#sheep vs leader

[unhypnotist]

Breaking Free From the Sheep Mentality: Why Being a 'Black Sheep' Is Jus...

Breaking Free From the Sheep Mentality: Why Being a 'Black Sheep' Is Just Another Negative Trance

In this video, I challenge the romanticized idea of being the “black sheep” and expose why it’s just another waking trance that keeps men stuck. Whether black or white, a sheep is still a sheep—reactive, dependent, and incapable of leadership.

The black sheep identity may feel empowering at first, but it’s a mask for deeper issues like victimhood, isolation, and a lack of growth. Join us as we break down why no man should define himself based on rejection or conformity and explore how to abandon the sheep mentality altogether.

Discover how to:

Take ownership of your life and reject victimhood.

Define yourself on your terms, not in reaction to others.

Step into leadership and connection instead of isolation.

It’s time to stop being a sheep—black, white, or otherwise—and start leading your life with purpose and authenticity. Subscribe now for more content on breaking mental trances, reclaiming masculinity, and living intentionally.

[littencloud9]

thinking abt kunikida in the sheep au…

[tizeline]

What is Draxum's relationships with each of his kids?

I'd assume he's closest to Mikey due to their shared interest in the mystic arts, as well as Mikey's emotional attachment to anyone he considers family 🥰

I find it funny how similar Donnie and Draxum are in cannon and I wonder how that will play out in this AU

The same thing with Leo and Splinter were very similar to each other despite being on opposing sides.

Yeah, I'd say Draxum and Mikey are the closest with each other. Draxum loves all his sons, but he really has a soft spot for Mikey. Mikey in turn is very devoted to Draxum, I've mentioned it before but Mikey's strong desire to do the right thing paired up with a lifetime of his father convincing him that destroying humanity is the right thing has led to Mikey being very determined to fulfill Draxum's plan. Also him being a prodigy with mystic powers leads to him spending a lot of time training his abilites with Draxum.

Raph is basically Draxum's second in command, as the oldest of his brothers he of course is the leader of the team when Draxum isn't the one issuing out orders. Draxum puts a lot of responsibility on Raph, responsibility that Raph very much takes seriously so Draxum as a result also has a lot of trust in him.

Poor Leo is still very much dealing with some intense Middle Child Syndrome here lol. To be clear, Draxum still loves Leo, and vice versa, but Draxum's role as a parent has a tendency to clash with his role as a... what, a military commander? Something along those lines. Listen, he's preparing to lead the yokai into war against the humans, and with his sons on the frontlines he needs to quickly figure out their individual strengths so that can help them evolve their specific skillsets. Mikey has his mystic abilities, Raph has his physical power and Leo.... Well, we know that Leo's expertise lies in his strategic thinking, except neither he nor Draxum has figured that out yet lol. Draxum is the leader, he comes up with the plans, and Raph's in charge otherwise. He doesn't notice Leo's leadership capabilities because he doesn't even think to look for them.

Leo's situation is kinda similar in this AU to what is in canon, where his self-esteem issues caused by him not feeling like he's bringing enough to the team paired up with him being a total Daddy's Boy and craving parental validation that he doesn't feel like he's getting because Draxum is more focused on Leo's brothers so he acts out to get attention and again Draxum's parental duties clashes with his WAR LORD duties or whatever because dammit son I love you but you need to quit goofing off you're a soldier and uh.... yeah...... Leo feeling a bit like the black sheep of his family (hah, sheep, cuz Draxum's a... hah) is another contributing factor to him being the first to turn sides.

And yeah, you make a good point, Donnie being so similar to Draxum vs Leo being so similar to Splinter is.... ooooooo, that's fun, there's so much potential there. Draxum's definitely dissapointed that Donnie's so gifted when it comes to the sciences only for him to be all like "Alchemy??🤨🤨🤨 Mystic science??🤨🤨🤨 That's not scientifically accurate!🤨🤨🤨" and just rejecting almost anything yokai-related.

Actually, Leo reminding Draxum of Splinter has a lot of fun possibilites too. Draxum being all like "Ah, he's just like Lou Jitsu!🤩" while simultaniously being all like "Ugh, he's just like Lou Jitsu...😒"

[dykedvonte]

what’s your opinion on how the story of mouth washing would change if Jimmy was captain instead of Curly? Like, if Curly was co captain instead of jimmy, maybe out of pure luck on jimmys part or jimmy had sweetend up to the higher ups in pony express? Sorry if someone’s asked this before, but I think it could be pretty interesting

I think it would be more interesting because I feel like Jimmy would be a different Captain than Curly was through being the perfect worker.

Like I assume he climbed the ranks similarly but the reason he's a bit untouchable is either through black mail or turning a blind eye in a way the company likes. Perhaps he was needed to testify for a case against them and he offered to make them look better. Maybe he'd be loose on procedures that help them cut cost and keep morale up in the worst way. As long as he can do what he wants with that sort of power attached he's their perfect little black sheep.

He'd still crash the ship though, them going bankrupt, likely all the wrongdoings he's committed outside of yknow, assaulting Anya, no longer being covered up and hushed. They can't help him and the story of a Captain that abused his powers for years finally coming to light, headed by the rape of a subordinate. I think the biggest difference is he's genuinely trying to die this time, like I think his ego would be way bigger because his wants were slightly actualized. I think he's reserved in canon because he's still just a nobody with nothing to really control, but here? There's no one above him on this ship and in his mind at all, no Pony Express anymore, he's basically a god.

I feel like as for the others its a but interesting. I honestly think Curly would be a lot happier with the lack of responsibility but just as concerned and possibly more scared of Jimmy. He has to do even more placating because knowing Jimmy, he'd take his anger out on the rest of the crew just to make Curly feel worse about it, he's conditioned in a way where Jimmy makes all his mistakes as Captain feel like Curly's fault. I think Anya would still confide in him and due to this sort of "clarity" (not having the weight of everything on his shoulders) he's be more keen to listen and cover her. He's still not exactly confrontational with Jimmy, he's well aware what the Captain does have access to with the scanner... but maybe in that, when Anya hides the gun he lies for her and says he misplaced it while tidying up the cock-pit. Jimmy can see through his lies but is at least satisfied Curly won't directly call him out still. However, he loses it a bit more now knowing his best friend, the person he gave a nice cushy position to, isn't fully on his side.

I imagine Jimmy gets caught in the crash either because the door jams, sort of a ironic pin in the final statement of how drastically his luck turned or he underestimated the time he had to escape, representing his lack of understanding in true consequence. The message is slightly warped in that it's more about silent opposition as with an inherently bad leader, we'd have it framed as the crew being conflicted in what we would only assume is a botched but successful mutiny, only to see how bad Jimmy was. Going from the post-crash to show Jimmy as a worse and worse leader as it ultimately shows ways to help victims silently and that agency doesn't need to look like bravado. A flip on how every man was ultimaly a bystander in Anya's suffering. Still, it's mostly them covering or helping Anya do more for herself as it is just as, if not more dangerous for the men to create a dynamic that puts her directly into his ire/sights by being openly hostile. It's a good tactic to create outs for victims vs charging in when you know they will most likely be retaliated against directly.

Like her asking Swansea to keep the axe, Curly hiding the gun or Daisuke always trialing her so she's never alone.

I feel like the atmosphere of the game is totally different too. There's something somber in the pre-crash sequences obviously but you can tell everyone was relatively doing fine under Curly's leadership until Jimmy decied to be a homicidal rapist. With Jimmy it's inverted, like the respite after a storm. Anya is still pregnant unfortunately, but seeing as Jimmy is stuck in medical and can't do anything anymore, it's the first time she'd breathing. It's labored and not refreshing but it's easier than in canon, her relief makes it seem likes she happy, helping with the twist. Daisuke is a lot more aware, more shaken about things because he was more involved. He's thinking more about his idea's of keeping things kosher and letting the smile fade, makes him seems a bit more dreary that helps with the twist, as if he's guilty.

I think Swansea is relatively the same, though he's a lot more open of his condemnation of Jimmy, saying he was awful and being a bit to mean that makes it seem like it's too intentional and Jimmy couldn't have been that bad. Curly is most interesting because he's still just a little torn up about it. I don't think he'd take the title as Captain, more so just do things that fit the role as a distraction. His best friend turned out to be this horrible monster. Maybe he was always this monster and he just never got to see. Maybe he saw and was to scared that he'd be a monster to him... more of one at least. He feels an immense guilt that makes it hard for him to have a total disdain for Jimmy and he hates it.

There's a lot I could say on this but I'll probably make an even longer, what if post ladder when I've had time to stew on it.

[spametc123]

The phrase “maybe the curtains were just blue” is genuinely so harmful to media literacy as a whole. Yes, things can just be the way they are, but almost everything exists with context. Do you exist or do you exist because of everything that has happened in the world? Your parents met, you didn’t die that one time when you were eight, you’re the person you are because of that awful haircut you had in seventh grade. You exist because of all of that.

So, nothing pisses me off more than when someone uses an incomplete quote. “A jack of all trades is a master of none” without the second half: “but oftentimes better than a master of one” (everyone say thank you Shakespeare) has an entirely different meaning. The first half by itself is utilized to shame people into ignoring things they love or are interested in; meanwhile the full quote praises people interested in a variety of things. Ignoring context literally erodes the meaning behind anything. Machiavelli said “it’s better to be feared than to be loved.” Wrong. Loud incorrect buzzer. Kind of. As Malcolm Gladwell writes, “it’s not wrong, exactly, it’s just incomplete.” (Or something like that anyways.) Yes, Machiavelli did write that. Congrats! But you forgot a kinda, semi, VERY FUCKING IMPORTANT component of that quote. “It is better to be feared than to be loved if one cannot have both.” It should be common sense right? I wish. Ask anyone about their opinion on the incomplete quote and see how many of them think they’re revolutionary when they say “oh I’d rather have both!” If the full quote doesn’t seem to make a difference in your mind, great! But there’s still more context that you need to know to actually understand it (let alone teach it (Mr. History teacher that is NOT a philosophy teacher and should not try to be one)). The quote is from The Prince, a writing in which Machiavelli talks about what makes a good leader. In his opinion, The Prince should know when to utilize love and fear to his advantage. Be loved by your people and feared by your enemies. Seem more trusting than you are so you can see who is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. He says that one should prefer to be feared than to be loved in time sensitive situations, not sustainably. That when things need immediate change being feared makes a stronger and more effective leader (which is unequivocally correct and I’m tried of hearing otherwise). So again, without context: a random quote that no one agrees with or really understands at all, whatsoever vs. with context: the assertion that in times of need it is better to be respected and feared than it is to be loved. Or, a personal favorite “dubito, ergo cogito, ergo sum.” I doubt, therefore I think, therefore I am. Oh wow! So cool, he thinks therefore he is - being capable of thought means I exist, how neat! Not wrong, sure, but lacking context. What makes the philosophy so powerful is the fact that it’s a paradox. You doubt your existence, therefore you are capable of thought, therefore you exist. Because you doubt your existence, you prove that you exist. But if you are then confident you exist, do you no longer exist anymore? And now you doubt it again. Without context, it’s just words on a page, nothing notable or interesting. Without looking for the context it’s yet another thing people will complain about having to learn because “why does it even matter?”

It’s the same with characters. Armand is batshit fucking insane, yes, but he only is that way because of who he is. The tv show fails his character when they age him up, because even with some of his backstory, he is the way he is mainly because he’s eternally trapped in the body of a 17 year old. ____ is too trusting! Maybe in different circumstances, yes, but that character is the way they are because of the life experiences they’ve had. ____ is the right amount of trusting for the life they’ve lived.w

It’s the same for people too!!! Please find it within you to have basic human empathy! Someone is the way they are because of their life experiences. You can’t have something happen to you, good or bad, and not be affected by it. Someone can only change if their experiences change. No, it’s not your responsibility to change someone’s behavior or to tolerate it, but it is your responsibility to try to understand why someone is the way they are.

Empathy and media literacy are so clearly intertwined it’s would be comical if it wasn’t depressing. Read between the lines, try to understand things that you don’t get immediately. The curtains aren’t just blue. It doesn’t matter if it’s to represent sadness or just because it’s the author’s favorite color or even because the author was so indecisive they made someone else pick it, there’s still a reason. Anti-intellectualism is the curse that keeps on dooming us all.

[rainbowolfe]

[Originally Written 9/25/2023]

[Present Day Note: Why the FUCK didn't I post this? Not only was it mostly done BUT I WAS RIGHT IN THE FIRST HALF?]

Not to be a Narinder apologist, but for all his supervillain-esque "I'm gonna rule the world" and claims of having a "cold, unbeating heart", I think he really was the one that was betrayed lmao. The true victim after all. Just on a destructive rampage.

He's just. Too upset about it for this to be a manipulative front. I am 99% sure this isn't supposed to be a glow effect. Unless he's got spring allergies, this man has been ugly-crying for a millennia.

He's so sad that the tears manifest in his transformation. That's some deeply-rooted sadness!

So when Shamura asks Lamb about betrayal and then summons a follower to fight them, what that's supposed to mean is that Shamura attacked Narinder. And the greater implication would be that they did it because they were dissenting.

"Dissenting" is presented as someone believing they've seen through some kind of illusion and are now enlightened with the truth. But the thing is, they're wrong. What Dissenters believe is that their doubts were right and their fears have become reality.

Which, ya know, they are the ones with hearts *squints* cast in vile, impermeable, unrelenting terror.

"And in my imprudence I loved him."

It could very well be that "in my imprudence" is Shamura's flowery way of saying "while I was dissenting". Meaning they feel that their love for Narinder is not only foolish, but born from their heretecism. In their mind, the two options can't coexist. They can love Narinder, or they can serve the Old Faith. And their attempt to combine those two things (have their cake and eat it too) ended in disaster.

And it's fascinating that, because Shamura's skull was damaged, they seem to be fading between their Dissenting and Not-Dissenting states of mind. Dissenter Shamura, who sent Narinder kits in the void so he wouldn't be lonely. Who feels guilty for what they've done. Faithful Shamura, who locked Narinder up in the first place. Who participated in killing all lambs so he wouldn't ever be freed.

The God of Knowledge vs the God of War. Cultist Shamura vs Heretic Shamura. Blessed Shamura vs Damned Shamura.

Bearers of the Red Crown have been troublemakers for multiple millennia, so that means there's already a seed planted that one day Narinder may succumb to the crown and betray them all. So if he starts asking questions that make others uncomfortable or even doubt their faith, it would not be difficult for someone to poison the well.

Then there's the second time Shamura summons your followers. It could be foreshadowing for Aym and Baal, but that would mean that Shamura expects Lamb to try to usurp the crown. Which is entirely possible, but would be an odd decision for someone who has seemingly accepted their fate and subsequent punishment. And in a world where sheep/lambs are expected to amount to nothing more than sacrifices. I have two ideas:

A) This is a parallel to how Shamura and Narinder's relationship formed. A "bond forged by the spilling of blood" is what Shamura says. The two of them fought against their 'leader', potentially a Red Crown user, in a bid to change one or both of their destinies. One of them (most likely Shamura based on that moon on their crown) was slated to be sacrificed.

B) This a parallel to how Shamura and Heket ganked Narinder and sent him to the realm beyond. As at this point, they would both be dissenting against the Red Crown. But instead of abandoning it, they sought to banish it.

[stregoniconiconii]

I think a lot of people really don't get the Eddie Dustin dynamic. They think Dustin and Eddie are new best friends, that they are equal, which is not the case. Their dynamic is more mentor-student coded. Eddie said it himself he sees the people in his club as little sheep he saved, he never really was their friend. His world view also shaped Dustin's personality. This kid and his friends saved the world 3 times, they consider themselves heroes and yet by society standards they are seen as nerds and get bullied. Then there comes a dude who they think gets it, so they latch on. Even though he is not that different from popular kids who think they are better than the rest. His harmful opinions influence Dustin (I would argue even Mike) that they suddenly ditch their friend, are mean, failing school even though in Dustin's case he absolutely loves learning and so forth. Eddie brought out the worst of them which contributed to the tensions in s4 between Steve and Dustin (along with Dustin maybe being jealous of Robin tbh I haven't considered that way but it makes sense). You can't compare the Steve and Dustin dynamic with Eddie and Dustin because Steve never saw himself as something better than Dustin, he always treated him as someone equal which is why their bond will always be stronger than the bond Dustin has with Eddie. I really hope for s5 they somewhat touch on this. (Sorry for coming in your inbox like this)

Most people in this fandom don't get Eddie, full stop. They completely buy into the bullshit he spews about conformity and "the man", which isn't helped by the Duffers also leaning into it. Most egregious example being the supposed conclusion to Lucas' s4 arc. It's ridiculous precisely because Eddie does begin to learn that his assumptions/"doctrine" is wrong through his growing admiration for Steve and his bravery.

Eddie's relationship with his friends is absolutely not based on any kind of equality. He is looked to as a leader and not a particularly forgiving one at that. More like a tyrant. It's played for laughs but Mike and Dustin are genuinely anxious about how Eddie will react to not only Lucas not being available for DnD on one particular night, but him being unavailable because of a basketball game. Lucas didn't even want to talk to him himself, probably because Eddie has already shown himself to be unreasonable when it comes to DnD and basketball.

It's not purely Eddie's influence that leads Dustin to his meaner path, but he certainly doesn't help. Dustin has always been a know-it-all and cocky, he has a foul mouth, and he clearly has hard set ideas about other people that he finds very difficult to let go of. I think Eddie's main influence is in the us vs them attitude that Dustin adopts regarding the "popular" kids, but Dustin's overconfidence is definitely also because he has cheated death 3 years in a row. Nobody that was real to Dustin has died and he believes his plans are infallible... until Eddie dies following one of his plans. Yes, Eddie made the stupid decision to run into certain death for no real reason, but it is through Dustin that Eddie is connected to the larger plot. If he had just witnessed Chrissy's death and then hid, then he would have eventually been found by someone else and never directly involved with the Upside Down.

The thing I mentioned about jealousy over Steve and Robin's friendship, I think it's something that gets overlooked Way too much. Dustin was very invested in his idea that Steve and Robin are perfect for each other. We all know why they're not together, but Dustin doesn't. He just sees Steve being best friends with Robin instead of boyfriend and girlfriend like he had expected/predicted and that throws him off. 1. He was not right about something and 2. HE'S supposed to be Steve's best friend. He feels replaced. So, he tries to replace Steve. Not totally, because he can't, but Dustin Literally says to Steve "You're just jealous I have another older male friend". Dustin doesn't have subtlety. He's Trying to make Steve jealous and it is working!

Steve and Dustin's friendship was so fresh and unexpected. They're not supposed to be friends, but they are. Steve watches Star Wars with Dustin, Steve does Dustin's hair. They save each other's lives. Attempting to recreate that brotherhood with Eddie just...doesn't work. They haven't gone through what Steve and Dustin have gone through. Plus, you're right, Steve and Dustin are on a more equal level. There's elements of mentor-student with them, but most importantly they teach each other. Steve isn't leading Dustin down a road of enlightenment, he's just hanging out with his buddy. Eddie doesn't compare.

I have zero faith in s5, which I'm barely certain I'll even be watching. The Duffers lean too hard into fan service so they're going to recreate the Justice for Barb storyline but with Dustin and it's going to suck. The Duffers don't think it's a bad thing that Dustin snipes at Steve constantly or puts down his intelligence, because it's meant to be funny. Comic relief yay. The characters on this show are mean to each other, yes, but it's annoying to deal with when we see Steve apologise for going too far when he bites back at Dustin.

[prosa2002]

My Lambsona

Based on how I play. They are very cute and docile looking cause they really are just trying to be a benevolent leader and to care for their followers...

... except their godhood and immortality + the ressurection ritual has twisted their perception on what really matters for most, them prioritizing the feelings and petty drama the followers have then not batting an eye while killing them for a mild annoyance or inconvenience.

(ex. being one follower who asked for a meal to give to their crush that I couldn't make so I killed them to not disappoint them for a failed quest)

They are aware of that flaw, and make sure to maintain a sweet an kind persona while manipulating and gaslighting everyone about the killings :)

Also has 12 spouses, all who proposed first. Is kinda waiting for Narinder to propose (my game is glitched and he wont even give follower quests) (dude is not even aware of the lamb's feelings) (love at first sight vs slow burn)

The broken horn happened while they were on the run during the sheep massacre, and the crown is supposed to be laying on top of it hiding the "flaw". They are wearing the cursed fleece cause I can't stop using it after unlocking it lol

[sicklyseraphnsuch]

Time and Blood

Let's get into it.

In true Blood fashion, I'm going to relate the aspects in what I generously call "Aspect Families". The reasoning is simple: the aspects are in someway related to each other.

Each aspect has it's thematic contrast. Time and Space. Light and Void. Heart and Mind. Breath and Blood. It's easy to say they cancel each other out because they are negative/positive values. But honestly, in my opinion, they're multipliers. Familial wise, I consider paired aspects like twins - double the trouble.

So for example, Breath and Blood are twin aspects of leadership and community. They guide and inspire but in completely different ways. Breath prioritizes individuality - freedom of the spirit - an internal expression. Blood prioritizes relationships - a confluence of intention - an external connection. Both occupy leader-like roles with Breath leading through example - leading from the front and Blood leading from within - leading through practice.

Kankri is actually an exemplary Blood player. He Sees the correct practice by which you're supposed to treat another with decency and dignity. (It's just as a Seer, he wasn't as good about the In Practice like his Alternia self).

NOW there's the aspects that are complementary. These positive intergers added together. Any aspect can be added to another aspect - save I think for the aspect's twin which again acts more like a multiplier. But some aspects have more commonality. (7+3 vs 8+14) It's like these aspects are divisible by the same integer. Let's call them cousin aspects. They come from a family line that can be traced to a shared thematic core.

For example, Time and Light share a thematic core of Fate and Fortune. They work really well together because at their core, they work with what happens next. Not the in-universe understanding of "events to come" but the meta-viewer understanding of "what happens next in the story".

So let's expand a little more there. In my theory, Homestuck has two thematic families. The Plot and the Characters.

There's aspects that lend more to the so called Plot - Time and Space, Light and Void, Life and Doom. These are the big broad aspects - worldbuilding blocks. (Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Spoilers Ahead, Somebody Lives)

There's aspects that lend more to Character Development - Breath and Blood, Heart and Mind, Hope and Rage. These deal with fabled Character Arcs - the personal and the interpersonal. (Found Family, Hurt/Comfort, Fuck Canon)

Broadly speaking, these are tangible and intagible exceeeeept there's a black sheep in every family. Breath and Blood/Light and Void straddle the lines between these families. Light and Void are not palpable things (by definition metaphysical) that you can mark and measure like time or space or life or death, the same way you can mark and measure Breath and Blood (by definition physical) unlike thoughts, souls, or emotions. (Also Breath is shown to have Practical use - like the other "worldbuilding" aspects - maybe if Karkat had a chance, he would have had practical uses as well).

As a DirkJohn shipper, I've made a throughline with Breath and Heart being complementary aspects of identity and freedom (labels and fluidity). Feels fairly straightforward.

And then there's the DaveKat shipper in me. AND AT LAST THIS LONGWINDED FART HAS ARRIVED AT THE POINT. EVERYONE CLAP.

Time and Blood occupy two very different parts of the story - and naturally two different aspect families as detailed above. Time concerns itself with the bigger story and the mark of a player that is proactive. Blood concerns itself with the team and the mark of a player that is cooperative.

Proactive and cooperative - a winning session makes. But it's also a little more than that.

There's a saying that I'm fond of: "Perhaps not just time, but patience." This refers to how things develop overtime. It's not just relationships - but in general. It's not about giving something X amount of hours, months, years. It's about being patient. The difference lies in the care.

Time will pass - inevitably, time moves. But things don't develop in a linear fashion. Somethings stutter and stop and fast forward or rewind or two steps forward, one step back. Someone impatient could prolong a process that someone patient could quicken.

So time is not patience. You can give someone all the time in the world but if you're not patient, no bond may ever form. Likewise, patience does need time to gain the opportunity to truly do its work. The patience of a second does not make much of a difference.

How does patience link to Blood? In my opinion, patience is the root core of Blood. It is the root core of a solid, steadfast relationship - the ability to see through conflict with an open mind, a willing heart, and the patience to stay at someone's side through thick or thin. It is that which allows someone to be Present in the Moment and not just daydreaming of being anywhere else.

They go together then. Blood and Time. Patience and Opportunity. Because that's what Time is in the worldbuilding sense. Time is runtime - is how many chapters are left. This means more chances to see characters interact. This is how shippers ride or die with stories because they have to see if the next update will show them in the same panel. (Who's projecting? Not me.)

(As an aside: I know shipping gets SO MUCH hate and it's not unearned but also fuck off. Modern fandom was born on the backs of spirk shippers and shippers are loyal viewers and will invest in a story harder than a casual fan - both a strength and a folly.)

Blood is investment. Blood is commitment. Blood is patience and grace. Blood gives Time intrinsic value beyond just the counting of a clock. That's why these aspects go together. Time and Blood weave together as the thematic core of connection - that which binds all the players on the stage, that which plants the butts of the audiences in their seats. Blood and Time is the story aspect of relationships (Faith and Fate)

Other metaphysical and physical pairings include: Light and Heart (representation/meta), Void and Breath (privacy screen/offstage), Life and Rage (plot armor), Space and Mind (headcanon), Doom and Hope (cliffhanger)

[bluekat12345]

Smiling Critters vs Nightmare Critters

While I don't personally play the game, I like the watch other people on YouTube playing, and I also like seeing fanwork relating to the Smiling Critters. And with the release of the Nightmare Critters, one of the first things I thought that these were supposed to be counterparts to the Smiling Critters. I wanted to share my thoughts on which Nightmare Critter counters which Smiling Critter.

DogDay vs Simon Smoke

I made this choice because DogDay is the leader of the Smiling Critters, and Simon 'knows' he's cool and popular and knows how to almost win popularity contests, so I imagine he would be the self-appointed leader of the Nightmare Critters. But while DogDay is friendly, warm, and encouraging to his friends, Simon is an absolute jerk who always brags about his popularity and accomplishments, making it clear he's better than others.

CatNap vs Baba Chops

This was the toughest, but ultimately, I thought these two would be counterparts to each other. Because with CatNap gives introvert vibes, being quiet, calm, but still tries to be there for his friends, Baba prefers to be alone, far away from others, locked away in her house, and has to practically be forced to join her friends. (Plus, CatNap helps his friends sleep, and a classic way to fall asleep is by counting sheep...)

Bubba Bubbaphant vs Touille

I thought this appropriate because Bubba is the brains of the Smiling Critters while Touille might be kinda stupid. Bubb is attentive and tries to get all the facts and most likely has a wide range of knowledge and interests while Touille only talks about trash yet isn't exactly informative or helpful despite talking a lot.

Bobby BearHug vs Rabie Baby

Ultimately, I think these two would counterparts since Bobby is a caring soul who is loving and compassionate to her friends while Rabie seems like she has no respect for her friends since she doesn't respect privacy, loves gossiping and spreading rumors and lies, and isn't afraid to share other people's secrets, while Bobby would never dream of hurting her friends like that.

Picky Piggy vs Maggie Mako

I felt this was an obvious one since they are big eaters within their respective groups, but while Picky encourages a balanced diet and eating healthy, Maggie eats anything except vegetables and basically laughs at the idea of eating healthy.

Kickin Chicken vs Icky Licky

While Kickin is considered the cool kid of the Smiling Critters, Icky Licky gives the impression of someone who tries to act cool but fails. Kickin also doesn't give up and even if he doesn't succeed, he'll be cool and try again, Icky is a poor sport who always has an excuse for why he didn't succeed, and would most likely lose his cool and give up in anger.

CraftyCorn vs Poe

They both seem to be the most creative of their groups, since Crafty likes to draw and paint and Poe likes listening to music, but Crafty is on the lighter side of art while Poe would be on the darker side. While Crafty is colorful, sees the beauty in things and likes to share her art, even if she's shy, and uses art to make herself and others happy Poe is dark, angry and gloomy, prefers to hangout in graveyards alone, and hates brightness and sunlight, and he seems to see the negative in things.

Hoppy Hopscotch vs Allister Gator

This is another one that I felt is obvious since Hoppy is energetic and Allister is lazy, so they are natural opposites. She puts all her effort into whatever and is a team player, Allister doesn't like to put the effort in anything, would rather wait for good things to happen to him while letting others do the work for him.

This is just a personal opinion so do not consider this as canon. As I'm sure you noticed, not all the critters are exact opposites of each other, but I made this list based on which the Nightmare Critters could possibly be rivals/archenemies with which Smiling Critter, if the two groups ever met, each would have their own rival. Feel free to share your own thoughts and opinions!

[policemanofprincesspark]

Do you think Harry is very intelligent? I get the impression he is not a natural leader and not naturally very smart. He does seem to do a lot to learn about the world and himself, so I don’t think of him as ignorant, just not sharp. Through his career he seems to be very impressionable and easily guided and directed by those around him. More easily taken advantage of vs. someone like Louis who seems to be on the ball mentally, though that doesn’t mean he makes decisions I agree with, just more calculated.

Very astute observations. I do get that sense that he's more of a follower than a trendsetter. If you think about it though, because he was so popular in 1D and therefore attracted all these big wigs in the industry, he got everything handed to him on a silver platter. They probably told him over and over something like, "shut up, we've been in this industry longer than you, we make the stars, we know what we're doing, so listen to us and you'll become one." And it's smart. If I had been in Harry's position, I'd have done everything I was told. Think of it like he was the pupil and they were the masters.

I think he does have some creative control, but I think that his creativity and talent has been really honed in and fostered. It's all paid for. I don't think any of the other 1D guys had access to the kind of lessons Harry was given. I remember Rebecca Ferguson from the same X-Factor year as 1D said something about management interchanging hands and leading the sheep to slaughter or whatever. Like, you'll be approached from whole other management teams unrelated to the one you're currently under and they present themselves like they're there to save you, but in reality they are connected to your current management in some way. I think something like that is what happened with the Azoffs. Like, why were they allowed to try to steal Harry away from Simon Cowell? Everyone knew about it since 2013. Simon offered Harry, like, a two-million-pound contract to be signed under his own label and Harry refused. But he obviously knew about the Azoffs and their friendship with Harry.

[bylertruther]

more people need to piggyback off of jon snow when it comes to mike in fantasy AUs, i feel.

both have curly black hair, both were the black sheep of their wealthy & well-respected family, both are incredibly loyal and brave, one has a constant sword + knight motif and the other is a great swordsman, both of them are leaders of the outcasts, both of them look great in black + dark colors, both of them are broody boys.

"sometimes your total obliviousness just blows my mind" vs "you know nothing, jon snow." both of them devote themselves to something that ends up being different from what they'd thought it'd be. both of them find love in an unexpected person and are told by society that it's wrong, the worst thing they could possibly do, and that it's a betrayal of the self and their fellow man. they choose to love anyway and defend + fight for the humanity they show those people and the others like them.

neither of them Want to fight but know they need to and are willing to do it. both of them do whatever it takes to protect the living and believe in that wholeheartedly. both of them are loved and respected by others, for that and everything else that they are, too. both of them are the dark/ice to their loved one's light/fire. one of them was king of the north and the other is king of his loved one's heart & the leader of the party, the heart to be specific, which they'd all fall apart without.

ponytail mike, the underdog, wielding a cool ass legendary sword and fighting the night king aka vecna... the material is right there!

[sameteeth]

anyways, i do think its really interesting that chuuya figures out that dazai was putting pieces into place to get him ousted from the sheep like a month ahead of time... its also really interesting to consider WHY dazai did it and the implications it carries. dazai watches shirase and yuan pressure and guilt chuuya about "doing his part" for the sheep as a person with an ability, then immediately takes action to relieve pressure from chuuya

which is kinda funny bc dazai at least in the short term is following what shirase is saying - dazai has the ability to help save the hostages, and he does lol. demon prodigy indeed. MORE IMPORTANTLY though. dazai recognizes that chuuya is being controlled by the sheep even though he is the leader. chuuya and mori make good comparisons here - this arc starts with mori bemoaning his responsibility as the boss of the port mafia, and we see chuuya consistently failing to do his responsibility as the leader of the sheep. he even denies the title of king, stating that it's only his ability that puts him above the rest. to digress a bit, i think this is partly why when chuuya joins the port mafia he so quickly submits to them - he is no longer the sole ability user, and thus the responsibility doesnt rely entirely on him to protect the group. something to be said here about the way bsd almost never touches on the ability user vs non-ability user dichotomy but ill save that. back to the main point. dazai takes it upon himself to free chuuya from the sheep. he acknowledges the limitations chuuya has to function under as the leader of the sheep and the weight of the responsibility he bears for no reason other than his ability

but then! dazai forces chuuya into the port mafia to save him from the sheep ! doesnt that seem contradictory??? isnt that hypocritical? chuuya seems pissed about it!

granted, I'd be pissed too if my friends stabbed me with a switch covered in rat poison then tried to gun me down. regardless, chuuya can see how dazai set him up to be outcast from the sheep without having to break the tie himself. chuuya is loyal to the sheep, even when they distrust him. But! this gives chuuya a chance to escape, even if it's to the port mafia. i think the important thing to focus on here is that the port mafia is an Actual organization made up of adults. the sheep are a bunch of kids, ones that are easily led. the limited pieces we see of them are shirase and yuan, who throw temper tantrums and try to clumsily manipulate chuuya when he doesn't listen to them. they admit to stealing alcohol from mafia-adjacent territory and just generally seem immature... because theyre kids. but what we see of the mafia is much different. mori is a strong leader because he is smart and rational. he thinks ahead. he, unlike chuuya, is the leader because he wants to protect yokohama, and understands the sacrifice necessary to do so. chuuya is the leader because no one could beat him in a fight. the port mafia offers a chance for growth (ignoring that these are children in the mafia ok play with me here) as a fighter and as a leader - chuuya becomes an exec when he's still a teenager i think (theres not a specific age anywhere i can find) and is a much more calm and smart fighter once he joins.

so it's good (play with me) that chuuya is able to join the port mafia. BUT he would never have been able to leave if dazai had not forced his hand. this paradox - the idea that chuuya obtains freedom from being forced to leave something he doesn't want to - is SUPER interesting to consider !! here i will dissolve into rambles. i learned about this paradox in the context of mary wollstonecraft and the vindication of the rights of women - wollstonecraft believed only educated people could truly be free, as they were not only free of oppression but also no longer slaves to their emotions, and were able to have opportunities and use their education for their own betterment. the situation with chuuya reminded me of this, because with the sheep chuuya had no one to rely on or to teach him, limiting his capacity for growth and ultimately his freedom. the sheep were reliant on him for protection, and feared him, but chuuya had everything to lose if he were to try and leave the sheep. he had nothing without them, and they needed him for his power. but they were beholden to their emotions, immature and uncertain how to actually get power. their primary motivators for action are retaliation - dazai mentions this when chuuya attacks him, and shirase and yuan mention this when they are urging chuuya to help them. but when chuuya talks to mori and koyo (<3) about their actions, both of them are much more forward thinking than that. mori is very cunning and sly, and koyo tells chuuya that even if things go south in the meeting she's taking him to to, they know how to move forward. chuuya's world has expanded beyond the sheep's limited gaze.

of course, he's still trapped in the port mafia, but if you REALLY want to discuss free will..... we'll be here all fucking night. free will is really hard to pin down and i always have to talk about determinism and its a lot to wrap ur head around and i just like drawing connections between stuff i like

[staryinghao]

watching asy ep 5 (first eval part 2)!!

程潇多骂爱看 (cheng xiao, scold more, we love to see it) was trending on weibo a couple hours ago so i'm excited :-)

ollie is so cute (i just watched the first ep of boys planet... he is so cute) + LEADER!

a group w/o an overly flowery intro? nice

lin zhanshuo having a Vocal Moment i appreciate it! i think he fits the song super well

everyone in switch together is like. so individually talented honestly. ollie picked a Great team

sudden concept change??? this is reminding me of the k group vs g group style thing from bp999...

wait switch on is also good omg

yin junlan & chen xinhao dancing tgt 🫢

ok i had a slight thing against fang yuheng for a hot minute bc of the voting thing but. but he's cute. he & kim dongbin are a good pair!!

enone 🥹 leader & maknae hug 🥹

"the winning group is... we'll let him say it" RAIN. RAIN STOP. and it was all in korean too LMAO

oh my god zhang shengxi gave the 胜 (sheng) (means to win) in his nametag to lin zhanshuo LIKE...

JIANG XINXI!!!!!!!

their backdrop & lighting is so good? the intro part was awesome

everyone is just going "oh jiang xinxi helped me a lot" that's my man fr

lqz: "shu hao! where's the sheep?" // sh: "it (the other group) just left" HELLO this is war

LQZ. J A C K E T

炸了 they have sm charisma

"你期待吧" "you'd better anticipate us" this last grp is inspirational story material

my top 3 are still there yuehua sweep 🙏 but some of the other good trainees are so low (the live voting was also weird but live voting is usually weird ig) anyway aihe debut pls 🙏🙏🙏

ok so it turned out cheng xiao scolding was in the vip version which i do not have so i'm going to catch up on the clips tomorrow

[apompkwrites]

I know we don't have Prince Rielle in the game, but..... I wanted to do a sibling for him of that make sense. Rielle with a Sora!Sibling.

Sora!Rielle is a brave and heroic person who is extremely loyal to their friends, valuing their friendship with them above all else. They're an optimist and has a strong sense of justice, enabling them to take charge of his other siblings when no one else can. However, they are rather oblivious and quite childish at times, and is often quick to anger whenever they're confused. They're also quite impulsive, as they tends to jump into things without thinking them through beforehand. They're also competitive, but doesn't see the point of the whole NRC VS RSA rivalries because he has friends over at NRC.

Sora!Rielle, Ningguang!Ashengrotto and Clemente are actually really good friends even though Ningguang!Ashengrotto and Clemente often remind him not to jump into things so recklessly. He does listens to them occasionally, but not when it come to defending his friends and people who needed to be defended.

Sora!Rielle is very empathetic person especially hearing how the other black sheep struggle with their family and situations. They tried their best to give advice and reach out more to them.

Sora!Rielle and Yuu are actually really good friends as well. Sora!Rielle also gives Yuu money whenever they can even if Yuu doesn't ask for it or need it at the time, they just wanted to make sure Yuu can have more suitable conditions.

Sora!Rielle does admired Rielle, but does venture off to be his own person and make his own friends. He was also sorted into different dorm as the vice dorm leader from his sibling and Ningguang!Ashengrotto though does visit them often whenever he doesn't have dorm duties.

I'm using this verison of Rielle as a reference for him.

(art by @/majunju !!)

ok first off i saw sora and all i can think about is donald being shot out by the storm

ANYWAY rielle, in canon, probably has a lot of siblings. bc, lets be honest, ariel got a whole family of sisters

i feel like sora!rielle would share a lot of similarities with rielle in the fact that they're really adventurous and curious? but maybe sora!rielle is more fascinated by human magic while rielle is focused on human technology? idk fun lil thoughts I really like the little mermaid :]

[ghastigiggles]

who. WHO ARE THEY /POS POS POS

who are they i want to put them in my mouth (esp william and the other one who’s 28 i forgor their name)

SO (ramble beneath the cut)

Antler boy is Ruadhán, he was born to a barren man and wife who lived in a lowerclass end of a large city (name pending.) because they struggled to have a child of their own, they bargained with the fae. The fae gifted them Ruadhán!

The parents loved him and raised him like their own, able to hide his lower half well enough for the most part in his youth - they both tragically passed to illness before he was a full adult.

His antlers started growing in at 14 years of age, already making people wary of him - but when a dual eclipse and famine hit the city at 15, the city leaders (uncertain if general nobility or royalty yet. definitely religious) blamed him and cast him into exile.

He was fortunate enough to have a friend whose family business was in travelling trade, Osman Flynn, who helped him establish himself out in the woods.

The following year, worse and worse blizzards began to hit the city. People, in their fear, began to turn on each-other and claimed they had somehow angered the "demon" they'd cast out. City leaders decide this is a prime opportunity to push a control-through-fear method of governance and start sacrificing people yearly to the Beast of the Woods - always selecting problem-folk (people who weren't criminals, but caused dissents or changes from the status quo) to be sent out into the cold.

William Clarke was born a noble, but a black sheep in his family. He enjoys stories, and would never give up his efforts to become an authour, despite finding no approval from his family - add it to the list of things they just didn't seem to like about him. He spent most of his teens and young adulthood hearing about the Beast, however, and grew a morbid obsession with him, researching every text and hearsay he could find - and coming to the determination that the Beast was, in fact, no beast at all.

So he wrote a story.

He was sacrificed that year, and all the books burned in his wake.

Neither of them really know how William made it through the blizzard to Ruadhán's side, but he survived, and Ruadhán took him in - as he'd taken in every sacrifice he'd been able to find since the cycle started. Those that survived the storm would stay the night in his cabin before heading off northward to Valenor - a larger, ostensibly kinder city. Those that didn't, Ruadhán would eventually find and bury. He expected William to leave like all the rest, but William was pretty much smitten from the first conversation, and insisted on staying - which is where we are now.

Ruadhán is teaching William how to live in the wilds, and William is reconnecting Ruadhán with his humanity. Love wins!(?)

The final character is Blair. You remember Osman? She's his daughter! She grew up taking the road with him, and often insisted on staying at Ruadhán's cabin when she was a girl while her father traded in the city. Osman's since fallen ill and is in Valenor getting treated, and Blair has taken over in his wake. Osman and Ruadhán worry over her *constantly* - because despite how capable she is as a businesswoman and a swordfighter, they know how cruel man can be.

There's a lot of, uh. Religious vs queer allegory involved in their story, if you couldn't tell. It's a theme I hold kind of close to my heart ghdjdns