#the Rohan one is especially horrible

[saltydkdan]

Thoughts on Strohiem? (From Jojo)

It’s… rough. I have OPINIONS ABOUT HIM.

For those unaware, or have forgotten. This particular ask is about the character of Rudol von Stroheim from Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. A Nazi Major that is introduced in Part 2 of the series. I have always wanted a proper moment to spotlight how much I dislike this character. And not just how I dislike him as a character, but how I dislike his general inclusion in the story as well.

Listen, I LOVE this series. But even I have my limits. It’s because I love it so much that I critique aspects like this in the first place.

Warning, I’m about to word vomit about this because I’ve been DYING to talk about this somewhere.

BIG DISCLAIMER: These are my thoughts and mine alone. I know there’s a lot of… interesting anime fans out there that might disagree. I’m not here to debate on stuff like this, I don’t want to hear your contradictory thoughts on the subject. If I see a single person say I’m “virtue signaling” by saying I don’t like the Jojo Nazi character, I am going to mail you a pipe bomb (in the hit game Minecraft for Windows PCs)

Stroheim’s existence (or at least, how he currently exists in the story) is not handled all that well in my opinion. Like… not at all. I like to poke fun at it, but I genuinely think Araki fumbled the bag so hard with Stroheim and it's more and more unbelievable the more I think about it over time.

No matter how you shake it, Araki fully wrote a historically accurate Nazi character into Battle Tendency and proceeded to give him a redemption arc and make him a member of the supporting cast. Now of course, I know that Japan has a fascination with a lot of German stuff, so within that context I can kind of get why he exists in the way that he does, but it just feels weird and in bad taste.

Contextually, it makes sense. Do I like it? No. No I do not.

To address the elephant in the room, I get it. Araki really loves to write evil villain characters, and then having them be redeemed, or switch over to the hero's side after a certain point. I actually really enjoy this trope especially in Jojo! It’s one of my favorites. Especially how it’s handled in Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable.

However, writing a redemption storyline for characters like Okuyasu and Rohan is fundamentally different from writing one for Stroheim.

First and most obviously, unlike other characters, Stroheim’s whole character is based on an actual real life totalitarian extremist hate group who committed horrible atrocities across history (and still does to this day).

As if that wasn’t enough, he quite LITERALLY commits horrible atrocities ON SCREEN. Sacrificing an entire room of innocent people to Santana (the first of the Pillar Men) so that the German’s can awaken and study him in their secret lab.

Everything about Stroheim feels like it’s very intentional at the start. He is clearly set as a villain from the beginning, and it works fine. However once he self-immolates and blows himself up to destroy Santana, the story seems to continuously frame him more and more as an ally/hero from that point onward.

After he returns with his cyborg body, the fact that he’s a Nazi suddenly takes a back seat and now he’s continuously just framed as a “patriotic” soldier. Legit, the moment after he shows back up, Joseph internally comments on how he’s “not exactly a bad guy”.

Some people will argue on how it’s a bit more complicated than that, since Joseph also thinks about how he dislikes that he’s a German Soldier. But directly after this, he also states how he’s still happy Stroheim isn’t dead. If anything, from this point onward Joseph acts towards Storheim in a similar way to how he acts towards Caeser. Even if they aren’t best friends, Joseph still has positive feelings towards Stroheim, and I hateeeee that.

In the anime, they even make sure to call him a “German Soldier” and not a Nazi. The avoidance of that word really struck me as them trying to avoid that subject because they knew the way the character was treated was strange.

So anyway, as I was trying to say. Redeeming villain characters is one thing, but redeeming a villain character that is straight up a literal Nazi is something else entirely. Especially when like, not to nitpick, but Stroheim never walks back the more extremist beliefs that he for sure subscribes to.

-And if you’re one of those weirdos who tries to make a point by saying “well, he never outright says what he actually believes in! Maybe he is just fighting for Germany for his own reasons.”

My dude, he’s literally described as a “Patrotic Nazi”. What the fuck do yoU THINK HE BELIEVES IN?

Also as a final addition to this rant, I also don’t quite like how weirdly normalized that Araki makes the existence of “german soldiers” in his story even outside of Stroheim. Nazi’s are weirdly commonplace throughout the plot, and while it contextually makes sense since they kicked off the main conflict, they are almost always weirdly painted as neutral or even straight up good guys (after the Santana fight). Which is just really strange to me.

Like bruh, you mean to tell me that Caeser fucking Zeppeli is casually frieNDS WITH ONE OF THEM? BE FUCKIN FR ARAKI LOL

It also sucks how Stroheim is so increasingly present leading up to the final act. Like MAN, GET THIS MOTHERFUCKER OFF THE SCREEN.

The only good thing about the inclusion of Nazi’s after Stroheim’s initial sacrifice, is that we get to see the Pillar Man murk a shit ton of them on screen. Like, fuck yeah dude. A great way to power scale and show how powerful the Pillar Men are as antagonists, without me feeling bad that they killed a bunch of people to do so.

Anyway, that’s my 2 cents that nobody asked for. I still LOVE Jojo, I think it’s a masterpiece of its genre, but it’s because of my intense love for it that I criticize it’s missteps so heavily. I hope that my wording on this post is done well, I had to re-draft it a second time after accidentally deleting it once, so I have a feeling it’ll come off a bit scrambled.

That being said, thanks for the Ask!

[katrina37973]

Thoughts on WOTR Part 1/?

I had the joy of watching this in the cinemas with my friend and both of us deeply deeply enjoyed it.

TLDR: Good solid movie with compelling characters and story. Excellent homage to Tolkein. It's not pretending to be anything but an addition to the current Legendarium, an insight to a period of history which has very little actually written about (canonically at least).

Apologies for horrible grammar and spelling in advance. The following's just my thoughts on Helm, Hera, Wulf and Targg.

Spoilers for The War of the Rohirrim. It's a long one.

Helm Hammerhand

Really liked how they depicted his hot-headedness and his love for his children. I jsut adore parent and children bonds, and the weight of his love was so very clear. The whole thing was so very tragic, seeing two of your children killed and the third probably awaiting a worse fate? Tragic, absolutely tragic but so fun to watch. His temper is something that sort of parallels Wulf I think. There's a line there somewhere but I can't really voice it yet, maybe it just needs a little more time to stew.

It was a little unexpected for him to exile Wulf; it felt strange as while it was a rash decision, and while that fits his character, it didn't really make sense? From the brief sense of the culture of Rohan, it seemed family and strong relationships were extremely valued which made him purposefully exiling Wulf strange as a) it basically is an invitation to hate Helm with reason and b) he’s aged and, set up to be, wise in terms of battle and strategy which means surely, surely he would have realised the moment he said it that this would come to bite him back? This points a bit of a nitpick, but I can't help wonder if they went the way of self-exile for Wulf, what that would have changed in terms of storytelling. 

Another thing that sorta applies to other characters too is how they depicted the time passing. Originally when the narrator says ‘seasons past yet no sign of Wulf appeared’ thing, Helm looked exactly the same as he did in the beginning which was his hair. If they made him grey-haired, then it would be easier to show the time passing eg, give white streaks throughout hair; in addition to this, you could have had his entire hair white in Hornburg to emphasise the extent of his grief. Might even help play with the whole wraith arc. 

Speaking of which, the wraith-arc was excellent, I loved how they incorporated that view from ordinary people into it, it really sold the power and influence Helm had on his people and his enemies. The thing I really didn't like/felt negatively about but understood was how he immediately became this tough, muscled fit person especially so soon after being depicted as a gaunt, skeleton, shell of a man due to his grief. It doesn't make sense narratively too as it disrupts the whole thing about being trapped and supplies dwindling low in Hornburg. Unless he stole from Wulf’s army but still, the timeline is a little confusing and his sudden supernatural strength (despite being human) to go toe to toe with a troll broke the immersion a little. 

I'm just a sucker for those story-telling narrations okay? Those implications of this becoming a legend, a myth retold again and again, there's just something about a legacy well left behind that tickles my fancy.

Hera

Loved her whole character arc except, EXCEPT, her fucking hair. I don’t mind her clothes, though her rider outfit, the one that strongly reminds me of Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff, was a little too modern aesthetic. 

Starting off good/strong, I love the fact they didn’t change her thoughts on marriage. I was apprehensive for a long time throughout the movie because that’s usually how it goes, that there should be an arc, a start and an end which differs from that start belief but thank all that it didn’t go that through. She feels very ace-coded to me, the whole I'm married to nothing but death? Gorgeous. I might be a little biased here tho. 

I adore how they show her intelligence and strength. The way they subtly used her skill/knowledge with horses to set up Hama’s finale was gold. I would have loved to see more of her with her horse, and the bond they had, like short stories where she travels throughout the land before nad after the events of the movie. Just the whole movie had excellent writing and storytelling. The way they had side characters like Lief and Olwyn, build each other up is such a simple but effective way. It felt very grounded, that they had a lot of history and respect for each other. It didn't feel like any side characters were missing potential/felt out of place.

Her intelligence was not in your face, not arrogant and forced and random long tirades which I adored. As much as I loved BBC Sherlock, the way they depicted his intelligence was iffy and I’m glad they didn't go that route for Hera. I don't think I have any specific scenes in mind, just overall excellent storytelling with her. Minus that one scene where she was captured by General Targg and grunts, lass you had a sword in your belt and you’re beating your hands against the man’s back? I guess shock and adrenaline and all but it felt really weird and slightly out of character. (Unless I’m remembering wrong, I hope that’s the reason)

Now, I know this is done by a Japanese company and thus has strong ties to anime (and thus main character hair syndrome), but really? Really? I can’t get over her hair. Why would you make it red? Sure you can argue her mothers could be red-haired and that her brothers had a different mother, but what does that do but detract from the storytelling? Moments such as her brother's deaths could have been made more moving (not that it wasn't, I teared up during Hama’s scene so much, just the way the music is so mournful and muted compared to previous loud battle scenes and thundering hooves, the bond he has with his old mare, ah that scene was a masterpiece). It not only visually ties her to her family more strongly, but it signals visually the transfer of the line of kings to Frealaf. I just think it was such a missed opportunity. 

Actually, now that I thinking more, I really adore how she knows Wulf so well. Especially in that last battle, the way she purposefully pushes all his buttons, and fighting in a wedding dress? Any other movie I would be thinking distasteful thoughts but here? Beautiful shock but understandable. She’s been shown to fight before, she has access to armour (ill-fitting though they may be) but instead of acting sensible like Wulf probably expects, she trades defensive for psychological warfare and hell yeah, it rocks. The whole wedding dress was pointless and taunting and by Gods it was lovely.

A tiny nitpick but understandable why the producers did this; I like it when shows/movies show grime and tears on clothing to show the journey they went through but I understand animations long and time-consuming and really keeping track of all the rips and tears would be a such a pain.

Wulf

I love his design okay? He’s the typical bad/angsty lad and it's a stereotype that works for a reason. His character stays amazingly consistent, he’s so fixated on Hera and his vengeance and the lengths he goes for it, terrifying in the best way possible. While the inciting incident was his father's death, I think it came through quite strongly that that wasn’t the true reason why he continued on his attack. Someone else probably has already made a detailed explanation and breakdown so I‘ll leave this part be.

Other than that I don't have much strong feeling on him? Its a little strange, I appreciate him as a character but it doesn't really invoke in me anything strong. Good character set up with their childhood flashback where he gets the scar due to his loss of temper, good consistent decision made with reckless abandon.

General Targg

Okay, not gonna lie, this is my favourite character, besides Olwyn and Hera. Like dude’s doing his best and making so very sensible suggestions and he keeps getting ignored. He keeps getting ignored. He’s a strong, experienced veteran who served under Wulf’s father, probably knows Wulf since a young age and he’s doing his damn best to keep Wulf alive and satisfied (I would say happy but I think that’s not quite possible) despite the hilariously stupid decisions Wulf keeps making. I use the word hilarious because it is. Especially from Targg’s POV. This leads to the thing I’m most confused about; why did Targg stay? What is his motive here? In the end he’s killed by Wulf himself, despite him being a reasonable commander who had supported Wulf all this time. While it enforces Wulf’s character, it feels really strange to never see why Targg stays on the same side especially when Wulf makes a whole bunch of strategic blunders. It might be loyalty to father, loyalty to son thing but I dunno, I wish they had a scene or dialogue that just gives us a bit more info. Like, looking back the only reason Wulf is not as banged up as he should be with that personality and temper of his, is that Targg there’s to soothe things over and manage strategic decisions. I’m not saying Wulf’s stupid, he’s is smart and clever but you cannot convince me that Wulf would not antagonise (purposefully or accidentally) would be allies and Targg would have to play diplomat.

Honestly I think he and Olwyn would be those type who would meet in a bar/tavern and trade good stories with good (or shitty) drinks between them, and probably also complain about idiots who get themselves into trouble all the time. They're like the duo who could and absolutely would look at each other in a situation over their fighting charges, have their eyes meet and say get a load of this bullshit. Honestly, Targg didn’t get what he deserved, man really got betrayed while doing nothing but what he did for the entire movie, AKA making reasonable suggestions. 

Side notes, I really liked the depiction of horses in Rohan. Like the bond all Rohans had for horses. There were so many scenes where I was thinking, and getting annoyed, go on kill that horse and kill its rider, like the easiest way to kill a man, get their horse to kill them for you. But then I was like, but this is Rohan. Their crazy about horses (or at least what I know, the little I do of Rohan) so it absolutely would make sense for them to not treat their horses as meat shields. Their whole country/state is (probably) based on horses and travelling place to place so while it would make economic and practical sense to keep as many horses alive as possible, I think its just neat if it’s their culture that influences this decision.

[loveislandthegame]

thoughts on todays volume !

leo is…well, at least he’s not dean 😭 i like his personality but he looks like a mix of dylan from season 4 & wesley stickler from ace attorney

i feel like FB is overexplaining why OG LI didn’t leave when MC got dumped. i get that they’re trying to make him look good (& get more money from players by milking these backstory gem scenes lol) but tacking on even more stuff is making the whole thing look nonsensical

FB! make this evil twink a love interest and MY LIFE IS YOURS ! (i guess they are aware of the slim shady comparison lmao)

but for real, i still don’t know if he’s gonna be an LI or not. i can't tell if he has any significant dialogue changes and i'm too lazy to start another playthrough. he doesn't have amnesia though, he remembers that ive been flirting with him (i forgot to screenshot his first piece of dialogue but he’s talking about the spin the bottle kiss)

there’s not much to say about mr. love island, except that FB seriously needs to retire that gross looking yellow massage oil overlay. at least adjust the hue a bit 😭

caleb sticking up for MC was very sweet 🥺❤️ obviously she can defend herself just fine, but he’s a real one for this. it’s making me feel bad that i haven’t spent any time with him in the villa (if only we could be a friendship couple, instead of the game forcing us to lead him on)

the spirit of season 1 MC possessed us for just a moment, i was gagged 😭 i ended up forgiving ava tho, i wish we could just be friends with the girls that aren't also LIs. i know i keep saying it but this one sided rivalry shit is so boring

the ex rated challenge was what i expected: LIs get decent reviews, MC gets the only 5 star rating. not to nitpick (in the sense that there's much bigger issues with FB's LGBT representation) but i don’t know why we couldn’t have chosen the gender of MC’s ex, especially since ash is already a gender neutral name (there could’ve easily been a dialogue option like “my ex…boyfriend/girlfriend/partner” before telling the story)

since MC won the challenge, she gets to go to the hideaway. i don't know why it's a secret or why none of these nosy af islanders tried to figure out what the prize was. anyways, i chose lisbeth ! it was so cute that they mentioned being happy to be there with eachother again

this damn box— whatever, i picked sexy dice

all those letters teasing movie night got me scared luv, i’m sure the main event is gonna be nyah in the shower with dean, but i’m bracing myself for MC and lisbeth caught doing bits all over the villa in 4K. i hate how wlw routes have to be sneaky/shady/hoe route-adjacent (it really sucks because i remember complimenting FB for the dialogue you get if you kept choosing her over the guys up until the first hideaway visit)

i'm still holding out hope for enemies to friends but sadly i won't be surprised if she does a full 180 in the next volume

next up is a three way date with hayden and caleb, unfortunately we can’t make them kiss challengers-style. i picked neutral answers whenever i could, but caleb won whatever compatibility thing we were doing because i liked his answers more lol

tristan’s rapping…i was gonna say “welcome back, rap crew” but tim, rohan, even jake would never come up with bars as horrible as those 😭 (can you tell i miss season 1)

lisbeth got jealous, so she took us on a hot tub date ❤️😭lately all of her scenes mention something among the lines of “i can’t wait until we’re finally able to couple up," when the hell is the recoupling ?! the last volume ? my heart can’t take it

hayden, caleb, tristan, and leo are on the chopping block. i have no idea why milo is safe & not the two dudes who’ve been here for one day and are still single, but alright.

it’d be hilarious if tristan got dumped again, but i’m guessing they’re gonna keep him around for drama (or he's a LI ?) . leo will probably stay to be ava’s partner, so my prediction will be that MC will have to choose between OG LI and casa LI

overall, there's 4 volumes left, why on earth are we dealing with a forced love triangle instead of spending time with our chosen LI ? at the very least i'd be more invested if it was between lisbeth and jesse, or even eisha if FB was too lazy to branch for a love triangle with different LI genders 😭 (even though they were able to do that back in season 3, with the iconic "i've got a beautiful girl and a handsome guy fighting for my attention. i'm living the bisexual dream") what a mess

i'm not looking forward to movie night, but i guess OG LI loyal girlies will probably be considered cheaters too, let's all be miserable together 🥀

[potatogirlll]

so, jojos and autism

Since it's 7 am and i have nothing else to do, I've decided to compile a list of Jojo characters that i think may be autistic. Because there are. A LOT.

Part 3

Jotaro: dude. He is literally THE most autistic anime character I've ever seen in my entire life. How he gets upset over stupid shit but remains calm during actually distressful situations. How he's mostly quiet and his expression is always the same. HOW HE THINKS EVERYONE ELSE KNOWS WHAT HE IS THINKING. and also that one clip with koichi where he is UNABLE to make small talk. Yeah

kakyoin: Self isolated masking child prodigy that memorizes random trivia he finds and uses it as a conversation starter. Literally feels like he is alone in the world and no one can understand him because no one tries and no one can, he also has an extremely internalized displeasure and apathy towards the world... This is mostly subtext but if you pay attention its there, i love my boy

Part 4

Kira: extreme anxiety over his nails, masks all the time, kind of infodumps, lack of empathy, obsession with his routines, etc. This one i am not so sure about, as he definetely has antisocial personality disorder and his obsessions with his routine and his nails could be interpreted as OCD. just some thoughts

rohan: OK HEAR ME OUT. No social awareness, has a very specific way of writing his manga, DOESNT CARE WHEN HIS HOUSE IS BURNING DOWN AND WANTS TO KNOW HOW JOSUKE CHEATED. Licks a fucking spider and doesnt see the problem!!!!!!! ik yall hate him (affectionately????) but i just had to say this.

Part 5

Giorno: usually monotonous voice, thinks outside of the box, always the same expression, socially distant. This one is mostly a gut feeling, but it could also be interpreted as him being a very traumatized kid.

Part 6

Weather Report: RAPTOR HANDS? ONLY WHISPERING TO PEOPLE HE TRUSTS IN FRONT OF PEOPLE HE DOESNT KNOW? TIPTOEING??? yeah

Anasui: (disclaimer: i hate jolysui i hate him as a person i hate how the manga did him i hope he just stays in his little queerplatonic relationship with weather while taking care (very horribly might i add) of emporio and never is exposed to the outside world. i love him. ughhhhh) lack of social cues, especially with jolyne, obsession with dismembering things, extreme emotional outbursts,,, the signs are there, but it could also be interpreted as ocd, ocpd and intermittent explosive personality disorder, respectly. whatever.

Pucci: uses prime numbers as stimming mechanism, kind of sees social interactions unconventionally, lack of empathy (but not as much as kira, also no clear malicious intent, so i dont think hes coded as a psychopath?). Again, could be interpreted as OCD.

not gonna add foo fighters because theyre literally plankton but they do have autistic traits

i havent finished part 7 and havent started part 8. as of writing this, part 9 currently just released its first chapter, and i dont see any autistic traits in any of the characters rn. might edit this in the future and add anyone that i might have missed or just discovered through reading the later parts. Thats all i wanted to say, thanks 4 reading

[tartrazeen]

Ooh, I'm havin' a thought.

Back to Fae!Angus, right?

Schimmelspore said something like this ages ago, that Angus as a fae could've been a changeling. Now at the time, I was thinking, "I'm not sure how that would work, especially when Rohan seems to be the better fit for it" - y'know, because Rohan has a brother (who could've been the changeling) with actual demon blood.

But like

I'm thinking now

Maybe I was being too simple about it. Or overcomplicating it or something. 🤔

Because now it seems totally obvious: Angus as the changeling that took the place of whatever human child it was.

I guess it's because I've been rereading all these threads? And one core piece of my headcanon I've always kept is how Angus first encounters Rohan by finding the kid knocked out in the middle of a forest. I don't know why it's such a vivid image in my mind - Angus hovering over Rohan as Rohan wakes up, being the first thing he sees as the world comes back into focus - but it is. The part that must've been throwing me off is how they would get there.

Rohan doesn't mention where he was before they met, which stands out, because he talks about never knowing his real family all the time. But again, I'm overthinking it: wherever he was, he wasn't with his 'real' family. And because he's obviously willing to settle down after Cathbad gives him a bed, wherever he'd been before must've been shitty enough that Rohan needed to get away from them.

So, Occam's Razor of clichés: probably a horrible orphanage. Assuming orphanages existed back then - it could've been a shitty farm that took kids in as free labour, and had the older kids raising the younger ones as future free labour. That gives me a reason for why anyone would be taking care of a baby, why Rohan knew it wasn't his real home, and why he eventually left: it sucked.

It doesn't explain that "You were stolen from me" line from Maeve very well, though. The reason I thought the changeling idea applied to him better was the 'bad deal' angle I could work in with that: Maeve traded Rohan for a monster she could use for a weapon, thought she'd been tricked into only getting a half-demon, and couldn't get a refund. 'Stolen.' Or just outright targeted by changelings and stolen that way, but 'stolen' in that sense implies a sort of "You took my baby :(" grief. Maeve isn't grieving Rohan. It's more "Hey, you ripped me off >:( I overpaid" energy.

But I'll figure out what that means later. 🤔 Whatever kind of deal Maeve made must've ended with Rohan getting taken away and dumped somewhere loveless (for him to want to leave) but loving enough for him to be fed and cared for as a useless baby. Exploitative child labour farm works for that.

The other option is, "A very nice family took me in but they all died :(" or "They were nice but I felt my destiny calling me." I could see the show picking one of those (because why would it pick Child Labour Farm), but they sound like cop-outs. Why wouldn't Rohan ever mention that family, then? To me, he doesn't bring up where he used to live either because he doesn't remember (which is what my old Fae!Angus idea was going for), or he hates them and doesn't think they're worth talking about (Child Labour Farm).

Anyway, it's important for me to sort that out in my head 'cause it clears the way to talk about Angus. Why was Rohan in the forest that day? Deliberately leaving or escaping where he was.

So why was Angus there?

I've talked about how Angus never mentions wanting to know who his family is, and how I take it as proof that he already knows. As in, Angus isn't an orphan. He's a runaway. I'm picturing a similar kind of thing as what I just described for Rohan, except this was Angus' actual family: awful, shitty, abusive, so eventually, he left. And as he wanders around, he finds Rohan.

Putting a Fae lens on it it still ends up working. Maybe even a little better? Maybe it's more grimly ironic? Because Angus doesn't mention wanting to know his family, but Rohan does, and Angus never seems bothered by that. He doesn't call it wishful thinking or a waste of thinking. Like, I'd imagine someone who ran from an abusive home saying, "Be careful what you wish for, Rohan. You might find your family and hate them. Trust me, it happens." But the closest he gets is getting mad at Rohan for placing Lugad, his blood half-brother, above the family he's been raised by. Like he's saying - well, he does say it: "You'd trust that monster out there more than the family that raised you?" It's focused on behaviour. If Lugad had been super chill from the beginning, Angus probably wouldn't've been so hostile about it.

I'm getting ahead of myself lmao

Back it up: what am I picturing here?

Fae!Angus. The fairy version, before he goes into the human world. I dunno how old he is, but from what I read in other books, he's still gonna be able to think like a child even if he's lived for longer than that. Sort of a Peter Pan situation, where he and the others never grow up.

He sees others doing their swaps. He sees the human kids come in and eventually become fairies as well when the magic passes into them: they're eating the food, they're in the realm, it all completes the transformation.

Eventually, he gets curious and goes to see what humans are like, and he finds a family he slowly gets attached to from afar. They seem nice. And nice in a way where he's beginning to understand why other fairies were making their own trades; he wants to be a part of this.

The longer he spends among his kind - loud, tricky, squabbling, childish imps - the more he wants to move on to that soft, warm home and be loved. He mulls it over for what could be ages, but eventually decides to do it.

Angus makes the trade.

It's easy. The human kid doesn't take much to lure away, and he's helped capture enough kids as part of other fairies' lures that he knows how excited everyone is to join and help. In the meantime, Angus uses his magic to become that human's perfect twin.

Except...

Well, it's still Angus. The job gets done but there are a few details missing. Maybe Angus (being so pretty in the show 👀💖) thought he'd be - like, a better-looking version of the kid as an upgrade for his new parents. Or maybe he just missed making a change or two because he didn't think it would matter. Either way, there's something ever, ever so slightly 'off.'

The family can tell. They're stupid humans, so it isn't right away. But they notice something's strange and make little comments to each other about it. Angus can hear and realizes he's gotta fix those mistakes: ears, nose, eyebrows, whatever they're guessing might be 'it,' he adjusts during the night.

But he's still 'off.'

The family starts getting tense. Then angry. First at each other, for being so lost in crazed paranoia. Then at him, for having something wrong with him. Then at each other again, for suggesting they do something about it. No matter what he changes now, he can't kill their suspicion. What he has killed is any hope of the home he made this trade for.

... So he leaves.

Just like that.

I mean, Rohan says it too: "When there's trouble, Angus is gone." Why wouldn't it already be a habit? There's trouble at this home, so he leaves it.

And maybe he's wandering back to his own kind again, or maybe he's wandering aimlessly. That second one would be interesting, as if he's not allowed to go back after he makes the trade. Like it's sink or swim out there, and even if the family you joined tries to kill you, it's no reason to go back to the other fairies. They don't live as a 'family' that way. There's no unconditional love or acceptance, which was what drew Angus into this swap in the first place.

But while he's on the move, he cuts through a forest and gets distracted from his thoughts (and rage and grief and embarrassment)... by some ginger kid knocked on his ass in the middle of this place. He goes to check it out, hovering over that kid's head, which is when Rohan starts to open his eyes.

What I like is how it fits in with the show, recontextualizing some of it. When Rohan says in the wish episode that he'd use it to know who his family is, Angus gives a wistful, uncommitted sound. Then he says it'd be a good wish, which Rohan seems to appreciate. But unlike with Ivar and Deirdre, Angus doesn't try to pivot it back to what he wants to wish for instead (gold). We know he can't relate to Ivar and Deirdre's things at all. But he can relate to Rohan's wish. He knows what sort of fantasy Rohan is picturing, because it's the same one Angus traded his life among the fae for. And deep down, part of him would still like to have that. But he's sticking with the wish for gold, because he's had his chance at that fantasy. He screwed it up. Getting it again would only be a second chance to ruin it.

Gold can't hurt him. He can't disappoint gold.

Then when it comes to Lugad, with Rohan putting so much emphasis on them being brothers - Angus can get that too. Brothers! Amazing! But the way his 'brother' is treating him, trying to kill him, Rohan shouldn't want that. He should walk away, like Angus did. And the fact that Rohan isn't walking off is driving Angus a little crazy.

When Rohan finally admits to the others that they're his family, that's when Angus gives a muted reaction. You'd think he'd be celebrating Rohan seeing the light, but no. It makes me wonder if he thinks Rohan is settling. Not that it isn't nice that Rohan agreed to it at last, but that it's kind of sad they all have to pretend this is "as good" as having a true, blood-related (by magic or otherwise) family to call his own. Angus will play into it, obviously. That's what friends do. But deep down, they all know this isn't... 'real,' right?

Maybe that's the fae in him talking.

But maybe it's the same fae that's never called Rohan anything other than his best friend. 'Almost brothers' isn't brothers, and one thing Angus might've always liked about Rohan is that they both understood this. So maybe it's sad seeing Rohan seek refuge in the delusion. But it's all Rohan has now, right? He tried to make the swap, and his family tried to kill him. Angus won't abandon the guy, but it's such a farce to call this a replacement - even though Angus tried calling them a family first, back when he was yelling at Rohan for not wanting to fight Lugad - that he's going to prove how not-a-real-family they are and ask Deirdre for a widdle kiss uwu

He can't help himself. Angus knows it's not the same thing. He's okay with tricking others, especially if it helps bring Rohan some tiny comfort, but he can't trick himself here.

It's not the same.

I'd want to follow this into an arc where Angus has to eventually go back to his people. The 'failure' - or worse, the adult, because Angus actually grew up - returning to seek help with some part of Rohan's quest or Fin Varra's riddle. Maybe for help against Nemaine. Something. And they laugh hysterically at him for screwing up his swap, but laugh even harder when they learn how far he's willing to go to help his human friends.

And they say it like the word is soaked in poison. Friends. Angus gave up everything he had to get a family, and all he has is friends?

Friends are conditional.

Friends are fickle.

Friends aren't bound to you.

Friends are a bad trade.

Angus is forced to listen to their evil, little chattering and suck it up. He can't really argue - not just because he needs their help for whatever, but because he's gotta admit they're totally right. And that embarrassment of failing so miserably with the family he tried to join comes back, eating at his mind, and ohhhhhh the other fae can feel it radiating off of him, even though he tries to hide it. So he doesn't defend himself against what they're saying. And yet what takes it from bad to worse is if he brought the others along (I'm thinking at least Deirdre here because she loves jumping in with a spirited defence of what's right) and they pipe up about the power of friendship and what close friends they've been.

The other fae, all grimy and child-sized, HOWL with laughter at this. It gets to a point where it starts to hurt (not Angus, who's only quiet because he's fuming), until they stop and switch to ask how good of friends they are when they didn't even know Angus was fae.

The others don't have an answer. I figure Rohan would, but either he's not here with them now or he seems to know to hold his tongue. One look at Angus and the storm in his eyes would be the sharpest clue there is to give it away.

I imagine Angus interrupting to 'humour' the other fairies. He's using his 'on' voice - the one where he's making a big performance of it, and the fairies are eating up what he's saying: friends are just friends, they all know that, but let's move this along and get to the help Angus came here for. The fairies might hem and haw but at least they decide to give the Mystic Knights a clue, which is more than what they had before. Angus takes it and leaves, and the others follow after him (Deirdre, assumedly, annoyed that it's letting those awful, pint-sized gremlins 'win'). I even imagine her complaining how mean it was to have Angus forced to pretend he agreed.

... Angus doesn't challenge her. He doesn't confirm what she's saying either, though. And Rohan would probably be the only one who can notice.

A real twenty-two minute episode would be too short for everything I'm seeing. We'd need a couple where he's revealed as a fae and the others adjust to it. A few where they see if he has any magic left to help in quests (eh, I'll come back to this). But then, finally, one where they go back to the other changelings, now that they've been building it up for a while. Angus' reluctance to go back would be the focus, and it'd explain why he's so quick to want to leave, too. Leaving forever isn't because the other fae won't accept him back. It's not like, "We'll kill you if we ever see you here." But it is like, "We will never let you forget this for as long as you live." And fairies? They live for a fucking long time.

So Angus finally getting hit with that insulting barrage - the most excruciating thing he's experienced, even if he's being stonily silent about it now - brings on an entirely new dynamic among the others. That word felt soaked in poison because it was poison. Angus is suddenly pulling back, more aloof and cavalier with them. Getting him to be a part of the team is now a 'favour,' and it's like he's more and more annoyed by how many of these 'favours' he's handing out. Eventually, with the others trying to corner him and find out what's wrong, guessing and suspecting and whispering about the something that it might be, he snaps. The words sound mild, maybe, but they show how hollow Angus feels after having had this rot away in his mind.

"I get it," he says, while being smothered by these people who don't have a reason to be this close and in his face all the time. "We're friends. But we're only friends. I don't need to do everything you ask just because of it. It's friendship, not a contract. It's not as if we're married."

This is sort of what I'm saving Rohan for. Because I think this is where he gives his wistful, uncommitted sound. This is what he went through when he was trying to accept the others as 'good enough,' because forcing himself to give up his dream of a perfect, blood-related family wasn't easy. It's what he himself wanted his whole life. And Angus gave up his life among the fairies to get it, and he failed. Trying to be satisfied with friends, in the way Rohan knows Angus is imagining?

It's another bit of a recontextualization of the wish episode again: Rohan was the one to sit the others down and talk about the value of friendship. He understands what it's like getting so caught up in a dream that you lose sight of what's in front of you. But he's not the same as Angus, who made excuses and said Rohan needed time alone when the 'Maeve is my mother' secret came out. Instead, Rohan'll tell the others to be gentle, and to be patient, but to keep their hand of friendship outstretched.

The changelings had all chittered that friends were fickle and conditional, right? That was what Angus had to be thinking, Rohan will explain. Now, more than ever, they have to prove they're not going to leave him - or let Angus leave first in some twisted point about being abandoned. He's a flight risk, remember? They know what he's like.

This is the plot that an episode could follow. The one before it could be the set-up to go and see the other fairies, which lets this one follow Angus reuniting with them, hearing what they say, falling back into those conscious beliefs, and withdrawing in an angry, confused, and humiliated panic. It's to get the other Mystic Knights slowly luring him back to them, refusing to give up, and believing in him enough (thanks to Rohan) to finally drop the "What's wrong what's wrong what's wrong something's wrong something's wrong with you what's wrong" interrogation. They force themselves to let the tension fizzle away. Angus tests it, suspects it, but they either don't react or they tell him to cut it out because he's treating them poorly. It's almost like... kinda psychological warfare, in a way? Where they're purposely refusing to engage and making him confront the fact that he keeps expecting the worst from them.

This would be playing out as they follow the clue they were given. Maybe it was a fetch quest, because I want the episode to end with Angus coming back to other fae. The clue could've been to a McGuffin, and only with that McGuffin will the changelings give the Mystic Knights what they were here for. It's far off - really far off - to let it take a few nights around a campfire. That's perfect for Angus to storm off when he's hit his limit. He can go get firewood or something, returning the first few times to hear them talking about him. Then Rohan does his intervention. Then the talking stops. Or at least it moves to regular chitchat of close friends making the most of a miserable fetch quest together.

The audience would know about Angus luring the human kid he swapped with out into a forest. That's because I want Angus to be in a forest when he finally has his epiphany.

The human kid? The one who's now transformed? That kid follows after Angus purely to ask him questions.

It's awkward, obviously, for Angus to come face-to-face with... well, essentially his own face. Just child-sized. And the original. It's a little off from his own still, but the human-fairy skips right by all that.

"What's it like being an adult?"

"How did his human life turn out?"

"He lives near a castle now?"

"He's a magical knight?"

"What are the fairies in Tir Na Nog like?"

"What does he do all day?"

And Angus, maybe a little surprised and speechless, stammers through a couple of answers before he launches into the great adventures that he's had. The human-fairy's captivated - it all sounds fun! Angus doesn't realize for a moment but... yeah. He agrees. It's been fun. And he means that as the fae do: his kind absolutely worship having fun. They barely stopped screeching and playing long enough to send the Mystic Knights out here - in fact, they didn't stop playing. The only break they took from tumbling around was to laugh hysterically at Angus' failure, which was fun for them in another way. So for him to say it's been fun, and to mean it...?

He's surprised by how happy it makes him.

It feels nostalgic.

But - look, he's not going to be face-to-face with the face he stole and not ask questions of his own. Angus wants to know if the human-fairy's angry at being kidnapped.

The human-fairy - who can't be more than six, which lines up with how young I imagine Rohan was when Angus found him (adding a bit more nostalgia to that too) - shrugs and says he isn't sure. Being with the fae is a lot of fun, and it's been so long since he's seen his family that he doesn't quite remember them. He doesn't feel compelled to find them, though, and that's because it's almost like he never left.

And Angus stops the boy to ask what that means. 'Never left'?

The boy says even though he can't picture his family's faces, he remembers how it felt to be with them. And as the only other person who's lived in the same families as Angus, he can say pretty confidently that the fae make him feel the same.

They're not the same. The fae are loud and sharp and exciting. His family felt... softer. Cozy. Peaceful. But he feels the same about them. They're both home to him. He used to only have one home, but then he became a fairy and now he has another.

So... the boy doesn't want to go back?

The human-fairy shrugs again. Maybe one day. When he's ready to settle down and be a boring oaf of an adult. "But you don't sound boring," the boy says, through a sharp, shark-like set of changeling teeth. "Maybe I'll go and be a magical knight too."

"I think there's only six," Angus says.

"There will be," the boy answers.

Their teeth are sharp. On many levels, that vicious little grin is pointed.

... Nostalgic. The spark of this threat - the game in it - breathes life back into a part of him that Angus thought had died. Grinning back in a way that would've been just as sharp if he had those teeth, he tells the boy, "Try it. Fair's fair."

"Don't make it easy," the boy says.

On that faintly deliriously hum of fun, the boy takes his leave. The challenge was made, the game's been set, and maybe someday Angus will have a changeling trying to swap back.

... Not into a family, though, as they usually would.

The epiphany comes. Gentle and soft and cozy.

It would be into a family, Angus understands. That's what the others are to him.

They're not the same as the fae, but he knows what that human-fairy meant by it: they feel like home. The people he'd tried to swap into never did. Understandable. He can admit that now. But the way the others have taken him in, and how they haven't changed even knowing what he is...

They're fun.

He might be practically human now, but it's still the most important thing to him. Fun can mean loving and loyal and - unbelievably - even quiet. But it's all fun, isn't it? To him anyway.

The other fae would howl again if they heard that. But deep down inside of him...

... He's okay with it.

He cares. He still cares. But he doesn't feel the anger and grief at the thought of them laughing at his failure anymore. When he thinks about it, yes, he botched the swap he was trying to make. But he didn't botch the swap that he got.

It's interesting.

Being consumed by such a calm realization...

He doesn't even jump when he hears the leaves crunching behind him. Somehow it makes perfect sense for Rohan to arrive, and to find each other in another forest.

Rohan asks him if he's ready to leave, putting a hand on Angus' shoulder. It isn't a tug. It's just an offer to join them at the campfire.

And it's night.

Angus lured that human kid into the forest at night back then.

The flicker that thought stirred awake fizzled out before he even named its emotion.

It'd been daylight when he and Rohan first met. But when Rohan woke up, Angus didn't need to lure him into going anywhere. Rohan was already leaving his own home, so the two leaving the forest together made sense. In fact, Rohan practically followed Angus out on his own. For no reason.

Just for fun.

And that thought, almost overwhelming him, was friendship. Angus couldn't speak around it, but it must've been clear on his face, because the hand on his shoulder gave a short squeeze. Time to go home, he figured. Back out together again.

He'll be quiet at the campfire, but it's restful now. He'll see the not-so-secret looks to Rohan, asking if something's wrong. And he'll feel Rohan's even-less-subtle, relentlessly confident answer:

No.

Because Angus is fine.

Going back to the changelings after their stupid game of fetch has a different sense of frustration now. It's more like annoyance at having to have walked so far and jump through their hoops, all to predictably lose for their enjoyment.

Angus knows what he's heading into. He's known from the start that it was all a silly waste of time meant to 'shock' them with that reveal. But whatever help they were after was locked behind this stupid charade, so he was sucking it up and playing his part, hating that he had to play pretend.

But he didn't hate himself for going back.

It suddenly felt like running into his old pickpocket friends. They were fun, sure, and familiar, but the kind he'd moved on from by now. Outgrown.

So he still wanted to get this over with.

Improvements were improvements though, and Deirdre's complaints from behind him as he lead others through winding the passages - which still felt so burned into his very being, not even needing memory to navigate - was something he appreciated. He wasn't looking forward to this. They were going to be mean. They always were. That's what made them, them. He used to join in, too.

And of course the conversation went exactly as he thought it would.

... Right up to the split second before he handed the McGuffin over.

That deep, long-forgotten, nearly buried fairy blood suddenly hummed in his veins with glee.

It was the same hum as the other changelings were making: anticipation and delight over what was supposed to happen. And he stopped, because he knew exactly what to do.

"Ivar," he said, abruptly handing the McGuffin over. "You're polite. You should give the speech."

Ivar, obviously, wasn't expecting there to be a speech, but trusted Angus to know his own people. And Angus knew Ivar.

He knew all of them.

With how long Ivar took to get through a formality, Angus had plenty of time to feel both of his families in one place. And he could feel Rohan staring, proud of Angus but a little smug about being right. That was perfect too, though. Smug was icing on the cake for this.

Ivar gave his speech. Lovely. And he bowed. Lovelier. And the prince gave the McGuffin to whoever seemed to be in charge for the hour.

That kid, in the same fluid motion it used to pick the McGuffin up, fuckin' threw that shit at a wall and made it shatter into forty pieces.

Then they all cheered.

Angus had to admit the look of horror on the others' faces - even wiping that smug part off of Rohan's - was phenomenal. He couldn't outright laugh (technically this was a joke on him too, since he'd had to get the McGuffin), but he earned getting to smile wide enough for the family resemblance to come shining through. Hundreds of tiny, shark-sharp chattering teeth were flashing through this cave - and so were Angus' 💖

"You said we needed that," he hears Deirdre shrieking in outrage over the sound. "We came to you for help-"

It's a special, extra thrill for Angus - and Angus only - to watch the princess get to work. The fear she put in the changelings? Equally as phenomenal. And in the horrified silence at the end of her outraged tirade, and at their shocked, shark-toothed mouths hanging open and beady eyes going wide, Angus felt it sink in.

And he howled in laughter.

Which was great, 'cause even though the changelings didn't seem to get the joke (too sophisticated for them, he supposed), knowing there was a joke at all - because Angus would know; he was one of them - broke the tension again. The fairies finished up their prank, handed them the real help, and Angus waved goodbye before leading the others outside. Deirdre didn't need his help this time, since she practically seethed her own way out through the rock. That was fine, 'cause the changelings didn't even notice he'd said goodbye. They were already back to scratching and biting and laughing.

Hilarious. All of them. And fun.

"I can't believe you used to be one of those," Deirdre spits when they're back in the open air.

"He's still one of them," Ivar says, defending Angus' honour.

"Well..." Angus thinks about that. "I am and I'm not." That used to be his home, after all. He used to be just like they were. The difference was simple but undeniable. So he shrugs. "I grew up."

Cue Deirdre ranting about how she wished they would all grow up. Those mini-monsters wasted days of their royal lives just to smash that trinket right when they had it? It was disrespectful - did they even know who she was?

They did. That's why it was funny.

Rohan's been at his side. Not asking, but close enough that he might as well have asked.

Is Angus all right?

Angus doesn't the answer the not-question.

He only suggests, "Back home, then?"

Rohan understands.

It figures. Who'd know Angus better than his best friend?

(it takes less than an hour for angus to whine about how far everything always is)

[voyaging-too]

2024 December Media

Recs bolded.

Books:

Sheri S. Tepper: Grass. Gorgeous sci-fi about Catholicism, plague, monks, weird creatures, complex space aristocracy social dynamics slightly reminiscent of Barrayar but worse, and a lot of horses. The protagonist is a middle-aged Olympic equestrian lady.

Cornelia Funke: Herr der Diebe (The Thief Lord). I'm practicing my German! This is a great middle grade book about orphan kids running around Venice, the atmosphere of the city is so vivid it covers up the occasional plot hole.

Robert Musil: The Man Without Qualities (vol. I). This book is somehow both boring and terrifying. It's set just before WW1, but the protagonists don't know that, and so they keep having long-winded conversations about how nothing ever happens.

Han Kang: Human Acts. A short, visceral, painful book about the 1980 Gwangju Uprising, and the people, (civilians (children)) who were killed in it. Fiction, heavily based on non-fiction historical research.

Mercedes Lackey: Magic's Price (Last Herald Mage III). The previous two books in this fantasy trilogy weren't good either, but they were at least fun. This one wasn't.

Vivian Shaw: Bitter Waters (Greta Helsing 3.5). Sweet, beautifully written, ultimately plotless addition to the series.

vol 1. of that weird Stalin-era world literature anthology I impulse bought at the second-hand bookstore and am occasionally reading on the toilet to stop myself from doomscrolling.

Films:

Louis Theroux: Tell Them You Love Me. A masterful, disturbing documentary of the Anna Stubblefield case. Trigger warning for... everything, but especially rape, ableism, and horrible people genuinely believing they're in the right.

John Palfreman: Frontline. Prisoners of Silence. After watching the documentary above, I got obsessed with the failure of facilitated communication, and had to watch this one-hour documentary on it. It's thirty years old, so expect some not-so-great language on autism, but the overall points stand.

Kenji Kamiyama: The War of the Rohirrim. Anime vaguely based on Rohan lore in the LOTR appendix. Weak writing, meh plot, middling animation, transparently desperate attempts to recapture the glory of the original trilogy, the only saving grave was Olwyn and her capacity to pass the Bechdel test.

Starkid: Working Boys. Fun short film about Prof Hidgens trying to stage a musical, set in the Hatchetfield universe. Multiverse? Idk anymore.

Podcasts:

Jo Walton, Ada Palmer: Ex Urbe Ad Astra. Two brilliant writers talk about history and fiction, sometimes with guests. They never talk down to the audience and that feels amazing, even when I don't get what they mean at all.

Friends at the Table: Live at the Table. The FaaT gang plays a whole bunch of one-offs and short campaigns. They try a dozen different TTRPGs in a dozen different settings, not all of them work equally well, but sometimes you can listen to them create the best wordbuilding out of thin air.

Gabriel Urbina: Wolf 359 (season 2). Captain Lovelace arrives, space comedy is now officially a space dramedy. Still works well on relisten.

Shelved by Genre: Last Herald Mage unit. These guys are a great read-along book podcast, even when they are reading a book I hate, because they dissect it in really interesting ways.

Gabriel Urbina: Dracula. The Danse Macabre. I'm conflicted, this adaptation of Dracula has tons of great ideas, but they don't gel. The condensed plot isn't really intelligible unless you've read the original novel and know it pretty well, but if you know the novel that well, the arbitrary changes are far more likely to annoy you.

Theatre

Starkids: VHS Christmas Carols. (online ticket) An eighties-style musical adaptation of The Gift of the Magi, The Little Match Girl and The Christmas Carol. Takes itself surprisingly seriously for how funny it is. May be the second best adaptation of Christmas Carol out there.

Sándor Zsótér: Bertolt Brecht: Round Heads and Pointed Heads. A gorgeous studio production of one of Brecht's lesser-known plays. There's no point in me recommending this, because there's no way you guys can come here and watch it, but it was legitimately one of the funniest, most moving, most upsetting things I've seen this decade.

[somethin-real]

Do you mind if I ask your top 10 favorite characters (can be male or female) from all of the media that you loved (can be anime/manga, books, movies or tv series)? And why do you love them? Sorry if you've answered this question before.....Thanks....

I never check my inbox but sure! I’ll try my best to think of who, but honestly I don’t know if I have the brainpower right now. I’ll give you a top five since I’m waiting for the train.

1) Sephiroth (FFVII)

I LOVE SEPHIROTH. I don’t know why. One day he just crawled into my brain through my ear and started living there. If I could have a sephiroth themed room, I probably would. The Sephishrine. Unfortunately I’m not super rich so I’ll deal with just having stickers and scouring the internet and conventions for a figure that isn’t worth three arms and my own head.

2) Iruma Jyuto (Hypnosis Mic)

God. Jyuto sucks but there’s something about him that gets to me. I don’t know if it’s the yaoi cigarette lighting from the anime or the bunny imagery is what does ir, but as terrible and horrible as Jyuto is, I can’t help but like him. acab ESPECIALLY for this dude though

3) Nishikiyama Akira (RGG)

oh dear. oh my. I think seeing nishiki break down at kashiwagi’s feet in one really crossed my wires. There’s something about the inferiority complex and why he does the thing he does. Nishiki is, at his best, a man who is only doing what he thinks he needs to do to survive and failing miserably at it. It can’t have been easy, living in Kiryu’s shadow, after all. Anyways I’m going to eat him. :3c

4) Kamisato Ayaka (Genshin Impact)

Unfortunately because of how my brain works, GI had to make at least one spot on this list. I don’t talk about ayaka much but despite my fujo tendencies I am still a lesbian and I think that Ayaka is one of the prettiest girls ever!!! she’s so strong and soft and beautiful and when her banner was immortal I was over the moon. She has her sword. I got her c4. I bough the stupid Fontaine dress because she looks pretty. I am not immune to pretty woman propaganda.

5) Kagamine Len (VOCALOID)

Okay I don’t know if this actually counts? because he is music software after all BUT I love Len I love his music I love his little face I think that there should be a Len Expo and I also think that it’s criminal that every con I’ve ever been to has had a Rin figure but there’s no Len in sight. Loli brained otakus unfortunately run the world.

Honorable mentions in no particular order!

Haruki Nakayama (given), Power (Chainsaw man) Genji and Hanzo Shimada (Overwatch), Kishibe Rohan (jjba)

Thanks for the Q!

[sepyana]

Jjba Diamond is Unbreakable Ep. 8-16 Thoughts

Ep. 8-9

Yukako has so many issues god bless

I've taken a liking to her design. Her color scheme goes together well, her hair has a lot of character and I do like the rose emblem on her outfit.

Her stand, Love Deluxe, plays the prehensile hair trope straight, other than her ability to control her hair even when it is not attached to her scalp. I like the name but I find this type of stand boring to be honest.

I'm not really interested in Yukako as a character, unless she gets something more later on. The funniest thing they can do is pair her and Koichi together. "Me and my girl don't argue, she tells me to shup up and I do" and such.

Josuke and Okuyasu were nice this episode. We learn that Crazy Diamond can't bring back anything The Hand deletes. Just goes to show how opposite their powers are.

Koichi is not really my cup of tea. I appreciate him being part of the group but solo episodes with him don't really interest me. Plus his voice is incredibly grating in both sub and dub. It's interesting that he set up that rock so that Yukako wouldn't die, you gotta be really confident that you'll win if you are worrying about the safety of your opponent.

Hey, Koichi with the new hair kinda looks like... No I shan't say it.

Let's talk about Echoes. My boy. My lil man. Look at his lil smile :) My favourite stand from part 4 so far. It seems to emote on its own sometimes, like Star Platinum who smiles every time it gets a chance to beat someone up. I like it when stands emote on their own. The fanworks do this a lot but jjba itself rarely does it. Which is a shame.

Ep. 10

This is just 20 minutes of Okuyasu having nice things happen to him and I think that's just great. If I had so say my one gripe (and be a killjoy), it would be that it doesn't tell us much about Okuyasu and Josuke that we don't already know. The best thing about filler is that it gives us characterization and I don't think this episode has enough of that.

Okuyasu and Josuke fighting reminded me of the Death 13 episode except Polnareff was infinitely more stubborn

Also this is a great time to just give the VAs the biggest shout out cuz wow I love them. Especially Okuyasu I love the way he says Josuke. It brings me joy. They are perfect fits for the characters they are playing. I can hear Tonio's accent but I know fuck all about Japanese so It might be horrible, not my problem tho.

Ep 11 - 12

I think Tomoko is one of my favourite female Jojo characters so far. The bar is on the ground, but, you know. Take what you can get.

I don't get why they added that scene with Josuke at the start. It doesn't really add anything.

I think the funniest thing in episode 11 is Koichi and Okuyasu just going through it and the Jojos not giving a shit. I hate the Joestars so much it's unreal. It did struck me as a bit weird. It's not at all weird for Jotaro (Have you seen the stardust crusaders? They told Polnareff they lied about Avdol's death to him and then they had the audacity to go "I didn't think you'd be this hurt"), It does feel a bit off for Josuke though.

Jotaro smiling as he says Jospeh could die is amazing. Of course he would.

I didn't think about what Red Hor Chili Pepper's stand user would look like but I am definitely not dissapointed in Akira. Personality wise he is insanely boring but I do like his design.

Okuyasu looking at his own hand as he thanks Koichi was a nice touch.

I like how they handled Joseph. Obviously Josuke is not gonna be amazed to see him but It wouldn't go with his personality if he was antagonistic either.

Ep 13

I don't like how different the japanese VA of Joseph sounds when he is yelling. English VA doesn't have this issue but it's also was the weakest of the sdc cast imo. No winning with this one.

Ep 14 - 15

The first episode is just set up. It does that job pretty well though. Really makes Rohan seem insane. I mean, he *is*.

Rohan relating everything to art and writing isn't even that off from how most artists think tbh. Writers will see a documentary about the most disturbing shit they have ever seen and they will go "That will make my writing about this part more accurate".

And Rohan'a advice is actually pretty good. Like, draw with references. Draw from reality. Base your characters on people who you know, instead of like, just taking from your favourite artisans. Anyways,

Rohan's stand is called the Heaven's Door. Firstly, It's a really cute stand. Secondly, this thing is busted. It'd be one thing if looking at a draft was the only way for it to work but touching you with his stand also works. And he can knock someone unconcious when unfurling them. Add on that the insane speed he has for no reason and honestly we should just be glad this guy isn't a villain. He is just weird and offputting.

I fucking love episode 15. The pay off is amazing. I love that Okuyasu and Josuke notice something small like a cut on his hand and immediately help him. I love that Rohan opens Josuke's eyes by insulting his hair. And then he just. keeps. going.

Josuke being literary so blinded by rage that he doesn't see the draft? Amazing. He absolutely destroyed that place. And threw a fucking chair at Okuyasu and Koichi. This show is pretty funny when it wants to be.

The story of his hair was really sweet. The guy helping them seems to be a student like the current day Josuke too.

Ep 16

The art style for this episode looks different from normal and I have no idea why. The style is ussually pretty consistent. You can see the gums in their teeth it's strange.

Jotaro gets a slight outfit change. I like the colors and the tilted belts. I'm not sure on the new jacket. I liked that they used the collar of his shirt to give the same vibe as his part 3 outfit insead of just giving him a jacket exactly like his old one. His new jacket is a bit dissapointing. I like dolphins. I'm not sure what they were trying to do with the triangle and the sun. Overall, I like the older one just a bit more. I would love it if he kept changing outfits like this tho.

It's something that Jotaro can't seem to seperate Star Platinum's time stop ability from Dio. Like, that's Star Platinum's power.

As funny as seeing Jotaro get his ass beat by a Twitch looking ass rat is, It's also shows what I like about stands. I know Jotaro is holding back here, but that doesn't change the fact that this is a bad machup for him. So you don't need to nerf him in ordert to create conflict. Stands are good against combatting power creep, is what I'm saying.

Love Crazy Diamond popping up out of nowhere just to look sad. Don't look at me with them big ol' eyes.

Ep. 17

I think one thing part 4 is good at is the character dynamics. Rohan and Koichi was fun to watch. Rohan grinning at Koichi getting flustered was great. Reimi being really friendly with Rohan cuz she knew him when he was a kid is a nice bit of writing.

I made a joke post about where Kak went after death, a few people mentioned how ghosts were real and he could be like Reimi. Now I know what they are talking about.

Reimi has a nice design. Especially the choker with the hands holding on it. Speaking of hands

I know I shouldn't be laughing at the guy whose only trait so far is that he kills young girls to date their hands to satisfy his stupid fetish or something but

what even is that music. Why did they make it like that.

To close this off, I am currently on vacation with little internet access. It's a rural area so there isn't much to do. I've been spending my time writing these, slowly. Gonna take a hot minute to finish this part.

I've been also wondering if I should watch Stone Ocean before Golden Wind and get the Jotaro story over with. I'll decide that later, I dunno.

[sullivanxshaw]

“ I don’t wanna be me anymore “

Welcome to Aurora Bay, [SULLIVAN “SULLY “ SHAW!] I couldn’t help but notice you look an awful lot like [ROHAN CAMPBELL]. You must be the [TWENTY-FOUR] year old [DELIVERY AT SWEET NOTHINGS BAKERY ]. Word is you’re [PROTECTIVE] but can also be a bit [ANXIOUS] and your favorite song is [I DONT WANNA BE ME BY TYPE O NEGATIVE ]. I also heard you’ll be staying in [OCEAN CREST APARTMENTS ]. I’m sure you’ll love it!

Tw: Death, Anxiety,Physical Abuse, Alcoholism Drug addiction

FAMILY

Step Father: Nicholas Stephensen(deceased )

Mother: Annie Shaw (deceased)

Biological Father: Peter Shaw

Sister: Summer Shaw (21 yrs old)

Half Sister: Selena Shaw (15 years old)

Half Sister:Sera Shaw (6 yrs old)

WANTED CONNECTIONS

Coworkers: Liza Levin, Noelle Driscoll

Friends: Emerson Cassidy, Kylee Anthony, Sage Williams, Aubrey Carson

Former Crush On: Liza Levin

Exes: Sage Williams

Current Crush On: Sage Williams

Someone With Crush On Him:UTP

Former Friends: UTP

The Bad Habit Connection:

Mentor Figures: Noelle Driscoll, Ann Thompson, Calin Sava

BIOGRAPHY

Raised on Aurora Bay Drive, Sullivan Shaws family seemed perfect from the outside. His mom owned a small business in town and was a large part of the community. Everyone knew the Shaw family and everything seemed idyllic to the untrained eye. Sully graduated high school near the top of his class and was saving up money for the next couple of years working in town and attending the local college so that he could go to med school. He was the oldest of four and felt like he had to set the standard; especially considering that their father was a horrible drunk who had a tendency to disappear for days on end; leaving his mom to not only run her shop but to leave her raising four kids. Sully wasn’t the type to sit back and let things happen though and began helping his mom with work. It was aways instilled in him to take care of those who needed it most and he was why he wanted to also attend med school. He also had the grades to make it pretty far in life, but wasnt in a rush to leave and attend an Ivy League school yet.

Whether it was helping one of his sisters with school work or stepping in the middle of a bullying situation, Sully felt like he was always supposed to offer his help. He wasn’t a very confrontational person naturally though and would only ever step in based on impulse to protect the people he never wanted to see hurt. That was quickly followed with the realization he was in over his head and about to get beat up. Which happened a fair amount. But as long as his family was safe he would always step up for them.

Sully always felt like he always had to be the the one to keep things together, especially in response to his dad. For most of his early life he felt like being the big brother was something to always take seriously. And when he got into it with his biological father he came home and saw the man attempting to hurt his mom, Sully acted in pure impulse and stood up to him. Despite getting a broken nose for his interference, Sully made it perfectly clear that he wasn’t going to let anyone hurt his family. From his mom to his littlest sister Eloise everyone was going to be safe from his dad. His dad wasn’t required in their family to be complete and the man finally walked out on his mom officially. Eloise was only a couple of months old at the time, but none of it mattered when your father would rather throw a punch and ran off to find himself at the bottom of a liquor bottle. He sent nothing but divorce papers as a goodbye to the Shaws and Sully finally felt like things were going to be okay.

His mom struggled a bit to find her footing for a couple years but eventually fell in love again with a longtime friend and remarried. The man was someone that had gone above and beyond what so many others wouldn’t do and took on dating a single mother of four and treated them as his own. It didn’t matter that Sully was already a legal adult by that point, he still wanted to feel like they could be one big and happy family. He wasn’t scared anymore that someone could hurt his mom like his bio dad had, but he still felt this need in his family to look after things when he could. Sully was just relieved he could finally let his guard down and start to focus on what he really wanted to do in life.

The world had a habit of changing so fast though.

His oldest sister was helping keep an eye on Annalise and Eloise, while Sully was out at work all night at his moms shop. His mom and step dad had gone out for their anniversary and the oldest Shaw siblings were helping out with the family obligations. When he came home and noticed the police cars that surrounded his home he knew something had gone horribly wrong. It was a drunk driver on the road and his parents died on impact. Sully was beside himself over what had happened and before he could really process any of his grief, they had to bury his mom and step-dad

In the months that followed, Sully felt like he wasn’t really existing; instead just going through the motions of his life and unable to truly let himself fall apart. He would just smile and accept other’s condolences and hope to God they would stop talking to him about his dead parents. He felt incredibly overwhelmed and in over his head but he was trying to keep it all together. He had to stay a strong front for his siblings though. He had to make sure they could come to him even though he was trying hard not to spiral. He couldn’t let him see himself slipping. After all he was always going to be the protector, whether it was standing up to their dad or their bullies, Sully would always be there for them.

He was the oldest.

He was the big brother.

He had to keep it all together.

He had no choice.

When the town decided they were done morning the Shaws and moved on with their lives it was both frustrating and a relief. Sully hated being reminded of his families loss, so he was more than grateful to stop hearing “ Sorry about your parents “ but it did frustrate him that just because they were done mourning for his family it didn’t mean the Shaw kids weren’t done mourning their loss. People say a lot of pretty and nice things when it is right in front of them, but they move on rather quick; especially when things started to go south for the Shaw family. Those helping hands that were once offered were nowhere in sight.

And as the Shaw family had to close down the business, and CPS came and tried to split up the family or send his sister to live with their dad. None of the well wishers had tried to intervene on their behalf. It was all on Sullys shoulders and he had to act fast. He went to the few people in town he knew could help him and tried to build a case to be granted him custody of his two youngest sisters. With his oldest sisters help and a few faces he held dear to him on the outside he went to court and fought for the legal guardianship of his sisters Eloise and Annalise. When his father walked in and tried to portray himself as a good man and not the abusive alcoholic he really was; Sully had enough and stood his ground. It was emotionally taxing but by the time they had reached an agreement, Sully was granted custody of his two youngest sisters with his other sister staying with them to help out. He also vowed if he ever saw his father back in Aurora Bay, he would make sure he never saw his kids again.

While he was out of the woods in some ways, a whole new battle was taking place. Without the income of the shop, the legal fees, and four mouths to feed, the money left from his mom and step dad was drying up fast and, in order to save money, the four moved to Ocean Crest and both Sully and his sister took jobs in town to help.

It’s been a couple of years and even though the Shaws aren’t living the way they used to, they were as happy as they could be considering the circumstances. His sister Annalise might be in her angsty teen years and his little sister Eloise seems to think Sully is her dad, but they’re making it all work. He likes to think he’s doing the best job he can, but his issues with anxiety started to magnify ever since the death of his mother and step dad. He’s never had a moment to breathe since the accident and it’s only building up in him and had nowhere to go. The mourning he never did, the anger he felt toward his dad, the overwhelming sense of having to always appear perfect so he doesn’t lose his siblings, it was all starting to weigh down on Sully. It never ended. It never slowed down. And he just always smiled through it and hoped they didn’t see the ball of nerves he’d become. At a certain point Sully had started to be unable to sleep at night and would chemical ways to help him just so that he was able to get through the day. He was never going to touch alcohol because of his dad, and because of what had killed his mom, but Sully is aware he’s playing a dangerous game as he slowly slides into addiction and is hoping someone can give him the help he’s always been too scared to ask for his whole life. He was always going to be a protector, but what do you do when you can’t protect yourself ?

@aurorabayaesthetic

[savingthrcw]

Clarke Griffin

page under construction

Some important canon divergences:

-if we don't plot, my default answers for memes and starters when we first begin writing may be after season 3 but canon divergent: they aren't under the threat of world destruction again (yet), Rohan honored the coalition so they are at 'peace' with the grounders, and Clarke and some of the others are staying at Becca's house, sort of a sidegroup so Wanheda isn't going to put a target on Arkadia with her presence. This is so that we can write ALL the plots we want without worrying about timelines. Either that or the depressing but with hope 'after season 6' when there is no time/planet traveling and they are just learning how to live in this new world (not freeing all the Eligius criminals at once), and dealing with various traumas. But it's not a must!

-I do headcanon/write that after having the Flame in her head, Alie's chip, blood transfusions in an unhigenic place after being tortured by her chipped mother, Clarke's brain and body wil take time to recover after s3, even if the Flame was removed correctly. She has pains in her neck sometimes, and her PTSD symptoms got heightened. She also hates being completely alone at this point, even before what happens with Praimfaya.

-important: Wells was her best friend for her entire life before being sent to Earth: Clarke is still in pieces, probably always will be, over losing him. She will think of him/mention him.

-Lexa and Finn are on the same level in her memories, more or less: people she knew for a couple of weeks/one month, she had romantic feelings for, felt betrayed by and sort of forgave before they died horribly, which means their death had more weights than their short romance, and to me Finn has more romantic weight seeing as he was her first and there was a whole 'cheating' situation that made things even harder, but they also lived together and survived together during their first month on Earth. I'm sorry to Cle.xa shippers but I cannot see how Clarke and Lexa had any time to get to really know and like each other when they were constantly apart or Clarke was justifiably refusing to see her after Lexa's betrayal pushed her to pull the lever in Mount Weather. And this after their first kiss was very shortly after Clarke felt forced to stab Finn to spare him from torture.

-She mourns both but not as extensively as in canon: Finn, though, makes her feel extremely guilty and responsible, on top of being someone she had to mercy-kill, and stays with her also as a trauma and reminder that her love kills. Lexa is connected to the first 'worst moments' of her life, and very directly so, and Clarke has mixed feelings there; but since Lexa was shot by someone who wanted to kill Clarke and right after they slept together, guilt wins there too. She's not in love with Lexa for years after her death.

-if a Bellamy rper wants to write shippy things, Clarke has been in love with him without realizing it ever since season 2. If they don't, she has no love interest when interacting with him unless plotted otherwise (she'll still have the occasional hook up with Niylah, though, but she's happily single). If a Murphy rper wants to write shippy things we will have to write that development from scratch with our thread (which is how rp generally goes). With the others I may default to Clarke having feelings for Bellamy, though, as that's what I took from the show, but having no intention of doing anything about it, especially once he's with Echo (whom my Clarke likes, by the way).

-I absolutely want to explore the fact that Clarke in the first seasons is a TEENAGER who had the weight of the world on her shoulders (after a year in solitary which is traumatizing by itself) and can still act like one sometimes. Should, in fact, be given the chance to just have a bit of fun. It didn't take long to convince her to get into the fun at the end of the very first episode, when Jordan swung to the other side of the river, she did join the party in their camp even if it was short lived, she just doesn't have time for it.

-If Madi exists and s5 happens, Clare is not going to crawl for people's forgiveness after season 5; as far as she sees it they were saving their family and she was saving hers: they wanted to put a chip that is a death sentence in her daughter's head (Bellamy) and wanted her to lead an army (the others) and she fought for her. She may apologize for hurting people in general but if prodded she will not hesitate bringing up that they made her daughter the Commander, robbing her of her life, and argue over most things she's accused of. She's going to fight back, despite agreeing that she's a terrible person. In fact if we go down that route she may be somewhat resentful around Spacekru (minus Echo who didn't attack her and they talked things out when Echo was being "kept hostage" anyway and she was told Bellamy was still alive after the arena). Even so, she also wishes for forgiveness and loves them but doesn't feel like part of their family/group. -This is also why I'm hesitant but interested in writing her with Raven: I think they'd fight a lot in later seasons and I'm not too comfortable writing hostility even if it gets fixed, unless I know the other rper and we can talk ooc too (so I know we are not actually annoying each other!) but I'd also love to write them finally going at it and then returning to be friends!

-With Octavia she actually doesn't have any particular issue because even if we write her as having become Blodraina, Clarke sees her as having lost her mind and she knows she decided to follow Madi by the end. So while she's very careful because she doesn't know if Octavia is dangerous to her now, it's an easier relationship than with Raven, Clarke isn't particularly hostile, just cautious, and if you write Octavia going through her character development in s6 (okay maybe without going into s7 with time-traveling) Clarke is there for her, especially because she knows how having to make impossible choices (genocide/cannibalism) can make you lose yourself. -She would apologize to Bellamy for forgetting he's part of the family, yes, but she'd also remind him he promised to protect Madi and then left Clarke herself locked behind while he took her daughter to Gaia and put a target on her back. Literally. A target that changed her too, and that she has to learn how to control so she's not overwhelmed by the Commanders.

-If we do write season 6, she'll bring up to Murphy how fast he cooperated with her murderer Josephine, though this would be without particular resentment given how things turned out; she'd reference it to return the favor of Murphy not letting her off the hook for a second after season 5.

-Clarke is apologetic about causing pain, especially if she decides it was wrong, and will always agree she's a bad person, but she will not think she was wrong nor apology for protecting her people, and is not that submissive.

scenarios:

-I'm also here to write enormous canon divergences, as in: long stretches of time when nothing happens, or no Praimfaya at all, or maybe there is Praimfaya and she manages to get back in time to go to space, or she's stuck on Earth with Madi but then there is no Diyoza situation yet and the others just come back, or maybe season 5 goes normally and then at the end Earth isn't bombed and they live in it, OR it happens like canon and I'm willing to write season 6 too… but NO SEASON 7. Nothing from season 7 and that includes things that started happening in season 6 related to it (time and dimension traveling lights, Hope grown up coming back for Octavia etc). I'm more than happy to write 'life after big events' (which includes us writing bad things happening to them). But also as in her taking a different approach with those characters, changing their relationships, opening up earlier/more, or having other off-canon adventures that bring them closer.

[cockneydio]

It's been eeehhhh 18 months of my chaos queue without a hackey exhausting queue tag to warn you which of my posts were set up by Past Callie to ruin Present Callie's day anyway so what do we think about:

Pannacotta Queuego

Queueno Queueciarrati

Jolyne Queuejoh -or- Jotaro Queuejo

Higashikata Josqueueke

Oqueueyasu Nijimura

Queueichi-queuen

Kosaqueue Kira

Thus Queued Rohan Kishibe

Queuel Ice

Pretend this is Twitter and vote. The winner won't actually ever be used by me, because this was obviously just an excuse to make awful puns.

[strawberryvanillablast]

Overcome The Yandere Nightmare! (Josuke Higashikata X Reader, Giorno Giovanna X Reader)

TW: Yandere behavior, Anxiety, Injury, Slight mentions of Blood

Josuke Higashikata

Josuke awoke in an inky void where not a speck of light was shown at all. He tried moving his arms and legs but found out that he could not move whatsoever. He nearly panicked, concluding that this had to be an enemy Stand User. But the question was: What kind of power was it?

Suddenly, a large mirror appeared right in front of him. Rejoicing that he could move, Josuke tried to make sense of what happened to him. Where was he, exactly? Why was he here, of all places? And, why was there a mirror in front of him? Peering into it, his reflection twisted in, like a funhouse mirror in one of those carnivals he'd been to.

"What the," Josuke muttered. "If this is a prank, it's not a funny one..."

His reflection changed into a scene. It was nighttime into the woods, where three people were standing around. He peered into the mirror, frowning. There was himself, holding a dirty shovel in one hand while holding a person by the other. Sitting on the ground, a few feet away, was Rohan Kishibe. Josuke's frown deepened, fear churning in him.

"Higashikata," Rohan held up his hands nervously. "L-Let's not get carried away now, shall we? I was only talking to [Y/N]..."

"Shut up, Kishibe," The other him growled and a spine-tingling chill rolled down in just how menacing he sounded. "This ends now."

"Josuke, stop," [Y/N] cried, tears streaming down their cheeks. "There is nothing between me and Rohan at all. I swear on it!"

"Oh really, babe," Other Josuke turned to them, sickeningly smiling. "If so, why does Rohan have a car packed with your stuff? Why were you talking to him for the past week or so behind my back?"

"You," [Y/N]'s eyes widened fearfully. "You went through my phone?"

The real Josuke gaped in horror. He'd never do that. Sure, Rohan was a jerk to be sure, but Josuke would never think of treating [Y/N] like... like this. He tried pounding on the glass to get their attention, proving he was the real Josuke. But it didn't seem to work.

"Babe, you're MINE," Other Josuke growled. "Whatever I say goes. And talking to Rohan especially isn't allowed."

Josuke bared his teeth. Who the heck did this other him think he was here? Not ever would he give that kind of rule! He was all about pure-love! He continued to punch the glass harder this time to try to warn [Y/N] to say that he would never do that to anyone he was dating but his screams fell on deaf ears. Suddenly, the scene changed and there was blood on the shovel. Lots of blood. Josuke's jaw dropped in fear.

No.

No.

No!

Josuke felt his heart sink as he saw his other self turn to [Y/N] slowly, menacingly, as [Y/N] only sobbed in fear. His other self grabbed [Y/N] by the wrists roughly with an evil smirk on his face. He screamed and tried to break the mirror with his fists to save [Y/N] as fast as he can.

"[Y/N]," Josuke screamed. "[Y/N]! [Y/N]! [Y/N]!"

"Josuke!"

"Josuke!"

"Josuke, wake up!"

Josuke opened his eyes to blinding light, which then cleared to reveal his friends looking down at him worriedly. He panted and sat up, only to find himself on the rooftops of the school. For a moment, he sat in confused silence.

"Oi, Josuke," Okuyasu said. "Are you okay, man? That sounded like a horrible dream you were having."

"Y-Yeah," Josuke replied, nodding his head. "I'm fine, I promise."

"Hey, Josuke," Koichi asked. "Can I ask a question?"

"Sure."

"Who's [Y/N]? You kept saying their name over and over again."

"I..." Josuke spoke before frowning. That was weird. Why couldn't he remember who [Y/N] was? "I don't know who they are. But what I do know is that I want to see them happy as can be. That I promise."

Giorno Giovanna

He suddenly awoke in a dark void and immediately was on guard. He never liked the dark since it reminded him of those horrible nights in Japan, where he was an abandoned infant. He hummed thoughtfully as he ascertained his situation. It had to be an enemy Stand User but what type of Stand Power was this to put him in a dark void? Giorno's mind whirred with questions, some of them unpleasant.

Suddenly, a large, opulent mirror appeared right in front of him. As he furrowed his brows warily, he nevertheless stepped right in front of it. He was curious to see where this was going to lead. Peering into it, at first it looked like his normal reflection. Then, his reflection warped in a colorful haze, like he was peeking into a funhouse mirror.

It then settled into a room within the villa. It was dimly lit like that of a nighttime luxury hotel. But the atmosphere was tense and he heard a muffled cry. There was someone, someone on the bed. They curled in on themselves and he could hear faint clinking like those of chains. At this, his eyes narrowed, a flash of anger crackling.

"Who could be the monster who'd do something like this?"

Sure enough, his question was answered when the door opened with a blinding light. The person on the bed shivered fearfully, eyes shined with tears, as a larger figure entered the bedroom. Giorno squinted in speculation, dread building up in his gut. He had a feeling that he had knowledge of who these people were and he had a feeling that things were going to go wrong fast.

"Well, well, well, dolce mi. Are you able to speak to me again?"

Giorno felt his stomach turn to ice the minute he heard that voice for it was his voice. Indeed, there he was, cloaked in red. He felt a chilling shudder crawl down his spine again as he watched his other self give a bone-chilling smirk at the person on the bed.

"D-Don," They squeaked out. "D-Don G-Giovanna..."

"Ah, ah, ah," He tutted, gently grabbing them by the chin. "You call me GioGio, amore mi. That's the way it should be, [Y/N]."

Giorno's hands curled into fists angrily as he heard his other self say a monstrous thing like that. What's more was [Y/N]'s reaction. They just gave a defeated whimper as the other Giorno sat down next to them.

"Why so upset, tesoro/a mi," Giorno asked gently. "I can bring you the things you most desire, the things you want. As long as you are here."

"D-G-GioGio," [Y/N] stuttered out, a squeak to their words. "P-Please. Let me see my family and friends! I need them, too!"

Giorno froze. The other self was restricting their freedom and he had the audacity to ask why [Y/N] was so upset. This couldn't go on for a single minute! He had to get [Y/N] out of there immediately! He tried to call Gold Experience Requiem by his side, only to find nothing. He tried calling again to no avail. If this were the case, then he'd have to do things the old-fashioned way.

"[Y/N]," Giorno shouted, banging on the glass. "[Y/N]. it's me! I'm here and I won't let this monster hurt you or anyone else!" There was not a single reply. "What? They can't hear me?"

"The outside world will hurt you, you know," The other Giorno replied, voice soft. "It's better that you're with me where nobody else can hurt you." He frowned. "As for your family and friends, I've taken good care of them."

Giorno recoiled a little, knowing what that sentence meant. [Y/N] had now sobbed hysterically, which made his heart ache. Even though he was the Don of Passione, he still wanted to do good by the people his heart held dear. So, for the other Giorno to do something like this...

"GioGio," [Y/N] sobbed. "Giorno! Giorno!"

"Giorno!"

"Giorno!"

"GIO!"

He awoke in a cold sweat to see Mista shaking his shoulder gently. He blinked his eyes and looked around the office. Ah right, it was a dream he was having. A horrible dream, but only a dream.

"Sorry, buddy, but a new recruit is here to see you." Mista grinned.

"Right," Giorno nodded, rubbing his eyes. "Who is the new recruit?"

Mista signaled the person to come into the office and when they did, Giorno was taken aback once more even if he kept a professional and composed front. The new recruit bowed down and gently grasped his hand, exuding a pleasant warmth that made him happy and fearful.

"What's your name?"

"My name's [Y/N]," [Y/N] replied brightly. "It's a pleasure to be in your ranks, Don Giovanna!"

[morwen-elf]

PROTECTION | LEGOLAS PRINCE OF MIRKWOOD

SUMMARY ➪ YOU ALMOST GET INJURED IN A FIGHT WITH ORCS, AND LEGOLAS SAVES YOU

WARNINGS ➪ MENTIONS OF BLOOD, AND FLUFF

NOTES ➪ SORRY FOR TAKING TOO LONG ON DOING THIS REQUEST, I HOPE YOU LIKE IT ANGEL @scarlettgrant99

The orcs were creatures that everyone knew, they were wild and aggressive, unable to use their brains properly, and created to serve their leader. Their appearance was unappealing and their smell made people and elves nauseous, their skin was pale and it was always covered in blood and dirt, not to mention all the wounds that covered their faces.

They were soulless creatures, eager to end the era of men and thus initiate the time of their race.

Y/n had grown up hearing about them and when she was twelve she met them in person, they were attacking her town and there were not enough people who could protect them, for that reason she decided to take a sword and accidentally buried it in the stomach of one of the orcs that had planned to attack her.

Her life had changed quite a bit since then, but something that always haunted her was the battles. She had to be alert at all times and resting was something that was difficult, especially now that Frodo and Sam were on their way to Mordor to destroy the ring.

Everyone's fate was hanging by a thread and that was keeping them all on the edge.

The screams of men and orcs being attacked were the only thing that reached her ears, as she continued to struggle to make it out of the battlefield alive. Death would catch up with her at some point, but not yet. Y/n was on top of her horse, burying her sword in all the creatures that were willing to attack the poor town of Rohan, they had no compassion for the elderly and much less for the children. Blood flowed everywhere and the loss of warriors was practically uncountable.

The girl's breathing was rapid and she felt her heart stop as an orc attacked her horse from the right side, causing them to fall to the grass. The blow had been strong and Y/n took a few seconds to get up with her sword raised, she was a strong warrior and she would not give up easily.

The orc let out a horrible sound as he lunged at his figure, Y/n's sword collided with his weapon managing to stop his attempt to cut her arm, the beast seemed to get more annoyed with each passing second and that's why he was quick to back off and launch again against her.

The hideous creature's movements were quick and disorderly, but still managed to hit her hard. The air was leaving her lungs and her desire to rip his attacker's head off was getting bigger and bigger, but that wasn't enough.

In battle, you can't afford to be distracted and Y/n did exactly that.

For some strange reason, she felt the need to look for an elf with blond hair throughout the field, which gave the orc time to send a direct blow to her throat completely cutting off her air passage. Y/n promptly fell to the ground, bringing both hands to her neck, coughing desperately for oxygen.

Legolas had been in charge of keeping an eye on the figure of the girl throughout the battle, but as expected, he lost sight of her from one moment to another. The people who were left standing were less and less and that is why he focused on searching the grass, fearing to find her frozen and lifeless body.

An orc caught his attention and he could see how he plunged the point of his weapon into Y/n’s leg, she let out a cry of pain as she tried to get away from her attacker. Legolas immediately ran towards her and it didn't take him long to shoot two arrows at the orc's head, watching as it fell slowly and defeated to the ground.

"Legolas..." Y/n sighed, feeling relieved when the boy's face appeared in her field of vision

The girl tried to get up and the elf quickly stopped her leaving her on the grass again "Don't even think about trying to walk, you will only worsen the wounds"

Y/n closed her eyes for a second, before opening them and staring at her leg. "How long do you think it will take me to heal?"

The elf didn't want to give her the answer, but he knew he couldn't lie to her, so he decided to avoid her "We have to get out of here, you can't keep losing blood"

Legolas put one of his arms behind her back and the other under her knees, without a hint of effort he lifted her from the ground and began to walk between the bodies of orcs and men.

"Thank you," Y/n murmured gently, laying her head on his shoulder

The prince of Mirkwood smiled slightly at her words and looked at her tenderly, her eyes were closing and that left him a perfect view of her long dark eyelashes, her skin had a layer of sweat but she still looked extremely attractive.

“You are going to be okay, I'll make sure of that”

[moss-the-art-guy]

Ok!!! It's called the Strandbeests, I hope u like it! This is the first chapter!

Ch. 1 Littles, Middles, Speakers, and Mumblers

“Come one, come all,” I shout to get the little’s attention.

“And hear the story of the strandbeests. Tall beasts with very long human-like legs and arms, although they walk on all fours. Atop the mutilated limbs are the beasts themselves, flesh lumps with eyes and clumps of hair that belonged to the person they used to be,” a shutter runs through the group as I theatrically recite the story.

“Horrible creatures are the strandbeests. They make their own shadows cringe with a twinge of the people the beasts used to be, and the very sand they walk on turns to stone. Although these beasts seem terrifying and as if the moment one saw you, it would rip your head off if given the chance!” Gasps are heard from the crowd, the littles always get spooked at that part.

“They are actually quite peaceful,” Sighs of relief.

“They roam the empty land, counting backwards. No one really knows why they do, what number they started with, or who they used to be. As a matter of fact, no one really wants to,”

Once I finish telling the same old story I tell every day, the littles take off, back to their speakers.

“Another day done, another speaker lost” I thought to myself as I looked out the tent door to see Sohi. Speakers are the people in our village that we, middles (not adults quite yet) and the littles (small kids), can still understand. One of today's lost speakers was Ms. Wendy. Every day I go to the tent with all the other littles and middles and one speaker. We all sit down and the speaker, whoever it is that day, teaches us something. Ms. Wendy was my favorite, she would teach us all about art and books. After the lesson, the middles take turns telling stories to the littles. Then the littles go home, we do chores, then we go home and take inventory of the speakers and mumblers.

Mumblers, as you probably could guess, are corrupted speakers. We have to keep the mumblers in the sanctuary or else they turn into strandbeests.

* * *

“Please just work with me Ms. Wendy!” I beg, exasperated. She, of all the mumblers, was the hardest to hurd into the sanctuary and I was especially exhausted.

“Leaffffff…..” I call.

“yessssss Twigggggg?” she says, mocking me.

“I need some help with Ms. Wendy,”

“But it's your turn to deal with the mumblers, I did it last night!” Leaf groans.

“Yes, and I’ve been covering for you at story time. I did the Strandbeests story four times in a row this week!” I retort.

“Fineee,” She sighs.

Once we finally finish up with the mumblers and taking inventory, we all go home. All the middles live in the same tall tent with one fabric divider in the center for some privacy and a bunk bed or sleeping bag for each. The littles and speakers all sleep in a much bigger tent in the center of the town. Each speaker is assigned a little or two to take care of, depending on how many speakers there are. When a little’s speaker is corrupted, they can choose to be assigned a new speaker or go to the littles tent. The little’s tent is a medium-sized tent that is run by the eldest speaker, Rohan, and it's where speaker-less littles go.

Once a little goes into the little’s tent, they can't leave until they become a middle. Rohan is very protective of the littles. He’s the only speaker that has survived a strandbeest encounter and was able to tell the tale. His story goes that he was on border patrol, one of the speaker’s chores, and he saw one. It was just like the story describes. A lump of human skin, almost like a chunk of clay with four long, mutilated legs and arms. The flesh lump had human eyes scattered in it along with gruesome clumps of human hair. The moment Rohan saw the beast, he chased it away from the village with his ears plugged.

When dealing with a Strandbeest, you have to plug your ears so you can’t hear them counting, or else risk them counting to zero. Once a Strandbeest reaches zero, they just poof out of existence, and if a person hears a strandbeest count to zero, they become corrupted. They turn into a mumbler.

* * *

“I'M BACK!” I yell, entering the middles tent with a pail of water (my other chore for the night)

“HEY TWIG!” Peanut yells back at me, finishing giving out dinner.

“How were the mumblers today?”

“They were… Uncooperative,” I say.

“Hey! You weren’t the only one who had mumbler duty!” Leaf calls from the other side of the tent

“Ya, Leaf helped me with Ms. Wendy,” I tell Peanut.

“Wait, Ms. Wendy? Aw nuts! I'm gonna miss her,” says Peanut with a frown.

“I know! Sohi won't be the same without her,” Leaf says, joining us on the rug. “How did helping Rohan with the littles work out?” she asked.

“Great, actually! The littles had fun coloring and they listened really well,” said Peanut, “I’m exhausted thought” he sighed, plopping onto his bed.

Peanut is my best friend. We all grew up together, me, Leaf and Peanut. We always ask for the same chores and littles shifts, and we even bunk together. He’s basically my brother.

* * *

Me, Peanut and Leaf sit down by the fireplace, talking about our day. Then Mr. Willson, the speaker who has bed duty tonight, comes in to tell us to go to bed. We all share a bunk bed, Peanut on top, me in the middle, and Leaf on the trundle bed on the ground. All the middles go to their beds and we all say goodnight, but I can’t seem to fall asleep. I feel like I forgot to do something, so I go through what I’ve done today. I woke up, told a story to the littles, did my chores, just a regular old day. I shrug it off.

“It’s probably nothing, I’m just tired,” I say to myself, finally falling asleep. Little did I know, I did forget something. How could I have forgotten?

[tolkien-feels]

So I too began rereading lotr (not bc of you pffft ofc not im my own person wdym) and i gotta ask. What do you think about the eomer and gimli's discussion of arwen vs galadriel. i didn't notice it as a kid but to present me it rlly turns me off their characters though esp eomer's bc he always talks so strangely about even eowyn or how he talked to the poc coded druedain characters too. do you think this whole ish is just the product of the time or is this a deliberate flaw put there specifically

Oof, this one is difficult to answer because I feel like there are several layers to this.

Usual disclaimer that I'm not the best person to talk about this, because scholars make entire careers out of exploring the interplay between author, society, and text. You've asked for how I personally interact with this scene so I'll say that but please take it with as many grains of salt as you can find.

Under a cut because this got long.

Okay, let me go through the layers I think of when I read this scene.

One layer is that Tolkien's work does contain sexist elements (although if you go through HoME, you can see his depiction of female characters improves a lot over time, which is why I feel this was very much him being a product of his time, and as he matures, he began to address his own biases, although of course, his portrayal ultimately doesn't hold up to modern day sensibilities, nor does intention stop readers from feeling uncomfortable), and his views on race are very problematic on multiple levels (and these remain more consistent, I would argue). So a part of that is definitely, imho, just Tolkien showing his biases.

Another layer, though, is that he's very much borrowing from medieval ideas. It's a major trope in medieval literature to have knights praise ladies and quarrel with each other over whose lady is best (which is often tied to beauty, although physical beauty is tied to virtue, so discussing beauty and discussing virtue are often one and the same in medieval literature.) Now, Tolkien started out having dwarves be all evil, and even in The Hobbit, the dwarves are not usually very courtly. That Gimli is shown repeatedly speaking of aesthetics, reciting poetry, and holding Galadriel as the lady whose favor he values strikes me as Tolkien trying to show Gimli's nobility, which is comparable to Eomer's, a prince/king.

Yet another layer is that Eomer specifically is meant to be a character who wouldn't be out of place in a story such as Beowulf. When his views seem Bad, I'm pretty sure they are meant to be, and some characters actually push back on that at times. Not just on his own personal views, but Rohan's as a whole. The people of Rohan are very honorable and heroic, but their views on elves are demonstrably wrong, and Tolkien is interested in how, while heroic, their ideas of death-as-a-noble-pursuit are ultimately out of step with how Middle-Earth works (where life is nearly always celebrated.) I'm not sure we can extend that to the Druedain, because Tolkien's own views on the Druedain seem to me veeeery problematic, but it's not impossible to headcanon that this, too, is a cultural bias of the Rohirrim.

(Side note: nobody comes off looking very good in the whole Eowyn fiasco, but Tolkien seems to be taking Eowyn's side while acknowledging that the people around her mean well and aren't out to make her miserable. For somebody who struggles writing female characters, Tolkien shows a marked interest in exploring the limited choices women have in life, especially in wartime, and how often even good, honorable men are horrible to them because they're simply too self-centered.)

Anyway, back to the issue at hand, I also think it's important to remember that in the context of the scene, Gimli and Eomer are clearly just being playful. I believe they're high off the end of war and joking around with hyperbole. I don't think we necessarily can extrapolate this is how they would normally think about the women around them, nor do I think Tolkien wants us to.

Finally, this scene is barely about Galadriel, or Arwen, or Gimli, or Eomer. It's about Morning that has become Evening. The time of the high elves (as represented by Galadriel) is ending, and now it's time for Gondor to protect and guide Middle-Earth (as represented by Arwen.) Elves are fading, men are coming into their inheritance. Galadriel and Arwen are personifying concepts here, and I don't think it's a coincidence that Gimli (who will also leave Middle-Earth soon-ish) is siding with the Morning and Eomer (a mortal man) is siding with Evening. Again, metaphors.

Sooooo basically, I think while the scene is uncomfortable to read (as are many scenes in Tolkien), my personal take is that any analysis that reads this scene as Free Of Authorial Bias is overlooking aspects, while any analysis that reads this scene as Just Typical Sexism is failing to consider other aspects. It's Complicated, as usual

[warrioreowynofrohan]

Inspired by @tolkienfeels’ post [edit: actually a reblog, post is by @frodo-with-glasses] quoting Aragorn at the start of The Two Towers:

Aragorn: “An ill fate is one me today, and all I do goes amiss.”

Later in the chapter, after Boromir’s death, he repeats this:

“You give the choice [of what to do next] to an ill chooser. Since we left Lothlórien [my note: or passed Sarn Gebir? my separation from my books is causing problems] my choices have gone amiss.”

What goes amiss?

1) The Fellowship is broken. Frodo tries to go to Mordor alone; Sam goes with him.

2) Boromir is killed.

3) Merry and Pippin are captured.

The death of Boromir is undoubtedly tragic. The separation from Frodo and Sam, and the capture of Merry and Pippin, also seem like a severe ill fate on that day. But as it transpires, Frodo could not have built the rapport with Gollum that is crucial to all later events, permits him and Sam to find an (albeit very dangerous, and treacherous on Gollum’s part) way into a Mordor, and ultimately leads to the destruction of the Ring, if Aragorn had gone with them. Gollum’s hostility to Aragorn (and the fact that Aragorn rather than Frodo would in practice have been the leader of the group, due to having greater experience and being more used to leadership) would have prevented it. Plus Aragorn wouldn’t have been able to aid in the defence of Minas Tirith.

And the capture of Merry and Pippin by the Orcs, while horrible for them in the short term, is what (as Gandalf later observes) brings them to Fangorn with extraordinary rapidity, leading to their meeting with Treebeard, the rousing of the Ents, and the march on Isengard, without which Saruman would have retained his fortress and the armies of Rohan might well have been destroyed at Helm’s Deep.

And Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli’s pursuit of the hobbits, though it does not find them, is successful in bringing them to Fangorn at exactly the right time to meet Gandalf. (Gandalf says something to this effect to Aragorn when he first meets them again.)

So what seems, rationally, very mich like an ill fate at the time, in the end works out to more good than any purposeful plan of Aragorn’s, even if executed perfectly, could have accomplished.

This ties in with the section on “Fate and Free Will” on The Nature of Middle-earth. The gist of the passage, as far as I can tell, is that people’s purposeful, deliberate decisions and goals are through their own free will. But Fate (or Providence) can operate through ‘chance,’ things that seem like coincidence at the time, actions that are taken with no especial knowledge or purpose. Bilbo going on the Quest of Erebor is his own free will (strongly nudged by Gandalf, as a consequence of a chance/Providential meeting with Thorin); him finding the Ring is Fate/Providence. Éomer choosing to pursue the Orcs, which speeds up their pace, is free will; Merry and Pippin and Treebeard all happening to go to the right part of Fangorn to meet each other is Fate/Providence.

The other element that I think the NoME section is drawing in, is that when we make decisions based on good values and with good goals (such as Aragorn choosing to place rescuing Merry and Pippin above other practical considerations - above either following Frodo or going to Minas Tirith) we leave space for the operation of Fate to good ends, even if those ends are not the ones we have foreseen.