#people that use their characters like tools

[certifiablyinsanez]

I really hope that now, the people who have been under-appreciating the class and racial dynamics of the show and Blitz and Stolas’ relationship can now realize that Blitz had every right to have doubts and worries over Stolas’ character when it came to their gap.

Do you know what this episode reminds me of? Authoritarian, dictatorial rule. People have opinions of public execution in the real world. It’s something that actually happens. Even for peoples and societies that don’t currently commit to public executions more than likely have a past history of doing so. And the realities of this very real thing were made clear in this episode. Because Blitz, and even all of IMP, was going to die. And in the real world, you probably don’t have a royal lover to save you at the last second. It is a real tool used by cruel masters to keep people in line, to invoke terror and submission. We all saw their faces.

A family of imps, children watching. The little girl closing her eyes sadly.

His best friend and loved ones watching him get his head lopped off.

Even his scorned ex who he viciously hurt is horrified by this.

Just because we knew Blitz was going to be saved, should in no way erase the seriousness of this event. This is something used to enforce submission, to instill fear. Satan mentions how he created imps to be obedient. This was meant to be a reminder to all the lowly people in hell that their place is in the dirt. Because Blitz is only moderately successful for his race. By the standards of higher classes he would still be seen as a low-rate wannabe business man running a seedy operation. His is not rich by any means. His business only produces enough to moderately support his family and his workers.

And he was about to be killed for it.

He was about to be executed because he was a little too uppity. Because he dared to be anything other than what was designated for his race. Let that sink in. Imagine if you were executed on international television just because you wanted a better career and life. This is the reality in Hell. And the unfairness of it all is so blatantly seen when Stolas is harshly punished but still allowed to live. Not only that, but it was put on public record that he’s silly to think he would be killed because “his life actually has worth”. That’s insane.

And I need everyone to apologize and write Viv and her team love letters because these dynamics EXIST IN REAL LIFE. They are real and have real consequences, and this is real for the POC that lives down the street from you. This is not something that happens in a backwards place 10,000 miles away. It’s in everyone’s backyard. This episode was beautifully written and I look forward to every new episode to come.

[harmonysanreads]

harmony, do you have any advice on writing sunday?? been trying to write in his pov for like, days now and i feel i'm making him too generic tbh

Hi Psyscio! I apologize for the slight delay in writing this, I've just been a bit occupied with irl things ^^; I do hope you find these helpful!

— FOR POINT OF VIEW

Based on significance, we can divide Sunday's character thus far in three parts : early childhood, Bronze Melodia period and Oak Family Head.

The Stellaron disaster was undoubtedly the spark that ignited his later concerns. We see from the conversation about the Charmony dove that Sunday was an empathetic and inquisitive boy, albeit, his concerns mostly centered around others.

During his Bronze Melodia days, the segment where he's questioning Ena (I assume), we see a sort of overlap between concerns for himself and for others. It seems that he's projecting the doubts, insecurities and helplessness he feels for himself through the suffering that he's observed in the outer world. We can also see this as a kind of a protective barrier.

This is the time where he's already reached his conclusion and has started (or has already finished) the planning for the utopian dreamscape. One point which I think is very important to remember is that, despite how he presents himself, a small part of him has always doubted this method. But since he was never able to share his ideas with others (since they'd expose his entanglement with the Order) and since Gopher Wood never addressed the faulty nature of them, he wasn't able to think deeper into them. Which is why, even during his boss fight, he's inviting the Astral Express to prove him wrong — to give evidence to the doubts he's always had.

After these three, we have post-Penacony-arc Sunday. He isn't going to be a completely different person, of course. From the snippets we've gotten so far, we see this pattern : Sunday reminisces about [x] thing and how he used to do that in the past, he comments that there's no need to be as rigid as he used to be but he isn't completely ready to fully embrace that and circles back to his previous belief. Which is fine, old habits are never easy to get rid of.

When you listen to Sunday's ideas, you'll find yourself simultaneously agreeing and disagreeing. Similarly, there's a sense of obscurity in the flow of his emotions. This is intentional of course. So, I think it's alright if you notice this convolution while writing him. Emotions and thoughts are abstract by nature. But the way I'd recommend doing this, is pointing out that vagueness after that flow or an action has passed.

Thanks to Sunday's Myriad Celestia, we know that there's a sense of discord between his inner voices. We see him as both the interrogator and the answerer. The former appears to be firm, harsh and disappointed, while the latter appears nostalgic, remorseful and tired. You can use these voices to address his inner conflict.

Speaking of inner conflict, I think it's one of the most powerful tools you can use to write his perspective. I recommend not dodging it.

I've personally never agreed on the opinion of Sunday being delusional. He's quite lucid and we've received many hints of it. There's a difference between just being aware of something and acting upon that awareness. Sunday has many restraints that prevent him from acting, but it doesn't mean that he's ignorant. Oftentimes, the truth is just in his peripheral, but he can't bring himself to look at it due to a lack of support.

Sunday probably overdoses on psychoanalyzing people. Luckily, perceptive characters are very versatile. Now, I think Sunday prefers to see the best in everyone, unless he's been pushed far enough or has a particular history with an individual, he isn't one to harbor antagonist thoughts about someone. According to this post, Halovians can read the minds of people within a certain distance and use telepathy to communicate with other Halovians. Consider how you might use these together.

I like to have this mental image that Sunday is always holding onto a set number of ‘straws’ in his head. Events and people gradually come, ‘snap’ those metaphorical straws and he allows them to, to an extent — until he's left grasping onto the last of them. Use a mix of allegories and ‘telling’ to illustrate this.

— FOR BASIC CHARACTERIZATION

Sunday is in the ‘emotions revealed through unintentional body language’ group. But I think, when he's confronted with unwanted emotions, he gets even more rigid and guarded (as we saw during that scene with Gallagher). There's the popular hc that his wings flutter in certain ways in response to emotions, so, you can use that as well.

Sunday often thinks about the collective instead of the individual, which is sensible considering he's a leader and all. A romantic interest will challenge this, you can use the ways he breaks his own rules to illustrate how deep his investment in the person goes.

I think having a reader who makes him feel safe or understands him can save you a good amount of emotional turmoil. But of course, I also believe in unexpected pairings. Trust that Sunday, being who he is, can always find something worth appreciating about anyone.

One of the most fascinating things I've observed about Sunday are the similarities between him and Aventurine, as addressed by Ratio. Studying them side by side was very fruitful for me.

For resources to better understand Sunday, I recommend this video and this video.

— FOR DIALOGUE

I mentioned this in my Aventurine post, but in case you missed it, there's this channel that compiles character dialogues individually which can be helpful if you're seeking to refresh your memory. However, I'd like to add here that listening to how a character interacts with others ; as in, how they respond to what, can be even more useful for dialogues.

I've only observed Sunday's English voiceover so I'm not sure how the performance differs in other languages. Based on my observation, Sunday prefers to maintain a gentle, almost airy tone. This appears to be a result of practice though. Sometimes his manner of speech gives this impression that he's viewing you from an elevated space, where he's seeing everything about you. We hear his true voice when the people he cares about are in danger, or, when he's alone with his thoughts.

— MISC. TIPS

Sunday may appear hypocritical, you'll notice dissonance between his words, actions and subconscious — which is okay, characters and people aren't meant to be flawless. What you need to remember is that all of these discrepancies are intentional and results of his upbringing.

Sunday has been groomed by Gopher Wood for the Order's propaganda. In addition, he has survivor's guilt, religious trauma, trust and attachment issues and (possibly) Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Do your research on how these affect people in relationships.

It's okay if you struggle to fully grasp his character, he isn't understood within the game either. In my opinion, it's a very well done representation of how little we'll know about other people. Fiction allows us to gaze into the inner world of a character and see them from different perspectives. This isn't possible in reality and that's okay. Approach Sunday's character with an objective mindset, because the beauty of his writing is not centralized, but scattered.

[rambles-on-dragon-age]

Solas also continually operates in small cells that can't be traced back to him and sent the freed slaves about their business. Why would he keep his slave army wrapped around himself at all times. That doesn't make sense. There's a banter where he explains to Sera how he works, after all. They're either freed and doing what they want or acting as his spies; we learned that much during Trespasser. He's not going to make them work for him and frankly he probably started working more and more alone and just using the information the spies give him. They still work for him in the Missing Collection and I think mentioned in Tevinter Nights that's part of how he's keeping tabs on the Inquisitor and friends. He sees some stuff in dreams but that's not the extent of everything he knows and how much stuff he's keeping track of. The point of them being spies is moot if you know who and where they are after all. :)

Now you're confusing "bad writing" for "suspension of belief so the story can continue" and "quality of life is important to move the game narrative forward". The Blight changing and acting different and being a tool of the Evanuris was a major plot point; they can't have characters shying away from it "for the realisms lol"

The Wardens say, repeatedly, that everyone is infected at different rates. Even if Rook & Co got "just a scratch" and were infected, they could reasonably survive that infection for weeks/months before Antoine and Evka went rogue and performed the Joining on them like they've been shown to do/offer to other people that are infected.

But that's not conducive to the story. Like @postcardsfromheapside said, the Inquisitor & Co mucked about in tons of red lyrium and yet never got infected nor affected. You know. Like basically everyone else was re: Cory's army and the people mining it. Would it have made story sense for the Quizzie and friends to fall to the lyrium before the end? No. So they aren't infected/affected by it.

Rook keeps fighting these huge dragons? Uh, yeah. Rook and Co. fights exactly ONE dragon that was blighted, realized they probably couldn't kill it and were lucky to hurt it, and then went out and hired a dragon killing specialist to help them with that dragon and its friend when it comes back. Quality of life team building won't lock you to needing Taash every time you fight a dragon, but they are considered side bosses for the most part that are completely optional.

As for Minrathous falling, yeah it's not the dragon that takes down the city. The Floating Attack Palace is focused on the dragon, it's the murderous nationalist death cult killing the leaders while they were distracted fighting the dragon, taking over the city, and routing out the Shadow Dragons and later the Threads as those are the people still standing against them. If Rook is distracting the dragon so the Murder Palace isn't focused on it, then the magisters could focus on the death cult knocking down their door instead. No one's invincible, especially when the Ventatori also have powerful blood mages. Their focus is split, they fall. Their focus not split, they could defend themselves.

And, again. Bellara acting hateful and distrustful would have been out of character for her. If you want a Mean Dalish Bellara instead of Sweet Veil Jumper Scientist Bellara, write one for yourself. She wasn't written badly, that scene was written exactly right for her character. You are trapped in the bubble with her, the only person that can take it down, and she knows it. You are in the palm of her hand. Also ? If you were going to kill her you could do so on sight. You'd still be trapped in fade bubble prison until you die one way or another. (And yeah, that look she gives you at first reeks of distrust until you tell her who sent you. :) You know her leader and didn't attack on sight. Not the behaviors of evil Tevinter mages or bad humans.)

You're looking at the previous games through years of nostalgia and with rose-colored glasses. All that "rich, cultural atmosphere" is similarly shallow in every single one of them if you don't take the time to delve into the extra content the game offers.

Frankly, it feels like 90% of our time is spent in fantasy Britain's mudhole because we've spent so much time in Ferelden and when we got to Kirkwall it's similarly shitty. There's even memes about how awful and dragging the Hinterlands is. That's not dense or rich, it's literally the same place over and over again. Are you confusing fantasy racism and oppression being rubbed into your face extensively for all that dense culture? Is that the dense culture you're missing? Is it the brief glimpses we get of the Deep Roads and Dalish elves? Is that the rich culture? (You know, the stuff we see again in Veilguard. We even get to explore TWO Dwarven areas! Not counting the Fade one. There's so much cool shit to explore in Veilguard I'm never going to get tired of looking around for more details.)

This is the exact same world, the exact same setting, and we're being shown all these places we've only ever heard of. They're no longer just a name in passing, they're real places and we can see them and their architecture and the types of people that live there and how the weather is different and how the people are different and their different styles of dress and different foods and EVERYTHING. It's that environmental storytelling thing the game does very well and it's SO COOL. The maps had to be more compact but they're absolutely jam packed with puzzles, people, visuals, codex entries, etc... You're calling it shallow because what, they didn't add 500 codex entries from past games rehashing the same exact things we've already done three times before? We've been there, done that, learned it, we're doing something new now!

I thought you missed the context and content in the game but I'm steadily realizing that maybe you just flagrantly ran past it at full speed with your fingers in your ears and screaming because you think hating on this game is cool at this point in time. Gods forbid you take anything from this game at all besides regurgitating the same tired complaints that showed you approached this game hating it and didn't bother giving it a chance because "It's not like the other games!!"

a really cool part about dragon age veilguard is the first scene where you meet bellara, especially if you're a shadowdragon mage and you have neve with you

so to set the scene: bellara, the dalish elf who's devoted her life to the conservation, discovery and protection of her people's lost and ancient history, meets two strangers, two tevinter mages, in sacred arlathan. They tell her, hey your gods are back in the world but also they suck and we gotta kill them, and instead of telling them "fuck off you vile enslaving shem, you defile this land with your presence" like most normal dalish, not only does she instantly believe them that her gods are bad for some reason, they're back among the people and need to be stopped, she also happily starts telling them all kinds of secrets and valuable knowledge about ancient elven magic and is even so kind to, without question, take them on a grand tour of this very historically important and sacred ruin in arlathan to find a truly priceless artifact, a one of a kind archive of ancient elven knowledge thought lost forever, because really, what could these unknown tevinter mages possible want with that!

...

are these writers smoking crack?? is that it? theyre smoking crack??

[y4zurulvr]

suggestive rant abt christian linke's "confirmation" on Viktor aligning with asexuality (as an ace person)

Viktor being confirmed as ace only bc the co creator is against the idea of jayvik being perceived as romantic/sexual is a fucking loser moment and disheartening to ace and disabled individuals.

I bet 2 cents that christian didn't actually think Viktor would be desirable or be loved romantically as a disabled person, let alone a GAY one, so ofc homophobia isn't enough for him, he had to leap into ableism and ace stereotypes too. Its so obviously clear that he does not know one titty sprinkle about asexuality (does not give one wholehearted shit stain about it too) and it really entails.

Trying to imply being ace cancels out being gay like a math equation is mind boggling stupid, it literally doesn't work that way like u can be both, u can easily search it up on google. I swear to my mother's toe nail clippings that this motherfucker is spreading his asscheeks hard and wide to try and get people to move their appeal away from a queer ship with a healthy character dynamic between a disabled and abled bodied person that managed to not make the abled bodied character infantilize nor dehumanize the disabled character which the media really fucking needs but noooo they just so happen to be fucking GAY and that this SORE DICK PIMPLE VIRGIN christian with his no pussy hairspray and asspulling tendencies does not want a piece of that zawgalicious of a queer ship.

wow so incredible christian, ur attempt to shove ""ace representation"" without a genuine thought about the representation and being only a mere tool to u to use against people who just so happens to pair up a queer ship with the said ""ace representation"" and those characters arent even urs so whats the damn point of being so terrified of the characters being perceived as queer. wow such representation christian, wonderful 10/10 I hope u never set foot into a studio ever again and break ur damn neck while writing because what the FUCK bro. You're not only stupid but goofy as HELL to think making a character ace to make a ship less plausible, You're just a whiny little BITCH boy desperately trying to hide his incompetence with false confidence. You're a poet who's words mean nothing on what the human mind can comprehend.

Inconclusion, do not make an ass pull ace rep just for some queer ship u fucking hate for no reason other than homophobia and ur poorly disguised ableism. (and ignore anything christian linke says)

follow me if u want me to flame christian again.

[nthspecialll]

Going to ramble a little bit here and I’m curious to hear your thoughts. Bill is one of my favourite characters in rdr2, which is a statement people often validly criticise because of Bill’s racism, aggression, general bigotry, and of course the monster he grows into in rdr1. But to me Bill is such a heartbreaking character because I truly believe he could have been so easily swayed down a better path if someone had have just tried to help him.

Bill was a very insecure and repressed man and throughout the entirety of the second game he is constantly seeking appraisal from the gang, you see it in the random camp interaction where he makes a show of bringing fish to Pearson, desperate for any kind of acknowledgment for his hard work and he only gets a small thank you from Pearson and Arthur in return. You see it in the sentiment that Bill repeats a few times when talking about his jealousy of Arthur, how he feels like he’s not allowed to make the same mistakes Arthur would be given a slap on the wrist for. You see it when he asks Kieran to have drink with him and then becomes upset and defensive when his genuine vulnerable attempt at connection is rejected.

A lot of people can’t see past Bill’s racism, which is fair, but I also see it as another really tragic and realistic part of his character. In his racist interactions with Charles, Lenny and Javier I think he’s acting out for attention because he doesn’t know any other way to get it and I don’t believe he actually holds real hatred for any of them because of their race, I think Bill deeply loves and respects them as his brothers despite his mistreatment of them. I see this as different to someone like Micah who is just genuinely hateful in his black little heart. Bill was taken into the army as a young man and spoon fed racist rhetoric by the people he respected and looked up to, his superiors, his brothers in arms. They’d share boogeyman stories about how bloodthirsty the natives were and fill his impressionable mind hatred, and then he had all those racist horror stories reaffirmed when they’d send him out to watch the men he considered brothers be slaughtered in battle by said boogeymen. I think it’s clear Bill has PTSD from his army days which warps the way he sees the world around him, I think Dutch (despite the can of worms that is his own racism) says it best when he says “I don’t doubt you saw things Bill but your tiny little mind was too small to comprehend what you saw. What you saw was people who lost everything to savagery.” I believe that Dutch especially, considering the idol he is to Bill, had the opportunity to educate him and help him be a kinder man and yet he chose not to despite his Evelyn Miller fuelled white-saviour-complex. Bill’s trauma obviously doesn’t excuse any of his actions, but I think it is evidence that he had the capacity to learn and be helped if someone had just believed in his intelligence enough to try.

Also lastly a big part of Bill’s insecurity can be attributed to his repressed sexuality, people talk about it a lot so I won’t say much but the part of it that hurts me the most is that Bill lost EVERYTHING for being gay. When he was discharged from the army he lost his job, his home, his food, his friends and his dignity. He was left homeless on the streets, turning to alcohol and becoming the man his father was, and robbing people just to get by. Dutch saved him and became his messiah, he gave him purpose again and then intentionally left him uneducated and pining for his approval to use him as a tool the same way the army did. Taking advantage of all the good parts of Bill Williamson and leaving them to rot and fester under the filth.

What are your thoughts on how Bill was treated and what could have changed for him had he been treated differently? RIP Bill Williamson I could have taken better care of you <3

Well you touched on a lot of subjects that I have already touched on in my other Bill posts, so I guess I won't need to go into background details LMFAO.

Bill was treated like a fool by everyone for every small mistake he has every made no matter how small it is, because most are small, and he is also blamed for things that aren't really his fault, like Sean's death. He is pretty much that one person you use as the butt of a joke, and a lot of characters don't really give him a fair chance.

John actually seems to be his best friend though, they are both kind of labeled as lazy, they are both drunks and they both know it is a problem. The issue is that John is given a lot more freedoms than Bill is and that leads to him becoming very jealous very easily, John to some extent seems to notice it but it doesn't seem to bother him.

Bill really seems to like Lenny, taking him out to drink and out to rob and calling him his son, however Lenny doesn't really seem to be that enthusiastic. It seems that Lenny goes with Bill when Bill asks, but he doesn't seem to be the one to take initiative to do something with him.

Now Hosea, he is absolutely not giving Bill a fair chance, he is going after him constantly and literally setting Bill up for failure. Hosea really seems to be using his senority against Bill and being a dick to him. Micah does the same, except he seems to hide it a little better because he feels they are on the same side.

Dutch is treating Bill like he is a child and a fool, even thoguh everything Bill does it to please Dutch.

As for what could have changed, I think a lot, like a lot. Steve said that if just someone had told Bill "hey we appriciate you" he would have sided with Arthur, and that is a massive thing because it means betraying Dutch whom he is otherwise so loyal to. So I think you can change pretty much anything about Bill if you just treat him nicely, it might take some time and a few reminders, but yeah his racism, his sour comments, his drinking could likely be changed if just effort was put into it, if someone encouraged him and stood by him.

[indierpgnewsletter]

Murder on Arcturus Station

In 1983, Games Designers’ Workshop released an adventure module for Traveller called Murder on Arcturus Station. It’s a straight-up sci-fi murder mystery – an early landmark in Traveller‘s goal of taking play out of the dungeon and zooming off in every direction possible.

There’s lots to like about this little adventure. The dead body is a sleazy capitalist, who in the premise of the adventure has just screwed the players’ characters out of payment for their last job. There’s also labour strife brewing because the aforementioned bossman is screwing everybody on this little mining station. There’s almost a dozen suspects, each of them having some kind of grief with him. It’s the slick neo-noir vibe of Picket Line Tango but done with all the lack-of-flair of 40 years ago.But the best thing about the module is that there’s no canonical murderer. As a part of prep, it asks the GM to decide.

But the best thing about the module is that there’s no canonical murderer. As a part of prep, it asks the GM to decide.

I love this because there’s a lot of discussion these days about games that use Brindlewood Bay‘s mystery system. And while this isn’t the same thing by any means, it’s still mucking around in the same sandbox. Essentially, you could say that games like Brindlewood Bay or Apocalypse Keys are just respecting that time-honoured tradition of storygames and redistributing the role of the GM.

When I read Arcturus Station, I have this lovely premise dripping with potential and I don’t want to puncture it. If I was running this in 2016, I would’ve just used smoke and mirrors – pretended that I knew which suspect did it but really I would just see what my players thought and then use that to decide. (Someone on Bluesky called it “planning behind” rather than “planning ahead” and I find that phrase very funny.) All these new games do as far as I’m concerned is let me be honest about my smoke and mirrors.

But the creativity of Arcturus Station doesn’t stop there, it offers two more ideas, half-baked in that classic old school way but still very endearing: what if the one of the player’s characters did it (makes sense, they have a motive, they just got screwed) and what if instead of playing adventurers, the players took on the role of the NPC suspects and basically larped it.

The designer of this module, J Andrew Keith, doesn’t actually know how to pull either of these two things off. Well, the first one is a bit easier. It just requires planning and collusion between one player and the GM. But the second idea is just tossed in at the very end of the book. All that Keith has got to offer us is: “One other possibility which there was no time to explore in detail here is to dispense with the standard player characters and use the suspects as player characters. Give players the information on Katarin Xuan, Eayukheal, and the others, and have them play those roles; of course, one of them will be the murderer…”

Like with many other art forms, one way to read the history of RPG design is the push and pull of experimentation and consolidation: there are periods of obvious and widespread experimentation and then consolidation as the most popular experiments become the norm. But then people get bored of the norm as it looses the novelty that made it popular in the first place and a new phase of widespread experimentation follows.

It’s never so simple, of course. You can have experimentation in one space and consolidation in the other. But it’s interesting to see the creative overreach of the first decade of RPGs – people imagining possibilities but not really having the tools to implement them. It’s the same spirit that draws me towards the current indie games era (and the Forge era, and so on). It’s excitement for the possibilities of play.

[im-not-buying-it-ether]

@fandomfive39 @teehhhhhhhhhhh @leesbian42 and @chaoticallyfluffy I forgot to @ y'all last time, oopsie.

Anyway, onto PoS (the Shazam comic with the funniest acronym). The bare bones without all the weird shit at least.

Sorry I took so long on this, kinda forgot about it

Let's just... get the origin comic out of the way with this one and delve into the fun new stuff when I cover characters.

Billy is a homeless orphan selling newspapers on a street when he is approached by a mysterious figure in a trench coat and fedora who asks what he's doing outside at such a late hour, leads him into the subway, and introduces him to the Wizard Shazam same as his old origins. Where it differs is that Billy does not take well to him new powers, scared and upset at the Wizard and physically attacking him, confused by the new voices in his head that are his new patrons.

Over all it is a doozy of Billy not wanting really anything to do with being a hero and messing stuff up, but for the sake of explaining this without recapping that entire comic run I am keeping this short.

Billy grew up in a good house pretty privileged because of how well off his and Mary's parents were with their archeology jobs, they were raised together. Billy does bad in school, does not get to go on a trip to Egypt with his parents and Mary and has to stay home with Ebenezer watching over him. Parents die while exploring a tomb with Black Adam's body and the scarab necklace his conscience and powers are trapped in and stolen by his descendant Theo Adam, who was the Batson's assistant in the dig.

Adam kills CC by stabbing him in the back and leaving him to be crushed by fallen rocks, Marilyn dies by being either stabbed to death or having her throat slit (it is unclear but Adam used a knife). He then kidnaps lil Mary and stows her off to his sister, Nurse Primm, who arranges for Mary to be falsely adopted by the Bromfield family. In this canon Nora Bromfield is a cousin of Marilyn and, due to her and Nick's own issues in having children on top of her not wanting Mary to live with Ebenezer, takes Mary in with Nick as their own child.

Mary has trauma, develops amnesia about her past, and forgets Billy all but entirely with the rest of their family.

Billy has the typical led into the subway and to the Wizard story and is given powers, but initially is freaked out and does not want them. He foils an attempt by Adam and some goons to blow up the Whiz radio tower on behalf of Sivana where Adam recognizes him as looking just like CC and, figuring it must be Billy gets the scarab necklace and summons the power of his ancestor Black Adam. He and Billy scuffle but Billy beats Adam and the Wizard takes his voice so he can no longer transform, Billy keeps the powers with the Wizards guiding knowledge that his sister is still alive and he can find her if he stays Captain Marvel. This version of Billy didn't want to be a hero and is kinda coerced into it by Shazam but ultimately stays as Marvel because he does like helping people and Marvel is a good tool to feign having a guardian and get himself in a better position in life.

By the end of the comic he is using Marvels visage in civilian clothes to fake being Uncle Ebenezer to a teacher that's never met him and in later appearances has been using the adult appearance to get a late job and apartment so he isn't homeless.

Billy does eventually find and reunite with Mary with her gaining powers of Shazam aswell.

can someone mansplain the entire history of Billy Batson Captain Marvel, the Shazamily, and Fawcett City to me??? or at least like. . . the main parts

[bubblewhale]

I'm just now finding out that people did not like my villain academia arc.

I truly watched bnha for the LOV (besides bkdk).

The main cast is nice and all but if i put on my critical lenses i honestly don't see the hero society as a viable option. Economically and structurally i just don't get it - it's a cult that creates celebrities/heroes who are obviously used as both propaganda and tools of war, under the guise of fighting crime. At this point, heroes serve as either military special op forces or double-agents, or even as nuke level power holders. Either way, they are totally dehumanised soldiers. On the other end, the hero cult itself triggers people becoming villains. It does so by blaming individuals for becoming villains, even when it's obvious that they are direct results of wider structural societal problems. It's shown many times how hate can manifest in families as perfectionism, abuse, obsession, suppression, phobia (Shoto, Dabi, Shigaraki, Toga), poverty and human trafficking (Hawks) and xenophobia and racial (?) discrimination with mutants (Spiner).

The only moment i was hopeful they're gonna address the structural problems was the liberation army attack on the hospital in the war arc. But what was crazy to me is that the hero society held a war prisoner in the basement of a public hospital - using a civilian shield tactic, which is considered a war crime. Spiner's character arc is also extremely sad and unhelpful. Even the school itself becomes a military stronghold.

For the question of family dynamics we get Endeavor atonement arc. But we also get a scene which implies that he sa'd his wife (as if the fact that she was sold to him wasn't enough). The one scene that wasn't believable to me at all was Rei coming to visit Endeavor in the hospital. God bless Shoto, that kid is so strong, understanding perfectly Endeavor is to blame for all that. But it shows that in case of powerful men, sa and child abuse are not treated as crimes, as they should be.

Hawks is another great example of literally being sold and used, similar to Lady Nagant - and nothing is gained from their arcs in the sense of revealing the hidden corruption. Both of them side with the "hero" side in the end, the side that made them do their dirty work for them. He even becomes a murderer because of this but still manages to keep in the public’s good graces by acting as if killing is something he had to do for the greater good, same reason he sided with Endeavor.

Toga is a brilliant representation of discrimination towards a sexual minority but then she dies to save a hero she loves. It's tragic, honestly.

Deku is the only one trying to do something and helping (Shoto, Bakugo, All Might and Shigaraki are some examples) people change their mind and views on heroism/what it means to live righteously. I haven't read the manga so i don't yet understand what Deku losing his quirk could mean but honestly this AFO-OFA tug of war is the most boring part to me.

The show still mostly puts everything down to individual level and blames the villain or makes it somehow personal responsibility of heroes to deal with it.

Thus the league of villains becomes the focal point of the show - their double bind with AFO on one end and heroes on the other.

It just bugs me that the whole show could be read as cop/military propaganda and that our protagonists are basically glorified cops. This is why vigilante Deku arc was so exciting, finally! And this is why the whole concept of the show would be very different if it was made from LOV's pov from the start.

As it is, there's lots of bright and shiny feathers but not much substance in the show. The biggest stars of the show are personal tragedies, sometimes out-shining the main plot and gloriously failing to tie into the bigger picture.

[mercutio-the-velaryon]

Mel having the hilt of a sword above her head like the sword of damocles not only indicates the treacherous nature of the power she's inherited from her mother from assuming the position of THE Medarda and the wolf but the fact that the sword disappears behind her as if its piercing her shows that shes already suffered the consequences of having this power (losing her family, losing her home in Piltover).

Not to mention the way both she and the room are clad in red, silver, and black, Ambessa's colour scheme. I think this indicates that although she's become what she's supposedly always wanted (a daughter her mother could be proud, a ruler) the smallness of her in this shot illustrates how overwhelmed she is (maybe emotionally but also quite tangibly by her responsibilities increasing tenfold) by the presence of her mother's legacy.

Mel demonstrates that she is an adept councillor in Piltover. The position suits her social abilities well enough to easily sway other members of the council. However, the system of power in Piltover does not allow for substantial revolutionary change for example Jayce despite government backing is unable to fully realise his dream of his research being utilised for the sake of everyone's health and safety instead it is bastardised and its original purpose is diluted made into gimmick. The extent of the progress 'the man of progress' is able to make is diminished to hexgates (transport) and other flashy but meaningless tools that simply exist so that the upper echelon can marvel at them.

I do think Mel believes Jayce would have been able to use both his and her position on the council to make positive social change, I also think she maintains a very liberal belief that a long stretch of time is required to make those advancements (she's wrong btw) but she is, like everyone else in this show, a product of their circumstances and her and every other character (mainly the piltover citizens) is burdened by their perceptions of how change can be achieved. It's also important to note that her and Jayce as privileged Piltovans can easily decentre the socially equalising potential hextech had because they weren't the people hextech could have helped as opposed to Viktor who was constantly at odds with oppressive system that disabled him and gave him a terminal illness.

I think this has changed now, with her kidnapping, her confrontation with Jayce (which I found kind of lacklustre, I think that conversation, although necessary just didn't address the right things and also felt like a one-sided lashing on a character who just endured psychological torture, was very narratively odd) and tag team showdown with her mother and the Black Rose, she's been pushed past the point of no return. She cannot be the politican carefully hand selecting gifts for another politicians birthday so they feel a sense of loyalty to her, she cannot do behind the scenes work anymore.

I have very little to work with because we don't really know what state Noxus will be in when Mel arrives but I do wonderhow this Mel who has shedded her previous political passiveness will function in a position that puts her in the front, her as a symbol of power and the head of her house.

I think Mel is a character bound for errors and mistakes but who is fundamentally gold at heart and that literally manifests in her design, the embellishments on her skin and the colour of power, also the way she coated that painting in gold in season one show that she will always end up being true herself though she may wield as is her nature as conduit other peoples powers and bare their responsibilities she won't be changed she will make change, good change.

[aventurineswife]

HI HI! I hope you are having a good day/night 💞

I wanted to know your opinion on this:

Like, i been seen a lot of people saying that he should go to therapy, or even go to couple therapy with him. But, since everyobody doesn't want to go to therapy, or when they go, they don't feel still right, or even can get worse. I think he would find another way to heal, one that truly makes him feel safe and comfortable.(SORRY I CAN SEE AVEN IN THERAPY FOR THE MOMENT.)

In my experience, i meet a lot of people that feels more comfortable telling problems to family, friends, or find comfort in some hyperfixation, or be on their own worlds. IDK WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THIS.

We love you Aven's wife. If you can, please, don't dissappear and became dust.

In my opinion, I think it's entirely valid to think that Aventurine wouldn't find traditional therapy appealing, at least not immediately. His character is deeply rooted in self-reliance and distrust, shaped by a lifetime of betrayal and survival through his own cunning. Therapy, which requires vulnerability and trust, might feel like too much of a gamble for someone like him. Instead, his path to healing could align with the following methods:

Aventurine might find solace in close, meaningful relationships with people who slowly earn his trust. Sharing his burdens with someone who understands his complexities—like a friend or a partner—could serve as his version of therapy. These connections might help him confront his trauma without feeling exposed or judged.

Aventurine's love for gambling and strategizing could act as a coping mechanism and, eventually, a tool for healing. For instance, he might channel his need for control and calculation into something constructive, like designing elaborate strategies to help others, which also gives him a sense of purpose.

Aventurine may benefit from moments of isolation where he can process his emotions without external pressures. He might find clarity in journaling, planning, or even something symbolic, like playing solitary games of chance to reflect on his decisions and fears.

Aventurine thrives in situations where he feels in control, so his healing journey could involve taking action to help others or dismantle systems of cruelty. By addressing the larger injustices that mirror his own trauma, he could begin to reconcile with his past.

Aventurine might find joy and comfort in lavishing his partner with gifts, experiences, or acts of service, using his flair to express love and distract himself from his inner struggles. This could be his therapeutic way of coping—showing care outwardly to feel a sense of connection and purpose.

However, if his partner refuses these gestures or encourages him to focus on his own healing, it might force him to confront his avoidance tactics. Over time, this could lead Aventurine to realize that true healing requires addressing his own pain rather than masking it with grand displays.

And that's pretty much it, I hope this explains it well. Remember this is my opinion but I'd love to see others opinions on it too🤗💖

Also, I'll try not to become one bite from the dust 🕴️ and love you guys too!! 🤗🫂💖🥺

[theladyofrosewater]

On one hand would I have killed to see ace rep in the show itself? yes yes I would have because we are sorely lacking in ace rep in most media's.

on the other hand asexuality is different from being aromantic and it's clear christian linke just doesn't want the ship to be encouraged and so picked the character in the ship who hadn't been portrayed as having a sexual/romantic relationship with anyone, it's just that said character also happens to have most of the traits that stereotype ace characters had so it cheapens the decision in the writing by a lot

Like I feel like at least half of the cast being confirmed as ace would have been better rep. You could have had it be Mel and then showcase her seduction of Jayce being something she doesn't at all give a shit about sex besides using as a tool for furthering her power until she realizes she caught feels. You could have had it be Vi and have it so she feels like that's why she has a tough time connecting with people and maybe have her tell Caitlyn in a heartfelt scene. Hell you could have made it Ekko and have had a mention of it in season two episode 7 where Powder says she'll always love and respect Ekko's boundaries. There is nothing wrong with Viktor being ace if the writers had set out to actually make him ace rep, however the only thing that even hints at Viktor being ace is him saying no to walking home with Sky and that could very easily be read as Viktor is just distracted with his work or Viktor just not being interested in women. Viktor being "confirmed" ace by one of the writers in an out of media interview out of what seems to be a dislike of a popular queer ship leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

and can I just say I'm kinda sick and tired of asexual characters being almost exclusively confirmed as ace through tweets and outside of the source material, like if the higher ups were preventing representation and the only way to announce it was a blog post that's one thing but when most characters only have their asexualty revealed as an afterthought it's really disheartening like how bad of a writing team do you have to be that hazbin hotel of all medias does a better job of explicitly showcasing a character as asexual than arcane does.

(suggestive warning)

viktor being confirmed to be asexual but only because christian linke despises the idea of jayvik being inherently sexual or just romantic for that matter is just so disheartening

im so sick of disabled people just being viewed as undesirable and unable to have sex in comparison to characters like jayce. and to see this type of stereotype being placed on a character i align myself with heavily is just so devastating

[dead-dolphins]

I'm always in when it comes to Taylor Swift, so please tell us what fic you imagined!

Pd: your mind is something amazing to me, like, how can you create fics plots so quickly? that's the mind of an artist there!

Oh my gosh, I love it so much when someone supports my chaotic, nonsensical ideas! Honestly, it feels so good to just have someone to bounce these wild thoughts off. And thank you for calling me an artist! I don’t usually think of myself as one, but hey, I’ll take the compliment, it’s really sweet of you to say that.

So, what I was trying to say earlier is that the song Cowboy Like Me makes me think about these two fascinating characters, artists in their own right, but more like tricksters or con artists, really. They have this uncanny ability to make people fall head over heels for them, but it’s all part of the game. They use their charm to get what they want, whether that’s money, gifts, or just the thrill of pulling the strings. But then, the twist is that they try to play that same game with each other and end up falling for real. They both get caught in their own trap, which I think is just chef’s kiss 👌🏼 for the story I have in mind.

Here’s what I’m picturing: It’s the 1920s, right? The peak of glitz and glam, with jazz music spilling out of speakeasies and fashion that’s daring and carefree. I was thinking it would be set somewhere impossibly elegant, like the French Riviera or Monaco, those dreamy places where the rich and fabulous went to play. Mikasa would be this stunning flapper, effortlessly stylish and oozing confidence, the kind of woman who walks into a room and has everyone’s attention without even trying. Meanwhile, Eren would be the male equivalent of a flapper, if that’s even a thing, suave, sharp, and so dangerously charming that people (women) can’t help but fall under his spell.

Both of them are hustlers at heart. They’ve learned how to play the game, how to make people fall for them and, in the process, loosen their purse strings. They’ve each perfected the art of seduction, not because they’re romantics, but because it’s a way of surviving, thriving even, in a world where money equals power. Love? That’s a weakness neither of them has time for.

The story kicks off in this ridiculously extravagant hotel, all marble floors and glittering chandeliers, where the elite are hosting some grand affair. Mikasa and Eren are both there as the “plus ones” of two very wealthy patrons, essentially escorts, but in that subtle, 1920s way where it’s all about appearances. They notice each other almost immediately. Maybe it’s a glance across the ballroom or an accidental brush past each other, but there’s this instant connection. Not love at first sight, though, it’s more like they recognise each other. Like, “Ah, here’s someone who knows the same game I’m playing.”

That’s when the fun starts. They begin this cat-and-mouse game, trying to outdo each other. Mikasa might flirt her way into stealing a target Eren was working on, just to prove she can, while Eren might turn the tables and sabotage one of her schemes with an infuriating grin. They’re constantly trying to one-up each other, and the tension between them is just electric.

But here’s where it gets interesting, they can’t stop thinking about each other. At first, it’s curiosity. Who is this person who’s as clever and sharp as I am? Then it’s attraction, though neither of them would ever admit it. They’re both too guarded, too used to seeing love as a tool or a weapon, to recognize that what they’re feeling is different.

The story builds with these playful, charged interactions. Maybe they share a dance at one of the hotel’s grand parties, where they both drop their masks for just a moment, caught up in the music and the closeness. Or maybe there’s a quieter scene, where they find themselves alone after a successful scheme, and the conversation turns unexpectedly real. They start to see beyond the game, catching glimpses of the person underneath the charm.

And the ending? It’s not a dramatic declaration or a perfect happy ending, it’s more like this subtle, bittersweet realization. They’ve been playing with each other all along, testing and teasing, but somewhere along the way, they stopped pretending. They actually fell for each other. It’s a little bit of a “whoops, we’re in love now” moment.

What do you think, Anon? I even have the name for this LOL “Gardens of Babylon” named in the song!

[a-live-wire]

The tragedy of Sky is that we never got to truly know her.

There's not that many scenes where's she's alive, and all they reveal to us is that's she's from Zaun, she's an assistant in the lab, she has some feelings for Victor and there's some idea she wanted to share with him shortly before unexpectedly dying. All this is pretty much seen from an outsider perspective.

The only scene where she's alone is the couple of seconds while she walks to the lab, where Viktor experiments with the Hexcore. The only character she has more than one interaction with is, again, Viktor, who doesn't seem to be very close to her, keeping the distance of a professional relationship, never showing any deeper interest (he call's Sky 'miss Young' even though she adresses him as 'Viktor', and either dismisses or doesn't pick up on her inviting him to leave the lab together that one evening).

When he finally sees her as another person, learning something personal about her, her dreams, from her journal, she's already dead, and all that's left is a second hand source of who she was, to construct an image of her.

According to her writings, her vision is similar to Viktor and Jayce's , as it was in the beginning. After the experiment with the Hexcore goes so horribly wrong, and with the separation between Jayce and Viktor, I think it makes sense it's something Viktor would latch on to, something that could lead him back on the 'right' track of 'helping' people, as he always wanted.

If we're going with the idea that the Sky we see in the space scape(?) is not some ghost, or a soul, but a projection, an avatar of the Hexcore, it truly chose the perfect face.

On one hand, Sky represents a vision, a cause that Viktor can get behind, but also the guilt he has for accidentally getting her killed, a complete opposite of what he ever wanted, which makes a great persuasion tool. And since he didn't know her very well personally, there's much room to adjust and tweak her personality, speech pattern, facial expressions, as needed, because he might not know if it's correct, but neither if it's wrong.

She does act more confident around Viktor in the space-scape, like a partner, more than a colleague she has feelings for (as we've seen previously, she did seem a little nervous talking to him when she was alive). There's also the detail of her ghost form not wearing glasses anymore, though I don't have any particular analysis of that.

In conclusion, the pastel-ghost Sky that haunts Viktor is, in my opinion, a mix of his projection and the Hexcore leading him where it needs him, taking advantage of the blank canvas it has access to thanks to Viktor not forming a closer bond to her before her death. She still has an impact on the narrative and Viktor, or rather, the idea of her has. But neither Viktor or us really knew her, and we never will.

[gale-gentlepenguin]

There are two types of writers

1. The ones that use their characters to drive the plot

2. The ones who let their characters tell them what they do in the plot.

And the difference in writing of these two shows.

[juniemunie]

[Abandoned by the Lightners, his heart became cracked with hatred.]

Hitting a lil' too close to home?

[anghraine]

It's interesting (if often frustrating) to see the renewed Orc Discourse after the last few episodes of ROP. I've seen arguments that orcs have to be personifications of evil rather than people as such or else the ethics of our heroes' approach to them becomes much more fraught. Tolkien's work, as written, seems an odd choice to me for not wrangling with difficult questions, and of course, more diehard fans are going to immediately bring up Shagrat and Gorbag.

If you haven't read LOTR recently, Shagrat and Gorbag are two orcs who briefly have a conversation about how they're being screwed over by Sauron but have no other real options, about their opinions of mistakes that have been made, that they think Sauron himself has made one, but it's not safe to discuss because Sauron has spies in their own ranks. They reminisce about better times when they had more freedom and fantasize about a future when they can go elsewhere and set up a small-scale banditry operation rather than being involved in this huge-scale war. Eventually, however, they end up turning on each other.

Basically any time that someone brings up the "humanity" of this conversation, someone else will point out that they're still bad people. They're not at all guilty about what they're part of. They just resent the dangers to themselves, the pressure from above, failures of competence, the surveillance they're under, and their lack of realistic alternative options. The dream of another life mentioned in the conversation is still one of preying on innocent people, just on a much smaller and more immediate scale, etc.

I think this misses the reason it keeps getting brought up, though. The point is not that Shagrat and Gorbag are good people. The point is that they are people.

There's something very normal and recognizable about their resentment of their superiors, their fears of reprisal and betrayal that ultimately are realized, their dislike of this kind of industrial war machine that erases their individual work and contributions, the tinge of wistfulness in their hope of escape into a different kind of life. Their dialect is deliberately "common"—and there's a lot more to say about that and the fact that it's another commoner, Sam, who outwits them—but one of the main effects is to make them sound familiar and ordinary. And it's interesting that one of the points they specifically raise is that they're not going to get better treatment from "the good guys" so they can't defect, either.

This is self-interested, yes, but it's not the self-interest of some mystical being or spirit or whatnot, but of people.

Tolkien's later remarks tend to back this up. He said that female orcs do exist, but are rarely seen in the story because the characters only interact with the all-male warrior class of orcs. Whatever female orcs "do," it isn't going to war. Maybe they do a lot of the agricultural work that is apparently happening in distant parts of Mordor, maybe they are chiefly responsible for young orcs, maybe both and/or something else, we don't know. But we know they're out there and we know that they reproduce sexually and we know that they're not part of the orcish warrior class.

Regardless of all the problems with this, the idea that orcs have a gender-restricted warrior class at all and we're just not seeing any of their other classes because of where the story is set doesn't sound like automatons of evil. It sounds like an actual culture of people that we only see along the fringes.

And this whole matter of "but if they're people, we have to think about ethics, so they can't be people" is a weird circular argument that cannot account for what's in LOTR or for much of what Tolkien said afterwards. Yes, he struggled with The Problem of Orcs and how to reconcile it with his world building and his ethical system, but "maybe they're not people" is ultimately not a workable solution as far as LOTR goes and can't even account for much of the later evolution of his ideas, including explicit statements in his letters.

And in the end, the real response that comes to mind to that circular argument is "maybe you should think about ethics more."