#saxon imagines

[skrunksthatwunk]

actually i'm still thinking about the moral orel finale.

he has a cross on his wall. do you know how much i think about that bc it's a lot.

a lot of stories ((auto)biographical or fictional) centering escape from abusive/fundamentalist christianity result in the lead characters leaving behind christianity entirely. and that makes complete sense! people often grow disillusioned with the associated systems and beliefs, and when it was something used to hurt them or something so inseparable from their abuse that they can't engage with it without hurting, it makes total sense that they would disengage entirely. and sometimes they just figure out that they don't really believe in god/a christian god/etc. a healthy deconstruction process can sometimes look like becoming an atheist or converting to another religion. it's all case by case. (note: i'm sure this happens with other religions as well, i'm just most familiar with christian versions of this phenomenon).

but in orel's case, his faith was one of the few things that actually brought him comfort and joy. he loved god, y'know? genuinely. and he felt loved by god and supported by him when he had no one else. and the abuses he faced were in how the people in his life twisted religion to control others, to run away from themselves, to shield them from others, etc. and often, orel's conflicts with how they acted out christianity come as a direct result of his purer understanding of god/jesus/whatever ("aren't we supposed to be like this/do that?" met with an adult's excuse for their own behavior or the fastest way they could think of to get orel to leave them alone (i.e. orel saying i thought we weren't supposed to lie? and clay saying uhhh it doesn't count if you're lying to yourself)). the little guy played catch with god instead of his dad, like.. his faith was real, and his love was real. and i think it's a good choice to have orel maintain something that was so important to him and such a grounding, comforting force in the midst of. All That Stuff Moralton Was Up To/Put Him Through. being all about jesus was not the problem, in orel's case.

and i know i'm mostly assuming that orel ended up in a healthier, less rigid version of christianity, but i feel like that's something that was hinted at a lot through the series, that that's the direction he'd go. when he meditates during the prayer bee and accepts stephanie's different way to communicate, incorporating elements of buddhism into his faith; when he has his I AM A CHURCH breakdown (removing himself from the institution and realizing he can be like,, the center of his own faith? taking a more individualistic approach? but Truly Going Through It at the same time), his acceptance (...sometimes) of those who are different from him and condemned by the adults of moralton (stephanie (lesbian icon stephanie my beloved), christina (who's like. just a slightly different form of fundie protestant from him), dr chosenberg (the jewish doctor from otherton in holy visage)). his track record on this isn't perfect, but it gets better as orel starts maturing and picking up on what an absolute shitfest moralton is. it's all ways of questioning the things he's been taught, and it makes sense that it would lead to a bigger questioning as he puts those pieces together more. anyway i think part of his growth is weeding out all the lost commandments of his upbringing and focusing on what faith means to him, and what he thinks it should mean. how he wants to see the world and how he wants to treat people and what he thinks is okay and right, and looking to religion for guidance in that, not as like. a way to justify hurting those he's afraid or resentful of, as his role models did.

he's coming to his own conclusions rather than obediently, unquestioningly taking in what others say. but he's still listening to pick out the parts that make sense to him. (edit/note: and it's his compassion and his faith that are the primary motivations for this questioning and revisal process, both of individual cases and, eventually, the final boss that is christianity.) it makes perfect sense as the conclusion to his character arc and it fits the overall approach of the show far better. it's good is what i'm saying.

and i think it's important to show that kind of ending, because that's a pretty common and equally valid result of deconstruction. and i think it cements the show's treatment of christianity as something that's often (and maybe even easily) exploited, but not something inherently bad. something that can be very positive, even. guys he even has a dog he's not afraid of loving anymore. he's not afraid of loving anyone more than jesus and i don't think it's because he loves this dog less than bartholomew (though he was probably far more desperate for healthy affection and companionship when he was younger). i think it's because he figures god would want him to love that dog. he's choosing to believe that god would want him to love and to be happy and to be kind. he's not afraid of loving in the wrong way do you know how cool that is he's taking back control he's taking back something he loves from his abusers im so normal

[witchofthemidlands]

if i put my practical brain to one side & chose to forget the impossibility, timelines, dates & all realms of sanity i'd want to see the absolute horror show that would be the political battle between roger ap' gwilliam & harold saxon.

[nifflering]

Another little headcannon (inspired by @roxannepolice headcannon that every master post cheetah virus still has it deep in their dna)

Every master post-cheetah virus is like a magnet for cats.

[msue0027]

Harold Saxon pss pss psss

[lady-wyrd]

Iseult in The Last Kingdom 1x07

[lazer-screwdriver]

Dingo!Master Bunny!Lucy first meeting where he’s like >:)) I could eat u…. and she kicks him in the muzzle so hard he sees stars

[gaelicfiddle]

Father Beocca, Father Pyrlig, Father Willibald: the Uthred's Cleric Protection Squad

Close-ups:

(Beocca)

(Pyrlig)

(Willibald)

[imissthembutitwasntadisaster]

the thing about writing is that all good stories boil down to "what if a guy were in situations how crazy would that be" and the second you forget that you're sunk

[starringvincentprice]

My dream columbo killers!

inspired by @lieutenant-columbro

[good--merits-accumulated]

the anderperry fair folk au is going well <- (guy who just wrote 500 words' worth of description about a travelling outfit)

[mandalorianfleshenjoyer]

Ursa Wren should've yeeted Gar Saxon out the fucking window the moment he appeared on Krownest. Not because it made sense, but because it'd be pretty fucking funny

[lavenderleavened]

My brain is plagues with thoughts

Imagine like. .. . . . Anglo-Saxon batman 😳

With like . . . . Hand crafted animal masks n stuff (think similar to Yaekolre) 😳😳

OH THE POTENTIAL 🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠🫠

[caedmonofwhitby]

The Franks Casket, 8thC (early)

The Celtic-Teutonic ivory 'Franks' Casket' in the British Museum gives insight into current imagination, with carved illustrations of Norse epic, Roman legend and history, Biblical tales. Aware of life's imperfections, the Celtic Church did not brood overmuch on them.

Peter Vansittart, In Memory of England

This spectacular whalebone casket was probably made in the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Northumbria. Modelled on early Christian caskets, it was most likely created in a monastery for a significant - perhaps royal - patron.

The casket's imagery, accompanied by runic and Latin inscriptions, comes from an array of sources including Germanic and Roman legends, the Bible, and historical events.

Made at a time when Christianity had not long been established in Anglo-Saxon England, its carvings reflect a wish to convey Christian messages by relating them to the remembered pagan past.

The Wayland scene (on the left) is a composite one depicting two episodes from his story: on the left Wayland is working over the anvil in his smithy. He wears a shortish kilt which has allowed the carver to show that there is some deformity about the smith's legs. At his feet lies a headless body. In his left hand he grasps a pair of tongs gripping a human head. His right hand is outstretched to meet the left hand of one of the two female figures who are facing him. The lamed Wayland working at his anvil holds the head of one of King Nidhad's sons; in the second, on the right of the Wayland panel, there is a single human figure, a woman to judge by the flowing drapery and lack of moustache or beard. There are also four swan-like birds and the woman is holding two of them by the neck, one in either hand.

On the right, the Magi (named in runes) bring their gifts to the infant Jesus held in his mother's arms in the stable with the star overhead.

British Museum, London

[kmtaylorauthor]

Incredible read of the beginning portion of the Codex Sohrakia: The Gifted Dark prologue by the amazing Joshua Saxon. Joshua will be narrating the audiobook version, to be released later this year! I’m ecstatic!

[daisyachain]

Insane. Insane. Insane. A film that may enter my vocabulary

[mrs-gauche]

Thank you for the translations! I have extra fun with them since my solavellan inquisitor was born in the Anders and then her family moved to her father’s clan when she developed magic. So Anders aka fantasy German is her first language. It’s super interesting reading about the different meanings and theories that come with it!

Ah, you’re welcome!! <3333 😁 I really enjoy making these posts, partially because it’s just so fun and interesting to compare translations, voices and voice acting to me! :D But I love this idea of the Inquisitor having another first language!

In general, I love how DA has implemented both real and fictional languages (and accents in the English version) in its worldbuilding, like aside from the obvious French, German, Spanish, Pseudo Latin in Orlais, Anderfels, Antiva and Tevinter, I love how you’ll hear the bard in Val Royeaux sing in French regardless of what version you play, or how the last verses of the original Grey Warden song are also sung in German, given that the Grey Wardens were founded in the Anderfels too (and fun fact, the song was actually performed by a German band called Corvus Corax!). And according to the World of Thedas book, the other verses are also in Dwarven, English and Elven, much in the spirit of the Grey Wardens uniting against the Blight regardless of race or origin. 😁

I wonder though if we’ll get to hear some more German phrases, if we get to visit Weisshaupt in DA4! 👀

(Also, I don’t know if I’ve mentioned it before, but even though I love Alix Wilton Regan too, the German female Inquisitor‘s VA, Manja Doering, is like one of my all time favorite VAs and I practically created my Lavellan with her voice in mind, so even now, it’s still a bit weird to me whenever I play in English or French and hear her talk with a different voice. lol)