#still a good read though i recommend | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

kataraslove · 5 months ago

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as someone who has recently read the reckoning of roku, it’s really not the anti fire nation propaganda that a certain subsection of fandom is making it out to be. yes, gyatso says those words to roku, but he’s angry - at both the world and at himself for the death of his sister. he later apologizes to roku. the book does not paint gyatso out to be in the right, and neither does it paint all fire nation citizens to be in the wrong. the narrative even makes a distinction between the good fire nation citizens (ta min and roku) and prejudicial fire nation citizens (sozin, primarily), and some morally ambiguous ones like dalisay, but they’re more or less abolished from any accountability for partnering with sozin.

avatar the last airbender does not do a good job at displaying much of the context associated with the crimes of the fire nation, aka the climate and perspectives that justified sozin eradicating the air nomads and many of the benders in the southern water tribe. we know from avatar that sozin wanted to conquer the rest of the world for fire nation domination and expansion, but we’re not given much insight into the causal factors that allowed him to conduct genocide and colonialism, beyond “he was able to do it all in one day with the power of the comet,” and “he was a very bad man.”

the reckoning of roku provides the context for all of that, the factors that contributed to sozin’s blood-thirst. which means seeing sentiment from sozin that view the air nomads - and their pacifist ways of life - as inferior and below human. the novel doesn’t particularly attempt to humanize sozin, not in the way that other medias do when exploring the backstory of their villain. at the end, the takeaway from the novel is that sozin is on the road to becoming the ultimate fascist we all know him for, but this time we’re provided more context into how he became that fascist, and why roku hesitated to kill him.

is it more critical of the fire nation than most of the franchise? yes, i would say so, and having a filipino author be the one to offer that commentary is an excellent decision by avatar studios. but the extent of the critique is still more or less along the lines of ��this one guy was truly the operations behind it,” which is still consistent with what we’ve seen in atla. there’s nothing too radical introduced in terms of colonial theory, unlike what parts of the fandom are saying.

which leads me to my final point: if this is how badly a subsection of fandom (aka fire nation worshippers and zutara shippers [not mutually exclusive]) are reacting to the simple notion exploring how sozin committed genocide, then they’ve hit further rock bottom than i can imagine. not only that, but this type of reactionary behaviour risks alienating other parts of the fandom; for instance, fans of the avatar novels who otherwise would have given the ship and the shippers grace.

in other words, many of these hardcore shippers “criticizing” the roku novel have no one to blame but themselves if their behaviour leads to the alienation of regular fans. this loud subsection of fandom is so caught up in their one-sided, imaginary fantasy where everything in the franchise somehow revolves around aang/kataang vs zuko/zutara, that the Evil Bryke are always targeting them, to the point that they’ll fail to realize that the fire nation and fire nation characters are often absolved from accountability across the IP, and the fire nation is explored much more than the other nations are.

#some of yall had me perceive the roku novel as this ultimate commentary and critique of the fire nation #so imagine my disappointment when it wasn’t #still a good read though i recommend #And ribay is a great author #antizutara #reckoning of roku

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makiswirl · 8 months ago

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can i just say. and this is probably a niche hill to die on. that i am so gobsmacked every time someone vaguely hints at the idea that jotaro doesn't care meaningfully for the other crusaders, usually particularly kakyoin and joseph, when those two actually tend to be the ones he reacts to being hurt the hardest

like he cares for his loved ones!!!! that literally plays into his character motives in every single part he shows up in!!! stop lying to me!!!!!!!

#me.txt #jjba #i'm going to ramble in tags actually. excuse me #ok. rereading sdc and so confused at the general perception of jotaro and his friends/family. he's not NEARLY as flat or as dickish #i understand that the anime (particularly the dub) tends to slander him but even then he still clearly cares for them! i'm confused #i also understand that a lot of people dig against jotaro and kakyoin as a dynamic because 'they're popular' and that generally disliking #popular things across media is a thing that i've seen consistently everywhere but the discredit to them simply as a DUO and not even as a #pairing is so..... odd..... like they're considered to be a duo that clicks for a reason. i enjoyed them even before i got into the fandom #every time i see someone say jotaro is overrated/dull i take a shot and assume they're an anime-only or only read the manga like once btw #joseph and jotaro also have a neat dynamic and they obviously both love and care for each other. like they're not going to go around loudly #or anything but literally the entirety of the lovers and the prelude to the dio fight IS jotaro being worked up over joseph getting hurt #equally i don't know if it translates to the anime as much but joseph is VERY complimentary when it comes to jotaro. like he sings his #praises so often and reminds everyone that he's his grandson so frequently (d'arby the gamer is a good example of this). either way it's so #peculiar....... there's not enough avdol and jotaro content btw (also in canon) because jotaro obviously looks up to him and avdol jokes #around with him on the occasion they interact after their intro which doesn't start very well. it's very cute #i do think an important thing to note about jotaro's character is how he acts AFTER his intro because he's so drastically different. early #jotaro and later jotaro aren't the same character and i do not mean this in a character development way. excluding the jail incident he's #completely different and probably shouldn't really be taken into account (especially considering the amount of slapstick in araki's intros)#and i think that's really???? what people center on for his character? Which sucks balls bad!#anyways. i could ramble more about this if asked i have so much to say but sigh. jotaro cares so much for his friends and family he's not a #flat fully cold asshole character regardless of whether you watch the anime or ova or read the manga. you just have poor media literacy #i wouldn't recommend watching solely the anime for his character though. the dub also changes a lot so it's... questionable #i love the anime and it's still important for him though. also adds neat stuff. i need to stop myself. i have many thoughts on the matter #jotaro kujo #joseph joestar #noriaki kakyoin #adding in case anyone sees: i am not saying that he is perfect about this. in fact he is very ass about it with jolyne and holly and that's #very important. he also is in fact an asshole sometimes. NOT as much as you guys are making him though!#please don't get me started on how much of a dick etc people make kakyoin to veer away from the 'woobified' characterizations of him #in fact i think that's bad if not worse because it CLAIMS to be in character. hes a prim asshole at times but not that angry or dishevelled

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dreamsy990 · 1 month ago

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YAY I GOT THIS DONE ON HIS BIRTHDAY. HAPPY BIRTHDAY HAJIMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE YOU RUINED MY LIFE AND ALSO MAYBE SAVED MY LIFE. WHO THE FUCK KNOWS I DO LIKE YOU A LOT THOUGH

#hajime means so much to meeeeeee #hes the reason i started posting art online (not on tumblr at the time though)#so without him i wouldnt have made like. 80% of my friends #and i do not know where i would be without some of my friends ive met bc of that #like ive had some NASTY depressive episodes since then that im pretty sure i only made through because of them #hiii phantom specifically. looking at you. ilysm if you read this #anyways not to get so real on danganronpa art sdfvgfrde #sdr2 is one of my favorite games of all time like genuinely. it has a lot of sentimental value to me i guess #i was a big fan of the first game but i watched the anime (and several playthroughs) but sdr2 was the first dr game i acually played myself #i actually also watched the dr3 anime before i played sdr2?#and uh. so i went in completely spoiled for it #that being said i still absolutely adored hajime. maybe im basic but i always love protagonist characters #also johnny yong bosch's performance is so fucking good;;;; i cried at the end of the game and it wasnt even particularly sad #anyways. danganronpa was my first hyperfixation that i can remember and it was so meaningful to me. i dont know where id be without it #even if im not as interested in it now it still is really important #would i recommend it? i mean it depends. i think danganronpa is for a very specific kind of person which is the person i happen to be #ok no more tag rambling time to do normal art tags #doodles #danganronpa #hajime hinata #izuru kamukura

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echolepzy · 4 months ago

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Seeing other people experiencing ISAT for the first time is so fucking funny because like

Oh!!!! I remember how that felt! Yikes! Anyway keep going pal you’re doing great (silent screaming because It Gets Worse and yet nothing can be said without spoiling it)

#it’s such a good game though #I would recommend it to everyone ever you should go play it yes you the one reading this rn GO PLAY ISAT #the emotional agony is worth it #when I finished the game I was still reeling for the rest of the weekend holy shit #in stars and time #isat

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fictionadventurer · 1 month ago

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Potential January Reads

A Brilliant Night of Ice and Stars by Rebecca Connolly

Rhododendron Pie by Margery Sharp

So Big by Edna Ferber

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Vibrant Paradoxes by Bishop Robert Barron

The Diary of a Country Priest by George Bernanos

Doctor Thorne by Anthony Trollope

Katherine Wentworth by D.E. Stevenson

#monthly reading lists #books #i have so many specific books that i've been lining up #(especially since at the end of the month i was saving new books for the new year)#that i don't need the wider categories #the january categories are still represented #we have lots of vintage fiction (including an american one)#the first book is the story of the carpathia's rescue of the titanic #soon as i saw that premise i was like 'yes please'#it will cover january's category of a book with a cold setting #i read the first couple of chapters and a novel from the perspective of real people is very weird but i like the story so i'll keep going #i also started 'rhododendron pie' and it seems delightful #it's about someone straddling the worlds of normal grounded people and artsy people #and as someone from the world of normal grounded people who likes artsy stuff but still has the perspective that a lot of it is quite silly #i think it will be nice and relatable #i think i'm going to succumb to jane-eyre-ry #every time i consider a different classic reread my brain's just like 'what about jane eyre though?'#'vibrant paradoxes' is a book of essays that i got for free along with my book of church fathers #it's a very thick book to give away for free and looks good #i love essays and these are nice and short #it'll be good to dip into through the month #(i also want to read the church fathers book but that's not something to put on a monthly reading list)#(just something to read through thoughtfully like the bible)#'diary of a country priest' caught my attention months ago #and now that the library hold came in i have zero interest #but maybe putting it on a list will convince me to try #i'd kind of like to keep this one-barchester-a-month thing going and 'doctor thorne' is next #'katherine wentworth' is exactly the kind of vintage fiction that january is made for and i'd like to try and get it off my unread shelf #oh and i forgot to mention someone recommended ferber's first book #but when i downloaded that one i also figured maybe i should read the famous pulitzer-prize-winning one

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collectingavenuesmwue · 6 months ago

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holy shit go read this everybody

this fic has ruined and made my day at the same time it’s written so beautifully and it’s made me cry im so serious

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lovers-instead · 6 months ago

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Sapphic YA Book Rec: Good Moon Rising by Nancy Garden

1996 follow-up to Annie on My Mind, this time featuring 2 girls who compete for the lead role in their high school theater department.

Links to download:

Internet Archive (to borrow)

Anna's Archive

LibGen

#book recs #sapphic ya #nancy garden #annie on my mind #good moon rising #*kicks the door down* WAKE UP PEOPLE!!!!! A PDF SCAN IS FINALLY HERE INSTEAD OF THAT CRAPPY TINY EPUB I HAD TO READ FOR 10 YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!#it's very similar to Annie. which isn't a bad thing if you're a fan. hell yes 2 cakes etc. (i definitely won't deny it though)#rivals to lovers version of Annie. what's not to love?!#i've always personally preferred this one for several reasons. larger cast of teen peers. all characters centered around working on #the Big Play makes the whole plot a smidgen more grounded than Annie's courtroom pastiche (not that i don't love it)#plus. well. doing theater and reading The Crucible are exact activities from my own teen years. so it's the same appeal of featuring art #but more personal and relatable lol. and yes i did first read it at the time when i was in school but i sincerely still like it to this day #that *cannot* be said for most other books i read in that era; both older and newer; both YA and not YA!#of course you have to be down with YA which it's fine not to be. but imho there's a layer of intrigue to both books due to their age #that makes it a somewhat different exercise than broader 'trying to read YA as an adult'#there's actually a third one of hers- yes basically another take on the same story again- called Nora and Liz that's for adults #which i would recommend instead if you truly cannot rock with YA. although... stylistically... it's not really that different either. lol #anyway stan PEAK in the IDEAL FORMAT FOR THE FIRST TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!#@ the sole Annie stan i saw in the tag: pspspsps #oh wait: like its predecessor the book is largely About homophobia. queen garden never skipped an Issue for each book. so tw for that

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hinsaa-paramo-dharma · 2 years ago

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My first step towards taking over the world.

#It has a collection of FOURTEEN BOOKS #And I have only finished like half of the first book but man it's a m a z i n g.#The first book is just about discipline 💀 Acharya Kautilya knew that I will be reading this I guess..#Also I think this book is an abridged version because the chapters are literally just like 2-3 pages long #(or perhaps only a small part of the og text has survived? If anyone knows then let me know)#This is cheaper than the Penguins classics version which was like fucking 500 something rupees so I bought this one.#I don't know which is a better translation though the internet just doesn't have much information about Arthshastra for some reason #Though I still think this version's pretty good #I will recommend it to anyone who wants to rule the universe or something-

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eclaire-went-bam · 9 months ago

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related to prev post, i wanna get back into reading so bad but i'm always so preoccupied with imaginary competition lmfao

#i'm mostly into nonfiction. i like educational books a lot.#fictions fine so long as it's not romantic. i know its reaaaally stereotypical for an aroace person to not like romance #but romance can GENUINELY make or break a book for me #the great gatsby would've been my favourite book if it weren't for that LMAOO #i know romance can be a good way to express themes in a work. i can recognise it & still be extremely romance repulsed though #recommendations welcome #(YES friend i see u i will get to mphpc first don't worry they do seem like a fun read /gen)

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biromantic-nerd · 2 years ago

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#i'm op so all of these apply to me :)#polls #specific polls #i got roped into fake dating someone?? in a gay way. but only during class and occasionally lunch #and my teacher was so mad but NOT bc of the gay. she just hated that student and i was a beloved teacher's pet.#like those corny tropes where the dad threatens the daughter's boyfriend. except my teacher and my good friend who i fake dated #and YES had a crush on #fake dating irl before i even knew it was a trope and then reading it in fics and going 'well people would Know if they liked each other'#girlies my fake dating friend kept recommending i watch Rocky Horror!!#in hindsight maybe i was too harsh on characters.#but anyways while i'm at this drive thru oversharing #so i have a crush ony fake dating friend my teacher hates. my teacher thinks i can do better. which is wild. i'm like 14 and insecure.#*on my #also at this point i still think i'm straight even though a LOT of people have clocked me and keep telling me i 'look gay'#every day my friend calls me a term of endearment my teacher looks like she is considering taking away her free seating for a seating chart #just so that so can keep the ruffian (bad essay writer in her opinion) away from her beloved student (comes in early to talk about motifs)#my free spirited teacher thing to not restrain us: free seating chart!#*trying #my friend: sitting next to me and passing me love notes and flirting #my teacher: [debating whether she should revoke seating in order to stop this one student or continue to let the class be free]#i think being 14 is one of the funniest things to ever happen to me actually #especially because there is an overlapping period of time where a separate group of people IRL shipped me with someone else. i'm not joking.#so you had my teacher actively rooting against shipping me. and a whole swarm of people who shipped me but with someone else.#and they all had no clue of each other bc they did not intersect.#i'm not joking either like people had invested opinions in my love life which makes me sound like cassanova no. i dated NEITHER of them!!#people were just oddly opinionated about it! Which honestly i think makes it fubnier that i wasn't and didn't date either of them.#i think being shipped and i guess UN-shipped in an overlapping period of time IN REAL LIFE is probably the funniest thing to happen #but also i think it means i can weather the storm and NEED to be in a band. i can handle it.#anyways if anyone is still reading this #i've fallen asleep MULTIPLE times in class!! and every time all my teachers have gone 'i didn't want to wake you up 🥺'

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spry-the-artist · 1 year ago

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Ink Demonth Day 15th: Colour

He was only in black, gray, and white tones now. The color had been leached from his body and he sometimes caught Henry looking out the window at the rainbow of a world around him before he would glance at himself and sigh

-Excerpt from A Drop of Ink: Prologue Part Two

Fan art of an old BATIM fanfic, and one of my favourites. Highly recommend you read it, even though it doesn’t seem like it’s continuing anytime soon (with only one chapter not being from either of the prologues)

(You have to read the first part before reading the second part so I’m not linking it here, even though this scene is from that fic)

Bonus: A version without the aura of grayscale around Henry (more book accurate, but I just wanted to add the effect because I thought it was a good idea. I like both equally so I’m including this here)