#the love expert
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The Love Expert
Pairing: Beck Oliver x Reader
Fandom: Victorious (Nickelodeon)
Summary: You’re the Love Expert of Hollywood Arts. You’re responsible for putting all the great couples together, including Beck and Jade. What will you do when they break up?
Warnings: None that I can think of
*******
When Beck and Jade broke up, it affected you in a few different ways. In one, it felt like your parents had gotten a divorce all over again. Beck and Jade were the couple of Hollywood Arts. It broke your heart to see them go their separate ways.
In another way, Beck and Jade breaking kind of hurt your reputation. You see, you were the one who got them together in the first place. You were known as sort of a love expert at Hollywood Arts. Getting Beck and Jade together had been your greatest feat. They were so opposite on the outside that you were sure no one else could have done it. But Beck kept Jade grounded, and Jade kept Beck guessing, and suddenly you had one of the greatest couples you had ever seen.
Now that they had broken up, honestly, you had been feeling kind of down on yourself. You decided to go for an easy love. A couple that just needed an extra push to become official.
Robbie and Cat weren’t that hard to set up. Just a little meddling later, the two were holding hands as they went to lunch.
But they were easy. You wanted something difficult. Something you could sink your teeth into, like the old days.
Your eyes widened as Beck walked by the table you were sitting at, alone. “Hey, Beck.” You got up to follow him.
It seemed he knew exactly why you were talking to him. “Hey, Y/n,” he greeted as he knowingly rolled his eyes.
“So, you and Jade broke up?”
“Mhm.”
“Any particular reason why?”
He thought for a moment. “We...had different interests.” He sat down at his normal lunch table.
“Different interests?” You absentmindedly sat next to him. “Interests that I didn’t know about? I highly doubt it.”
Beck shrugged. “I don’t know what to tell you, Y/n.”
“Interesting...” You bit your lip, thinking. “Do you have any interest in getting back off the market?”
His eyebrows raised. He gave you a once-over, then smirked. “Maybe.”
“Great. Come to my house at 7:30 sharp tonight,” you told him.
“Hey, how come you never tried to pair me with anybody?” Tori asked.
You hadn’t noticed she was sitting at the same table. Straightforwardly, you answered, “Because you never asked. And no one asked to be paired with you.”
Tori pouted at your words. “Ouch.”
“Don’t feel that bad about it,” you tried your best to comfort her, “It’s rare that I get someone asking to be paired with a specific someone else. And the person that I see you being with has never approached me, anyway.”
“Oh yeah? And who’s that?” Tori wondered, almost jokingly.
“André Harris.”
Tori let the bits of salad she was holding in her mouth drop back onto her plate. “Me and-and André?”
“Yes.”
She blinked. “Well, that’s impossible, because André and I are just friends.” Suddenly, it was like she was trying to convince herself of that statement.
“Yeah, okay.” You gathered your things. “You two have a fine lunch.”
“Wait.” Tori stopped you. “How come you don’t see me and Beck as a couple?”
Beck put down his fork and stared, surprised, at Tori.
You shrugged. “Because with Beck, it’s either Jade, or no one.” And with that, you walked away.
It was nearing 8 that night when there was a knock on your door.
“Beck?! What are you doing? You’re late!” You were walking away from the door as quickly as you answered it.
He followed you to your dining room table. “You invited me here. I don’t ever show up on time the first time I’m invited places. I don’t like the power dynamic it creates.”
“So, does that mean you’ll be on time from now on?”
Beck just shrugged, and grinned when you got exasperated.
“Anyway,” you tried to move on, “Plans to get you back with Jade...” You started looking through the papers you had spread out on the table.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Beck gently grabbed your arm to get you to stop moving. “I don’t want to get back together with Jade.”
“What?” You didn’t understand. “Then...why did you come here?”
He answered softly, “Because I thought this was going to be a date with you.”
You pulled your arm from his grasp, and just looked at him.
Beck defended his stance. “You asked me today if I wanted to get ‘back off the market’?”
It took you a second to respond. “...I also said that it’s either Jade or no one when it comes to you.”
He looked a little sheepish at that. “...I guess I wanted this so much that I kinda...didn’t listen to that?”
“You...wanted this?” It was like your brain couldn’t compute what was going on.
Beck smiled. “Yeah. Do you want this too?”
“It doesn’t matter what I want.” You answered so fast that you didn’t think about it.
Beck’s gaze softened at that. “What do you--”
“I would like you to leave now.” You wouldn’t look at him.
“What? Why--?”
“I said I would like you to leave.”
“Okay! Okay.” Beck put his hands up in surrender, and started headed towards the door.
You didn’t breathe again until the door shut behind him.
The next day at school, Tori was pestering you about André.
“No, but seriously. There are hundreds of boys to choose from. Why me and André?”
You rolled your eyes, but you had a smirk on your lips. “Because look at you two. You guys are best friends. That’s a great foundation for any relationship.”
“Yeah. But what if we’re just...friends...” Tori trailed off. She had a lot of thoughts running through her head.
Out of the corner of your eye, you caught Beck walking toward you in the hallway. You turned away before he saw you. “So, I’ll let you go through all that. Meanwhile, I’m gonna go--”
“Hey, Y/n!” Beck caught sight of you.
You started booking it down the hallway.
Unfortunately, Beck was faster than you. He didn’t grab you to make you stop. Beck just ran in front of you and blocked from running any farther. “Y/n, come on. I just want to talk.”
Exhaling through your nose, you looked around at all the eyes on you. You then tugged Beck into the janitor’s closet. You shut the door. “It’s what you said,” you told Beck.
He seemed immediately concerned. “Something I said yesterday? What did I say?”
Embarrassed, you mumbled under your breath.
“What?” Beck stepped closer to you.
“You said you wanted to go out with me,” you informed, a little clearer, yet you were still self-conscious.
A smirk flashed across his face. “Well, yeah. Why wouldn’t I?”
Not knowing what else to do, you eyed the door for an escape.
Beck gently put a hand on your arm. “No, no. Tell me why that’s a problem. If you don’t like me in the same way, that’s fine--”
“No!” you responded a little too loudly. You felt your skin grow hot. “People...don’t...like me. They only like what I can do.”
Beck began, “Well, I think what you can do is cool too. To this day, I still don’t know how you managed to get me and Jade together. But Y/n, I gotta be honest, I’ve always had a bit of a crush on you too. You’re smart, smarter than anyone I know, and talented, and, well, not to mention, attractive.”
You didn’t know how you were still standing upright. “Well, I-I never thought you in that way before, Beck. I remember when I was pairing you and Jade up I figured you were one of the best actors in this school. You don’t do it much, but you have a really beautiful singing voice. You care about your friends lie no one I’ve ever seen, and--”
Beck kissed you.
The kiss wasn’t much, just a simple meeting of the lips, but you suddenly felt like you were floating through the air.
Beck slowly parted from you. “Was that your first kiss?”
“Was it that obvious?” you wondered, worried.
Beck chuckled and shook his head. “No.” He leaned in for another kiss.
A little while later, you and Beck emerged from the janitor’s closet, hand-in-hand.
Connected hands was something you had in common with Tori and André, whom you saw walking down the hallway. “Y/n! Look!” Tori waved you down and brought your your attention to her and André’s hands.
Just as you were nodding your approval, you spotted another couple striding down the hallway, hand-in-hand. Jade and...Trina.
“That’s right! I am now dating the second scariest girl at at Hollywood Arts,” Trina bragged. “So everyone better back off and leave us alone. KK?”
Wow. You did not see that coming. You looked at Beck. He just shrugged. He shared a smirking ‘We did it’ look with Jade as the WLW couple rounded the corner, and Jade put an arm around Trina’s shoulder.
*******
Author’s Note: Thank you for reading! Fill up that heart and reblog if you liked it. I would also really appreciate a comment, if you have the time. If you would like to read more, check out my masterlist. Have a nice day, night, or whatever time it is for you! <3 <3 <3
#beck oliver#beck oliver x reader#victorious#victorious nickelodeon#avan jogia#companion jones#the love expert
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unconditionally
#my art#jujutsu kaisen#jjk#yuji itadori#megumi fushiguro#itafushi#fushiita#fanart#jjk fanart#jujutsu kaisen fanart#megumi#yuuji#im shaky and numb the way this took years off my life#genuinely cannot believe i thought it was smart to make it a comic i could have stuck at a painting and it would have been fine#but nooooooo in my hubris i thought Surely im an expert at this longform stuff now Surely i can do it :)#and then it killed me it killed me dead this is like over twice as long as the train comic and 4 times as detailed#backgrounds . angles. i yearn fr death.#AND I HAD 2 WRITE THEM ACTUALLY TALKING GGSDH i am actually so insecure abt the way the dialogue flows gomen....#i wanted to add more to it to fix how clipped and rushed i think it reads#but that would mean drawing more expressions would mean drawing more panels would mean more gd hyDRANGEAS#so ultimately i decided 2 have the conversation take the hit because let me tell u.#if i have to draw. one more blue petal i will snap i will lose it#i knew tht would happen n wanted to alleviate some of the pain so i found a few brushes that helped speed up the process#but the thing w a lot of premade flower brushes is they also come preshaded n look uniform in a way that stands out badly against my style#so i had 2 render over them anyway........#yuuji's domain rly putting me through the wringer first the train station now death by a bajillion petals smh#all that to say tho . my labour of love . i am going to take a nap#hina.comic
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there is nothing, and i mean Nothing, a kid loves more than being asked "what do you know about dragons." if you're stuck with a kid between the ages of four and nine ask them about dragons and you will have them going for at least an hour. nod sagely as they tell you that red dragons breathe fire and blue dragons breathe ice. take notes. depending on the kid you could replace this with fairies, mermaids, etc. but dragons is usually a safe bet.
#childcare advice with podcastwizard#love little dragon experts#my favorite thing i can ask a kid is Tell Me Everything#they love that
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There's one in every friend group (and we love them).
Bonus--Confused Nick is confused:
#isaac and imogen we're with you 💯#yes nick you absolutely do#and yes charlie we want all the details#tao the king of getting involved and self-appointed sex ed expert you are killing the vibes here#charlie was gonna dish!#nick says no but really he's just SO happy to have friends to talk to about this#can you imagine if darcy got in on these conversations? “good job. carry on.”#i love this friend group with my whole heart#heartstopper#heartstopper netflix#heartstopper series#alice oseman#osemanverse#nick nelson#nick x charlie#narlie#charlie spring#nick and charlie#heartstopper season 3#season 3 heartstopper#heartstopper s3#heartstopper parallels#s3 heartstopper#imogen heaney#isaac henderson#joe locke#kit connor#tobie donovan#rhea norwood#tao xu
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Can you draw something with Doom Patrol!Edwin and Netflix!Edwin?
Maybe something about Dp!Edwin talking about his feelings for Charles with N!Edwin?
It's just something I've been thinking of, make it a little angsty?<3
Glad you asked
ko-fi
#ask ask ask#dead boy detectives#dbda#payneland#edwin x charles#doom patrol#dead patrol#cw homophobia#i know there are a couple of people who enjoy my rambly tags so these are for u#first of all anon i'm sorry i used your request to continue my story lol#most of my comics are meant to be standalones BUT#the doom patrol and dead girl detectives are all happening in the same universe#and there is indeed series of events here!#this particular one is happening after dp!edwin's feelings were exposed but before they met the girls#with that out of the way#i know this is not as funny as most of my stuff#but dp!edwin's internalized homophobia is an important thign that can't just go away because his charles loves him back#and he does love him back! in this verse#dp!charles is the only one not struggling with his feelings for his partner#dbd!charles and charlotte still have ways to go#also dbd!edwin is in no way an expert in self-acceptance but he has learned some things#i considered having him mention simon but i decided it wasn't his place to out him#(even though he's dead u know)#so yeah what he says here isn't... great#he's still putting himself down and he's still not sure if his feelings for charles are actually a good thing#but he knows HE is glad he feels this way#because fuck it it's not like he'll go to hell for it#and even if he did... he would crawl his way out
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can someone just call buck a good boy please he's being such a good boy this episode
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don't look at me i dont know what happened
this is DEFINITELY inspired from that one world's finest issue with clark posing as bruce's bodyguard so they can catch some kidnappers or whatever dfkgjlsd
these set of scans in particular
ref pic for brucie's pose in the first image
#listen LISTEN i feel it in my bones that bruce is an EXPERT at deflecting and diffusing awkward situations bc of#how often he attends parties and interacting with socialites and rich ppl#and that would mean that when he's batman and he's stuck in an awkward situation (not of his own making mind you) he just#he just CHOOSES to let it happen LMAOOO#that is funny to me#also i love the idea of bruce teasing and joking around with supes only when it's just the two of them#and when kal shares anecdotes to the other league members of batman's little jokes and stuff they just stare at him#world's finest#dc#clark kent#bruce wayne#superbat#my art#fanart
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The Feelings About Tim Drake Alignment Chart
Cass and Dick versions. Yes I do subscribe to oifaaa's Jason doesn't know Tim's name headcanon. Also, as usual, open to change!
#tim drake#jason todd#duke thomas#damian wayne#bruce wayne#dick grayson#cassandra cain#stephanie brown#barbara gordon#very sorry if this is inaccurate#just got a comment saying i should do this and i thought it'd be funny (i am not a tim expert)#2000s batfam cast all high in love because he was their little bro#i wanted to put someone in hate but i genuinely couldn't nobody hates this guy#damian does NOT hate him okay. it's complicated but damian only ever hated him during red robin probs#and i firmly believe they got past it#they just make each other endlessly insecure it's not the same as hatred#i will die on that hill but everything else is up for debate
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Everytime I think about Obi-Wan and Anakin it’s like- I don’t ship them so much as I think they should be together at all times. I think tcw had a point, actually, and the two of them should just. Always be together. I think Anakin is Obi-Wan’s hope in an increasingly difficult life and I think Obi-Wan is Anakin’s tie to humanity when he most feels like a monster. They are intrinsically combined, from the very first movie where Obi-Wan dies at Vader’s hands with a peaceful expression.
It’s Obi-Wan begging Luke not to see Anakin in Vader while Vader searches Luke to see some sign of Obi-Wan. It’s Obi-Wan calling Anakin another pathetic lifeform to Obi-Wan being unable to process the idea of Anakin being anything but good. It’s Anakin awkwardly (adorably) shaking Obi-Wan’s hand to Anakin awkwardly (adorably) bringing up Obi-Wan during conversations with the woman he wants to seduce.
It’s Obi-Wan knowing how to fix Artoo and Obi-Wan teasing Anakin about Artoo. It’s Anakin’s first thought on losing his lightsaber being “Obi-Wan’s going to be mad at me again” and Anakin laughing when Obi-Wan tells him to drive better.
The prequel trilogy is so fascinating because my favourite parts are always Anakin and Obi-Wan. The parts I think about the most often are those parts with Anakin and Obi-Wan. The relationship between these two drives the entirety of the plot of the prequels, to the point that the literal birth mother of the main characters of the original trilogy is all but forgotten in the third movie.
It’s. Obi-Wan spending years watching over Luke because Luke reminds him of Anakin, never approaching because what if Luke really does turn out to be like Anakin…?
It’s Vader assuming that Obi-Wan taught Luke to fight, because who else could teach a Skywalker?
It’s Obi-Wan accepting all the blame for the people he knew best, the people who were basically his family, all dying.
It’s Vader keeping Obi-Wan’s lightsaber in a parallel to Obi-Wan keeping Anakin’s.
They are just. Mutually Obsessed. Obi-Wan held up Anakin and said “this is my whole personality now” and Anakin responded with “neato, same.” They bicker like an old married couple. Anakin can’t imagine even thinking about leaving Obi-Wan behind. Obi-Wan tells Anakin point-blank that he’s a good Jedi who deserves to be a Master.
I ship them because like. The universe? Does?? They are destined to be by each other, in life and in death. They support and sustain each other. There was probably eepy Force magic stuff that made Anakin into a Force ghost because Obi-Wan wanted him to be one.
How else can I explain it? They were made for each other. Like. Literally. They should never be separated. Look what happened when they did separate in universe. They are a nuclear bomb. They have to stay together or the galaxy gets the worst of it, and that’s just canon, somehow.
#the inane ramblings of a madman#star wars#anakin skywalker#darth vader#obi wan kenobi#obikin#vaderwan#long post#every time i see someone say the ship is unhealthy#all i can think is#‘and their platonic relationship is healthy???’#they are the most married couple to ever suffer a bitter divorce#rotj is the custody battle of luke and leia#and obi wan only wins because they get remarried#like come ON#this is beyond soul mates#this is like#legitimately impressive#‘these two love women’ oh and those women aren’t at all like each other??#obi wan doesn’t fall for the literal opposite of a jedi who pisses him off constantly?#anakin doesn’t fall for a diplomatic expert at making people do what they want who calms him down?#i don’t even know what to say anymore#they’re absolutely batshit and i love them
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I have finally finished 2.4 and oh my GOD watching Dan Heng be so protective of his friends nearly killed me, MY HEART.
And yes, the cutscene where he pushes the trailblazer out of the way and even cushions their fall with his own body, but I mean even before that! When he was already trying to protect them and March 7th from Feixiao and Lingsha!!
Because if you watch the dango trio throughout the main quest, you'll notice that they often position themselves in the same way, which is a detail that makes me super happy that Hoyo thought to include- when the three of them aren't evenly spaced, March 7th and the trailblazer tend to gravitate towards each other and stand very close together, frequently side-by-side. And by comparison, Dan Heng usually stands slightly away, and often even slightly behind them, where he can pull on their leashes to wrangle them keep an eye on them.
This is probably a habit learned through experience, since March 7th said during Belobog she is the "queen of unannounced disappearances" fjdksajfkldjsak
And of course at least a little bit of it is just done for like, aesthetic purposes. It's a video game. Things have to look nice for the player. The trailblazer and Dan Heng are the same height, March 7th is a bit shorter, and Yanqing is even smaller. It makes sense to have the trailblazer and Dan Heng stand on the ends, with March 7th and Yanqing in the middle, it just looks nicer and more balanced that way. But still! Even when they're accommodating for Yanqing in this quest, they still all arrange themselves the same way, almost every time!
But this changes after Dan Heng and Yanqing become suspicious of the visitors from the Yaoqing.
The dango trio still stand around relaxed and in their usual manner when they go to the artisanship delve and meet Skott,
but Dan Heng takes notice of Lingsha when she arrives, and he and Yanqing mentioned her specifically when discussing their worries.
Yanqing worrying so much about Jing Yuan got me right in the heart, he's such a good boy WEH
And when the four of them go out to the alchemy delve to meet Lingsha for tea, the pattern breaks. Suddenly Dan Heng is standing right up front, and even walks in and enters the scene before March 7th and the trailblazer to get to Lingsha before them. He stays a step in front of them the whole time, too.
And then when Dan Heng and the trailblazer have to go be interrogated by Feixiao! The same deal! Dan Heng walks in ahead of them and stays in front of them! Noticeably so! Enough that even Feixiao takes note and voices it!
Dan Heng is so so fiercely protective of his companions, and I love it, I adore hyper vigilance in the wake of trauma like this, I'm so excited to see what else he does in 2.5, I hope we either get to see him get fucked up or the trailblazer gets fucked up in his place, I wanna see them run through the meat grinder!!!
#honkai star rail#hsr#hsr dan heng#dan heng#dancae#danstelle#he loves them so much wehhhhhh#(I know I threw in the ship tags but I mean that love romantically or platonically. tag this either way as you please)#but anyway not to mention the whole cutscene part and Dan Heng promising he wouldn't let them die before him#I could have screamed when I read that oh my GOD#Dan Heng. baby. honey. sweetiepie.#I am going to squish him#I wanna see him get a little freaked out about being stuck in the Shackling Prison again heehee#I hope we get to see his old cell at some point#looking at all this though like yeah no wonder Dan Heng immediately doesn't like Moze haha#Moze is capable of the bigger picture and of being objective. Dan Heng loses that ability when his friends are in danger.#It's just not something they can see eye-to-eye on.#Dan Heng and even the trailblazer both immediately see it as being cold and uncaring.#Moze: *breathes*#Dan Heng: I'm no cactus expert but this guy's a prick.#I love them both I hope they butt heads again later fjkldjaklfd#dango trio#Nameless trio#trailblazer trio#caelus#stelle#hsr caelus#hsr stelle#march 7th
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Kingdom Hearts 3 - The Caribbean
#kingdom hearts 3#kh3#the caribbean#scenery#my gif#my favorite world in the game#it's so beautifully crafted and fun to explore#they did such a good job with port royal i'm no expert on the movies but i'm sure it's a super faithful recreation#there are so many lush islands to find with caves full of treasure. it's like a real pirate adventure#i'm glad that we're able to dive into the water because i really like underwater scenery and being able to freely swim around#i love sora's pirate outfit and that he gets a ship of his own to sail. he has such a blast in this world#the banter between sora donald goofy and jack while on the ship is a lot of fun too#big fan of how they integrated the organization's search for the black box with the chest that contains davy jones's heart#gotta love when the main story ties into the plot of a disney movie#the final cutscenes in this world are insane and so well rendered that they're almost indistinguishable from the movie#i sent screenshots to friends asking if they could tell the difference and they couldn't#not that i'm complaining because it really elevated the experience but why did they go so hard
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G'day!
Here is my entry for the Sept-Ingo prompt "Memories"! This is the one I mentioned as being in the works before (originally started for the "Freedom" prompt). I worked a long time on it. I'm rather proud of it, I have to say!
(...I keep telling myself I'll make a quick sketch for the day but wind up getting sucked into making a complicated piece instead lol. A good thing though! I think I'm making more finished pieces than I have done for a while!)
As I mentioned before, I think Ingo finds Pokemon battles comforting, even though he does not fully remember why. He can feel the powerful presence of past companions.
More comments under the cut
I hope the empty eyes don't make them look sinister. I was going for a bit of a "nebulous" look since Ingo doesn't' remember them fully (...yet ^^). They're sort of ghosts of the past (and future!). I also gave them determined but happy expressions - they love sharing the thrill of the fight and strengthening their bond with Ingo!
I wasn't sure how to draw Ingo's side profile, so I looked to @waywardstation for inspiration. I really like how their Ingo has a strong silhouette that still keeps that cartoon look! However, I now wish I had made his hand match that style a bit more versus looking anatomical. Somethin' for me to keep in mind for the future. :)
#month of ingo#sept ingo#subway boss ingo#submas#ingo's pokemon#chandelure#crustle#excadrill#garbodor#haxorus#klinklang#im getting to be an expert on how to draw klinklang lol#this is the third time ive drawn him i think#pokemon#id love to color this one day!#....the lighting in my house still suckssss#MEMORIES
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I am Loki, of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose.
#marveledit#tvedit#scifiedit#lokiedit#loki#loki laufeyson#the avengers#tony stark#thor#odin#mobius m mobius#userlaurianne#userelysia#tuserpolly#userdiana#nikolatexla#i love how mobius is a loki expert but he got our loki so wrong#dkhlflskdhfsdlk screaming crying jumping off a cliff stabbing killing
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On Arcane & Antivillains
One thing I really enjoy about Arcane is how it handles antivillains.
For one, most of the characters (main ones) would actually fall into the category of antivillain at one point, or in the case of our two protagonists, become one. Arcane is arguably ripe with them.
An antivillain is essentially the opposite of an antihero. Simplified, antiheros do good things out of selfish or questionable motives, antivillains do things that are objectively bad or evil, but for noble reasons or for a greater cause. Another term for them is "sympathetic villain" however that term is too vague (there are villains out there who are sympathetic, but are none the less traditionally evil and therefore do not qualify as antivillains), and "antivillain" is a much better term mirror to "antihero." A common thread I've noticed among antivillain characters is some level of a Machiavellian approach to achieving their goals - the ends justify the means type of philosophy is something you'll always find characters that fit this category. At the very least, they dabble with it. In their eyes their actions are always justified because they're fighting for a good cause.
To put things into perspective, I'll use two examples. Harley Quinn shifts around, but she is frequently an antihero, take her depiction in both Suicide Squad movies. She does take down bad guys, however she's not doing so out of a sense of altruism, but to get a reduced prison sentence. Very cut-and-dry example of antiheroism.
On the flip side you have Magneto. Now from what I've seen (I've dabbled in the comics, but haven't dived in all the way) in the comics he gets very dark with the antihuman action. But in the Xmen movies, he definitely does some down right villainous stuff, but his intention remains the same - he wants mutants to live in a world free of bigotry and he's willing to do anything necessary to achieve that, including committing atrocities.
Now if this sounds very confusing to you and you swear you've heard these terms interchangeably or that you can think of several characters that are labeled as type A when they should be type B or vice versa, that's pretty normal. These aren't archetypical heroes and villains we're talking about, so it can be hard to categorize them, and honestly most characters in general will go back and forth or shift at one point or another, so all you need to know is that those definitions are the ones we're working with in this post.
Here are the characters from Arcane that I think suit this label, and others that I think will.
Disclaimer: this is not me hating on the characters. I love all of these characters for this layer to their character. This is not a "oh, look, this character is bad actually," post. If anything, consider it a celebration of their gray morality and how well its explored in the show.
Silco
Duh. Silco is objectively pretty evil. Setting up a drug empire that destroys your own people, getting in-cahoots with corrupt cops, killing kids, and aiding in destroying a young girl's mental health is multiple levels of foul. However, for him, all of this was part of an elaborate plan to liberate Zaun, which is being aggressively oppressed by Piltover. They were necessary sacrifices made to the cause, and worth it because it will bring forth better days for him and his people. Now obviously, a lot of his actions definitely have to do with his own ego, however the only time Zaun isn't prioritized is when it comes to Jinx, who is like a daughter to him, and even that realization comes to smack in the face late in his arc.
Sevika
I'd argue she's even more noble than most since she truly is rooted in the cause for Zaun. Not only is she willing to do some pretty bad things for the "greater-good", she's even willing to betray people who she views as unfit or incompetent. And what's even more telling is that she doesn't do this for power (which is arguably a part of Silco's prerogative). Sure, she's his #2, but he doesn't exactly show any favoritism. And Sevika seemingly isn't even trying to become the new leader of Zaun after Silco's death from the season 2 clips, but will support Jinx, despite the fact that she probably could dethrone her. She's no true blue hero, but she's not a megalomaniac either.
The Entire Council of Piltover (Minus Mel & Jayce)
As obnoxious as they are, none of them are mustache-twirling villains. As we see with characters like Sheriff Grayson (not a council member, but they share the same sentiment), they legitimately think they're protecting the city with their neglectful leadership and oppression of Zaunites. Yes, this includes Heimerdinger, who seemingly only started caring about Zaun once he was booted out of the council, so that places him firmly in antihero territory in my opinion.
Why did I exclude Mel and Jayce? Their plots are actually upward in terms of morality, especially Jayce who by the end is closer to being a traditional hero by prioritizing peace and progress over the status quo or war, and actively makes the first move of trying to right Piltover's wrongs. Mel's arc has also moved this direction as well, as she went from arguing that Jayce and Viktor should build Hextech weapons in case of war with the Zaunites, to fully embracing peace. You could argue that Mel wanting the weapons means she was at some point an antivillain, and I might agree, but as it stands, she's firmly in the clear.
So, why are the rest of the council still considered antivillains? Honestly, we just don't know much about their motivations to say. They ultimately did a good deed in voting for peace, but you know, one good deed doesn't wash-out the bad and vice versa. They're not even on thin ice for me, they're still fighting for the surface.
Marcus
Questioning your actions does not mean you can't be an antivillain, and Marcus is a good example of that. He's is kind of like Caitlyn if she were way less compassionate and very incompetent. Marcus does not think his actions are evil, according to show runners he only places Vi in Stillwater to protect her from Silco; he gets involved with Silco because he wants justice for the building explosion and it goes out of hand. That said, he also threw a child into a dangerous prison with no charges and with the intention of keeping her there for life, and worked with a kingpin who was actively antagonizing his own people while reaping benefits from an abusive system. So yeah, Marcus falls more into being an antivillain than full-blown villain, he's still firmly an antagonist though.
Ambessa
I know it's very popular in the fandom to call Ambessa a traditional bad-guy type of villain, but she is actually very nuanced. For one - she does not see her actions as evil, nor are her motivations behind doing them rooted in it. Ambessa, as she states in Mel's flashback, was raised in the Noxian way. Her grandfather literally made her search the dead bodies of the people they massacred when she was a youth, and she was indoctrinated to believe that this was in the best interest of her family and the Noxian people. By showing strength and ruthlessness, she's telling the rest of the world: "Stay away from House Medarda and Noxus." Hence, why Kino's death wrecks her, because she values herself over how effective she is at warding people off from messing with her family. Her main reason for getting involved with the war between Piltover and Zaun will 100% be because Mel's life was nearly lost due to Jinx's bomb, and this is coming straight off of her son's death mind you. So, while Ambessa may definitely be one of the most ruthless people on this list, she is not at Palpatine levels of evil yet, not by a long shot.
Jinx
You guys saw this coming, right? This barely needs an explanation. Jinx grew up in the Lanes, was a victim of Piltover's oppression multiple times throughout her youth, was willing to fight for their freedom as seen in episode 2, and in the end, that desire, along with her being adopted by Silco, manifested in her doing multiple acts of violence, including terrorism against Piltover, which frequently hurt people who weren't guilty of anything. (No, blowing up the building in episode 3 doesn't count as one of her evil deeds because it was an accident.) We understand completely why Jinx does what she does, even though it hurts to see her slip farther and farther into this mindset.
Vi
Way more subtle (for now) but I'd argue she's there come episodes 8 and 9. Hell, you could argue that her arc is about her sense of morality breaking down due to realizing how impossible the situation between Zaun and Piltover is, and embracing an "ends justifies the means" type mindset that Vander tried to sway her against back in episode 2. Wanting to stop a kingpin from using this new dangerous drug to destroy your city and sister? A noble cause, indeed. Not really caring that (or being passive over the fact that) children die in process because of their approximation to said bad guy? Yikes. [EDIT: Since we're on this topic: here's a link to where I explored this aspect of her character. I did this a while ago, but I thought it best to include it here too for added context). Now, I know what some of you are going to say - how is this any different from, say, Steve Rogers telling Wanda Maximoff that sometimes there's collateral damage when doing hero work? The difference is that Steve didn't argue that those people had it coming because they're associated with the bad guys/or in their way, which Vi does. That's some dangerous conviction right there, and we'll probably see that elaborated on in season 2 given that she's becoming an Enforcer which is a position that lends itself to abuse of power (and if it goes anyway like things do with her game counterpart, she will engage in police brutality and not see an issue with it, but given that Arcane's Vi is way more well, nuanced, than her game counterpart I don't think it will go on for long). While we're on the topic of Vi, according to her prison records, she had a notorious reputation while doing time to the point that I find it funny Silco didn't put 2-and-2 together that the girl with short pink hair beating the shit out of and attempting to murder all of his goons that went to Stillwater was possibly the same girl that wiped the floor with those same goons the night Vander died.
Potential Antivillains of Season 2:
These are characters that I predict will become antivillains at some point during season 2 based off of where their season 1 arc left and clues from season 2 teasers and clips. This is not me saying for sure this will happen, only a prediction. But if it does come true, I will gladly collect $5 per accurate plot point.
Viktor
Two words: glorious evolution.
We all love Viktor. We all love good-guy Viktor, and we will also more than likely love not-so-good-guy Viktor due to how complex that arc will be. If it will go anything like his game-lore (which I suspect it will) his noble intentions will never leave him, just simply evolve to include some less-than-heroic actions and justifications. He still wants to improve the undercity, and well, humanity overall, with hextech, motivated by the injustices he's been put through his own life and his illness, but he will go about it in some very unorthodox ways, and his arc in Arcane is about him confronting if he wants to "evolve" his morality for the sake of his ultimate goal, which is progress. Viktor would definitely agree with the sentiment expressed by Gloria Steinem (character depiction, not a real quote) in Mrs. America - "Revolutions are messy, people get left behind."
Caitlyn
I'm pretty sure she actually will become apart of the antivillain roster in season 2, but noting is for certain. Caitlyn is perhaps the saddest version of this there is, because we see where she starts out. She doesn't want to be like everyone else in her circle, she tries to break free and be better. She wants to do good by both Piltover and Zaun. She has hope, gentleness, and doesn't place herself above even those who occupy the lowest levels of Zaun. She puts herself, her status, and her life on the line to discover the truth, and comes out her time with Vi steadfast in wanting to help heal Zaun. She can be a little naive and ignorant, but she never does so with malicious or ill intent. She is the kindest person in Arcane.
But, given that her mother was killed in a terrorist attack set off by the new Head Zaunite in Charge, things will change. As we see, Caitlyn becomes a sheriff on the Enforcer squad, and now her goal is no longer to sow peace between Zaun and Piltover, it's to avenge her mother by assassinating Jinx. Of course, this will be due in part that Caitlyn thinks snuffing Jinx out will solve the problem, which will be ironic and hypocritical because she told Ekko that getting revenge on Silco won't solve anything in Zaun, but now that she's in the same predicament, the tables have turned and now diplomacy is off the table. She still has that hero-complex, as she lives by the lessons of Sheriff Grayson, but now it's with a twist. The idealistic Caitlyn who believed in giving peace a chance through reform is gone, and she now believes that there's little to no cost too great for her to achieve this, even if that (possibly - again season 2 hasn't come out yet, so we shall see) means hurting innocent Zaunites. And what's scary is that Caitlyn has the intelligence, dedication, talent, and efficiency to pull it off. Truthfully, I believe we won't just be getting Sheriff Caitlyn in season 2, but also Dictator Caitlyn.
#arcane#analysis#meta#antivillains#anti villain#silco#sevika#marcus arcane#ambessa medarda#jinx#jinx arcane#vi#vi arcane#viktor#viktor arcane#caitlyn kiramman#arcane meta#this was very fun#antivillains are like one of my favorite types of characters tbh#and antihero has become shorthand for just any morally gray character#which is kind of annoying i'm ngl#i don't claim to be an expert on character archetypes#i'm still new in my english lit major path#but i still noticed this and wanted to post about it bcs i love arcane's characters so much
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— russellisms dictionary
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MIN WOO-HYUK AS VALJEAN
you're standing in your grave 📷: 23-24 trailer
#les mis#les miserables#gifset#min woo hyuk#jean valjean#my favorite les mis trailer EVER#if the world were a better place we'd have a full proshot with this quality... alas!#also i hope i got this actor right? despite loving the trailer i am not an expert on lm koreas casts whatsoever#edit: I indeed did not get it right. Fixed ! :)
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