#other main characters meta series

[aroaceleovaldez]

The himbo, malewife, goofball -fication of percy jackson is such a crime by both the fans and riordan. It has made Mr not like percabeth as a couple because in all posts and in later books annabeth is such a girlboss, while Percy's dumb and can't fight his way out of a paperbag without her. All the posts are about how annabeth will be an architect and percy would love to be a trophy husband.

Even the humor in the books went from Percy's sharp wit and snark to 'my pancakes can't drown because I'm a son of poseidon.'

And now this recommendation letter bullshit.

Honestly now I'd wish percy just separated from annabeth (but they remain best friends.) He stays home with his family, becomes a camp counselor, helps young demigods, holds God's accountable and eventually becomes a social activist. (I also dislike him doing something marine biology related. It's clear he hates academics but he always wants to help people. Him helping demigods and mortals is such a wholesome profession for him.)

I fully agree with the first half of this, though I slightly disagree with part of the latter.

The later-series and fanon mischaracterization of Percy is at least a solid 50% ableism minimum, full stop. He's being warped into a very stereotyped ADHD character and the exact reason why he's being characterized as "dumb" is because of ableism. Percy is a very intelligent character! That's exactly why he's so in sync with Annabeth and they're such a strong duo! It's just generally Annabeth is more book/academically smart.

I disagree with where you say he hates academics - because that's one of the common misconceptions about his character. Percy doesn't hate learning or academic subjects! He's not even bad at them! We know explicitly that when he is in an accommodating environment he is interested in learning and gets significantly better grades! Percy only dislikes school because it is generally an environment that systematically he struggles with. It's literally just he has a learning disability (two, actually)! That's it! When his learning disability is accommodated for he does well! It's almost like that's what accommodations are all about! We know this from the first series! It's discussed pretty in-depth! Percy isn't a dumb character and he doesn't hate learning, he's just been let down by school systems so much that he's inherently distrustful of them. If they actually accommodate him though then he does just fine!

And that's exactly what CHB was all about and why New Rome University was supposed to be such a big thing for him! CHB is a learning environment geared for demigods. NRU is a demigod college. Both inherently imply an environment meant to cater to and accommodate students with ADHD and dyslexia! They are both systematically structured to be able to accommodate him! Heck, CHB and CJ even both address in the wider themes of the series a metaphor about how ADHD and dyslexia are commonly seen as childhood disabilities, and how it can be more difficult to find accommodations into adulthood because of that attitude but those disabilities don't just go away - that's why CHB is a summer camp but they talk about how demigods outside of CHB don't often fare well. The metaphor there is those who are not getting help or accommodations are struggling. Because that's how that works! This is a fully intentional metaphor from the first series! CHB is never framed as being perfect for demigods, because one of the entire central conflicts of the series is Percy and Luke going back and forth about this flawed system meant to help and support them but still letting people fall through the cracks. The "claim your kids by 13" thing is a metaphor about how acknowledging a child's disabilities (and possibly getting a diagnosis) earlier/as early as possible means they will have more time to learn and build up resources and support for themselves to be able to use later in life. One of CHB's major flaws is that it can accommodate demigods to a certain point, but it can only do so much before those demigods have to leave (the metaphor being accommodating school systems when those disabled students do not have any other forms of accommodations in their lives.)

And that's why Camp Jupiter was framed as being so revolutionary for Percy because it had an environment acknowledging that this is not just a childhood disability, adults with ADHD/dyslexia exist too and still need and deserve accommodations, AND is a place where those accommodations are available. That's why Camp Jupiter and NRU are treated as such special and important things to Percy, because it's essentially Percy being shown this type of thing can and does exist and it is available to him. It is an option he never thought was possible. Percy never thought he'd be able to go to college because he would not be able to go through school without accommodations, but NRU proves otherwise.

The part that's absolutely stupid is Rick then proceeded to retcon NRU so that apparently it's not a full college and Percy still has to take classes at normal mortal college which DEFEATS THE ENTIRE PURPOSE OF NRU EXISTING. Rick has fully retconned that demigods struggle past the ages of 16-18 when they're on their own (see above elaborated metaphors) and in doing so we have fully killed all symbolism in literally all of that. It's so stupid. And by having the plot of the CoTG trilogy entirely be that Percy is not actually allowed access to NRU in the first place because he is a son of Poseidon and has to do extra to even be accepted is stupid!

All that to say, I agree the marine biology feels like a huge cop-out and a disservice to his character by reducing him to just a son of Poseidon. The literal only reason why it's the default option people take for him is because oh, fish thing, fish guy. But I feel like everyone ignores the really obvious answer for what Percy would want to do which is - writing. Both his parents are writers/authors and he clearly admires that about them. Percy likes telling stories! He canonically is already a published author in-universe! That's what the books ARE in-universe! The first series fully exists in their universe and Percy is the author! This is explicit canonical information! Percy canonically has help physically writing it down (accommodations) but he is still the credited author! Percy is a writer! Already! Canonically! Why are we making him a marine biologist he already has a profession that ties into his character significantly more. Like you said, Percy likes helping people. That's what the books in-universe are supposed to be for! It's point blank at the beginning of the series! Book one! The thing everybody quotes all the time! The books exist because it is Percy trying to give advice to other demigods who don't know what's going on yet! It's Percy's writing down his experiences to help new demigods understand and contextualize their experiences so they can understand themselves better and figure out what's going on - WHICH IN ITSELF IS ALSO A METAPHOR ABOUT ADHD/DYSLEXIA! Because the core of the series has and always will be built around ADHD/dyslexia! Percy as a protagonist EXPLICITLY was created so that ADHD/dyslexic kids could see themselves as a hero!

Sorry that all was a very tangential rant but my point being: Absolutely. Percy in newer stuff in the franchise and in fanon is horrifically mischaracterized in ways that are functionally either fully ableist (shoutout TSATS for just outright claiming Percy is intentionally lazy and skips school out of disinterest, which is like the number one ableist attitude towards kids with learning disabilities) or a complete erasure of Percy's disabilities. Also I think he should be a writing major not a marine biologist.

[enjoyvoidblack]

our big post was getting long and it won't let me message so I thought I'd just come bother you here asldkfjsad I am like. so 1000% certain there is mention in the text that the initial purpose and efforts of Jonah and the Institute were to research the fears and prevent their many catastrophes, and that somewhere along the line he came to the conclusion that this wasn't viable, that the world and the fears simply didn't function in a way that was conducive to meaningfully stopping them from doing anything. which was how he settled into the position of 'well then I am going to use the instruments of power to save ME and build a ladder to free myself personally from their clutches forever' I def don't know when he started to turn from that, but i'll have to go back through the transcripts and find it again.

I do get that the narrative is written with Jon as the focal point, and that doesn't leave a lot of room for Elias to be sympathetic--he certainly doesn't make himself sympathetic TO Jon, or any of the Archives crew (beyond what I find to be an interesting amount of patience, understanding, and restraint he shows for them), but I still think like. Part of the beauty of Jonny's storytelling is that there is a kernel of completely understandable humanity to most everyone that's presented with any depth in the series, even the people we DON'T like. The "people here don't have excuses, they have causes" is again really excellent wording. There isn't really a lot of the usual karmic style reasoning or justice in this series; it isn't about Good People doing Good Things or Bad People doing Bad Things, it's just. People Doing Things, while under the influence of powers that are at once cosmic and beyond us, and inherently OF us.

adsfkjas this is getting long too I'm so sorry you activated a trap card here but idk. He absolutely is both manipulator and victim. He did all that shit, and all the while it's being done TO him, and he's walking this incredibly razor thin line between feeding his god/being empowered by it, and bc of it's nature knowing in intimate detail every nasty thing that awaits him should he fail (and I think being deathly afraid of it). That gif from Knives Out lmfao, compels me.

(apologies this probably isn't hugely coherent but there we are)

Thank you I am chewing on this ask violently. You Get It.

Unfortunate that tumblr killed your paragraph breaks, because I now can't find the section easily, but that thing about Jonny's character work in this series entirely consisting of aspects of "completely understandable humanity" is SO deeply how I feel about it. This is part of why I love horror of this kind so much. The horror being the fact that no one can really do anything to stop it opens up a space where the characters don't need to be presented along clear lines of good and evil, or even helping a cause or hurting it. It's a lot closer to how real people react in a natural disaster, if anything. There is love and selfishness and incredible acts of violence and cruelty and understandable failings and greed and fear, and pretty much all of it has a root that you can see, if you know enough about the people doing it and the circumstances to really feel where their mindset must be. I'd say Elias is functionally the closest thing TMA has to a narrative scapegoat, but that doesn't mean he is one. I almost feel like he's there as a pressure valve for the story, to be a villain if people need one to make sense of what's going on without having to constantly confront head-on the horror of the way the setting traps everyone in it. He can be made that kind of scapegoat, but only really by ignoring the parallels to Jon and the letters sent to him in older statements, and the way both show how the Fears drive the people who learn about them into more and more desperate straits.

It's kind of like that with all the older avatars. Simon Fairchild throws people off of stuff for a joke, because he's had more than 400 years of being steeped in the knowledge that humanity is both insignificant in the span of the universe, as well as utterly incapable of stopping the course of the Fears as they exert whatever influence they will by the force of sheer bulk. Peter Lukas never had a chance - he was born into this, isolation was his family and religion and paradoxically from childhood his only possible road to belonging. Adelard Dekker thought he was helping, as did Gertrude, even as they both fed the things that claimed them alongside those efforts. Nikola Orsinov was so far away from having an identity anymore that she couldn't go back if she wanted to, if she had even had enough left to want. Her world would have just been a home that was more like herself, and who hasn't wanted that? They're easier to vilify because their outlooks are harder to understand until the very end of the series, but looking back it's so clear that they were also just people once, and the writing never really lets you forget that.

If I said I'd tried to make all of these replies short, you probably wouldn't believe me. And Yet. I am not NORMAL about this show and the way Jonny writes people.

[dduane]

Just so that people know...

Facebook/Meta's just-announced change in its fact-checking and moderation policies (which would, among other things, allow users to refer to LGBTQ+ people as "mentally ill"), and its sudden vanishing of trans- and nonbinary-friendly themes, has made it plain to me that some of the book-series-oriented spaces I've maintained over there for years are no longer safe places for users, especially younger ones, to be.

I have therefore begun deleting them.

The Middle Kingdoms page (being both the smallest and the one now potentially most dangerous to keep) was the first to go: I nuked it about ten minutes ago. (Naturally I checked it first to make sure nothing of any note was going on in there, and also naturally, I took a backup.)

The Young Wizards page will be the next to be deleted, probably tomorrow. The Ebooks Direct page there will also be deleted over the weekend. Neither of them was all that busy, ever: but that's not the point here. Meta is no longer a safe or appropriate place for them to be. (It doesn't hurt that many of FB's employees are furious about this policy change too... but their boss, I firmly believe, doesn't give a shit about that.)

The DD Facebook page may suffer the same fate. My personal "main" account...? I have a lot of older friends over there for whom FB is their lifeline and main digital platform. I'm going to have to think about how best to handle that. It may be that there will be no more public posting from me there: just DM'ing. ...And I'm still working out what makes the most sense to do about the Middle Kingdoms Instagram account, and my own personal one. Neither of them has been heavily trafficked, and I may nuke them too.

(sigh) All this comes as something of a wrench. But at the very least, as regards the part of my creative work that contains LGBTQ+ themes and characters, I refuse to leave any of it there. To do so would risk having its continued presence seen as support for the platform's boss (and, as @petermorwood remarks in passing, "would-be capo"), who's already busy genuflecting to the US government's incoming (mob-)boss's agenda.

So, as the man says,

"If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well It were done quickly..."

[hollowwhisperings]

Kairi getting to know Ven through Aqua would ALSO allow the story to elaborate on how Princesses of Heart/Light "work": we never got to see how the original 7 Princesses (Alice, Jasmine, Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora, Belle, Kairi) 'channeled' their lights as individuals working together rather than objects in Ansem SoD's Machine.

Each of these Princesses is individually powerful: each of their Lights/Hearts seems to function equivalently in KH like the sun to Earth. Kairi is one of these 'suns' while Riku is Sora's personal one (Sora being Riku's 'Moon').

The Seven Lights in the KH universe seem to have become integral to the post-Masters fabric of reality: we still have no idea what that means for Kairi, only able to extrapolate based on the abilities of Ven-as-split-from-Vanitas. Ven & Kairi have a LOT in common (amnesia, getting kidnapped by mad scientists, getting yeeted across space-time, being stuck in a role of 'distressed damsel' and 'eternal child').

I think one of the reasons why (some of) the original Lights have 'retired' is because, post KH1 & 2, their worlds stopped 'looping': none of the princesses who were in BBS seemed affected by the 10 years that passed for the Destiny Island trio. Maleficent, in KHUX and elsewhere, seems to be aware of her world (& others) 'looping': it's plausible that this was done TO those worlds in order to keep the Worlds at large on [life support]. After all, when Maleficent & Ansem SoD 'interrupted' this function of the Seven Lights... their universe at large started falling apart.

Kairi has never brought up what, exactly, the Princesses did nor how they did it: Kairi has, instead, attempted to mimic Sora (& thus Riku) verbatim. Kairi REMAINING a Princess of Heart despite (all of?) the others presumably 'returning to real time' alongside their Worlds... is because KAIRI has remained 'static' despite her home Worlds experiencing 'time'. Admittedly, even in 'moving' worlds, time is... weird. Donald's nephews are still kids; Mickey's relationships with his fellow Disney Towners is unphased by long periods of absense; Donald & Goofy have no issues with spending years with Sora despite having their own lives back home. It's possible that Disney Towners have much longer lifespans & thus different concepts of time; it could be different worlds experiencing time at different speeds, as in our own universe; it could be true of the ENTIRE KH universe, especially given the Enigma that is Kairi's Grandmother.

Sora and Riku seem unlikely to be much involved with the series' worldbuilding mysteries: Kairi is innately connected to these mysteries and will only become even more involved. She is uniquely qualified to explore these mysteries, which would require an entirely different approach than Sora's "Connections Make Me Strong Enough To Bash Heads With A Blunt Sword" or Riku's power of Gay Pining/Tea/Light&Darkness.

if we wanted to argue for Kairi to be 'strong' in the same way as her friends... THEORETICALLY, Kairi 'should' be as powerful in Light magic as Sora (through Riku) or Riku because they share that innate potential that comes from "hearts of strong light"... it's not that Kairi is 'lacking' but that Kairi's use of Riku & Sora's methodology must not work for her. Their methods work for THEM because their hearts & minds are in synch about what makes them 'strong': Sora makes Riku strong because [Gay Pining]; Sora has not, however, ever made KAIRI notably stronger. Which implies that... Kairi is not actually in love with Sora & her heart knows it, even if her mind believes otherwise.

Until Kairi understands herself as an individual, not just one part or a trio or 'someone who loves Sora'... Kairi will keep falling behind. Melody of Memory is the first time Kairi has taken agency over her own life: her story is her own, not one she'll face on the sidelines of the Main Games & their Soriku Focus.

False Start: Analyzing Kairi’s Arc After Melody of Memory

In October 2019, I did an analysis of Kairi’s character arc as of the end of Kingdom Hearts 3 and what I felt was being set up for her going forward.

My major point was that Kairi’s fear of change was holding her back from reaching her full potential and catching up to Sora and Riku, but that by the end of Kingdom Hearts III she had overcome that fear and was ready to move forward. 

In hindsight, I jumped the gun in assuming that the end of KH3 marked the definitive point where she got over her change and could truly move forward. While she had some good moments in Re:Mind, Limit Cut promptly put her to sleep for an entire year, trying to search the memories in her heart for a clue to Sora’s whereabouts. 

But then Melody of Memory happened. 

When Kairi faces the memory of Xehanort, she says in the original Japanese version that Sora and the others being hurt was the result of her strength not being enough. I’ll save the rant about how the English localization consistently removes Kairi’s moments of self-reflection throughout the series for another day, but my main point is that this sets the groundwork for her decision to remain behind while Riku goes to Quadratum. When she chose to increase her training under Aqua, I was thrilled because finally this was the sign I was looking for that Kairi was really, truly, ready to move forward. 

A lot of people were disappointed by this decision because they felt like Kairi needing more training was the whole point of her being brought to the Mysterious Tower at the end of Dream Drop Distance. But there are a few things that set this moment apart and explain why her training in Kingdom Hearts 3 did not amount to as much as fans were hoping. 

First, it’s that this time Kairi is exerting her own agency and making the choice herself. Her training in Kingdom Hearts 3 was never something we saw her actively choose. So Kairi making that choice on-screen has more weight than Riku bringing her to the Mysterious Tower for training on Yen Sid’s orders. 

Second, while the memory of Xehanort notes that she did improve in the brief time she was training, the way she was being trained wasn’t suited to her style. The description we get of her training in Kingdom Hearts 3 mostly seems to amount to her and Lea sparring each other repeatedly - which is exactly how Sora and Riku developed their sword fighting skills growing up. And when you look at her battle stance and the way she holds her Keyblade in Kingdom Hearts 3 compared to how she held it in previous games, her stance is an exact copy of Sora’s. It’s no wonder then why she changed into Sora during the final boss fight in Melody of Memory then when she was clearly trying to imitate him. 

In the 2006 Characters Report Vol. 1 book, Tetsuya Nomura’s comments about Kairi in the early games identify the fear of growing apart from Sora and Riku as a major source of anxiety for her. The fact that her training and combat stance in Kingdom Hearts 3 imitate Sora so heavily indicates that Kairi is trying to catch up to Sora and Riku by trying to be exactly like them in that area as much as possible. With how much the series has focused on personal identity with regards to Roxas and Xion being their own people, it makes sense why Kairi doing that failed her in Kingdom Hearts 3. Because Sora and Riku’s style isn’t suited for her. 

Because she isn’t them. 

For Kairi to achieve her goal of catching up to Sora and Riku’s level, she needs to step out of their shadow and figure out how to be herself instead of trying to be Sora. And the best way for her to understand herself will be to understand her past. 

The Xehanort that Kairi faces in Melody of Memory is explicitly identified as a construct of her heart. He tells her that the answers she seeks “lie in memories that are long gone,” and tells her that there is nothing for her to find in her heart. However, that isn’t really true with what previous games have established about how memories work in this universe. Chain of Memories establishes that memories are stored in the heart, and that while the connections between them can be rearranged, they are never gone for good. 

So while Kairi may not consciously remember her childhood before arriving on Destiny Islands, the memories are still there deep in her heart. All she needs is something or someone to help her restore the connections between them. To rebuild the links in her Chain of Memories, so to speak. Kingdom Hearts 3 and Melody of Memory both specifically call attention to Kairi’s first meeting with Aqua in Birth by Sleep, as well as the fact that Kairi doesn’t remember it. From a narrative standpoint, the series has set up that remembering that first meeting will help Kairi regain the rest of her memories from Radiant Garden. 

But remembering her past is not the only arc the story has set up to help Kairi understand herself better. Training with Aqua also puts her in a position to interact with another teen who has a heart of pure light.

Who was also in a coma for a time while his heart rested in Sora’s body. 

It’s not a coincidence that Union X first revealed the existence of the entity known as Darkness just a few months after KH3 revealed that being a Princess of Heart was a mantle that could be passed on rather than a permanent state of being. Then Re:Mind revealed that Darkness is still hiding within Ventus’ heart in the present day. And following the release of Melody of Memory, the next Union X update revealed that Darkness had killed Streliztia because it saw her death as the best way to grant Ven’s desire for strength. The ability for Princesses of Heart to pass on their powers serves as set up for Kairi to do the same, opening herself up to struggling with darkness in her heart for the very first time. 

Kairi wants to become stronger in order to stand alongside Sora and Riku. But she has not struggled with her negative emotions the way that Riku has or that the narrative framework sets up Sora will be in the near future. But her decision to train alongside Aqua puts her in a position that has the potential to force her to go through that struggle herself should Darkness try to grant her desire for strength in ways that she doesn’t want. 

I know that I was wrong before about Kairi getting over her fear of change. But this time, I’m confident that Kairi’s character arc is finally picking up momentum. What Melody of Memory has that previous games didn’t is a clear sense of narrative direction. All Dream Drop Distance did was vaguely establish that she was going to start training. Kingdom Hearts 3 didn’t give enough information to form concrete theories about the trajectory of her arc. 

But all the Kingdom Hearts content released in 2020 has set up foreshadowing for a very specific plotline in regards to Kairi’s character growth. And not only that, Xehanort’s monologue in the flashback to her childhood where he says “if you arrive in a world that is neither light nor darkness, but somewhere on the other side, your task will be far from easy” adds a significant connection between Kairi rediscovering her past and the mysteries of “unreality.” Especially because Xehanort acting like it was actually possible for her to end up there instead of Destiny Islands raises the question of whether she truly went straight to Destiny Islands after Xehanort sent her off. 

Kairi's connection to “unreality” makes her the lynchpin of all the major story arcs being set up for the other characters while Sora and Riku are in Quadratum. The parallels between them foreshadow Ventus regaining his memories of the Age of Fairy Tales just as Kairi is set up to regain her memories of Radiant Garden. Ventus regaining his memories of the past logically connects the Birth by Sleep trio to Lauriam and Elrena through his role in Strelitzia’s death, as well as to the Twilight Town crew considering that Subject X is heavily implied to be Skuld. Then of course there’s Luxu, who is directly responsible for Subject X’s disappearance, and the Foretellers, who are still with Luxu last we saw them.  

With Sora and Riku off in Quadratum with Yozora and the Master of Masters, Kairi is narratively set to step up and take charge in dealing with the major unresolved plotlines from Union X and KH3 that need dealing with. By the time Sora and Riku finally make it back, she’ll be a whole lot closer to their level.

TL;DR: I was too hasty in 2019 when I declared that Kairi had gotten over hear fear of change. I only had nebulous ideas of what would come next. But now I can pick out all the subtle foreshadowing that illuminates a concrete path forward, and I’m confident that now she’s finally on the right track.

[tea-dragonz]

Talking about every Invisible Davis / Queen Kat MCRP series that I've watched (non-spoiler reviews I guess)

There aren't enough people in the Invisible Davis / Queen Kat fandom who talk about their Minecraft series, especially with all the new fans coming in. So I'll talk about them and hopefully it gets more people interested in the series. Won't be every series because I haven't watched all of them, but it's a good chunk of them

If you've watched a series and want to add your thoughts on it, feel free to add on! If you haven't watched the series that I'll talk about, take this as a review/recommendation of sorts

Fairy Tail Origins (S5 Invisible Davis Studios)

Fairy Tail Origins is a multi POV series based on the world of the Fairy Tail anime, though it has its own original plots and characters so you don't need to watch the anime first. This is also the first series that Davis did with the OriginsMCRP group. This was the first MCRP series I watched from Davis and the Origins group in general, so it has a bit of a special place in my heart. TBH there isn't much of a plot for most of his POV, and I would personally say that I do prefer the stories of other POVs to his. However, the thing that really carries Davis' POV for me is the interactions between Davis' character and others. I love the found family dynamic he has with Betty and Damien, and to a lesser extent with his guild mates in La Carnival and fellow dragon slayer Bryan. Compared to most of the other series on the list, it's pretty chill, but that doesn't mean it doesn't have it's own interesting moments.

SCP (S1 Invisible Davis Studios + Queen Kat Productions [partway through], S2 Invisible Davis Studios + Queen Kat Productions)

The SCP series is, unsurprisingly, based on the lore of the SCP Foundation. As someone with little knowledge of SCP, I felt like they explained things pretty well here, so you don't need to do a huge deep dive just to understand this series. The premise of the series starts off with Davis as a D-class and Kat as a scientist in charge of experimenting on him, and that's all I can reveal without spoiling the main meat of the series. There are moments of action and horror (ngl the episode with the staircase definitely freaked me out a bit), though the character interactions are definitely a main draw for me, especially later on. Definitely a must watch, especially if you're into sci-fi. Kat's episode 1 of Season 1 lines up around episode 40-ish of Davis' Season 1 (because Kat started her POV much later). Currently Kat's Season 2 is over, and we have yet to see Davis' Season 2 finale (though it does seem to be something that is being worked on).

Otso and Derpy Adventures (S1+S2 Queen Kat Productions) + Toby's FNAF Adventures (Queen Kat Productions)

Otso and Derpy Adventures is about the titular characters, Otso and Derpy, who are siblings with interdimensional abilities. The best way I can describe this is like 75% crack humor and 25% lore and/or drama. One episode they'll be at the beach and Otso will bust out a flying bathtub, and in another they'll be arrested and put on trial for breaking interdimensional laws. It gets pretty meta, and ever once in a while Otso and Derpy will break the fourth wall or acknowledge that they're in a minecraft roleplay. Because of its nature as a series about hopping between dimensions, you'll see references to Kat and Davis' other works here, as well as references to Otso and Derpy in their other shows. There's also a lot of lore about the different versions of Kat and Davis across the multiverse and it gets surprisingly intense at points. Definitely a bit of a daunting series to get into, both because of the 400+ episode count and the references to other series. I personally wouldn't recommend this one if you're relatively new to Kat and Davis' content, I'd watch at least a couple other series before this one. But as someone who hasn't watched all of their series (including one of the ones referenced the most here), I wouldn't say that not getting all the references takes me out of it or anything. Especially in Season 2, it has enough of its own plot and lore to stand on its own.

I also added Toby's FNAF Adventures here as it is kind of an interlude between Seasons 1 and 2 of Otso and Derpy. It follows the younger brother of Otso and Derpy, Toby, on his own adventures that seem unconnected to Otso and Derpy until the finale. It's a very short watch, and the series was supposed to be longer but was unfortunately cut short due to low viewership. It's loosely based on the space portion of Bonnie's Adventures. Because of its short length and how it bridges Toby's character arc between Seasons 1 and 2 of Otso and Derpy, I do think that people should watch it if they're watching that series as well.

My Hero Origins (S1 Invisible Davis Studios, S2 Invisible Davis Studios + Queen Kat Productions)

My Hero Origins is a multi POV series made by the Origins group based on My Hero Academia. It follows the premise of a bunch of kids with quirks (superpowers) going to a school where they learn to be pro heroes. Davis' POV follows Davis as he balances schoolwork in the daytime and vigilante work at night (also gonna note here that MHO Davis was written with autistic coding in mind). The POV also includes one of the villain characters for this series, who is one of my personal favorites, both for his time as a villain and the voice Davis gave him. It's got a solid plot and characters, though I can't bring up MHO without bringing up the action scenes and cinematics. There are several throughout the series, since it is still a superhero series. There is an hour-long almost fully cinematic episode about 3/4ths of the way through the series, and it is genuinely one of the most impressive things I've seen created in minecraft. Would recommend this if you're into more action-oriented stuff.

Season 2 didn't do as well so it was cut short, though it may end up being revived in the future. It takes place a few years after MHO, now with only two POVs: Davis (who is trying to make it as a pro hero but has to deal with hero agencies that prioritize money and popularity over doing real good) and Kat (who is going to a college for pro heroes). I found it an interesting concept, and it genuinely is a shame that is wasn't finished. Whether you actually watch this one is up to you, I don't really like recommending unfinished series, but I still think it's still pretty solid for what we got.

Origins of Olympus (S3 Invisible Davis Studios)

Origins of Olympus is a multi-POV series based mainly on Greek mythology, but Seasons 2 and 3 include other pantheons as well. Despite the gripes I have with Origins of Olympus as a whole and its portrayal of certain cultures, the Mors/Xiphos POV by Davis is my personal favorite Origins series that he did. He has two POV characters here: Mors, the son of Thanatos, and Xiphos, whose identity I shouldn’t spoil. I have so many thoughts about Mors that I’ve already said here on this account, and though I’m not normally a fan of edgier or more morally reprehensible characters, I absolutely loved him (it might just be me though, he’s a pretty divisive character in the OoO fandom). Though I’m not as big of a fan of Xiphos, I think that the arc he has here is surprisingly pretty deep. Both characters’ backstories tie into events from Seasons 1 & 2, which Davis does not have a POV for, though as someone who watched Season 3 with limited knowledge of the other 2 seasons, I’d say they give you enough information to be caught up at the very least. There’s also Korina and Kat (both played by Kat) and Luchnos as side characters who are absolutely wonderful here, and I’ll talk about one of them a bit more later on. Also, shoutout to the cinematics in this series; there’s two big fight scenes that come to mind that are absolutely iconic, and the opening scene of the first episode is great at establishing exactly what kind of series you’re getting yourself into. I highly recommend this series.

Korina's Origin (Queen Kat Productions)

So I mentioned Korina back in the Origins of Olympus section; she gets her own series in the form of Korina's Origin. It explores Korina's backstory and her history with Mors, Thanatos, and Luchnos before the events of OoO Season 3. Out of all of the series that Kat and Davis have done so far this is one of my favorite, if not the top favorite, series of their that I have watched. It is very character and relationship focused if you're into that, and it is something I really enjoy about the series. I have talked about Mors and Thanatos and Korina at length on my blog, and that's because I find the characters and relationships so wonderfully complex and human that I always find something new to analyze about it. This is a series with a decent amount of moral grayness and decisions made by characters that you my not agree with, and I am living for it. Similarly to OoO, it is heavily based on mythology, though thankfully it keeps the focus narrowed to primarily Greek mythology (with occasional references to Norse and Egyptian mythology, probably because of the proximity of their pantheons). It does take a lot of liberties from the source material, such as changing which gods are related to each other (Kat has said this is to avoid the incest prevalent in Greek mythology, which is fair). Imo it does start slowing down a bit in the final 20-30 episodes, but it's not something that ruins the series for me. So overall, I absolutely recommend watching Korina's Origin. I would personally recommend watching Origins of Olympus before Korina's Origin for a bit more context, though you can still watch this one on its own. Also KO is probably gonna come back for Season 2 at some point so now would be a good time to start watching it.

Bonnie's Adventures (S1 + S2 Invisible Davis Studios)

I actually haven't finished watching this one. FNAF stuff isn’t usually my thing as I’m not really in the fandom, but I would recommend watching it anyways, especially since it’s one of the more popular series in Davis’ fandom (and gets referenced in other series a lot). It’s basically a rewrite of a FNAF forever series that Davis used to work on, and I think it’s fairly solid for what it is. I especially kind of enjoy the development of the relationship between Freddy and Bonnie, and how their different ideals affect that development. I should probably finish this at some point lol

Supernatural Origins (Invisible Davis Studios)

Supernatural Origins is a multi POV series that was surprisingly not based on the TV show, but instead on the general concept of supernatural beings. Davis' POV follows vampire hunter Isaac, his niece Willow, a vampire noblewoman named Lady Cecilia, and a vampire servant named Dimitri. The large amount of characters in a single POV gives the viewer a lot to follow, but all of them are connected in some way so it makes it a little less daunting. This is one of the series that unfortunately wasn't given an ending due to burnout/other constraints. Kinda sad that such an interesting series was never realized to its full potential, but thankfully these characters and some of their plot threads were reused for a series that we'll talk about later on. I do recommend watching it, but do prepare to be left on a bit of a cliffhanger.

Fairy Tail (Invisible Davis Studios)

Similar premise to Fairy Tail Origins, except it's only Davis' POV now, and basically it revolves around Davis joining a magic guild called Wolf Claw while trying to come to terms with and atone for his past, standard action-fantasy shenanigans occur. Though this Davis is basically the same as FTO Davis design and personality wise, this series is set in a completely separate continuity and mostly has different characters, and now Davis' character actually has a solidified story to follow. This is one of the series where Kat and Davis took a their characters from Origins and gave them their own series as a reboot of sorts. The plot here is a lot more solid, the characters are great (Astrid is a fave of mine), and the actions cinematics are amazing (though due to constraints that Davis mentioned they may not return as much in season 2, so cherish them here). Still keeps some of the found family aspects from FTO, but switch out some of the characters. Overall a solid watch that I would recommend.

Sword Art Origins (Invisible Davis Studios)

Basically a multi POV series that is based on Sword Art Online. Gonna be real with you all, I keep forgetting this one exists. Generally it was kinda bleh imo, but it was the last series by Origins before it officially disbanded so I kind of get it. For what little Davis made of this series, it had an intimidating villain and did a good job of setting up the stakes/plot. Don't really recommend this one because of how short and inconclusive it was, and also apparently there was stuff going on behind the scenes of this series that really hit the fan. But who knows? The characters might be recycled for a future series.

The Backrooms (Invisible Davis Studios + Queen Kat Productions)

Another short series, though at least this one has an ending. Basic premise is that this series' Kat and Davis get trapped in the Backrooms and try to escape. It focuses mainly on the horror of the entities in the Backrooms, though there's also some element of human horror in it (if that makes sense). Davis (the creator, not the character) himself isn't really a fan of how the series turned out. I think it's pretty alright for what it is, but otherwise don't have a lot to say about it. I recommend both POVs for being a short watch combined, if nothing else (and I really do recommend both POVs because Kat's version has the ending for both of them).

Undertale (Invisible Davis Studios)

This is a minecraft roleplay based on the hit indie game Undertale. The basic premise is that Davis, a park ranger stationed near Mount Ebott, catches Frisk as they are about to fall down to the Underground on their hundredth or so run of the game. As a result, the two of them fall down into the Underground together and become linked. Davis tries to find a way out of the Underground with Frisk while Frisk tries to speedrun Undertale without Davis getting in the way. It's a pretty unique concept for an Undertale AU imo, though sadly it was one of the series that got cut short. It fortunately does get a finale, though it is a bit of a controversial ending to some. I really like the little details here that tie things back to the game while changing things up due to the minecraft medium and events being from the perspective of Davis, such as how the fights are translated from the game to minecraft, Davis being unable to see save points but Frisk being able to interact with them, and the random comments Frisk makes that are references to the game text. I do personally recommend this if you are a fan of Undertale. Like I said before, the ending might not be for everyone, though it might be a bit more interesting if you have watched Davis' other series before.

FNAF Chronicle (Invisible Davis Studios)

FNAF Chronicle is an original FNAF project that takes elements from the games, movies, and books. This series' Davis becomes the new owner of the long abandoned Fazbear's location and the animatronics inside, but quickly learns there's more to them than meets the eye. Like I said previously, I don't care too much for FNAF stuff, but this series has me hooked. About half the episodes are crack humor and references to past series, while the other half is a mix of drama, mystery, and horror. I'd say that out of every series on this post that can be considered horror, this one does it the best. There are some jumpscares (which I normally hate), but they're used sparingly and most of the horror is done through the building of tension and mystery. The voice and body acting do a good job of getting across just how terrifying these situations are for Davis and the others. Plus the use of the humorous episodes is done in a way that gives you a break from the more intense aspects of the series while not being entirely detached from the plot. Definitely a good series to watch, and it's currently still in progress on Davis' channel.

The Vampire's Bride (Queen Kat Productions)

The Vampire's Bride is an isekai fantasy/romance story that also has bits of being a historical/fantasy political drama. In the first episode, after seeing TVB Kat be what can only be described as a failure at life, a portal pulls her into another dimension, where the vampire Lord Isvad declares her to be the reincarnation of his wife, Lady Kestrin. Aside from the romance between Kat and Lord Isvad, the series also goes into a lot of worldbuilding for this supernatural world and acknowledges that Kat's new role as a noblewoman is something that gives her both power over others and a target on her back. One of my favorite things about this series is the way that Kat is written. She has a lot of flaws and weaknesses that primarily come from being an outsider to this world (and not having much going for her in her previous life), but we follow her over the course of this series as she grows into this new role. Her growth into a strong woman who relies on her wits and relationship-building skills to survive in this world was really cool to see, especially since I feel like this type of character tends to be overlooked when it comes to characters that are considered "strong female characters". Also, this was the series I mentioned earlier that reuses the characters from Supernatural Origins. Isaac and Willow return, as well as part of their plotline for SNO, Lady Cecilia returns with a modified role, and Dimitri also returns. Glad to see that despite SNO not being able to have a proper ending, the characters can still have their story finished in some form (though do note that it’s still set in a separate continuity from SNO, so you don’t have to watch it to understand this). Definitely recommend watching this one, and it is still currently in progress on Kat's channel.

[woodbrook-wanderer]

Bits + Bits: A meta discussion on Sam's gender

Hello! This post by @spyjam24 has been itching me for quite a while, and while I could just include this in a post about Sam and in general the queercoding of the BTTWNS world, this seems important enough to talk about on its own. Sam being a woman while presenting masculinely is another point of discussion in my future Nigel analysis.

BEAR HEIRARCHIES:

Being solitary creatures, bears have a simplistic social structure where mature dominant males are at the top, and sub-adults and cubs remain at the bottom. Male bears assert dominance by marking their area with their scent and challenge other males to gain right to food sources or an area. Larger bears roar to scare away younger bears who aren't as strong. While bears are not territorial and learn to co-exist with each other in safe distances, even congregating in places with abundant food supply (streams, coasts, etc.), the male dominance ensures that all the given needs (food, water, shelter, and mates) are streamlined towards them. Females do not have much say in the matter. Although they are tolerant and can live within the territories of dominant males, refusing advances for mating results in injury or even death.

Female bears are most associated with rearing young and defending their cubs when male bears threaten to kill their children in order to get the mother to mate with him. Females do not go out of their way to kill or challenge other females.

Single females and subadults are almost always submissive to mature males but have a loose hierarchy within their own group.

RE-IMAGINING BTTWNS WITH A MALE PROTAGONIST:

Knowing this, how would BTTWNS play out if Sam was a man? The most prominent selling point fans and comic news outlets use to drive eyes towards the comic is its similarities to the TV show Dexter. Similar logline, similar plot, close enough characters. I have not watched the show in its entirety yet but with the knowledge I've gotten through friends and social media osmosis, it's about a mild-tempered investigator who's a serial killer by night. I have heard from a friend that one of the main storylines in the series is a string of murders happens and it is done to impress the titular character.

Sound familiar?

However, coming from a fan of Beneath The Trees and did not read under the advertising of it being "Dexter but Richard Scarry!", I believe it largely undersells and underestimates the message and themes. It also seems to disregard the importance of Samantha being a woman but also being a butch. Her gender presentation is extremely important as to how and why she kills in the first place.

But let's play this hypothetically. Sam is a man. He owns a hardware shop and is well liked in his community. He's the only bear in town. He's secretly a serial killer and goes out to the city to pick and choose his victim. Sure, it sounds similar enough, but why would he still kill in the first place when he knows he's at the top of the food chain or the social hierarchy in Woodbrook in the lenses of the anthropomorphic animal world? More importantly, if he was a man, why would anyone be brave enough to challenge him by becoming the local serial killer?

Nigel challenges Sam because she is a woman.

Caging The Idea:

Of course Beneath The Trees could work alone if Sam was a man but that would take away a lot of the gravity in the implied horror of the series.

First and foremost, Nigel is a stalker. He follows Sam around and obsessively takes photos of her to collect. God knows what he's doing with those photos, but his obsession with her extends beyond the images and into imitation. Aside from becoming a serial killer himself, he tries dressing and acting similarly in Issue 4 where he confesses to the crime in an attempt to become her equal.

But that's the thing though. He doesn't view her as an equal. He's excited at the idea of her masculinity and imitates what he can learn from the violence that comes with it. She isn't as competent because she is a woman and he needs to assert himself under the guise of assisting her or "doing it together".

He throws a fit when he is rejected, similarly to how certain men feel entitled to a woman or a partner and violently attacks her (although in this case indirectly by framing Charlie's murder on her and creeping into her subconscious in the nightmare).

He fights for dominance he knows she can't naturally have because that's how nature is, correct? Females will always be submissive to males and rejection results in injury or even death.

Now imagine all of this if Sam was a man. It does not feel twice as horrifying as it actually is in its plainest form.

Nigel is a predator as we know it in the modern sociological context, and he confidently does this by exerting the violence that comes with masculinity which he ironically learnt from a woman.

WHY DO YOU KILL?:

It's simple. Nigel kills to assert his dominance.

Sam kills to emotionally regulate, but also kills to assert dominance.

Sam is seen to revere wild bears as she sees herself as a bear (she is, but moreso in the sense she is not "human" or social like the other animal folk in Woodbrook) and chooses to be one with what she loves. Her fascination and kinship with the strength and the power they hold in nature is why she chooses to present, dress, and act butch. However, we do see in gaps and moments that she is aware of how powerless she actually is if she was a bear and if she were to be a person. There's the pressure to be good. There's the social pressure that comes with being a woman. There's the expectations of her gender and the exploitation men will have over her in either situation.

And so she kills. She has no young to defend. She's not interested in love, or raising a family or being social so she'll act like a male bear because that is the closest she'll ever get to having power over anyone.

And that power will be challenged in the Spring.

Yes. It's important that Sam is a woman. Don't undersell BTTWNS as a Dexter spinoff.

[dropthedemiurge]

Let Free The Curse of Taekwondo: Things you didn't notice #1

Isn't this another K-BL where I'm internally squealing because of every single detail? You bet it is. You can read my other meta/cultural detail/Korean language posts for Love for Love's Sake, Time of Fever, Grey Shelter and Boys be Brave on my pinned post or hashtags^^ (I really need to organize it under one singly hashtag tho...)

I already talked about how impressed I am with the fact that this series has done their preparation job well, with props, settings, language, history etc.

It is about a countryside/small town in Southern province of Korea - because a lot of characters use satoori (southern dialect), almost all of them except for the main two guys. There is also a distinct contrast/conflict between 'fancy Seoul rich guys' looking down on 'Southern town'. Juyoung even was surprised Dohoi doesn't use satoori.

To which, he responded with 'You'll be uncomfortable if I use it". And Juyoung said there are plenty other uncomfortable things around here, beside understanding/listening to everyone using other accent xD Confusing Gaga translation errors, we meet again!

Actually, it's interesting because Dohoi's name is written 이도회 in Korean, which typically would be written as 'Dohoi' but pronounced as 'Dohwe' (think of surname Choi that is actually pronounced as Chwe), yet in the first episode I clearly heard them actually say 'Dohoi', letter by letter. Now I wonder if it's also related to satoori... I wish I could speak it, it sounds so cool tbh.

He actually said 'I'm not in a good condition', meaning his physical form. What do you mean, mood, when was that ever an excuse in sports..?xD

By the way, what is it with boys trying to get closer to other boys by buying them unusual ice cream?:') Okay, garlic sounds more weird than red bean one :D

Also, I tried to find the Hasong town they talked about but failed - maybe because of incorrect transcription or maybe they made up this town based on Uiseong - a small town close to Daegu which is famous for being the most famous garlic town, they produce a lot of it and garlic fame would be seen everywhere - so who knows, I bet they allude to this when Juyoung said 'why can't there be a vanilla garlic ice cream? It's like a collaboration!'

Another thing, I thought the time of this series was somewhere around 1990s-2000s (because I watched a movie in similar setting that was called 1997 year but they still used pagers, now that I think about it). It was also still the time where teachers could use physical punishment on their students, it's heavily highlighted but I don't actually know around what time they stopped... Probably in Seoul, they already were getting rid of it but in small towns it was old-school teaching, which is again why Dohoi tried to tell Joyoung out of it.

I'm not familiar when small laptops and phones appeared in Seoul but I think the series is actually somewhere around 2005-2010! Which would make sense, Juyoung got the 'cool' flip-phone and a laptop with Windows XP (released in 2001) but small town is still far from that, as they use landline house phones to make a call.

He also has mp3 player and as other tumblr folks figured out, he was listening and dancing to Jewelry song released in 2005 :)

And another thing that convinced me about the time era... the final scene!

Do you want to know why at the end of Ep 1 Dohoi smiled and laughed and ran to Juyoung even after so many exhausting days and neverending small miseries and a new loud housemate?

Because Juyoung not only came to pick him up with an umbrella in the acid rain, he also reenacted the famous umbrella scene from the classic romantic K-drama called "Temptation of Wolves" (늑대의 유혹) which was released in 2004! To make Dohoi laugh.

(Yes, when Juyoung intentionally put the umbrella down and the camera cut the shot to the framing when the umbrella slowly lifts up, showing smiling Juyoung, I was like 'you did nooooooot' xD)

(last screenshots taken from @heretherebedork post, I'm sorry I am very lazy and cannot take a good screenshot for life :'))

So that was already our very first romantic teasing-implication!

Another cute thing: optimistic Joyoung wrote a diary entry into the fake old Korean "Facebook" (they had Cyworld instead) to share his first selfie with Dohoi:

"[Excited Shin Jjuyoung]" (typing in a popular back then teenage style) "I miss you guys... But here it's nice too hehe ^___^ Come to play with me!! Together with my friend Dohoi too~~!"

Aren't they the cuteestttttt? I mean, this dynamic is not new but I love how unique the setting is. And I can't wait to watch the second episode, I'm waiting and savoring the first one for now but I'm going to make notes about other episodes as well so stay tuned! If you reply/comment in tags, I will put you in my tag list^^

Tag list: @benkaben @pickletrip @troubled-mind

[miscellaneouzz]

More Vox Machina meta time bc I feel like people do NOT talk enough about how complex Pike and Scanlan’s relationship is. First off the show is very good at steering away from the typical he’s-annoying-so-she-eventually-gives-in misogynistic approach a lot of those types of dynamics have. Like it initially comes off as just cute and flirtatious until their dynamic ironically becomes the least romantically driven of the main ships in a way that’s far more layered than I expected. It always feels like Pike’s complicated feelings come with observing Scanlan from a distance, she’ll flirt back and play along but ultimately wants to see the person he COULD be, the more sincere and earnest side to him (which can also be tied to Zerxus’ comment about her taking pride in “redeeming” her friends).

But then from Scanlan’s perspective, becoming the person he “could” be means distancing himself from Pike completely, because he’s in love with her and in his mind he sees that as an example of him clinging to his old habits of “finding all the wrong ways” to fill his emptiness. His scene with her on the balcony felt like such a culmination of both their complicated feelings– him relying on those coping mechanisms and Pike recognizing that– and I think that’s part of why he cried and why Pike pulled away at the last second. After that scene, we pretty much see Scanlan stop pursuing romantic interest in Pike for the rest of the season, but she’s still the only person he’ll be vulnerable with.

So then comes this heartbreaking irony that Pike’s been wanting more sincerity from Scanlan for a while now, only for Scanlan finally opening up more about his feelings to include him saying things that end up hurting and pushing away Pike. Because now Scanlan being more vulnerable and sincere means finally admitting he doesn’t view Vox Machina as his “real” family and that he never thought he mattered when he was with them and I don’t think that’s something Pike was truly ready for. And in the end Scanlan is still defining his worth purely on his relationships with others– if he’s no longer pouring his identity into romance/sex, he’s gotta pour it all into his newfound parenthood. He’s still flawed and not in a way where everything just hinges on Pike to “fix” him.

I think when it comes to the romantic relationships in the series it’s the one I’m most invested in from a character perspective. They’re the only pairing that’s yet to sincerely confess or discuss feelings for each other despite how much their relationship focuses on the need for sincerity and it’s so interesting. Like through the relationship struggles of Keyleth x Vax and Percy x Vex, we still see them be more open and upfront with both the conflicts and resolutions of their feelings for each other.

Pike & Scanlan are the only ship we’ve seen neither for, neither a straightforward conversation on the conflict of their relationship itself nor a sincere resolution to their feelings. And I think it has a lot to do with the parallel you can make about their own crisis of identity. Their character motivations and struggles with identity are not entirely dependent on each other as Scanlan has a tumultuous relationship with parenthood and Pike with her faith yet they impact each other so deeply.

There’s a lot more to say BUT for now… onto whatever season 4 brings for the gnomes!

[adventures-in-mangaland]

Yet Another Dead Boy Detective Fic Rec List

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

I've been having so much fun with these, so I've decided to make another! See above for links to my other fic rec lists. ♥️

Like We're Gonna Die Young (Again) by RoseGanymede95

The latest installment in the superb Codependency World Cup series has the boys attend a nefarious house party and grapple with old frenemies, 90s fashion and temporary amnesia. Also fleshes out their achingly sad backstories, but compensates with the triumphant return of Pierre the rabbit.

When I Picture You by Gruoch

Charles gets braceleted by the Cat King instead of Edwin and receives his heart's desire... being alive again. This author has a special gift for taking fun sounding premises and turning the angst up to 11. So excellent.

young blood (never get chained) by ghostinthelibrary

University AU in which half-demon Charles intervenes in Edwin's ritual sacrifice and inadvertently binds their souls together... I'm genuinely obsessed with this AU, it has so much potential for tons of delicious tropes. Human!Edwin getting a crash course in supernatural shenanigans! Soulmate vibes!Found Family! Demon lore! What's not to love??

Ghosts and Monsters by justafandomfollower

Charles is also sacrificed and the boys meet in Hell! Fantastic premise and executed really well. I loved Masterful Edwin taking charge and protecting Charles while inwardly despairing. Highly recommended.

back to back they faced each other by ShanaStoryteller

The Night Nurse has a theory about how Charles was able to rescue Edwin from Hell so quickly... I'm genuinely shocked I haven't recced this one already. Sorry guys, I forgor. Anyway, this has interesting "Guardian" (angel?) lore, great meta and we even get some temporary amnesia as a treat.

boyfriend jacket by skadii

5+1 times Edwin borrowed Charles' jacket. The characterisation is on point, and it has some great OCs (Kyle the snarky seeing-eye cat!) and really sweet payneland moments. Plus Charles' jacket doing its most to annoy the Cat King.

Looking Like the Sunrise by letters_of_stars

Edwin thinks he's cursed so he and Crystal must team up to solve the case of his Mysterious and Suddenly Appearing Rizz. Funny and sweet friendship fic with some quality Edwin-Crystal bonding and discussions of trauma.

The Case of the Anonymous Confession by Mayarenerose

College AU featuring Charles posting an 'anonymous' online confession about his complicated feelings for his bestie. The closet is glass, but Edwin is oblivious and Crystal is in pain. Cute and funny epistolary social media fic done really well.

the middle of something wonderful by KiaraSayre

Does what it says on the tin and gives us a trope salad of cosy vignettes, including a time loop, temporary amnesia, sudden corporality and Crystal and Edwin trying to get a good grade in Party. Wholesome.

My heart is like a haunted house (series) by halffulljampot

Charles (unknowingly) befriends the ghost of Edwin's mother and constantly gushes to her about his amazing best friend/boyfriend. Beatrice is a great OC and it's just nice (though extra tragic) to read a fic in which Edwin had loving parents. Read it for Family Feels and wholesome intergenerational friendship.

the first rule of fight club by e_va

The boys are captured by an evil underground fighting ring. The fic is from Charles' PoV, so the prospect of having to fight Edwin was especially stomach-churning. Still, we get Edwin being a badass and a brilliant surprise cameo I don't want to spoil.

The Case of The... by sophisticatedyet

Edwin borrows Niko's negligee and Charles' brain breaks. There's also a case and giant squids, but Charles' Distracted By The Sexy crisis is the main (hilarious) event.

in those heavy days when love became an act of defiance by aletterinthenameofsanity, JUBE514

Daemon AU and first meeting fic! Loved the worldbuilding, insightful character work and lovely use of Greek mythology. Honestly, this fandom needs more daemon AUs.

spinning around and around in an ocean of grief (your ladder came down to the sea) by Ingi

Prequel to DontOffendTheBees' excellent College AU, expanding on the boys being alive and in school together. Also has its own prequel about their first meeting from Edwin's point of view. This one, though, is a Charles' Bisexual Journey/Feelings Realization fic. So lovely.

head in the clouds but my gravity's centered by shadowquill17

Face Touching: The Fic. I just love non-sexual intimacy in fics and this one is so tender. I also love Accidental Kissing and Feelings Realization so my cup runneth over.

i don't want to rest in peace by handwrittenhello

Different First Meeting fic featuring Poltergeist Charles! Loved the concept, even though it made me sad.

the great snogging debacle of '95 by thatgayprince

Edwin disguises himself as a girl and Charles starts and then defers a sexuality crisis for 30 years. Funny, steamy and emotional.

a beautiful day to say goodbye by ofstitches

The agency take on the case of a depressed house. This is another bittersweet Edwin backstory fic with discussions of grief.

Smitten in the Stacks by cordelianoir

Adorable prequel to lolotr's equally adorable library AU. Meet cute featuring (platonically married) Dad!Charles crushing on the hot librarian who leads Children's Storytime.

Jenny Green: Butcher, Hot Mess, Reluctant Queer Elder by Money_Maker

Jenny-centric fic! The focus is on Jenny and her financial, mental and emotional struggles post-canon, but mentoring Edwin through his queer self-discovery becomes a big part of that. This turns into a really sweet friendship, plus Found Family Feels and some fun outsider PoV of the boys' dynamic.

I've always got more recs so watch this space! ❤️

[raayllum]

She Must Pay the Price, or A Drop of Mercy :: A Rayla and Leola Meta

Quick:

You're a young elven girl, and you show mercy and compassion to a human that you definitely weren't supposed to. When it's found out, you're punished, with elves even calling for your execution (6x09, book 1 novelization). Your father does what he can, but there's only so much. You're put on trial. You're found guilty regardless of intent, and only by association. You die for this; you die for them. You're a star. A guiding light. There's even a Great Fall off a precipice (though only one of you hits the ground).

Your name is Leola, or Rayla.

You're the beginning and the end, respectively.

So let's talk about it.

Tests of Love

For years, I had wondered where Aaravos' assessment of "Those who fail tests of love are simple animals. They deserve to be motivated by fear" (2x09) came from, cause you don't drop in a line like that if it's not going somewhere. It's quite a statement and worldview, after all. Now, with Leola's trial, it seems we know.

We can see, then, perhaps that Leola's gift giving was the first test of love — are you willing to break the Natural Law, the Natural Order of things? — to help another? To show another a source of power in order to share, to be compassionate, and in Rayla's case, to be merciful (though we'll get more to that in a minute).

We also know that the love Leola had was powerful and all encompassing:

She didn't care to follow the order set in the stars. Though she was born an immortal being from the Heavens, she loved this world... and all its flaws. Her heart was warm and open.

And she befriended mortals. Animals, elves... and humans.

ETHARI: Who I love, where I love, what I love, are all specific. But to Runaan and those like your parents... love is rooted in all families, all creatures. Souls like that feel called to protect everyone as fiercely as those they hold close. (Bloodmoon Huntress)

Okay, so Leola and Rayla both have big compassionate hearts and befriend creatures from all over the place. So what? So do Callum, Ezran, Soren, and most of our other main good guy characters. Even Claudia to a degree (though she could work on not using magical creatures for spell parts).

Well, specifically, it's because of how they intersect currently more with anyone else on the concept of

Mercy

KOSMO: Daughter of the Moon, yours is a wondrous heart. In a moment of mercy, you sent ripples out into the ocean of time. Ripples that have not yet stilled. (6x05)

Rayla sparing Marcos, as noted in multiple interviews by the creators and by myself in previous metas, is ultimately the inciting incident / lynchpin of the entire series. Without it, there would've been no soulfang proposal or Ez running away to find the egg or any of the number of other elements that had to come together to make achieving peace possible.

While we still have details to discover regarding Aaravos' Fall and development of dark magic, we know that a lack of mercy was ultimately what sent him on his path of vengeance. Leola was not shown mercy, and while it seems there were already "flaws" for an imperfect world, things were (probably) better than they currently are in Xadia in a variety of ways. Then, to kick off the entire Saga, we have Rayla sparing Marcos in a soundtrack literally titled "Mercy" and have Kosmo, seasons and seasons later, spell out directly what a big deal this was for well, the ocean of time.

None of this is to say Rayla can't act out of revenge — she did ("when I first came here, I was on a mission for revenge") and she has ("but I became so obsessed with revenge"), much like Aaravos ("he isn't doing anything out of love, he's doing it for revenge") — but that her general compassion and love for others has always been stronger than her grief or rage, and that even when she had every social and personal reason to, she was and is fundamentally unable to hurt someone innocent.

Even when she's shamed or punished for it by herself or by others. RAYLA: The human looked up at me, and I saw the fear in his eyes. RUNAAN: Of course he was afraid, but you a job to do! (1x01)

EZRAN: Yeah, but then you saw he was scared, and you knew he was a person, just like you. RAYLA: That shouldn't have mattered. I had a job to do. (1x08)

The Cosmic Council — and to a degree, the Silvergrove — say that the reasonings or motivations, the intentions, behind Leola and Rayla's actions do not and should not matter when it comes out to doling 'Justice'. So Leola faces her justice, being literally killed in the one manner that can kill a Startouch elf, and so does Rayla, being metaphorically Ghosted / 'murdered' by her community, regardless.

Neither are enough to ultimately quell their light or their love/power, however.

A Star

RAYLA: That beautiful shining star you just pointed out? We call it Leola's Last Wish. (5x02)

So both Leola and Rayla are stars in season 6, literally and metaphorically respectively. Leola's is more self-explanatory, whereas Rayla's is mostly about the role she has in Callum's life as a guiding light and star. I don't think it's a coincidence, though, that just as Rayla placed Callum on his path of being a primal mage, though, that Leola did the same for humanity. I also don't think it's a coincidence that Callum's love for Rayla restores Callum's own light and agency amid Leola giving humanity the same through light and fire.

It happened long ago, when humans had only just learned to hold fire in their hands without burning. They nurtured their precious primal flames secretly—in the dark of night, beneath shadows and shrouds—as cultivating its glow drew the eyes and ire of monsters. Eventually, for the audacity of their fire, they were hunted, and—though they looked to the stars for salvation—the stars, too, looked down upon them with disdain. Humanity had been given something it was never meant to have. (TDP shorts, Ripples)

In this way, we see the manifestation of a repeating parallel of Rayla representing Leola, a gift giver of life, magic, light, unjustly punished/killed, and Callum representing humanity, looking to the kindest brightest star for guidance, magic, restoration, and salvation if he's just given the chance to grasp it. After all, presumably, Leola's last wish would have something to do with primal magic and humanity, and who represents that better than Callum, with two arcana under his belt and possibly more on the way? With that in mind, I want to return to another quote from earlier but with a different focus on

Ripples

Daughter of the Moon, yours is a wondrous heart. In a moment of mercy, you sent ripples out into the ocean of time. Ripples that have not yet stilled.

The wisest of the humans looked upon the water. His own reflection smiled back at him, and he dared to imagine what such power would feel like in his own hands, should he be allowed to hold it. Imagine, he thought, if I were more than what I am. With a trembling hand he touched the surface of the water. Ripples spread from his fingertips. [...] I hope the stars were watching. I hope they saw it: the moment their perfect reflections turned warped and ruined, churned to chaos by the touch of a single human hand. In this, the humans taught me another lesson. And so I touch the surface of the water. I watch the ripples spread.

Water in TDP is a strange beast, symbolically speaking. There are some more straight forward motifs (reflections, "don't try to control where the river [of life] goes, there's one thing you can know and control: yourself"). For Aaravos, it's connected to deep loss but also his own sense of patience in playing and winning his game, as illustrated above. For Rayla, it's linked to shame, self-reflection, bravery, and loss. Aaravos weeps and creates a sea upon losing Leola; Rayla says goodbye to her family by the lotus pond times three.

We don't know what water represents for Leola. Not distinctly, anyway. The best we can figure though, is that by following the through line of the Rayla and Leola parallels, that the ripples Leola wanted to send out or did send out — not the distortions caused by her father and his grief — are ones that Rayla received, and then continued.

Rayla has always been a foil to Aaravos, and this hasn't changed. She is the one who set Callum on the path initially of being a mage, which put him in Aaravos' machinations as prey; she retrieved his Key; and she's the reason Callum's done dark magic, twice. At the same time, much like the moon, Rayla carries Leola's light as much as she shoulders Aaravos' dark. She literally represents light in Callum's life, helps lead him through the darkness, and him being a primal mage and it's possible growth to other humans is the best possible thing that could've ever happened to Xadia.

Sol Regem says that "no one can save" Xadia or fix what is deeply broken. The Cosmic Council said that Leola had broken the Cosmic order and had to pay the price. Rayla has repeatedly been willing to pay the price for both hers and other's actions in hopes of making things right, of sparing others' pain. Sometimes to her detriment, but—if Rayla as Callum's one Truth could fix the darkness within him, if she's the lynchpin for breaking the Cycle, for bringing back Runaan and fixing her family's souls, in opposing and presenting mercy amid the Council's lack of mercy, in the face of Xadia's violence—

Then Rayla's act of mercy in 1x01, and potentially beyond in S7 with Callum, will be what fixes Xadia.

Leola's gift of magic is what 'broke' Xadia, and her execution is what literally did so, leading to the division of the continent. She wrongly paid the price in the absence of mercy and love. Rayla is therefore her thematic successor — welcomed this time as Light and Truth — as the carrier of Mercy and Love, and she will 'fix' Xadia through her ripples and dynamics. She will mend them back together. There will, at last, be no price to pay.

Misc. Thoughts / Predictions

One thing I was always curious about going forward into future seasons was the prospect of a 'trial' or reunification of the Silvergrove. It felt like a no-brainer the Silvergrove would have to change in order to reflect Runaan's character arc, much the way we see Katolis and the Sunfire elves change to better accommodate the new, more compassionate world order. Pre-S4 a trial felt a little strange as an idea, though post-S4 the parallels it could provide to the Lucia tribunal made more sense about why include either (or both).

However, Leola's trial seemed to hammer home the almost necessity (as this is still a prediction, after all, that may not happen) of Rayla and/or Runaan saying their peace to the Silvergrove leaders. This would be a great opportunity to provide a contrast to the Cosmic Council, reaffirming that Xadia is ultimately better than them because the Moonshadow elves and everyone else can change, and the Cosmic Council seemingly cannot or will not. But I guess we'll have to wait for S7 or beyond (#GiveUsTheSaga) to find out if this'll come to fruition or not.

I also wanted to touch on what we see with Leola ("I'm so scared!") and the repeated emphasis on "recognizing fear as a moment of empathy and personhood" and the horror that can come if you don't have that moment of recognition. This is something I've touched on before most notably as a striking difference between S1 Rayla and S5 Claudia, but I thought it was worth mentioning as S6 added to it specifically with Viren towards Soren and Lissa. This is another point in the "Rayla is an inversion of the Council's lack of mercy" column, as Leola's — a child's fear, and Aaravos willing to pay the price and take her place — earns her no mercy. Rayla, meanwhile, sees someone innocent that she has 'every right' to execute is afraid of her, and that strays her hand; it steadies her sword, and she spares him. Because if someone is afraid of you, it's worth asking yourself why, and what you might want to do instead.

Last but not least I wanted to talk about Leola's parallels to Callum and Ezran as well, since they are very much there (though yet not perhaps to the same extent).

Ezran has Leola's friendliness to animals and soft heart. He too is a child whose death is called for as a means of Justice, and he is granted mercy through Rayla and the discovery of the egg, able to live and grow and help usher in peace. He is, I think, what Leola might've been allowed to be if she'd lived in different times. Callum, meanwhile, carries the gift giving motif through his cube, staff, and tokens he both gives to (moon-phoenix bracelet) and receives (the moon opal necklace) from Rayla, and previous 'human-Leola' magic dynamic. Callum being able to break free fully from Aaravos' and dark magic's control in S7 and turn his eye instead to primal magic will be what helps bring true justice to Leola and hope for humanity / Xadia in righting the Cosmic Council's fundamental wrongdoing. Hopefully, anyway.

Conclusion

I hope you enjoyed this deep dive into some parallels and potential narrative goings-on between Leola and Rayla as characters. TDP loves its historical and ironic layers in TDP (Ez and the Orphan Queen, Viren's arc from S1 to S6) and I think this layered thematic dynamic between the two merciful young girls was a good, brilliant choice by the creative team. I'm excited to see where this thematic thread goes in the future and how it may continue to be woven into the story. As always, thank you for reading, and I'll see you in the next one.

[mstornadox]

Very important fact: Russell T. Davies is and has always been a superfan of Doctor Who.

He wrote one of the New Adventures books in the 1990s. The main character in the original Queer as Folk series was a superfan. RTD was such a big fan that he was able to reboot the show in 2005. Even as showrunner, he has engaged with the show with a fannish perspective., including callbacks and Easter Eggs to old DW.

“Lux” includes a meta love letter to all Doctor Who fans. The audience may cringe when they see the 3 characters wearing a mishmash of DW merch and references, but the Doctor does not. The characters belittle themselves as fans, as characters without surnames, as “annoying”; the Doctor treats them as people. He sees and receives their joy and reflects that joy back to them a hundredfold.

RTD does make gentle fun of the modern fandom but he also shows how being fans of the show brings people together. They don’t agree on everything (except for “Blink” being their favorite episode), yet these 3 characters have become best friends through their love of the Doctor. I loved their giddiness at meeting the Doctor. Their love of the show, of the Doctor, for each other, is strong enough for them to survive. Even if Doctor Who is cancelled (again), fans will persist.

I hope we get to see Lizzie Abel, Hassan Chowdry, and Robyn Gossage again.

[nikethestatue]

I've been in a few fandoms throughout my life, because I have an obsessive personality and tend to hyper fixate on things. And because I am a voracious reader, many of the fandoms were connected to books. I've never been involved to this degree in a bookish fandom, but I've been involved enough.

And this fandom--parts of it--is the only one I've ever encountered where an obsession with a ship trumps the actual books.

I've never encountered a fandom where readers ENCOURAGED newcomers to NOT read at least one of the books in the series. (Imagine someone claiming that with all seriousness! Imagine a whole group of HP fans screaming down others and telling them not to read 'The Prisoner of Azkaban' because 'it doesn't matter!')

I've never encountered a fandom where readers actively dismissed the original series, even though none of the books are standalone and all the characters are closely connected.

I've never encountered a fandom where a whole strata of readers actively HATE 98% of the characters.

Not only that, but the same strata of readers then try to convince normal, reasonable readers that the 3 characters that they do like are THE main characters of the series. (No, the series is NOT about Tamlin's Redemption or Lucien's quest for happiness. Shocking, I know)

I've never encountered a fandom where long-awaited updates and engagement from the publisher (literally FOUR years) are met with derision and hostility, because it's not about the desired ship.

I've never encountered a fandom where the actual STORY doesn't matter at all. Only the ship. No continuity is needed. No plot. No intrigue. No drama. The only thing that's desired is a ship that has nothing to do with the rest of the series.

Readers who've been reading for years, have an almost encyclopedic knowledge of the series, are made fun of, ridiculed and hounded on all platforms because they are 'obsessed with canon' and date to like a logical couple.

Lists are made with names of readers who like a LOGICAL couple. Presumably to doxx and hound.

I've never encountered a fandom, where one half is happy, loves the characters, celebrates them and enjoys the story (and I am talking about Feysands and Elriels) and the other half vitriolically detests the OG characters, and writes mile long metas about how everything is awful, horrible, the author is terrible and the books are crap. (Why are you still here, I am not sure).

I don't know, but it seems to me that Elriels are normal fans. We aren't 'loud' or obnoxious. We are excited because we are excited for the next book. if Taylor Swift announces a new tour, the NORMAL reaction would be to celebrate and crash the internet out of sheer joy. Not to seethe and berate her and the excited fans, while still insisting that you are a huge TS fan. Make it make sense?

Maybe instead of seething over your ship (which you made up and SJM never wrote, so I don't know why you are mad?) get excited about the next book and meeting all the characters again (supposedly, you all love Azriel, Gwyn and Lucien so much!). Quit getting mad over tote bags.

Try living in joy, not derision.

[linkspooky]

Hello! I wanted to ask for your take on Ryoken in YGO Vrains. I haven't been able to find any detailed reviews on him overall (mostly scattered meta focusing on specific moments/seasons). Even the few "Revolver is the worst chara ever" criticism posts I spotted were too generic/vague or straight up deleted, so I haven't been able to figure out what actual issues people have with him beyond "tried to kill people" - which is something that, like, every YGO antag (& sometimes the protag) has done. I really liked your Vrains posts & your posts about hero & victim arcs & was curious about your thoughts on Ryoken's characterization/narrative purpose, if that's okay. Personally I like Ryoken, but I don't really understand his character & I've been trying to make sense of it (with difficulties as the meta about him is either disconnected or too polarizing what with "he's a technophobic terrorist!!!" or "he's the best cuz gun dragons"). (ෆ˙ᵕ˙ෆ)♡

A comprehensive character analysis of revolver, not just an analysis of any one specific duel - sure anon let's do it! Vrains is probably my second favorite Yu-Gi-Oh to analyze because it takes it doubles as a piece of cyberpunk fiction, which is a key element a lot of people miss when discussing Ryoken's character.

In my opinion, one of the major reasons people don't give Ryoken a fair shake, or are harsher on him than the other Kaiba-alikes is that he doesn't change his opinion once he's defeated in a duel. Daring to disagree with the main character is a cardinal sin for a lot of fans, because most series have protagonist centered morality.

However, the fact Revolver never quite joins the heroes side and sticks to his guns (pun intended) is what makes him so unique a character. More underneath the cut.

Vrains averts this the simplified black and white protagonist centered morality, because once again it's Cyberpunk which makes it speculative fiction. The point of speculative fiction is to speculate (obviously), which is why good speculative fiction has a tendency to represent multiple viewpoints as to avoid directly telling the reader what to think. Ryoken represents the viewpoint that AI technology's rapid development is too risky, because eventually they may get smarter and decide they don't need their human creators. Yusaku represents the view that it's possible for AI and humans to cohabitate, and it's also unethical to wipe out the six AI who are living sentient beings to avert a future that MIGHT happen. Through their opposing opinions a dialogue is created, which allows VRAINS to have a more in-depth discussion on the topic of Artificial Intelligence.

If Revolver easily changed his viewpoint to allign with Yusaku's, then Vrains would just be telling us what to think instead of presenting different viewpoints and allowing us to come to our own conclusions. Revolver's entire character also revolves around the concept of his unbending principles, which is key to understanding him.

HERO OF ANOTHER STORY

Ryoken more than any other Kaiba-alike embodies the trope of an antagonist with heroic qualities. The closest is probably to Ryoken is Reiji, but he's an ally to the protagonist, albeit one of scrupulous means. Characters like shark, Kaito and Kaiba have the goal of trying to save their loved ones, but unlike Ryoken they don't really care about the bigger picture or how their actions impact all of society.

In fact Ryoken and Yusaku flip the traditional protag and antag relationship on its head in the first season, because it's Yusaku who is laser focused on revenge while saving people is a secondary concern at best. The fact that the Knights of Hanoi are a threat to the link Vrains is completely incidental to his revenge quest.

While it's Ryoken who is thinking about the bigger picture and making his decisions based on what he feels will save the most people possible in the long term. Yusaku's goals are selfish wanting revenge for his personal satisfaction as a coping mechanism for his trauma, while Ryoken's are selfless in the sense that he is forcing himself to bloody his hands and do something unsavory and against his personal morals because he believes sacrificing people in the short term will save people in the long term.

Yusaku: Those horrible memories were burned into my eyes, feasting in my heart. It became my flesh and blood that I couldn't dig out. When I realized that, I decided to face my own destiny. If you think revenge is worthless that's fine, but there are things I am destined to do to move forward.

It makes sense Yusaku can't think of others besides himself, starving people only think of filling their own stomaches, people in pain can't afford to think of others. Yusaku doesn't react to trauma like a perfect victim years of processed grief can't be resolved by therapy or friendship, he's possessed by the need to do something because he doesn't feel in control of his own life. Another thing which connects him to, ding ding ding you guessed it - Ryoken.

The best way to understand Ryoken's character is to understand his relationship with his major character foils, Yusaku and Takeru. All three of them are shaped by the lost incident, though Ryoken is influenced in much subtler ways because the way Ryoken himself frames the incident he's not a victim but a perpetrator.

The entirety of season one builds up the voice that rescued Yusaku, someone Yusaku never learned the identity of but believes that they might be another child who was kidnapped during the lost incident.

Yusaku: Whoever kept encouraging me wasn't among the rescuees. If he's still captured I have to rescue him.

Only for the truth to turn out to be more complicated. Revolver is revealed to be simultaneously the child who helped kidnap Yusaku in the first place, and his rescuer, as well as the son of the man responsible for the entire incident.

Revolver: I was eight years old. I couldn't fully comprehend what was happening. I thought something scary might be going on. But I couldn't ask my father. I wanted to believe that my father was doing valuable research. But the children's screams tore at my chest. Crushed by feelings of guilt I reported the incident. Yusaku: An anonymous report uncovered the lost incident. So that was you, revolver? Ai: So he saved you? Revolver: I quickly regretted saving you. You were saved, but... when SOL technologies covered up the incident my father was imprisoned. I was alone for three years, waiting for my father to come home.

Revolver was not being simultaneously starved and electrocuted while being forced to duel over and over again for six months straight, but his life was also destroyed by the incident. Being subjected to the screams of other children, the realization that your father is the one tormenting them, then being orphaned all at eight years old is a different flavor of trauma but it's still you know... traumatic.

Revolver was also forced to face a complicated reality at eight years old, good actions sometimes lead to bad results. Reporting the lost incident was the right thing to do, but Revolver's father was made comatose and he personally suffered - he was punished for doing the right thing.

Revolver is a case of simultaneously taking too much responsibility for things that are not his fault, and too little. He holds himself responsible for both his father's actions and complicit in helping kidnap people, while also believing he needs to inherit his father's cause of fighting the Ignis to eliminate the potential threat to humanity. Ryoken has an incredibly negative self-image for most of the series, and cannot accept that he was a victim of the lost incident too likely because he wasn't being shocked and starved.

Yusaku: I kept wanting to save you. That the knights of Hanoi still had you. These thoughts still clung to my soul. When I battled you, your words encouraged me. Ryoken: How ironic. Ryoken: I'm your enemy but I gave you strength. Yusaku: Stop the tower of Hanoi, Revolver! Ryoken: You have the wrong idea about me. I'm not a good person!

Revolver has internalized he is at fault for the lost incident and complicit in his father's actions, therefore he is not a good person and unworthy of salvation. This also becomes his excuse for harming people en masse, to achieve his greater goal of saving humanity from the threat of the Ignis. He takes too much responsibility for what happened to him as a child, but takes too little responsibility in the innocent bystanders he is hurting now in his crusade against the Ignis, excusing himself by saying it's serving a greater good.

He blatantly ignores Playmaker's pleas to just stop, because he can't stop himself. Episode 44 is called Prisoner of Destiny, referring to Ryoken himself because Ryoken willingly chooses to cage himself. Not because he's selfish or cruel, but because of his overwhelming sense of responsibility that forces him to take on his father's burdens when really he owes the man nothing. If Revolver were on the heroes side, his willingness to shoulder the burden of other people would be a heroic quality on par with playmaker's, but as an antagonist it's his fatal flaw.

Which is what makes him the mirror to Playmaker, both trapped in the past unable to move on from the incident but Playmaker doesn't realize how much holding onto the past is hurting him until he meets Ryoken and empathizes with him as another child who's life was destroyed. Ryoken, similiar to Playmaker, doesn't realize how much he's suffering too because of those same unprocessed feeling in the past though for Ryoken he sets them all aside because he's too busy being crushed under the weight of his father's sins that he feels peronsally responsible for.

Responsibility, responsibility, responsibility, it's his best and worst quality. If he were the protagonist, once again his unbending nature would be a heroic quality but instead it's what damns him and it's something Ryoken has to unlearn over the course of the narrative. The fact that he does slowly unlearn it and change his opinion is what makes Ryoken different from Bohman and Ai, both of which can't accept the fact that they might be mistaken.

Unlike Ai, Revolver accepts Yusaku's pleas to save him.

Yusaku: You live in the same world as me! Back then, you said... You couldn't just stand by so you crossed the abyss. You're able to save me. And I'm able to save you!

Revolver laughs at this and insists that they'll never be friends, but his actions accepting his loss at the end of the duel and abandoning the tower of Hanoi plan contradict his words.

Which brings me to another reason Revolver is often misinterpreted, his tendency to play the villain means his words often contradict his actions.

One of Revolver's defining characteristics is how his bombastic personality in the VRAINS as revolver is the exact opposite of his more brooding and quiet personality in the real world. Revolver's two avatars also signify the discordance between his online and real world personality. His first avatar he wears a full mask, and his second a visor.

The first avatar he is wearing a mask, a symbol that he's putting on a persona, his face is fully obscured and both the people around him and we the audience aren't privvy to his real self. Even in the second season when Revolver changes his avatar and he's more of an ally with his own agenda than a direct antagonist his face is still partially obscured by his visor. The persona he adopts as a shield is to play the villain, I am a bad person Revolver says and even in the second season when he is helping others he clings to his villain facade until very nearly the end.

His avatar perfectly encapsulates his complicated nature, a villain with heroic traits, a villain who in a different narrative could have been the hero fighting to save the world from the threat of the ignis.

Revolver's deck also symbolizes these qualities of his, the overpowering willpower, and determination that could in another story make him a hero. I'm going to quote @talaofthevalley here because they already covered this subject wonderfully.

That Rokkets destroys themselves is relevant as well. Revolver is perfectly fine making himself the target of people's ire and hatred, even if it's not warranted or justified. He was willing to die for his mission in the S1 finale. And ofc famously no one hates Kogami Ryoken as much as Kogami Ryoken. But it's a self-destruction for the sake of something, not just self-destruction fueled by self-hatred. It fits with Revolver's knight theming, to fight and act for something greater than oneself. Which is also what the Rokket monsters do; they destroy themselves when targeted in order to fulfill a objective. Then we come around to Rokkets other noteworthy effect; at the end of your turn, they can special summon other Rokkets from the deck if they are in the graveyard because their beforementioned effect was activated. Revolver is as tenacious as they come, and equally resourceful. Even after losing to Playmaker, what he's hung up on is not that he was defeated, but Playmaker's identity. He swears he will win next time, and that's that.

Revolver like his favorite monsters destroys himself in pursuit of his goals, and also is a character with the determination to get back up no matter how many times he loses or the knights of Hanoi are destroyed, he just recreates himself, re-gathers his allies and tries again. His sense of responsibility being what both damns him and redeems him, because, I repeat for emphasis, Revolver self-destructs.

He takes on too much responsibility and always views himself as the bad guy, which is why his relationship with Takeru and his final duel with him is so crucial for the final step in his development. In season 2 Ryoken abandons his plans of destroying the Link Vrains, but still acts like an untrustworthy ally with his own agenda. In spite of his act, there are moments in season 2 where he is framed just like any other hero.

It's Revolver who shows up like a prince to rescue Yusaku when he's trapped by Windy and Lightning and does a superhero landing, only to immediately iterate that he's not on their side only following his father's will. It's Revolver who doesn't win the duel against Lightning when he has the chance, because Lightning takes an innocent person as a hostage.

Revolver: I must finish the work he left undone. Lightning: But we're the ones following Dr. Kogami's will as humanity's successor. Revolver: Silence! I'll crush those arrogant thoughts. I'll annihilate you! Get ready! Windy: Annihilate? How extreme. Yusaku: If you fight them there's no turning back now. Revolver: I never planned on turning back.

Season one revolver likely would have sacrificed an innocent to win a duel, and yet he still insists that he hasn't changed. Understanding Revolver requires reading beyond the surface, because characters are liars sometimes.

This is why Takeru is important, because like Revolver Takeru sees the world in terms of heroes and villains. While Yusaku pleads with Revolver to reconsider his way of thinking and is accepting of Revolver's cooperation, Takeru only meets him with derision and suspicion happy to lump him in with the rest of Hanoi.

This isn't just because of the kidnapping, but his unresolved feelings over his dead parents. The guilt he carries for never being able to make up with his parents over the last fight they had, because he was kidnapped for six months and his parents died in an accident during that time. Revolver and Takeru are both characters controlled by unresolved feelings of grief over their dead parents, and a misplaced feeling of survivor's guilt, a guilt that they somehow had a role in thier parent's demise.

Revolver on his end is all too willing to accept Takeru's scapegoating of him, he doesn't feel the need to explain himself or even reveal the fact that he was the one who called the police during the lost incident because in his eyes that would be avoiding responsibility in a way.

It's not until his final duel with Takeru where Revolver eases up on himself, by helping Takeru process his own feelings of grief over his parents. The same way that Yusaku once dueled not to stop a villain, but to save a friend from being trapped in the past.

Revolver: Your soul is still trapped here. And you don't know how to find the path to escape. You won't find the path. Soulburner: Then tell me. You know that when I went missing during the lost incident, my parents searched for me. The morning I went missing I had a fight with my parents. I said something horrible. Revolver: What did you say? Soulburner: I don't remember. Probably about not wanting to eat what's on my plate, or stop telling me to study. But pathetically, I was caught in fear so I don't remember. No matter how many times, I can't remember. I said something horrible to my dead parents. I've been living with that fact. Tell me what did I say? How am I supposed to apologize to those who are gone, who I'll never see again? Revolver: It's not pathetic. And there's no need to apologize. Those who are gone haven't completely vanished from your life. They just went ahead earlier. That's what I believe.

Revolver didn't have to bear the brunt of Soulburner's feelings, or let him beat him up in a duel, but that's what Yusaku did for him so you know pay it forward. Revolver's kind of harsh about it, because he can't entirely let go of the facade in the midst of this duel but he's still speaking from the heart and relating to him.

Revolver: But I live my life in a way that won't shame them when I see them again. Soulburner: You're saying I'm living a shameful life. Revolver: Currently, you are. Soulburner: What? Revolver: If you have time to complain, then defeat me. With your duel where you burn your soul! To overcome the hardships in your heart you have to become stronger. Yusaku: Revolver, are you trying to become soulburner's greatest test?

This right here, this is a protagonist speech. Revolver has more in common with Soulburner than shared survivor's guilts, they are both more subdued and quiet in the real world, while having overly bombastic online personas. Revolver is defined by his overwhelming sense of responsibility, Takeru got involved in the main plot because he felt like he was wasting his life away while people like Playmaker were dueling to save the entirety of the link vrains. Even their decks mirror one another, Revolver's dragons destroy themselves and constantly come back, and the entire central mechanic of Salamagreats is that they go to the graveyard then cycle back onto the field in stronger and stronger links.

Takeru is so important to Revolver's character that the mask he's been hiding behind the entire series doesn't shatter until his final loss to Soulburner. It's only through the conclusion of the duel with his second character foil that Takeru and Revolver are able to find a bit of liberation from each other. Revolver can abandon the villain persona and leave on a journey of atonement, and Soulburner can abandon his hero persona and return to his normal life and eventually forget and move on from the incident.

[luludeluluramblings]

Smalltown Characters Background

A/N: Just a brief introduction to Smalltown's residents from the Smalltown!Meta!Reader series. I'll try to keep them general for the main story, but this is just extra to give y'all some lore on what Reader's got going on back home. It's not vital to the series, but it'll help. (Y'all might see me reuse these character's in other things.)

Smalltown is meant to be located in Louisiana.

Judith Anderson “Nana” 

Reader’s Step-grandmother, Samuel’s mother.

Don’t let the name fool you, as much as Reader loves their family Nana can be a bit controlling. She didn’t exactly approve of Adeline, Momma. Being that Adeline, Reader's Momma, though from a respectable and wealthy family, already had a child. It took some time getting used to, but eventually she grew very fond of her step-grandchild. It isn’t until Reader’s abilities manifest that she goes full Yandere. And, she’s a desperate controlling one. She wants Reader to stay in Smalltown, not just because she loves them and adores them, but because it gives her clout. Not many people can say they have such a divine being calling them Nana, as if she'd ever give that up to some sinful city slickers.

Charles Anderson “Grand Daddy”

Reader’s Step-grandfather, Samuel’s Mother

He’s an extremely serious and quiet man. Very much like his son in how he spoils his wife by doing anything she asks. If Nana wants something done, Grand Daddy will do it. Fix the sink? He’ll do it. Build a shed? He’ll do it. Take that bitch that tried to hurt their grand baby out back and feed their limbs to the alligators? He’ll do it. He’s always been fond of Reader. He’s very happy to have them as his grandchild, and hates the thought of them settling for something less or away from them. Their abilities just make the world more dangerous for them. It’s best they stay where they can be kept safe. 

Amelia “Mae” Palmer

Reader’s Childhood Bestfriend

Smalltown’s resident bug fanatic and fashion expert. A very unusual girl. But, Reader was their first friend and she adores them. They never judged her for collecting bugs. They always played with them and encouraged them. All Mae wants to do is be the one to dress Reader for their entire lives. She just wants to dress Reader in the clothes she’s made. She doesn't want anyone else’s designs to touch their skin. That’s her job. She’s fine if Reader leaves Smalltown. Just don't wear other people’s trash clothing and designs. Don't let it touch your precious skin. She fully plans on following Reader to Gotham. As if she’d let those pompous assholes dress her best friend.

Tanner H. Palmer

Reader’s Childhood Crush and Childhood Best Friends Older Brother

Tanner has always had a puppy crush on Reader. Hard not to when they treated his younger sister so kindly and were always following him around to play. It got worse when they got older and Reader’s crush grew more and more oblivious. Unfortunately, with how protective the entire town was, he wasn’t allowed to do anything due to their age gap. Reader dating in high school put him through utter hell. He lost a few screws and his temper during that time. He may have caused a few rumors that resulted in some of the competition being dragged out into the bayou. But, really? Those asses claimed to love Reader yet had the audacity to smile at someone else. Clearly they were just playing with Reader’s feelings. Getting them out of the way would open the position by Reader’s side for someone much more worthy. Naturally, Reader being sent to Gotham put a damper on his plans. But, not all is lost. He’s got Nana and the rest of Smalltown’s favor now. They just need to lure Reader back and then he’ll get his chance. What are those arrogant Gotham elites going to do about it? They don’t know Reader like he does.

A/N: I'll try to draw up some of the characters and make a background like this for Momma, Daddy, and Little Brother.

A/N: Part Seven is in the works. Just gotta get the creative juices flowing.

[liverbiver9]

The more I read danmei in my monthly book club that I otherwise wouldn’t have read or even known about, the more it becomes painfully clear that most of the mdzs fandom (and possibly the other 2 mxtx fandoms but I’m not as well versed with them) have not interacted with the genre at large beyond mxtx, and it shows in the meta analysis people make (especially westerners).

And I am not excluding myself here! So much of my initial assumptions and interpretations of mdzs has changed after reading other danmei authors, especifically the less western-internet-popular ones.

My point is this: when reading a book from a culture that is not your own and in an unfamiliar genre, it will be impossible to grasp all the intricacies and subtleties nestled within the narrative and characterization until you’ve become more familiar with the culture and genre itself.

Don’t limit yourself to mxtx. There are more and more danmei being translated into English by publishing houses and even more are fan translated.

If you’re looking for a place to start, I have some recommendations!

1. Golden Terrace by Cang Wu Bin Bai.

Literally one of my favorite books I’ve ever read in my life, and I’m an English major. It is only 2 books and both are already published, so you won’t have to wait. The most tender, loving relationship I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading about. The translation is phenomenal, and it feels very similar to Jane Austen in its diction, plot, and characterization. I literally cannot explain with words how much I love this book.

2. To Rule in a Turbulent World by Gu Xue Rou

This series is just being translated and published, so it may take a while for the other books (I think 3-4?) will be out, but don’t let that scare you away! Without too much spoilers, the vibes of this first book reminds me of Harvest Moon games. Also a very sweet and tender main couple. Plus, this book is written by a male author!! Pretty rare in danmei, at least to my knowledge.

3. Thousand Autumns by Qian Qiu

Pretty dense with lots of philosophy, poetry references, and a more traditional wuxia world. This series is finished with 5 books in total. I had a hard time reading the first book, mostly because I didn’t connect that much with the mc at first, but I loved the world building and all the information I learned. I did eventually start connecting with the mc and ended the series fully besotted! Not a quick or easy read, but a worthwhile one.

4. Ballad of Sword and Wine by Tang Jiu Qing

The first book is out for this series, with the second being published later this month. It’s going to be a long one like tcgf, so it is a commitment read—but absolutely worth it!! Lots of palace politics and more Taoist-focused martial arts (think Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon). It is both fast and slow burn (I know that doesn’t make sense now; trust me, it will later on) and the main character is SO FASCINATING!! I want to study him like a bug. The overall characterization is phenomenal. The cast can be… intimidating, as there are a LOT of named characters, but they’re mostly there for world building (and the world building is fantastic!). Also, the translation here is GORGEOUS. You can tell it was translated by a writer, or at least someone who’s read the whole text (you’d be surprised…)—everything is so vivid!

[soleminisanction]

Hi! I just read your thoughts on Robin and Damian and how his addition to the canon may have changed the reader's perspective on what Robin actually means.

You keep mentioning like, "Robin" adventures/stories and how Damian doesn't really have any? Aside from maybe Juni Ba's comic which I gotta admit is one of my favorites.

Would you mind explaining what exactly makes a Robin story a Robin story in your eyes?

I had to mull over the answer to this one for a bit, because it's a little hard to put into words. And I'm glad I did 'cause I wrote a whole like, 700 word post, mulled it over, decided it didn't really answer your question, and rewrote it better. And longer. This is so long. I hope it makes sense.

--

So, there's two answers to this question, one of which is obvious but doesn't happen very often -- and honestly probably shouldn't -- and the other of which requires me to explain another piece of the private meta-crafting that's been haunting my mind palace.

The obvious answer is: A Robin story is a story about being Robin. That is, a story which explores or interrogates either the purpose/nature of Robin as a role/legacy, or the relationship the character currently using said mantle has with that role/legacy. The Boy Wonder is a prime example, as it's fundamentally about Damian coming into his own as Robin by learning from his predecessors and drawing on their collective strength to overcome his personal demons, both internal and external.

Compare that version of the story to, say, the Son of Batman movie, which draws from the same time period and source material, but you can tell from the names alone that the focus is completely different. Robin in that movie is just a token thing, arbitrarily given to Damian to "teach him discipline," while all the real narrative focus goes to the drama around his parentage and the League. Hell, Nightwing's only really there as a hook to the main villain, Deathstroke.

Or consider that one obnoxious storyline from the New 52 where Damian sets up "fights" with the older boys. That also could've been about genuinely testing Damian's values against those who had come before, but instead it was mostly just a series of one-sided Reddit arguments where he destroys his opponents with Facts™ and Logic™ to prove he's the Specialist of the Special Boys and then Nightwing crowns him the Once and Future Robin. Robin, in that context, is just a prize to bolster Damian's self-image.

It's not that Damian couldn't have this kind of Robin story. Obviously not, The Boy Wonder is a thing, and fantastic precisely because it feels like something Damian has needed for a long, long time. But when you compare that one admittedly stellar offering to Tim's career -- built on a foundation of these kinds of stories and then sprinkling more of them throughout his 26-36 years (depending on how you count) -- or even to the handful that Jason got in his 5 active years, plus those that Dick got in the years right before the Nightwing transition and the flashback stories both of the later two have gotten since... it's a noticeable absence.

But. The vast majority of Damian's writers are clearly not interested in exploring that particular angle with him. They are, at the best of times, too enamored with the Son of the Bat or, at the worst, too enamored with Damian himself and how cool/edgy/badass they can make him seem.

And the thing is, like I said at the top, you do not want every Robin-leading story to be one of these naval gazing "what does it mean" stories. That would get tedious real quick, like how every new Batman writer feels the need to do their Grand Treatise on What It Means to Be Batman. But you need some of it, especially for a character like Damian, because of answer number two.

--

The second answer to your question is: A Robin story is a story in which the main character fulfills the role of Robin. And this is the one that's kinda nebulous and hard to define, because it means a lot of things. There's a certain amount of vibes to it, a level of "if you know it, you know it when you see it." So, here's where I need to bring in one of my other ideas.

DC has pretty much settled on six “core Robins,” five from the mainstream universe, one Elseworld. They’re the ones featured in the big anniversary cover that now serves as the article illustration on Wikipedia (even if it is bullshit that they gave Jason pants).

Now, I personally maintain that you can further sub-divide these six into two even groups: the iconic Robins (Dick, Tim and Carrie) and the idiosyncratic Robins (Jason, Steph, and Damian). Idiosyncratic (for those unfamiliar with the $10 word) simply meaning: unique, out-of-the-ordinary, and individual. They go against the grain, and that grain is set by the icons.

I don’t think anyone’s going to fight me on the idea that Dick is an iconic Robin, given that he is the original that the whole legacy split off from. Tim, meanwhile, is the character who not only ensured that the legacy would endure past the Dark Ages attempt to wipe it out, he’s the one who defined what the legacy meant separate from Dick and made it modern—if you have any pop culture conception of “what it means to be Robin” beyond short pants, pixie boots, and “Holy catchphrase, Batman!” it almost certainly came from Tim. Between the two of them, they've been active as Robin for 80% of Robin's 85-year career -- 50% Dick, 30% Tim. (Damian is sitting at 19% -- these totals will not add up to 100% because of career overlap.)

It is safe to say that the two of them pretty much define what it means to be Robin, and this follows with the way they often get used in the other Robins' stories as proxies for the role of Robin itself. (See: their portrayals in The Boy Wonder compared with Jason's, and basically everything Jason did to Dick and Tim during his villain era.)

(As for Carrie, I include her in this group because if you can read around the mild clusterfuck that is the DKR universe, she serves a role in that story very similar to the one Tim does in the mainstream universe, even while she’s bouncing between all the same legacy codenames and costumes that Steph has worn and also Catgirl and Batman.)

The idiosyncratic Robins, on the other hand, are those who deliberately break the mold in one way or another. This is not a criticism or a bad thing. Like shading in a drawing, the contrast between the icon and the idiosyncratic adds depth and complexity to the legacy -- think, the contrast between Clark, Kara and Jon vs. Kon, Linda and Chris, or Hal Jordan and Jon Stewart vs. Guy Gardner and Kyle Rainer. Or heck, Barbara vs. Cass.

But. This means that, by definition and design, the idiosyncratic Robins are in contrast with the role they're being written to fill. Think about how easy it is to tell when a writer is writing "Robin classic" instead of Damian, because of how completely out of character he is -- like in Batman Ninja. With Jason it's less obvious but if it goes on long enough you'd start to notice that he's missing his rough edges (as he often is in fan fictions). This should also be the case with Steph, like in all of her WFA flashbacks, but people don't like to acknowledge how much she's been tokenized and bowdlerized over the years.

With Dick and Tim though? They slip into Robin's role in any story perfectly, no matter how unfamiliar the writer might be with their specific character, precisely because they're in the iconic mold. This does not mean they are generic, because Robin does have a role in the narrative and certain set traits -- confident but not arrogant, witty but kind, capable but still vulnerable enough to need Batman's protection sometimes, a certain level of general optimism and youthful naivete, etc.

In short, the role of Robin is a specific narrative niche that Dick and Tim (and Carrie) slip into easily because Dick created it, and Tim and Carrie designed specifically to fill it. Jason and Damian were created in contrast and conversation with it (Steph is another story entirely) and thus do not fill the role as easily, with Damian in particular being such a stark contrast that he borders on being the anti-Robin.

--

Again though, this could still work if Damian had more of the first kind of Robin story, the one that examines his relationship with the mantle. This is essentially how they make Cass work -- she's very different from Babs or any other interpretation of Batgirl who's come before or since. But she's also very aware of her legacy and often has stories about being in conversation with it, through her own self-reflection and also by playing off both Bruce and Barbara. Those stories, balanced with the ones exploring the unique aspects of her character, are what make her such a stand-out.

Damian really only gets stories exploring the unique aspects of his character, the Son of the Bat part. He doesn't get the stories he needs to ground him as Robin, to justify why he's squatting in a role that doesn't suit him and that he doesn't really fill in narrative sense. And while that would be fine if he wasn't in that role, as it is it's a bit of a sticking point for his character -- especially for people who actually, y'know, like Robin and don't really want to see those stories replaced with Son of the Bat stories. We can have both! I would personally prefer they be with separate characters, but still.