Compress: Conspiracy, Kidnapping, Mutilation, Terrorism, Theft, Murder, Stalking, Vandalism, Burglary

Spinner: Kidnapping, Assault, Terrorism

Twice: Terrorism, Murder, Theft, Kidnapping

they were just feeling silly ok it’s no biggie

You know what Iam much more impressed that you managed to list out all of their crimes in general and specifically.

Yikes thats a long list but I do see some of the league members being able to receive a redemption or at least face a better ending than the one canon gave them.

At the end even though they did all of this I still like their characters however I do hate when people don't acknowledge these actions and babyify them only focusing on them as victims and not giving them the complexity they deserve to have.

Now that I think about it Iam quite surprised that twices list of personal crimes is so low. It makes me remember when @doodlegirl1998 was talking about how he is probably the most redeemable one in there and that the story would benefit much more if he and toga narratively switched roles

[aalinaaaaaa]

There was a question posed in the writeblr cafè discord, which asked about the crimes committed by people's characters.

I wrote out my answer, and it really put things into perspective as to how devious going on horrible some of my characters are. *chough* I think some people may know where this is going 👀 *chough*

And even then, there's some crimes I'm forgetting/will add when I flesh out the world/the characters' backstories

Without further ado, here's the important part:

(The text is beneath the cut)

The High Councillors as a collective:

divine theft and hoarding of the Allaitri Chalice,

violation of the Founding Treaty's core principles,

inducing spells of compelled silence [magical nondisclosure agreements, essentially, illegal under Helindian law],

(and also murder, it's how they got their positions in the first place! 👀)

Orlaith:

unethical experimentation (on people and animals),

the creation and distribution of illicit substances

Affril:

abusive working conditions,

assault,

blackmail,

attempted murder

Ordune:

blackmail,

treason,

unauthorised distribution of academic materials,

conspiracy of a coup

Najsha:

manipulation and/or hostage of people's souls,

soul magic as a whole,

necromancy,

burning people (both to death and as assault),

goading people into fights

Namon:

blackmail,

exchange of illicit substances,

the hosting of morally perilous gambling sessions,

pinning someone to a cheeseboard (both as murder and with the threat of murder) [multiple charges]

Eshani:

burning a man's arm,

threatening to burn a man's other arm,

multiple counts of impersonation,

multiple breaches of Arobyre's redwood laws,

property/tree damage

Claudia:

orchestration of a coup,

espionage,

holding a child hostage,

usage of human blood in blood wine (it was one time, but still!],

assault/grievous harm,

multiple counts of attempted murder,

violation of Arobyre's redwood laws,

property/tree damage (also in Arobyre),

conductor of her crows' activities in Helinda/other countries

I'm going to put my General taglist here, as well as the one for A Healing for the Birds [all seven of them feature in it 👀] (ask/comment/reblog etc if you'd like to be added or subtracted): @mr-orion @the-ellia-west @guessillcallitart-deactivated20 @thereadingfoz @glassstardust22124 @honeybewrites @ashirisu @drowsy-quill @oliolioxenfreewrites @seastarblue @gioiaalbanoart @rae-butter @corinneglass @oros-ash3s @rainbowsnowflake @fourwingedwriter @oddcryptidwrites @ark-inkweaving @bardic-tales @agirlandherquill @wyked-rebellion

[cadaverousdecay]

asks right uhh zombies do you like zombies? wdyt is their relation to vampires??

i’ve never been super into zombies. i liked george a romero’s first two zombie films (though i prefer his film martin, surprise surprise) and i can appreciate what fears zombies are getting across. the loss of identity and the spread of untreatable disease are both terrifying concepts to me.

but zombies usually focus on the group rather than the individual and that doesn’t appeal to me as much. zombie movies are rarely about one specific case of zombiism. rather, they focus on a broader view, of swarms of people becoming zombies. (though, some movies do focus on one instance of zombiism, such as life after beth, where a guy grapples with the undeath of his girlfriend. i really liked that movie, and it used the medium of zombies to tell a super compelling story about love and grief and holding on to things lost)

i don’t like how dead zombies are on the scale of the undead. they don’t often retain any part of themself. they’re mindless, just walking corpses wearing the decaying visage of their previous life. and in most zombie media, once infected, victims beg for death before they lose themselves completely. a character turning into a zombie most often will end up with a bullet in their head. there’s no salvation, there’s no chance at “life beyond death” as, say in the form of a vampire or a ghost, where limited humanity is retained. to become a zombie is to lose all agency, all thought, all sense of self.

zombie media most often takes place in a post apocalyptic world, which also has never appealed to me. it’s always too bleak. prophetic notions and threats of an apocalypse, and even the early stages of an apocalypse interest me. but when it progresses to a state of hopelessness, when the inevitable end is the termination of life itself, when every second is a near futile struggle to stave off the end for just a little longer, i just can’t handle it. not that the media doesn’t have so much to say, i just can’t stomach it.

zombie media also very often employs mass impersonal violence, and that has never interested me. i’ve always preferred violence as an intimate act, deliberate, meaningful. zombie apocalypse survivors are expected to kill any zombie in their path, no remorse, no hesitation. watch onscreen as hundreds of animated corpses are ruthlessly destroyed en mass with bullets to their brains and don’t think about the fact that each one was once human. delight in seeing them get knocked down, in fact. these are enemies you can kill and love to kill, and not have to sweat the morality of it for one second

i appreciate the fact that most zombie movies do have moments of reckoning with the fact that these zombies were once human, and the destruction of their corpses is a bittersweetness at best. in dawn of the dead when a man is tasked with the killing of his friend who was bitten, there is the horror of the entire situation really shining through. yes it’s a mindless corpse, but it was once someone you knew. someone you loved. maybe a little part of them is still left in there. and you still must put a bullet in their head.

(this heart wrenching moment of having to kill a zombified friend/lover is portrayed so beautifully in early sunsets over monroeville by mcr, taking inspiration from the aforementioned scene in dawn of the dead)

that aspect of the zombie story is one that i enjoy. but i just don’t see it all that often. or if it’s there, it often takes a backseat. kinda how in supernatural they introduce the demon-possessed body as such a horrific and sympathetic situation, emphasizing the human soul still trapped in their conquered body, only to ignore or repress that information in order to more easily destroy demons. at a certain point in the show, little, if any weight is put on the fact that the slaying of the monster costs an innocent life.

zombie movies tend to follow that script. there’s always the knowledge in the back of the mind that what we are seeing are the remainders of actual human beings. but it only is brought up when it’s a character of importance who has become a zombie. a lot can be said about that view, reflecting the way many people only see the people they know as fully formed human beings. everyone else is an abstraction.

zombie media attempts to broach the horror of zombiism by portraying a sympathetic character who becomes a rotting shell of what they once were, but so rarely extend the sympathy to the hoard at large.

there absolutely are zombie stories that i enjoy, and probably more out there that i haven’t seen yet but would like. i haven’t yet watched warm bodies, but i do plan on it. i think that’s a zombie movie i would appreciate. romeo and juliet story where the power of love is the cure to the zombie virus. maybe a bit sappy but i do prefer it to the grim helplessness of the lack of a cure seen in a lot of zombie media

all in all i don’t dislike zombies as a medium of horror and expression. there’s a lot that zombies say (not actually lol) and they bring up a lot of issues. issues that i sometimes don’t like to face. out of all the monsters i can think of, the fate of the zombie is the most depressing.

a lot of the zombie media that im familiar with, especially the popular representations, either don’t address the depth of what the zombie implies— delegating the zombie to the role of depersonalized enemy horde that is to be killed with mass violence and not given an ounce of thought or pity— or do address the full horror of it, but in doing so, become just too bleak and hopeless for my taste.

because i’m not as interested in zombies as i am other horror creatures, i don’t know their full history and folklore. i know they were originally of haitian origin and had a vast shift in pop culture with movies such as white zombie and i walked with a zombie (haven’t seen either yet) but i don’t know much beyond that.

i do think it would be nice to learn more about them, because they have a permanent spot in the history of horror, specifically horror cinema, and i’m super interested in that, and because i do find some versions of zombies compelling and entertaining. especially the lesser known stories and the stories that subvert a lot of the popular zombie tropes that i dont care for

[wildxenomorph]

Ok so I saw sonic the hedgehog 3 last night and I want spill my thoughts

SPOILERS BELOW

I really liked that Shadow was explicitly described and portrayed as a kid—he’s Sonic’s age (minus the 50 years in stasis, where he clearly didn’t age physically or mentally)… he was manipulated by Peepaw Robotnik, he was a hurt child that was used by the govt and later someone he considered something akin to family………

Anyway that scene of sonic and shadow sitting on the moon… ahh damn it makes me tear up to think about

Also I like that sonic isn’t perfect—I like that he decides he needs the use the master emerald, he goes back on his promise with knuckles and tails and is ready to actively fight his friends to get to it, both to stop the evildoers and to get revenge for his/their father… he leaves his team after promising they would always work together, and he realizes that what he’s doing is wrong, realized that killing shadow wouldn’t make Tom better, it wouldn’t reverse what happened, and it would only make him regret taking a life

And seeing that compassion, that ability to make a difficult choice, even in emotional turmoil, has such a profound effect on shadow, because suddenly he’s seeing someone going through something similar to him, who begins responding like him before… not. He sees an option, a path, that previously wasn’t even considered—forgiveness, moving on… etc

I also like that knuckles calls sonic out when they square up over the master emerald. He explicitly tells Sonic that he’s in no mental state to make such a drastic decision, but he trusts Sonic enough that he lets him get the emerald anyway, and despite not agreeing with his choice he still turns up with tails to help out at the end.

I really hope that shadow is not just dead now, though, because clearly they plan to continue this film series (metal Sonic and Amy seem to be coming next, based on the after credits scene)… I’d like to see shadow pulled into Sonic’s funky little family with two parent humans, a dog, and a handful of mutant alien animals…

Let shadow learn how to have a family again, to move on, to honor and remember Maria but live a fulfilling life because it would’ve made her happy to see him happy

Also let him get some mfing therapy

Oh, also, I really appreciate that they used the super shadow coloring from sonic adventure 2, where shadow is more of a silver-gold rather than the bright yellow-gold of sonic (shadow’s coloring is way more like Sonic’s in the shadow the hedgehog game, and I kind of hate it)

Really my only complaint: about the film, besides them not hinting at or showing shadow surviving (please don’t kill my blorbo) {Edit; I have since seen a second end credit scene that I missed—thank you to everyone for sharing!! My boy lives!!!), is the fact that Rouge is just not around… which like, she absolutely wasn’t necessary, plenty of characters are/were omitted but I feel like with the pattern of introducing characters in pairs (Tails and Knuckles in 2, Metal Sonic and Amy in presumably 4), it’s weird that Shadow didn’t have some other character introduced in the same movie… Rouge could have helped with the infiltration of G.U.N., for example… but again she’s not necessary and it doesn’t really take away from the movie.

Final complaint is the G.U.N. lady, her name escapes me… the one who acted as essentially a secondary antagonist and was trying to secure the weapon keys. Tom gets the key from her by impersonating the other G.U.N. guy who died, and that’s the last we see of her!! Feels unresolved imo (though I wouldn’t be surprised if we see her again in 4, perhaps accusing Sonic of crimes committed by metal, maybe leading to a similar city escape-framed by lookalike situation that happens in adventure 2 with Sonic and shadow)…

Oh and last thing: I do think the movie spent a bit too much time on the Robotnik’s… it could’ve used a bit more shadow screen time imo…

And those are my unorganized thoughts fkejjdjndidkejs fun movie def recommend watching it

[cookiedocinha]

📌 • PINNED POST!

-> Introduction:

Hello there! I'm "Cookie Docinha", but my actual name is Atsuko, but you can call me Atsu. I am an amateur artist and animator who does what I do because I love it, I am 18 years old and I am Brazilian and, at the moment, I live in Brazil 💚💛

I am a transmasc non-binary person, and I go by He/they pronouns and masculine and neutral terms.

Feel free to ask anything, because this is a fun pastime :D

Oh yeah, and this is my sona, Atsuko! This silly creature that represents me!

-> Artwork:

I make different types of art and animations, most of them are related to fan stuff, since I'm part of several fandoms.

But I also have my own original little creatures and their adventures >:3

-> Commissions:

I do art and animation commissions, but since I'm busy with school and studying for college entrance exams at the moment, I'm only accepting art commissions at the moment. There's more info in my carrd!

Current status: CLOSED

-> Other platforms:

I have a YouTube channel where I post my animations, my Twitter and Instagram, but because of the policy changes on these platforms, I switched to Bluesky and here!

Here's my linktree with all my official social medias (Any other account with my name that is outside of this linktree is probably someone impersonating me, be careful!)

-> Content and warnings:

My content can sometimes be a little sensitive for some people, even though most of the artworks are cute and silly things, sometimes I will do violence, blood, light gore and others. But don't worry, because I always put a "trigger warning" or "content warning" (TW and CW). Just be careful when checking out my arts. (NOTE: There is no sensitive art in my commission portfolio, so don't worry!!)

-> Before following:

Know that I don't have the habit of staying in just one fandom for a very long time. Sometimes I might find a new interest and end up focusing on it more. But that doesn't mean I hate the fandom I was in before, so don't follow me just because of the fandom or anything like that.

And I don't really care about ships, but I VERY RARELY make some ship art (usually my OCs, because I don't like ship discussions) again, if I do something like this, don't start an argument over it, I'm not a fan of ships and if I do something related to that, know that I did it just for fun and boredom.

-> Fandoms/My current interests (constantly updated):

• Undertale/ Deltarune

• Undertale Yellow

• Block Tales (Roblox)

• Roblox ARGs (My fav at the moment are Rochas313, Brandon Works and DeivyDoesTutorial33)

• Forsaken (Roblox)

• Dandy's World (Roblox)

• Murder Drones

• The Amazing Digital Circus

• Vocaloid/ Synthesizer V

• Friday Night Funkin'

• Baldi's Basics

• Pizza Tower

• ENA

• Omori

• Yume Nikki

• Art and animations in general

• Original Characters

• Minecraft

• Roblox

• Needy Streamer Overload

• Project Sekai

-> Asks:

Any questions or suggestions are welcome, however, if it is something that makes me extremely uncomfortable, I will not respond to you and will delete it from the message box. And if you insist, I will block you.

Well, that's all for now! See u!

[drawbauchery]

Honestly hated how Danganronpa treated fat characters. I can only imagine how they would've treated a character if V3 had one. Hifumi is a nerd obsessed with a cartoon,Teruteru has a s*xual deviant and Twogami is just a big eater to an unhealthy extent.

mm yeahh...hifumi and teruteru were made to match their respective anime tropes (overweight otaku, overweight pervert) so them being chubby checks out; that's just how their brethren tend to look and get treated.....which is an anime problem overall. want a silly character? make em fat! that kinda shit. i'm not gonna blame danganropa for running with it since all their characters are parodies of stereotypes. that's why i'm glad that at least teruteru was taken a little seriously for subversion's sake. he did end up having waaaay more depth than i've ever seen any comic relief pervert get

imposter though, it's irritating because there are so many borderline brilliant reasons for them to be overweight and yet they get the brunt of the "lol look how fat he is, look how ridiculous he looks in this and that outfit" jokes. it's implied they've starved in the past, so excessive eating is how they overcompensate. they seem so composed, but there's this constant underlying stress and fear that drives them to eat whatever they can. and it just makes them look even more amazing at their talent because even though they are clearly physically different than whoever they're impersonating.......they're just so precise that nobody questions it lol

but nah the anthology strips in particular just kinda go look! he's so fat!

bet they didn't think we'd be thirsty for him

[celestialastronmy]

Trust No One… Except Stan? The Moral Maze of Gravity Falls' Best Liar

Okay, let's talk about Grunkle Stan. Stan Pines. Thefez-wearing, gravel-voiced proprietor of the Mystery Shack, Gravity Falls' premier (and only) tourist trap dedicated to fleecing the unsuspecting. If you've spent any time watching Gravity Falls, you know Stan. He's the king of the quick buck, the master of the cheap souvenir, the guy who'd probably try to sell you the lint from his pocket if he thought he could get away with it. On the surface, he's a walking, talking stereotype of a cynical, greedy old con man.

And yet... he's also the heart of the show. That's the weird thing, right? The central paradox that makes Stan Pines one of the most fascinating characters in modern animation isn't just that he's a jerk with a heart of gold. It's something deeper, messier, and way more interesting. Stan's greatest moments of apparent fraudulence his most egregious scams, his most elaborate lies are precisely the moments when he enacts his deepest, most unwavering moral commitments: protecting his family and preserving loyalty above all else.

It's a head-scratcher when you first think about it. We're culturally conditioned, especially through stories, to equate honesty with goodness. The hero tells the truth, the villain lies. Simple. But Stan throws a giant, Sascrotch-shaped wrench into that neat little equation.

The Scammer Supreme: Stan's Surface

First, let's appreciate the artistry of Stan's cons. The Mystery Shack itself is a masterpiece of low-grade deception. It promises mystery and delivers... well, cleverly disguised junk. The "Rock That Looks Like a Face Rock"? Genius in its sheer banality. The jackalope? Standard roadside fare. The Sascrotch? A pair of overalls nailed to a wall. Stan charges exorbitant prices, makes up nonsensical stories, and generally treats his customers like walking wallets. He teaches Dipper and Mabel the "finer" points of trickery, counterfeits money ("Stan Bucks," anyone?), and constantly runs afoul of minor laws and regulations.

Then there are the bigger lies. The huge ones. His entire identity, for starters. He's not Stanford Pines, the brilliant scientist. He's Stanley Pines, the screw-up twin brother who accidentally ruined Ford's life's work and then spent thirty years impersonating him. He lies to Dipper and Mabel constantly about the true nature of Gravity Falls, about the journals, about the strange underground laboratory beneath the Shack. He lies to government agents, to the townspeople, to pretty much everyone except maybe Soos (and even then, probably sometimes). His default setting seems to be "deceive." He's built a life, an entire persona, on a foundation of untruths. If honesty is the benchmark for morality, Stan fails spectacularly and repeatedly.

The Unshakeable Core: Stan's True North

But here's the twist. Why is he running this ridiculous tourist trap? Why is he living under a false name in this weird, backwater town? Why is he hoarding those cryptic journals and messing with dangerous, dimension-hopping technology?

For family.

Every significant lie Stan tells, every major scam he runs, ultimately traces back to two core commitments:

Protecting Dipper and Mabel: From the moment those kids step off the bus, Stan's gruff exterior starts cracking. Yeah, he puts them to work under questionable labor conditions, but watch him when actual danger arises. He wrestles a pterodactyl. He punches zombies. He faces down Gideon's giant robot. He stands up to Bill Cipher. He puts himself between the twins and any threat, supernatural or otherwise, without a second thought. His lies about the portal and the journals? He genuinely believes he's shielding them from dangers they can't handle. He takes on the burden, the risk, and the moral compromise himself. When he tells them, "Listen to me, kids. This is all for our own good," even when he's being deeply deceptive about the portal ("Not What He Seems"), there's a painful truth embedded in it. His good, perhaps, is tied entirely to their safety and the potential return of his brother. His methods are dishonest, but the underlying drive is fiercely protective love.

Loyalty to Ford: This is the big one. The thirty-year lie. Stan's entire adult life post-Ford's disappearance is defined by an obsessive, all-consuming quest to bring his brother back. Getting kicked out, becoming a nomadic con man, finally settling in Gravity Falls under Ford's name it's all secondary to fixing the catastrophic mistake he made decades ago. Running the Mystery Shack isn't just about survival it's about funding the insane energy bills required to keep the portal project running. It's about maintaining Ford's research station, staying put in the one place Ford might return to. Stealing Ford's identity wasn't just an act of desperation; it became a way to keep Ford alive in some sense, to hold his place in the world, to continue the work (however blindly at first) until he could be rescued. This act of profound fraud is simultaneously an act of profound, almost tragic, loyalty. He sacrificed his own name, his own potential life, to rectify his mistake and honor his bond with his twin.

The Paradox in Action: Where Lies Are Love

This is where it gets really interesting. It's not just that Stan lies despite being good it's that his lies are the mechanism by which he enacts his goodness.

The Mystery Shack: A den of deception, yes. But it’s also the safe haven where Dipper and Mabel have the summer of their lives, discover their own strengths, and form unbreakable bonds. It’s the financial engine powering the rescue mission for Ford. The fraud enables the sanctuary and the loyalty.

Lying about the Portal: Deceiving the kids he loves is arguably one of Stan's lowest points morally, from a traditional perspective. But from his perspective, telling the truth admitting he's trying to reactivate a potentially world-ending machine based on cryptic instructions he barely understands would terrify them, potentially drive them away, and jeopardize the only thing that matters to him: bringing Ford home. The lie, in his warped but understandable logic, is the protective act.

Impersonating Ford: A fundamental violation of identity. Yet, it allows him to stay in Gravity Falls, protect the journals (initially by hiding them), and dedicate himself to the portal. Without this colossal lie, Ford would likely be lost forever. The deception is the instrument of his decades-long penance and loyalty.

The Ultimate Con (Weirdmageddon): Think about the series finale. How is Bill Cipher, the omniscient chaos demon, ultimately defeated? Through Stan's greatest con. By pretending to be Ford, luring Bill into his mind, and then allowing his own memories his entire identity, built on scams and secrets but also love and loyalty to be erased. His proficiency as a liar, his ability to convincingly impersonate his brother (a skill honed over 30 years!), becomes the key to saving the world. His "fraudulence" is the heroic sacrifice. The lines don't just blur they invert.

The Proposition: Stan's Radical Ethics

So, what does this all mean? It leads us to a pretty radical proposition: Stan Pines embodies an ethical framework where "truth" and "goodness," as traditionally understood, are not just separate concepts, but are actively incompatible for him.

Think about it. For Stan to be "good" meaning, for him to fulfill his primary moral obligations of protecting his family and remaining loyal to Ford he must be dishonest.

If he were honest about his identity, he couldn't have maintained the Mystery Shack and the portal project for 30 years. Ford would be lost. (Goodness requires dishonesty).

If he were honest with the kids about the portal's full danger from the start, it might have created panic, interference, or driven them away, jeopardizing both Ford's return and potentially their immediate safety in his eyes. (Goodness requires dishonesty).

If he hadn't been a consummate liar, capable of fooling even a dream demon, Bill Cipher would have won. (Goodness requires dishonesty).

Conversely, if Stan prioritized conventional "truthfulness" above all else?

He would have confessed his identity long ago, likely leading to Ford's permanent loss. (Honesty prevents goodness).

He might have burdened Dipper and Mabel with terrifying truths they weren't ready for, potentially damaging their relationship and hindering his rescue efforts. (Honesty prevents goodness).

He couldn't have pulled off the final gambit against Bill Cipher. (Honesty prevents goodness).

For Stan, the path of honesty is often the path that leads away from protecting those he loves. His morality is measured not by adherence to abstract principles like "truth," but by the tangible outcomes for his family. His ethical compass points steadfastly towards Dipper, Mabel, and Ford, and if the needle has to pass through zones marked "Liar," "Scammer," and "Fraud," then so be it.

Destabilizing Critical Assumptions

This is where Stan really messes with how we typically analyze characters in stories. There's a deep-seated assumption in literary and narrative criticism that moral virtue aligns with honesty, transparency, and integrity. We expect our heroes, even flawed ones, to ultimately strive for truth. Villains obfuscate, heroes reveal. Goodness correlates with openness.

Stan blows this wide open. He suggests that in certain extreme circumstances, or perhaps for certain kinds of deeply damaged but fiercely loving people, deception isn't just a necessary evil it's the very tool required to achieve a moral good. He forces us to ask uncomfortable questions:

Is an act inherently immoral if it's dishonest, even if its motivation and outcome are profoundly loving and protective?

Can deceit be a form of care?

Is "truth" always the highest virtue, especially when measured against loyalty and protection?

Stan's character arc doesn't culminate in him becoming magically honest. While he does reveal truths eventually (often forced by circumstances), his fundamental nature as someone willing to bend or break the truth for his family remains. His final heroic act isn't a confession it's a con. The narrative doesn't punish him for his dishonesty in the end; it rewards the results of that dishonesty (saving the world) while acknowledging the personal cost (temporary memory loss).

Gravity Falls, through Stan, presents a world where goodness doesn't need to wear the costume of honesty. It can wear a fez, a cheap suit, and a five-o'clock shadow, while spinning a yarn about a mythical creature that's really just some glued-together parts. It suggests that the messy, complicated reality of love and loyalty sometimes demands equally messy and complicated methods. Stan's ethics are radical because they prioritize relational commitment over abstract principle, forcing us to look beyond the surface lie to the deeper, often heartbreaking, truth of his intentions. He's a liar, a cheat, and a fraud. And, paradoxically, that's precisely what makes him one of Gravity Falls' greatest heroes. You gotta admit, it's a heck of a trick to pull off.