#she's in a mood(tm)

[midnightdemonhunter]

IF I STUMBLE, THEY'RE GONNA EAT ME ALIVE.

[unproduciblesmackdown]

among the boundless billions zaniness like laugh track as it definitely has that moment of expressing "rolling my eyes as The Left makes a kerfuffle of Acting like they have a stance as a veneer over the true belief that [xyz] is cool & chill actually" like what, approximate 0.000% chance wendy isn't, as usual, given the Objective Stance of "yeah yeah ohh we are cancelling involved parties talking about how we Don't watch this But. we all love this damn epic movie & already have it memorized so shut the fuck up, kids today" like. don't wanna really delve into how much billions thinks taylor or anyone is "really" trans / nonbinary like not too much benefit of the doubt in this material including what does provide info abt that specifically

& the general like [head in hands. what do you think any of this could possibly be about (you're the one that made your show at all about Power)] of "yes, it's bad/wrong to be someone that someone has done something to / victim of something" like that to be anti misogyny All Women Must Be Epic Winners b/c there's something to be proved: that they don't Deserve to be victims (of misogyny), not taken as a Given. while when we see some epic winner men stepping on other men (who need not all be guaranteed Winners so as to say misogyny is wrong), that's often Good, well beyond any assumption that various forms of basic disrespect / violation / patterns of emergent/entrenched power difference as Bad (for being things done to people, not for there being people they're being done to), & generally billions has to take an extra step when ppl get shitted on & tell us the Specific Cases when it was undeserved actually & someone was being mean to a specific person who didn't deserve that. & the specific cases when hey guess it wasn't that bad(tm) or when hey It's Okay that you're someone something was done to, in this case. & tell us what we were supposed to know all along like when someone who something was being done to (wrong Of Them, whether b/c they inherently deserve it no matter what, &/or b/c they failed to be someone who could make it Impossible to do anything to them, which, how do you do that besides being The Authority / Superior yourself, exactly? nonrhetorically? what if the in group vs out group / fascism / authoritarianism protected Me?) was actually being treated Too Well b/c ah well the abuse meant you were getting any attention, maybe it meant you were claimed as any superior's property, maybe it meant you weren't Already disposed of, as all Losers were in the end, You're Welcome.

obviously referring to winston where it's spelled out all the abuse towards him was deserved, & More than he deserved in the case of rian having more access & taking advantage of that, all for billions' enjoying its own sendoff there of, again, maximizing violation & violence short of [real violence is physical & leaves bruises / draws blood / Literally kills] which would be distasteful in general But doesn't it make wags look like the winner & winston the loser is that the former's completely unrelated completely impersonal ego blow gets way amplified taken out on winston, the most vulnerable recurring character when spyros as [first & ultimate Everyone Hates Him role] is more entrenched in there & billions still magnanimously pities tuk, as it does winston too, just not quite as much. again that like completely surface level realized power fantasy of forcing the mirror up to the Inferior so they're like nooo my inferiorityyyy & in doing so like, the projection in that lmao, we get it re: the valuing of & need(tm) for such Power Tripping & Reaffirming My Superiority & My Ego Restored; Everyone Claps like good god. & then for all ben & tuk are the slightly softer Two Too Nice Boys duo to the rian & winston quant duo, also like too nice i guess but not as much, ben is in charge of tuk but Any instance of rian being in charge of winston outstrips them in that "yay interpersonal abuse" dynamic, like then in the end billions may be like "yeah it's possible to be mean to them unlike how being mean to winston is actually Nice b/c he deserves everything he gets, we only vicariously enjoy it vs Feeling Bad for tuk & ben sometimes (still magnanimously & it's Not That Bad / just goofin)" like ben & tuk still Fail by not being people it's impossible to do anything to. & not Exceptions who anyone is really being Too Mean to. like if they were women, in which case, no problem surely with a "positive" kind of victim blaming where there is something Inherent that Will be victimized so hey how about to cancel that out there's this special Paternal Protection you Need always, Or Else? :) but instead they are men who are asian & is ben gay & w/tuk & winston nobody mentions glasses or fatness but billions doesn't really do much or very in depth textual mentioning of Anything, even w/nonzero mention that there may be gender & race in this world. a gay man, once. no disability. we just Know who are the inferiors who deserve it when they're treated inferiorly, or if they don't, they start deserving it when they fail to stop/avoid it, but if you start mentioning the factors behind who we all totally agree is inferior like whoa nobody was Saying any of that? being the real agent of oppression on the basis of the factors only You spelled out, much? nonbinary? i never say anything about the Gender Binary when i'm subscribing to it, sounds like You've created & enforced it. obfuscation & deflection onto [so Just Normal nobody has to label, explain, or argue it] couldn't serve a purpose & protect the existing power differences as they are. maybe You're the problem? perhaps you brought it upon yourself & now you're causing too much trouble standing up for yourself while everyone else's criticism is laser focused on you as the prior & continuing negative actions done to you are taken as a given / unquestioned / covertly protected to overtly encouraged?

anyway so wild if the Completely Normal(tm) Victim Blaming is uncritically recreated & oft embraced for "if you're watching this & don't wish you were axe / find him appealing" [billions as a sequence of vicarious power trips] purposes in this series....but a bit wild considering like this is your multiseason show that wasn't just purporting to be those power trips for [enough demographic & apparently specific personal tastes overlap w/creators] & was at all purporting to question the matters of power at play in the material, or yknow, at least to not be completely superficial material while said material is textually & thematically all about power difference being leveraged, how, the consequences, & so on. thus i will have to intermittently talk about it forever like this like lord unbelievable. & the funny little & sometimes less funny less little characters it has trapped in there so that those of us who were never meant to be in the audience can be cursed with this knowledge. like i have some feedback. "imagine not victim blaming" & "imagine adjusting your perspective can go beyond superficial layers added to politely defer to some other ppl while they're present but really like cmon do they deserve that. am i not just saying what we're allll thinking"

[reinabeestudio]

you stop shaving as a woman and people just dont know what to call you anymore huh

[citrine-elephant]

stressed the fuck out nonverbal dilf leon: what is your opinion?

[beedreamscape]

I think what is missing with 4-sided Dive that Talks Machina had was a third party to have those character discussions with. It's not the same with a fellow PC. Also someone with interviewing abilities, sometimes I feel like they meander so much.

And I do like to watch them talk, I do watch old episodes of AWNP, fireside chat, etc, but for discussing the game/campaign I think the mechanics of it muddles with the flow.

I personally feel no value is added from the tower of inquiry or the cup questions, though I don't mind the game playing at the end since at this point who had their curiosity satisfied can simply leave, but answering while playing which they tried doing at least once I watched didn't work at all.

Edit: Btw when I say no value is added I mean the format (being in a cup, pulling from the tower) and not the questions themselves.

[midaskey]

Tell us about your Rogue Trader! She looks badass.

Hoooo booy, I'm not a WH40K expert, but here we go!

Her name is Rainer, which is more of an alias from the early days in Schola Progenium, practically no one remembers her original name, not even herself lol. She was picked from the streets and mindwiped and was told that her parents are heroes or smth and how she'd follow in their footsteps, but the point is the mind forgets, but the body remembers - her skills and temper, gained in the slums died hard, like really hard. Her character is pretty much summarised as bratty hooligan, who learned to hide her emotions too damn well. And boy oh boy she doesn't even realise how much of a suppressed monster she is even without the warp influence. It's hard for me to summarise her character in a few words, but I do enjoy making ambiguous characters, but I'll say she's not without some pangs of conscience here and there.

Rainer's in-game portrait that I posted is basically her look post-Act III with white streaks in her hair and Glasgow grin of course. And on official events she styles her hair in halo braid.

[barnbridges]

she's the physical embodiment of if her sexist homophobic doomed autistic uncle who's dead at the bottom of the ravine for talking shit would be alive and a girlie and i think she's a demon, actually. listen to her.

[lcveblind]

"Do not mistake gentleness and kindness as an inability to be cruel," the princess warns, "for gentleness can be a cruelty of itself."

[beardedhandstoadshark]

Which OC can’t stop making bad puns at inappropriate times?

Could’ve just answered this like a normal person. Here’s a whole badly made comic page instead.

Get rickrolled :)

[chaserainbows]

Boss Battle for Sidney, Mindy, and May (or just one of the three if that’s too much)

Send me “Boss Battle”, and I’ll post the music that plays when your muse fights mine as a boss.

Sidney vs. Agni, the battle of goths and gamers

Mindy vs. Agni, the scammer appears and she's ready to scam

May vs. Agni, if Agni wins May will give them One friendship bracelet

[spark1edog]

im in a terrible mood today idk why

[unproduciblesmackdown]

ideal scenario is that i like thinking about this like, essential short story adventure where winston and tuk hook up w/a couple [that bachelorette party] members, and as a foursome/quartet because they have these parallel stories of two pairs of friends who are like "sure i'd have sex with you if things aligned for that" and now are living that short story about expanding a dynamic & becoming closer friends for the end of it (of course billions only wrote winston as standing next to tuk next episode, instead of rian as he's often written to be standing with incl in a previous finale, to shove him out of the path of getting material and let taylor have confusing nonresolution w/rian based on this proximity and coincidence instead. but who can't say that that, And winston next not even trying to sit with tmc in the last finale appearance which at this point is probably for the best and instead again hanging out with tuk and then ben, isn't about having been closer for whatever all happened there in obtaining casual sex together)

and they can have perpendicular stories of also just having some nice chats and enjoying other interactions together such that maybe it's just fun for this one night of crossing paths, maybe anyone stays in touch at all, who even knows, if winston or tuk are dating anyone it's probably only going to come up again in how they were last dumped for being too much effort for how unepic they are, so godspeed to offscreen unmentioned dating. but just friendly acquaintanceship, or again this one-time spontaneously crossed paths night's acquaintanceship, is also a lot of fun. and why not imagine that winston "he's not allowed to not feel self-loathing or, by doing basic things like talking or initiating Or oppositng anything, Not operating as though he's too low in a social hierarchy here to be allowed thusly" type of material where his spontaneity, vivacity to bon vivantocity, self-assurance that is apparently arrogance/aggression to every who thinks he ought to be self-effacing instead, etc, is actually just a social success in other less wretched non-work situations, and his personality is taken as a contribution to the proceedings even before anyone takes up his proffered contribution of himself as a potential sexual partner. and lending confidence to tuk as like one person who won't, at any given time, go into hostile mode with him or even like take up the position of issuing this criticism, which is an inherently elevated (over tuk) one when it's a unilateral thing. such that tuk's personality can be a potential contribution as well. and winston and tuk's Friendship Developing Moments can be happening then, too, b/c Maybe they've hung out outside work on their own aleady, but also maybe they've never really been interacting with a larger group outside work, such that that group is less likely to include some people, or entirely people, who will suddenly go sicko mode on either or both of them. and then meanwhile, who knows anything abt this bachelorette party, could be already a cohesive friend group who all see each other all the time, or people who see each other more infrequently meeting up on this trip, or a mix; could be fun and chill or something so scheduled/demanding it's kind of like a work trip, or fluctuate....and of course zero info abt the individuals such that imagining anything abt them is entire OC territory, and i'm bad at that, or at coming up with stories, so not exactly a lot of details here from me but godspeed if two of them unlock another tier of friendship here b/c like parallel to winston and tuk, they're like hmm okay so we're mutually down re: potentially having a foursome here, and spending some time away from the larger group

(or of course the scenario that tuk and winston can also have that moment but just as putting "and/or: a threesome?" as an option, and that tips the scales for someone who might've otherwise felt more indecisive like "hmmmm casual convenient hookup, or spending more time out & about like this / whatever other activity...." but then is like oho Well, if it's a threesome, i'll seize that opportunity, sure....such that then maybe afterwards [winston and tuk hanging out together] happens sooner, if the third member feels more third wheel about things lol, since now they'd be the only two who already know each other. like ooh who knows, round n+1 in the aftermath just one on one (and/or i mean, maybe another thing the third party's still around for, re: further casual sex opportunities that don't just fall into your lap every day), and/or talk, watch tron together, go back out on the town even. where the conclusion of this truly is the essence of "it Is easy to imagine that winston and tuk are real Genuine Friends for the implicit further offscreen time spent together outside work / interactions between them here. and fun" and with that flair of "and give that a juxtaposed parallel in it being the same for a couple bachelorette attendees, why not, good for them"

[thecherrygod]

okay im gonna write the other dream i had last night bc i like keeping them all in one place and i usually post all of them here so this ones under the cut, its kinda long

i was in a school, with people i knew from elementary school but it was implied to be highschool. sometiemes i was just exploring it a bit and finding classmates i havent seen and being like 'oh hey hi its been a while'. all of them looked like they did last time i saw them which makes sense, but my brain aged one of them up, it was this one boy from class that we were sorta friends but not really, we just were two dumbasses with the same sense of humor when we were starting to hit puberty. he was standing in front of me and he sorta rested his head on my shoulder at some point. didnt see him again after that.

apparently the school was like 'you need to do a thesis to fully graduate. also everyone around you is 18 or younger. youre still 24, you absolute useless idiot' which like. low blow. i know exactly where that comes from, unnecesary, rude. the thesis tho was more like. you had to read a paper on genocide, and the most important part was apparently on line 257. i dont know what it said, i dont know anything about it. also i think it was just like a presentation and i had to explain something about it to some teacher, but it was still called a thesis. at some point the mom of the first guy i ever liked in my life walks in there. she sits down. and she begins crying, and saying how her son is useless and a fucking mess and she doesnt know what to do about it.

next thing i know, im outside the school. actually unsure if i even did the thesis thing or not, but im out. the streets are foggy, its drizzling, i can barely notice besides the school theres a futbol court, but its barely noticeable as one.

so, i walk up the street in the rain. i do a bit of a dance bc im out of there, even if everything looks awful im just out. but i start doubting. 'did i really do that or not? i cant remember i should check it out...' so i start walking back to the school. the fog is leaving, the rain stays, i can see people from their houses, the court, and the school looking at me from windows and such, but its fine, i just keep walking even tho im sure they saw my silly dance, even through the fog.

i reach the school. i look through the window. something in me is like 'oh. yeah. you did do it. its fine. yeah. yeah. its fine its done youre done with it.' im still not sure but i begin walking my way up again. and then i woke up.

[aylaaescar]

yes I have a Sol/avellan character, yes I think that relationship is messed up and as of where it stands in canon rn, there’s just no way they could have a happy ending like some fans want. we exist

[coldfanbou]

TM IS Side Story: New Toy

Little side story for you all, @twice-inamillion looks like Somi is getting some training.

Some weeks before your birthday, Jihyo had gone out to meet with someone. In the middle of the conversation, she brought up the real reason she wanted to meet Somi and mentioned her family. “I need you to understand that it’s dangerous for you to know,” Jihyo said, leaning back against her chair. “So I want you to sleep with him. Chaeyoung mentioned that you wanted to get your cherry popped by him. I know that you can Chaeyoung mess around with each other, so letting him fuck you should be fine, right?” Jihyo leans forward onto the table, giving Somi a smirk and showing her command over the situation. Somi looked around nervously; it was true since that day with Chaeyoung, she had thought about you a lot, masturbating to thoughts of you taking her more than once. “I need to protect my family, so I need some dirt on you, and this is just the way to do it.” She said in a stern voice.

“I understand, but-”

“I’ll get you ready for him; you’re going to be a birthday surprise.” Jihyo interrupts, handing her a slip of paper telling Somi where to meet her. Somi nods along, some of her worries disappearing because of Jihyo’s comforting words. Still, Somi knew this was to protect everyone’s careers with a type of mutually assured destruction in case something went wrong.

A week went by and Somi met Jihyo at the place she had written on the slip of paper, walking inside with the older woman as they got themselves a room in a hotel. Once inside Jihyo put down the briefcase she had bought and told Somi to strip and lay down on the bed. “Take this too; it’ll get you in the mood.” Deciding not to question it, Somi took the pills offered to her and stripped down, standing naked in front of Jihyo as the older woman got out of her clothes, too. Somi crawled onto the bed, lying down as Jihyo looked through her briefcase and laid out toys. Somi felt her body grow hotter as she watched the older woman check through the toys. 

Somi pursed her lips as the older woman set out many toys, looking at them individually before turning to her. Jihyo crawled over the younger woman, “This is how it’s going to go, Somi. I’m going to make sure your body is ready for him.” Jihyo lays herself on top of Somi, reaching down and groping her ass. “This is going to be the first place we train.” 

Somi shut her eyes, moaning as she felt Jihyo kiss her neck, “It’s going to take a while to get you ready,” Jihyo left a trail of kisses down, stopping as she reached Somi’s breasts. She stuck her tongue out, circling the hard nub before biting it gently. Jihyo pulled back, still biting Somi’s nipple. The pain and pleasure mixed; it was a whole new world for Somi, who felt a tightness in her core. Somi’s other breast wasn’t left alone; Jihyo squeezed it, pinching and pulling on the younger woman’s nipple. Somi’s moans grew louder, and the urge to finger herself grew stronger as Jihyo switched tits. “Shh, we haven’t even gotten to the good part,” Jihyo whispers. 

Somi, struggling to contain herself, moved her hand down her body and attempted to finger herself but was stopped by Jihyo. “From now until then, you're not allowed to touch yourself, understand? Mommy is going to take care of you.” Jihyo said, staring into Somi’s eyes. The younger woman gulped and nodded her head, pulling her hand away from her slit. Jihyo smiled and returned to pleasuring the younger woman, focusing solely on her tits for what seemed like forever. Somi was on the verge of cumming from that alone, but Jihyo pulled away.

“It’s time for you to turn around,” the older woman ordered. Somi did as she was told and waited, feeling Jihyo's weight move off the bed. She looked over her shoulder and watched the Twice leader put on a strap-on. It was about five inches as far as Somi could tell. Jihyo rubbed the cock, coating it in lube as she prepared to move on to the next step. As she climbed back onto the bed, Jihyo whispered to Somi, “We need to make sure your ass is going to be able to take his cock just as well as Chaeyoung’s. I hope you’re fine with not sitting right for a few weeks.” Jihyo spread the younger woman’s cheeks apart and pushed a single finger inside, testing the tightness of her asshole. Somi cooed as she felt the older woman curl her finger inside her. Her body shuddered as she came from that alone. Jihyo spanked the younger woman, “Who told you you can cum?” Jihyo asked, her voice laced with disappointment.

“Sorry, Mommy.” Somi groaned as she felt Jihyo add another finger to her ass. 

“Mommy is going to teach you a lot, but you have to get better at holding on,” Jihyo said, plunging her fingers into the younger woman. Somi moaned again, the tightness in her core coming back quickly. “I haven’t even put it in, and you're going to cum twice,” she complained, her fingers continuing to lube Somi’s walls. Jihyo positioned herself behind Somi, holding onto her waist as she pushed the head of her strap-on against the puckered hole. Somi buried her face in one of the pillows, groaning as she felt the head push inside, stretching her previously virgin ass. Jihyo continued to push in slowly, making sure every inch was inside and letting Somi become accustomed to it before beginning her thrusts. The older woman pressed down on Somi’s head with one hand as she used the other to keep the younger woman’s lower body arched as Jihyo thrust. 

The pleasure Somi felt outweighed the pain, and with every thrust, she was cumming, her body twitching as Jihyo took her from behind. Somi moans filled the room, and she begged for her mommy to fuck her. 

Jihyo smiled as she listened to the younger woman beg for more. Her plan to turn Somi into the perfect plaything was going to be a lot easier than she thought. The pair continued to fuck her hours, with Jihyo breaking Somi’s mind and making her pass out. This process continued for weeks leading up to your birthday, with Jihyo training Somi on how to give good blowjobs and what you liked. In each lesson, Somi became more and more submissive, focused on her goal of being the perfect toy. The pills she was given helped her by flooding her body with more pleasure. Somi followed every order during and after training, making it weeks since she touched herself. The only time she released all her tension was when Jihyo was training her. 

[zukosdualdao]

so, this post was originally born from a post i saw a couple of months ago that was deriding people for criticizing katara’s main role in lok being a healer when that was never all she wanted to do but liking the scene where she heals zuko in sozin's comet. at the time i thought about responding directly and decided against it, but i have since scanned through transcripts of every instance (i could find; it's possible i could be missing something) of katara healing someone in the show and how they respond. (you know, like a normal and well-adjusted individual. lmao.)

anyway, aside from katara explicitly stating that she doesn’t only want to be a healer, another aspect of why people don’t like that this is how her story goes in lok is because of the way healing is treated in the atla narrative.

Katara: Aang, you're burned! Let me help you. [Katara heals the burn on Aang's arm.] Aang: Wow, that's good water. Sokka: When did you learn that? Katara: I guess I always knew. Sokka: [Sarcastically.] Oh ... Well then thanks for all the first aid over the years. Like when I fell into the greaseberry bramble. [Angrily.] Or that time I had two fishhooks in my thumb!

this comes, of course, after aang accidentally burns katara and she learns she can heal through her waterbending by healing her own hands. then (after comforting aang despite being the one who got hurt, not that i'm bitter), she heals aang after he gets burned in his fight with zhao. and like... there's not so much as a cursory thanks in this scene.

to be clear, because i can already hear some responses in my head and i am making a preemptive strike: i'm not saying that when other characters don't thank katara for her healing, they're like, the worst people ever for not doing so or there aren't other ways at different times where they show their appreciation. what i am saying is that it feels like this sets up a long pattern of katara's healing specifically being taken for granted, and it makes me especially uncomfortable when i see her healing as a sort of metaphorical parallel to the emotional labor often expected of her in the show, especially because this and being The Avatar's Girlfriend/Wife is more or less what she's relegated to in post-canon.

also, i have to note sokka's line here. i don't want to come down on him too hard for this, because it's obviously being written humorously (and does genuinely make me laugh, for what it's worth, if just for the inherent ridiculous nature of two fishhooks), but his sarcastically saying thanks for all the help over the years when katara says she always knew (which is supposed to be her saying it just somehow instinctively came to her) does feel like another mark in this pattern. but i also really read this as sokka trying to lighten the mood after a Difficult (TM) day, so i cut both him and the writers some slack for it.

Meanwhile, back at the Outer Wall, Katara attempts to heal a member of the Terra Team. General Sung: What's wrong with him? He doesn't look injured. Katara: His chi is blocked. [Stops healing.] Who did this to you?

i find it interesting that katara has sort of naturally fallen into a token team healer role, to the degree that we don't even see them ask for her help or her agree to it; it's just automatically assumed that she will. and i mean, on the one hand, it's fairly standard to have an Assumed Healer in a fantasy action setting like this, where people will get hurt in combat and therefore the narrative needs someone whose job is to help them. the problem for me is that the show kicked up such a fuss about how women shouldn't just be allowed to be healers, and yet it's still the role no one but katara ever fills. aang is also a waterbender! why couldn't she have taught him healing, too? i genuinely think it would have added a lot to the story, but katara is The Girl (TM), so healing is what she (and only she) does, what's expected of her, and again, with very rare thanks for it.

Katara stares open-mouthed at Jet, her hands hovering near her mouth in shock. Snapping out of it, she withdraws water from her water skin, with which she covers her hands, and it begins to glow as she kneels down next to him. Cut to a shot from over her shoulder, with Jet glancing at her while she rubs her hands over his chest in an attempt to heal him. After rubbing his chest three times, the glow fades, the water stains Jet's clothing, and Katara looks back over her shoulder toward the rest of the group. Katara: This isn't good. Smellerbee: You guys go and find Appa. We'll take care of Jet. Katara: We're not going to leave you. Longshot: There's no time. Just go. We'll take care of him. He's our leader. They stare at Longshot in surprise. Jet: Don't worry, Katara. I'll be fine. [Smiles a little.]

Cut to a closer shot of Katara placing Aang's body on Appa. Katara opens the vial around her neck and uses water healing on Aang's wounded back. The rest of Team Avatar, Kuei, and Bosco all look sadly and in anticipation. The glowing from the spirit water stops, and Katara starts crying, assuming that it was not enough to save Aang. Aang's tattoos glow for a second and Aang groans. Katara, overcome with joy that Aang is alive, looks at him, who smiles a little, and she holds him closer.

writing about these together because i have less to say about them. i'm definitely not going to fault jet for not thanking katara when she tries to heal him as he literally lay dying, or aang for not having the mind to do so after she brings him back. but i am still going to fault the narrative for putting her in a position where healing is just inherently expected from her and yet very rarely allowing her to feel the emotional toll of that or to feel constricted by it. and when she does struggle against the weight of it (not necessarily of being a healer, but of being expected to be kind and good and uncomplicated with no room for other aspects of her identity, which are very tangled up in why she is The Healer) in episodes like the runaway or in the southern raiders, she just... does not receive a lot of support from the people she should be most able to rely on.

Katara: Maybe we should go upstairs. [Helping Aang up.] You need a healing session. Back in Aang's room on the ship. Katara bends some water onto the scar left by Azula's lightning attack. Katara: Tell me where the pain feels most intense. Aang: Mmm, a little higher. Uhhh! Aang briefly flashes back to the battle at Old Ba Sing Se where he rose into the Avatar State, then back to reality. Aang: Wow, you're definitely in the right area there.

not much to say here, it's just another instance where it would have been so easy to slip one thank you in, and the writers just... do not. the reason i think it bothers me so much with aang specifically is because katara is supposed to be both aang's physical healer and his emotional crutch in a way that she's not written as being for, say, toph or sokka. he's sometimes shown appreciation for her emotional support, but he still comes to rely on and expect it in ways that do not always feel healthy, and knowing that, it bothers me that he shows even less appreciation for her healing, because it's just what katara is there for.

A figure resembling the Painted Lady glides over the water on a carpet of fog and enters the village. She steps into a hut where several people are sleeping on the floor, and bends over each of them in turn, healing them with a blue glow. Her last patient is the mother of the little boy seen earlier, her son sleeping at her side. He wakes as the Painted Lady turns to go and silently follows her out the door. Little boy: Thank you, Painted Lady.

this is a genuinely sweet scene in which katara does receive appreciation and genuine thanks for her healing, but i think it's also worth noting that katara is not being recognized as herself here. still, i am genuinely very glad that it's included in the episode because (again, unless i am missing something) it is the first time katara gets thanked for her healing.

The scene cuts to show Appa landing on the edge of the battlefield. Sokka and Katara help Hakoda onto the ground, and Katara starts trying to heal him. Katara: How does that feel, Dad? Hakoda: Ah, a little, better. I need, to get back to the troops. [Attempts to stand but is too weak to.] Ahh! Katara: You're hurt, badly. You can't fight anymore. Hakoda: Everyone's counting on me to lead this mission Katara, I won't let them down. [Attempts to stand again but can't.] Ahh! Sokka: Can't you heal him any faster?

they're in a high intensity situation, and sokka is Stressed because hakoda is supposed to lead the mission, so i, like, Get It, but "can't you heal him any faster?" does strike me as another moment in which katara's healing is being taken for granted. i think it's something that would bother me a lot less if this was an isolated incident in the writing, but *gestures vaguely at whole post*.

Sokka: [Brightening.] Dad! [Rising and approaching the two.] You're on your feet again. Hakoda: [Sitting down; somewhat weakly.] Thanks to your sister.

that being said, in the next hakoda and katara scene, there is this very sweet moment, where hakoda might not be thanking katara directly but is showing a lot of appreciation and admiration for her skill in healing (and though she's not in the dialogue i included, she's around to hear it, which makes me happy.)

Katara: It's gonna take a while for your feet to get better. [Stops healing.] I wish I could have worked on them sooner. Toph: Yeah, me too.

once again, i'm not gonna fault toph for wishing katara could have healed her feet sooner, because she's been in pain all night, but the writers could have very easily (as they could have in any of these scenes!) chosen to include a perfunctory 'thanks' here, and they just didn't. i know this is getting repetitive, but i swear it's because it's largely more me being mad at the writers than the characters, lmao.

there are also a couple of scenes in which katara doesn't heal anyone, but her healing gets brought up by aang.

Aang: He doesn't look sick. You okay, buddy? [Appa groans and Aang pulls out Appa's purple tongue.] His tongue is purple! That can't be good. Katara, can you heal him?

to be fair, aang asks here, and it's not like aang gets defensive or angry when katara says appa needs medicine (and also to be fair, appa's not even actually sick, lmao, katara's being slightly trickstery), but it's another instance where katara is automatically positioned as the person who is and should be responsible for healing.

Aang: [Chuckles.] Well, not over over. I mean there's always Katara and a little Spirit Water action, [Turns to Katara.] am I right? Katara: Actually, I used it all up after Azula shot you. Aang: [Disappointed.] Oh.

i actually don't mind this so much as a writing moment, as i think it's a lot more intentional wrt aang not always conceptualizing the reality of the violence he’s facing. still, it’s another instance of katara’s ability to heal and care for him being taken for granted, and i find it especially notable it’s in of the last significant moments they share together (the other being an argument as katara urges him not to run away from the reality of their situation with ozai) before they spend the rest of the finale separate until they’re kissing without a word at the end.

and then there is the zutara healing scene, where katara heals zuko after he interferes and takes azula’s lightning to the chest when she’s aiming for katara.

Cut to Katara as she rolls Zuko on to his back and begins healing him. Zuko opens his eyes, feeling the pain lessen, and smiles weakly at Katara, who smiles back as she sheds a tear.

Zuko: Thank you, Katara.

Katara: I think I'm the one who should be thanking you.

it seems fair to me to say that one of the reasons the motifs of healing in the zutara are dynamic are so appreciated by their fans is because of how it contrasts to a lot of moments where the work katara does with her healing is under-appreciated. for one thing, it happens as part of a mutual exchange—katara heals zuko after he gets hurt saving her. (this also somewhat calls back to their scenes together in the crystal caves in the tcod, where she offers to heal his scar after they are trapped together and zuko extends her empathy.) it’s based in reciprocity. it’s also, as shown here, one of the few moments of explicit, heartfelt appreciation and thanks given for katara’s healing.