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choicesarehard · 4 years ago

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I keep my streams about Wolf Bride light-hearted. It’s been a hell of a year, and I think we all need a space where we can laugh together. But part of responsibly consuming problematic media is being aware of where it fails. And that’s why I think it’s important to talk about Morgan, and Wolf Bride’s troubling depiction of blindness.

Morgan is one of the first Love Interests in Choices to have a canon disability. She is representation many players with disabilities, like myself, are eager for. But like any form of representation, writing a blind character requires research. A quick google search will lead you to numerous visually impaired voices who outline the tropes and stereotypes that harm their community. Wolf Bride has included nearly all of them.

signal boosts are appreciated

Not All Blind People Wear Sunglasses

Morgan is shown wearing dark sunglasses from the moment she appears on screen. And there are certainly blind people who wear sunglasses — particularly those who (unlike Morgan) can still perceive some degree of light and dark, and experience painful light sensitivity. But no context is ever giving for Morgan’s use of sunglasses. In fact, they aren’t even addressed for four chapters.

[ID: Two screenshots from Chapter Four of Wolf Bride. The first features a text box over a forest background, and reads “You glance at Morgan, and are surprised to see the dark glasses still covering her eyes.” The second features a labeled image of her sunglasses, placed over a black background, with a selectable button that reads “What does Morgan look like without these?”] What follows is a scene Pixelberry could have used to provide insight into an assistive device the sighted community may not be entirely familiar with. They could have touched on degrees of visual impairment, or why some blind individuals need dark lenses while others don’t. They could even have explained that for some individuals with visual impairments, dark lenses make tasks like reading or navigating dimly lit spaces harder. Instead, and far more troublingly, MC is given the option to ask Morgan not to wear them anymore. And depending on your choice, the book is coded to remove the sunglasses from her sprite in future scenes. This reduces an assistive device to a fashion choice, something our MC can wish away if they don’t find it attractive. And that isn’t okay.

Unusual Eyes

[ID: Two side-by-side screenshots from Chapter Four of Wolf Bride. The first features a text box placed over a forest background that reads “With a start, you realize her pale eyes aren’t looking at you, aren’t seeing you, aren’t seeing anything.” The second features Morgan’s sad sprite in the same forest setting, and a text box that reads “...I’ve been blind since birth.”] Morgan has a customizable sprite. But regardless of the ethnicity you select for her, she is depicted with pale blue eyes. And that troubles me. Because the stereotype that all blind individuals have cloudy, distorted, or unusual eyes is pervasive and harmful.

Even when it isn’t tied to another harmful trope — the blind character as mystical seer or psychic — this stereotype create an expectation that blindness is something that always manifests in a visible way. And for millions of blind individuals, that isn’t the case.

And while cataracts, trauma to the eye, and corneal infections can all cause the clouded effect most of us recognize from media, none turn your brown eyes into blue. Heightened Senses

Another common stereotype in media is the blind character who’s remaining senses have become heightened as a compensatory mechanism, often to a supernatural degree.

[ID: Two side-by-side screenshots from Chapter Four of Wolf Bride. The first features Morgan’s surprised sprite in a forest setting and a text box that reads “I guess I sort of...feel things. Like the place on my cheek where the branch blocked the wind.” The second features Morgan’s neutral sprite in the same forest setting, and a text box that reads “I can smell the dew on the leaves, and the moss on the bark. Can’t you?] Individuals with visual impairment may learn to rely on their other senses to navigate the world around them. But they do not suddenly gain the ability to sense the location of a branch based on wind patterns, or to accurately throw a dart at a carnival game ballon based on its smell.

[ID: Two side-by-side screenshots from Chapter Eight of Wolf Bride. The first features a text box placed over a carnival background that reads “Pop! Pop! Pop! Three darts fly through the air, striking their targets.” The second features the white MC with straight blonde hair. Her sprite is surprised, and beneath it is a text box that reads “So you did that by smell, too?]

This trope may seem harmless — after all, it gave us Daredevil, a beloved blind superhero — but it contributes to the unachievable expectations we often place on real-world individuals with visually impairments. And that isn’t fair.

Of course, we all suspected Morgan’s abilities were due to something other than heightened senses. And that in and of itself is a problem.

Magical / Supernatural Abilities

To the surprise of no one, Morgan exhibits these unusual abilities because she is a werewolf. But choosing to give a blind character magical abilities should only be done after asking yourself some challenging questions. As visually-impaired Tumblr user @mimzy-writing-online explains:

Your blind characters don’t need a magical ability that negates their blindness. [Ask yourself why it’s so important to you to give them one]. If it’s because they can’t do all the things you want them to do without it, then should you really have written them as blind in the first place?

And that’s the thing. Morgan isn’t actually written as a blind character, not when it counts. Morgan shoots bullets with accuracy, runs through unfamiliar terrain, and navigates moving objects with ease. She doesn’t use common assistive devices like canes or screen readers. Her sunglasses are discarded at MC’s request. The scientific papers that fill her research facility are not digitized for accessibility or written in braille.

Even her dreams, which should be reflections of how she perceives reality, look identical to Bastien's — which makes no sense for someone who has been canonically blind since birth.

[ID: Two side-by-side screenshots from Chapters Five and Eight of Wolf Bride. The first features a scene from Morgan’s lucid dream. Set in a glamorous hotel, it includes visual details like twinkling lights, and patterned carpets. The color is tinted a grey-blue and the exposure on the image has been increased to an unnatural level. The second features a scene from Bastien’s lucid dream. Set in a forest, it shares the same tinted and over-exposed qualities as the first.]

Her blindness isn’t an integral part of her character. Instead, it’s a narrative device, paraded in front of the reader when it can further a central — and deeply disturbing — plot point. [content warning: discussion of discrimination and child abuse / abandonment ahead] Morgan Was Left to Die Because She Was Blind

And Jesus, what a plot point it is. In Chapter 11, we learn that Morgan was left to die in the woods because she was born “wrong, sickly, blind.” But the only canonical disability or illness she is ever shown to have is her blindness.

[ID: Three side-by-side screenshots from Chapter Eleven of Wolf Bride. The first two feature the white MC with straight blonde hair’s shocked sprite in front of a forest background. The first text box reads “I don’t understand...” followed by two dialogue options “Why was Morgan abandoned?” and “Is that what you do to full moon babies? Kill them?” The second panel’s read box reads “Just because she was blind?” The third panel features the old woman Noemi’s sad sprite, placed over a forest background. Her text box reads “If we know an infant will not survive, it is best to let it die quickly.”]

I...am frankly having a hard time thinking through the screenshot-induced fury to make a coherent argument here. To imply that blindness is an impairment so limiting that death is the only foreseeable outcome? That being born blind somehow makes a child “wrong”? The ignorance and prejudice shown in this scene is staggering.

But equally troubling is the response of the main characters to this revelation. Yes, in fiction, bad people sometimes do bad things. But Noemi isn’t shown to be a bad person. Neither is Bastien, who knew what his pack had been guilty of in the past, and even seeks to justify it to a limited degree.

Most shockingly, Morgan herself, who in the second screenshot below has just overheard that she was left to die as an infant because she is blind, isn’t angry or upset. She’s almost apologetic, still seeking a place within the pack.

[ID: Two side-by-side screenshots from Chapter Eleven of Wolf Bride. The first features Hispanic Bastien’s sad sprite in front of a forest background. The text box beneath him reads “It doesn’t happen often, Clara, but...” The second features white Morgan’s sad sprite in front of the same forest background. The text box beneath her reads “I didn’t mean any harm. Especially after...what I just overheard.”]

By introducing the idea that a child born blind cannot survive, let alone thrive, without superhuman abilities, and then failing to soundly and thoroughly refute that idea through the characters we identify with, Pixelberry is unintentionally perpetuating the same false beliefs that have led to real-world instances of infanticide for centuries. And that isn’t okay.

I don’t know where Pixelberry will go with the story from here. Perhaps in today’s chapter some of these concerns have been addressed...but I doubt it. In the meantime, I’ve also written to their support staff to express my deep concern and disappointment in the treatment of Morgan’s character. And I’d encourage you to do the same.

Will I continue to keep streaming Wolf Bride? For now, yes. My VIP subscription is already paid for, and frankly, I want to see Morgan’s arc through. I guess the small part of me that was excited for the representation is still hopeful the narrative can be corrected.

But I’ll be adding a content warning at the start of each stream for ablism, and that’s something I never thought I’d have to do. Screenshots courtesy of CrimsonFeatherGames on Youtube

#playchoices #pixelberry #choices vip #wolf bride #choices wolf bride #cw: child abuse #cw: ableism #anti-wolf bride

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esmeraldablazingsky · 4 years ago

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I’ve finally hit my limit on the number of bad takes on the Lan parents I can see before I have to lay out all the reasons I disagree, so hello, I’m Blazie, and in this essay I will justify my visceral dislike of the assumption that Qingheng-jun married/imprisoned/had sex with Lan-furen against her will.

Warning for mentions of rape (in context of Interpretations I Really Hate) and a very, VERY long post below the cut.

Before I start going off about the finer points of all this, I want to make sure people are on the same page regarding what we actually know about what went down with Qingheng-jun and Lan-furen. What I say is based off the EXR translation of MDZS, for the sake of clarity, and although I don’t think the exact wording should be too important, feel free to let me know if you think I’ve missed an important bit of nuance or something (the whole story is in Chapter 64.)

The story we get is told by Lan Xichen, and it goes like this: a young Qingheng-jun falls in love at first sight with Lan-furen, who doesn’t return his feelings, and at some point kills one of Qingheng-jun’s teachers over unspecified “grievances.” Although he’s understandably very upset over the murder, Qingheng-jun sneaks Lan-furen back to Cloud Recesses and officially marries her in order to announce to his clan that anyone who wants to hurt her has to go through him.

After that, he locks Lan-furen in one house and himself in another as a form of repentance. Wei Wuxian speculates that this was because “he could neither forgive the one who killed his teacher nor watch the death of the woman who he loved. He could only marry her to protect her life and force himself not to see her.”

A central detail of this story that I think people don’t give the import it deserves is that aside from marrying and protecting her, Qingheng-jun’s other option was to let Lan-furen be executed by his clan. His purpose in marrying her wasn’t just for kicks/out of a possessive sort of love, it was so she wouldn’t straight up die. How she felt about this arrangement isn’t stated, but I’ll get into that in a bit. In addition to that, Qingheng-jun and Lan-furen live separately, which was apparently purposeful on Qingheng-jun’s part, and runs counter to the interpretation that he intended to take sexual advantage of Lan-furen.

Though there aren’t many concrete details in Lan Xichen’s retelling, he does specifically inform Wei Wuxian that his mother never complained about remaining in her house. What exactly this signifies is unclear— whether she was simply putting on a brave face for her sons, or whether she was in fact at all content with the situation— but it at the very least serves to further muddy the waters on how she and Qingheng-jun felt about all this.

Beyond what Lan Xichen and Wei Wuxian are saying out loud, there’s also quite a bit of subtext in this scene, especially in light of later events and revelations, like Lan Xichen’s confession for Lan Wangji at Guanyin Temple.

So what is Lan Xichen trying to convey with all this? There’s a lot of memes about this scene, most of which err too far on the side of Himbo Airhead Lan Xichen for my liking, but one that I do find amusing emphasizes how Lan Xichen draws parallels between Wangxian and the story of his parents (Lan Xichen: [flute solo] please use your one brain cell to connect the dots.) If Wei Wuxian hadn’t completely lost his memory of Lan Wangji defending him against his own clan elders, one would assume that Lan Xichen’s story would have had a much better chance of hitting home.

In hindsight and side by side, the parallels are much clearer— Qingheng-jun, “ignoring the objections from his clan… told everyone in the clan that she would be his wife for the rest of his life, that whoever wanted to harm her would have to pass through him first.” Similarly, according to Lan Xichen in Chapter 99, “for [Wei Wuxian,] not only did WangJi talk back to him, he even met with his sword the cultivators from the GusuLan Sect. He heavily injured all thirty-three of the seniors we asked to come.”

In that context, it makes a lot less sense to interpret Qingheng-jun as an aggressor towards Lan-furen, as in Lan Wangji’s case, the narrative clearly establishes that his actions are to secure Wei Wuxian’s safety. The action of Taking Someone Back To Cloud Recesses is— okay, actually, it’s a little more nuanced than I took into account when I started writing that sentence, so let me go a little deeper into Lan Wangji’s actions and how they relate to his father’s, story-wise.

My intent is not to dive into the terrifying underworld of novel-versus-drama discourse, but simply put, Novel!Lan Wangji as he is written isn’t exactly the poster child for clear consent. (I’m going to entirely leave off the extra chapters for the sake of everyone’s sanity, so I’m just talking about the main body of the novel here.)

He means well, and I’m sure we can agree that he does actually love and want the best for Wei Wuxian, but his lack of communication on this point means that he accidentally gives Wei Wuxian the impression that he wants to imprison and/or punish him in Cloud Recesses at least twice off the top of my head (pre-timeskip, as we know, and post-timeskip immediately after Dafan Mountain when he actually drags Wei Wuxian back to his room.)

That all likely has something to do with MXTX’s narrative kinks and regular kinks and all that, and can absolutely be taken with many grains of salt. However, these events establish how easy it is to misinterpret the action of Taking Someone Back To Gusu as an attempt to imprison rather than protect them (much to Lan Wangji’s chagrin.)

Failing to communicate his purpose to Wei Wuxian doesn’t mean that Lan Wangji actually had any intent of hurting or caging him— that was just a misinterpretation on Wei Wuxian’s part, and we, as the audience, find that out in due time— but as written in the novel, it can be really uncomfortable to read. Because of that, many people choose to accept CQL canon regarding Lan Wangji’s more possessive actions or mix characterization from different adaptations, which, to be clear, I completely understand and respect.

However, Qingheng-jun doesn’t get the benefit of the doubt as often, which I frankly find baffling, because nowhere in the text does it state that Lan-furen objected to being taken back to Cloud Recesses, while even Wei Wuxian clearly objected the first few times. In fact, while we’re on this note, I’ll take it a step farther— I find it baffling that people seem to default to an unsympathetic view of Qingheng-jun, because nowhere in the text does it state that he overruled Lan-furen’s wishes in any way. The text doesn’t clarify a lot of things, actually, and that is part of the point.

The narrators of MDZS are, in many situations, highly unreliable. This is, presumably, very purposeful! MDZS can easily be read as a sharp criticism of reputation and mass judgment and the concept of condemning people without knowing their motives! And I don’t want to sound mean, but guys… did any of us learn anything from that? Here, I’m going to put it in meme format for a second to convey what I mean.

MDZS: It’s easy to condemn someone as a villain if you don’t know their story or the reasons behind their actions

MDZS: Anyway, here’s a character whose story and reasons behind his actions you know nothing about

Some Parts Of This Fandom: Ah, a villain

Memes aside, here’s what I want to point out. It’s entirely possible to assume Qingheng-jun was a bad person who disregarded a woman’s wishes in marrying and confining her when all you have is Lan Xichen’s (actually very neutral, thank you Lan Xichen for being an eminently reasonable and concerned-with-evidence character) account of what happened. It would also be at least that easy to assume Wei Wuxian was just an evil necromancer if he hadn’t un-died and brought his own story to light, or even to believe that Lan Wangji had somehow tamed Wei Wuxian into submission and being a respectable cultivator if you were an average citizen of Fantasy Ancient China with nothing but rumors to operate on.

The thing about Qingheng-jun and Lan-furen’s story, then, is that there is nobody left alive who knows the full tale. Nobody knows what they thought about anything, really. Nobody even knows why Lan-furen killed Qingheng-jun’s teacher. Wei Wuxian asks why, and Lan Xichen can’t tell him, but I think the best answer would be something along the lines of I don’t know, Wei Wuxian, why did you kill people? Your guess on the motivations of your own thinly disguised narrative parallel are as good as anyone’s.

So, while it’s not technically impossible to assign darker motives to Qingheng-jun, the cautionary tale of MDZS seems to warn against that exact assumption.

I’ve refrained from getting too salty on a personal level thus far, but now that I’ve said a lot of the more logical and story-based points of my argument, I will say that at least some of my annoyance with the interpretation of Qingheng-jun as a possessive rapist and Lan-furen as his victim stems from the fact that I just think it’s straight up boring. Where’s the nuance? Aren’t you tired of reducing these characters to the flattest possible versions of themselves? Don’t you just want to add a little flavor?

In a slightly more serious phrasing of that criticism, I find that making Lan-furen a helpless prisoner strips her of whatever agency she might otherwise have. To be fair, she’s more or less a non-character in keeping with the general state of the MDZS universe, but making her a damsel in distress only consigns her more deeply to hapless, milquetoast innocence.

It’s perfectly valid to enjoy ladies who have done nothing wrong, ever, in their lives, but like… Qin Su is right there, if that’s your ball game. There’s also really no need to make Qingheng-jun someone who doesn’t respect women. Isn’t Jin Guangshan enough for at least one universe?

Anyway, ultimately, you do you. I don’t like arguing on the internet, and will just ignore things I don’t agree with (or write an 1800 word vaguepost) like a mature human being. I’m just saying, if it’s a cut and dry tale of imprisonment and assault you’re looking for… you probably don’t want to turn to a woman who committed a murder and a man who loved her enough to forfeit everything to keep her safe.

#mdzs #qingheng jun #madam lan #lan wangji #wei wuxian #(in a narrative parallels context)#blazie .txt #anyway without further ado here is my.... essay?#rape mention

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self-loving-vampire · 3 years ago

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Pathfinder: Kingmaker (2018)

Pathfinder: Kingmaker is a game that I liked a lot when I played it, but also a game that has a lot of obvious problems that drag aspects of it down. Fortunately, one of its big strengths is that it is extremely customizable, meaning that annoying or broken parts can be toned down for the most part.

Summary

This game has been called a spiritual successor to Baldur’s Gate, which I can see only on a sort of superficial level. What I can say it is that an ambitious and (in some ways) expanded adaptation of the Pathfinder tabletop adventure path of the same name, which I have run a little bit of.

For those who don’t know, an adventure path is essentially a whole campaign, starting at first level and spanning several interlinked chapters with their own minor antagonists and themes, sometimes but not always all the way to 20th level.

This particular AP is one that I’d consider extremely hard to make into a computer game without losing a lot of what makes it appealing in the process. It starts with a simple hook: A wild part of the world is under the rule of a bandit lord, if you defeat him then you will be allowed to found a barony on his land and develop it as you wish.

While the concept is straightforward, this is a great idea with tons of potential in the infinite freedom of tabletop play. While it is impossible for any existing computer to realize this potential as well as a skilled human DM could, the game does have a lot of strengths (and weaknesses) that make it interesting to analyze.

If I had to compare it to an older game, I’d actually use Troika Games’ 2003 cult classic Temple of Elemental Evil rather than Baldur’s Gate, for reasons that will become apparent to any who are familiar with it.

Freedom

I would say that this area is mostly fine. Once you finish the prologue (which doubles as a tutorial) you are largely free to explore the Stolen Lands... except that areas open up gradually depending on your main story progression.

While I understand that this helps keep things focused and manageable, there are times where these limitations end up feeling a bit contrived. Still, this is not a huge deal since each area is reasonably big and full of optional content.

One nice thing about exploration is that there are many areas with encounters that are far deadlier than anything you may be used to at that point, but which usually guard extremely valuable loot. This means that if you can figure out a way to overcome the encounter before you’re “supposed to” level-wise you will get a very satisfying reward out of it.

Defeating these encounters is not even strictly needed at times either. For example, there is a hidden crag linnorm (a CR 14 monster) in a cave within an area full of far weaker monsters (around CR 6 or so if I recall). While defeating the linnorm would not be easy for characters at this level, I managed to use the party’s rogue to sneak past it and loot its hoard without combat.

In terms of things like dialogue choices and the like, the game is also mixed. While you very often have multiple options, some of these options can be Stupid Evil (attacking people for no reason) or even flatly blocked by your alignment in ways that feel arbitrary.

For example, you need a Neutral alignment component to make peace between the mites and the kobolds in chapter 1.

There is one particular quest (courtesy of a kickstarter backer) that is a horrible railroad as well.

But overall I’d say you have more options here than in many other similar games, I mostly just wish the alignment stuff made sense and did not lock you out of options.

The game has multiple endings and Fallout-style ending slides describing what became of the people and places you influenced based on your decisions. However, achieving the secret ending or the secret romance is so extremely obscure that I’m actually surprised I managed to do it on my first playthrough.

Character Creation/Customization

This is easily one of the game’s most significant positives, while also being one of the things that may be extremely intimidating about it for people who haven’t played the tabletop.

With the DLC, there are 9 races to choose from and like 16 classes (not counting prestige classes). Adding to this, each of those classes has 3 optional archetypes that function as subclasses that add, remove, or modify class features.

Many of the races also have different heritages that switch around things like racial bonuses/penalties, resistances, and spell-like abilities.

However, I do have some complaints about it as well. Sometimes the explanations of what an archetype adds don’t seem as complete as they should be, and from what I remember a lot of your character creation decisions did not have enough of an impact outside of combat.

While the game does feature skill checks both in dialogue and in other parts of gameplay, they use the highest modifier within your party so your own stats are not vital to passing them, and (unlike its sequel) the game rarely features things like special dialogue options based on things like your race, class, or chosen deity as far as I can tell.

Also, while many tabletop options were understandably cut since the game was already over-ambitious as it is, this includes all kinds of item crafting (without mods that is). Things like potion-brewing are a pretty central aspect of the alchemist class, while wizards really benefit from scribing scrolls to handle many different situations.

Worse, this inability to craft and enchant your own gear can end up hurting the itemization in the game. There are tons of different types of weapons you can choose to specialize in, but for many of them you will struggle to find good weapons of that type to use within the game.

Also missing is the ability to meaningfully apply several types of spells out of combat, which really hurts some character ideas that would have been very interesting in the tabletop version (such as diviners or enchanters).

The whole system can also be a bit confusing to those unfamiliar with the tabletop. The game is not as clear and good at teaching as it should be.

Story/Setting

The game is set in Golarion’s Stolen Lands, an anarchic area with heavy fey presence. Compared to many of the more colorful locations in the setting, this is one of the more “standard” and generic regions, but there are still some noteworthy things that help define it, such as the ancient cyclops ruins beneath the land or the links to the alien First World of the fey.

Like the adventure path it is based on, the Kingmaker computer game has a story separated into several linked but defined chapters that each present a new threat. Kind of like anime arcs that introduce increasingly dangerous villains at the center of each.

The story is generally fine and the secret ending is as satisfying as it is obscure. However, I would say that story is not what makes this game good in my opinion. This is no Planescape: Torment.

The game features many companions. I did not really care much about roughly half of them to be honest, but I do like the approach used to present them. They are all very visibly flawed, which can make for bad first impressions, but as you spend time with them and do their quests you discover new depths to them that make them far more interesting, and you see them change over time as well.

One notable example is Jubilost, a rude know-it-all gnome with an unpleasant and caustic personality that covers some measure of real kindness underneath (as well as the fact that he does indeed know a lot, he just needs to be less of a dick about it).

And of course, the central idea of the story is something that you don’t actually see that much of in RPGs, or even in a lot of modern tabletop campaigns: The player gaining a kingdom to rule. I think that while there is no way to properly provide the same range of options for how to handle this as the tabletop version can, the game still manages to accomplish something interesting (even if not wholly good) in how it integrates the gameplay into this.

In many ways, ruling the kingdom can actually be kind of stressful outside of easier difficulties due to the interminable problems and literal curses plaguing it. You will have to contend with everything from monster raids to plagues and invasions throughout the game.

While the mechanics of managing the kingdom are not really all that well-balanced and are more of a pain than anything to a lot of people, the throne room events where you get to make decisions on policy and such are often fun and not something you see in many other games.

One thing that can be off-putting about the game’s approach to narrative decisions is that there are a few times where the outcome of a quest can feel a little arbitrary due to depending on seemingly minor dialogue options. This is especially bad about the above-mentioned secret ending and the secret romance option. They go far beyond “secret” and into “you will be lucky to achieve this without a walkthrough”.

Finally, a few of the alignment tags applied during conversation options make no sense. This is particularly bad during chapter 2, but the issue comes up outside of it as well.

Immersion

This is one area where the game is not that strong, for multiple reasons. For instance, the fact that there is no crime system at all. You can loot your entire town (where even magical items are sometimes inexplicably placed in random homes).

The day/night cycle also seems to be for aesthetic purposes only as there are no schedules to go with it (which at least makes sense from a gameplay standpoint I guess).

The one thing the game actually brings to the table here above most others is also one of its most controversial features: The passage of time.

There is a real urgency to your quests, as there’s actual consequences to neglecting threats and situations that are meant to be urgent.

In most games this kind of urgency is completely fake and the story advances at whatever pace the player decides. Not so here. If you ignore, say, the troll hordes early in the game then their attacks will eventually overwhelm and ruin your kingdom.

Everything from travel to resting and even hunting in place of using rations takes time. Rest too much and you could be sacrificing your long-term ability to manage the endless threats around your kingdom in exchange for an edge in the encounters immediately ahead of you.

This not only makes the mechanics somewhat more interesting by forcing you to manage time instead of playing it safe by resting liberally and doing a 15-minute adventure day, it also ties in with the narrative of just how deeply cursed, troubled, and flat-out burdensome caring for your kingdom can be.

It also just feels more real that events move on their own regardless of whether or not you are present to deal with them. This feature is not entirely positive, though. It can obviously be painful if you are struggling or lost.

Gameplay

This is one of the game’s strong points, at least if you enjoy the mechanics of the tabletop. Just as Temple of Elemental Evil was a simplified and buggy but reasonably faithful adaptation of D&D 3.5 rules, Kingmaker is a simplified and buggy but (somewhat less) faithful adaptation of Pathfinder 1E rules.

Obviously there are many, many things missing from the tabletop. Classes, races, feats, I think also grappling in general, firearms, and etc.

I think a lot of these cuts are fair. This is a huge game already and it would have been downright miraculous to include every single option possible in the tabletop. The consolidation and removal of skills that were unlikely to have much use in the adventure also makes sense for balance purposes.

The combat as a whole is deep and complex enough to remain interesting for a long time, at least in turn-based mode (which I recommend). The amount of options available to magic users in particular is extreme even if many spells are missing, and many martial classes also have some features of their own beyond just basic attacks.

Also helping things is the very wide variety of enemies, some of which require a specialized approach to take down easily. You can’t just use the same tactics for every encounter in the game.

For example, trolls regenerate unless attacked with fire or acid. Undead have a whole host of immunities but are vulnerable to positive energy. Golems are immune to spells and extremely tough.

My main complaint about this aspect of the game is really just that combat is a bit excessive. There are far too many random encounters and even outside of that there is much more combat in general than in the tabletop version. Too many of these encounters end up feeling like padding.

This game probably could have been under 100 hours easily if a lot of the superfluous fights had been cut and overall XP gain had been increased. Even with enjoyable combat, 100+ hours of this is way too much.

Besides combat, there are “storybook sections”, where you are presented with situations and must make decisions about how to resolve them, often making use of skill checks to determine results. These are nice, not much else to say about them.

Which brings us to the last major aspect of gameplay: The kingdom management. This aspect is controversial, and you can turn it off entirely if it sounds like it may not be for you.

There are three major aspects to kingdom management: Decisions, projects/events, and city-building.

Decisions are the most interesting by far. You will be presented by an issue or a request to decide on your policy in one area. You will be given a handful of choices with varying consequences, which may be referenced in later decisions.

Projects and events are more flawed while still having a good idea at their core. These are basically issues that you will need to assign one of your advisors to fix. For example, sending your general to deal with a hostile.

Where it falls apart is the fact that a dice roll is involved in determining success or failure (though there is a type of currency you can spend to improve your chances, which can reach 100%). There are also so many things going on that some of your advisors can be busy for months on a project while various events that require their attention pile up.

The worst part is that there are certain projects that require you to spend a fortnight at your capital doing nothing.

But even worse than this is the city building, which is a missed opportunity. Most buildings provide little beyond a relatively small amount of kingdom stats. This is still beneficial, but not very inspired or interesting.

So there are a lot of problems with kingdom building, one of the core features of the adventure path. While I didn’t hate it myself, I understand why some people might want to focus on the adventuring and combat.

This is also the point where I should mention that the game was incredibly broken at release even by eurojank standards. It is definitely a lot better in this area than it used to be, but is still not the most reliable of games.

Aesthetics

This is one area where the game does very well. Some of the environments look great, the monster designs are generally good, the music is great (though repetitive by the end due to the game’s length), and the combination of sound effects and brutal animations can make combat extra satisfying.

Areas can even change depending on the weather or the time of the year.

The only negative that comes to mind is that most of what you see in the game is relatively generic fantasy environments that don’t really stand out. I was never much of a fan of lush, bright forests and the like.

At least there is still a bit of variety, with dark swamps and mountainous areas, as well as the rare trip into the bizarre First World that fey creatures inhabit.

Accessibility

This is one of the three big complaints about the game (the other two being the bugs and the difficulty). If you are not already familiar with the PF rules then you may struggle to play this game effectively, at least for some time. From what I recall, many things are not that well explained.

In fact, you may have already heard horror stories about how one of the very first side quests you find sends you to a spider cave where you have to fight swarms, which is a type of enemy that is immune to normal weapon attacks outside of the easier difficulties.

This lack of clarity can also extend to your story decisions, as previously explained.

Conclusion

Like many other big and ambitious RPGs, Kingmaker has a lot of jank and technical problems, and its complexity and difficulty mean that it is not really the kind of game that will have widespread appeal.

However, this does not mean it has no appeal at all. It is a huge game with entertaining combat, a story that puts you and your decisions at its center, and the rather rare opportunity to become a ruler in an RPG. It tries to do a lot and I for one prefer games with big ambitions and passions like this over games that play it safe, even if they are more competent and polished.

I’d say that this game is mostly recommended for tabletop RPG nerds, people with “old school CRPG” sensibilities, and people with a high tolerance for jank. Others can definitely still enjoy it, but may want to use the easier difficulty modes.

#vampire reviews rpgs #pathfinder kingmaker

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deivorous · 4 years ago

Text

HE BIG BLEACH HC MEME centering around politics, repost & fill out! For anyone who wanted to explore those aspects more, considering it played a big role in the story. Some things may be unknown to your Muse, just think in WHAT IF then & well, have fun and take your time!

BASICS

Name: Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez / / / Age: Unknown [<100 yrs] / / / Gender: He/Him (Agender) Race: Shinigami / Quincy / Hollow [ Arrancar ] / Fullbringer / Visored / Human / Other Currently lives: Soul Society / Hueco Mundo / Silbern / Living World / Hell Exact Location: Las Noches, Hueco Mundo ; Urahara Shoten Rooftop, Karakura Group(s): Las Espadas; Aizen’s Arrancar Army

QUESTIONS

- Would your muse consider themselves more: GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL ? - Would your muse consider their group more: GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL ? - How does your muse think others see them: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL ? - How does your muse think others see their race: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL ? - How does your muse think others see their group: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL ?

- Is your muse considered a threat: YES / NO ? From whom?: Shinigami, Humans, Hollows - Is your muse powerful: YES / NO ? Could they be considered OP: YES / NO ? - Did your muse commit any crimes: YES / NO ? [ Idk everyone seems pretty chill with murder ] - Does your muse think they are doing mostly the right thing: YES / NO ? - Would society think the same: YES / NO / MIXED OPINIONS ?

- Does your muse think they are treated unfairly: YES / NO ? - Does your muse feel understood from others: YES / NO ? - Is it important for them what others think of them as a person: YES / NO ? - Would they welcome death: YES / NO ? - Will they ever find peace: YES / NO ?

01.0. Do they fully stand behind the group they are part of? YES / NO. Why is that? Explain: Grimmjow firmly believes that Aizen is right. The system is broken and it failed Grimmjow personally. But Grimmjow is disinterested in revenge, and has even less interest in fixing the broken world. All that feels too large, too tumultuous. Why is it his problem? What if they do kill the Soul King. What’s next? Replace one tyrant with another (Grimmjow knows Aizen is not a good man). The fallout can’t be predicted and honestly, his personal goals have very little to do with Aizen’s. Grimmjow’s biggest goal has an always will be to stay alive. It’s hard to do that if you back an organization and a man who is willing to dispose of him the moment his use runs out. Despite this, Grimmjow stands behind Aizen. He does not stand with Aizen’s army.

02.0. Do they like as things are in Soul Society? YES / NO / INDIFFERENT. 02.1. Is there anything they would change? Explain here: The whole thing is rotten as far as he’s concerned, but he hasn’t put more thought into it then that. If he could change it without too much effort on his part, he just wants to create a place that is safe for him and the very few people he cares about.

03.0. Would they ever actively try to bring change (in general)? YES / NO. 03.1. Is your muse more: passive / active ? introverted / extroverted ? 03.2. Does your muse care more about: others / themselves ? 03.3. Do they trouble their mind over a lot of problems, others? YES / NO. 03.4. Do they mostly involve: the world / everyone / themselves / comrades / friends / family / elderly / kids / teenagers / home / workplace / strangers / souls / humans / quincy / shinigami / nobles / fullbringer / visored / hollows / espada / arrancar / (former) boss(es) / pets / animals / zanpakuto spirit / enemies / partner / lovers / soul king / god / other…(add more) 03.5. Name (up to) three which are the most on their mind (optional, adding names): - himself - enemies (shinigami, kurosaki ichigo, aizen sosuke) - surviving espada (nelliel and hallibel)

04.0. Do they think frequently about politics? YES / NO / SOMETIMES. Why is that? Explain: He only starts paying more attention once Harribel ascends to the throne and he is one of the three leaders of Hueco Mundo. Even then, he leaves the diplomacy to Harribel and Nelliel, preferring to take up a more security and defensive based role in protecting their stronghold. His interest only extends so far as to determine ways to benefit himself.

05.0. How do they feel in their current location: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 05.1. Why is that?: It’s just a place. He happens to be here.

06.0. Does your muse have any goal: YES / NO ? BIG / SMALL ? 06.1. Does it involve anything world-changing: YES / NO ? 06.2. If goal or not, any future plans? Share here: He would like to amass enough power as to no longer feel unsafe or threatened. He wishes to gain recognision and acknowledgement - originally as the King - this goal is largely achieved within Hueco Mundo.

07.0. Does your muse know about the Original Sin of Soul Society*: YES / NO ? [ Peripherally he is aware ] * curious? Read about it here. 07.1. If they knew, would it change their views on Soul Society: YES / NO ? 07.2. More: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ?

08.0. Who is the worst person in their eyes?: Luppi 08.1. What should happen to them? Execution (quick / slow death) / Imprisonment / Stripped of their powers / Torture / Repay for their sins / Pay a Fine / Social Work / lose their loved ones / Exile / other… (add more). 08.2. Explanation: Nobody is really good or bad in Grimmjow’s eyes. They are either his enemies or they are a neutral party. Luppi is just the bitch that stole Grimmjow’s rank, and Grimmjow can’t let that stand.

09.0. Thoughts on: Quincy Massacre if they knew: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 09.1. Would they be alright with such thing happening again: YES / NO / INDIFFERENT ? 09.2. Would they try to prevent it: YES / NO / DEPENDS ? 09.3. Explanation: Grimmjow is a hollow. The Shinigami kill hollows, sure. But the Quincy wipe them from existence. He has no mercy for the Quincy.

10.0. Would they ever switch sides: YES / NO ? 10.1. If yes, What could bring them to do so?: - Grimmjow is and always will be on his own side. The side he is on is therefore just whichever aligns best with his wants and needs. He is however, also very loyal. One must earn this and then work to keep it. 10.2. Would they create a new one: YES / NO ? or join a current one? If so, which: - N/A

11.0. Does your muse follow a certain moral code*?: YES / NO / GRAY AREA ? * (ethics) A written, formal, and consistent set of rules prescribing righteous behavior, accepted by a person or by a group of people. 11.1. What does it involve?: He always repays his debts. He doles out retribution as it is deserved. 11.2. What does it NOT involve?: He will show no bias in threatment regardless of sex or gender. He does not seek consent or permission. The ends justify the means at any cost. Murder. Violence. Hurting children.

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE GROUPS ?

Central 46: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Eh. They’re in charge of the shinigami. Grimmjow hates them by association. He doesn’t really know anything about them beyond what Aizen told him.

Four Great Noble Clans: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Shinigami affiliated. He has no real idea who these people are or what the want.

Royal Guards / Gotei 13: positive / negative / neutral . ━ because: They hunt and kill his kind. THey are his natural enemy.

Fullbringer: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He does not have an opinion. He has only met two and one was a shinigami.

Visored: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He has... mixed feelings where the visored are concerned. On one hand, they are of shinigami origin. On the other hand, they are definitely at least partially hollow. Grimmjow feels an uncomfortable sort of kinship to them in the sense that both his and their lives were irrevocably affected by Aizen.

Espada: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Every single one of them wants him dead. They can not be trusted.

Quincy: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: They want to exterminate not only his whole species but also the cycle that may one day grant Grimmjow absolution. They invaded his home, hurt his people, strung up his queen. They deserve death, and he will gladly bring it.

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE (IMPORTANT) PEOPLE ?

Aizen: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Grimmjow’s relationship to Aizen is much too complex to boil down into a single post. Aizen simultaneously offers Grimmjow what he wanted, and then proceeded to dangle it in front of him and laugh as Grimmjow failed to meet his expectations. Though Grimmjow is willful, he has never desired Aizen’s death (despite what he may say about it). Grimmjow goes to extensive efforts, placing both himself and his pack at risk, and placing Aizen’s desires above his own in attempts to please him. He desperatly wishes to earn his favour and though he knows he will likely never succeed, his fragile hope, fierce possessiveness, and craving for recognision drives him onwards. Grimmjow both loathes and loves Aizen.

Yhwach: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: An enemy who impeded on Grimmjow’s way of life, threatened and his territory, and whats left of those that Grimmjow could categorize as his ‘people’. The threat must be eliminated.

Mayuri: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He doesn’t know who this man is. If he knew that he was responsible for reviving Luppi, he would hate him. If Grimmjow met him, he would decide that Mayuri gives off Szayel vibes, which are bad vibes made significantly worse by the fact that he is a shinigami.

Kurosaki: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Again, Grimmjow’s perspective on Kurosaki is a complicated and convoluted one that really deserves it’s own post. Grimmjow was specifically made by Aizen as a stepping stone for Ichigo; as intent is realized through the Hōgyoku, at least some of that intent affected Grimmjow during his evolution. Grimmjow fixates obsessively on Ichigo, primarily as an enemy who must be destroyed. However, Ichigo is also one of the very few people who views Grimmjow as his equal, and though Grimmjow is frightened and threatened by this, he also respects Ichigo a great deal for it. These conflicting feelings cause him a lot of confusion which he expresses in violent ways.

Soul King: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He has no strong opinions on the soul king prior to seeing it. He believes it is the actual, literal King of the Soul Society. His own pride and desire for power would have him see it as competition. Upon realizing that this is not what the Soul King is, Grimmjow is viscerally disgsted. It’s an abomination and makes him uncomfortable down to his bones. It cements in his mind that Aizen was on the right track, though he now knows of the side effects that may result in destroying it. He is outraged and abhorred that he nearly died tryign to protect such a thing.

CONGRATS, you managed till to the end, now tag your fellow bleach partners!

TAGGED BY: stole from @skyvar TAGGING: No one! It’s much too long for me to force on you, but it is super interestign and I would LOVE to read what everyone elses thoughts are!

#[ Repost Games || OOC ]#[ hc || pry open the armour plating and get at the soft meat ]#ooc ; so if u dont know yet I LOVE bleahc politics its so fascinating to me #Grimmjow isnt really interested or involved tragically #but i really love explorign and understandign the different factions #why this universe works the way it does #imagining the different outcomes if say the Quincy won or Aizen won #thats fascinating to me #and grimmjow is technically a political leader now lmAOOOOOO so he should probably try harder and be more aware and knowledgable on politics

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hiyorisarugaki · 5 years ago

Text

THE BIG BLEACH HC MEME centering around politics, repost & fill out! For anyone who wanted to explore those aspects more, considering it played a big role in the story. Some things may be unknown to your Muse, just think in WHAT IF then & well, have fun and take your time!

BASICS

Name: Sarugaki Hiyori / / / Age: 250+ / / / Gender: female Race: Shinigami / Quincy / Hollow / Fullbringer / Visored / Human / Other Currently lives: Soul Society / Hueco Mundo / Silbern / Living World / Hell Exact Location: Karakura Town Group(s): Former member of the Gotei 13, current visored

QUESTIONS

- Is your muse considered a threat: YES / NO ? From whom?: Soul Society. Hollow. Humans (?) - Is your muse powerful: YES / NO ? Could they be considered OP: YES / NO ? - Did your muse any crimes: YES / NO ? [ but their existence is outlawed, ] - Does your muse think they are doing mostly the right thing: YES / NO ? - Would society think the same: YES / NO / MIXED OPINIONS ?

01.0. Do they fully stand behind the group they are part of? YES / NO. Why is that? Explain: Well, it’s mainly out of necessity. They are all the same and this group, the visored, are more her family than just a random bunch of misfits. They were thrown together in exile out of necessity and have grown close due to the injustices they have suffered.

02.0. Do they like as things are in Soul Society? YES / NO. 02.1. Is there anything they would change? Explain here: Hiyori wouldn’t mind changing how life in Rukongai is. It’s too big and and too harsh for any collection of souls that end up there. There is no way out - unless you have the good fortune to be born into the noble families or you’re strong enough to become a shinigami.

04.0. Do they think frequently about politics? YES / NO / SOMETIMES. Why is that? Explain: She only thinks of it in the bitterest of circumstances. She was used by a system that tossed her out like a useless piece of tissue and suddenly, when they’re in trouble, she’s still saving their asses. She doesn’t like this ambiguity. She doesn’t like not trusting who she is fighting for and therefore... she would much rather cut all her ties with the society that she used to be a part of. Anyone that harms her friends is never going to be her ally.

05.0. How do they feel in their current location, more: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 05.1. Why is that?: She’s free... but that’s all she is. Neither here and neither there- very much like her existence. It’s neither hollow, nor shinigami and she has to be brave enough to carve out her own identity in this world. She has to figure out what it means to just be Hiyori -not a soldier for the gotei or someone disgraced from her rank. But just... Hiyori.

06.0. Does your muse have any goal: YES / NO ? BIG / SMALL ? 06.1. Does it involve anything world-changing: YES / NO ? 06.2. If goal or not, any future plans? Share here: Hiyori has no real goals. She knows what she doesn’t want- and that is to rejoin the gotei. She would never rejoin unless Kisuke were her captain again. Hiyori believes she’s living on bonus years anyway so her goal and focus is just on self-improvement. To become strong and protect her friends. Once, she had the goal of becoming someone’s bride and finding love, but it seems that this goal was not her true ending. She most likely wanted family- and she already had it. Except that her family has dispersed somewhat.

She’s still searching for her real purpose in life. She thinks that is okay too- as long as she can protect her friends.

07.0. Does your muse know about the original sin of soul society*: YES / NO ? * curious? Read about it here. 07.1. If they knew, would it change their views on Soul Society: YES / NO ? 07.2. More: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ?

08.0. Who is the worst person in their eyes?: herelf. Aizen. 08.1. What should happen to them? Execution (quick / slow death) / Imprisonment / Stripped of their powers / Torture / Repay for their sins / Pay a Fine / Social Work / lose their loved ones / Exile / other… (add more). 08.2. Explanation: Aizen needs to pay for uprooting her and her friends from their lives. Not only that, but he created this vicious monster that made her hurt her friends. Her shame has disfigured her. Aizen should at least serve the same sentence as she was served-- exiled and disgraced away from everyone.

09.0. Thoughts on the Quincy Massacre if they knew: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 09.1. Would they be alright with such thing happening again: YES / NO ? 09.2. Would they try to prevent it: YES / NO / DEPENDS ? 09.3. Explanation: If Hiyori could have prevented it, she would have. She isn’t exactly an anarchist, but there are some things and parts of soul society she was ignorant to before her exile despite being a lieutenant. She equated shinigami with goodness until she became a hollow herself.

10.0. Would they ever switch sides: YES / NO ? // always on the side of the visored

10.1. If yes, What could bring them to do so?: shitty circumstances 10.2. Would they create a new one: YES / NO ? or join a current one? If so, which: - visored.

11.0. Does your muse follow a certain moral code*?: YES / NO / GRAY AREA ? * (ethics) A written, formal, and consistent set of rules prescribing righteous behavior, accepted by a person or by a group of people. 11.1. What does it involve?: Help those that need it. Protect your friends/allies. If you’re strong, protect the weak. 11.2. What does it NOT involve?: to never kill someone that didn’t deserve it or didn’t know why. Hiyori spent a good portion of her time in the Winter War explaining, even to Aizen- why she wanted to kill him. It goes to show that she doesn’t end lives as lightly as she pretends to.

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE GROUPS ?

Central 46: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: they ordered their death, as well as sentenced Kisuke wrongfully.

Four Great Noble Clans: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: anything shinigami is pretty useless. Except Yoruichi. She’s the best thing that came from there.

Royal Guards / Gotei 13: positive / negative / neutral . ━ because: none of them bothered to help her friends or Kisuke during their darkest time. They can all die in a ditch. Of course, when she says this, she still runs to their aid during a fight... only because her friends want to protect them.

Fullbringer: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: has very little to do with these spiritually aware humans. If they’re not bothering her, she’s not bothering them.

Visored: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: uhm only the best beings in existence. All her favourite people belong to this race. 10/10

Espada: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: they serve aizen. A lot of them are also under the assumption that they are somewhat superior to visored? GET REAL.

Quincy: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: she didn’t care what they did to be honest. She just didn’t like them hurting her friends. If they literally annihiliated everyone in Soul Society except her friends, she wouldn’t have batted an eyelash. They’re Soul Society’s mistake to fix and to be honest, if there were more visored, she would’ve liked an alliance with them to teach central 46 a lesson at least. But... you live and you learn. And her friends were barely stable to launch a revolt.

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE (IMPORTANT) PEOPLE ?

Aizen: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: he used her. Hurt her innocent friends and also hurt people that could not/would not fight back. This is people like Ichigo’s friends and humans that cannot pick up a zanpakuto to fight for themselves. Aizen’s plans are not justified.

Yhwach: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: she’s only going along with what she’s been told-- he wanted to destroy the worlds and this is a bit unfair since she lives in the world. > >

Mayuri: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Although he’s a pain... he is part of her division. He was irritating and gross and weird... but he was still from her division and she did become attached to him in her own way. He makes her skin crawl but also, she kind of understands why he is so alienated. He’s different. And different people are the ones that are stepped on first. They feel threatened and have to protect themselves. The things he has done, whilst she doesn’t know all of them and most likely would have words about them -- he’s most likely done it as he’s seen right. At least, for Mayuri he has passion in what he does. He’s not pretentious about being a good shinigami. He calls himself a scientist.

Kurosaki: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: he’s a dumbass teenage boy with a nice family and a nice home and still carries on this huge responsibility to fight for his friends. And.. he’s their family now. So Ichigo’s family... is her family. She’ll protect it.

Soul King: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: doesn’t really think he does much to be honest. A king has to be prepared to reunite people and make the world a little better. But their king seems to hide in an exclusive pocket dimension where not even her zanpakuto can talk to Kirio’s zanpakuto. It’s heart-breaking. :(

CONGRATS, you managed till to the end, now tag your fellow bleach partners!

TAGGED BY: @skyvar thank you so much!! This really made me thing! TAGGING: @sphaeraa, @hanabiira, @meishutori , @praedulcis--helianthus @mysteriousshopkeeper & else that wants to do this!!

#memes #meme replies #whew this was so thought provoking

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kenpxchi · 5 years ago

Text

BASICS

Name: Kenpachi Zaraki / / / Age: 1900+ / / / Gender: male Race: Shinigami / Quincy / Hollow / Fullbringer / Visored / Human / Other Currently lives: Soul Society / Hueco Mundo / Silbern / Living World / Hell Exact Location: seireitei, gotei 13, juichibantai Group(s): gotei 13

QUESTIONS

- Would your muse consider themselves more: GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL / DOESN’T CARE ? - Would your muse consider their group more: GOOD / BAD / NEUTRAL ? - How does your muse think others see them: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL / DOESN’T CARE ? - How does your muse think others see their race: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL / DOESN’T CARE ? - How does your muse think others see their group: GOOD / EVIL / NEUTRAL / DOESN’T CARE ?

- Is your muse considered a threat: YES / NO ? From whom?: EVERYONE, including his allies - Is your muse powerful: YES / NO ? Could they be considered OP: YES / NO ? - Did your muse commit any crimes: YES / NO ? - Does your muse think they are doing mostly the right thing: YES / NO / DOESN’T CARE ? - Would society think the same: YES / NO / MIXED OPINIONS ?

- Does your muse think they are treated unfairly: YES (he acknowledges he has it better than a lot of people) / NO ? - Does your muse feel understood from others: YES / NO / NEUTRAL? - Is it important for them what others think of them as a person: YES / NO ? - Would they welcome death: YES / NO ? - Will they ever find peace: YES / NO ?

01.0. Do they fully stand behind the group they are part of? YES / NO. Why is that? Explain: Kenpachi sees the Eleventh Division as an organization that he’s obligated to protect and nurture. Unohana left it behind for him, so he’s going to take damn good care of the Division and its recruits, and make them the strongest warriors ever seen. As for the Soul Society, he recognizes its shitty qualities, but he’s in no position to change anything. Kenpachi may be a captain, but if he so much as suggests a change to a law in the Seireitei, the Central 46 is going to flip its shit and declare him a revolutionary. They were paranoid that he could take on the Seireitei on his own before he unlocked his true power. After Aizen and Yhwach, the Central 46 have a hair trigger and are more desperate than ever to maintain the structure that keeps it in power.

02.0. Do they like as things are in Soul Society? YES / NO. 02.1. Is there anything they would change? Explain here: Decentralize the authority of the Four Noble Houses.

04.0. Do they think frequently about politics? YES / NO / SOMETIMES. Why is that? Explain: Kenpachi’s one-track mind is all about fighting, fighting, and more fighting.

05.0. How do they feel in their current location, more: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 05.1. Why is that?: The Eleventh is his family.

06.0. Does your muse have any goal: YES / NO ? BIG / SMALL ? 06.1. Does it involve anything world-changing: YES / NO ? 06.2. If goal or not, any future plans? Share here: Become even stronger. Master actual swordsmanship. Possibly become a Royal Guard, or go to Hell and chill there for a couple of centuries.

08.0. Who is the worst person in their eyes?: the central 46. 08.1. What should happen to them? Execution (quick / slow death) / Imprisonment / Stripped of their powers / Torture / Repay for their sins / Pay a Fine / Social Work / lose their loved ones / Exile / other… (add more). 08.2. Explanation: Growing up in Zaraki was worse than the fate of those imprisoned in Hell, at least if the Hell Verse is canon. Yes, in Hell, you cannot leave if you die, but in Hell, there are also people who are in charge of running the place. Zaraki is entirely lawless, where everyone is ready to murder each other at the drop of a hat. It is not so much a district of the Rukon as it is a barely functional cage for rabid beasts. That the Central 46 allowed it to exist and continue to allow it to exists warrants nothing but anger from Kenpachi.

09.0. Thoughts on the Quincy Massacre if they knew: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 09.1. Would they be alright with such thing happening again: YES / NO ? 09.2. Would they try to prevent it: YES / NO / DEPENDS ? 09.3. Explanation: He’d be anxious to fight strong opponents, but he would be curious. If they can’t fight back, why is the Eleventh being ordered to fight them? He would probably not kill them even if he was ordered, as he’d be there for a fight. Finishing off the weak is someone else’s job.

10.0. Would they ever switch sides: YES / NO ? 10.1. If yes, What could bring them to do so?: 10.2. Would they create a new one: YES / NO ? or join a current one? If so, which: n/a.

11.0. Does your muse follow a certain moral code*?: YES / NO / GRAY AREA ? * (ethics) A written, formal, and consistent set of rules prescribing righteous behavior, accepted by a person or by a group of people. 11.1. What does it involve?: Battle. Face the strong. If you win, let them live and fight you again. If you lose, either accept death with a smile, or if you do live, become stronger than the one who failed to kill you. 11.2. What does it NOT involve?: Senseless killing.

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE GROUPS ?

Central 46: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: They continue to abandon the people that they govern, they act out of fear of deviation from tradition more than anything else, they’re utterly terrified of change, and he also feels that they’re responsible for setting up the fight that led to Unohana’s death.

Four Great Noble Clans: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: While Kenpachi does respect the individuals who come from the noble houses themselves, he dislikes the absolute power they wield over Soul Society, using the Central 46 as their puppet government.

Royal Guards / Gotei 13: positive / negative / neutral . ━ because: He would love to fight them due to their strength, but he doesn’t get why they’re all beholden to the Noble Houses, seeing as all of them are stronger than any noble.

Fullbringer: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: That one he fought was really boring. Went down in one hit. The other guy Kuchiki fought looked strong, though.

Visored: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: They look kinda strong. He’d fight them.

Espada: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: They’re strong, but they don’t seem to want to fight anymore. He’ll leave them alone.

Quincy: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: They’re strong too, but most of them are dead. None of them want to fight him anyway.

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE (IMPORTANT) PEOPLE ?

Aizen: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Not only did his plans fail while taking hundreds of lives in the process, but he also utterly fucked over any chance of change in the Soul Society, as the Central 46 will now always be paranoid about internal threats.

Yhwach: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He seeks a world without conflict. That’s a boring-ass world.

Mayuri: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He’s a backstabbing bastard, but he’s smart.

Kurosaki: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Kenpachi wants to fight him again. That, and Ichigo’s battle with him gave him an inkling of the true meaning of fighting alongside his Zanpakutō.

Soul King: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He’s just there, and so long as he is, the world is fine.

CONGRATS, you managed till to the end, now tag your fellow bleach partners!

TAGGED BY: @senboago TAGGING: nobody i’m fuckin’ lazy. steal it.

#;; meme

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diepower · 5 years ago

Text

BASICS

Name: Meninas McAllon / / / Age: 1000+ years / / / Gender: nonbinary woman Race: Shinigami / Quincy / Hollow / Fullbringer / Visored / Human / Other Currently lives: (verse dependent) Soul Society / Hueco Mundo / Silbern / Living World / Hell Exact Location: again, verse dependent, but Silbern in general and then Squad 12th’s basement in her CFYOW verse... haven’t quite ironed out all the details of her post-canon AU beyond that it’s set in the Living World, though Group(s): Wandenreich, Shinigami (specifically Squad 12 and not by choice)

QUESTIONS

- Is your muse considered a threat: YES / NO ? By whom?: Soul Society - Is your muse powerful: YES / NO ? Could they be considered OP: YES / NO ? - Did your muse any crimes: YES / NO ? - Does your muse think they are doing mostly the right thing: YES / NO ? - Would society think the same: YES / NO / MIXED OPINIONS ?

01.0. Do they fully stand behind the group they are part of? YES / NO. Why is that? Explain: To Meninas, the Wandenreich are a means to an end; a way for her to be placed in a position where she might exact her revenge on Soul Society for the deaths of her parents during the original Quincy genocide 1000 years prior. In addition, being recruited into the Wandenreich also puts her in a closer position to Yhwach himself, whom she firmly believes is equally responsible for the deaths of her parents due to his ineptitude as a leader and “god”. She has no loyalty to Quincy as a race, and only greater purpose is to become the Strongest of all Quincy (not even particularly the “Strongest Quincy”, as she prefers her fists over traditional Quincy techniques). She is exclusively motivated by her own personal sense of justice, and will do whatever she must to attain it.

02.0. Do they like as things are in Soul Society? YES / NO. 02.1. Is there anything they would change? Explain here: Soul Society is a corrupt government body that uses methods of fear, torture, and suppression to uphold their very self-serving ideals of justice. Already armed with this perception, Meninas also sees this firsthand while captive to Mayuri Kurotsuchi and must personally carry out such tactics firsthand. While she doesn’t in the fullest capacity know how to change Soul Society because the root of evil is much deeper than anyone would think, she believes that a number of practices and traditions and captains ought to be destroyed; torn out, root and stem. She also hates the nobility that control many of the policies and buy their way into the Gotei ranks. Those who fight and do the work have earned their place at the top, those who do nothing and hoard their wealth while watching those at the bottom suffer have no place in policy making, regulation, or enforcement.

03.0. Would they ever actively try to bring change (in general)? YES / NO. 03.1. Is your muse more: passive / active ? Introverted / Extroverted ? 03.2. Does your muse care more about: others / themselves ? 03.3. Do they trouble their mind over a lot of problems, others? YES / NO. 03.4. Do they mostly involve: the world / everyone / themselves / comrades / friends / family / elderly / kids / teenagers / home / workplace / strangers / souls / humans / quincy / shinigami / nobles / fullbringer / visored / hollows / espada / arrancar / (former) boss(es) / pets / animals / zanpakuto spirit / enemies / partner / lover(s) / soul king / god / other…(add more) 03.5. Name (up to) three which are the most on their mind (optional, adding names): - her parents in that her original goal was to get revenge against yhwach and soul society for their roles in the Quincy genocide; she cannot remember their faces anymore, but its her memory that they existed at all that drives her actions - bazz-b in that she and him have an established partnership and plot to commit deicide together, and have been keeping this partnership going for the better part of the last 1000 years under the guise that they’re a very messy and very stupid pair of lovers with a loud and destructive relationship. a long time ago, she swore to help bring about the future of the world he envisioned, and her loyalty has not shaken. - the other femritters- giselle in particular being as young as she is, and meninas harbors a strong guilt for recruiting her into the wandenreich (despite being under orders from yhwach). though on the surface their relationship is rife with bickering and light-hearted contempt, she specifically tries to watch out for giselle. - the nobility (not for any particular race, just in general) as she despises those who claim dominion over the others due to circumstances of wealth or fortunate circumstance without actually doing anything to aid the suffering of those below

04.0. Do they think frequently about politics? YES / NO / SOMETIMES. Why is that? Explain: Most of Meninas’ thoughts are politic-focused, although this perhaps isn’t something she herself is aware of, if that makes sense. Most of her thoughts are “it seems to me that this is the way the world is, where it ought to be this other way and I will help to shape it in that image with my own two hands”.

05.0. How do they feel in their current location, more: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 05.1. Why is that?: This goes for pretty much all locations/bases in her life after leaving her childhood home at the age of 12- she doesn’t regard anywhere as home as much as shelter. She doesn’t like Silbern, but grows used to it over time (hence the neutrality), but is miserable while trapped in Soul Society.

06.0. Does your muse have any goal: YES / NO ? BIG / SMALL ? 06.1. Does it involve anything world-changing: YES / NO ? 06.2. If goal or not, any future plans? Share here: She despises the class differences between the weird racist blood purity and nobility schemes of the Quincy to Nobility in any of its forms and greatly begrudges those of high noble status. While she does a good job at hiding this disdain while residing in Silbern and around large numbers of Quincy elite (in wealth and breeding), she resents most of them for what they are. Her young life was shaped by the perception of a person’s worth in the world ruled by pedigree and wealth, and she as a result that a person’s worth is dependent on how useful they are as a tool or object to others. She wants to live in a world where those currently at the bottom stand at the top, and those in power are beneath their feet. As far as plans, she’s spent her entire life living with the purpose of revenge, and acting as a tool or an object. Meninas struggles to reconcile this way of life with any dreams for living in any normal capacity.

08.0. Who is the worst person in their eyes?: Yhwach, Yamamoto, all of Soul Society 08.1. What should happen to them? Execution (quick / slow death) / Imprisonment / Stripped of their powers / Torture / Repay for their sins / Pay a Fine / Social Work / lose their loved ones / Exile / other… (add more). 08.2. Explanation: Frustrating as it is that she can’t force Yhwach to watch his loved ones die because she believes he lacks the capacity for feeling in that regard, she wants him to die quickly and without much thought. No power-stripping, no long drawn out torture, just something to end it all. Soul Society should be stripped of its powers to recognize the cruelty of their dominion and ideals imposed upon all realms.

09.0. Thoughts on the Quincy Massacre if they knew: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 09.1. Would they be alright with such thing happening again: YES / NO / INDIFFERENT ? 09.2. Would they try to prevent it: YES / NO / DEPENDS ? 09.3. Explanation: Regardless of how self-focused her goals may appear, she doesn’t want to create a world where more children have to go through what she did.

10.0. Would they ever switch sides: YES / NO ? 10.1. If yes, What could bring them to do so?: - 10.2. Would they create a new one: YES / NO ? or join a current one? If so, which: Meninas is now and forever on Meninas’ side.

11.0. Does your muse follow a certain moral code*?: YES / NO / GRAY AREA ? * (ethics) A written, formal, and consistent set of rules prescribing righteous behavior, accepted by a person or by a group of people. 11.1. What does it involve?: discrimination based on real world (not manga world) issues like racism, homophobia, transphobia, etc shes not a good person but shes not a piece of shit 11.2. What does it NOT involve?: shes cool with murder, torture, manipulation, plotting to kill god. very much “the end justifies the means” for the sake of her ideals

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE GROUPS ?

Central 46: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: corrupt government that doesnt actually go out on the front lines and have no fucking idea what theyre talking about

Four Great Noble Clans: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: she hates rich people and also its their fault the world is the way it is

Royal Guards / Gotei 13: positive / negative / neutral . ━ because: corrupt military upholding their own self serving ideals of justice and righteousness. its hubris that makes them call themselves “shinigami- death gods”. theyre not gods, theyre pathetic people in places of power

Fullbringer: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: truly doesnt care

Visored: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: theyre shinigami AND hollows so extra disgusting

Espada: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: hollows are poisonous. she is not a fan

Quincy: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: the mission is cool, the culture and weird blood purity bullshit with noble lineage is fucked up. she only isn’t completely spiteful because being a quincy herself affords her more power to become stronger, and she loves her parents. overall, she doesnt feel the same loyalty to her kind that others do

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE (IMPORTANT) PEOPLE ?

Aizen: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: cool that he wanted to revolutionize SS, lame that he relied on hollow power, lamer still that he lost. also, she doesnt like men who talk too much.

Yhwach: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: she sees his ineptitude as a leader and failed god figure just as responsible for her parents’ deaths as soul society. his hubris as a god is just as deplorable as soul society’s itself, it just so happens hes the one who gave her more ability to get her revenge

Mayuri: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: the daten already described him as disgusting, esp detailing his torture on subjects he found to be particularly interesting. Meninas especially hates him after becoming his prisoner in CFYOW following the war. he performed surgery on both her and candice, claiming to have filled their bodies with bombs in order to force them to comply. he took a special interest in the unique state of meninas’ body and muscle density, and as such, there are a number of other “experiments” she underwent at his hands. on top of her being forced to execute soul society’s “dirty work” at his behest in exchange for her life... she hates mayuri

Kurosaki: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: she thinks its disgusting that soul society relies so heavily on a child’s power to be a strong military force, even worse that the wandenreich and yhwach himself sought to take control of that power. despite this, she doesnt hesitate to attack him with the intent to kill for the sake of acheiving her own ideals, and shes also bothered by ichigos apparent blind faith in soul society (from her pov)

Soul King: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: she thinks the soul king is a testament to soul society and the nobility being disgusting and cruel. and thats all i got bc i still have to do 3 more of these for wildly different viewpoints and my brain is running low on juice

CONGRATS, you managed till to the end, now tag your fellow bleach partners!

TAGGED BY: @zombiequincy thank u hela TAGGING: idk anyone whos wearing socks i tag u

#MEME / ANSWERED #HANDS OF THE DIVINE ; A SELF MADE CREATION / HEADCANON

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bleachintothemultiverse · 5 years ago

Text

BASICS

Name: Byakuya Kuchiki / / / Age: 200+ / / / Gender: male Race: Shinigami / Quincy / Hollow / Fullbringer / Visored / Human / Other Currently lives: Soul Society / Hueco Mundo / Silbern / Living World / Hell Exact Location: Soul society. (Division six or kuchiki manor) Group(s): Gotei 13.

QUESTIONS

- Is your muse considered a threat: YES / NO ? From whom?: Anyone who challenges the soul society. - Is your muse powerful: YES / NO ? Could they be considered OP: YES / NO ? //he has like three bankai forms??// - Did your muse commit any crimes: YES / NO ? //does loopholes count as crimes??// - Does your muse think they are doing mostly the right thing: YES / NO ? - Would society think the same: YES / NO / MIXED OPINIONS ?

- Does your muse think they are treated unfairly: YES / NO ? - Does your muse feel understood from others: YES / NO ? - Is it important for them what others think of them as a person: YES / NO ? (As a noble- its require for him to keep a good image) - Would they welcome death: YES / NO ? - Will they ever find peace: YES / NO ?

01.0. Do they fully stand behind the group they are part of? YES / NO. Why is that? Explain: His his whole life- He grew up in the soul society. He has great pride in following its law and traditions. Even if he knows some of them are outdated.

02.0. Do they like as things are in Soul Society? YES / NO / INDIFFERENT. 02.1. Is there anything they would change? Explain here: He would like to change the unfair noble traditions that are there. He does believe some of the laws in the soul society are very corrupt- but he knows that change is useless and that he cannot do anything about it with out causing conflict or bring dishonor towards his family.

03.0. Would they ever actively try to bring change (in general)? YES / NO. (passive change) 03.1. Is your muse more: passive / active ? Introverted / Extroverted ? 03.2. Does your muse care more about: others / themselves ? (He cares about his comrades then his self, despite not showing it.) 03.3. Do they trouble their mind over a lot of problems, others? YES / NO. 03.4. Do they mostly involve: the world / everyone / themselves / comrades / friends / family / elderly / kids / teenagers / home / workplace / strangers / souls / humans / quincy / shinigami / nobles / fullbringer / visored / hollows / espada / arrancar / (former) boss(es) / pets / animals / zanpakuto spirit / enemies / partner / lovers / soul king / god / other…(add more) 03.5. Name (up to) three which are the most on their mind (optional, adding names): Rukia. Protecting his comrades. work.

04.0. Do they think frequently about politics? YES / NO / SOMETIMES. Why is that? Explain: As a captain- He has to get involved with politics. Not to mention his family has access to the soul society Archive. So he is well verse in Soul society politics.

05.0. How do they feel in their current location: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 05.1. Why is that?: He is fine where he is at. he has no complaints as he a noble and can use loopholes to get what he wants. Not to mention, he is around people he has the most respect and love for. So he is pretty happy with his current location.

06.0. Does your muse have any goal: YES / NO ? BIG / SMALL ? 06.1. Does it involve anything world-changing: YES / NO ? 06.2. If goal or not, any future plans? Share here: He doesn’t really have any future plans? He is pretty content with how things are at the moment.

07.0. Does your muse know about the Original Sin of Soul Society*: YES / NO ? * curious? Read about it here. 07.1. If they knew, would it change their views on Soul Society: YES / NO ? 07.2. More: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ?

08.0. Who is the worst person in their eyes?: Aizen 08.1. What should happen to them? Execution (quick / slow death) / Imprisonment / Stripped of their powers / Torture / Repay for their sins / Pay a Fine / Social Work / lose their loved ones / Exile / other… (add more). 08.2. Explanation: Aizen did many treason acts. Byakuya agrees that the soul society should change- but not the way that Aizen was doing it. Not to mention- it was because of Aizen that Rukia got in trouble and almost executed. So he agrees with the punishment that was given to Aizen, sense Aizen cannot be killed.

09.0. Thoughts on: Quincy Massacre if they knew: POSITIVE / NEGATIVE / NEUTRAL ? 09.1. Would they be alright with such thing happening again: YES / NO / INDIFFERENT ? 09.2. Would they try to prevent it: YES / NO / DEPENDS ? 09.3. Explanation: Byakuya is not a fan of genocide. He isn’t a fan of the Quincy- But to go so far to kill all of them is to far in his eyes. But if Central 46 ordered another massacre- and if he couldn’t find a loophole out of it. He would follow that Order- He was taught sense he was a child to follow orders given to him. Even if they weren’t morally right.

10.0. Would they ever switch sides: YES / NO ? 10.1. If yes, What could bring them to do so?: - 10.2. Would they create a new one: YES / NO ? or join a current one? If so, which: -

11.0. Does your muse follow a certain moral code*?: YES / NO / GRAY AREA ? 11.1. What does it involve?: He has a moral code of keeping up with the laws and traditions of the soul society. But he will find loopholes out of them if possible, if they are ridiculous with his noble influence. 11.2. What does it NOT involve?: anything that would cause major damage against the rules and the traditions of the soul society. (That isn’t loopholes)

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE GROUPS ?

Central 46: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Byakuya Knows good and well that they are corrupted. He heavily disagreed on some of there choices during his life. But never fully acted against them, that wasn’t a loophole. That wouldn’t get him or his family in trouble.

Four Great Noble Clans: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He is the head of the Kuchiki family, he has great respect for the clans.

Royal Guards / Gotei 13: positive / negative / neutral . ━ because: He has full respect for the Gotei 13 as he is a captain. There for he respects mostly all of the captains that ever worked along him. But when it comes to the royal guard. He doesn’t really have a opinion on? He sees him as a higher respect as they earned that rank. but other then that. He doesn’t really have a full on opinion about them.

Fullbringer: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Well one of them gave him trauma by screwing with his past and memories. he sees them nothing as more as Shinigami wannabes who just steals powers that isn’t rightfully there’s.

Visored: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Well- some of the captains are visoreds. He has some what of a respect for those who became a captain. He used to think of them as exiles who were rightfully exile- because they did something illegal- but after learning that Aizen was the one who turned them in that. His opinions on them change to a extend. knowing they didn’t intend to break the laws. Not to mention they helped in the fight against Aizen- so he has negative opinions turned to positive ones over time.

Espada: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: They work under Aizen. He seems them nothing but a thread to him and the soul society. Not to mention one of them literally tried to use Rukia against him. So he has hard feelings towards the Espada’s

Quincy: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He has mix opinions about the Quincy. He knows why they are mad at the shinigami. They have every right to be. But he doesn’t believe in there goal and full on hatred towards the shinigami. He doesn’t fully hate them, but he won’t heistate to kill one of them if they threaten his family or his self, not to mention, he was literally almost killed by one of them. So his opinions on them are mostly negative to a point.

YOUR MUSE’S VIEWS / OPINIONS ON THESE (IMPORTANT) PEOPLE ?

Aizen: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Treason acts. almost causing Rukia to die. Trying to over throw the soul society and the soul king. Literally becoming god. Byakuya heavily disagree with the purpose of trying to become a god. He agreed that the soul society needed to change- but not like the change Aizen was trying to purpose. Aizen was doing it for his self- not for the good of the soul society. There are better ways to impose change then becoming a god.

Yhwach: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He tried to throw off the balance between the worlds and started a war with the shinigami. He wouldn’t really agree with the standards of his policy. Seeing him nothing more as a lesser Aizen, who almost achieved the goal of united all realms. Which would of threw off the balance of the soul society.

Mayuri: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Byakuya finds Mayuri to be creepy and rather stay away from him at all times. But he also has low respect for him because he is a captain, and is doing a good job at keeping division 12 running. Even if he may or may not be doing human experiments.

Kurosaki: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: Byakuya has high respect for Ichigo. After all Ichigo did save his sister and helped stop Aizen. Ichigo is one of the only people- he would allow Rukia to marry. If she wanted. But he would never admit any of his feelings out loud about how he feels about Ichigo. But over all- he has high respects for him.

Soul King: positive / negative / neutral. ━ because: He sees the soul king as great importance to the soul society and the realms them selves to keep balance. But over all- he doesn’t really see him as anything else but that. He is supposed to be a god, but Byakuya doesn’t really see him as a god. Just some one who has great importance, there for he doesn’t really have any opinions on the soul king either way.

EXTRA(optional): add more characters which hold some meaning to your muse.

Rukia: Little sister, and some one who he truly loves platonically of course. he would do anything in his power for his little sister to keep her safe. Even if he won’t show it to her. Tsukishima: He only holds meaning to him- as some one who messed with his memories and past- because of that. He dislikes him greatly but he also considers him as a rival to a point of, he would be willing to train him with him in the future. He is the one of the only people to fully get past his safe zone and catch him off guard. Renji: Holds great respect for his Fukutaichou. Does believe that one day Renji will get strong enough to finally beat him in a duel. But for now- is glad that Renji is willing to work under him and follow him through hell and back.

CONGRATS, you managed till to the end, now tag your fellow bleach partners!

TAGGED BY: @skyvar TAGGING: @viciousvizard @dragonflyofiron @ofdeathandwinterstrawberries @rukia-kuchiki-divided @gentleshinigami. @wild-pineapple-butt anyone else who wants to steal this.

#Byakuya headcanon #//Aaa my wrist hurts #//thank you for the tag uwu #//I still need to finish reading the thousand year blood war arc #//So this might change in the future #//hopefully i coped this right >.<

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anonymoustalks · 5 years ago

Conversation

The left has become absorbed by identity politics and is obsessed with race.. it scares me that they will create more racists than before they started

(6-17-20) You both like politics.

You: heyaa

Stranger: Hi

Stranger: How are you

You: anything you're interested in?

You: I am fine

Stranger: I'm interested in hearing opinions on things

You: oh, me too ^^

You: what kind of things?

Stranger: Politics is divisive, but in order to get a better understanding I wish to listen to both sides

You: awesome, I think that's great ^^

Stranger: :) thank you

You: do you have issues you care about most?

Stranger: The current fall of western society

You: fall of western society huh

You: can you elaborate more?

Stranger: Over the past few years we have seen western society devolve. Where once we were fairly united and we stood strong, we have become more divided and with the introduction of identity politics, that has just worsened till we have gotten to where we are now. China is currently pushing her borders, and yet with the US in flames and the uk following suit (along with France for that matter), noone challenges it

You: mhm *nodsnods*

Stranger: To speak out against the lunacy is to be called a racist and a bigot, not that that's anything new of course but those who are calling for these things seem to not really understand the importance and significance of their actions. I see this as akin to the 1920s Weimar Republic. They are pushing for things they don't want

You: you type a lot haha

Stranger: Sorry i am choosing my words carefully

You: mhm it's fine

You: so you think strong foreign policy is very important?

Stranger: I do. I am from South Africa, though I live in the uk. For those who live outside the us and Europe, we see the importance of Baro and the us on a geopolitical scale. China owns the east of Africa, if not central as well. The us has been the top dog preventing them and Russia from doing much for years, though that's going to change in the coming years

Stranger: NATO not baro* bloody autocorrect

You: oh okay I was wondering what that was haha

Stranger: If I may ask, where are you from?

You: the us actually

Stranger: I thought you might be given the time :) it's half 1 am here

You: yeah it's late!

You: so in your view, western countries need to have more of a spine?

You: is that basically what you're saying?

Stranger: Always. But history has a cycle.

Stranger: Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. Weak men create hard times

You: very fair

You: speaking of cycles, I think something that is floating around these days

You: is whether it's sort of like the beginning of the end of american hegemony

You: sort of like UK's empire gradually had its sunset

Stranger: This is what I am concerned with. All empires have their time in the sun, and all shall fade. I had hoped I would be dead before it happened. I made a prediction several years ago that should trump win in 2020 again, there will be civil war. I am unsure on my prediction of civil war, but I can see that he will win. Should there not be war, I give it another 2 presidencies before yourselves will fall, and ww3 breaks out

You: hmm the us is steamy right now, but idk about civil war

Stranger: It's been brewing for a while now by my estimation

You: that said I would not be surprised about China continuing to be more aggressive

You: that stuff with India yesterday?

You: ^^

Stranger: Without strong willed opposition, they will always push more overtly. They have done so in the shadows for years now

Stranger: And that's just one example

Stranger: They have intruded on Thailand air space as well

You: I don't think either democrats or republicans are very foreign-policy aggressive right now though

You: idk if your concern will be that much better with biden

You: clinton was a little hawkish but she lost 2016

Stranger: It would be much worse with Biden, or anyone from the left EXCEPT Tulsi Gabbard

You: oh you sounded like you didn't want trump to win lol

Stranger: I don't like him. But honestly, he's the best option out of what has been shown. Bernie is a socialist, Hillary is a warmonger, Biden will probably be a puppet. Who can stand? Hillary could be strong, but you would go to war. For all his faults, Trump has avoided war and conflict. He brought North Korea to the discussion table.

You: okay ^^

Stranger: I may not like him but he is effective, and has been a boon to you economy though as someone who works in finance, the next crash is due soon

You: fair enough although I think a lot of places are hurt by the coronavirus economy anyways

Stranger: Yeah.. the lockdowns are odd.. why quarantine those who are healthy? We have always quarantined those who were I'll first, and then those who go out and riot get a free pass? It's a bit confusing, and is a little bit of double think. Rules don't apply to you if you have the correct opinions it would seem

You: idk the US never really had forced quarantines

You: everything here was just you were supposed to do it

Stranger: The uk did, apologies

Stranger: Well not heavily enforced near me

You: we had college students going to beaches even though the quarantine was happening

You: because young ppl think they are invincible

You: and dumb ^^

Stranger: Hahaha yeah you aren't wrong in that

Stranger: But I have waffled on, may I hear your opinions on what we have discussed?

You: mhm, I disagree but it's cool yo~

Stranger: No that's great, it shows that we can discuss and hopefully come to compromise

Stranger: Thank you for being chill and relaxed

You: mhm I'm basically a hippie though so I don't usually take strong stances on international intervention

Stranger: That's fair and understandable. I used to agree with that as well for many years

You: I kind of think it's a little bit of a selfish position to take (the peace one)

You: in the sense that I don't want to deal with other people's problems

You: so in a sense it's kinda selfish

Stranger: It is and it isn't :)

Stranger: It's a moral good and a difficult thing. Peace only exists as reprieve from war. Humanity is a war like species, and peace only ever exists between them. And I applaud your pacifism

You: idk I'm not sure if it's always something to applaud

You: I think in a sense it's a kind of inaction

Stranger: A good thought experiment for you then, look at ww2

You: yup

You: I'm familiar with isolationism in history and its ramifications

Stranger: The us was neutral officially for years, and because they took no strong stance, the Nazis rose to power. Admittedly it was partly the fault of all the allies and ww1 but that's a digression.

Stranger: But war was thrust upon them officially by what happened. The peaceful stance can be taken from you, but that is not a bad thing in my opinion

You: yup

Stranger: What would you do if you could, at that time?

You: at that time?

You: hmm

You: it's not a question I've thought very much about

Stranger: I thought on that myself

You: and what did you conclude?

Stranger: My answer was intervention. Stop the Anschluss, the Munich agreement, the extremely harsh measures of the treaty at the end of ww1

You: oh yeah that was a terrible treaty

You: I kind of imagined myself as an average person though haha

Stranger: But I understand the reasoning at the time for allowing all those things to go through

Stranger: I am too

You: you would have protested your government signing that treaty?

Stranger: That's why thay generation was called the greatest generation. We the average man stood up and took up arms, because they believed what was right.

Stranger: It is difficult to say that if I lived in that time I would. Of it was today, 100%

You: mhm... war is frightening

Stranger: We cannot judge the past with the same moral standing we have today

You: of course

Stranger: And yes, war really is a horrible thing

Stranger: If peace was an option, I would go for it. Often times though, we have no control over that

You: mhm there is suffering in a lot of places, and violence that arises from suffering and hatred

Stranger: Look at the Nazis and the hatred of the Jews. That was extremely common all across Europe, the uk and the us. Many leaders in politics and business liked the Nazis initially. But just because something is common, does not make it right

You: I actually never understood antisemitism

Stranger: You are quite wise, and I agree with you. But the sad thing is, there will always be suffering

You: or why people hate(d) jewish people

Stranger: The scary thing is, many of those in BLM look up to a man called Farrakhan (forgive me on the spelling) who is a huge antisemite. Like he openly calls for violence against them. He gets away with it, because he is black. Why he hates them I don't know. They are hated I think, because they are the oldest abrahamic religion and the oldest monothesist one as well, from which both Islam and Christianity draw their teachings from initially

You: I just don't understand why they are hated

You: often by christians too

Stranger: Me neither, I find it abhorrent. They have been persecuted for thousands of years

You: yeah idk I just don't understand why

Stranger: I have yet to find out why. I know in Islam they hate them as it is dictated within their scriptures, though the exact wording I am unsure on. Christians I would think it's because they don't believe that Jesus was the son of God

You: I guess so

Stranger: But I may be entirely wrong

Stranger: Which I probably am

You: idk I don't know anything so I have no clue

Stranger: Hence why I like and want discussion :) we learn more through communication

Stranger: We become better the more we communicate

You: is there a reason why you dislike blm so much?

Stranger: I stand against identitarianism

You: so basically all those "pride" movements?

Stranger: I come from a racist country that segregated everyone and everything based on the colour of everyone's skin and I was hated for being the colour of my skin just for being born. I cannot condone movements that wish to implement the same things, as it will lead to suffering and hatred.

Stranger: I have nothing against being proud of your race, though I think the idea is a bit stupid. I have an issue with everything needing to divided up based on the colour of ones skin, I choose to judge someone on the basis of their character. I'm not perfect and there are times where I have been prejudiced but it is something I am consious of and wish to not do

You: mhm okay

You: I'm not sure if blm wants things to be divided up based on race though

You: I thought they were mostly against police brutality

Stranger: Some very much so are. Though I will concede that not all of them are, and I should tar everyone with the same brush. But as a counter to that, look at CHAZ in Seattle, they have segregated farms though calling them that is hilarious

You: I thought chaz is just a city block?

Stranger: On the police brutality, I agree with them and that reform must happen. Abolishing police is not a good idea. More funding is required, better training and better internal policies and structures to vette and review the officers is needed. Abolishing them will lead to anarchy. You are correct that Chaz is, but it is a microcosm showing the very things I stand against. I am against racism of all kinds, segregation is a form of racism. The us had a history where they did it too and agreed that it was wrong

You: mhm

You: I just wasn't familiar with blm as pro-segregation

You: that said, most blm activists are just really young

Stranger: They have been co-opted by those who are. And many activists are young white kids

You: I don't think mainstream democrats take them very seriously

Stranger: I'm not so certain. But I hope I am wrong

You: idk I mean these days who knows what kind media we each read

You: so I'm sure I'm in a bubble too

Stranger: They may see these things as a good and helpful idea, but the road to hell is often paved with good intentions

Stranger: Of course, and I hope I'm wrong. I recommend a variety of news sources, especially independent ones. A great one is a guy named Tim Pool on YouTube. He is a left leaning centrist guy who is upfront with his leanings. But he gives the news as it is

You: mhm I try to avoid youtube news

You: although idk if it's truly reliable to always go through bbc or ap or others

You: they are just mainstream

Stranger: BBC is very biased in my opinion. Tim used to work on mainstream media but he left. I would call him credible, he looks at news sources and verifies them. He's very milk toast and fence sits allot the problem with news is that all sides want to spin things the way they want it

You: mhm okay

You: is there any kind of mainstream media that you like?

Stranger: I don't trust any of them when it comes to almost anything except weather and sport scores. I will listen to what is said from various sources before coming to my own conclusions. I have lost all faith in the media since 2016

You: I see, I guess it ends up being hard to find something to trust

Stranger: Unfortunately it is. My reasons for it was both the elections in the us for 2016 and the brexit vote here in the uk. I was very similar to you then, very much so a hippie and very left leaning. I disagreed with Trump and Brexit, but I lost. But the way the media and society within the left handled themselves and the situation, that put me off completely and pushed me to become more conservative than what I was

You: interesting, although I'm not exactly following what made you more interested in conservative things

Stranger: The constant denigration of those who you disagree with. The treatment hat those people got, most of whom are the working class, upon the backs of which society is upheld. They are not racist or evil. They have a different opinion and different values. How does making a choice in a democracy make someone evil when neither side is perfect?

Stranger: The left preaches tolerance, except that it doesnt in reality

You: mhm yeah I don't like that

You: I don't think it is effective either

Stranger: All it does is polarize people

Stranger: And drive them further away from reaching g a compromise

You: right

Stranger: Don't get me wrong, I don't agree with Brexit, but as a democracy we made a decision. So now we need to exact that decision. I would have voted for trump despite my disdain for him

Stranger: Enact not exact*

You: I think there are a lot of people who think similarly as you do ^^

Stranger: There really are

Stranger: The left has become absorbed by identity politics and is obsessed with race.. it scares me that they will create more racists than before they started

Stranger: Constantly calling your opposition racist and evil will force them into being it

You: mhm I think there are some things to distinguish between social media left-wing people and people in everyday life I think

You: the vitriol is always much more amplified online than people are irl

Stranger: Oh agreed! Twitter is not real life, but it has started to bleed over

You: I live in a fairly liberal state, although I don't really think I have ever seen twitter irl

You: although I do think there is probably self-censorship occuring

You: in the sense that people are afraid of what their neighbors will think

Stranger: There is allot of that

Stranger: Anything you say will be used against you. Even if it's not that controversial

Stranger: People have lost their jobs for an opinion not done at work

You: that said, I don't think that's per say the "left's" fault though -- I just think that public opinion has shifted dramatically in the last 10 years

Stranger: Or how about the man who lost his job because his wife said something controversial

Stranger: I agree with you

Stranger: I really do

Stranger: Allot of this I do think could have been stopped years ago

You: I don't really like the lynch firing of people

You: that companies do for their public image

You: because the truth doesn't matter

You: it's just public image

Stranger: They do so because they are scared of the mob

You: but at the same time, I think public image is a thing because majority opinion really has shifted in the past two decades

You: opinions on homosexuality have swung dramatically in the US

You: ten years ago it was totally okay in public to be anti-homosexual

Stranger: Obama was against gay marriage until it was politically important for him to win the next election

You: but public opinion I think has swung really fast

You: yeah

You: I think he swapped at the first poll that showed >50% of americans supported it

Stranger: Yep! I find it hilarious that that was the case

You: yes but I think conservatives find this kind of fast change extremely uncomforting

You: I can understand that sentiment

You: also isn't it getting kinda late for you? ^^

Stranger: Conservatives are by their very nature are conservative. Change is neither malevolent nor benevolent, but we cannot look at change as universally good. Not can we disregard tradition

Stranger: It's 3 am and I can still keep going, I'm enjoying this conversation :)

You: I need to do the dishes eventually lol

Stranger: If you wish to leave you can by all means :) I won't hate you for it

You: I'm fine either way tbh

You: are you working right now? if you have work tomorrow you should prob go to bed

Stranger: It's up to you :) I can go for ages though my coherence Kay descend

Stranger: I'm sadly unemployed at the moment having lost my job earlier this year

You: coronavirus?

Stranger: Sadly yes

You: that's unfortunate, I'm sorry

Stranger: Not your fault :) so don't stress

You: so aside from Russia and China and the decline of western things, is there anything else that you stress about lol?

Stranger: The drive of censorship

Stranger: I have serious issue with censory

You: mhm

Stranger: And yourself?

You: mhm I dunno really

Stranger: That's good, though I would urge you to become concerned with censorship

You: mhm maybe

You: for me it's sort of a contextual concern I think

You: in the sense that it depends on your vantage point

Stranger: Opinions, art and books doesn't matter. Today it is their voice, tomorrow it is my voice. The day after it becomes your voice. Censorship takes away their rights to speak, and your rights to listen

You: mhm, what I mean is that my family immigrated from China

You: so my reference point of censorship is literal government censorship

You: in comparison the "political correctness" thing just doesn't seem as big to me imo

You: because 90% of it to me is sort of like a person's relationship with the neighbor basically

You: the US government doesn't censor what you can publish essentially

Stranger: That's fair enough, but this is where it starts. Things take time, and if anyone gives in (such as they have in several cases) that builds. In time that becomes the norm, there after what gets censored will not be at the choice of the people but of those who are in power

You: perhaps, although I kind of have faith in the 1st ammendment and the US supreme court

You: we barely have libel laws or defamation laws in the US because of the 1st ammendment

Stranger: I have seen calls to change and amend it. In the uk we have no freedom of speech, people have been arrested for jokes, what's been said on Twitter, etc. There are those who say that it's ok to censor this and that because e they are problematic or it would be good for everyone. But that is how it starts. The US has so much freedom

You: ahh... yeah I feel like it is different in the uk

Stranger: The uk doesn't care for free speech. It's very worrying and there are calls for even more censorship here.

You: mhm that sounds worrisome

Stranger: I guess I project it across to all western countries, and that is something we have seen recently

You: I don't think the US will lose the 1st amendment anytime soon, it's not politically realistiic

Stranger: Look at Amazon censoring books and movies being removed etc, this is how this begins. If it is allowed now, how can we stop it in the future

You: idk the status of free speech in other countries

You: actually this is a very interesting topic

Stranger: The us is one of the only countries that has it

You: do you think freedom of speech should be protected in private spaces?

Stranger: Codified in law that is

You: because technically freedom of speech for us is supposed to be only related to public government relationships

Stranger: I believe it should always be be protected

You: specifically "congress will make no law restricting freedom of speech" (paraphrased)

You: so you believe that private companies should not control what is said on their premises?

You: I mean it's fine if you believe that, it's actually just a bit further than what the current status quo is

Stranger: Yes. They are not above the law. Society may shun them, but they should not become involved. Outright calls for violence are against the law and that should be honoured, outside of that no they should not impose on pthers

You: hmm in the US this is where things get super complicated

You: because conservatives are also the ones who want content restricted/said in their religious schools too

Stranger: I've noticed.. and that has an effect on the rest of the world

You: basically "freedom of religion" and "freedom of speech" being on the same political side here makes things very weird

Stranger: And yeah I am aware of that as well, though the pendulum seems to have swung to the other side now. And it will swing back to the other side again

You: kind of like "My store should have the freedom of religion to deny my patrons of being homosexual in my store" kinda thing

Stranger: Yeah it is hard but there is more to the opposite side than just the one thing

You: it's a weird convoluted thing when both are conservative issues

Stranger: That's a difficult one, but I would say that should be discussed and debated but the highest courts. I cannot say from a legal sense one way or the other, morally I can say that it's hard to decide. I think that everyone should get a choice but I am uncertain

Stranger: By not but*

You: mhm that's fine ^^

You: I just think it's very interesting because most laws here, they govern the relationship between between the government and the people

You: so our freedom of speech laws do not apply to amazon censoring books because they are a private company

Stranger: Which is the difficult thing

Stranger: They are protected by being a private company

Stranger: As it's not just them

You: maybe ^^ we have a free market though, so things that cannot be published on amazon will find an outlet elsewhere

You: provided there is a demand for it

You: that said, it also has some gray area with morality laws

Stranger: That is true but monopoloes make things harder to find

You: kind of like youtube banning pornographic content

Stranger: Yeah I can understand that morally, legally I don't know but I would assume that there is some laws regarding that

You: I mean I'm just used to many various sites having bans of various sorts

Stranger: The uk has some

Stranger: Yeah, but there are protections for them being platforms not publishers

You: I don't think there is any law forcing youtube to ban pornographic content; it's just a branding choice by the company

Stranger: If they are publishers, those protections don't apply

You: like I think they want to be seen as family-friendly

Stranger: Fair enough, would have thought there might be

You: porn sites are not illegal in the US lol

Stranger: Not family friendly, advertisement friendly

You: lol true

Stranger: Sorry I don't know enough to be able to say :) I'm happy to admit that

You: mhm aside from political correctness, I guess I just don't personally see a big problem with censorship in the US

You: although I think I have a different belief than you that I think it's okay for private companies to choose what they want to publish

You: even if the ban content

You: these companies still need to compete

Stranger: Them doing so is fine, but if they wish to be protected as platforms they cannot act as a publisher. I think that's the Crux of their protections

Stranger: It is something that has been going for a while though

Stranger: And I think Trump will have it in his campaign for reelection this year

You: okay ^^

Stranger: But I don't know, he has been interested in censorship and has said he is against it in the past

You: I think people mean different things by censorship

You: but that's just imo

You: there are almost no western countries that experience censorship by their governments

You: so people mean things like censorship at their workplace

You: although imo that's kind of less censorship and more on the political correctness spectrum

Stranger: True. That is very true. But if you don't stop censorship openly, then should it come from government you don't already know you can stand against it

You: but to me, that "political correctness" isn't anything new either; it's as old as time

You: like did we always worry about saying something that would offend our boss?

You: ^^

You: it's always been there

You: I just think people are uncomfortable because bosses have changed in the last few decades

Stranger: It's not just their work place. The new "town square" is has become online. Your freedoms online are not protected despite it being codified in law

Stranger: And you aren't wrong, and coming from China or at least your family, you bring an interesting perspective

You: I feel like in the US we have very little digital legislation

You: the US of is head of hear

You: *there

Stranger: The world needs a digital bill of rights, to protect us all and our data. But we won't get it

You: but I don't think we have anything guaranteeing that speech on the Internet is free by any regard

Stranger: I would argue we do

You: hm? which law?

You: I like most websites have ToS's and rules banning X Y or Z on their site

Stranger: Freedom of speech and expression

You: oh I mean in terms of law

Stranger: That is what I meant, so that we are free to speak and express ourselves. I also believe that our data should be private and cannot be sold and that should be protected. There are other things that I have heard but it's difficult to remember all those that were proposed

You: ahh

You: yeah we don't have those laws right now

Stranger: Today stuff is okay but you are not protected

You: although the EU has some privacy ones that we don't have in the US

Stranger: The EU doesn't care mostly

Stranger: Some laws only protect some information, I'm talking about all of our information

You: ^^

Stranger: Everything we post and do is tracked, monitored and sold

Stranger: We revel in it, "I was talking about cats/dogs and all of a sudden I got adds for cat/dog products"

Stranger: We hear that often

You: yup

Stranger: Also, with regards to our rights and things, who holds these companies accountable?

Stranger: Take google for example

Stranger: They have been caught tampering with the elections

You: well, again, we have basically no laws about this in the US so there is no accountability

Stranger: They openly censor news and opinions

Stranger: They are a monopoly

You: although some europrean countries have lawsuits whatever with them

You: yup they totally are

You: where are anti-trust laws lol?

Stranger: That's what I think Trump will be looking at, I would if I was in his shoes

Stranger: But they were given special protections

Stranger: Those need to be taken away, the large companies need to be broken up but governments are incompetent

Stranger: I don't trust them to do it well

You: mhm it actually reminds me of south korea actually

Stranger: I mean there are a few senators in the states that I think have the moral fortitude to do so, but I don't know

You: countries are loathe to break up companies that they're proud of basically

Stranger: Yep

You: like samsung in south korea lol?

Stranger: They wouldn't break them up

Stranger: It would do serious damage to the economy and blah blah blah

You: their revenue was like 20% of the entire country's gdp

Stranger: Yep it's a difficult argument

Stranger: And I can understand why you wouldnt

Stranger: That 20% could drop to below 1%

You: anyhow it is getting kind of late

You: it was nice talking to you

You: and you should sleep ^^

Stranger: Likewise! :) I needed to move my sleep schedule for a 24 hour race on the weekend anyway, sp thank you for occuping my time and mind :)

You: goodnight!

Stranger: I'm glad to have met another willing to talk, take care my good friend

You have disconnected.

#omegle #identity politics #blm #foreign policy #trump #china #anti-semitism #tech #internet privacy #censorship #first ammendment #freedom of speech #political correctness #politics

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ettadunham · 5 years ago

Text

A Buffy rewatch 7x01 Lessons

aka redemption, nostalgia, and the circle of storytelling

We did it, guys! We made it to the last season! Also, hello if you’re new, and stumbled upon this without context. As usual, these impromptu text posts are the product of my fevered mind as I rant about the episode I just watched for an hour (okay, sometimes perhaps two). Anything goes!

And in today’s episode it’s the beginning of the end, as it’s relentlessly signaled towards the audience.

I’ll be honest, in the pantheon of Buffy season openers I find Lessons to be somewhat… middling. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a lot of good stuff here, but there are parts of the main storyline that are just frustratingly inconsequential.

Let’s not beat around the bush – I’m mainly talking about Dawn’s new friends here. It’s obvious what the show is doing here, having Dawn form a friendship with two other misfit students and fighting demons on her first day of high school. We’re clearly going back to the beginnings. It’s what the Master aka the First tells us as well. Invoking the show’s very first episode and showing the next generation taking on that mantle.

(Also, that scene of the Fist appearing to Spike as all the Big Bads is still a lot. The music! Drusilla! You got me there, show. You got me right in my nostalgia feels.)

Which is a nice and cool thought. I love that. I love Dawn here. I just wish that the friends she makes actually appeared beyond this one single episode.

Imagine if one of those kids were Cassie! Or Amanda! I know that it’s tough to plan out these kinds of things, but the show’s done it in the past – or at the very least, set up a consistent group of background characters they could always go back to.

There are so many minor characters all over the Buffyverse, who were plucked out of that canvas and had their own little arcs through a few cameos. Think of Chantarelle, Amy, Harmony, or even Jonathan. And these characters weren’t set up to have as big of a role as they eventually got; the writers just saw an opportunity to develop them.

Meanwhile we’ve got these two kids, who this episode codes as part of our new Scooby gang. And we never see them again.

That’s just a bummer.

And it takes away a lot from the main action for me. Again, I like the idea of doing this, going back to high school as the beginning of a new cycle, where life as a teenager is hell… But I also wish I was more invested in the fate of these kids beyond Dawn.

On the plus side, I’m definitely a fan of Prinicipal Wood, and his lack of subtlety when it comes to his involvement with the supernatural. He’s like dropping hints that he knows what’s up, instead of just straight up telling Buffy that his mom was a Slayer. So is it any wonder that it’s getting picked up as shady on Buffy’s end?

He’s doing his best though, guys!! He’s got a lot of mommy issues. Give him a break.

Spike too has his own issues (which we’ll talk about in relation to Robin too). It’s a stark contrast, seeing a newly ensouled Spike here, laughing maniacally at Buffy asking him if he’s real. So are the cuts on his chest, marking his attempts at trying to cut his own heart out.

I don’t feel adequate enough to talk about that in depth. This is self-harm territory. But there’s also obviously something very specific about Spike trying to get at his own heart too in a metaphoric sense. Sure, through the heart is one of the ways a vampire can be killed, but he didn’t try to stake himself.

Spike’s a romantic. It’s one of his core traits that’s followed him through all of his incarnations. Even as a soulless vampire, he was a romantic. Except then, that side of him became twisted. As he was incapable of experiencing love in its entirety, this alter ego of his focused on what was left. Dependence. Obsession. Possession.

Spike as a vampire also reveled in his passions, and so to him violence, sex and love were all the same. They all came from the same place.

It’s no wonder then that the first thing Spike does after getting his soul back is to try and get rid of his heart. The thing that made him do all those things, even before he became a vampire.

Discussing redemption on Buffy is interesting to me, because this isn’t the show where that’s a central motive. Those stories happen over at Angel.

So, from that perspective, seeing how Willow’s story is handled here makes complete sense to me.

You know, I’ve read the hot takes about how Willow should be facing more consequences for her actions. But let me ask you this: what could possibly be worse for Willow than losing Tara?

Here’s another: how would punishing her be helpful?

And if your answer is “because murder should be punished because we live in a society”, that’s a good point. It is indeed how most of our society functions. For a reason.

But the show has been proposing for many seasons now, that normal societal rules don’t always apply in Buffy’s world. As a result, Buffy herself is positioned as the one with the power to decide how to handle any situation. Something that Faith already tells her in season 3; but Buffy rejects that idea then. At that time, she hasn’t even severed her ties with the Council yet, and was unprepared for that level of responsibility.

The Buffy of season 7 however not only recognizes her power, but embraces it. She is the law.

Which means that she can set her own principals and examples outside of society. And you can call Buffy self-righteous or whatever anyway you want, but she was never one for punishments.

Buffy always protects. If there’s a threat, she fights it, and if it’s neutralized, she lets it go. That’s why she never killed Spike after he was chipped. That’s why she didn’t kill Ben.

Buffy’s not vindictive and gives everyone the chance to grow; and in turn, so does the show.

“But… what about Faith?” – you say, predictably. I of course knew you were gonna bring her up. Mostly because you are currently just a voice in my head, arguing with my much more advanced logic.

Ah, yes. Let’s talk about Faith.

Specifically, let’s talk Faith in Consequences.

Hey, remember Consequences? The episode in which Buffy is trying to make Faith face up to her actions while also protecting her? The one where they argue about them being the law, and Buffy rejecting that specifically because Faith posits that they shouldn’t take responsibility for what they do?

More importantly, I want to emphasize this: with the gang, Buffy argues for Faith. She may not have quite embraced her role here yet as the law, but it’s clear where her head is at. She even asks for Angel’s help to keep Faith from becoming a threat.

Faith of course has her own set of issues that pushes her over to the dark side, but that doesn’t become evident for a few more episodes to the rest of the group. And I’d argue that it’s largely due to Buffy that Faith is even welcomed back for that short period of time.

Of course, comparing that to Willow’s murder is still not a good fit. Faith killed someone by accident at that point. Willow was going on a vengeance trip.

So let’s fast-forward to season 4. Where Faith wakes up and the gang doesn’t know how to deal with her.

Now, I criticized Buffy’s approach there, saying that she only seems to be preparing for two options here. Faith is either still a threat that needs to be dealt with, or she regrets her actions, in which case, there’s nothing to worry about.

Faith’s state of mind is of course a bit more complicated than that in the episode, but notice something important. Buffy doesn’t want to fight or punish Faith if it’s not necessary, even though at this point, she definitely did more than enough murder. When they meet, she tells her so. “It doesn’t have to be like this, you know.”

And for Buffy, that’s genuinely true.

After what goes down, Buffy’s pissed at Faith though. And yet we only see that side of Buffy on Angel the series. Where redemption for Faith becomes a central conflict, and one that’s ultimately resolved by her taking responsibility for her actions, and giving herself up to the police. A justice system that’s operating under normal societal rules.

And for Faith’s arc, that works. Part of her ongoing struggle was facing up and dealing with what she’s done, so this gave her the opportunity.

That however, isn’t always the case. Mostly because prison systems overall are largely unhelpful in actually rehabilitating people, but that’s a hot take for another day.

Narratively of course we still want that sense of fulfillment. We want to see the characters we love redeem themselves, and we want to be satisfied that it’s earned. But for me, that’s there with Willow as much as it’s there with Faith. It’s just that beyond the difference in thematic approach between the shows, their arcs just aren’t a one-to-one comparison.

Willow isn’t in denial about what she’s done. And she’s been dealt enough punishment as it is, even if it wasn’t any consequence of her own actions. By societal rules, she should be in prison, but because Buffy operates outside of those, Willow instead gets to have help, support and lessons.

And that’s kind of fascinating.

GILES: “Do you want to be punished?” WILLOW: “I wanna be Willow.”

I haven’t talked about Dawn nearly enough, but just know that I love her.

That is all.

#buffy rewatch 2k19 #btvs talk #btvs

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xaphrin · 6 years ago

Text

Gotham

Part Three

It seemed like Gotham was always rainy. Even in the dead of summer, when there was nothing but the oppressive heat of blacktop and reflections of glass buildings, it was somehow still raining. Raven pulled herself under an overhang to a swanky apartment building, watching as people rushed by without umbrellas, uncaring about the weather. Somewhere in the distance there was a rumble of thunder and Raven’s head hung down as a splatter dripped down her neck from the overhead. Shivering, she watched as Dick finally found his key and pushed his way inside, motioning Raven to follow.

“Sorry! Babs usually buzzes me in, so I couldn’t find the key right away.” He looked a little sheepish. “Are you at least a little dry?”

“Sort of?” Raven adjusted her bad across her shoulder, wringing rain from her hair as she looked up into his face. “Why is it always raining here?”

“Ambiance.” Dick grinned at her, shrugging off his thin jacket to rest it on her wet shoulders. It was such a casual move, but something about it made her stomach clench and flutter. The cotton was soft and warm, and it smelled of him. The tension on her shoulders relaxed and she finally let herself look around the lobby. It was decorated in white and neutral tones, and soft music was piped in as if they were at some kind of expensive store.

Raven looked up at Dick and knitted her eyebrows together. “What are we doing here? You’ve been kind of cryptic about this trip away from the team.”

“Yeah… sorry. I just didn’t want them to think I was just running away from things at the tower to go hang out with a bunch of cute girls. Besides, if Vic found out I know who I know, he’d never let me live it down until he got to meet her too.” Dick laughed, but there was a little a sheepish, little smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “You’re gonna meet Babs.” He went to the elevator and pushed the button for a floor close to the top.

His expression turned serious for a moment, and Dick shifted, uncertain if he should continue or not. “She… she had a similar experience to yours, a few years ago. She lost what she thought made her important to the team and the family, and she felt frustrated and empty for a long time too.” Dick sighed and looked up at floor numbers ticking off over the door. “But… she found a way to thrive, and found her own path. She does recon, and research, and runs ops on a lot of the family’s… ah… bigger missions. And honestly, I probably trust her more than I trust my own family at this point.”

Raven lifted an eyebrow.

“I’d put my life in her hands without question.”

“Oh.”

The elevator doors dinged over and Dick pulled Raven inside, tangling his fingers with hers in such a casual touch that Raven barely realized it wasn’t something they normally did. This didn’t hold hands. They barely touched at all. She glanced up at him from beneath her lashes and examined his face for a moment, taking in the way he looked with damp hair clinging to his forehead and a giddy smile plastered against his mouth. Raven’s heart skipped a beat and she looked forward, hoping she didn’t look as ridiculous as she felt. Honestly. Human emotions were the absolute worst.

His hand tightened just a little, as if he was trying to comfort her, and they rode the whole way up holding hands. After a few moments Raven wasn’t sure if she was supposed to pull away or not, so she just… enjoyed it. She liked the feeling of his calluses rubbing against her palm, or the heat from his touch. It was almost soothing, and the fears that were building in her chest seemed to dissipate as long as he was touching her. For a little bit, she felt as though no matter what happened, Dick was here to support her and help her heal, and she couldn’t ask for a better feeling.

“Come on!” The doors slid open, and Dick pulled her along to an apartment at the end of the hallway and knocked. He practically bounced on the balls of his feet like a kid, waiting for a response from inside.

“Come in!”

Dick opened the door and pulled Raven inside. “Hey, we’re here, Babs!”

“I’m in the office. Come on in!”

Raven followed Dick through the neatly decorated apartment to a room tucked in the back corner, and Raven quickly realized that office was a bit of an understatement. Central Command was probably the better term. There was a wall of servers neatly stacked against the wall, and then another wall of monitors opposite of them. The windows were covered with blackout curtains, but a window appeared to be open somewhere so that the sounds of the city filtered in. Raven was so caught up in all of the things going on in the room, she didn’t even see Babs approach her.

“You must be Raven. Dick wouldn’t shut his trap about you.”

Raven jerked out of her wonder and looked down at an adorable redhead in a wheelchair. Babs grinned up at her, cocking her head to the side, curious.

“I’m Barbara Gordon.”

“Oracle.” Dick grinned like he was the proudest best friend in the world, and motioned to her. “Only one of the smartest people ever. Brilliant, funny, talented-”

“Oh my god, shut up. Just stop.” Babs buried her face in her hands and shook her head, trying to fight back laughter. “Are you my friend or my hype-man?”

“Both, obviously.”

It took a moment, but Babs’ title hit Raven like a slap, and she blinked, suddenly feeling a bit starstruck. Oracle. The Oracle. Holy hades. No wonder he was keeping this from Vic. Vic would never let Dick live it down if he found out.

Babs rolled her eyes, but there was a playful smile on her lips. “Go be useful and make us some coffee, and stop being annoying. You’re embarrassing yourself.” She turned back to Raven, her expression soft. “Let’s go hang out in the living room, I’ve been dying to meet you. Honestly, every time Dick calls he won’t stop talking about you.”

Raven flushed and glanced away, rubbing at the back of her neck. She didn’t exactly know what that meant, but knew well enough not to dwell on it.

“All good things, so don’t worry.” Babs smiled and watched raven from over the rim of her glasses. She looked like she knew a secret Raven didn’t, but she didn’t want to share it yet. Instead, Babs just motioned for Raven to follow and moved for the door.

Raven paused as she saw a photo nailed next to the door frame, and she stared at a newspaper clipping of Robin, Batman, and… Batgirl? Raven looked down at Babs, her mind a whirlwind of thoughts. “You knew Batgirl? Do you know what happened to her?”

Babs smile turned sad for a moment, and she lifted a hand to adjust her glasses again. It was then that Raven saw the scars over the back of her arms, old shiny things that looked like they had taken years to heal. Oh. Oh. Oh gods, she was such an idiot. Suddenly it all made sense, why Dick brought her here, why he was introducing her to Babs, and Raven pulled her hand to her chest, uncertain of what she should say. She looked around the room, desperately trying to think of something that wouldn’t make her feel like she’d royally screwed up.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t-”

“It’s a secret identity for a reason, Raven. Of course you’re not supposed to know.” Babs moved her chair around to look up at the clipping with an almost wistful smile, like she was remembering thoughts and memories from a long time ago. “I thought I did a pretty good job at being a superhero, but… I think I do a better job at being Oracle. Keeping my friends and family safe is the most important part of running ops. So… I guess that’s lesson number one?”

Raven blinked, confused. “Lesson number one?”

“Sure.” Babs looked back at her. “Dick said you were here to learn how to run ops.” She chewed on her lower lip and looked up at the ceiling, thinking. “I’m not sure how good of a teacher I am, I’ve never had a student before, but I promise to do whatever I can to help you learn. So… think of this as a two week intensive boot camp for tech.”

Raven blinked. “You’re going to teach me to do… what you do?”

“Sure!” Babs moved out the door and Raven followed, feeling a bit like a newborn foal stumbling on its shaky legs. “Dick said that after what happened to you, you felt like you didn’t know what to do with yourself, and that you weren’t a part of the team anymore. And while I know that’s so not true, I also know how it feels - feeling like you don’t have a specific job anymore. You want to find purpose on the team, and I can’t fault you for that. If anything, I probably understand it better than most.”

“So, you’re… you’re going to teach me to do… this?” Raven motioned to the office behind her, watching as Babs face lit up. “To help my friends.”

“Yep!” Babs leaned forward and grinned. “Thank Dick for his persistence and wearing me down. Besides, I think I like the idea of Oracles all over the world, keeping our friends safe. Seems like a nice touch. You’ll be Oracle 2.0, the Jump City initiative.”

Raven blinked, feeling her heart skip beats and rise into her throat, beating wildly. Dick… understood? He understood what she needed? Raven felt her shoulders fall and she looked over at Dick, standing in the kitchen. He paused at the kitchen sink and gave her a lopsided, almost cautious smile, his eyes lighting up. Raven wanted to wrap her arms around him and thank him more than she had ever thanked him before. Even if it seemed stupid, or silly, the idea that he listened to her, that he tried to give her options, that he was trying his best to help even when Raven felt like no one could help her… it seemed to make everything feel a little bit better.

“Oh my god, you two can stop making doe eyes at each other any time now.” Babs stuck her tongue out, but she was biting back her own laughter. “I’m still here.”

Dick looked away and pretended to be more interested in the coffee pot, and Raven glanced out the window, clearing her throat. She shifted, adjusting to the sudden weight in the room, and set herself down on the sofa, embarrassed. That was… no. Dick was just being a good friend, he didn’t really feel that way about her. They were just… just friends, and he was just trying to help her come back to the team. That was it, and she needed to stop looking for things that weren’t really there.

Still laughing, Babs came up beside her and looked Raven in the eyes, setting her eyes into a thin line. “Alright, Raven… I’m going to need to know what kind of techie I’m working with.”

Raven blinked, uncertain. “I know how to turn a computer on and do a Google search?”

She didn’t think is was possible for Babs to look any more disappointed.

#robrae #robraeweek2019 #robrae week 2019

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bthump · 6 years ago

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What do you think the odds are of Casca sacrificing Moonlight Boy like you've been hoping?

oof, idk

not completely terrible? I keep calling it a longshot hail mary hope but honestly I think a lot of the especially recent foreshadowing is pointing in that direction tbf.

Like I have my theory that the behelit is Casca’s and it’s about to open due to her Eclipse memories despair and whatnot, and I still think that’s overall a v strong theory. Fate, all those questions about whether Guts is carrying the behelit for someone, Skull Knight planning shit and using Guts and co, the suggestions that he’s in cahoots with Danann, Danann acting shady (Guts get lost Casca’s scared of you vs here Casca put on this dress and go see Guts right now), our recent lesson on dragon roads and spirit trees, tbh Flowers of Distant Days also imo foreshadows SK using Guts, little details like the fact that Elfhelm has used the power of human sacrifice as magic b4 lol (that wickerman), and ofc the familiar visual representation of Casca’s despair:

So the next two questions are: who is Casca’s sacrifice and will she go through with it?

And I think if the behelit does open, the odds are actually very high that the sacrifice will be fetus/MB and not Farnese. My #1 reason for saying this is the fact that the fetus represented her thorn-covered despair-ridden (fragile human) heart in her dreamscape. Like imo that’s pretty damn indicative.

Plus as the… shard of herself closest to the Eclipse it also seems to represent her trauma, which yk, that’s pretty common for sacrifices. Person you loved the most and hated the most, and all. And parent/child sacrifices are the most common from what we’ve seen lol.

There’s also this:

The MB first appears right after a chapter full of foreshadowing and ominous warnings. This moment is Guts watching Casca acting all motherly and shit and brooding over SK’s warning about her wishes. A lot of people seem to take this as foreshadowing that Casca is going to prioritize a baby over revenge but like… Guts wants this. Idt this is Guts fretting over Casca’s motherly instincts because he doesn’t want kids or whatever lol, imo this is Guts seeing a ray of hope for the future and wondering if it’ll be snuffed out.

Further suggested by:

She couldn’t cope with her experience, so what will she do when he forces her sanity back? This is ominous in an active, dark way that a fixation on a magic baby just isn’t likely to follow through on imo.

There’s also the werebaby thing, and if that’s what’s actually happening then presumably MB is on his way to Elfhelm right around when Casca woke up. I mean timing that dumbass reveal after Casca’s screaming cliffhanger? Hm. And handily that fucking werebaby shit means it’s now less likely that MB is going to show up and soothe Casca’s despair through her maternal instincts, which was one of my original fears, and more likely that it’s just gonna add to her despair, assuming the ridiculous truth is revealed. (Speaking of “the person you loved the most and hated the most” lmao. Like yeah, that’s so on the nose it’s comedic, but everything about werebaby is an absurd comedy so.)

As for whether she’ll actually go through with the sacrifice or whether she’ll refuse or be interrupted by plot, that’s unfortunately dicier.

On the pro side you have “what will she do?” Meaning she should do something, not fail to do something. You have all the foreshadowing re: Guts losing himself to the armour for a while, which he needs a catalyst for. I can’t think of anything more well-suited for that than Casca, the symbol of his humanity, essentially sacrificing his hope for the future (and incidentally the very thing that likely keeps saving him from the armour), becoming a monster, and (I guess) Griffith suddenly appearing lmao. And there’s the fact that Casca becoming a monster would be an extremely convenient way for Miura to avoid writing a realistic v traumatized woman while not bypassing or underselling her trauma.

And structurally we’re at the point where something tragic has to happen to fuck things up and drive things forward and finally deliver on the assloads of ominous foreshadowing that Guts is willfully ignoring.

On the con side you have Farnese’s hope that her friendship with Casca will be enough and tbf there’s an arc’s worth of development behind that. And something someone else does could be what causes Guts to succumb to the armour - like learning SK has betrayed him or something maybe.

And this whole werebaby situation is a double-edged sword in regards to this theory.

On one hand it’s timely, like I mentioned above, and it’s an indication that MB is going to be present for whatever shit’s about to go down, and probably in a way that makes things worse rather than better. Sacrificing the kid would also get the story back on what at least I consider its track, rather than fully derailing it into wacky magic baby world.

But on the other hand, let’s be real here: it’s so fucking ridiculous and bizarre that it almost feels like it has to be the new centrepiece of the plot. Go big or go home. As wildly weird as it is to completely derail three relationships that have more than enough build up to carry the plot all on their own, one can argue it’s even weirder to introduce a magic werebaby that completely derails those relationships only to neutralize it a couple chapters later.

Like if Miura’s willing to go that fucking stupid, then yeah I’m completely willing to believe he’d commit to it and make Casca’s new conflict the fact that her rapist periodically transforms into her magic child. Why not? Werebaby has dissolved all the faith I had in his ability as a writer. I no longer have that intrinsic belief that Berserk will ultimately make sense, resolve in a satisfying way, and generally work as a whole to fall back on lol.

So anyway, all that said, let’s just lay out the possibilities:

1. Casca does not sacrifice MB, maybe I’m entirely wrong about everything or maybe she turns down the offer/plot happens and she doesn’t get a chance. The fact that Griffith transforms into a baby every full moon is the new big plot point and character motivation. Story’s functionally over, everyone go home.

2. Casca does not sacrifice MB, the fact that Griffith transforms into a baby every full moon is a new big plot point, and will probably be the central issue of Casca’s narrative, but it won’t significantly alter Guts and Griffith’s relationship. Griffith’s feelings for Guts are still real and gonna bite him, Guts will still focus more on Griffith than the werebaby thing, Casca’s narrative is gonna suck like a black hole, everything’s gonna be weird. This would be incredibly awkward and horrifically bad writing, but honestly I feel like this might actually be the most probable option lol. I mean I’ve always acknowledged that fetus is probably a factor in Griffith saving Casca even while arguing it’s irrelevant to most of Griff’s feelings, I just didn’t think its relevance would end up being this silly lol.

3. Casca does sacrifice MB, this essentially cures Griffith of his infanthropy, and the original hint of babality we saw at the Hill of Swords essentially existed to set up hopeful expectations of Griffith’s ~big weakness~ before climatically dashing them when everything goes wrong for Our Heroes. Moment of hilarious triumph for Griff, low point for Guts and co.

4. Casca does sacrifice MB, this negates the werebaby thing but still affects Griffith negatively in another way - maybe ironically he’s a sacrifice himself now which causes problems for him, or handily negates the apostle worship effect for Casca. And/or because of this sacrifice Elfhelm succeeds in some plan of their own and maybe fucks up both Guts and co and Griffith, or idk, something. This makes werebaby potentially relevant enough to (theoretically) justify its existence as more than just a weird ass bait and switch/plot point to get both Griffith and MB to Elfhelm lol, while also not actually focusing on Griffith being a werebaby as a major plot point. Win/win.

It’s like… I think it’s pretty likely that the behelit will open for Casca and if that happens I think it’s pretty likely that MB will be the sacrificial offering, and if that happens I think it’s pretty likely Casca will say yes, and if that happens I think it’s pretty likely that we’ll be saved from werebaby. But that’s a lot of hope resting on hope, especially when the odds recently got a lot higher that I’m just totally on a completely different wavelength than Miura lol.

Anyway ty for asking. Hope for the best and prepare for the worst I guess.

#Anonymous #ask #a #b #theme: speculation #lost chapter spoilers #this is ofc assuming griffith is indeed a werebaby #character: casca #character: moonlight boy

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antiphon · 6 years ago

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mantis-blades replied to your post: the preview for the next episode has me tired...

I can’t stand Blum and I can’t stand the both sides are wrong false equivalencey nonsense they have been trying to shove down our throats this whole season.

First of all: I can’t stand Blum either. I share Marissa’s reaction to him: he’s boring. He’s a human embodiment of the Themes of the Show, but he’s toothless (unless you’re Maia, but honestly, Maia behaved very irresponsibly several times over and earned her firing).

Part two got really effing long, so it’s under a cut

That said: I don’t think, truly, that they’re trying to say both sides are the same. (For instance, this week I think the show was pretty clearly of the stance that Nazis are bad and Jay punching a Nazi is good and okay - and I guess the moderate conservatives in this instance chose not to align themselves with the Nazis. In the real world, there are plenty of people like “Nazis are awful, but PUNCHING THEM?!?!” The show didn’t have a crisis about the okay-ness of this; it had a monologue confirming the okay-ness of this.) They’ve been asking questions more like, how do you fight harmful lies when no one seems to care about the truth? and more broadly, how far can you go toward monstrous but effective tactics without becoming monstrous? The show has positioned “ethical” and “effective” as, if not dichotomous, at least in tension (effectiveness being the thing that might call you to behave unethically).

The show has a sense of the things that are clearly okay (punch a Nazi, register anti-45 voters, work against CPD on police brutality cases) and things that are clearly not okay (out and cruelly harass a trans girl; not get Kurt medical attention because it would interfere with hunting), but there are places it’s less clear. The hiring question was one - Liz’s “it’s about who we are.” Is it ok, in-universe, to (bad) hire people we disapprove of but that it’s politically advantageous to have around or take ethically murky cases if (good) that makes it possible, politically or financially, to do work that’s important? (This gets consistently negotiated, of course; Liz and Adrian took different sides when it was about hiring. In this case, for what it’s worth, I read the show as being more on Liz’s, or the more lefty, side - but the fact that they’re actively discussing their identity as a firm in these terms indicates that it’s a priority.) Is it ok, in-universe, to (bad) out and cruelly harass a trans girl if (good) it leads to the registration of tens of thousands of anti-45 voters?

The problem is that often as not, TGF is a blunt instrument. So last week we get Diane’s white lady resistance doing objectively horrible things because they like the end result, and both Diane and Liz end up going along with them because they were effective (as opposed to the *~resistance~* meeting Diane attended at the beginning of the episode, where no one could even agree on what the message was)--I wasn’t convinced as an audience member that their action was either effective enough or the only option, so there wasn’t strong tension; it was just a clearly wrong thing to do without a compelling argument for the people who did it. I think we’re supposed to see this as them compromising their values substantially but doing it anyway; I don’t think we’re supposed to see them as Just As Bad. And in general, I just don’t see the kind of both-sides-ism from the show that you’re talking about. When the show works, I see the protagonists - especially Diane previously and especially Liz now, and shoutout to Barbara Kolstad here for making real moves that way, even if it was to get written off the show, because she’s my wife and I respect her - genuinely struggling with this. (Liz taking on the responsibility for her dad’s rape and sexual assault but still getting NDAs instead of just like burning the whole thing down is an example here. She’s treating people with dignity and facing up to it - she’s not Just As Bad As Him in any way - but she’s still protecting the firm.) But it’s...also been known to fail at nuance.

Blum, for instance, has no nuance. He’s an answer to this question in human form - he’s all the way down the line where effectiveness matters entirely and ethics not at all. That’s why he’s boring: he’s the blunt-force trauma version of the Themes of the Show. TGF is trying to acknowledge the ridiculousness inherent in a world that values and responds to Blums and the absurdity of trying to exist in opposition to that within it - and sometimes it succeeds! Pitting Elsbeth Tascioni against Mike Kresteva made for great TV; Liz arguing to Margo Martindale (I forget her character’s name) (Ruth? Eastman?) that the truth doesn’t matter and getting hired for her *~anger~* was a hell of a ride. But the show has felt like a drag for me lately; part of that is that it’s been pretty humorless, but I think part of it is also that there’s been no one really fighting for the other side. Liz makes some stabs at it; Lucca and Jay have done a little, but they don’t have as much power as most of our characters.

But also - I don’t know whether you watched The Good Wife? I’m going to talk about The Good Wife, and the reason is that Alicia’s character arc was also very grounded in this ethics-effectiveness dichotomy. Over the course of the series, a lot of her development was on a path from wanting to do good to being willing to do what she had to, and what she had to would get pushed just a little farther and a little farther. (Alicia wasn’t in the law to help people; she was in the law because it made sense, and she liked being good at it.) But there was also a thing with her where at the same time that people (characters, in-universe people) were pushing her to be colder and more focused on succeeding at whatever cost in her professional life, they hated her for changing in the same way as a person - they only wanted her to be cruel during the nine to five, but how she worked was part of who she was. In I think season six, she sort of tries to facilitate a similar transformation in another high-minded character, but he backs out in the end. something she either hadn’t been able to do or hadn’t chosen to do (spoiler: both). It literally offers us an alternative to Alicia’s decisions and a person, when she’s far along in her like moral decay practically, who makes a different call. In Alicia, we get a protagonist who often makes harmful choices and certainly isn’t a good person, overall, being understandable and maybe even justified in a particular choice while still clearly seeing that she becomes worse - the show doesn’t approve of all her choices and align with her morally just because she’s the protagonist.

I bring this up because TGW was concerned with these things for seven seasons. This question of how much bad you can do (for the sake of good?) before you’re too bad, this question of how much ethically to compromise in order to accomplish what you (think you) need to, they’re baked into the universe of the show and clearly interests for its creators. So when I say I don’t think they’re being super both-sides-y, part of that is because TGW gave us seven seasons of a tension much like the one that TGF is trying to hold without writing off the distinction to make it easier. TGF situates this more in how you behave politically in the world than TGW generally did (except occasionally through Diane), but I think it has a fairly clear sense in that political existence of what goodness means. You might not always be able to accomplish it, and actions rather than people are good or bad (or at least, people are bad as a function of doing bad things), but I don’t think just because the “good” side sometimes does bad things, the show is necessarily heavy on both-sides-ism. It’s less two separate cups and more the string between two cups, with people and stances at different places on that axis.

I also think the show is trying more and more to uncouple the concepts of order and goodness, which have previously been uneasy allies in-universe. (Think of everyone’s horror when Liz suggested the DNC’s arguments needn’t be based in truth; think of how cruel Maia’s retaliatory fake news was. Worse - think how Diane was really presented as having the high ground when she told the Assholes to Avoid lady to do it right next time! Publishing unsubstantiated allegations that were clearly labeled as such was ‘doing it wrong’ at that point.) So some of the things that have previously been presented as bad AND associated with the right are now being presented more neutrally when associated with the left. I don’t think that’s a criticism of the left; I don’t think, for instance, that the first creation of retaliatory fake news by the white lady resistance (the one that closed the other fake news factory - I’m NOT talking about the stuff with the sister) was something we were supposed to see as bad or as an ethical compromise. The normal has changed, in-universe. Certain tactics that aren't necessarily harmful have been decoupled from ethical stigma that they received because they weren’t associated with order and honesty - the world has changed, and our characters are changing along with it. It’s totally possible that I’m misreading this situation, but I do think it means we’re seeing people in positions we would previously have considered compromised without seeing them as compromised. I don’t think the show has done a terrible job with this, though.

I also think the show is weaker when it takes this on outside of the workplace - it’s clearly decided it wants to situate some of its dilemmas in Diane’s personal life and not her professional life, but it benefits from having to work this out within existing, robust character relationships, not just a single person’s struggles or via some characters who are about as central to our understanding of the show as the NSA guys. So a lot of the white lady resistance stuff feels pretty thin to me, and that could be causing me to give it, and in particular its bad behavior (mostly just the thing with the sister, right? but that was really so bad), less weight than the show wants me to. Maybe it’s trying to be more both-sides-y than I’m reading it because I find the workplace stuff more real and impactful. But I feel like a lot of that has been really neglected - was the stuff about whether to hire conservatives for the sake of expediency just kind of closed when they made Lucca the head of family law, for instance? It’s been really focused on being murky but not on, like, situating that in its world and its story lmao.

#mantis-blades #the good fight #the good wife #alicia florrick #roland blum #nazi cw #transmisia cw #rape cw #meta?? in this economy??#sorry for the fucking essay #I'm sure I've explained some very obvious things in here #trying to be coherent lol #long post #good lord it's so far past my bedtime #me? writing fucking essays about tgf at the same time that I'm complaining about how hard it is to care about? it's more likely than you thi #combine this with the very long messages I just wrote actually defending the chracterization of Maia Rindell #and we might be forced to conclude that tragically I care about this show

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shannaintherye · 6 years ago

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Rough 03

Summary: Phil Lester is a ruthless gang leader who will do anything to get his way. He is rough and unloving. But when he stumbled upon a small, sleeping boy, who, in his mind, is the perfect image of what an angel looks like, some of that changes. He wants nothing more than to protect and take care of Dan Howell, and he will do so in any means necessary, even if that means going against the wishes of the boy’s older brother.

Word count: 4k+

Trigger warnings: swearing, gang mentions, mentions of smut.

all parts here

Phil had realized he was screwed the next day. Spending time with Daniel had only furthered his interest in the boy. Now it had been a full week and his thoughts were raging worse than ever.

And it wasn't just sexual fantasies. The thoughts were still there, of course, when he tucked himself in at night or woke up feeling aroused. But he also found himself wanting to get to know the boy and take him out and buy him things and spoil him and hold him. It was a very foreign feeling, but he secretly loved it.

In the evenings, when he got home from work, before he could really even think about it, he would check his Netflix to see what Dan had watched during the day. And if the boy had watched a movie, then Phil would watch the same movie. He had never even cared about films before, but he just felt so romantic watching them because he knew that Daniel had.

It was all kind of sweet and gross, but Phil didn't care.

Last night, Phil had come home, excited and ready to settle down with a good film and then he noticed Dan hadn't watched any movies that day. Phil had felt deflated and realized that not only was he screwed, but that he had to do something about it.

He couldn't just sit around and do nothing while his heart ached for a boy in ways he didn't understand. He had to act on it and do all of the things he dreamed about. After all, he was Phil Lester and Phil Lester always got what he wanted.

So, he sat in his office with his mind a million miles away from his work. He couldn't be bothered with it, anyway. The only problem with his I-get-what-I-want plan was that he wasn't sure what Daniel wanted.

The teenager had seemed to like him, but in what way? In a friendly way? He wasn't sure, but he had to at least try and get somewhere with Dan.

A lunch date sounded like a good place to start. He'd get to spend time with Dan and test the waters. The worst that would happen was that the younger wouldn't like him in a romantic way, they would eat lunch, and maybe be friends.

Phil decided could live with that.

He just had no way to contact the boy, and he really didn't feel like driving a half hour if Dan was busy or not even home. He sighed. He would have to pry some information out of Joshua.

"Connor!" Phil yelled, hoping his voice would carry to his assistant's desk just outside his office. He briefly thought about just sending the man a text, but decided to yell again.

"Yes, I'm here! What do you need, sir?" Connor asked, rushing into the office, slightly winded. Phil chuckled.

"Call Joshua in," said Phil simply, and Connor complied, exiting the room and disappearing down the stairs.

A few minutes later, Joshua appeared with a very agitated expression. He had moved passed nervous and just become overall exhausted with Phil's antics. He was tired of always worrying about his boss's next move.

"Come in, sit down, Joshua," Phil greeted warmly. Josh couldn't tell if he was being condescending or if he really was just being nice. Either way, he wasn't going to ask. "Let's have a little chat, shall we?"

Joshua didn't answer, just sat in the same seat he always sat in when he seemingly got bad news. Maybe he should call it the Hell Chair. Or The Seat of Enternal Misery. He liked that.

"Nice to see you, too, Joshua," Phil joked, though that was most definitely condescending.

"What do you want, sir?" Josh asked. His tone was neutral, though he actually wanted to rip the other man's hair out. Why was this happening to him? Why did his boss have such an interest in his life? Did Phil have a personal vendetta against him? Was this God's punishment? Was he in one of the circles of Hell?

"I was just wondering what Daniel would be up to today," Phil said casually. "And seeing as I have no way to contact him myself, I figured you could supply me with the information I need."

"I'm not going to tell you anything," Josh said, suddenly feeling very brave. Too brave. He had no authority over Phil, but he wasn't going to sit there and feed Dan to the wolves.

Phil lost his smile just like that, and replaced it with a hard glare. He didn't like being told no, especially by someone inferior. In a very matter-of-fact voice he said, "Yes, you are or you'll wish you fucking had."

"What are your intentions with him?" Josh asked after a moment, disregarding the threat. He supposed Phil would have killed him already if he had really planned on it. And if Josh's assumption was correct, if his boss liked Dan, then he wasn't exactly going to kill the brother of the boy he liked. That would be a red flag for anyone. A huge turnoff.

"Lunch and ice cream," Phil said nonchalantly, as if that was really what Josh had wanted to know. His dinner plans.

"I don't mean that, I mean what are your intentions?"

"Lunch and ice cream, for fuck's sake. No more questions," Phil answered again.

Josh didn't know what to do, he never did. He couldn't let Phil take his brother out on a date. The man was the owner of a fucking gang. What if he tried to hurt Dan? But, then again, Phil had spent a few hours with his brother last week and didn't hurt him at all. Dan had actually seemed to like him. And from what Josh had saw, the older man had even been sweet on Dan, and Phil Lester was never sweet to anyone.

Really, at the end of the day, Josh knew that Phil was going to do what he wanted to do anyway. It didn't matter how Josh felt. That was the way the man worked.

"Please," Josh said, voice smaller than he had meant for it to be. "Just don't hurt him,"

"Relax, Joshua," Phil said casually, as though he himself didn't see what Josh saw. That Dan was a small, innocent boy and Phil was a wild, rough leader of a gang. "Now, tell me what he's up to today."

"He's at home with our mum," Josh said reluctantly, giving in.

"Great! You can leave now," Phil said, pulling his phone out and texting someone. Josh waited for a moment, glued to his chair. Was this really happening? Was this really his luck? His boss, a gang leader, taking his baby brother out for lunch and ice cream?

"I told you to leave," Phil said after a minute, looking up from his phone with a glare on his face.

"Seriously, sir, just don't be rough with him," Josh said again, pleading as he stood up.

"Maybe you should borrow some of the weed downstairs, Joshua. You could really lighten up, you know," Phil joked, making fun of him. Josh hated that he couldn't just be sincere for a moment and tell him that he would at least treat Dan nicely. It wasn't a lot to ask for Phil to just say, "Don't worry, I won't hurt him."

Josh rolled his eyes and left. Any other day, Phil would've pulled the man back into the room and busted his lip for having an attitude, but not today. Phil had a date.

Phil arrived at Dan's house just before noon. The boy's mother was home, so he just parked the Audi on the side of the road and went to knock on the door.

A very pretty woman opened the door. She had hair darker than Dan's, but it fell in waves just the same. Phil could see the resemblance between the two. Same nose, same eyes. She also had a bright smile similar to his, dimples and all.

"Hi there," she said cheerily. "Can I help you?"

"Oh, yes," Phil said, a polite smile stretching across his face. He had never really had to make people like him before, as the option of shooting them was always on the table. But Mrs. Howell's approval was ever so crucial. "I'm here to pick up Daniel."

Mrs. Howell gave a very confused face and Phil wanted to kick himself. It sounded pretty stupid to just ask for someone's child.

"Um, may I ask who you are?" She quizzed, eyes squinted and eyebrows furrowed, as though trying to answer her own question.

Phil laughed and shook his head, "Yeah, I'm sorry. I'm Phil. I work with your son, Joshua. And we talked about getting lunch today and wanted Daniel to join us,"

"Oh, that sounds lovely," she said, a smile returning to her face. She opened the door wider and stepped to the side. "Please, come in. I'm Grace, by the way."

Phil shook her hand and then stepped into the familar house, but refrained himself from just walking to Dan's room. He pretended to look around for a moment.

"You know, I hate for you to have to drive all the way from Central London just to pick Dan up. I hope it wasn't any inconvenience," Grace said, and Phil could tell she really meant it. What a nice woman. She reminded him a bit of his own mum.

"Nonsense," Phil said with a wave of his hand. "I offered, anyway. See, I met Daniel last week and he's such a sweet boy. You're doing a fine job with him, ma'am." Phil wanted to laugh at how polite he sounded. His father had always taught him to sound and act proper when talking to anyone, but politeness was never priority. His tone sounded foreign coming from his mouth.

"Well, thank you, Phil. I really appreciate that," she said, then gestured to the living room. "Just make yourself at home and I'll go tell Dan to get ready."

"Thank you, Mrs. Howell," Phil said and followed her through the house, but stopped to seat himself on the sofa while Grace walked to her son's room. He could hear the two talking from where he was sitting, though he couldn't make out what was being said. He was sure it was just Mrs. Howell delivering the news.

After a minute, he heard Dan's excited voice ask, "Phil's here?" followed by his mother chuckling and saying, "Yes, now get ready." She walked out of the room and smiled happily at Phil, who felt and probably looked a little out of place sitting in the nice living room. He then saw Dan who peeked his head around the corner, probably making sure that his mother had told him correctly.

"Phil!" Dan cheered, then walked into the living room.

"Hi, love," Phil said, looking the boy up in down. His hair was messy and he was wearing an adorable pajama set - blue and white vertical striped shorts and a collared shirt. Very vintage. It was all very romantic to look at.

"Will you help me get ready, Phil?" Dan asked, rocking on the balls of his feet. Phil didn't have time to answer before the boy grabbed his hand and started dragging him to his room. He heard Grace shout, "Good luck!" and chuckle to herself.

"How can I help, Daniel?" Phil asked, not really knowing what to do. He had never picked out an outfit for someone else, and it wasn't like his fashion sense was exemplary. He was no Tan France.

"I don't know. I just want you to pick," Dan said simply, shrugging as he flopped on his bed, giving Phil the metaphorical reins and offering no help. Phil's heart swelled in his chest. How domestic and sweet was it that he was picking out this boy's outfit?

"Alright, then," Phil said and set off to work. He went to the closet first and saw a very cute lavender t-shirt that caught his eye. It was a plain shirt, but the cuffs of the sleeve and the hem around the neck was black and white striped. It was casual, but also cute, and they were just going to get lunch, after all. Nothing too fancy.

He grabbed the shirt from the hanger and went to the dresser, opening drawers until he found some shorts. He rifled through a few different options before finding a pair of black jean shorts. He lifted them up and unfolded them, making a low noise to himself upon seeing how short they were. Perfect.

"Here," said Phil, handing the clothes to the boy. Dan stood up and held the clothes in his hands. He mumbled a thanks and then stared at Phil for a minute.

"Turn around!" Dan said, laughing and throwing a stuffed animal at the man. Phil caught it and almost sent a glare before remembering that he was with Daniel and not some employee.

"Don't throw things at me, Daniel," Phil muttered under his breath but he heard Dan snicker as he turned around. Phil looked down at the panda in his hands and thought about how weird this all was.

Phil had known Dan for a couple of weeks, maybe. He had only actually talked to the boy once before today. And yet, here he was, letting the kid boss him around and make him pick out his outfits. Phil rolled his eyes, but a quiet part of him liked it.

Dan made quick work of changing into his outfit. He also took the time to brush through his hair and put on some slightly tinted lip balm, making his lips a shade pinker and less dry. He also put on some light purple socks that matched his close enough and a pair of slightly ratty white Adidas Superstars that he had gotten a few years ago at Christmas.

"I'm ready," he said, and Phil turned around. His breath caught in his throat. He hadn't seen Daniel in anything but pajamas until that moment, and honestly, the boy was gorgeous. His tanned thighs looked so soft and smooth, like they could just go on forever without stopping. When Dan did a little twirl to show off his outfit, Phil noticed how great his ass looked in the shorts. He wanted to walk over and slap it, cup it in his hands, and just feel the boy, but he refrained. They weren't there yet.

"Beautiful," Phil stated simply, seeing the boy blush. He tossed the panda back on the bed. "What's his name, by the way?"

"Panda," Dan answered with a small chuckle. He knew it was kinda stupid.

"Clever," Phil sarcastically praised.

Dan pushed him a little and said, "Shut up!" Phil cut his eyes at the younger, but smiled nonetheless. Dan grabbed his phone and they walked to the door. Grace hugged Daniel, told him to be polite, and thanked Phil again.

They walked to the car where Phil opened the passenger door and then shut it once Dan was steated. Phil may have been an asshole most of the time, but he had some manners. Besides, the guys always opened the car door for their date in the movies that Dan watched.

He got in the car and buckled up, pulling out onto the road and making his way back into London.

"So, we're having lunch with Joshy?" Dan asked after a few minutes. He had been playing with the radio, switching the stations almost as soon as he could hear a song. If it had been anyone else, Phil probably would've been annoyed.

"No, it's just us," Phil said casually, eyes focused on the road. Dan stopped switching stations and instead looked at Phil with an open mouth and wide eyes.

"You lied?" he asked, obviously shocked. After all, Phil had told the boy's mother they were meeting Josh for lunch. Dan couldn't even remember the last time he had lied to his mother. Maybe when he was a little kid, but his mum was his best friend. He would never lie to her!

"Relax, babe," was Phil's answer. He rested his hand on Dan's bare leg, letting his fingers gently caress his inner thigh.

Dan said nothing. He didn't really know what to say. Not with Phil's hand on his skin, anyway. Yeah, he didn't like that Phil had lied to his mum, but it didn't seem to matter much when the older man's thumb began dancing back and forth on his leg.

They drove like that for a little while before Phil pulled in to a little Italian restaurant. He turned the car off and they both got out.

"You like Italian, right?" Phil asked, making sure he remembered right when Dan had told him his favorite food was pasta.

"Yeah, I love Italian," Dan grinned. They walked in, Phil's hand resting on the small of the boy's back. Usually Phil wasn't one to be so touchy, but Dan was like a magnet or something - Phil just wanted to touch him constantly, even if it was just platonic.

The waitress got them a booth after Phil mentioned that the chef owed him. More like, Phil had killed a few people for the man, so lunch in his restaurant was to be expected. They ordered their meals, Dan getting a water and some Alfredo, and Phil getting a soda and a plate of Chicken Parmesan.

While waiting on their food, Dan realized that he really didn't know much about Phil. Sure, they had talked the other day about their interests, but that was just small talk stuff. He didn't know anything about the man's family, which wasn't fair because Phil had already met his brother and his mum. He thought about asking him, but he wasn't sure if that was too personal or not. He decided against it until he could be sure.

Dan didn't even know the man's age, either. That seemed like information he should know if he was going out for lunch with someone.

"How old are you, Phil?" Dan asked. Phil looked a bit startled, seeing as it was bit out of the blue, though he quickly recovered.

"Why are you asking, Daniel?" He let out a little chuckle to hide his nerves. He wasn't sure why he felt a bit anxious at the question. He usually never cared what people thought of him, but he was worried Dan might think he was too old, though it wasn't like twenty-six was particularly elderly.

"I just realized that I didn't know how old you are, and that's not fair because you know that I'm sixteen," Dan explained, sipping at his water. Phil could hear Dan kicking his feet against the booth beneath them. Was he nervous, too?

Phil prolonged the moment before he flatly said, "I'm twenty-six," Then, when Dan was silent, he asked, "Is that a problem?"

Dan thought for a minute. Was it a problem? Men were always older than women in the old movies. And Phil was nice to him - colored with him and let him watch movies on his Netflix account. He had picked out his outfit for him, which was something that even Josh sometimes found irritating. Ten years wasn't a lot, really.

"No," he decided, and left it that. Phil smiled at him, grateful for the boy's simple answer.

"So, I've been watching some old films lately," Phil said, to which Dan replied with an excited "Really?!"

So, lunch progressed like that. Dan and Phil talked about old movies and then whatever else popped into their heads. They ate their food while they chatted and Dan even sneaked a bit of Phil's chicken while he wasn't paying attention. He was caught, of course, because it was pretty easy to notice Dan's outstretched arm trying to cut chicken (Phil had ended up cutting a piece off for him and feeding it to him from his own fork, anyway).

When they finished, the waitress came to collect their plates and offer dessert. Dan had looked at Phil with animated eyes, but said nothing. The older man had planned on ice cream anyway, but especially couldn't say no when Dan looked that happy.

"I'll have the Tiramisu," Phil said, then looked to Dan who was frantically looking through the desserts menu. "And, what would you like, Dan?"

"Um, may I just have some chocolate ice cream?" Dan asked, closing the book and sliding it to the edge of the table.

"Yes, of course. In a cup or a cone?" she asked, picking up the menu.

"A cone, please,"

"Alright, I'll be right back with your desserts." Dan thanked her before she left, and then thanked her again when she brought out the food. His mum had told him to be polite, after all.

They ate in a comfortble silence this time, both enjoying the sweets. It wasn't until Dan had finished his ice cream, and had successfully made an absolute mess in his hands, that Phil had spoken up.

"You have gotten that all over you," he commented with a laugh. He stood up and took the boy by his wrist. "Come on, let's wash your hands."

He pulled the younger into the restroom and turned on the water from the faucet. Without thinking, he began washing Dan's hands for him.

"I can do that, you know," Dan stated, though he made no move to do it on his own, just let Phil continue to clean away the sticky mess.

"Yeah, I know, but I can, too."

"You're acting like a dad, Phil," Dan said, chuckling at his own comment.

He quickly shut up when Phil looked him straight in the eyes and said, deadly serious, "You can call me daddy, if you want."

"Okay," he whispered, at a loss for words. It was just like how it had been in the car. He suddenly hadn't known what to say. Phil was looking at him with such intensity, still holding his hands under the water.

And Dan wasn't stupid. Sure, he hadn't had much social interaction, but he had seen all the old films. He knew what it meant when someone looked a someone else like that. It was the look right before the man leaned down and kissed the woman. Right before he swept her into his arms with such a passion that she would nearly faint.

He knew what it meant, he just didn't know what to do. Or say. Up until that point he had thought they were just two friends having lunch together. Not that this made them more, but it certainly changed something, right?

"Come on," Phil suddenly said, snapping them both out of their trance. Dan quickly dried his hands on some paper towels and fumbled to shut off the water.

"Where are we going?" Dan asked, trying to keep up as Phil dragged him from the restroom.

"I'm not kissing you for the first time in the bathroom of an Italian restaurant," Phil explained before he rushed to the table and dropped a hundred pound note to pay for the meal. He rushed back to Dan and grabbed his forearm, pulling him quickly to the black Audi. He opened the door for him and waited momentarily for the younger's brain to catch up.

"Now, get in the car,"

He put the car in reverse and backed out of the parking lot, all while Dan focused on catching his breath.

His mind was racing. Was Phil really going to kiss him? Not that he minded. He kind of wanted Phil to. He had just never kissed anyone before. What if he was terrible at it? What if he didn't even like kissing?

Phil practically raced to the closest park he could find, parking sloppily, and pulling Dan from the passenger seat. He was franctic in his movements, desperate to get his mouth on the boy before he had time to change his mind.

He sat down in the grass, not caring if anyone was watching or if he stained his clothes, and pulled Dan down beside him, quickly connecting their lips. It was nothing too intense at first, just puckered lips connected together. However, when Phil started to open his mouth and use his tongue, Dan pulled away.

"What's wrong? Did I do something wrong?" Phil asked worriedly. He was sure Dan had been looking at him the same way in the restroom, but now the boy just looked nervous and uncomfortable.

"It's just that, well," Dan hesitated, fiddling with a blade of grass. His cheeks were flaming red. "I've never kissed anyone and I just, uh, don't know how," Phil let out a sigh of relief and chuckled.

"Don't laugh at me," Dan pouted, tears welling up behind his eyes. This was a lot and it wasn't his fault he'd never been kissed.

"I'm sorry, love. I was just worried you were mad at me," Phil said, rubbing Dan's cheek. "And don't worry, okay? Kissing is easy. Just try and copy what I do, then when you're comfortable, do whatever feels right."

He could've laughed again, the situation was so funny. Phil Lester, terrifying gang leader, teaching a sixteen-year-old boy how to kiss. It was endearing, if he was honest. And kind of hot.

"Okay, I guess," Dan said, though he really wasn't sure. How was he supposed to know what feels right? What did that even mean?

Phil leaned back in, cupping Dan's face. At first, it was a little sloppy - or, a lot. But, then Dan stopped focusing so hard and it just started happening.

"You're doing great," Phil mumbled against Dan's mouth, lowering his hands down to the boy's waist. Dan was really starting to like it. He never thought kissing could be so much fun. Suddenly, Phil was pulling Dan onto his lap, and Dan let him. He straddled the man, thigh on either side of Phil's legs.

Dan still didn't know what to do with his hands, though. He kept moving them around, grabbing Phil's shirt and then letting it go because he didn't know if it was wrong or not.

"Here," Phil said, pulling away and moving to place Dan's hands around his neck. The boy quickly found purchase there, playing with the hair at the back of Phil's head.

Phil dropped his hands back down to Dan's hips, beginning to kiss him again. They kissed like that for a while until Phil pulled away to attach his mouth to the younger's neck. Dan really started to get worked up then.

He was fidgeting under Phil's touch, twitching and shifting in the man's lap, not really able to control himself. It just felt so good, and Dan had never felt like that before.

Phil could tell, too. Could tell that Dan couldn't handle it. He had to tighten his grip on the boy's waist just to keep him still. And if that wasn't a sure sign he was enjoying it, then the hard on pressing into Phil's hip definitely was. The man switched back to kissing Dan's sweet lips, unable to get enough.

Dan pulled away suddenly, out of breath and panting, he grinned down at Phil, who was a bit shorter from this angle.

"I like this, Daddy," Dan said softly, almost a whisper.

And yeah, Phil nearly lost it at that. Sure, he had told Dan that he could call him that, but he never thought the boy actually would. It was so, so hot coming from him, though. Phil wanted to cum in his pants just hearing it.

He gave the boy's hips a soft squeeze, pecking his swollen lips gently, "I do too, Daniel."

#dan howell #Dan and Phil #little!Dan #Daddy!Phil #phil lester #phanfiction #phan #kissing #gang au #gang #punk phil #punk!phil

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mustafa-el-fats · 4 years ago

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The United States Is Not a Democracy. Stop Telling Students That It Is.

November 17, 2020

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By Ursula Wolfe-Rocca

When U.S. voters cast their votes in the 2020 November election, an unchecked pandemic raged through the nation, uprisings against racism and police violence stretched into their eighth month, and new climate change-intensified storms formed in the Atlantic. The reactionary and undemocratic system by which we select our president was an insult to the urgency of the moment. Although the most recent tallies show more than 5 million more people voted for Joe Biden than for Donald Trump, thanks to the Electoral College, it took several days to learn who won. To the relief of many, it appears that this time — unlike 2000 or 2016 — the candidate who got the most votes nationwide also won the election.

When our students only learn about this exceptionally strange system from their corporate-produced history and government textbooks, they have no clue why this is how we choose our president. More importantly, they develop a stunted sense of their own power — and little reason to believe they might have the potential to create something better.

To review: A voter in Montana gets 31 times the electoral bang for their presidential vote than a voter in New York. A voter in Wyoming has 70 times the representation in the Senate as a voter in California, while citizens in Puerto Rico or Washington D.C. have none. The Republican Senate majority that recently confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court, was elected by 14 million fewer votes than the 47 senators who voted against her confirmation.

Source: Michael Fleshman via Flickr.

Yet politicians and pundits regularly pronounce the United States a “democracy,” as if that designation is self-evident and incontrovertible. Textbooks and mainstream civics curricula make the same mistake, treating democracy as a fact rather than an enduring struggle — in which our students can play a critical role.

The standard iteration of “civics” in schools stipulates the brilliance of the framers, the democratic nature of the U.S. system, the infallibility of the Constitution (it was built to be amended!), so that our institutions seem outside of history and beyond politics. As the Koch Brothers-funded Bill of Rights (BRI) Institute states,

The founding documents are the true primary sources of America. Writings such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and others written from 1764 to 1791, showcase the philosophical, traditional, and political foundations on which our nation was built and that continue to shape our free society.

“Our free society.” One danger of a curriculum that declares the United States “free” is that it casts all U.S. institutions, by definition, as also free. The district-adopted textbook I was assigned last year in my Portland, Oregon, suburb, America Through the Lens (National Geographic, 2019), says about the 2016 presidential election, “…Trump won a narrow majority of voters in a number of swing states, or states where the election might go to either party. Even though almost 3 million more Americans cast their votes for Clinton, Trump won the electoral vote 306 to 232.” Since freedom is assumed, this textbook sees no need to offer any elaboration of a system in which “swing states” are decisive, and in which the person selected by the majority of voters does not win the presidency.

Perhaps the editors of America Through the Lens assume students have read a previous section of the text on the Electoral College? No. Paging back to the chapter on the Constitution, one finds only this anemic paragraph:

But how should the president be chosen? Some delegates thought the president should be directly elected by the voters. Others wanted Congress or the state legislatures to make the choice. The delegates finally arrived at a solution: an electoral college made up of electors from each state would cast official votes for the president and vice president. The number of electors from each state would be the same as the state’s number of representatives in Congress, and each state could decide how to choose its electors.

Students deserve an explanation for the origins of the Electoral College. Instead, the textbook offers mere description, dry as dust. We learn that the Electoral College emerged from a disagreement among delegates, but nothing about the actual substance of that disagreement or the interests at stake. Shouldn’t the authors explain to students why our founders rejected direct election of the president by the people, the most democratic option? With no sense of the problem, textbook writers assure students that the Electoral College was a “solution” and send them on their merry way.

But for whom was the Electoral College a solution? Many of the 55 White men at the Constitutional Convention worried about giving too much power to the people. Alexander Hamilton said the masses were prone to passion and might use their vote unwisely. Of course, both passion and wisdom are highly subjective terms. James Madison listed the “wicked schemes” inflaming the people to act so unwisely: “A rage for paper money, for an abolition of debts, for an equal division of property. . .” Madison called voters advancing their own economic interests wicked, but referred to his brethren — insulating their own wealth and power in Philadelphia — as “enlightened statesmen.” The Electoral College was a “solution” to the bankers and plantation owners in 1787 but looked like exclusion if you were a poor indebted veteran in western Massachusetts, an enslaved person in Virginia, or a Hitchiti person fleeing land-thieving White settlers in Georgia.

Soldiers fire on protesters during Shays’ Rebellion. Led by Daniel Shays, a group of poor farmers and Revolutionary War veterans attempted to shut down Massachusetts courts in protest against debt collections against veterans and the heavy tax burden borne by the colony’s farmers.

Madison expressed another set of concerns about the direct election of the president. He pointed out that a popular vote would deprive the White South of “influence in the election on the score of the Negroes.” He was, of course, referring to the 40 percent of the southern U.S. population made up of enslaved people. Since the men at the Constitutional Convention had already adopted the Three-Fifths Compromise, establishing that enslaved people would bolster enslavers’ representation in Congress, the Electoral College was a “solution” because it meant the humans they violently exploited would inflate their influence in presidential elections too.

When my textbook matter-of-factly declares that the Electoral College was a “solution,” but makes no mention of the elite and white supremacist interests for whom that was true, nor the exploited and disenfranchised peoples for whom it was a disaster, it does not educate students, but lies to them. The very same textbooks that paint the Three-Fifths Compromise as a shameful relic of slavery, treat the Electoral College as an unremarkable feature of our system, as if they were not borne of the same white supremacist original sin.

This feigned neutrality covers up the classist and racist origins of our institutions. It is not only bad history but signals to students in 2020, “Nothing to see here.” The mock elections and legislative simulations common in U.S. civics classrooms encourage students to investigate the swirl of issues inside the container of U.S. “democracy,” but rarely the container itself. Students are commanded to vote, but not to judge the fundamental questions of governance not on the ballot — like the legitimacy of an electoral college devised by enslavers. What if our civics invited students not just to become occupants of an already-built U.S. government, but engineers and architects able to redesign, reframe, and rebuild the whole structure? What if our civics repurposed the word “framer” to mean all of us today — including our students?

One way to cultivate this activist sensibility in our students is to offer them a curriculum rich with an alternative pantheon of “framers” and “founding parents” in the ongoing struggle for democracy. Central to this project is the rejection of the singular, miraculous, and exceptional founding peddled by the Bill of Rights Institute and others. As Eric Foner’s newest book, The Second Founding — about the Reconstruction Amendments that finally made multiracial democracy possible — suggests, building freedom is a work in progress.

Black men line up to vote during the Reconstruction Era.

Similarly, many scholars and activists, notably the Rev. William Barber II, have embraced the idea of a multiplicity of Reconstructions: the first Reconstruction, following the Civil War in which freedpeople and their allies reimagined citizenship, social relationships, and politics; the second Reconstruction in the 20th century, when Black activists and their allies dismantled 100 years of Jim Crow, championed and popularized “one person, one vote,” and transformed U.S. law and society; and the third Reconstruction, happening now, exemplified by Black Lives Matter, the Dream Defenders, United We Dream, and others to address the ongoing manifestations of systemic racism in everything from housing to immigration, policing to education. In this telling, the United States has been constructed by many framers, not just those White elites in Philadelphia, but also the millions of unsung heroes who have never stopped seeking to transform the United States and the meaning of freedom.

Source: Geoff Livingston via Flickr

Angela Davis writes that “freedom is a constant struggle.” When, for example, we teach students about the fight for the 15th Amendment, alongside the movement 100 years later for the Voting Rights Act, alongside the efforts now to combat voter suppression, we not only provide evidence of Davis’s words, but invite students into that struggle. By rejecting both the textbook’s boring and evasive approach to our anti-democratic institutions, and BRI’s glorification of a U.S. founding that meant — and continues to mean — oppression for so many, we affirm our students’ reality and provide models of activism through which they might reimagine and revise it.

On November 2, 2020, one day before the general election that would deny him a second term, Donald J. Trump issued an executive order establishing the 1776 Commission. The commission’s mandate? A “restoration of American education” to emphasize the “clear historical record of an exceptional Nation dedicated to the ideas and ideals of its founding.” President Trump has been defeated, but this commitment to institutionalize the teaching of American exceptionalism has not. We educators must fight for a curriculum that teaches our students facts not fables. The United States has never been a democracy, defined by freedom and equality for all. But nor has there ever been a time when people did not struggle toward a democratic future, dreaming of freedom, risking life and limb to make those dreams manifest, and creating a more just society along the way. Let’s teach civics and history that affirms for our students there is nothing sacrosanct in the political and economic status quo, that freedom fighters, past and present, are founders too, and we all have a right to be framers — to redesign this structurally unsound house to better shelter our lives, safety, comfort, and full humanity.

A shorter version of this article, TEACHER VOICE: The United States is not a democracy. Stop telling students that it is, was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, independent news organization focused on inequality and innovation in education.

Ursula Wolfe-Rocca has taught high school social studies since 2000. She is on the editorial board of Rethinking Schools and is a Zinn Education Project Writer and Organizer.

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IF WE KNEW OUR HISTORY

The Koch Brothers Sneak into School: How Right-wing Billionaires Seek to Shape the Social Studies Curriculum

Article. By Bill Bigelow. If We Knew Our History Series.

The Koch brothers spend hundreds of millions of dollars buying politicians who support their fossil fuel interests. This exposé shows how the Kochs also funnel millions to influence the social studies curriculum.

IF WE KNEW OUR HISTORY

Missing from Presidents’ Day: The People They Enslaved

Article. By Clarence Lusane. If We Knew Our History Series.

Textbooks erase enslaved African Americans from the White House and the presidency and present a false portrait of our country’s history.

IF WE KNEW OUR HISTORY

Teaching More Civics Will Not Save Us from Trump

Working as a social studies teacher for almost two decades, I have noticed a predictable and perennial pattern. A study is published showing some alarming deficit in the knowledge of people in the United States. Two-thirds of respondents cannot find Iraq on a map. One-third cannot name a single right protected by the First Amendment.

ARTICLES

What Our Students Should Know About the Struggle for the Ballot — but Won’t Learn from Their Textbooks

By Ursula Wolfe-Rocca

From voter ID laws to voter-roll purges, gerrymandering to poll closures to the deadly in-person voting conditions during a pandemic, the right to vote is under attack and the stakes are high. It is critical that students learn about the fight for voting rights, past and present.

ARTICLES

What the Koch Brothers Want Students to Learn About Slavery

Article. By Adam Sanchez. If We Knew Our History Series.

AUDIO, WEBSITES

The Land That Never Has Been Yet

Podcast. Produced by John Biewen with co-host Chenjerai Kumanyika. 2020. Center for Documentary Studies.

This twelve-part series tells a story of the United States from its beginnings up to the present that questions the traditional narrative about democracy as a foundational value.

THIS DAY IN HISTORY

Aug. 29, 1786: Shays’ Rebellion

Massachusetts farmers arm themselves, rebel against taxation under the Articles of Confederation.

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