#the excuse is more for you than him anyways. he actually doesn't care to justify himself.

[suusoh]

I'm so sorry but could you imagine your friend Johan being all touchy and fond with you again, cupping your face and kissing both of your cheeks, and nuzzling you all over. When you try to point it out and question him about it, he doesn't even hesitate for second before saying the lamest most half-baked excuse on earth without blinking.

"I'm European."

then happily goes back to squishing and biting you.

[wrestlingisfake]

Why are you booing me? I'm right!

If you're worried about who's the babyface/heel in the Hangman Page/Swerve Strickland feud, keep in mind that "babyface" doesn't exactly mean "good guy" or "hero," and "heel" doesn't exactly mean "bad guy" or "villain."

The bottom line is that AEW decided to do a double-turn back in February, and the live crowds have (generally speaking) bought into it. Arguing that Swerve's actions were indefensible, or that Page's retaliation is justifiable, is beside the point. What matters is that fans want to cheer for Swerve and boo for Hangman. The question isn't whether either character deserves that reaction, but why they're receiving it.

Swerve's face turn is subtle, but clear. When Hangman complained that he lost the first two matches due to interference, Swerve didn't have to tell Nana to stay out of the third match, but he did anyway. When the match went to a draw, Swerve wanted more five more minutes, just like the fans. When both of them failed to beat Samoa Joe for the world title, Swerve didn't waste time with excuses and grudges--he just focused on getting another chance to beat the heel and win the big one. These are all things fans appreciate, even if you're a total scoundrel. Fans like wrestlers who want to do something cool, and then get it done.

Page's heel turn is more nuanced than the typical routine of "I'm Blair St. Claire, and I'm a bad girl now!" He's right to be angry about what Swerve did to his family, but (in kayfabe) his family can't possibly be better off living with his all-consuming obsession. He's right to be frustrated that he hasn't defeated Swerve in the ring, but that attitude has only hurt his win-loss record and made it harder to avenge those defeats. It's understandable that he wants revenge, but that does not justify what he's done to various people who innocently happened to be between him and Swerve. More crucially, nothing Page can do to Strickland on September 7 is going to solve any of these problems. Fans generally turn on wrestlers who can't get the job done, or interfere with the wrestlers who can.

In light of that, Swerve's crimes and Hangman's crimes actually start to seem fairly different. I'm not trying to make excuses for Swerve here, but realistically no one got hurt when he left a T-shirt in that crib. He wanted to play mindgames heading into the match, it worked perfectly, and he knew he wasn't going to hurt anybody (except Page, later, in the ring). On the other hand, Hangman had no way of knowing--and clearly couldn't care less--if his arson might get some innocent person killed. And for what? Even if he wins the match, it won't fill the void Swerve carved out of his soul last year. For better or worse, Hangman can't really win as long he's consumed with vengeance--all of his actions are ultimately self-defeating. And people want to root for a winner.

[yukidragon]

What if in Dragon AU Joseph/Jack decides, "you know what, being a king must be nice" and decides to take over the kingdom. Once he becomes king, he let's MC rule along side him and makes MC's love/close one's into higer classes and give them all a comfortable life for generations to come, if they want.

I'd say that is a good possibility. I mean, in the backstory I came up with, technically Joseph/Jack is of royal blood. He might even be able to claim he's more of a direct royal bloodline than the current rulers on the throne, depending on how Ian and his parents are related.

Quick aside, the content warnings for this post are probably going to be the same as the ones in the original Dragon Jack AU post.

Anyway, wouldn't it be interesting if Ian actually isn't related to Jack even though he's currently in line of succession? Joseph's family could have been usurped in the years since Jack was cursed into a dragon. In the power struggle that ensued afterwards, things eventually settled with Ian's parents on the throne.

Now here's the lost prince waltzing back in to throw everything into chaos. If the people were suffering from unrest while missing their former rulers and finding their current rulers unfit for the throne, well... I imagine there those loyal to the old royal bloodline would want to make things "right" and reinstate the "true" royal family. If the rest of Jack's family were wiped out in the power struggle, then only he would be left to be the rightful heir to the throne.

Of course, it all comes down to whether Jack would have reason to want the throne. He's already a powerful dragon, capable of incredible magic. No one could touch him. If his sunshine chooses to save him from the forest by binding him to them, well, he can be satisfied with just staying by their side forever~

That is... unless MC is having a hard time with the current regime. The queen doesn't care for them after all. The crown prince wants MC back. If Ian becomes king, he could pressure MC into marriage, whether they want it or not. They wouldn't have a choice due to the extreme power imbalance.

I mean... if Ian goes full yandere, wouldn't it be fine to marry MC, regardless if they agree or not? They know each other so well. MC is the only one who knows the real Ian. Yes, Ian messed up, letting the head in his pants lead him astray. He could justify MC being in love with Jack, Shaun, or Nick the same way. They've strayed like he did, so they're even, right?

As long as they're married, they'll have the rest of their lives to make things work. They belong together. There's no one else Ian can see either of them with.

A yandere can justify anything as long as they can keep the one they love after all.

If Jack is unable to use his dragon powers to stop Ian, somehow bound by politics and maybe even MC making sure that he can't harm anyone unless they permit it, well... then maybe gaining back the crown that people were afraid he would wear all those years ago is the only way to protect his sunshine and make sure they stay together forever.

On that note, it'd be hilarious if MC's alteration to the curse that allows Jack to be free of the dark woods was similar to the bead necklace that restricts InuYasha. One shout of "Sit boy!" and the unstoppable master of the dark woods bows down to them in submission.

Well... not as violently as in InuYasha of course. I know Alice wouldn't be happy to make Jack fall painfully hard to the ground every time she tried to calm him down. More like freezing him in place or just making him stop without hurting him. There's no reason to slam Jack into the ground on the flimsiest excuse. :\

Given how consent plays a huge factor in SDJ, particularly in the bond between Jack and MC, I'd like to think that would come into play in whatever bond is made between them when altering the curse.

Also, sending the love interest smashing into the ground violently every time you're annoyed is kiiiiiiiiinda abusive. Just a touch. At least in my humble opinion.

I just remembered a comment I got over on twitter that might offer the perfect solution. Now I have this image of every time MC pulls the reigns on Jack to hold him back, so to speak, he suddenly turns into a tiny baby dragon, cute and harmless.

This also gives me the image of baby dragon Jack nestled in Alice's shirt similar to this picture I drew a while back. Just have Alice wear fantasy barb and change Jack from a Tsum-Tsum into a colorful and cuddly little dragon.

Alice might be protesting here, but only because she's flustered that someone might see. She doesn't actually mind the little nest Jack has made for himself. Actually, she'd love to cuddle a tiny Jack close to her heart, especially if he was an adorable little dragon baby.

Once Jack realizes just how Alice reacts to that cute form, he's going to use the belt to willingly transform just to be cuddled and gushed over how adorable he is. Alice just can't resist! She has to squish those cute cheeks and kiss his widdle forehead. Also, who can resist petting such a cute little dragon, especially when he purrs and snuggles up close?

Sure there's a bit of awkwardness from Alice, knowing that Jack's other forms are a giant adult dragon and a buff half-dragon man who sends her heart beating wildly out of control, but he's just so cute! How can she not cuddle him and give him kisses?

I think I got sidetracked by my OTP. I'd say I'm sorry about that, but that would be lying. It will happen again.

Anyway, back to Jack taking the crown. If MC has a means of keeping him from using his powers to simply snatch them up and take them away, then using the crown as a means to take control might be his best choice to not lose them. Hell, he could be tempted to take the crown just so that he'll never be forgotten again.

In a way, Ian and his family stole the role Jack should have had. Sure, Joseph was the spare of the spare and his family didn't want him to have the crown, but it's still his birthright, and it was stolen from him many times over. Even without MC being a factor, Jack might be tempted to take it back anyway after he lost so much already...

Jack is already so tempting with his love and sweet personality. Add to that his invincible powers as a dragon, the wealth he holds, and the political power of ruling an empire, I imagine there would be more than a few MCs who might decide he's too tempting to resist.

Alice wouldn't care if the one she loves is a king or a commoner though. She loved Ian for himself, regardless of his status, which was why he fell so hard for her... and is terrified of losing her.

So I am tempted that Ian starts going down the yandere route when he keeps trying to save Alice from the forest, only to be constantly thwarted. Then she suddenly comes back with Jack, someone who saved her instead of Ian. Jack got to be the hero that Ian felt he needed to be to make amends for the wrongs he committed. Worse, Alice is so friendly with Jack.

Too friendly.

Ian knows Alice well. He can see the love in her eyes when she looks at Jack... the same love that used to be only for him. Now when she looks at him, she's cold, nothing more than a loyal retainer. She's put a wall between them, and his every attempt to get closer again only pushes her further away.

Worst of all, Ian knows Alice well enough that he can see that cold front she's putting on is just a mask to hide the pain he inflicted upon her. His all his fault.

Ian, after descending down the yandere mindset, doesn't see how he's using his power to put Alice in unfair positions to try and force a reconciliation, making the target the queen has painted on her back ever more garish and easier to strike.

The politics of it all makes things worse. Jack has plenty of moments to sweep in and defend Alice, to be the hero that Ian wishes he could be for her. Jack rubs salt into Ian's wounds as well, talking to him when no one else is around to make sure the prince understands that he's unworthy of Alice's love. Jack's words to Ian cut him deep, emphasizing the wide gap between Ian and Alice that can never be bridged, especially after Ian himself did so much damage to her.

Ian can't let this strange man just waltz into Alice's life to steal her away. It was bad enough when he saw the knights she spent time with crushing on her. He saw the way Shaun looked at her, how Nick fumbled over her. He even worried about Barry taking advantage of his position over her! Far too many people see her charms and are love-struck, looking to be her hero and whisk her away.

Jack is worst of all, because he succeeded where they and Ian failed.

So Ian just is supposed to sit back and watch some arrogant, brutish, smiling fool sweep in to steal away the only person who ever saw the true Ian? The only person who didn't see his crown, but of a sad, crying boy who only wanted to be happy and loved?!

Alice still cares. Ian can see it. She tries to keep her distance, but she still bends to him, showing concern for him. She still loves him, he's sure of it. He knows he can still touch her heart, no matter what walls she tries to put between them to keep him out.

Ian held out hope that if he waited until he was king, things would turn out alright in the end. He would spend the rest of his life making amends for the way he hurt Alice, for betraying her despite everything she sacrificed for just a chance that they could be together.

What kind of king would Ian be if he let others tell him what to do? Why should he let his mother or any other member of the court who disapproved of his relationship with Alice order him around? The throne, the divine right to rule is his by right. Once he has that, well... he'll make sure everyone knows that he makes the rules. He's the king, and Alice will be his queen, just like he promised her when they were children, young and innocent of just how tangled up royal politics were.

A king would not let anyone get in his way. A king would crush all resistance and take what is his.

Jack and Ian have a lot of narrative parallels in SDJ, and I think they could both go down the path of a yandere king in order to keep MC forever. This, of course, puts them at direct odds with one another, and I imagine MC will be the tipping point of the battle if they can hold back Jack's immense power as a dragon.

After all, if MC has control over Jack due to the curse, similar to the control they have in the game, all he can do is convince them, even through deception, to let him have his way, and to secretly go behind their back when they're unaware of what he's doing.

Jack doesn't need to deceive Alice, but what about other MCs?

If Ian uses his power as king to back Alice into a corner, then Jack is going to rescue her once again.

After all, Alice has her family to look after. Some MCs might not have such ties to worry about, but she has people in her life who she loves and is willing to make sacrifices to protect. Naturally, Jack is going to be jealous of their closeness, but it's mollified by the two of them being close together, and how much she sincerely cares for him as well.

Ian could use that family against Alice. Coraline wants them to get back together in the regular universe, so perhaps in this AU, she could be a useful pawn...

Of course, you know me. I'd want to give my OTP a happy ending. So if Ian did go down the yandere path, Jack would ultimately take "back" the crown for himself. Alice becomes his queen, and they eventually have a bunch of half-dragon babies who are all loved and not one of them is treated like the spare of the spare of anyone. They're a family first, royals second. Love will always come first when it comes to Jack. None of his children will suffer the way he did. He'll love every single one of them no matter what.

Besides, Jack might be immortal at this point, so why would he need to pass on the crown when he can just be the eternal ruler? With his sunshine by his side of course. There's no fight for the crown if he's wearing it forever after all. If the curse can make him live indefinitely, he'll find a way to make sure Alice will as well so that he'll never lose his sunshine.

Or maybe Jack will let one of their kids take over once they're old enough so that he can enjoy retirement with Alice. Being king is busy work after all, and I can see it interfering with how often he can make love to his sunshine.

Power is nice and all, but it doesn't compare making Alice scream his name as Jack fills her up with every drop of his love, over and over again~

@channydraws @earthgirlaesthetic @sai-of-the-7-stars @cheriihoney @illary-kore @okamiliqueur @kurokrisps

[multi-fandom-lunatic]

Fitz and Keefe: A Deep(ish) Dive

Sick of the toxic part of the fandom hating on Fitz and idolising Keefe.

Fitz has his flaws, sure, but saying that these flaws ruin his character, especially when he's working on these flaws, is just so devaluing. I honestly think that those Fitz hater extremists are more like Fitz than they realise.

I'm of the belief that Fitz hating started in Exile, when Fitz yelled at Sophie. I will reiterate the obvious: Fitz's dad practically DIED (actually, I'm pretty sure what happened to Alden is regarded worse than death by one of the characters), and Sophie was heavily involved in the situation. While she didn't cause the break, it was really a matter of wrong place wrong time, and Fitz lashed out, saying cruel things to Sophie. But Fitz has apologised. Multiple times, because he understands his lashing out as a mistake, which is what I find the toxic part of the fandom fail to understand. It is 1. a mistake that 2. he's trying to fix. That's more than the Keefster is doing.

Another key moment is with the whole matchmaking drama in Legacy. Sophie refuses to tell Fitz her bio mom and Fitz lashes out and Sophie breaks up with him. No denying that he was in the wrong here, but we also can't deny the nuance that comes with the situation. For one, the matchmaking system carries social consequences to those who don't abide by it. I bet money that Fitz wasn't trying to upset Sophie but rather try to help her not face the social injustices she would. Obviously, this backfires because he goes about it all wrong.

This isn't to say that Fitz didn't do anything wrong. Because that isn't what I'm saying, but rather to consider Fitz more than 'anger issues' (by the way, Fitz is not an embodiment of anger issues and it's upsetting that many use the term so carelessly), and Keefe more than 'perfect guy'. The point is that we shouldn't see things in black and white but rather shades of gray. Fitz has made mistakes, done some bad things, but this doesn't make him a monster, not in his case at least.

Then there's Keefe. Worshipped by the fandom, while his actions affect everyone around him negatively. Come on. You cannot be telling me that Fitz has anger issues and Keefe doesn't when he throws a bowl of stew because he was angry. That isn't anger issues either, by the way, but it's an example of Keefe's temper.

Also Keefe does not learn his lessons. He runs away TWICE, shatters a building but sure. Let's pretend he hasn't done wrong. And all of this is justified, both by Shannon and the toxic fandom, by his parental situation.

I'm not discrediting his mother as the leader of a terrorist organisation. But we shouldn't use this as a JUSTIFICATION but rather an EXPLANATION. To use it as a justification is to excuse his behaviour, which is unfair on those he inflicted harm to. But to use it as an explanation could help us draw conclusions on what is going on in his mind when he makes bad decisions.

Also, keep in mind that this isn't me evaluating who's better for Sophie, because honestly? None of them. I'm a massive believer of aro ace Sophie (as well as Keefitz). But this is more of a dive into their characters.

I really blame a lot of the hate toward Fitz on Shannon, because she insists on feeding in to a false notion that doesn't even make sense (Fitz literally broke in to exile in Neverseen. There is NO WAY he cares THAT much about matchmaking).

And honestly this is why I prefer books 1-3. They remind me why I loved these characters, and any book after feels like Shannon's trying to write them with her biases.

Conclusion: Fitz and Keefe are nuanced characters and their idolising/hating on either is evidence of not using critical thinking skills :P

PS: Give them both therapy.

Anyways I feel the need to ping you, @thesfromhms

[nineteenthmay]

People point out Chuck's flaws like the hotel thing and the horse comment which is valid but will ignore Blair's. A lot of Dair fans sanitize Blair to be more pure than she is instead of accepting she's messy and enjoying her regardless. I do think in general Blair is better than Chuck but how's Blair trying to get Nate to sleep with Epperley and mocking his trauma with Catherine and saying she's like a more flexible version of the woman that violated him better? When Nate was hesitant about it she emotionally manipulates him by talking about how she was getting him to do that cause she's struggling with her internship. Chuck didn't force her to go to Jack but emotionally manipulated Blair knowing she cared for him like Blair did Nate. People also call Chuck racist even though he wasn't as much as Blair who made a lot of comments of that nature, like sarcastically telling Serena to go get her hair dreadlocked on the way to Brown right after she made an elitist comment on how it's not a real Ivy, calling Iman Princess Jasmine, accusing Penelope (who's Iranian) of something Dan did and wishing for her to be banished to a country with Sharia law, her saying she had better genes than Vanessa, etc. I don't have a ship preference but am frustrated over the lack of criticism because of the Blair worship in this fandom. She also doesn't get criticized for forcing herself on someone in 1x5 and yeah that dude was creepy after she pulled away and realizing she was a teen but doesn't excuse her. Wasn't she still dating Nate anyways? And she didn't respect that the other dude had a girlfriend when she went for a kiss just like she got in middle of Chuck and Eva. She does get a little criticism over trading Chuck for a speech. She called the hotel thing the worst thing Chuck ever did despite knowing he's done worse and she had more agency than previous girls which is self centered. No one forced her to love Chuck so while he was wrong and undeserving of a second chance she's expected to take responsibility for choosing to go to Jack and having a messed up idea of what love is instead of being infantilized. I found the DV scene in 4x20 more disturbing and a situation where fully blaming Chuck for the fallout makes sense

You and me both, anon. You know, when I first watched the series a few years ago and got to know the online discourse about it, I was genuinely surprised that Chuck was so widely hated while Blair was so widely loved. Because, as you rightly point out, Blair was very problematic and she had serious flaws. A lot of people seem to view her as some poor Chuck's victim or damsel in distress and all her nasty actions are blamed on big bad Chuck's big bad influence taking agency from her when it's objectively not true if one actually bothers to watch the series. We can see on many occasions Blair doing bad things and comments (bullying etc.) with Chuck nowhere near to her and having nothing to do with her actions. Because Blair's flaws were her own, they were a part of her irrespective of Chuck and his approval/disapproval. Yet many people refuse to accept it. I have tried to explain this phenomena to myself and one explanation I can think of is that this series is mostly watched by women and women tend to relate more to female characters and justify them, unlike male characters. Therefore, Blair can get away with behaviour - and indeed some of it even would be celebrated as "badass" - that would not be tolerated in male characters. Another explanation could be that the series addresses Chuck's problematical deeds more than it does Blair's, like if Chuck does something bad it sooner or later ricochets to him, to Blair - not so much, particularly in later seasons. Consequently if the series pays less attention to it, so does the viewer. For example, the hotel deal is brought up many times, but not Blair trading Chuck for a right to say a speech. It doesn't mean that her problematic actions and comments aren't there for everyone to see though.

I don't want this to sound as Blair bashing because I do like her as a character but I'm with you, anon, there's definitely injustice in the perception of these characters.

[miss0atae]

Random thoughts about Pit Babe the series ep 6.

▪️Charlie and Babe are back in their blissful happiness. They are again very much in love and describing each other as boyfriends. I found it a bit cringe when they called each other Papa and Mama but everyone has their own kink, I wouldn't judge them if they enjoy this kind of pet name.

▪️I cared more about Jeff and Alan not being at odds anymore. I'm glad Jeff forgave him and his little Love Actually's apology was cute anyway. Jeff found that old fashioned but I loved that they made the reference. Can't wait to see them sharing more loving time together.

▪️I found the conversation hilarious between Babe and Jeff. Now that Babe knows Jeff if Charlie's brother he wants to be more friendly with him. Of course, it's better to have a good relationship with your boyfriend's sibling. I really like how Jeff was protective of Charlie. Their siblings' relationship is lovely.

▪️I'm not going to talk about Dean because frankly I don't really care about this character.

▪️I know I should feel more empathy towards Way because it is heartbreaking to finally realize you will never be with the person you love but I can't forget that he tried for a long time to manipulate Babe. Being in love doesn't justify his actions. I also agree that Charlie isn't really truthful with Babe either but I find him more excuses than Way. 😔 Seems like Pete will be around Way in the next episode so he may be able to move on and find another lover.

▪️No Kenta x Kim in this episode and it's a damn shame if you ask me.

I felt like this episode was more or less a filler but maybe it's just me.

[bloodgulchblog]

Have you seen that YouTube video where some guy reads every Halo novel back to back and then reviews them? If so what did you think

The Brian David Gilbert one? Oh yeah, all my friends showed me it when it came out. (It was honestly kind of cute seeing how many people thought of me immediately.)

Rewatching it to refresh myself because it's been a couple years and a full-novel reread for me since the last time...

High fiving BDG because the Master Chief parts of The Flood were definitely the most boring parts.

He didn't have anything to say about First Strike which I think is a shame because I think it's better than The Fall of Reach and actually has A Theme I Find Interesting.

Rightful recognition of Contact Harvest as pretty damn good.

Rightful recognition of the Forerunner Trilogy as dense oldschool-style SF with deep worldbuilding. (Also the San'Shyuum thing.)

I disagree with him about, and have significant problems with, Kilo Five. He is correct that Kilo Five actually delves into some of the dark places in Halo in a way it really needed, and I would even say that its writing is extremely engaging by Halo novel standards. However, while he does notice the obvious parallels between what ONI is doing post-war and the kind of shit the CIA has pulled again and again irl, I think he misses some of the subtext I see where it feels like it justifies some shit a liiiiittle too much if you know the author's irl politics re: the military. He also doesn't seem to notice the character assassinations (particularly of Catherine Halsey) that I and a lot of other fans see/object to in those books. I kind of gaze into the middle distance with a haunted expression at the suggestion that these are the ones to read if you don't touch any of the others just because they are, ironically, so heavy-handed and feel like they treat certain kinds of evil as inevitable in a way that actually feels way worse to me than the excuse plot offered by the earlier/lighter Halo novels. (But idk, that's me? Nobody is committing a crime if they disagree with my frenzied insane person red string diagrams about Kilo Five.)

I'd swap Pariah for Dirt in the Evolutions anthology if it were me, but I think these are solid standouts.

Broken Circle is neat but really nonessential he's not wrong.

A one-sentence review of New Blood is probably not enough space to get into how fucked up the Spartan-IV program is, but yeah. New Blood is fun if you don't find Buck's first person narration annoying. (It comes and goes for me in that one.)

BDG you're an absolute sweetheart, I think Hunters in the Dark is kind of goofy in a way I cannot in good conscience ignore if I'm gonna review it. But it really really is so much fun and I love that one a lot anyway. The "it's like Halo 3... 2" observation is solid.

High fiving him again because I also found Last Light disappointing. And it is also a me problem.

Fractures!

Hell yeah these are all good pulls from Fractures, I would say Shadow of Intent is the pick of the litter in that anthology for me. Interesting that as a Kilo Five enjoyer he didn't single out Rossbach's World, which is the last we've heard about Osman and Black Box. (Also, that one is good.) I think Oasis is worth an honorable mention because I'm an Envoy stan, and the Forerunner stories are interesting but I wouldn't go for them if you don't already have a healthy interest in the trilogy.

This tangent is so fucking funny now that we know more things:

Oh BDG, oh buddy, it's really not for the people like you and me huh. (Disclaimer: I have no idea if BDG likes the Halo tv show or not and I have no desire to dig up evidence about it.)

Also, while you're here, this is the bloodgulchblog origin story:

Smoke and Shadow is fun so it's a little sad that when he ends that sentence with "whatever," I can't actually say he's wrong to. (Sorry Rion your part of the lore just.... hasn't... touched anything that touches anything else anymore.)

ENVOY IS GOOD AND EVERYONE SHOULD CARE ABOUT IT okay okay I'm cool I'm normal, anyway. Envoy is the Halo novel that restored my faith in reading Halo novels and reminded me that authors can care and know how to do nuanced, interesting themes in this space. It's great. Everyone in this book has war refugee trauma (except the Spartans which have Spartan trauma) and that's incredible to me. Please care about Envoy if you have spare room in your heart for Halo side characters.

I am cheered to see someone indifferent to the Veta Lopis stories, but I still feel petty for feeling it.

I don't have a lot to say about Legacy of Onyx here but it's always so fun seeing someone else suffer and care.

Bad Blood, the Blood is Bad now is a fun joke but lol yeah. It does have this very vital moment where Chief and Arbiter talk, though. For the first and only time in years.

PROPS FOR NOTICING THE YA NOVELS they're actually pretty nice.

"The Master Chief is the protagonist and boy does he shoot some people" is most of how I feel about Silent Storm and Oblivion too, I know they have their fans but Troy Denning's Chief books don't do much for me personally.

Renegades hadn't had its followup Point of Light yet but yeah, Spark stuff is interesting.

I had to remember that oh yeah, there are multiple books now that didn't exist when this was made. I wonder if he read them?

OKAY I THINK THAT'S ALL I HAD TO SAY as always if y'all want specific book opinions, I might have a tag for them. Or just yell in my ask box, I'm sure I can scrounge up some thoughts.

[super-hero-confessions]

Okay. I don't understand how it's gotten to this point with fans pulling made up shit about Loki from their asses but no.

NO.

Loki is not POC coded. He's not Jewish coded. He's not neurodivergent coded or whatever the fuck else.

HE IS 100% NORSE.

BASED OFF A NORSE TRICKSTER GOD WHO IS A KNOWN LIAR AND POT STIRRER THAT FUCKS WITH PEOPLE FOR FUNSIES.

CREATED BY NORSE FUCKING WHITE ASS WHITE PEOPLE WHO KNEW ICE AND SNOW AND FROST TO BE FUCKING DEADLY.

HE IS NOT "OTHER".

HE'S AN ASSHOLE WHO ENJOYS BEING AN ASSHOLE AND HAS ALSO SUFFERED SOME HARDSHIP BECAUSE HE IS SURROUNDED BY ASSHOLES AND PLAYS RIGHT INTO THAT HAND.

Big. Fucking. Whoop.

ALL GODS IN ALL CULTURES ARE NEEDLESSLY CRUEL AND NEEDLESSLY SUFFER BECAUSE THEY WERE SYMBOLIC AND MADE TO EXPLAIN WHAT PEOPLE COULDN'T FULLY UNDERSTAND.

LOKI IS NOT SPECIAL BECAUSE HE RAPES A HORSE.

But you know what that really means? Loki plays into the cycle of abuse just like a normal person and then goes on and makes it worse by dishing it out on unrelated people who never did anything to him. Like, I dunno, all the goddamn humans he kills?

He's that psycho kid with a psycho dad who tortures ants because he can't find healthy ways to cope and it doesn't get much deeper than that.

Stop making shit up that.

EVEN IF IT WERE TRUE IN ANYWAY WOULD NEVER EXCUSE HIM BEING A GENOCIDAL MANIAC WHO CARES NOTHING FOR HUMAN OR JOTUN LIFE YOU FASCIST ILLITERATE FUCKS.

AND GUESS WHAT. LOKI OF MYTH NEEDLESSLY STARTS ALL THE SHIT THAT HAPPENS WITH THE OTHER GODS BY GETTING BALDR KILLED.

If you have to write paragraphs upon paragraphs of made up bullshit you call meta and headcanons or whatever the fuck to defend the idea of liking this guy beyond the shallow fact that you would never dare go this hard for someone ugly or god forbid actual myth Loki?

You do not actually give a shit about the character. At all. Because you don't actually see the character. At all.

Personally, I love Loki for what he is. A dark grey chaos loving trickster diva and selfish asshole god that fucks with people for fun and gets the story rolling. All of that is what makes him fun as a character while paying appropriate homage to the stories he came from in a way that still feels respectful of what ancient cultures were trying to convey.

But I also love the actual good Loki that people write in fanfic sometimes.

I don't love the posturing people use him for to inadvertently spread misogyny or even white supremacy that slips under the radar because fandom can't accept that their shit does stink and there ARE bad actors.

It is okay to like or love Loki. It is okay to want things to be better for him or to be written better for him. It is okay to write fanfic where he is all of the things you want him to be.

It is not okay to culturally appropriate and deny what he is canonically with made up bullshit pulled from your ass to pretend that Loki was justified when he was ATTEMPTING GENOCIDE. And it is especially not okay to then have the audacity to deny the fact that Loki has pretty privilege.

Fuck you people doing this shit. At this point I prefer those that actually admit they like him because he's hot. Because at least they don't go rabid and are fucking HONEST with themselves about this shit and about his character.

And above all?

LOKI IS FICTIONAL.

PEOPLE DON'T OWE YOU AN EXPLANATION FOR DISLIKING OR HATING HIM. DOING SO IS NOT AN ATTACK ON YOU. THEIR EXISTENCE DOES NOT CHALLENGE YOURS AND THEIR PERSPECTIVES ARE JUST AS VALID.

JUST LIKE YOU DON'T OWE THEM AN EXPLANATION FOR LIKING HIM. YOU DON'T EVEN NEED ONE. BECAUSE HE'S FICTIONAL.

Have civil discourse and discussion if you want to, try and get more people to like Loki and see the lighter grey in him even. But you do that by being NICE.

Not by being a dismissive, denying, bullying asshole that then pretends you have the moral high road over ultimately meaningless. Fictional. Bullshit.

I guarantee a majority of people who hate Loki now? It's not because Loki is imperfect or the "other". It's because his stans do everything they can to be toxic, hostile, and in turn make him look bad.

Even Loki's never attempted to justify his attempts at genocide. Escape accountability, sure. But not justify it.

[demonsfate]

Pretty much this. In the end, all the condemnation for Jin's actions, the pointing fingers and accusing him of "being bad," is just general hatred for Jin. Even if TK6 never happened, I'm sure people would have other reasons to hate him. (Other common hate not including TK6 actions is that he's boring, a homophobic slur, whiny, or a Kazuya clone).

I think the reason for this really boils down to Jin being a hard character to like. I don't think he's unlikeable at all, the dude's my favorite character... but I think it's hard for the general audience to really get into him. Lee & Kazuya are easier to like due to their "charming" personalities. Lee is oftentimes funny and very flamboyant. Kazuya is may be an awful awful person, but he's confident, expressive, and badass. Meanwhile Jin doesn't have any of those traits. Jin is much more reserved, and he limited in his expressions. Jin is also a much more "negative" man - which ppl usually dislike. Jin hates himself, Jin hates his powers, his family, his life, Jin is suicidal even. Even though all of Jin's reasons are justified, people view this as "whiny", that's why they gravitate to Kazuya - as Kazuya may have had a bad life, but he accepts himself & his devil powers rather than rejecting them as Jin does.

Most people prefer exaggerate characters - characters that are zany or "fun." Jin's stoicism tends to bore many people. Not only bore people, but confuse them, too. Although I do blame TK6 for being the primary reason why "Jin doesn't care about anyone!!" or "Jin doesn't like people!!" is such a popular take, but another reason is simply because it's hard to see Jin care about people. Jin absolutely does, he's just not... as expressive with his feelings, therefore this isn't a fact he's shouting from the rooftops. To understand Jin's character, you really have to watch him, rather than be spoonfed the information. You can see that Jin cares a lot, but through his actions - not his expressions or sometimes, even statements. You have to watch certain character endings to get the full gist of Jin. It's a lot harder than watching Lee throw a rose in the air whilst laughing and shouting "EXCELLENT!" Which is more entertaining and quicker to consume.

Like another example is how when Bloodline dropped, there were actually quite a few people saying that the anime finally gave Jin "personality", and others saying the anime was what made them like Jin. The funny thing is, the things they listed about how the anime made them like Jin (beyond being more emotional) was list of things they didn't know about it that the anime showed. Which uhhh... they would've known had they tried to get into Jin's character by either watching all his scenes throughout the games, or researching his character. But again, Jin is a harder character to get into - therefore, people are less likely to be interested in trying to.

Because Jin is difficult to appeal to people, people are likely to be more biased toward the ones they DO like. Lee is entertaining to them, so they're "shocked" that he was a villain despite all the signs being literally there. Or how SO MANY people were saying that Kazuya was more deserving of a redemption arc, that Kazuya should be the main character & Jin be the villain, even though Kazuya is literally doing the same shit Jin was except for even worse reasons. But people are willing to excuse these actions from these characters because they like them so much. Just how they're willing to condemn Jin for the same flaws just because they don't like him, and it gives them more reason to hate the character.

Anyways, I personally think Jin is a very amazing character when written correctly. I think if people were to look at him closer & learn about him, as well as not just disregarding everything due to TK6 and the stupid inconsistencies, then maybe people would enjoy him more. Hell, I've had people here tell me that they started liking Jin more because of my blog. I just get tired of all the double standards, too.

[agent-cupcake]

Felix doesn't get enough love! Could do cypress, peony, hydrangea, and/or magnolia for him?👀

Big fan btw dunno if I ever mentioned it

The things you find while looking through your drafts....

Cypress - How does this yandere comfort their upset darling?

Before considering this question as it applies to a darker version of Felix, I am of the opinion that while he is an incredibly caring and loving individual, he isn’t an empathic person. He's not going to necessarily read or understand your emotions the way you might hope. That’s not to say he wouldn’t want to listen to your problems, understand why things bother you, and comfort you when you’re in need, just that he doesn’t naturally connect in that way and it would be really easy to suffer miscommunications as a result. He favors action over emotion, changing what can be directly controlled rather than ruminating on the intangible. If you have a problem, there must be a solution. 

This gets very messy very quickly in a toxic relationship where it’s in his best interest to remain blind to your feelings even when confronted with them. I think the most likely reason to be upset in a situation like this would be because you’re in love with an aggressively obsessive man who’s endlessly paranoid about losing you. And Felix is self aware, he knows full well what he’s doing by keeping you in a controlling, domineering relationship. The obvious lie he tells himself is that his actions, destructive as they might be emotionally, are necessary. Prioritizing action over emotion. Your feelings cannot be controlled (you would be just as likely to be unhappy without him than with, right?), but your physical safety and well being can be managed. By him. Only him. So, if you were to express that you’re upset with your relationship or his behavior, it would be treated very coldly and negatively—possibly combatively. The worst case scenario for how he would “comfort” you is a full on fight where he meticulously points out why he’s right to be so possessive, that you can’t survive without him, and how weak and childish you seem. For what it’s worth, I do think this would always be followed by a period of genuine remorse where he tries to make you forget everything and prove his love and adoration. Notably, Felix would never out and out try to justify himself to you. His excuses are all his own, he knows that they’re paper thin, but he also doesn’t feel like he should have to explain them to you. He will apologize when he goes too far, but not for the underlying reason you’re actually upset. 

More often, he’ll probably try and find another cause for your unhappiness, something that can be fixed or at least something more manageable. If necessary, he’ll try his best to fix your problems materially. You know, the type to beat a man half to death because he made you cry and then caress your face with bloodied hands, telling you that he took care of it (nevermind what “it” is). Despite everything, Felix is still a caring and loving person. He doesn’t have you entrapped in a disastrously unhealthy relationship for nothing. He does listen and as long as you’re not upset about anything sensitive, he definitely cares and is willing to hear you out, hold you while you cry, and do things to distract you. Felix trying to comfort you would be cute on the side of clueless, especially when it comes to gifts. "I'm sorry you're unhappy, here is a new sword." As much as he can, Felix wants a normal, healthy, loving relationship.

Peony - How shameless is this yandere? Do they care about their public image and or private image, and how does that affect how they treat their darling?

Felix knows that there's, generally, a way he should act as Duke Fraldarius and he follows that. Public displays of affection would be very uncomfortable for him anyway. Physically, I can't see Felix doing anything more scandalous than putting a hand on your back or holding your hand/arm. Verbally, there's definitely less impropriety. He is a snarky bastard. If somebody is flirting with you (although, let's be honest, flirting can mean somebody even looking at you the wrong way) he'll loudly point it out even if it means embarrassing you. If he feels you're wandering too much, he'll demand you come stand by him, or order you around like a child. Or a dog. It's not about humiliating you or even for his own pleasure, from his standpoint it's necessary. There are few people more vulnerable than the loved ones of important political figures, if you're not acting with proper care, he'll exert his control over you to ensure your safety. It's all perfectly reasonable and has nothing to do with jealousy. If it happens to make him feel a little flash of satisfaction at how easily you obey him, that's incidental.

Hydrangea - How would this yandere react if their darling gave them affection? What is their internal thought process like?

It begins with Felix freaking out at the unfamiliar discomfort of being vulnerable to somebody. Stiff, uneasy, uncertain of himself. It wouldn’t really take long for him to get hooked on affection. Hugs, hand holding, and cheek kisses—the holy trinity of weakness for an emotionally and physically repressed tsundere with trauma relating to neglect. Obviously Felix tries to play it cool, acting like it doesn’t melt him whenever you bury your face in his chest or entwine your fingers with his, but internally he’s trying to commit every detail of it to memory just in case. He grumbles when you throw yourself at him for a hug, but he’ll squeeze you so tight you can’t breathe. Sure he won’t look you in the eye when he tells you how much you mean to him, but when you say it back, the love he feels for you is overwhelming, even suffocating. That’s why he’s doing all of this in the first place. Unlike many other yanderes, there is no artifice to Felix’s interactions with affection, even as the relationship degrades into something very twisted. He never uses it or interprets it as anything less or more than it is. He doesn’t even use it against you in arguments, or hold it over your head when you say that you’re unhappy. Your affection is sacred to him.

Magnolia - Would there ever be any time that the yandere would reflect on their actions and wonder if they should stop/change their ways? Or do they always believe themselves to be in the right?

Felix constantly reflects on his behavior, but he buries that pretty deep. Since his main justification for keeping you as a glorified prisoner is your safety, and that you could not possibly be safe in any other circumstance, it would be pretty hypocritical for him to let you go. It’s not that he thinks he’s right, although he does for the most part, it’s that Felix is an absolutist for the ends justifying the means when it comes to your safety. It’s not like his perspective is without merit. Even if you were to leave him, you already have a target painted on your back and could be used by any of his political enemies. You are, genuinely, in too deep to just leave him. Worse, if you died because of that, it would be his fault. But then, all of that justification is meaningless compared to the very fundamental driving force of his actions: Felix can not and will not consider a world without you in it. He’s a traumatized, vulnerable man who has lived for so long simply trying to be recognized as his own person and when you say his name, he feels seen. When he lays his head on your chest and hears your heart beating, feels the warmth of your skin, listens to the sound of your voice, he feels a profound sense of purpose that’s utterly unlike his loyalty to the crown or dedication to becoming stronger. No matter how terrible things can be, his need for that feeling, for you, is too devastating to reconsider the path he’s taken.

[caspersickfanfics]

Thinking about a seasick Cyno whos stress is has just put him in Matra mode. Like he’s just anxious but it’s sorta resulted in him being seemingly in a bad mood…he’s hyper focused on safety and security and really only starts to soften up when kaveh and alhaitham start feeling bad. Then it turns into a front or maybe a coping mechanism - he tries to stay stoic in order to support Tighnari but also to keep himself together. He’s both worried for them, while also feeling overwhelmed by them as he is starting to get sick himself… But at the start of the trip? Maybe he’s just locked in, almost cold or cranky because it’s the only way he can handle this feeling he hasn’t yet realized is anxiety.

naturally when he breaks down soft and squishy Cyno arrives. But he’s still the fearsome general, and before things go to shit I imagine he’s scarring off everyone else on the boat with an air of “don’t even think about testing me or hurting my ppl”

Idk food for thought ~

Oh myyyyyy........ Food indeed!!!!!!!!! :O Wait this is so good, I can absolutely picture this happening. Cyno stalking the perimeter of the boat, staring so intimidatingly at other passengers that they start to actively avoid him and his group. And it's entirely unnecessary, because they're on an extremely secure ship in peaceful waters - which Alhaitham of course points out, because he's feeling bad and grumpy, too. And Cyno ignores him, initially, with Kaveh grumbling at Alhaitham to "leave him alone, this is his job after all" until eventually Kaveh is also like "actually, I hate to take Alhaitham's side, but watching you pace is making me dizzy."

At that point, Alhaitham is pushed over the edge and has to stumble to the side of the boat to be sick. Tighnari, who is already feeling tugged in too many directions, rubs Alhaitham's back and shoots Cyno a look that says "I get it; this is how you work. But can you please cool it a little?"

Cyno starts acting a bit more relaxed, because he definitely doesn't want to make his friends feel worse or cause Tighnari extra stress, although he's even more keyed up internally. He's worried about Kaveh and Alhaitham, and seeing them ill has forced him to acknowledge his own body's protests. He's extremely uneasy, but he forces himself to stop patrolling, at least. He stands guard by Kaveh while Tighnari takes care of Alhaitham.

When Alhaitham's stomach settles, they all regroup, and Cyno immediately Demands that the other three go into the cabin area of the boat, below deck. He justifies that they’re impeding his effectiveness; it's harsh and kind of rude, but Kaveh is feeling too unwell to care and Alhaitham can only manage a glare. Tighnari is torn between annoyance and concern. He knows this side of Cyno, but doesn't see it very often, especially not in these kinds of peaceful settings. It's clear to him that something about the boat is putting Cyno on edge, but he still shouldn't be treating his friends like this. "Fresh air often helps with seasickness, Cyno. You can't force them to lose that without out a reason. A valid one." Tighnari challenges.

"Better to be sick than unsafe," Cyno retorts. "The cabins are more secure."

Tighnari thinks this is all very silly and irritating, if it weren’t also worrying. On a technicality, Cyno is correct, as the cabins are designed to be protective in the event of emergencies - but the point is moot because they're not in danger. He's ready to continue arguing, except Alhaitham is falling asleep, and Kaveh tugs at his arm to weakly say "it's fine, it's chilly out here anyway."

From there, Cyno begins his patrol again, all the more diligent as he grows less steady and more ill. He checks on the other three periodically. They're hanging in there. When Tighnari tries to ask about him, Cyno quickly excuses himself because he has to go back to patrolling. It's a bit later, when Kaveh and Alhaitham are both situated and sleeping, that Tighnari seeks him out. By that point, Cyno is feeling seriously unwell. He's a bit frantic, thinking something might be wrong - maybe they were poisoned, somehow - but Tighnari logics him out of this mindset, and then points out that seasickness is normal and his thoughts are being influenced by the way his body feels. Cyno finally starts to relent; not that he has much of a choice by then, his body to the point of fully rebelling.

[thyandrawrites]

not sure if youve answered a similar question to this since looking through your ask box you get a lot of asks so apologies if this is redundant LMAO but ! what do you think touya would be like if he hadn’t died that day? do you think after being let down by his dad at sekoto peak he’d have given up trying to get his attention?? we don’t get a lot of insight into his character outside of his role in the family other than him refusing to make friends because ‘they’re in another world to me’ and that is SO… oh my god this kid , anyways. am just interested in how his relationship with his family (esp his dad because wheeeewww boy…) would have developed from there. is this a fic that exists?? there r civilian and pro hero touya aus but hmmmm

Hi. No worries, I do get a lot of asks, so I understand.

I think it all comes down to whether or not Enji kept training Shouto after Sekoto in this scenario.

A fact that a lot of people seem to gloss over (or forget) is that Touya always bent backwards to make excuses for his dad. Even when Enji never lifted a finger to hint that he cared about his eldest, Touya was always conjuring reasons as to why Enji didn't mean it, like he "was just too busy" "would come next time". In fact, Touya didn't even hold any grudges for how Enji didn't show up on Sekoto Peak that day, and essentially left him to die.

When we see him wake up from the coma, Touya's first thought is that his family, and his dad, is surely missing him. He doesn't even think twice about it before turning down the offer for more power, even though a power up would've made him more appealing in Enji's eyes. He's too loyal to family to betray them by seeking mentorship in anyone else but his dad:

Family is so important to him, in fact, that his second choice is to flee his captors and immediately run back home. He knows he's been absent for three years, and he thinks he has worried them sick. His urge to apologize for causing them that pain is so strong, it even overrides his need to be his father's masterpiece:

this panel ^ above is especially crucial to understand Touya's character. In this scene, Touya freely admits that his body is weaker than ever and that he'll likely have to give up his ambitions now, and yet that's only secondary to the need to be with his family again.

This tells us that Touya's primary motivator was never that of excelling at the genetic lottery purely for egotistical reasons. It is not arrogance, or, like many antis put it, "not knowing when to quit". He wanted to be his father's prodigy because he simply wanted Enji to love him. To be proud of him.

In fact, earning his father's love is such a priority of his that Touya routinely makes himself a doormat to try and meet Enji's needs, even when they directly clash with Touya's own wellbeing. And time after time, when even that isn't enough for his father to look at him, Touya keeps giving him endless chances of being a proper father, even as Enji never takes him up on it.

like, one factor that people often fail to take into account is that Touya was ready to go home. He didn't hold any ill feelings towards Enji for abandoning him to die, though he honestly should've. He was ready to put the umpteenth rejection behind him and give his dad another chance. Because Touya's true motivator is actually the desperate need for his family to accept him in turn just as unconditionally.

It's not being left alone at Sekoto that splinters his sense of self. It's coming back to the people he loved, the people he called family, and finding out that they didn't love him as much:

cause if they did, the abuse would've stopped. Enji would've quit training a replacement.

As I said, Touya is used to making excuses for Enji that justify the continued neglect. But what he sees here is the cold, harsh reality. While Touya was ready to give up everything just to reconcile with his dad, in the meantime Enji had given up absolutely nothing, and in fact persisted in his abusive path. While Touya thought Enji must be torn up with worries and regrets even now, the truth is that Enji hasn't thought about Touya in years, and isn't torn up about anything. In fact, he's perfectly fine knowing that his ambitions killed one son, and continuing his attempts to live vicariously through another, as if Touya's death was nothing more than a minor inconvenience along the road.

So. Touya would've reunited with the fam and never become a villain, if only Enji had stopped being an abusive prick in the meantime. It's right there, right in the text. He was ready to forgive and forget once again, if only Enji hadn't built him a shrine and then pissed on his memory.

All of this to say that if we are to imagine a scenario where Touya goes home and remains there, imho we should work on the ways to change Enji's behaviour, and not Touya's, because he is the reason Touya was, and still is, a stranger in his own house

[applesandbannas747]

does pacat rlly not care about fence anymore 😭 i feel like it’s much better than dark rise and could be better than captive prince too…it’s been a year since i last consumed anything fence-related and i really don’t understand what’s going on with the series?? but anyways i like ur fics a lot & agree with ur reviews of srb’s novels, which also could have had so much potential but ended up kind of sucking in a lot of ways.

Pacat is a mystery to me. Personally, I believe Dark Rise is his best work--it shows much better pacing than Captive Prince and gets the same impact and feel without going to such extreme and explicit horrors, which shows a lot of skill (I know CP is his most beloved series but he's improved a lot since writing it haha). What gets me is that Fence STARTED really strong and I counted it as his best work for sure. There were fun tropes and dynamics, interesting characters with a central relationship promising contention, fighting, and tension, and some fun elements in the mystery of Jesse and potential in the reveal of Nick's lineage. And you could tell there was passion in the project...but even by the later issues of the original 12-issue run, Pacat's social media reflected a large disinterest in Fence, and that disinterest has shown in the story as Fence continues to progress.

I try to logic and rationalize and analyze everything Fence related and literally every time I do I get met with 'it's not that deep' from the actual canon lmfao but I'm going to offer my rationalization anyway lmao the only reason I can think to justify Pacat's lack of interaction with Fence on Twitter besides not caring about it much is that it doesn't fit his brand. Which is only defined by two other series, but it's very much a high fantasy/historical fantasy dark romance with stomach-churning undertones and much darker themes than Fence. So I gave him that excuse for a long time. Fence doesn't fit within that brand at all, so from a marketing standpoint, it makes some amount of sense to focus more on the other franchises. However, I think this strategic thinking is giving too much credit--Fence has always had really shit marketing so either Pacat has no mind for marketing or he doesn't care to market Fence, which both get us back to the only real reason being he just doesn't care about it as much as his other things.

Do I expect Pacat to be hanging out in the Twitter FENCEtag? No. But I do think it's strange that he'll post tweets saying happy birthday to other people's books the day they come out, but literally didn't ever make a Fence Redemption announcement or say anything on the release day. The most he's done is retweet a couple things from BOOM! and 2 other outside sources. And this is regular behavior--he didn't do announcements for RIVALS or RISE either and didn't promote them at all. Yet Dark Rise gets announcements all the way along--title announcement, release date announcement, cover reveal, etc etc etc. He also posts and retweets fanart for his other 2 books really regularly, yet he didn't even retweet all of Jo's (the co-creator and illustrator of Fence) pieces for the Fence event Jo hosted in April, let alone bother with much fanart of it. There's just no reason for the vast gap in involvement and enthusiasm other than him very strongly preferring his other projects and not bothering with the effort of interacting with Fence. He'll occasionally ask culture questions (like if Americans say 'coz' for cousin or how to say something in French) but that's legitimately the best argument there is for his interest or care in the project.

And lastly, his lack of interest shows in the story. He handed his story off to someone else to write novels for and simply let her go wild without regard for how it impacted the comics or the fans. Further, Pacat lost track of his own story and characters between Volume 3 & 4 in a way that I cannot excuse as anything other than inconsistent characterization. And I know I'm biased there, but I make so many people in real life read Fence that I don't jabber at about it/pull into the fandom (so they have no knowledge of my takes), and all of them have commented on the 180 the characters made between the volumes. And, listen, if I wouldn't accept that kind of inconsistency in characterization when grading my 12-year-olds' narrative writing projects, why am I still sitting here trying to excuse the lazy/poor writing in a published and successful author? The pacing is also telling--a lot of conflict was skipped over 'off screen' between the volumes (which, say it with me folks, is lazy writing). Nick's resentment toward Seiji turned into full admiration sans any ill feelings or acknowledgment that even if he IS hot shit, he was still a major asshole in his initial conception, and Seiji apparently agreed to drop his thing about Jesse (you know, the thing that had them in a fist fight approximately 40 pages of comic before). There was no build-up to their relationship or resolution of the conflict that made it unhealthy (expect to have Nick 'admit' Seiji was right to treat him like shit...) These things push the story along a lot faster; rivals to lovers moves really fast if you skip all the tedious development of the characters getting to know, respect, tolerate, and then like each other. Pacat loves rivals/enemies to lovers and (to be blunt) mean/cold bottoms, so it is so fucking bizarre to me that he'd speedrun the relationship and change the characterization so much when it's directly moving away from his preferences (see: Captive Prince, Dark Rise). I don’t know how it happened from anything other than sheer laziness or from not caring about Fence so deeply that he let SRB overwrite the characters and romance he'd originally created.

Last, there are just SO many inconsistencies and copyedit-level mistakes. And I get it that typos happen, but it happens so much that it's like,,, are you even rereading the scripts before you throw them at your publisher? And the continuity errors are massive at this point. Seiji's year in France, which was apparently the result of his loss to Jesse, is only possible if time travel exists and also timelines exist simultaneously. How do you fuck up so big when constructing a story you care about? At least by the time it gets published, you should be sure it's READY to be published. It's like he's writing issue-by-issue as he goes with no plan and can't be bothered to skim through the previous issues to check for things.

I just can't come up with a reality where Pacat actually loves Fence when this is all the care he gives it. We are so so so lucky to have Jo--she is literally the most amazing and gives so much love and care to Fence, and it shows...I just wish Pacat's writing didn't affect her contribution to the comic too. But she at least loves Fence even if Pacat doesn't seem to tell her all that much more than he tells the rest of us LMFAO

This turned into a WHOLE messy essay, I just have a lot of thoughts and they've been brewing for years so sorry to go off on my mad ravings and thanks for tuning in XD and also!!! I'm so happy you like my fics TT.TT <33 and also that you see my point about the novels uwu

[inconsistentracoon]

Almost ready to post chapter 1 of a new sickfic and after rewriting a bunch of it I decided to throw out the original intro, it just doesn't seem to fit the flow anymore.

I was really happy with it though so sharing it here anyway. Maybe I'll turn it into something in the future ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

-------

Merlin learned early on that time off when you're sick was not part of the job of a prince's manservant. The first time he was ill after arriving in Camelot, aside from the poisoning incident, he had hoped at first it was just a bad cold. But, considering the number of flu patients Gauis had seen the week prior, he wasn't surprised when it started getting worse. Arthur had snorted derisively when Merlin floated the idea that someone else take care of his duties for the afternoon so he could have some rest.

"Don't be such a girl's blouse Merlin. I'm not giving you the day off just because you've got the sniffles."

Merlin had been affronted, and wondered for a moment if it was worth snapping back and asking if Arthur would still feel that way when Merlin ended up being sick over the prince's bedroom floor. But then he had seen the openly unimpressed look on Arthur's face and stopped himself. Arthur may be an ass, and his insults were most often meant in jest, but some of his comments stung. Maybe it was just the fever and his generaly miserable state, but Merlin had felt embarrassed. Maybe even a little ashamed.

Back in Ealdor, people only worked through illness when it was absolutely necessary. A bad cold or a fever could quickly become deadly in a small rural town, so when someone was sick others would always pick up the slack for them. But maybe the standards were different here. In a city like Camelot, with knowledgeable physicians like Gaius around, maybe people didn't need to be quite so careful about these things. Maybe by Camelot's standards, this really was just a small dose of the sniffles, and that look on Arthur's face was justified. The thought made him feel small. Like a spoiled child expecting to be coddled.

He didn't bring it up again, and was rather pleased with himself when he made it to the end of his week-long ailment without vomiting in Arthur's boots, no matter how much Merlin felt he deserved it. He would have been the one who had to clean it up anyway.

Those first two years in Camelot he suffered through half a dozen colds and a handful of other strange illnesses. As a physician's apprentice, he came into contact with far more than his fair share of sickness. Thankfully the near-constant exposure eventually rendered him, like Gaius, immune to most things.

Something he wasn't able to develop an immunity to, however, were the injuries that came with his third job; protector of the royal prat himself. He kept those to himself as well. Arthur would surely have questions if he ever found out about those. A few bumps and grazes were easy to excuse; Arthur loved pointing out his clumsiness. Stab wounds and Serket stings were a little harder to explain.

Even if he could think of decent excuses for the injuries, Merlin didn't see much point in asking Arthur for a break when Gaius told him he needed to rest and heal. He doubted Arthur would grant the request. Even more than that though, he didn't want to see Arthur's reaction. Without knowing the extent of the injuries the prince would likely give him that disapproving look again, the one that made it clear he was unimpressed and about to tell Merlin just how pathetic he was. Merlin would rather avoid that look.

Everything he did was for Arthur, and it was disheartning enough that Arthur thought he was an idiot most of the time. Arthur calling him not only hopeless, but weak as well, would hurt far more than the injuries. There was a difference between him whining about being saddle sore and Arthur teasing him for it, and Arthur actually considering him weak. Arthur's opinion of him mattered far more to him than it probably should.

Between the need for secrecy, Arthur's expectations, and the constant reminders from Gaius and Kilgharrah that Arthur's life was his responsibility, Merlin found himself keeping most of his problems to himself. It was something he was already accustomed to doing before he arrived in Camelot. As the prince's friend, manservant, and protector, this seemed to be a valuable skill. He decided was one worth honing.

[honeylikesyanderes]

this has been in my drafts since like february oml

anyways

i hope you enjoy!

18+ only. minors please dni

warning: contains yandere themes, socially unacceptable behaviours, a lil bit of mental health talk, slight/implied nsfw, gn reader, lowkey unfair power dynamics (typical honeylikesyanderes trope 🤌🏽)

yves' name is pronounced as eve

requests are open btw! ask anything or drop any thirsts/headcanons/ideas into my inbox and i’ll write asap :)

(y'all please reblog this, it isn't showing in the tags :(((( )

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yves falor

yves falor - the therapist.

age: 25

birthday: oct 23rd

physical attributes:

back length golden blonde hair

bright blue green eyes

6'3

very pale skin

slim build

is actually stronger than he looks

has a calm, yet deep voice

his tone is always cheeky/teasing

always smirking

personality traits:

is very cheeky

gentle yet rough around the edges

a great listener and very helpful

he has a calming personality; people naturally feel comfortable around him

he isnt super sensitive but some subjects are a bit touchy for him

is a risk taker

and he’s very emotional but he avoids showing it too much

bad at picking up social cues

meeting you:

after many months of battling your mental health and emotional turmoil, you decided it was time to seek help

fortunately, your friend bhodi had a brother who happened to be a therapist

you were a bit anxious about reaching out to make the appointment, so bhodi helped you out.

on the day of your appointment, you almost chickened out

you didn't want to go to a therapist because you were scared of being judged

plus you had read multiple horror stories of therapists that ended up traumatising their patients even more

bhodi was at work so he asked his partner to give you a ride

you ended up telling them about your fears and they reassured you that bhodi's brother was a professional and a good therapist

they dropped you off at the office and waited with you till it was time for you to go in, making sure to give you a big hug before leaving.

when you walked in, you were expecting to see a middle aged or older person, but you ended up seeing a young man that looked similar to bhodi

the only differences were that his hair was longer and he had more piercings than bhodi.

you felt more comfortable because he had a familiar face and aura, plus he was around your age, so hopefully he would understand you better right?

yves, on the other hand, was internally screaming

he finally gets to meet the person he'd heard so much about

the person that he's always fantasized of meeting

the person that stole his heart without speaking a word to him.

when bhodi mentioned that you needed a mental health professional, he jumped at the opportunity

he needed to get close to you

and this was the perfect chance.

are they aware that they are a yandere? are they bothered by it?

yves knows he's a yandere. and he knoss its not normal to be like this; but he doesn't want to change. he believes no one can love you as much as a yandere does, so why would he go out of his way to make himself love you less?

yandere tendencies:

yandere type: delusional/clingy/manipulative

to be fair, yves is a realistic yandere

he knows that he's weird and thia isn't normal

but he's delusional because he always has excuses made up or he always finds a way to justify his yandere behaviour

he's also very clingy and caring

he uses this care to worm his way into your heart

because, who doesn't want a caring man?

yves is also lowkey the stalker type

he'll make multiple burner accounts to follow your social media

and if you block one account, he'll use another

he has your post notifications on and will always be the first person to like any post you make.

in real life, yves will approach you romantically, but it will take some time

he wants to use his therapist position to get close to you, yes

but he actually wants to see you get better first and he actually cares about being a good therapist.

he'll tell bhodi about his feelings for you and will ask him for help

tbh, yves obsession with darling is really bhodi's fault

if bhodi didn't talk about you so often or didn't show him pictures of you all the time, then he wouldn't be yandere for you, now would he?

oh yeah btw, yves will manipulate you and/or any love interest you have, so the relationship will breakdown

whether its telling you thar they're bad for you or they're one of the root causes of your issues, he'll do it

yves would rather go down the mindfuck route rather than outright murder.

(he will commit murder tho)

when yves and darling start dating, yves' obsessive behaviour will increase but his outward expression of toxic yandere behaviour will decrease

yves is generally a sweet yandere and he actually would do anything for his darling and to make them happy

fun facts/trivia:

yves is a secretive person. he doesn't lay all his cards on the table with most people, but with family and close friends, he's very open

bhodi is his younger brother and he's close to his cousins angel and priest.

he and angel usually get tattooed together

he has 20/10 vision

yves has a degree in both psychology and neuroscience (double major)

yves is very popular with the ladies (and men and enbys) and has a lot of people interested in him romantically and sexually. (therefore you'll have a lot of love rivals 💀)

yves and bhodi used to look very similar when they were younger, and one time, yves cut his hair to look like bhodi and wrote multiple exams on his behalf.

unfortunately, after puberty, due to voice changes and physical build, they could easy be differentiated.

yves likes to write handwritten love letters to his darling and has a box full of the ones he's never sent to you

this will continue even after yall start dating.

he categorises them by content: yellow envelope for sweet and loving words, pink for compliment relays and red for spicy content.

there are so many red envelopes in his bottom left desk drawer

(if you wanna explore more yandere ocs, feel free to check out the masterlist!)

[tiffanylamps]

🔥🔥🔥🔥 of course, some beyond evil hot takes 🔥🔥🔥🔥 but also, what is some controversial opinion that you have about something entirely mundane :^0

ask me ask me ask me baby (Disclaimer: I started writing this, then had dinner, watched an episode of Bros on Foot, then had a shower and now I'm pretty exhausted (thanks rona + bad health). So my answers may seem a lil disorganised... they most likely are) Oh, gosh. I don't think I have that many opinions that are actually controversial when discussing be. But I shall still give it a go. I going to put a break here 'cause I really didn't know when to shut up. Also, sorry Iva but I feel like my answers are things we've already spoken about. So, I don't think any of this is new information to you 😩 TL;DR: Dong Sik and Joo Won shouldn't be represented by one aspect of their character. They're more complicated than that. (Including a mundane opinion at the end) (please excuse any weird funny business in this post (writing, grammar, spelling, clarity), we're trying our best here at Lamps HQ)

i. We as a fandom baby Dong Sik too much. I love Dong Sik. I adore him. He has seen and experienced far too many traumas, and I want nothing but good things for him in his future. What happened to him and his family when he was 20 was a tragedy that could have been avoided if the system (which should be in place to aid victims) wasn't systemically corrupt. He was beaten by police officers whilst in custody. He was framed and belittled, degraded, and humiliated. (the trauma he experienced is so layered and would take a lifetime for him to unpack and get closure from).

It almost completely ruined his life and future prospects, and it would have been done if Nam Sang Bae hadn't come in with his lvl 100 guilt and tried to make up for his actions. Dong Sik tried to make the best out of the awful circumstances that befell him and I sincerely admire him. Not everyone is as kind and loving as Dong Sik.... But but but... Buuuuut that doesn't absolve him of his actions. He murdered someone with his bare hands and allowed the system that was once put against him to be used in his favour.

Police officers shouldn't be murdering civilians. full stop. Yes, he was emotionally compromised- technically it could be seen as self-defence, but an unconvicted man, a suspect, was murdered and Dong Sik didn't face repercussions. Nam Sang Bae skewed the evidence so Dong Sik didn't get into trouble. Dong Sik took a year (?) off work after that event and to "help" him recover, Sang Bae got Dong Sik transferred to his substation (which Sang Bae had been demoted to as a result of one of his rookies dying on the job. Although, it wasn't deemed much of a punishment considering he was so close to retiring anyway). All the while, Dong Sik feels justified for his actions (as he did when he moved Min Jeong's fingers). (Screenshots from the translated script book/author's notes doc)

I think it's best that when discussing and exploring Dong Sik's character, we remember that he is a man capable of murder. He is a murderer. (Do I blame him for what he did? No, not really. I can see why he did it. Objectively, I fucking love it for the narrative lol). But yeah, he isn't a guiltless sweet baby angel who never did anything wrong in his life. (DISCLAIMER: obviously jokes are just jokes. I love them and I never want them to stop. I am super guilty of participating in this line of joking and I'm not about to stop any time soon. But when discussing DS in serious conversations, we shouldn't erase his history. By doing that, we are devoiding him of agency and retribution (which is one of the main arcs/themes of his character development)).

ii. Joo Won is autistic and people need to stop calling him stupid. I will die on this hill, I don't care. I fully encourage everyone to bully Joo Won, because, well, he fucking deserves it. I know that bullying him is a hilarious love language the fandom has developed and I fully participate in this pastime. I honestly love it. Yes, he has done a lot wrong and shouldn't be absolved of his sins (that being said, we should allow him the space to learn and grow. We should learn to forgive whilst still keeping him and ourselves in check). But where I draw the line is when people outright laugh at his characteristics/actions which are derived from the fact that Joo Won is coded as autistic.

I know not everyone is going to be particularly versed in neurodivergent symptoms and that is completely fine. I even didn't fully clock Joo Won being autistic the first time I watched the show- I "labelled" his actions as a result of one) his obscenely privileged upbringing and two) the fact that he (imo) has some degree of OCD (which is a type of anxiety disorder). Then it hit me one day that he is soooo autistic. A few examples (I'm too ill to list each one or go into full detail): 1- People say that he's a bad detective. Which, ugh. 2- That he should have seen the "obvious" signs that Dong Sik wasn't the killer earlier. This sentiment completely ignores the timeline of the show and the fact that the viewer is provided information that Joo Won doesn't have access to. And it also removes Dong Sik's accountability for being purposely obtuse and antagonistic. 3- the whole (very minor) narrative that joo won is lame because he has terrible people skills (or something along those lines, I can't quite remember the tags I read as it was a while ago). This one, in particular, ties in with Joo Won's autism coding. With a (relatively sound) understanding of what autism looks like in male adults, to me, it would seem that a lot of what Joo Won does (speaking bluntly, getting easily confused when provided a lot of information during an intense situation, overwhelm, struggling to gauge people's emotions/tone, being very black and white, hyper focussing on a topic of interest, struggling to adapt to new social environments, masking, issues with food and sensory stimulation, etc) can be credited to autism. Perhaps I'm connecting dots that don't exist and am projecting an ideal onto his character, but as someone who grew up with multiple friends and family members who are neurodiverse (and is neurodiverse myself), I can see so many similarities between Joo Won's actions, thought processes, and mannerisms to that of a person with autism.

^ (credit) here is an overview of some characteristics of autism in adults (obviously, it's a complex topic which differs from person to person. But I can definitely connect many of these examples to joo won's character and actions). [I feel like I could say a lot more about this subject, but it would be distracting away from the original point. I have thoughts on Joo Won masking and how he struggles to mask around Dong Sik]

How does this relate to Joo Won being "stupid"? One may ask. I will try to explain it as best I can (even though I don't fully have my answer planned out). Labelling Joo Won as stupid, as a stuck-up nepo baby who did nothing for the storyline, or just a useless dolt that needed Dong Sik to spoon-feed him, completely misconstrues the source material. Joo Won is intelligent, hard-working, determined, stubborn, foolish, annoying, pompous, proud, narrow-minded, snobby, short-sighted, dedicated, loyal, loving, persistent, and perceptible to change (and even more than that). We wouldn't have a story if Joo Won was stupid. We wouldn't have a conclusion if Joo Won was stupid. Downplaying Joo Won's intelligence and chalking up his characteristics as something that makes him less-than does a complete disservice to his character as well as his importance within the story. Beyond Evil is a story with TWO leads. It's not the Dong Sik show. I can NEVER subscribe to the act of bringing one character down in order to hold another up. Dong Sik is not this all-seeing, all-knowing, flawless character. If he was, he would have never been framed for murder, he wouldn't have been stuck for 20 years, and he wouldn't have needed help in uncovering the truth. He needed Joo Won (and Ji Hwa, Jae Yi, Jung Je, Ji Hoon, Du Soo, Sang Bae, etc). Without Joo Won, he may have never found out the full truth of what happened to his sister (as how many people in his life had a part to play in the traumas he faced). So, I think it's about time that people start to recognise Joo Won as a neurodivergent character (and stop giving him a hard time for not seeing signs that WE were given), as well as stop downplaying him. Kim Soo Jin, Sim Na Yeon, and Yeo Jin Goo created such a multi-dimensional, complex, flawed character with good and bad qualities, it does a disservice to their creativity and hard work when one belittles Joo Won down to one descriptor. Dong Sik and Joo Won aren't just the idiot and the downtrodden. They're more than that and fan interpretation shouldn't rewrite the facts of the show.

Anyway... there's a point in there somewhere... I think... I have no idea if I managed to construct a reply that makes sense. I don't think I fully relayed all my thoughts on this particular matter, but we live. tbh, I feel very icky when an autistic character gets labelled as stupid or useless. It gets on my nerves and if it wasn't obvious, I am pretty protective of Joo Won (maybe I shouldn't be, but... well... here we are!). Also, as a note: I don't expect anyone to agree with my opinion that Joo Won is autistic. But yeah, I was going to include more "controversial" opinions for be, but I have already said way too much. This post reads like a rant - which it probably is - and I don't want it to ruffle anyone's feathers. It's not an attack, it's just my opinion.

As for the mundane opinion: iii. kiwis are the scum of the fruit world. They're nasty and a lot of effort to eat (considering they don't taste great), and their texture is gross. But I do think their furry shell is pretty neat, even if it makes my skin cruel. (idk why this was the first thing that came to mind lol)

(sorry Iva. Maybe one day I will learn how to give short answers😂🫣)