#siren's thoughts

[thesirenwithnovoice]

Thoughts about how different mediums of a same story may give you different views (and rambling about the Tower of Heaven)//TW: violence

Lately I've been wondering about how manga readers might have very different visions than anime watchers of a same story, because althought the plot remains the same, some little details can change our whole perception of a story.

This reminded me of the first time I read Fairy Tail and how terrified I was at how cruel and dark the Tower of Heaven's arc is.

Jellal's face (that by that time, were only an 11-years-old kid) drippling blood while being tortured shocked me so much as a kid and I still find it one of the most disturbing scenes in the manga, lol.

In the anime, the content itself is the same. We know the kids are slaves that go throught different kinds of abuse, however, I find the manga way gloomier and more graphic. And althought part of it might be just a personal opinion, it's not entirely without basis: Mashima uses different techniques in his art to represent facts whitin the story than the animators, and it leads to a topic I really love: semiotics - how we interpret images, and how detais can be used to convey a certain felling throught art.

Colors and composition helps A LOT creating an atmosphere and causing a feeling on the reader. Proportionally speaking, a manga doesn't have colors, but it has it's own alternatives - the Tower of Heaven arc, in comparison to the rest of the manga, uses a lot more black and hatching.

One can argue some scenes are still "visually darker" in the anime, since it has the advantage of being able to play with shadows and colors in a broader aspect; however, since Fairy Tail is not an anime that changes it's saturation or colour pallete, the loud colors in most scenes end up not helping building the same dreadful atmosphere.

(It doesn't mean you can't make a scary story using bright and colorful tones, tho. A great example is the movie Midsommar. But it's not an easy task!)

Erza's childhood memories in the manga also carry a "dirtier" feeling; the kids are always covered by bruises, and the background is rougher. Also, the anime chooses to represent slavery in a more fanciful way: the kids wear stylized handcuffs and are assaulted with magic attacks, what inevitably softens the scenes by distancing them from real life slavery.

In a story, an act of violence will always be more shocking if your brain is able to automatically make a connection with real life. Seeing blood conveys a feeling of disconfort easier than a character being hit by a wave of magic, even if the author tells you "this is painful"; that's why some people say they started to find difficult to watch horror movies involving kids after becoming parents, because after experenciating something in real life, they connect with fiction harder.

The above scene causes me very different feelings in each media. In the manga, the despair in Jellal's face when seeing they removed Erza's eye is much clearer, and his skinny body, his eyes filling up with tears (he doesn't cry in the anime) shows not only a feeling of worry, but of utter dread and helplessness. All that helps endorsing the fact that, doesn't matter how brave he is, they are still just fragile kids, unable to protect themselves from the cruelty of the world around them.

I want to make it clear, though, that this is not in any way meant to be a critique to the animation team, or an affirmation that one type of media is better than another. We all have our personal preferences, but each media has it's target audience and objective. Fairy Tail's animators certainly do know how to convey the same feelings on the public, they just choose not to, for a variety of reasons. Probably because the anime is aimed for a broader and younger audience, many scenes have been softened or censored somehow. Also, animation consumes more labour than a manga page, so unless you have a lot of time and investment, the art tend to be simpler.

So do you think it affects the plot, Siren?

In my opinion, yes, even if just in a subtle way. In the manga, I think this raw brutality helps Jellal's character to gain a more interesting complexity. To me, he feels less like a hero and more like what he actually is: just a really kind and brave kid trying his best to protect his friends.

Another major change they made in the anime was removing the ambiguity (something that happened more than once in Fairy Tail's adaptation, such as in the famous kiss scene), leaving clear since the beginning that Jellal was a victim of a mind controlling spell; while in the manga, until Urtear's confirmation at the end of the arc, we do not know for sure if he have been brainwashed or just convinced to adore Zeref.

And as much as I can see why some fans might hate it because it leaves room for people to see Jellal as a bad man, I (as someone who is not afraid of loving evil characters, heh), find it interesting and somehow enriching to the plot, because it gives the whole arc a reflection: is extreme suffering, specially at such an young age, capable of changing someone so much?

We are left questioning what did "Zeref" say, or do, that made him change so much. And having so many real life examples where despair has made people easy victims of manipulation throught faith or falling into extremist ideologies, after we seeing Jellal's pain and fragility in a tangible way, it's not that hard at all to understand how he went insane and managed to drag all the other slaves along with him.

Also, I think it makes it easier to understand Erza's empathy towards him. Jellal and Erza are characters connected not only by the affection they nourish for one another, but also for sharing the same pain. She is the only person that fully understands the horrors he lived in the tower, since they were the only kids that have been in the torture chamber. And althought she never tries to justify Jellal's actions, Erza does not only show him compreension, but she feels guilty for not being able to retribute his protection and prevented him from losing his mind.

That doesn't mean, tho, that there weren't many other clues he was not acting on free will: be it his grotesque change of personality, his hysterical laughter out of nowhere or his motivations that doesn't hold (because they were never his to begin with). To me, all that at first glance makes him closer to Batman's Joker, someone that grew insane after so much suffering, than a villain that's genuinely just plain selfish and thirsty for power. And that only makes me find him a creepier villain, since personally, I find sadism and insanity way scarier than ghosts.

So this is just a looong collection of thoughts about how small choices can change a lot the "feeling" we get from a scene or a character. I hope someone can find it interesting too. There are many other examples of adaptations where it happened, and if you remember one you'd like to share, I would love to hear!

Last but not less important, all the love for Mashima's art, the Tower of Heaven arc (that is a personal favorite) and Jellal, a character I deeply love and one that holds for sure the strongest spirit in the manga for being able to become such a kind and mature man despite everything he has been thought. ♡

[forestfullofberries]

what was probably happening on the other side of the ship during suffering:

edit: FINE i'm adding my own tags to the post

[lunamay3]

Jorge, when he said the sirens wouldn’t be in Epic:

[prettybearbutch]

dating apps aren't working. I need to go look confused at a Home Depot

[snejkha]

Wanted to combine the two siren types together

[hinamie]

siren!megumi concept sheet i whipped up in a single-minded fever state fr @uriekukistan

[nicestmeangirl]

A tale in three acts:

[faeriedustdiary]

put me in a movie ˚ ༘ ೀ⋆.˚

[unknownn-girl]

[ttvck]

yippie

[kojitheopossum]

the hunter becomes the… bagged?

wanted to take a break from the comic for a day or two but surprisingly i’m not sick of the au at all

[crystallizsch]

okay hi so listen hear me out

sea snake is a bit too obvious (and too boring)

so i made him based on some kind of lionfish??? (bc something something venomous marine animal) also with a LOT of creative liberties i made with how the fish looks like

let’s also give his fins some rips and tears here and there bc what are the implications of that??? that’s for you 🫵 to decide

anyways chat i lowkey dont know what i was doing

i had no other thoughts but haha funny snake man i turn into fish

[starry-bi-sky]

i have been unmedicated for the entirety of spring break and thus have had little interest in writing this down, but i have been thinking about this for the entire week (as well as a dpdc clone danny au that resulted in it becoming its entirely separate batman au that includes a teenage vigilante bruce wayne, an ocarina, and me entirely incapable of making a batman au without making bruce dirt poor but we're not talking about that) and so i've finally went 'fuck it' and forcibly grabbed my laptop. I will get this done in one sitting even if it kills me.

BUT. This is about neither clone^2 danny nor about who i am calling Ocarina Batman. This is about my Danyal Al Ghul Au and more SPECIFICALLY it's me thinking about his relationship with Sam and Tucker specifically.

Tucker and Sam? Adore this asshole (affectionate) with every fiber of their being. And it is very much a reciprocated feeling, but Danny's thoughts will not be delved into much other than he would kill for them.

Tucker? The only person currently capable of getting a deep, loud, belly laugh out of Danny. Sam can get him to smile and to laugh, but it's the kind that's a chuckle-under-the-breath. The quiet, looks-down-while-huffing laughter. Snorts once with laughter and then grins stupidly.

But Tucker? Tucker can crack a slew of stupid jokes and Danny will be incapacitated for the next five minutes because he's laughing so hard that he can't breath. He lands one well-timed pun or quip and Danny will be close to tears. His laughter is their favorite sound in the whole world.

Sam is lowkey jealous of this ability, and she's gotten a belly laugh out of Danny a few times. But alas, it is Tucker who wields this power and has gotten it the most times out of the two of them.

-

They're also both physically affectionate with Danny as much as possible. It started roughly around when they were 12-ish, a year since they befriended Danny, and they noticed that he sought after touch but never seemed to initiate (and was in some ways repulsed by it). They started slowly being more touchy with him. Hooking a finger around his to lead him somewhere, tapping his wrist, looping arms. Little touches, grabs, etc, to get him used to it, and once he started doing it back they started increasing it.

It's gotten to a point where he will now just. Lay on them. Like a lizard sunbathing on a rock. Leaning on their backs when they're sitting in class before the bell rings, his chin on their heads. He'll talk about anything with his arms looped around their shoulders.

If they're sitting on a couch at either of their houses, he'll lay his legs on theirs. Him and Tucker will press their feet against the other's and try and push against them (newsflash: Danny always wins, Tucker claims its the ghost strength but Danny's been winning since before his accident)

-

Naturally, both Sam and Tucker know where Danny keeps his weapons on his person, and are allowed to grab them off of him if they need it. His only requirement is that they don't lose his weapons if they take it and forget to return it immediately.

They both understand how big of a thing this is from Danny, and so they do their best to treat his weapons with a lot of respect and care because they know its his way of saying he trusts them.

-

Sam and Tucker are so fond of Danny it's insane. Like fr. That's their goddamn best friend, and they are so protective of him. Emotionally, physically, you name it. They will tear the head off a grown man if they need to, Danny's had scars since he arrived in Amity Park and Sam and Tucker both are going to find the person who put them there and make them pay for it.

One time, Tucker overheard a bunch of upperclass girls speaking nastily about Danny and about the rumors surrounding him, calling him names like 'freak', 'monster', etc. Danny was with him and heard it, and seemingly appeared unbothered by it, even telling Tucker that he was used to such rumors.

Tucker was so furious that hacked into the school system later that night and tanked those girls grades. They were kicked out of their clubs and had to go to mandatory tutoring for the rest of the year. He made sure to leave some way of letting them know it was him who did it.

And Sam doesn't like using her money for things, doesn't like abusing that wealth. So instead, whenever her parents talk bad about Danny, she causes a media incident that has her parents scrambling to deal with. She does something wild, outrageous by her parents' standards.

She heard some boys on the basketball team making fun of Danny once, similar to those girls had. She kicks up a fuss about something eco-unfriendly at school and forcibly holds a protest on the same day of the big home basketball game, forcing them to cancel the event and reschedule to a visiting school.

She anonymously donates money so that there's new uniforms for the team but oops! Looks like she "forgot" to donate enough money for them to get uniforms for all the team members, and strangely enough those boys in particular didn't get them! Looks like they'll have to wait until more money gets donated for the basketball team to get their new, nice uniforms. The old ones look so ratty in comparison, right?

And since the football team gets most of the sport money, that might just take awhile. And if (and when) they kick up a fuss? oops! Off the basketball team you go, :) such unsportsman-like behavior is unfit for the team.

(The only good thing about how corrupt the school system is is that she can use it to her advantage too.)

The both of them know that Danny suspects them for the sudden misfortune falling on these people, but he doesn't call them out on it. He's kinder than he used to be, but not kind enough to vouch for people who speak badly of him. Sometimes, he might just congratulate them on not getting caught.

Because Danny is their wonderful, hurt friend with a "slightly" Blue and Orange Moral code, and enough scars that people have been calling him a criminal (and worse) since he arrived in Amity Park when he was ten. And they'll be damned if he gets hurt anymore.

[queenoftheferns]

Official Thank-You-Jenny-Frison Post

[minminbunny]

Siren AU - Han Jisung/Human Fem! Reader

💕Drabble Masterlist

❤️Ultimate Masterlist

A sigh escaped your lips and you leaned back against the shore rocks. You watched as the chill night wind blew on your skin. 'I shouldn't be out this late,' you thought, pursing your lips but the calmness from the sea soothe your rushing mind. You sighed, "Just a while longer," you murmured, curling up as you rested your cheek on your neck. Minutes go by when you suddenly hear a melody, one you never heard before, one that is alluring. You gulped, your mind instantly going to horrifying superstitions, 'Am I hallucinating?' 'Is this a paralysis demon?' you thought, the sea no longer feeling calm. You shivered as the melody grew stronger, the voice of a man and his voice was so sweet.

It had hurt and loneliness in its tone. Your heart ached at the empathy, "Are you okay?" you whispered aloud. When the melody stopped abruptly. You exhaled a shaky breath, "I didn't mean to scare you, sorry if this was your quiet time," you said, wondering if you were just daydreaming and talking to yourself. Then the sweet voice spoke, "I don't mind," he said, his voice husky but melodic. You peeked over the shore rocks to see a gorgeous man. Your breath hitched at the sight. Jisung's eyes made contact with yours. His eyes widened before they gradually softened. You furrowed your eyebrows at his reaction. "I see no ill intent from you," he said, gesturing you closer. You subconsciously obeyed, your feet dragging you deeper and deeper into the sea when suddenly you ran out of sand to walk on.

Jisung dived in to hold you, his webbed fingers cupping your face as he kissed you. "Mmph!" you exclaimed, panic bursting in your chest. Jisung stayed calm and deepened the kiss, his tongue swirling with yours. You tried biting his tongue but he pulled away at the nick of time. "You can breathe now," Jisung said, noticing your tense body. You hesitantly took in a deep inhale and he was right. Many questions swirled in your mind. Jisung chuckled, "Relax, princess. You can breathe as long as I kiss you," he explained, stroking your cheek. You pulled back, "What do you want with me?" you asked, fearing the worst. Jisung cooed, "Don't worry, princess. We can get to know each before then," he said, vaguely before bringing you back up to the surface.

NSFW BELOW CUT

"Please, please, please," you sobbed, your cunt aching and throbbing with need. Jisung smirked, "Looks like the aphrodisiac is working very well, princess. You're arousal is floating everywhere," he said, spreading your legs further. You laid there pliant, your body hot and needy. Jisung hissed as his scale hardens, his throbbing tentacle-like cock easing itself out from its confines. You gulped at the sheer length of it entering your fragile little womb, "Need you, Ji. Need you so so bad," you sobbed, clenching around nothing but surrounding seawater. Jisung cooed, pressing his hips with yours, "I'll give you what you need," he groaned, thrusting his tentacle deep within your ribbed walls. You arched your back at the intrusion, "Yes, yes, hah," you moaned, digging your nails into the sea bed.

Jisung hissed, thrusting his hips at a merciless pace, "Don't hold back, princess. Scream for me," he growled, thrusting faster as the tip of his tentacle, flared open and enveloped your cervix. You screamed at the stimulation, your cervix being spread apart by the tendrils within his cock. Jisung grunted as the first egg eased from his hardened scale, going through his tentacle cock. You choked on a wail when said egg penetrated your womb. One after the other, eggs poured into your womb. Your tummy is engorged with bumps. "I know it's a lot princess, but you're my breeding brood now. All mine," he growled, rubbing your clit in tandem with his thrusts. You clenched hard around his tentacle, forcing him to ejaculate deep within your cunt. You sobbed in overstimulation when he pulled out. Your cunt gaped apart as some eggs spilt past your ruined hole. Jisung kissed your forehead, "Good girl. My mate, my universe," he purred, rubbing your bulging tummy.

[xfilesinamajor]

SIREN: “Hi, I know you’re thousands of miles from home but it’s me, your wife, just hanging out in the middle of the ocean!”

ODYSSEUS: “Really? Penelope? My one true love, the mother of my child?”

SIREN: “…yep! Here I am right by your ship!”

ODYSSEUS: “WOW 😍😍😍 Penelope, how I’ve missed you!”

SIREN: “Holy shit that worked?!?”

ODYSSEUS: “What was that?”

SIREN: “I said, uh, come into the water!”