#so i have ZERO ability to maintain balance

[whatcantheharvesthopefor]

I don't have a lot of 'visible' disabilities but i have heaps of invisible ones!!

Some rando: You should think about stopping your prescription

Me: My pills make me not want to die tho

They: You shouldn’t want to die, that’s not normal

Me: Yeah that’s why I’m taking my pills

[vxxxb]

DEPRIVE ME [3] - Miguel O'Hara x Reader

[Synopsis] - After an incident that jeopardizes your position at HQ, Miguel O'Hara becomes a constant reminder of the high expectations and zero tolerance for mistakes within his ranks. Everything takes an unexpected turn when Miguel sees the potential in your abilities and decides to enlist your help for a more personal endeavor. [Notes] - Slow burn, strained relationship in the beginning, slight angst, eventual fluff. Reader is ethnically Hispanic, with race not specified. Part One | Part Two | 2.25k words

Fear.

It was one emotion Miguel believed he had long buried. So how had you managed to awaken it? So easily did you shatter the facade of control he had carefully maintained, unleashing the torrent of anger he so willfully suppressed. Miguel had smashed everything within his reach after you had left, rage utterly consuming him. Lyla was currently left to repair the damage. 

And now, as he saw you enter the training area, he couldn't help the flicker of annoyance surging through him; How could someone young and new to the responsibilities of being Spider-Man stir up such turmoil in his mind? 

"You're late." Miguel's voice was curt, filled with impatience.

You narrow your eyes, holding back a retort as you bit your tongue. "Hello to you too, O'Hara," You reply, tone laced with restrained irritation.

You maintain your composure, setting aside your belongings; You can't help the look you give him as you make your way over with crossed arms. You doubted this was what he meant by working together. "You do realize I have missions waiting for me," You tilt your head, "Missions you so pointedly assigned to me." You finish with a touch of sarcasm.

Of course, you had something to say; somehow, that irritated Miguel more. 

"Lyla took care of that," He manages to respond, making his way to the mat. "Now, come here."

Pursing your lips, you meet him in the middle; Your gaze swept across the empty room, a shudder running down your spine. There was an unsettling feeling that lingered in the air. As your eyes lock with his, you couldn't help but wonder what he was up to -- Just what game are you playing?

Miguel, on the other hand, found amusement in the situation. He carefully observed the way your eyes scanned the room, noting the involuntary tension that gripped your body as you approached him. The temptation to toy with your paranoia gnawed at him, but he didn't need fear from you. He needed your trust for what he wanted.

Without warning, his leg swiftly swept beneath you, knocking you off balance and sending you to the ground. "You're lacking focus." 

With a resounding thud against the mat, an involuntary groan escaped your lips. You remained sprawled for a moment, eyes fixed in a slight glare. There was no denying it; he was right. Your focus had been lacking. Glancing at his outstretched hand, you firmly grasp it, immediately pulling him forward. You take this opportunity to adjust your stance prepared to spar.

Raising an eyebrow, you raise your fists. “What? You suddenly want to train me?” You throw the first punch.

His eyes narrow with focus. “Not train, but hone,” He corrects, arm making contact with your stomach.

Son of a- 

You aim another strike at him, causing him to stumble momentarily. Of course, it paled in comparison to the forceful blows you received. Despite your agility to block, Miguel's punches carried undeniable force;  God forbid he take it easy on the first session, you roll your eyes. His movements exuded a mix of skill and controlled aggression. Each blow he unleashed carried the weight of his frustration, relentlessly pushing you to your limits. Yet, you met them head-on, refusing to back down. Your senses heightened, allowing you to anticipate his every move. Your body remained poised, ready to defend and counter, instinctively adapting your strategy to exploit any opening. 

Slamming him to the ground a grin spread across your face. You couldn’t help but feel a bit smug as you note the look of surprise on his. Truthfully, you hadn't anticipated that feat either. Still, your victory proved fleeting as he swiftly struck your legs from the side, causing you to fall forward. Miguel wasted no time recovering, rolling both of you over, hands pinning yours to the mat.

Adrenaline coursed through your veins, your breaths coming in heavy gasps as sweat trickled down your neck. Your senses remained severely amplified, the sound of your heartbeats amplifying sporadically into your ears. Your eyes lock with his, gaze never wavering -- What was he thinking?

Miguel's eyes bore intensely into yours, his ears attuned to the same sporadic beats you were hearing. His eyes traveled down your face, capturing the soft sheen of sweat that coated your skin, the subtle flush of red tinting your cheeks. He observed how your chest rose and fell with each breath, following its rhythm. Still, what truly captivated him was the gleam of anticipation in your eyes, the lazy grin playing on your lips as you curiously studied him. Your reactions intrigued him; Were you genuinely enjoying yourself?

"All good, boss?" You quip, voice snapping him out of his thoughts, inquisitiveness getting the best of you.

Clearing his throat, Miguel nods, his grip on you slightly loosening but not entirely letting go. "You're not going to throw me off?" 

"In a minute."

"Right," He tsks, acknowledging your playful response.

Then it's silent again, the two of you waiting to see who makes the next move. Your gaze remained fixed on him as he closed his eyes, taking a moment to catch his breath. It was the first time you truly allowed yourself to look at him. Fatigue was etched on his face, and it went beyond the exertion of the sparring. Everyone in headquarters knew of Miguel's story -- the loss of his family, the decimated universe, and his unwavering dedication to his cause. Few dared to approach him; He was their boss, and that was that. So now, as you looked at him, really looked at him, there was a desire to understand him -- Just how much burden could one man carry?

"Why did you change your mind?" You finally ask, voice laden with curiosity.

Miguel's eyes snapped open, his mouth tightening into a thin line. His fingers subtly tightened around your wrists as he struggled to find the right words. You look at him expectantly, awaiting any explanation as to why you were allowed to stay —Nothing was making sense. A hint of disappointment creeps in as you realize his hesitation. Seizing the moment, you swiftly latch your legs onto his, flipping him over. Your eyes briefly scan his face before you rise to your feet, silently contemplating the enigma that was Miguel O'Hara.

"This can't be all you had in mind when you said I'd be working with you," You fold your arms across your chest, demeanor now serious.

Miguel's brows furrow, his jaw tensing at the shift in atmosphere. He stands, intending to speak but pausing at the sound of chatter filling the training area. You glance toward the entrance, nodding your head in acknowledgment as different spider people take place around the room. You look back to Miguel, patiently waiting for a response. 

"You know you've got some serious communication issues to work on," You remark sarcastically, highlighting the underlying tension between you two.

Rolling his eyes, Miguel walks toward the exit, motioning for you to follow. Stepping outside, the brightness of your surroundings and lively atmosphere contrast with the earlier morning stillness. You walk behind Miguel, taking note of his seemingly relaxed behavior despite the obvious avoidance in his responses. Now, you didn’t necessarily consider yourself impatient, just prone to anxious overthinking. And seeing Miguel walk so leisurely, especially in your company, made you question if he had ulterior motives for his behavior -- Motives that you remained unaware of.

In a moment of impulsivity, you shoot a web at the back of his waist and yank him to face you. As his body collides against yours, an instant wave of regret washes over you. The sudden attention drawn to the two of you triggers a round of whispers from those around you. You realize this was a mistake -- A bad idea.  Bracing yourself for a harsh reaction, you look up.

Miguel’s expression was controlled, consciously aware of all the gazes fixed upon the two of you. Retracting the web that bound him, he extends his claw, its sharp edge slicing through the sticky strand. Taking a deep breath, he takes a deliberate step back.

"Let's talk," he begins, his eyes signaling to the onlookers who had gathered. "In private."

You nod in understanding, following him into the control room. You watch as he pulls up two chairs for the both of you, taking note of the gravity of the situation.

"Well," you take a seat. 

Miguel let out a contemplative hum, legs spreading as he leaned forward. He watches you closely, searching for the right words to convey his thoughts. "Yesterday," He clears his throat, "Was that intentional?" 

You feel yourself tense, back straightening in response. Your leg starts to bounce, a nervous habit, and you find yourself cracking your knuckles to alleviate some of the stress. Frowning, you wait for Miguel to clarify.

"Was it on command?" He finalizes, seeking confirmation.

You nod slowly. "I mean- yeah, you were..." Your words trail off, not knowing how to finish. 

"Trying to hurt you."

"To put it lightly." 

Miguel huffs out a dry chuckle, attempting to ease any tension. You urge him to continue, eager to know where this was heading. 

"I want you to do it again," He says calmly. 

You blink once, mouth opening as if to speak before promptly closing it again. Was he genuinely expecting you to manipulate his senses? -- This has to be some sort of test. It's the most logical explanation you offer yourself as you give Miguel an incredulous look. Every fiber within you wanted to reject this seemingly absurd idea, but you found yourself unable to voice that; your hesitation doesn't go unnoticed by him. He frowns, swiftly closing any distance, body enveloping yours with his.

"Why?" You ask, voice barely above a whisper.

"Because you're the only one who can," He responds, voice equally low.

"Gonna need something better than that, O'Hara."

His eyes narrow, his body leaning more forward. "Miguel," He states, "De ahora en adelante es Miguel."

"Bueno, Miguel," You raise your head. "What are you truly after?" 

"I want to see her," He says, eyes raking down your face before taking hold of your hand. "Please, let me see her." He guides your fingers to rest over his eyes. "Please."

You can't help the way your eyes soften, feeling sympathy for someone who continuously caused problems for you. Somehow everything with this man was a constant whiplash. He had willingly allowed you to touch him, he who constantly made it a point to push anyone away. At this moment, he wasn't Miguel O'Hara, leader of the Spider-Verse. He was Miguel O'Hara, a grieving father baring himself like an open wound. Your fingers still tentatively hover above his eyes, your eyes closing as you lament the words that follow.

"I can't do it."

You feel his eyes clench.

"But," you continue, gently pushing him to sit, "I can help ease your pain."

Ever so smoothly, you place your hands on his shoulders. A glance up allows you to see his focused gaze on you. You let out a nervous chuckle, placing one hand on his temple; Effectively, you take away his sight. His body tenses, one of his hands tightly clasping onto yours, claws grazing you ever so slightly. Inhaling, you steady your free hand on his shoulder. "Relax..."

Gradually, a gentle warmth emanates from your touch, a soft and comforting embrace surging through him. You notice how Miguel's body relaxes into your touch, almost as if finding solace in the respite you offer.

"You need to let go, Miguel."

"I can't," He growls low, his voice filled with frustration as he attempts to resist the trance you cast over him.

You hold your ground, palms steadying. "You kept me for a reason," You emphasize. "And despite our complicated past," You huff out a small laugh. "I'm not going to willingly be the source of your torment."

Releasing your hold on him, you wince as you rub at your temple -- Probably should start using that ability more. From the corner of your eye, you notice Miguel standing, a hand running through his hair. You wait, expecting him to break the silence, and you rise to your feet as well.

"Don't mention this to anyone," He instructs.

"Wasn't going to," You cross your arms. "But in all seriousness, if you need my help, I'm up for it."

"And why would you?"

"Because," You drawl out, voice filled with gentle teasing. "You're still my boss, and the leader of this esteemed society," You near him. "And currently, you're a leader with performance issues." Your brows furrow, managing to stifle a laugh at the subtle innuendo. 

Miguel gives you a deadpan stare, not buying your whole compliance. 

"Oh come on," You roll your eyes. "At the end of the day, we're still Spiderman -- Spiderwoman in my case. We'll inevitably work together on official missions at some point." You turn to face him directly. "Besides, what better way to get on your good side than by helping you with this?"

You flash him a grin, extending your hand as a gesture of understanding. He glances down, a sour expression taking place.

"God, you're stubborn," You mutter, forcefully shaking his hand. "Anything else that needs to be discussed?"

"Not particularly, no."

"Alright then, if that's all," You pat his shoulder, making your way out. "I got some work to catch up on."

Part One | Part Two |

[A/N] - Pushed through and finished the chapter! Finally happy I will be able to write more flirty scenes after this lol. Feedback is appreciated! (Respectfully ofc)

Feel free to comment what you think, like, and repost <3

[Translations]

From now on its, Miguel

Fine, Miguel

Tag list:

@digipaw2-0 @alexisabirdie @keenzinemugstudent @dirtydiavolo @saturnknows @judeslostfinger @joyhdh @myconglomerateromance @lady-necromancer

[sapphorror]

So there's this Moment in the beginning of the Zimvoid arc where he's going on about how he's the only Irken to show up on Earth and when GIR is like 'but tak!!' he has zero recollection of who she is, which like. on balance I do enjoy, because much of the zatr/zatp appeal in my eyes is the coolest girl you know trying and failing to be the ultimate archnemesis of the most embarrassing candidate imaginable, and lacking object permanence wrt one of his most formidable enemies is a very Zimcore thing in general, but at the same time, in Tak's particular case I'm not so sure the characterization is accurate, based purely on the way he treats her in her one flagship episode.

For one thing, he refers to her by name—which wouldn't be all that notable, except in the grand scheme of things, Zim doesn't really address all that many people by name, enemy or otherwise. Granted, some of this is probably just that she's Irken, who all seem to get tiniest sliver more notice from Zim (if not exactly respect), but there's also a Tone to it—a certain je ne sais quoi in the way he tells her 'It's over, Tak!' that reminds me of the way he addresses Dib and the other rare enemies he views as adversaries rather than mere obstacles

Even more unusually, he actually acknowledges her skill and calls her good ('Not as a good as me—but still good!')*. This isn't ENTIRELY unprecedented, given that Zim does have a pattern of inflating the abilities of the people he's bested by in order to maintain his ego, but even still, it's not all that often he straight out comes and says that someone is a worthy adversary—even with Dib, this aspect of their dynamic is more of an implicit, obvious truth than something he'd ever articulate.

All of which is my long way of saying that Zim seems to have a surprising degree of respect for Tak, at least insofar as he can be said to have respect for anyone, which is... interesting. And definitely something I'll be thinking more about

* tangential addendum to this but I'm also reminded of the "you're a worse pilot than I am (wait...)" quip and the fact that makes out at least two occasions where he's directly compared her to himself. Hm!

[asterekmess]

I want, do you  think of  Denton do think good or bad I find him very shady 

I think you're talking about Deaton, but excuse me if I'm mistaken. I have complicated feelings about Deaton, but in general...I hate his guts. \o/ Like, it's unfortunate that they really really leaned into the "Mysterious Cryptic Black Mentor" stereotype for him, and he didn't get nearly as much depth as they tried to IMPLY that he had? They just kept insinuating that he had this really fascinating and complex background and then refused to actually tell anyone what it was.

Based purely on what I've seen of deaton, versus what the creators might've intended for him, Deaton's a fucking asshole.

This man was fully aware that Scott had been bitten and become a werewolf, and played stupid about it for literal months. He knew how to help literally everyone in town and refused to do so on the basis of 'maintaining the balance' and not wanting to 'get involved'.

He had a way to contain werewolves, and yet let Scott run around town with zero control for two months. Leaving Stiles no choice but to handcuff his best friend and fear for the lives of his friends and family and scott himself. Leaving SCOTT to fear for the life of his girlfriend and DEREK to fear for the safety of his entire species because Scott was constantly in danger of exposing them. Speaking of Derek, he KNEW who derek was. He knew exactly what Derek was asking him about. He swore to protect and help Derek's family and derek himself, and then when faced with a kid who just lost his big sister and was going to the only person he thought might have answers, Deaton pretended he had no idea what the fuck derek was talking about and just hung him out to dry. THEN he shamed him for not trusting people! After LYING TO HIM

They could've stopped Peter so easily. Could've given Scott peace of mind while he learned to control his abilities. Deaton could've helped them understand what was going on and filled in the gaps in Derek's information. Could've played mediator with the hunters to protect Scott and Derek. Could've done his goddamn job. According to deaton himself, he was never retired. He was just refusing to participate until Scott "inspired" him. NEvermind that he left Scott at Peter and the hunters' mercy for months before that. And don't forget that he helped Scott plot out someone's murder and poisoned someone by replacing their cancer medication. Like. o.O Are you fuckin joking? And that's just the early seasons. Deaton's just. A dick. A self-righteous asshole who holds vital information over people's heads until he gets bored enough to involve himself in the world of those SO Far BElow HiM. He's an exposition distributor that tosses information like bread crumbs to the main characters, only when the writers want people to finally find things out. But instead of even having him LEARN things and then share them, he admits to having KNOWN IT ALL ALONG and just refusing to share. He's just as bad, if not worse, than people generally consider Peter to be. His character is just a jerk, my dude. Maybe he was done dirty by the writers, or hell maybe it was intentional. Maybe they meant for him to be a dickhead.

In short; Deaton bad.

[drudeger]

Beyblade Burst Quadstrike Review

(spoiler warning for the entire show)

ok so let's talk quadstrike.

I think we can all acknowledge the low expectations we had for a hasbro produced season of the anime, and while the season definitely delivered on those expectations in some aspects, it also managed to surprise me with its quality in others.

Animation

let's start with the animation. the quality of the animation ranged from abysmal to passable for a large majority of the season, with the only really good animation being reused from previous seasons. that being said, in a couple of episodes, including the first and last, it was actually pretty good. overall, I'd say the quality was most comparable to that of the sixth season with only some episodes ever managing to surpass or dip below that.

Voice Acting

the voice work was great overall. the returning cast from quaddrive maintained a level of voice acting quality on par with that season, which is to say, pretty damn good and it’s a similar story for the returning cast from before quaddrive. you might expect the part of the cast returning from a 2+ year hiatus from their previous roles to need to readjust and settle back into performing their characters, but honestly most of them seemed perfectly comfortable jumping back into it with the only exceptions being xander and kit. both character voices definitely feel just slightly rusty, but considering the massive ~4 year real life time gap, you really can’t blame them and honestly they do a great job getting mostly settled back into their roles pretty quickly.

when it comes to the casting decisions made for quadstrike specifically, kieran regan was a great choice to portray a more grown-up and mature ken and he absolutely nailed the role. keru and besu’s voices were also just right, sounding like characters that are voiced by ken but are still distinct-sounding from him, and the quality of all three performances speaks to kieran’s skill.

anjali kunapaneni was practically perfect as pri, giving her a full voice that matches her character but doesn’t overdo it with shoutiness despite pri’s boisterous personality, balancing it out to accentuate the more cool outward appearance she tries to impress upon other bladers. they really bring a level of depth and nuance to their performance that gives pri a very real and unique voice and it was easily the best voice performance in the season.

darren delfin’s performance as pax is definitely a close second and his ability to portray character depth shows through a lot here with the subtle differences in tone when pax is being disingenuous (e.g. when he pretends to be happy about pri making friends) and when he genuinely wants to show appreciation and admiration (e.g. when he talks about his admiration for red eye.) honestly, I’d be lying if I said I’d caught any of this on first watch. it’s just not the sort of depth I believed I had any reason to look out for. the only reason I say it was the second best performance and not the first is because the accent feels awkward and it doesn’t sound quite right, an unfortunately important skill gap when you’re asked to voice a character with a foreign accent.

Plot

the plot itself was. ok. plot points were arranged in a sensible enough order and it almost never managed to feel too forced. except for the part where pax just calls aiga up on his phone and THAT'S how they decided to have pax challenge aiga? and absolutely nobody questions how pax got his number?? I literally laughed out loud when that happened like bro what??? 😭😭 also that one part in the finale where we get a somewhat dramatic shot with some random fucking kid and get absolutely zero explanation????? aside from these (admittedly incredibly weird) oddities, the plot was ultimately unengaging but passable. there really just isn't a lot to say about it due to its overall lack of substance.

Story

but if you asked me to describe what quadstrike is actually about — its story — I'd tell you it's a story about a bunch of kids running around with highly marketable toys. which sounds comically cynical but, despite its best efforts, quadstrike struggles to be much more than that. although that isn’t to say I wasn’t pleasantly surprised by the unexpected amount of depth in some aspects of the writing.

Themes

the season has two themes, one of which is executed decently but neither being given the time or care needed to feel nearly as impactful as they could have.

Identity

the most prominent and complete of the themes is that of identity, which is explored through the season's secondary (arguably primary) protagonist, pri forsythe/quadra. the season introduces the foundations for this theme when quadra loses to drum in the abyssal tournament after taking off her mask. pax tells pri to keep her mask on in battle because it will increase her elemental power and make her strong and pri begins questioning if he's right. it was also revealed in a flashback that pax made the mask and when pri wears it, pax says she assumes an entirely different persona and becomes quadra. this poses to pri as well as the audience three questions: does pax know what’s best and should pri therefore listen to his instructions, allowing him to control what decisions she makes? are pri and qudra the same or different? if “becoming quadra” makes her stronger, should she be ok with being her when she battles?

the first question takes a backseat for a bit while the second and third questions are explored, although we see it reiterated as pri continues to battle without the mask.

we are introduced to one position for the last two questions when, during a flashback, pax says that pri becomes a different blader entirely when she assumes the identity of quadra during battle. the other position is introduced when pri asserts that it shouldn’t matter if she doesn't wear the mask because it’s still her battling regardless. the second position is built upon when ken’s mom explains to pri that keru and besu are a part of ken’s identity and pri restates the question later that night, asking herself if she’s pri or quadra. after she loses to ken, he gives her some advice — that quadra is her too. then, after her first loss to xander where she doesn’t wear the mask, pri finds a letter to her from ken that says "it doesn’t matter if the mask makes you stronger. you’re you with or without it, it doesn’t define you,” explicitly stating the answer to both questions. with all of this in mind, pri decides she’ll wear the mask for her rematch with xander and from now on will wear it in battle at her own discretion. so at this point in the story, the last two questions have been answered.

having pri’s decision be one that retains her agency is the strongest choice they could have made, but having ken spell out the answer for her, especially not even an episode after he gives her his advice, just feels bad, and it ends up feeling unearned since she’s given such little time to actually struggle with the question and deliberate on his advice or develop as a character before coming to the conclusion she does.

(tw: this section contains discussions of emotional manipulation and generally toxic behavior from a caretaker)

but that’s only two of three questions and now that the last two questions have been answered, we finally get to see the first question being explored — does pax know what’s best and should pri therefore listen to his instructions, allowing him to control what decisions she makes? during the battle camp, we learn that pax was forced to quit blading due to an injury and it was his dream to become a legend like valt. this, combined with previously revealed information as well as pax’s constant use of phrases like “our goal” and “our dream,” makes it clear that pri partially accepts the role of quadra for pax and this sets up another part to the first question: is it really ok that pri/quadra center her identity around a dream that isn’t completely her own? while she does have her own reasoning for wanting to battle, she wants to help pax in his goal to create the ultimate elemental bey which was the entire point of him making and having her use pandora, the mask and the quadra persona in the first place. it’s a driving force behind the question, as we see pri struggling between her want to do things her way and her want to make her brother happy and we constantly see them both grappling with the idea that if pax is happy, pri should be happy too because they're convinced that this is what they both want.

as the story continues, pax begins pushing even harder for pri to do things the way he wants. near the start of the battle camp, quadra uses lightning pandora when pax wants her to use tidal pandora. pax asks why and intuits it’s because of her loss to xander. he says that it doesn’t matter if she loses, everything is going according to “their” plan, and pri lashes out from her frustration that he won’t explain what the plan actually is and he snaps, yelling at her that she doesn’t need to understand everything going on and tells her to just do as he says and she hesitates for a moment before agreeing.

later, pax tries to get wakiya to withdraw pri from the tag-team tournament because he doesn’t like the possibility of bell influencing her. jiji gets pax to allow pri to continue participating in the tournament by showing how happy pri and bell are to be battling and says there’s no doubt the two will help make each other stronger. and while pax gives in, knowing he’d only come off as unreasonable had he protested further, it’s clear pax isn’t happy he wasn’t able to maintain full control of the conversation and therefore make the decision for pri. this scene is meant to show how pax thinks he knows what's best for pri and wants to convince not only pri but the people around her of that too.

later, during the tag-team tournament, pax convinces bell to try and win the next match all by himself and he loses the match for both himself and quadra. pri, having deduced that pax said something to provoke bell, confronts pax and he says pandora should be battling on its own and the tournament is a waste of time. this upsets pri greatly and she runs from him. this scene is meant to establish pri beginning to realize pax might not have her best interests in mind.

then, aiga shows up to hell’s gate and challenges pri and bell to a 2-on-1 battle, and if they win he’ll battle them both individually. before she makes a decision, she calls pax and he says she doesn’t have to accept any team battles she’s challenged to, but she retorts that aiga will battle her individually anyway if she and bell can win. pax, not-so-kindly, tells pri to do what she wants before hanging up. this is actually a common tactic of highly controlling and manipulative people where they basically say “you don’t need me, so do whatever and see what happens when I’m not there to tell you what to do,” usually under the guise of wanting what’s best for the victim so when something does go wrong, the victim feels obligated to go back to them. she battles aiga with bell and without her mask and they end up losing. everything pax has done so far has been to convince pri to give up her individuality for the sake of achieving “their” goal, and quadra losing this battle is exactly what pax wanted to happen so she’d feel obligated to listen to him.

after the first couple of rounds in the champion challenge tournament and the first individual battle is announced as kit vs quadra, pax confronts pri and tells her she must win against aiga and that everything will work out if she just listens to him and she once again agrees. during the match, wakiya and valt explain to aiga pax’s situation and valt posits that pri took up pandora and the identity of quadra to carry on pax’s dream of becoming a legend. aiga restates the thematic question, asking if that’s what quadra wants and explains that he couldn’t ever see himself blading for the sake of someone else’s dream. after quadra loses, pax confronts her and tells her pandora should have won and that the reason they lost was because quadra chose a flawed strategy. aiga goes out of his way to defy pax and tells quadra her strategy was perfect. he declares pax has no say in the matter because it wasn’t his battle to begin with, which of course offends pax. then later, quadra loses to valt, frustrating pax even further and cementing pax’s growing belief that pri does not have what it takes to achieve his goals as long as she has any say in what she does.

later, valt gets a call from shu about the ruins in england and valt plans to leave to see what’s going on. pri talks to pax, saying she knows he’s leaving for england too. she asserts that it has nothing to do with them or their plan but pax responds saying that he’ll be the one to decide that, a clear declaration to pri that he’s the one who knows what’s right. he goes on to tell her that there isn’t any reason pandora should lose to belial and that if she loses, the only explanation is that she’s the problem. pax then admits he doesn’t believe in pri and challenges her to prove to him that he should. while at the ruins, pax declares that “his” pandora is the only bey capable of reaching the highest level of elemental power and pri hopes he meant to say that pandora was both of theirs, again giving pri more reason to doubt pax. aiga approaches pri and tells her she’s her own person and she should do things the way she wants to and reassures her that pandora is her’s as well.

the next day, it’s announced that quadra and bell will battle to determine who will face kit in the finals. pax tells pri to use twister break against bell but pri says bell knows twister break because of how much they used it in the tag-team tournament. pax says it’s the perfect chance to master twister break so she can beat aiga and valt and that bell shouldn’t be of any concern. he reminds her that it’s “their” dream to create the ultimate bey and then reassures her that pandora is both of theirs. for the first two rounds of the battle, she listens to pax but ends up hesitating before the third round, causing pax to insult her and say that if it were him battling, he would have won. this causes quadra to break from pax's plan and battle her own way and while she ends up losing, she finds herself happy in spite of the outcome. at the end of the episode, pax confronts pri demanding she tell him why she broke from his plan when she would have won if she hadn’t. she finally asserts to pax that, even if he would have won, it doesn’t matter because she isn’t him, she is herself — pri and quadra. pax demands pri give back pandora, but before he can take it, bell stops him. pri then proclaims that she’s been the one making pandora stronger, not him, so pandora belongs to her.

(end trigger warning)

and so that’s a wrap on the first question and subsequently pri’s arc as a whole. this particular exploration of the theme was good. it wasn’t nearly as deep as it could have been and the last two questions should have been far more substantial parts of pri’s arc as they have just as much bearing on the outcome of the first question as all of the things in the story that seem more directly related to it. as stated before, it’s frustrating that the last two questions get answered so quickly and require so little struggle or introspection for pri to find the right conclusion for herself, but the conclusions she comes to are those that would be rewarding and feel great if they’d actually allowed pri to earn them. the third question was obviously the most prominent with a very decent build up, though there could have been far more emphasis placed on pri’s struggle with it. we know how much she cares for pax and wants to make him happy and we know she knows to do that she needs to do what he wants, but we also know how much pride she takes in being able to do things her own way and seeing her grappling with the two conflicting motivations is engaging and impactful, but we just don’t get enough of it.

with all this being said, we aren’t quite done with the theme of identity as it is also explored a bit with pax, which makes sense considering he’s as important as he is to pri’s arc dealing with the theme to begin with.

(tw: this section contains brief mentions of emotional manipulation and generally toxic behavior from a caretaker as well as mentions of an ableist trope)

the exploration of the theme of identity through pax is shown with how he projects his identity onto pri. after it’s revealed his injury barred him from blading any longer, we see in flashbacks how devastating it is to him as it was his dream to become a legendary blader like valt and shu and pri sees this too. it’s shown to us how close they are, and that beyblade has helped them bond and so the previously presented information that pax made pandora, the mask and the quadra identity for pri and the constant use of phrases like “our dream” makes it clear that pax has to some degree imparted parts of his identity onto pri so she can carry out his dream and she accepts it because she cares for him. as the story continues, it becomes even more clear how he takes advantage of this part of pri, constantly guilt-tripping her into listening to him by reminding her that this is “their” dream until it culminates in her snapping and asserting her own identity to his face. pax is a character who goes through a devastating loss, becoming disabled which forces him to give up on something massively important to him, something entwined with his sense of self and identity. losing something like that would make anybody feel completely lost, and with pax the grief results in him pushing that part of himself onto pri so he can live vicariously through her. the logical conclusion would then be to have part of his arc be about him finding a new sense of identity, one that doesn’t require pri to subjugate herself to him, but they don’t give him that at all. in the end, pax doesn’t need to do any sort of introspection or search for a new sense of identity because he is simply cured of his disability and he doesn’t have to face any consequences for how he treated pri.

(end trigger warning)

Grief

and that brings us to the second theme of quadstrike — grief. this theme is primarily explored through the main antagonist, pax forsythe, although pri has some part of it as well.

as stated before, it’s revealed pax goes through a devastating loss after his injury forces him give up on blading and his dreams and the loss causes him an immense amount of grief. throughout the season, we’re shown through flashbacks how he feels lost without this part of himself and then it’s revealed he finds out about elemental power. he is in denial that his dream is over and he sees elemental power as a means to give pri the power needed to carry on his dream and he becomes obsessed with it and achieving those goals vicariously through her. it also explains his admiration for shu while he was red eye, a time in shu’s life where he had obsessed over power so he could achieve the dreams he had been unable to previously.

later on, after he decides he has no need for pri any longer, he creates a new bey, some sort of mechanical brace for his injured arm, and a mask. the mask actually conceals the vision on his right side, making it so he can’t see his injured arm and during the lodestar battle tournament, shu explains to pri that when pax sees his injured arm, it causes him emotional pain, compounding how much his grief has affected him and showing the extent of his denial.

(tw: this paragraph contains a brief mention of an ableist trope)

and with all of this in mind, you’d think pax’s arc should have been about him learning to accept his disability and the things it prevents him from doing, beginning a long journey of healing, but that isn’t what happens (and, to be clear, that journey of healing wouldn’t have had to have happened during the show. sometimes the end to an arc marks the beginning of another that’s implied to happen after the end of the show, and arcs that end like this can be incredibly powerful). again, he doesn’t have to accept his loss and grief, he is simply cured of his disability. aside from the gross implications of this that I will get into later, it’s just such an awful way to end an arc. no introspection, no emotional compromise, no real consequences for his actions. he’s just handed a conclusion and the conclusion is everything he wants it to be so they can force in a “beyblade is fun, buy our products please” message instead. and it doesn’t end there.

(end trigger warning)

with pri, we're shown how she sees pax grieving for this loss and how it affects their relationship. they’re no longer able to bond through beyblade the way they were able to before and pax can no longer find happiness and meaning through beyblade in the way he wants, which of course hurts pri. she cares for him and so she does what she genuinely believes will help him heal, taking up the identity of quadra and his goal to create the ultimate elemental bey and become a legendary blader for him. through her, we get to see the way grief impacts the people around the grieving person as well.

we know she eventually breaks away from his control, or at least that’s how it starts out. of course after what happens between pri and pax, pri would be going through grief herself. she denies to herself that pax just doesn’t care about her now that she’s asserted her own identity and this could have been taken in several interesting directions, but they simply go for the worst option imaginable. they have her continue to orbit around pax, every decision she makes from this point forward being for him, completely undermining her original arc and practically abandoning this second one. there is no introspection or closure and the only compromise is them compromising her entire character arc.

quadstrike starts out so strong with this theme so I have genuinely no idea how they ended up fucking it up so unbelievably badly. and the mishandling of themes isn’t the only reason quadstrike’s story feels like it lacks much substance.

Characters

quadstrike’s use of its characters for its story manages to be impressively refreshing at times, disappointingly safe and boring at others, and infuriatingly incompetent at its worst.

first, let’s talk about the secondary characters. this part of the cast doesn't really have anything all too interesting going on, which is understandable. they’re there for the purpose of serving the plot and the main characters’ narratives and they fulfill those roles perfectly competently. that doesn’t mean they couldn’t have been more interesting, but what we got wasn’t bad. a lot of the issues of shallow character-writing with most of the returning characters are things that are rooted in characterization from past seasons, and at this point you can’t really change that without either dedicating way too much time to characters that just aren’t meant to be all that important in this season or completely retconning parts of those prior seasons. if this season had been 51 episodes, maybe we could have gotten some of the former as well as more time to flesh out other parts of the plot and story, but that just wasn’t ever going to be in the cards for quadstrike.

Bell

now let’s get into the protagonists. between bell and pri, bell is very clearly the weaker character and it’s not a close competition. while pri’s arc is written to develop a theme as well as to explore her as a character, bell isn’t given an arc at all. well, ok, he gets an “arc” where the conclusion is just for him to upgrade his beyblade again so hasbro has more product to sell and it’s frustrating because they get so close to doing something actually interesting with his character.

throughout the season, bell loses. a lot. yes, he wins a lot too and a large portion of them are not deserved, but he actually does lose more than he wins. in episode 12 in particular, he’s provoked by pax to try and win the tag team battle with pri against hikaru and hyuga by himself. being an egotistical 10 year old, he falls for it and ends up losing the match for himself and quadra. while this moment is mostly used to further pri and pax’s story, bell is shown to be massively affected by this loss, at least at first. but of course, he couldn’t care less after the next episode begins. then, after bell loses the title match against aiga, he’s shown once again to feel incredibly upset and frustrated with the loss, but he simply gets over it immediately when he decides the solution is to evolve belial. and before any of this, bell loses to several other opponents as well, but only ever seems to be shaken by it a minimal amount if at all.

the reason I bring any of this up is because I think it’s such a wasted opportunity. bell loses so much and if they’d leaned harder into bell’s frustration with losing so many battles (and honestly if they’d had him lose more, like his final battle against ken and/or his second solo battle with hyuga) then they could’ve had an actual arc for him. like, have him get super upset and angry with himself that he keeps losing and maybe have him push too hard and end up breaking belial. that’d even give them an excuse to have him evolve belial. yes it would be a very similar arc to aiga in cho-z but at least it’d be SOMETHING. obviously this is only a single idea for the direction they could’ve taken and I have absolutely zero doubt any of you in the audience could come up with something more interesting than what ended up happening in the show.

that aside, bell was mostly just his usual over-confident and obnoxious 10-year old self committing acts of sillay mischief (which to many of you might be a negative but I love him and I like it when he’s obnoxious so this was a win for me<3).

Pri

on the other hand, pri was a very strong character for the vast majority of the show and was easily the highlight of the entire season. when it comes to her characterization, I found her to be very enjoyable. she’s kind and incredibly passionate and boisterous and playful but she tries to put on a cooler outward appearance in front of other bladers which she often fails at because of her hot-headed and stubborn nature. she’s caring but prideful which often ends up causing conflict between her and pax since she cares about making her brother happy by doing what he wants but she can’t help but disobey at times because she takes pride in doing things her way. her cocky demeanor in the beginning is par for the course with burst characters, but it becoming more and more a mask (haha, get it) for her decreasing self-confidence as the story went on was a level of depth I hadn’t expected to see in a new burst character at this point in the series. because of all of this, her dynamics with other characters, especially bell, are so much fun and it was an absolute joy to see her relationships with the rest of the cast and it was always fun to see her getting silly with it.

unlike bell, she was written with an arc in mind and the arc in question was pretty good for the majority of the show’s runtime. as stated previously, it wasn’t nearly as deep as it could have been but by burst standards, it was a massive breath of fresh air. seeing pri make decisions that retained her agency felt good and the moment when she stood up to pax and asserted her own identity was great.

so yeah, it sucks how they then managed to drop the ball as hard as they did right at the finish line. having pri be in denial about pax’s behavior towards her is fine, but they never give her the moment of realization she deserves. she never leaves him despite what he’s done and every decision she makes after standing up to him continues to be for him, which is such a monumental moon-jump backwards from the incredibly strong writing they’d done for her before. her identity once again becomes centered around pax and it is infuriating to watch play out, like literally what was the point of her asserting her own identity if this was what was going to happen afterwards. it’s like they just decided to completely drop everything interesting about her after her moment in the spotlight (a very familiar problem they seem to have with every strong girl character in this series hmmmmmmmm 🤔.)

Pax

(tw: this section contains discussion of an ableist trope)

and pax. oh boy what to say about pax. well, first and foremost his arc started out as another one of the best in the season. which isn’t really saying that much when there’s only two other arcs and one of those arcs concludes with the character just making more beyblade products, but still. but then they managed to blow it so fucking hard at the end that it easily became the worst of the three.

the setup for his arc centering around his grief and lost sense of identity was good, and the build-up throughout the season was even better. his motivations were understandable, but it became increasingly clear just how unhealthy his obsession with holding onto his dream was, not just for himself, but for pri especially. you want him to accept his disability and what it prevents him from doing so he can finally heal and find something else to live for and you really want him to see that what he’s doing is wrong and for him to apologize to pri. so why does none of this happen and instead he just has his disability cured.

ok, let me make something super clear here. this is a disgustingly and infuriatingly ableist conclusion to a disabled character's arc. pax’s entire arc centers around how he has to give up on his dream because of his disability, a common reality for disabled people in real life. it is an absolutely devastating thing to go through, but something disabled people stress is the importance of coming to terms with their disability so they can find some semblance of peace and continue living their lives to the best of their ability. there is no cure for disability in real life and every attempt to do so has resulted in failure at best and outright eugenics and genocide at worst, and so disabled people have made it clear that the “cured disability” narrative commonly seen in fantasy and sci-fi settings is a harmful trope. in some stories, it’s used as a “reward” for the hero, while in others it’s used as a copout so the creators don’t have to deal with having a disabled character or so the previously disabled character can have a happy ending. curing their disability is used as a conclusion to an arc because able-bodied writers cannot for the life of them imagine a character living a happy life with a disability and that’s very much what it’s used for here. from the beginning, I was hoping so so much that they weren’t going to do this, and I’d gotten my hopes up because of their surprisingly deep and empathetic handling of pri and pax’s characters for most of the season, but they went for the easy option resulting in an insulting and vile conclusion to an otherwise great arc.

(end trigger warning)

pax is, however, a great antagonist. as obvious as it may be to the audience, in the story it starts out pretty ambiguous what exactly his role is meant to be in the season, but as the season goes on, his mask begins to slip and his sinister personality becomes more apparent. this is actually a somewhat common trope with antagonists in the burst series, but pax stands out due to the fact that he isn’t even a blader until the last few episodes in the season. most of his time is spent as a coach to pri, using manipulation as his main weapon rather than a beyblade. again, not necessarily completely unique to him but it feels more present and impactful in this season due to his deep history and close ties to one of the main protagonists.

let me elaborate a bit: with drum and gwyn, the slow reveal of gwyn’s manipulation doesn’t feel as significant because, throughout the season, drum isn’t only naive to gwyn’s ulterior motives, but to literally every stranger he meets. we know he isn’t going to see it until it’s too late and we know at the end he’s going to win gwyn over with the power of friendship and beyblades. additionally, he has no previous relationship with gwyn either, so there's no reason to be invested or feel impacted when it happens.

with pri and pax, however, we see that they have a close familial relationship. pri’s trust in pax isn’t just her being naive by nature, it’s because she cares for him and has little reason to do otherwise. yes, she disobeys him early on, but it’s not out of a sense of distrust for him, but because of her own pride. and it’s not that pax just straight up doesn’t care about pri at all, he has thoroughly convinced himself that what he wants is what pri wants too. so as the story unfolds and pax’s selfish, controlling, and manipulative behavior comes through, it has a far more obvious impact on pri and therefore the audience too, and it creates a stronger reason to be invested in the developing story around their relationship.

and speaking of that story, it is easily one of the most interesting aspects of the entire season. pax’s descent and the slowburn reveal that he’s only interested in his own goals and happiness once pri has made it clear she doesn’t want exactly what pax does is paced so well and feels genuinely devastating. which makes it even more frustrating when they fuck it up right at the end. again. one part of this has to do with what I discussed about pri’s arc before. the fact they never give her a moment of realization means the break in their relationship is completely one-sided, which makes any realization pax has about what he’s done/is doing way less impactful. and then the fact he doesn’t even really have that realization, but instead realizes that “beyblade is fun,” a conclusion to an arc that pax never has, is just. what. and then on top of that, the fact he realizes this because of bell instead of pri??? there’s no real closure between them, everything is just fixed all of a sudden at the end. it just feels awful and it makes it clear that the only reason they never had pri leave pax was so they could minimize pri’s writing at the end and have bell fix everything and it is, once again, rage-inducing to watch.

and all of this — quadstrike’s unwillingness to dig deeper into its themes, its baffling mishandling of said themes and its characters, and insistence on derailing every interesting part of its story for a “beyblade is fun, please buy our products” message at the end (a message they could have easily ended with without throwing out every character arc and theme they’d established) — is why quadstrike struggles to be anything more than an advertisement. it’s a story about kids running around playing with highly marketable toys that seems to desperately want to be about a pair of siblings grappling with grief and their own identities after having experienced loss, but can’t be that because the toys need to get advertised.

Conclusion

so yeah. I enjoyed it. ok I know after how harsh I’ve been, you might be a bit confused. let me be clear: I don’t “like” quadstrike. in fact, I fucking hate it. I hate its unwillingness to defy its status as “just a children’s toy anime,” I hate what it represents as a symbol of the compromise and degradation of story-telling as an artform and art as a form of story-telling for the sake of corporate marketing, I hate how it comes so. SO close. to being something more than what it was expected to be just to fall short right at the end. I hate it!

but I also can’t help but love it. I love this series. I love the characters and their stories. I love the ridiculous and stupid shit that happens to and because of them. I love their relationships and dynamics with each other. it’s all so much fun and they all mean a lot to me, which is why I’m so hard on the burst series whenever it fucks it up. because I see so much potential in what’s here and seeing it be wasted constantly, over and over again, hurts. I know beyblade is a kid’s show and none of this is to say that it can't just be dumb fun, but the problem is when it clearly wants to do something more but ends up compromising out of fear, and I can recognize the parts of it that don’t treat its audience like idiots whose sole purpose is to be marketed to and I just wish it would wholeheartedly embrace that part of itself. I want kids to see stories about trauma, identity, grief, communication, etc. because these are real world things that kids are dealing with and are going to deal with for the rest of their lives and they deserve quality stories and art that teach them about these human things and about being human just as much as anyone else. so that's why I ask: why can’t it be that. when it constantly comes so close, why can't it just hit the mark once and be something more than a marketing trick. just once, why can't it be a piece of art instead of a piece of advertising.

with all that said, if I ever decide to do a rewatch of the burst series, you can be sure I'll only be watching quadstrike through episode 19 and then making up the rest in my head, and if you're wanting to watch the season too I'd suggest you do the same.

[uselessheretic]

weighing in on the "should you interact with anti izzy posts or not" because i love to talk to myself:

i don't think it's a black and white thing tbh. more than anything, i think people should seriously examine their motivations for responding to hateful posts in that at times it can be a bit self harming. especially if you find yourself seeking out conflict, or are spending more time in fandom responding to negativity rather than doing things that make you happy.

one thing i think izzy fans do well is maintain a balance of ensuring their fandom experience is predominantly focused on things that spark joy. which happens to mostly be sexualizing that old man. for a lot of izzy stans, if you scroll through their twitter/tumblr, it'll be more about liking him as a character than generic izcourse. when it comes to izzy discourse, it kinda has flashes across izzy side of fandom where people respond in short bursts before largely just moving on. can't say the same about izzy haters.

when it comes to responding to things, i largely think there's not a point in direct interaction, however, i wouldn't say it's completely without merit. sometimes i'll respond to long "meta" in the izzy tag literally just because if i have to see your bullshit take then you have to deal with mine as well. that's the tradeoff for being obnoxious in the izzy tag.

i think there can be value in correcting misinformation or refusing to allow the narrative to be controlled completely by izzy haters. "here's why izzy is racist" is annoying and i don't think the main people perpetuating this will ever admit they're wrong. Still, at the same time a lot of these posts are full of misinformation. this misinfo gets parroted throughout fandom and that's bad. "donkey is a slur against polynesians" is a good example. it's not. that was made up on tumblr. every polynesian person i've ever seen comment on this has all said that they have never encountered this as a slur irl. find me a single source outside of tumblr that says "donkey is a slur against polynesians" for fucking real.

the issue with this though is what constitutes as harassment. disagreement doesn't equate to harassment. responding to someone's meta isn't harassment. izzy haters purposefully position disagreement against them as harassment and instances of bigoted behavior. i remember someone once listing an example of how izzy stans are racist as "made fun of a post about how izzy is homophobic." the poster was white. the person who made fun of it was me, a black fan. this isn't racism. at most this is me being a bitch.

i don't think that necessarily means that you should never interact, disagree, vague, or screencap random bullshit. i do think you need to be intentional as well as firm. it will only harm you more if you concede to allowing people to describe your actions as abusive when you know for a fact that they are not. words like harassment, racism, homophobia, stalking, abuse, etc all have meaning. they have definitions and while there can be gray areas when it comes to certain things, the limitations for what constitutes as abusive does not change just because you've arbitrarily decided that you are the good guy in this interaction.

overall, i think there can be times when having conversation, even ones of disagreement, has value. i don't think everybody with a shitty opinion is a malicious actor who needs to be discarded immediately. that said, there are groups in fandom who have demonstrated time and time again to have zero ability to self reflect and are overall narcissistic, self obsessed, navel gazing folks deadset on defending their ignorance to the death. there isn't any use in direct engagement. all it does is feed a perpetual victim mentality and gives them the attention they so desperately crave.

also? while we're here? keep receipts. i'm not even joking. screencap shit when you do have a direct confrontation. if you criticize someone's meta make sure you have their exact words. when someone insults you keep that on hand. people straight up lie on here and when they do shit like say "izzy bought ed as a slave" or "you can go send izzy stans hate for all i care" or "i'm not being passive aggressive, i'm being aggressive" hold them to that. if not for any other reason other than the fact that it's kinda funny watching them lie on their mother that they never actually said this and clearly this was a misinterpretation that only occurred because they are 12 years old and super sleepy when they wrote this and didn't actually mean it like that :((

[god-motherofthegulf]

Lisette Background and Headcannons

Background:

After being created for Lois Duncan, princess of the Mafia, she sat lifeless for quite some time, observing the world around her.

Until one day- mysteriously- Lisette gained consciousness, and an ability.

Lisette learned about the world from Lois and Charles- the godfather and Lois's father- and made herself into the perfect soldier, protecting the family that showed her kindness and life and love.

Eventually she craved more- to discover her own soul and her own humanity, and left to find that purpose.

While her journey was eye-opening she found herself missing her family, her father, her sister. None of those by blood, but important like no one else ever had been.

She returned to her father being lowered into the ground, having succumbed to illness, and her sister in a state of depression that seemed almost irreparable.

The empire their father worked hard to maintain quickly fell as Lisette and Lois stepped back go care for each other and grieve.

Lois stepped back from the mafia and Lisette stepped up- vowing to rebuild the mafia in the name of her father's legacy and to protect her sister in any way possible.

~~~~

Headcannons!!

adopts anyone, everyones mother

loves a good glass of wine after eating before bed

loves being on the river or by the river

only listens to Lois

Well trained with firearms are hand to hand

not as good with knives

Very well respected

Seems cold and aloof to her enemies but is just a sweet southern lady to civilians and her subordinates

Zero tolerance for traitors.

She's always been with the mafia so she knows everything there is to know about it

Wears lots of jewelry, one is a necklace for her father (he was heavily religious so it's a cross. This is not because she is religious but because she wants to remember her father. She is atheist)

another thing is a ring signaling her position in the Mafia

food as a love language- when you go to her for comfort she makes a fresh cup of coffee and either makes some bengeits or give you a piece of cake that she most likely baked herself

went through a "dark era" for a while when first taking over the mafia and trying to gain respect- she was even more ruthless and cold to everyone but Lois

Her father definetly wasn't the best dad. He tried, he cared a lot- but when one of youre trying to balance running a sucessful mafia with an iron fist and raise two girls it gets complicated

Lisette was not exactly raised as a daughter but more of a weapon

she choses to ignore these things and live with the memory of her father that Lois carries- she doesn't want to be filled with that resentment again

part of the reason she left was because of this underlying resentment

(this is short rn but imma add more as I go)

[ainyan]

A Headcanon

I don’t know why, but I feel the urge to share my Thancred headcanon about his eyes. It’s purely a personal headcanon; there’s nothing in game at all to back up my thoughts. But since the issue in question is completely unexplored in the actual game - well, I decided that I would explore it a little in my fics. And it grew from there.

Please note, this is my personal headcanon. I don’t expect any of you to adopt it. I’m happy to talk about it but I’m not going to argue why it’s the ‘right’ headcanon, because it’s not. There’s nothing in the official canon to support it - there’s just nothing in the official canon to refute it, so I still hold it true for my personal AU. 🙂

Anyway.

In Heavensward, Thancred returns to us with an eye-patch. We learn nothing of why he has the eyepatch, only that it ‘doesn’t bother him’ in his words. When Krile and Thancred go to Castrum Centri to get a bead on Minfilia and he has to go without his eyepatch, we see that Thancred’s eye is the same pale crystal as Y’shtola’s eyes, colorless and blind.

In Heavensward, we also learn that Thancred no longer has the ability to touch his aether. He still has aether - he’s a living creature with a soul - but the fundamental part of him that allowed him to access, use, and share his aether has been irreparably damaged, and he can no longer use any abilities which require aether - including teleport.

Y’shtola actively accommodates for her blindness by utilizing aethersight, a dangerous method by which she uses the ambient aether around her to ‘see’. We learn from her conversation with Matoya that this is dangerous and that it drains one’s life-force - but Y’shtola considers this a fair price to pay.

I believe that Thancred is similarly impaired - blind in his left eye - but due to the shock of being forced into the Lifestream against his will and being just as quickly and forcibly ejected afterwards, his body was not able to adjust to the changes caused by whatever wild aether caused his infirmity. In response, his body/soul shunted his aether solely to maintaining his sight in his damaged eye - but because it couldn’t give back actual sight, it gave back a form of aethersight instead.

The reason Thancred keeps his eye covered is in part because he finds the half-real sight, half-aethersight visually disturbing. He can see everything almost as well as he had been able to previously, but everything is overlaid with a sheen of aether. To make matters worse, unlike Y’shtola, who sees aether in differences of brightness - the stronger the aether, the brighter it is in her sight - Thancred sees aether in shades of color.

For instance, he sees Urianger as a normal Elezen male, but floating just under his skin he sees a sheen of liquid gold, translucent and indistinct but identifiable as ‘Urianger’. Because he’s only seeing this with one eye, it causes a visual distortion that upsets his stomach and throws him off balance, so he wears his eyepatch at all times in order to prevent his aethersight from distracting him at a crucial moment.

I also believe that their time together in the Lifestream bound Y’shtola and Thancred together; part of the reason she may be able to risk using her aethersight the way she does is because her connection to the rogue is helping stave off the worst of the effects by shunting some of the burden through him, effectively halving the effect. I like to headcanon this part because it explains why the game mentions that she’s playing a dangerous game using her aethersight and then never addresses it again, despite the fact that she’s used Flow again, she uses powerful magics without regard for the strain on her own aether, and she willingly shares her aether with Zero. She knows that some of the burden is taken up by Thancred, and that as long as he can’t access his aether, her own strain is halved and there’s very little placed on him. (I also headcanon this because I just really like the idea of someone having a connection to Thancred while he’s off in the wilderness playing spy, and being able to keep an eye on him no matter what.)

Anyway, I digress.

In Shadowbringers, we see that Thancred is once more using both of his eyes, but now instead of one being agate and one being crystal, they are both the color of citrines, a pale brown/gold. In my headcanon, when his soul was removed from his body, it evened out the discrepancies between his two eyes, so that instead of being blind in one eye, he can see with reduced clarity out of both eyes - but his aether is still being shunted to accommodate for his disability by giving him continued aethersight.

Now, instead of seeing an aura of color from only one eye, he can see a faint film with both, just a light wash of hue within the flesh, shining through the skin and tinting everyone with the color of their aether. He’s learned how to utilize this to his benefit, as he can use it to see people or creatures with souls from afar, identify sin eaters at a glance or from a distance, watch for tails or spies, and determine who someone is without actually being able to see their face. In certain circumstances, he can even identify people through cover, such as when hidden in bushes or shadows.

He never talks about it because he doesn’t want anyone to know that he has any disability, even one he’s managed to turn into a gift. He also doesn’t want to invite too much speculation about what he sees and how he sees it; both he and Y’shtola worry that if anyone probes too much into his aether-block that they might upset whatever it is that allows him to see in the first place - and it might disrupt whatever it is that keeps them tied together and helps Y’shtola fend off the ill-effects of her aethersight.

So that's my headcanon, which you've seen drabbles of in my writing. Thancred can see the color of souls, but the souls of most people are very faint and translucent, and so they just appear as a very faint sheen of color under the skin. Ascian souls look much richer to him, while Kal'istae is many shades of blue (even more after Shadowbringers) and G'raha's is a few vibrant shades of red.

[quirkwizard]

Could a Quirk that allows its user to replicate other Quirks but with a fire/heat twist work? For instance, if they copied Kaminari's Electrification Quirk, they would generate electrical currents that burn like fire. If the user copied Rei Todoroki's Frost Quirk, their ice would burn like fire, inflicting scorching pain on contact. Would this Quirk require any adjustments to maintain balance? What would be a suitable name?

Transformers Targetmaster Quirk. The user touches someone with all five fingers and the user gets a gun based around them and their Quirk. (Uraraka for example would be shades of pink with some extremely dark blue). They wouldn't fire bullets, rather whatever corresponds to their Quirk (Uraraka would fire a beam that temporarily removes one's gravity). Does not work on Quirkless people or anyone actively against the user.

Doing these together since they have such similar issues.

I really don't think that either of these ideas could work. The issue with changing any kind of Quirk is that you basically have to make it a new power. Not only odes it raise a bunch of questions of how it works, but it raises balance issues as well. Like how do you rebalance something like "Overhaul" into a ranged option? How do change "Zero Gravity" so it makes sense as a fire ability? I would suggest going with different ideas. At most, maybe a weak option that can take facets from other Quirks, like what I did with "Shields Up".

[syrupspinner]

i just beat godstrike

the uh. the real banner didnt wanna copy paste so i had to improvise

this is one of those games that i bought in a fanatical bundle and just never bothered touching. this was just a vehicle to get wall world or affogato for cheaper. but, like... this is actually pretty good?

so the main genre is twin-stick shooter boss rush. you get free movement to dodge attacks while trying to keep your stream of bullets on the boss. the design is very bullet hell, which isnt my favorite genre but i think it was actually done really well here. i mean, the last thing youd want is your target bouncing off the walls, so its good that theyre not always moving around doing melee shit

the main gimmick is a timer. you start each fight with a few minutes, and you get a -15 second deduction whenever you get hit. once the timer reaches zero, youre put into one-hit-kill mode. this is... awesome? like this is really well done. i wanna compare it to furi, where the encounters are way longer and youre encouraged to play defensively by dodging to maintain your health and parrying to restore some of it. with godstrike, theres like a built-in balance system. you could play defensively and protect your health, but being careful takes time anyway. being more aggressive risks getting hit, but since the playstyle saves time, its a really natural trade-off that caters to either play style

theres also an ability system! active abilities and passive buffs. since actives reduce your starting timer, i went with only 2 out of the max of four: the quad-shot and the rapid fire. get in close and pop both at once and you shred through motherfuckers

if i had to complain, id say that not all of the attacks are telegraphed the best. sometimes theyll just start streaming bullets outta nowhere, and since i have a very close-quarters playstyle that really screws me over. i acknowledge that this is a trade off of the play style, being close to your enemy is inherently risky, but i still think itd be nice if there was maybe a second-ish where they visually charge up. that said, getting hit isnt run-ending, and the phases are brief enough that its easy to just memorize what they can do and keep an eye out for it. its really easy to intuit the pause between attacks after like, your second attempt

this is all pretty ignorable until the final boss, garodal. firstly, this boss commits the cardinal sin of enjoyability where the first three phases are piss-easy by your third try, but the final phase is the actual part you struggle with. good luck practising those patterns with 4 minutes of preamble every time. also watch out for him teleporting behind you and shooting a spread of bullets wider than you can strafe, also watch out for him teleporting behind you and attacking with a range wider than you can strafe, and whatever you do dont get hit by his shitty beam attack because since you dont have invincibility frames youll take damage four times from a single mistake (unless you just happen to be standing where he starts shooting, which isnt your fault but still warrents punishment i guess). these are all things games do when theyre fun and i like them.

yeah i switched to easy mode for this, and this did nothing but further convince me its bullshit because it did nothing to make the attacks less cheap. ive got a creed where if a game expects something from me, i expect the same thing from it. thats why if i perfect a game, thats a huge compliment (or its just hella easy). this is one of those games thats fun to try out, but it has too many flaws to justify investing the effort into improving my gameplay to the levels its asking for.

so yeah, for the most part, i was really surprised by this game, first by how good it was and then by how shit the final boss was. note to prospective devs, go back and work harder on your final boss. ive beaten like five games in a row that fumble the landing and leave an awful impression as a result.

again, be warned that its very difficult, but if youve got the fingers for that kinda thing then you should totally check it out. like, wow its hard. it took like an hour and a half for me to beat cindael, what the fuck are those rpgmaker hitboxes. its niche but its cheap so just try it

oh wait yeah i think there was a plot or something. uh youre the mask guy and theres other ones so now you do the fight thing okay bye

[sdrgerhe]

what is silk pillowcase

Pillows are our most important sleep companions. However, many people ignore the role of pillowcases. A high-quality silk pillowcase will greatly improve your sleep quality.But many people, have no idea what is a silk pillowcase. Therefore, I specially wrote this article about what is a silk pillowcase for beginners to help them, but what is silk pillowcases and why do many people like to buy silk pillowcases? Do they really have magical powers? Follow our blog today to find out the answers!what is a silk pillowcase?

So silk pillowcases are totally having a moment right now. But what even is silk? Great question. Silk is a super smooth, luxurious fabric that's made from the fibers produced by silkworms (yep, like the little worries that spin into cocoons). The fibers they spin are crazy shiny and soft - nothing else really compares.But not all silk is created equal. After my constant purchases, I found that a high-quality silk pillowcase should meet the following conditions: First, a high silk content - more than 75% is the best. More silk = smoother result. Even color and shine matter - you want a beautiful shine. It should leave your skin feeling very soft and smooth with zero friction. The fabric itself needs to be durable and weigh at least 19 mm (a measure of density).So why do we spend more money on silk pillowcases? Because silk pillowcases have so many advantages, many friends may not know about them yet, but don’t worry, we will explain them to you in detail below.

Why is sleeping on a silk pillow good for your hair?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgcextYEhuMMany people use silk pillowcases because they believe it keeps their hair intact. Why are silk pillowcases really so effective? Let me tell you why they are so effective for your hairI have recently begun using silk pillowcases. Although they are now trendy, I am uncertain if they truly live up to the excessive praise they receive. However, I must inform you that after utilizing my just-acquired mulberry silk pillowcase for a duration of several weeks, I am completely convinced of its merits.The real game-changer is that silk interacts with hair differently than a regular cotton pillowcase. Get this—cotton can actually create static and friction in your strands, causing tangles, frizz, and even breakage overnight! Not cute. Silk, on the other hand, has natural properties that allow your hair to glide smoothly through it, rather than grabbing and pulling at the fabric.do not trust me? Try this - take a comb, comb your hair vigorously, and hold it close to the small piece of paper. Watch them fly towards the comb! This is the static electricity that is being generated. Now do the same with the silk pillowcase. See the difference? The paper stays put because silk doesn't cause the same build-up of static charge.In addition to eliminating static electricity, silk has other benefits. Less friction means less middle-of-the-night tugging on your fragile strands. Also, silk becomes smoother over time, while cotton becomes rougher after multiple washes. Add in the moisture-balancing power of silk, and you've got a winning secret to hydrated, shiny, smooth hair in the AMFurthermore, silk's natural temperature-regulating abilities can also benefit your hair. The fiber's ability to absorb and release moisture as needed helps to maintain a consistent environment around your head, preventing excessive dryness or humidity that can lead to frizz and static.But, not all silks are created equal—if you really want the hair benefits of your dreams, you've got to invest in the good stuff. Buy 100% mulberry silk in high thread count and mom weight (silk density). Generally, I recommend buying top brands like muriersilk, Fishers Finery, and Brooklinen, trust me, your hair will thank you!

Are there different grades/qualities of silk for pillowcases?

Words like "mulberry silk" and "momme weight" will pop up when you research silk pillowcases. Therefore, are there certain types of silk that work better than others as pillowcases? Without a doubt! It's time to examine the distinctions.The Gold Standard �� Mulberry Silk The premier standard is long-strand mulberry silk, harvested from silkworms fed a strict diet of...you guessed it...mulberry leaves!This top-tier mulberry silk is like nature's litmus test for premium fabric. It has that supple, fluid drape that just oozes luxury. And the benefits don't stop there! When shopping for dreamy silk sheets, soft silk scrunchies, or a pillowcase to pamper your skin and hair - you gotta go mulberry.Here's why: Mulberry silkworms spin silk that's free of irregularities, knots, and weak spots. It's uniformly thick from end to end. That makes mulberry silk sheets and pillowcases ultra smooth with an unbelievable hand feel. The strength and elasticity prevent tears, fraying, and damage over time. Durable glamour - yes, please!Weighing the Momme Momme represents the weight and overall quality of silk fabric. The higher the momme, the heavier and more durable the silk. For long-lasting pillowcases, aim for at least 19 momme weight, but ideally 25 momme and above. Momme quality standards were developed by Japan, today's largest silk producer.Thread Count Counts Too Thread count indicates silk fabric density. Standard silk thread counts average around 400. While higher counts of 600-800 boast enhanced softness and vibrancy, the increase doesn't justify exponentially higher costs in a pillowcase application. Read the full article

[medicinemane]

I think it really is important that we someday take a look at copyright and like... make it not suck total ass (and that the we doing that maybe shouldn't be ancient politicians who are totally out of touch with the world... cause that's how you get the DMCA)

I'll tell you my personal goals here, my goals are that small creators have the ability to maintain control of their works and not have other people make money off their ideas. I mean to be clear, if I could think how to write the law in a way where small creators had unlimited right and massive corporations had zero rights, that wouldn't be a flaw to me, that would be a benefit

(Though always with stuff like that, I'm well aware of the idea of a company just making a bunch of sock puppet subsidiaries or something like that... like tumblr musings do not make good legal documents, they tend not to look for loopholes more being broadstrokes)

Second goal, is actually in line with copyright's stated goal, of that I want to support creativity rather than stifle it. So that does mean acknowledging that with my first point, maybe you still have to secure some right for the massive corporations so they actually bother continuing to fund creative works... it's just a matter of thinking they shouldn't have such a stranglehold

Cause here we come to my real point, which is that... you look at the massive crossovers that something like MCU or fortnite have, or you look at a soundtrack like Guardians of the Galaxy, and what you're really seeing is a lot of money changing hands with licensing deals

It's literally impossible for a small creator to afford to do that. The best you're going to get is someone doing stuff fair use, like Shag and Scoob, but they aren't gonna be able to monetize it the same way

So my real argument in the end boils down to that I think we need to find a balance on things like letting people use other characters, particularly from multi million dollar franchises, while making sure that people or companies can't just scrape someone's OC and use it for their own purposes

(Not even touching on the sheer insanity of the music industry that uses copyright like a cudgel)

So that's my general thoughts, and you can see why there's nothing actionable here, but that's the direction I'd like to see

I will settle though, for copyright updates that replace the DMCA with something not totally out of touch and massively favoring the music industry in particular

[madeforscale]

Key Terms for Entrepreneurs and Business Leaders

A

Accelerator: A program that provides support and resources to early-stage startups.

Angel investor: An individual who invests their own money in startups.

B

Bootstrapping: The process of starting and running a business without outside funding.

Business model: A plan for how a business will generate revenue and profit.

C

Customer acquisition cost (CAC): The cost of acquiring a new customer.

Customer lifetime value (CLTV): The total revenue that a business can expect to generate from a customer throughout their relationship.

D

Disruptive innovation: A new product or service that radically changes an existing market.

E

Exit: The process of selling a business or taking it public.

F

Fundraising: The process of raising money from investors to finance a business.

G

Growth hack: A creative and low-cost marketing strategy to rapidly grow a business.

H

High growth firm: A company that is growing at a much faster rate than the overall market.

I

Incubator: A program that provides support and resources to early-stage startups in a shared space.

J

Joint venture: A partnership between two or more businesses.

K

Key performance indicators (KPIs): Measurable values that are used to track a business's progress towards its goals.

L

Lean startup: A methodology for developing and launching products quickly and efficiently.

M

Minimum viable product (MVP): A product with the core features and functionality necessary to gather customer feedback and validate the business model.

N

Non-disclosure agreement (NDA): A legal contract that protects confidential information

O

Onboarding:The process of introducing new customers to a product or service.

P

Pitch deck: A presentation that entrepreneurs use to introduce their business to investors.

Pivot: A change in a business's strategy or product offering.

Q

Qualification: The process of identifying potential customers who are a good fit for a product or service.

R

Revenue model: A plan for how a business will generate revenue.

S

Scaleup: A company that is rapidly expanding its operations.

Seed funding: The initial round of funding for a startup.

Series funding: Subsequent rounds of funding for a startup.

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): Businesses with fewer than 250 employees.

Startups: New businesses that are typically in the early stages of growth.

T

Traction: Evidence of customer demand for a product or service.

U

Unicorn: A privately held startup with a valuation of over $1 billion.

 V

Venture capital: A type of private equity investment that is typically used to finance high-growth startups.

W

Work-life balance: The ability to maintain a healthy balance between work and personal life.

X

X factor: The unique qualities or advantages that give a startup a competitive edge.

 Y

Year-over-year (YoY) growth:The rate of growth compared to the previous year.

Z

Zero-to-one: The process of starting a business from scratch.

A scaling coach can help startups and scaleups in a number of ways, including:

Developing a growth strategy: A scaling coach can help you develop a strategic plan for how to achieve your growth goals. This may include identifying your target market, developing a competitive advantage, and creating a go-to-market strategy.

Implementing growth strategies: Once you have a growth strategy in place, a scaling coach can help you implement it effectively. This may involve developing and executing marketing campaigns, building sales teams, and managing customer relationships.

Overcoming growth challenges: As your business grows, you will inevitably face challenges. A scaling coach can help you identify and overcome these challenges, so you can stay on track to achieve your goals.

Providing mentorship and support: A scaling coach can provide you with the mentorship and support you need to succeed as an entrepreneur. This may include helping you develop your leadership skills, make difficult decisions, and stay motivated.

how a scaling coach can help startups and scaleups?

Scale up

A scaling coach can help you develop a plan to scale your business operations, such as hiring new employees, expanding to new markets, and developing new products and services.

A scaling coach can help you build a strong team of leaders and managers who can support your growth.

A scaling coach can help you develop and implement systems and processes to manage your growing business.

Start up

A scaling coach can help you develop and validate your business model.

A scaling coach can help you secure funding from investors.

A scaling coach can help you build a brand and launch your product or service.

High growth firm

A scaling coach can help you maintain your high growth rate and avoid common pitfalls.

A scaling coach can help you develop a plan to scale your business internationally.

A scaling coach can help you prepare for an exit, such as being acquired by another company or going public.

SMEs

A scaling coach can help SMEs develop and implement growth strategies.

A scaling coach can help SMEs improve their operational efficiency and profitability.

A scaling coach can help SMEs prepare for and manage change.

Product innovation

A scaling coach can help you develop a culture of innovation within your company.

A scaling coach can help you identify and assess new product opportunities.

A scaling coach can help you launch and market new products successfully.

Overall, a scaling coach can be a valuable asset for any startup or scaleup that is looking to grow rapidly and achieve its full potential.

[dissociacrip]

i have a question about hypotonia if that’s okay…it’s basically when muscles can’t contract for very long right? i’ve been struggling with “muscle weakness” my entire life, but it seems like the muscles themselves are basically fine i just can’t make them do anything. like it’s very difficult to hold my arms over my head or keep them in any position that isn’t just letting them hang by my side (it’s extremely painful to hold a phone up to my ear longer than a minute or two for example) and i also have very poor grip strength + i can’t hold my head up or sit up straight without a lot of pain and exhaustion. i also have POTS and HSD. i never had any answers for this problem until i learned about hypotonia, i had assumed maybe it was POTS related until very recently lol. does this align with your experience at all? do you know if there’s anything to be done about it? apologies for asking you these questions, i can’t find a lot about hypotonia online that isn’t about babies or children

i finally (kind-of) found a source for these quotes that i think explain it best without academic jargon - they're on the wikipedia page for hypotonia but aren't cited for whatever reason, but i also can't really find the article they're from aside from some weird page here.

True muscle tone is the inherent ability of the muscle to respond to a stretch. For example, if you quickly straighten the flexed elbow of an unsuspecting child with normal tone, the biceps will quickly contract in response (automatic protection against possible injury). When the perceived danger has passed, which the brain figures out really quickly once the stimulus is removed, the muscle then relaxes, and returns to its normal resting state.

...The child with low tone has muscles that are slow to initiate a muscle contraction, contract very slowly in response to a stimulus, and cannot maintain a contraction for as long as his 'normal' peers. Because these low-toned muscles do not fully contract before they again relax (muscle accommodates to the stimulus and so shuts down again), they remain loose and very stretchy, never realising their full potential of maintaining a muscle contraction over time.

if you wanna get into the academic stuff, there's this Science Direct page (not super academic but still complex) and this NIH page (much more academic but goes into what muscle tone is and what it affects, although not hypotonia specifically.)

i wouldn't just pay attention to the posture and arm or grip thing by the way: in my case, hypotonia also causes me articulation problems irt the way i speak as well as balance and coordination, gait problems related to that stuff, swallowing mechanism (e.g. i aspirate things more easily than i should), drooling, digestive problems, etc. although symptom presentation depends on severity.

i also assumed that me having trouble keeping my arms up was a POTS thing lol. it might contribute to it but who knows, really. but i have the privilege of having some kind of medical professional (because i have zero record of this) assessing me as having low muscle tone when i was a young child.

as for what can be done about it: treatment can depend on the underlying cause but in my case (which i assume is hypotonia due to hEDS/HSD), my only option is muscle strengthening. if you're someone who can get physical and occupational therapy, they should be able to get you set up with a kind of exercise program or otherwise show you exercises/recommend things to help you strengthen your muscles. hypotonia usually presents with muscle weakness but doing low-impact muscle strengthening exercises is supposed to help, like, offset its effects (+can help stabilize your joints.) this can range from really simple stuff you can do at home while laying down, to walking on uneven ground, to swimming, to lifting weights or using exercise machines at the gym (this is precisely why i'm trying to be a disabled gym rat now lmao.)

having a medical professional to consult about it is helpful to keep from accidentally hurting yourself but if PT/OT isn't an option that's understandable (i mean, it cost me $2k even with insurance coverage.) i mean, i think the idea has merit, personally, because my joint instability has significantly decreased over the years since going into a job where i use my muscles more (even though that job fucking sucks and is probably really bad for me physically - just saying), but that's just my situation and i can't say for sure. what you can do about it really comes down to your own capabilities and individual disability situation which is why i think getting PT/OT if you can would be a good idea because (and not to say all med professionals are perfect because they aren't) those people are trained to figure that exact thing out for you. someone in a fitness group i'm in brought up seeing a kinesiologist (kinesiology is the scientific study of human body movement) so that could also be an option but i don't know anything about that.

hopefully this was helpful lol.

[warrioreowynofrohan]

I think this is correct, and so are some of the replies: Fingon is not especially suited to the role of high king of the Noldor, and Maedhros is even less so. For all that Maedhros is often presented in fandom as some great diplomat, he has notably few successes: the only people he is specifically noted as recruiting to his side are the Easterlings, half of whom turn traitor and doom his whole effort, so thatworks out to either zero or a negative figure, and the dwarves, who are his only definite success. (And the Fëanoreans are noted to leave the battlefield before the dwarves of Belegost do, which may not leave the dwarves of Belegost feeling very happy with them in the aftermath:

Yet fate saved the sons of Fëanor, and though all were wounded none were slain, for they drew together, and gathering a remnant of the Noldor abd the Naugrim about them they hewed a way out of the battle and escaped far away towards Mount Dolmed in the east. Last of allto stand firm were the dwarves of Belegost…)

Maedhros’ successes in The Silmarillion are not so much diplomatic as (pre-Bragollach) achievements in brother-wrangling, which are indeed important for keeping the Noldor united, but stop works once the Bragollach splits the Noldor and his brothers are less under his eye and less under his control. Aside from brother-wrangling, his greatest diplomatic asset is Fingon’s friendship, which is the consequence of personal affection rather than earned loyalty. So I don’t really get where the idea that he would have been a great king of the Noldor comes from, when he ultimately can’t control his own brothers/liegemen, or get any of the Three Houses of the Edain on his side, or accurately judge the loyalty of the Men of the East who the Fëanoreans do manage to recruit. His ability to hold an extremely difficult position in the Nirnaeth indicates he’s a strong battlefield commander; the loyalty of the Men of Bór in contrast to the House of Ulfang inducates he can inspire loyalty in people whom he works closely with. But nothing indicates that he’d have been an especially good king, particularly given that the two greatest reasons for the failure of the Nirnaeth are 1) he and his liegemen/brothers earning the hostility of realms whose support they need and 2) the treachery of Men whom he was specifically focused on recruiting and whom he unquestioning trusted.

Fingon, unlike Maedhros, seems pretty generally well-liked, which is a good thing but different than having the ability to create durable alliances. He’s relying on the alliances that Fingolfin had previously built, and important parts of those (such as Nargothrond) have frayed under his watch, and he’s unable or unwilling to require any recompense from the Fëanoreans for Celegorm and Curufin’s treason. The groups who are fighting specifically in association with him are the elves of Hithlum, Cirdan, and the House of Hador (all of who, Fingolfin established alliances with) - and Turgon, because he cares about his brother. Gwindor’s group, Beleg and Mablung are there because they feel they should fight and are unwilling to do so under the Fëanorean banner, rather than out of any particular allegiance to Fingon, and the Haladin are likely there for the sake of their familial connection with the Hadorians.

It’s interesting to contrast this with two other examples, Fingolfin and Finrod.

Fingolfin becomes High King under less militarily challenging circumstances than Fingon, but in some ways even more challenging diplomatic ones. His people have just crossed a frozen wasteland and lost large numbers of loved ones due to Fëanorean treachery. They’ve been on the edge of war. Fingon’s rescue of Maedhros is crucial, but even after that, holding the two sides together is an extremely challenging balancing act, and he manages it. He manages to maintain alliances with both Cirdan and the Grey-elves of Hithlum even after the Kinslaying is revealed, and keep his alliance with the Fëanoreans after the Quenya ban. That’s a lot of different sides and different priorities to juggle. When the Edain arrive, he very effectively forms alliances with them, being the second after Finrod to begin to forge close ties with them, specifically with the ancestors of what will be the House of Hador. The reason the attack on Angband doesn’t happen when he pushes for it is because he’s not willing to ask from any side more than they’re willing to give and - unlike Fingon and Maedhros in the Nirnaeth - he’s not willing to attack with a partial force of whoever he can get.

And Finrod is the true diplomat of the Finwëans, and probably the only Finwëan who possibly could have unified all Beleriand if he’d tried or wanted to - not by having them all follow them, but by getting them all on the same page. He manages on numerous occasions to both manage alliances with multiple sides who are in opposition to each other without alienating either, and to reconcile them to each other. He has close relations with the Green-elves, and mediates between them and the newly-arrived Edain, and later between the Haladin and Thingol. He manages to create a balance where he effectively has both Fingolfin and Thingol as liegelords with both continuing to be on good terms on him, despite them never having met and being on somewhat tense terms with each other. He is probably the closest with Círdan of any of the Noldor, helping him reinforce the Havens’ defences; is the closest with Thingol and remains so even in the long term after the Kinslaying is revealed, and thus is able to negotiate Brethil for the Haladin; and at the same time remains on close and friendly terms with Maedhros and Maglor. Oh, and he’s also very close with the dwarves. This is a phenomenal network to maintain without alienating any side or making anyone feel that someone else is favoured over them. And the great irony of Finrod is that he retains all these bonds up until the end, except for the loyalty of one group: the very people whom he rules.

His death is Celegorm and Curufin knocking over the jenga tower that constitutes the free peoples of Beleriand.

I’m not sure if this is a controversial take or not, but I don’t think Fingon was a particularly good or capable king. The Silmarillion almost seems to damn him with faint praise, his bravery and selflessness are always singled out. But nothing about him seems to suggest he’s a great leader.

All of his best and most heroic actions are either individual or directly leading small numbers of troops, the rescue of Maedhros, routing Glaurung with his horse archers. Not much is said of his leadership during the battle in Hithlum, between the fourth and fifth battles.

I think it’s quite notable that his lands in Dor-lómin are just handed over to Hador. It suggests to me that Fingon either had very little following there or that he wasn’t doing a good job of ruling it and even Fingolfin saw this. After Fingolfin’s death he’s the only viable Nolofinwean heir, Turgon and Aredhel are missing, Argon is dead.

I also think it’s notable that everyone calls the alliance the Union of Maedhros, and Fingon is unable to leverage Orodreth and Nargothrond to back it. Maedhros is the power behind Fingon’s throne, and everyone knows it. Maedhros is the politician and the military strategist. Fingon has little skill or little interest in these I think. I also like the idea that despite the love between them, Maedhros is manipulating Fingon at least a bit. Maybe unintentionally, but Maedhros is a Machiavellian at heart, a determined and capable pragmatist. He will trample the hearts of those he loves to get what he wants.

I also think it’s notable that Fingon charges in after Gwindor while Turgon hangs back. Fingon has let the tail wag the dog, and been drawn into breaking his strategy by one of his subordinates. He’s passionate and emotional, Húrin has to restrain him from charging even before this! Turgon doesn’t get drawn in even when Fingon does, and I’m pretty sure that Fingolfin and Maedhros would not have done this either. That’s not to say Gwindor should have been abandoned to die, but providing some force to relieve them and cover their retreat when they inevitably get bogged down and have to pull back (like Turgon did for Fingon) is very different to committing the whole army to a gamble made with no prior thought.

I like Fingon! He has many good qualities, and up until the 5th battle was a major factor in the success of the Noldor. He’s brave and dashing, selfless, a good cavalry commander. He rescued Maedhros and stopped a civil war! He routed Glaurung! But I do not think he was ever a good king.

[utilitycaster]

A wholly speculative discussion of all classes and if Travis's new character should be that class

I have zero answers and anyone who thinks they do is lying to you, but I do think this is an interesting opportunity; even if Travis had some sort of character in mind there's some wiggle room after seeing the rest of the party to fill in the gaps (much as Taliesin was able to do last campaign). Also, mechanics are fun.

Artificer: this is very good for several reasons. First, the party could use an intelligence-based class as well as someone that can cast identify more than once per day, and having extra healers doesn't hurt. Second, operating under the (valid) assumption that Dorian's presence is temporary, this helps maintain the tankline. Third, I just think Travis should be allowed to make his own cursed sword.

Bard: A relatively high-int bard would be pretty good, what with the multiple proficiencies/buffing and healing options, again assuming Dorian's presence is temporary (and any brief overlap will be very fun). The party is doing pretty well on charisma this time around, Ashton notwithstanding, though, and this campaign is an opportunity to step back from the face role.

Barbarian: There already is a very good one in the party and Travis has already played this class; no real need.

Bloodhunter: not going to lie, I'm not terribly into the class, but it is now intelligence based which, again, good opportunity to fill that gap and also tank and do some fun debuffs, so not bad.

Cleric: I would absolutely love to see this but I cannot imagine Matt accepting a two-cleric party again.

Druid: This is actually not a bad call and less likely to be nixed than cleric, because druids are less solely healing focused and Fearne in particular hasn't leaned in heavily to that role. It also permits you to dump most of your physical stats if you really want.

Fighter: I think this would be extremely funny, but also in all seriousness, an eldritch knight specifically seems extremely up Travis's alley and doubles as a great way to balance the group. Plus, once again, he gets the ability to summon a weapon, and I think that's a good call.

Monk: I like monks, and some of the subclasses do have great abilities (way of mercy stands out for me) but it's not really an area this party needs; everyone other than FCG has a pretty good dex score. It's not bad, and I'll admit some of my hesitancy towards it is all the condescending and shitty predictions earlier from condescending and shitty people; I just think there are better options.

Paladin: Been there, done that, much as I enjoy the idea of paladin from the start. I wouldn't be mad at it but I don't see it likely to happen.

Ranger: I am actually quite here for it; the newer ranger subclasses are far more powerful with all kinds of weird subclass abilities, and I think the high utility (ranged to melee; some healing and useful casting; helpful skills and class abilities) would be a good fit for this group which does seem to skew towards city mice.

Rogue: My general distaste for rogues aside, it does in fact fill the intelligence/skill niches admirably if he picks a good subclass. I'm just not sure "you can attack once and dash/disengage/hide" will be interesting mechanically for the erstwhile Fjord player.

Sorcerer: we already have two, this would just be weird.

Warlock: see Barbarian.

Wizard: while this is a very caster-heavy party, and Laudna and Imogen specifically are very glass cannon casters, this really would fill the intelligence niche and expand the spell list in a great way. Travis is also on the short list of "people who could sell me hard on Bladesinger."