#the most convoluted love triangle (ha)

[phantomcomet]

Post book of bill where Bill has just progressively grown more and more obsessed with Stan. He had written Stan off for decades as the dumb twin, as the spar, as a hinderance and an obstacle, but one he could easily overcome. And yet Stan somehow pervails at every turn. Stan fixes the portal and turns it back on, with only a few coded hints and sheer determination. Stan's mind is a maze that gives Bill a challenge to navigate. Stan outcons a demon that's been playing people as long as there's been people to be played.

Bill wouldn't be able to get over it. How did Stan Pines win? How the fuck did that nobody thwart a lifetime of planning with a costume swap and by throwing his voice? Bill's ego, the exactly thing Stan used to his advantage, would also be the thing preventing Bill from letting it go.

[local-limebug]

everything i know about interview with the vampire (amc), from someone who has not watched interview with the vampire (amc) and has only consumed it via mutuals rb'ing gifsets but plans to watch it soon

this is my pre-gaming for watching this show. dipping a metaphorical toe into the fandom. i haven't read the books either.

there are 3 vampires: lestat, louis, and armand

armand's name may or may not be amadeo?

lestat and louis had a daughter named claudia

claudia was unhinged (which is fair. i would be too if i was stuck at age 15 forever)

claudia had a girlfriend named madeline

claudia and madeline died together (without even having kissed each other. true love? sapphic teenagerism? perhaps both)

claudia's death caused lestat and louis to break up after like a century of dating or something

armand killed claudia?

there was a play involved in claudia's death...? i am incredibly confused about this one

either it was a play or an execution

the love triangle seems convoluted

armand is in love with louis and lestat is also in love with louis and lestat & armand have definitely also fucked each other

louis should just get the hell out of there actually. free my boy louis !!!

the interview is being done by daniel molloy who is bi (?) and definitely into that kinky shit

daniel molloy fucked either louis or armand in his youth (during the 80s maybe?). possibly he fucked both. the human pet of the marriage

daniel's memories got messed with to... forget fucking the vampires? idk. p sure armand did it though

that seems to be the consensus for most things in this show

armand did it.

claudia died? armand did it. daniel's memory got wiped? armand did it. louis stubbed his toe? armand probably did it.

armand needs to be sent to vampire jail this guy's a menace

also lestat had a midlife crisis after louis left him for armand and became a rockstar. i hope they release his songs on spotify as marketing. i wanna hear it

BONUS: lestat's album flops? armand did it.

anyway now daniel is old and interviewing armand and louis in dubai?

armand eats suicidal ppl?

daniel causes armand and louis' marriage to fall through

that's louis' 2nd failed marriage

surprisingly not his fault either time i think

armand turns daniel into a vamp

this is signficiant because armand has never turned anyone into a vamp

armand is going to fuck that old man

that old man has kids apparently

and swore someone out on live tv

BONUS 2: daniel got turned into a vampire? armand did it.

seriously what the hell is armand's problem (said affectionately. i have a feeling he's gonna be my fav when i watch)

does lestat know daniel?

claudia may or may not return from the dead

if she does i'll blame that on armand too

is armand french or not? he lives in dubai. has a french accent (?) but also not.

lestat is french. louis and claudia are american.

surprisingly, the americans are the nicest of the bunch. rare american W

also can lestat fly? did he throw louis from like... a 4 story height? ppl on twitter were mad abt it like last year

are there any other characters in this show except the ones i've named. it's been 2 seasons. 6 characters cannot be all there is.

[worldsewage]

what's the home run au?? pretty please infodump!! /genpos /nf

The HOMERUN au is what I want to call a Salmonid and Inkling swap au, but eventually became so convoluted it’s now it’s own separate thing.

I’m glad this ask exists because I will be using it as a pseudo pinned… until I get that… figured out… ⛩️ thank you! I’ll be splitting the main ideas into parts, (and chances are any unanswered questions will be answered later! I want to explore this au in little lore tidbits, so please be patient with me! But don’t be afraid to ask!)

Idol / Agent lore will be explained in mini comics and posts… :] but as for what the Homerun au actually is…?

I’ll explain everything under the cut!

THE GREAT TURF WAR:

During the Great Turf War— inklings and octolings were at a horrible stand still, resources and morale is low due to the two warring species exhausting themselves. The waterline rises high (WAY higher then canon) wiping out the lands they’re fighting for and reducing the habitable lands into waterlogged territories that are too dangerous and flood-prone for either species to survive… the war ended with Salmonids on the rise, dominating the lands, and nearly wiping out both species thanks to the ocean and the brute strength and resources they had.

Because of this inkling territory is very small— but still succeeded in claiming land, unlike the Octarian, which were forced to retreat to the wastelands— the wastelands are devoid of life, but worse, flooded and horribly weathered.

Relationships between the warring species goes as this: Politically, all of the species are enemies, but at this current state, have no real reasons to continue fighting.

Salmonoids are trying to “mend the relations between Cephalopods and Salmonids”— at least that’s what they’re saying. They make efforts such as propaganda pieces, but their biology(see “anatomy” column) Is far too different from cephalopods to properly live together. They mostly push this effort towards Inklings— half because they are the species that utterly despises them, and the other half as a power play. A few Salmonid Company’s that control the local politics have a few ideas they want to use to control inklings, but it’s no use if they’re not allies.

Octarians still see inklings as the species that drove them out, despite salmonids being the unlikely winner of the war, Inklings are the ones that claimed the only slightly habitable lands, so they are the adversary.

Octarians are still an ally to the salmonids, their industrial mega cities are often seen as “barbaric” or “frightening” to most species, but the Octarian see them as war-strong allies who they desperately need to learn off of. Octarian culture has vastly evolved to accommodate Salmonids— this has changed most Salmonid’s(within the public) understanding of inkling/octoling biology for the better. Having survived off their trade / resources, every Octarian issue becomes a Salmonid issue, and vice versa, these two groups are closely intertwined.

Inklings are enemies with the Salmonids, but due to their loss in the war they were forced to truce— Inklings are the only species that do salmon runs, so they see Salmons at their most aggressive, and in turn are taught to view them as monsters, despite the species affinity towards politics, business, and other relations they’ve made public— they only see them as language-less inkling-murdering monsters. Because of their hatred of salmonids— they yearn to rekindle the relationship with Octarians.

It’s a real “be my ally” love triangle. But truly, Octarians and Salmonids are BUDDIES!

THE MAP

Inklings are doing better, they still construct Inkopolis in this au. Inkopolis is prone to flooding, but it’s still plenty safer and operates much like it does in canon (with the same stores and such!). The city is now equipped with many functions that keep it’s citizens safe from flooding. Flooding is less common in the plaza as opposed to the outskirts of the city. Inkopolis is a staple location, proof of survival and glory, the place every kid said they wanted to move to when they got older.

The Octo-Canyon + Domes still exist here, but the surrounding area is nearly all water, so resources are scarce and its difficult for them to survive on their own. They thrive on trade, and what can only be described as “for-hire agent work” for salmonoids and other wasteland neighboring species. Their technology was forced to rapidly advance to accommodate for this.

The area right to Inkopolis, where Calimari County would lie, are sandy (sort of beach-swamp esque) farm lands. The towns are rural distant areas, perpetually flooded, sort of resembling low tidepools, it’s pretty gorgeous lands . They primarily farm seaweed here, as well as cultivating other sea animals and rice grain.

The area above New Inkadia— in the Wastelands— is similar, farm lands and small villages, but to note: more Salmonids are here, and the inklings here speak Salsegal (the language salmonids speak) and here Salmonids and Cephalopods engage in this reverse salmon run.

The Wasteland inklings cultivate and raise Zapfish, most are young and unable to power full cities, and so Cephalopods in this zone have (as a result of water damage affecting HOW they retain ink) developed a new type of ink that is able to act as an electrical current— these types of inklings/octolings are known as KRAKENS, and Salmonids occasionally enter these areas and capture this electric ink technology since it’s on their turf, and they can’t use their eggs out of respect, Zapfish are in low supply, and in turn, Inklings collect power eggs.

AC TOKYO is a city built on the idea of mending the relationships and creating a society where all species can thrive! And oddly enough, the city and decor is described as historic… due to all of the designs looking very… human. The reason for this is unknown. (Wink.) (DEEPSEA METRO rests underneath it.)

NEW INKADIA is where splatoon 3’s locations lie! Though under a different name, and a very different appearance, and ALTERNA is a secret project that has created an entirely new society that consists of both Cephalopods and Salmonids… at the expense of changing them.

Alterna is where DEEPCUT appear.

ANATOMY

How salmonids and inklings function is plenty different from canon

Inkling’s skin is incredibly paper-thin fragile, but extremely reliable, it is made up of trillions of individual parts that collapse into a thin membrane that essentially splits all of the insides into even tinier parts when coming into contact with a certain chemical signal that triggers the “transformation reaction”, allowing their skin to collapse into Ink Puddles, and as a result allowing it to reform into the Swim Form. So essentially, when Inklings are in the “puddle form”, they are a super thin nearly invisible sac carrying all of their super small broken apart organs, and reforming is just these broken apart cells very quickly attaching back together to either shape into Kid or Squid.

When a cephalopod gets “splatted”— all that’s happening is that there’s either too much stress, or too many injuries, or there’s a drastic shift in the amount of ink the subject is currently carrying, causing them to Self Destruct, as inklings are safer when the cells are broken apart, it’s harder to damage larger parts of the inkling IF they are broken into tiny parts that cant be broken apart any further.

“RESPAWNERS” aren’t actually “a place for the ghosts of inklings to land to revive”— this is a myth, and plenty easier to explain.

Respawners are attached onto the ground in inky turf grounds, and they cycle through ink at an extremely fast rate. Most turf battles have a very small layer of water or ink on the ground to allow respawner to filter ink— in doing this, the respawner are drinking in a shit tone of ink in order to suck up inkling puddles that carry near invisible flesh sacs thanks to Inkling’s weird skin membrane. And in the respawner, they’re refreshed with new ink and injected with a chemical that shakes them awake, quickly waking up a splatted inkling inside the respawner.

During Salmon Runs, the sight of Inklings who are missing limbs on the battlefield returning the next day to attend a shift with no visible injuries isn’t uncommon. As long as the cells still exist within the membrane, they can be rapidly rebuilt and regenerate.

But, despite all of this, Inkling skin is incredibly weak to water, this membrane that can carry collapsed organs, severed limbs, and gives the signal that allows inklings to transform— can melt and collapse and can permanently damage if coming into contact with too much water. Water against this skin-membrane is similar to water on a tissue, melting into it, and splatting the inkling— but because there is now a tear in the membrane— it affects how the inkling is able to heal, how quickly the inkling can recover, how much ink the inkling can now retain, or if it’s possible to transform after the injury. Membrane Water-Damage scars can vary, but they are all regarded as dangerous if left untreated too long. Since small holes can be treated and taught to heal over, but left in water, can cause these holes to grow too large for the membrane to function as intended.

In fact, even overly HUMID environments can wear on inkling skin overtime; which is a problem for cephalopods and salmonid relations.

Salmonids have gills, but are amphibious, and in the adult (not spawning, spawning Salmons have very different anatomy, I will go into salmonid life cycles below) stage of their growth, they require air to thrive. Hence, needing land, but because they have gills, they require humid environments or close by water in order to keep the gills moist. Or else they could dehydrate and suffocate.

TLDR: inklings+octolings need dry environments so they don’t die from overexposure to humidity/water, Salmonids need wet humid environments so they don’t suffocate to the lack of water.

SALMON RUNS, and the LIFE CYCLE:

During salmon runs, you collect eggs, and in the warehouse, fertile eggs are seperated from infertile eggs, and are shipped back to Salmonid cities.

In salmonid cities, the eggs are sorted, genetically tested, and are given a name— the reason why salmonids have such long names is because the eggs are named by the title of the clans of their origin, and the families then extend the titles via new names or traits.

Having children isn’t a decision that can be made on a whim, since it requires traveling to a salmon run grounds in a race to these lands that allow both parents to officially breed in what’s known as a “HOMERUN,” but unlike IRL salmon, the need to return home is NOT a requirement or a hormonal change, but rather a decision, and the transformation into spawning-forms is a result of the journey.

Most parents have hundreds of eggs, and hundreds of children, but most of the time— in salmonid culture, only those who are considered “high status” are selected to “bring glory to the clan name” and go on these homeruns, most common folk don’t.

Salmonids are in a way socially (a tad culturally) aromantic, in a way, since they don’t have any desire to find a special someone never sprung into existence, especially since relationships initially begin as a concept due to the act of having children, but to salmons, it is viewed as a business decision. So romance is nearly non existent. (Again, socially, not emotionally, but the concept is still very much foreign.)

All salmonids are orphans in some way or another due to the parents dying in the Homerun (it’s extremely rare for a parent to return, if they do, it’s most likely they won’t survive the transformation back into a non-spawning form— which is why those who do survive usually remain in homerun grounds.)

The offspring are given back to the clans of parents of the children, not as eggs, they leave them to develop and once they become “SMALL FRY” they are given to the families.

THE EGG- power eggs, power houses, even infertile eggs are still high wattage batteries.

ALEVINS- you will most likely never see these few, in the wild, they grow up in the water and feed off the power egg.

FRY- they begin to grow lungs and muscle, they start to come onto land and use their fins as hands, if only slightly. They still are stronger swimmers than they are walkers. This is the stage in which they begin to swim home, they aren’t very good learners due to this form expending all energy in strength in order to travel and survive.

AWKWARD TADPOLE PHASE! - their fins grow into hands, and they slowly learn to walk. You see this stage at around four or five years old. This is considered the most important time in thier lives, because as FRY, they were running on instinct more than anything, so this is the time when their brains truly start to develop. Their head fins sort of fray, splitting into a growing head fin and a dorsal fin.

SMOLT- The phase between Tadpole and Nearly fully fledged salmon, their hands begin to fully form, they have more canine teeth that begin to grow in as teenagers. Fingers are webbed! The dorsal fin grows in. Most teenagers are still a tad hunched, but otherwise have no issues standing upright.

MATURE SALMON- Dorsal fin is fully developed, and they stand without a hunch.

In order to have offspring, they HOMERUN, and doing this transforms them back into waterborne species to accommodate for the vast journey. Their arms turn into fins, this change is far too jarring and aggressive for the species to live long after this.

SALMON RUNS ONLY EXIST BECAUSE INKLINGS HAVE DISTURBED THE NATURAL PATH THAT SALMONIDS NEED TO TAKE IN ORDER TO HAVE OFFSPRING. They intend to enter the aggressive phase at the river, before reaching the end mid land, but because inklings occupy this land, they’re forced to remain in these aggressive stages.

The slaughter of the spawning season salmonids is not a part of the cycle that salmonids worship so thoroughly. But, Salmonids were designed to die during this phase, and they never grew to be revolted by this idea— but that is not the reason why.

A Grizzco partner company named SENSHINCORP. that specializes in Cephalopod/Salmonid Trade, Safety, and Relations has taken control of the public’s opinion of the neighboring species.

(it’s a persuasive warning shot that makes every species doubt the opinions they feel they should have. It’s the reason why new paths weren’t created for Homerun Salmonids, POWEREGGS are big buck business, and it’s best you don’t pry.)

Okay, final section:

GRIZZCO. (+SENSHINCORP.)

Grizzco functions the same, a company that thrives on exploiting desperate job hunting inklings, and exploiting a culture that relies on the glory of dying.

But, this time, Mr. Grizz remains in contact with Senshin Corp, a salmon operated company that thrives on the tension between salmonids and cephalopods.

Salmo-San owns Senshin Corp, he’s a friend. He only wishes the best.

[stoplookingup]

Umbrella Academy S4 reaction (spoilers)

I'm a little surprised how negative the reaction to S4 has been. It's flawed and a bit too loose, sure, but I think there's a thematic arc, to do with the painful but redemptive potential of selfless love, that a lot of people didn't recognize, or didn't like, possibly because it's too sentimental, or too tragic, or both.

In particular, I have a really different take on That Relationship. You know the one I mean.

But before I get to that, I just want to address the issue of unexplained plot points, of which there are certainly many.

Short version: Just let it go.

Long version: Comic-book storytelling is all about the impossible premise, the unlikely twist, the overblown threat, the arbitrary race against the clock, the catastrophic non-ending. A big part of TUA's appeal is that it takes that formula to an absurd extreme, unwinding a plot so convoluted and horrifying as to be comedic, then offering a resolution that raises more questions than it answers, and that seems final -- but is it ever? There could always be more. Even now. Because reasons.

But scratch the surface, and it's really all about the over-the-top super(anti)heroes who are surprisingly endearing, nuanced and tragic, whom the audience roots for despite a million reasons not to. Would S4 have benefitted from a few more episodes? No doubt, mostly to give each character their due (Klaus, my Klaus, you deserve more!), and to let the story breathe a bit. The plot probably wouldn't have made any more sense anyway. But c'mon, did it ever, really? So, why a subway? Why a squid? Why a diner? Does it really matter?

On to That Relationship, the much-criticized story of Lila/Five (aka Live -- can I copyright this?). This comically trope-laden ship (forbidden love, montage love, love triangle, enemies-to-lovers, pocket universe, happily-ever-after, etc) fits right into TUA sensibility. Despite being a bit underbaked, it's moving. The actors play it well, and in dropping their characters' armor, you realize how much armor they're usually wearing, how hard they're always working to cover their feelings. Out of all the characters, seeing these two having real emotions is most devastating, especially with each other. It's because this pairing is wildly unlikely that it hits.

Lila and Five have similar histories as traumatized, sensitive souls turned cold, cruel killing machines. They're smarter, more cynical, and stronger-willed than everyone around them. And they are clearly starved of love and desperate for connection. (Everyone on this show pays a price, but I find Five's terrible loneliness the most heartbreaking of all.) So then fate throws them together in a way that makes it inevitable they'll form an attachment, only to then demand of them the ultimate sacrifice. Their surprisingly quiet, life-affirming, Guinevere-and-Lancelot love is redemptive, in contrast with the meddling, selfish, and/or destructive love of others: Reginald and Abigail, Ben and Jennifer, Gene and Jean. Live aren't an unnecessary digression, they're central to the thematic development of the story. Sacrifice saves the world, but without love, there is no sacrifice.

And yes, I absolutely think Lila loves Five to the end. And while I appreciate that some might find the age difference between the actors off-putting, I don't think there was anything inappropriate on a Doylist level, and it all makes perfect sense on a Watsonian level.

Also:

Aidan Gallagher and Ritu Arya are extraordinary;

the use of Baby Shark is genius;

Diego, Luther and Allison have been the least interesting characters from the start, and S4 does nothing to change that;

Viktor needs a sense of humor;

I love that alternate universes are all the rage these days (so many great tropes started with Trek), but tbh Loki does it better;

as visual representations of the space between realities, I love both the Loki automat and the UA subway, but at some point, using recent-past retro design to signal liminal space is going to get old, which, come to think of it, will be deliciously ironic.

[bats8batarangs]

Batcest warning!! Look away if uncomfy

One of my favourite convoluted love triangle headcanons is Tim likes Jay who likes Dick who has had an unrequited crush on Bruce for years who just thinks of his boys as...his boys. Dami also has a crush on Dick AND Tim but will never admit it.

I like to think Tim confessed to Jay and Jay was like "fuck off" but started looking at him differently. Perhaps they meet up for a makeout session every now and then but Jay's feelings are with Dick who he refuses to confess to.

"I will bury this feeling under multiple layers of snark and disdain until I die-for reals this time."

Dick knew lil Jay had a crush on him but didn't think post-lazarus pit Jay still held the same feelings so just treats him as a brother. He's still pining for his father/mentor after all. Dick was so obvious with his feelings as a kid but Bruce never picked up on it and eventually Dick gave up, burying his feelings in redheads and work. Part of his leaving Bruce so dramatically was realising his crush would never come to fruition.

Damian's crush on Dick developed after Bruce's death and Dick took such good care of him. He slipped it into conversation a few times but Dick didn't take it seriously, thinking he was just confusing familial love with romantic love. His crush on Tim on the other hand is something he refuses to admit but most of his bro's have caught onto it. Even Tim knows but refuses to acknowledge it, weirded out by it enough. He's grateful when Jon comes into the picture and takes Dami's attention away from him.

Now Bruce may be the greatest detective but he is shit when it comes to romance and even more so when it involves his boys. Selina knows pretty much all of it but doesn't want to out the boys before they're ready-and besides who wanted to break the news to such a love-adverse, awkward man like Bruce?

I didn't mention Duke in the intro but that's because he's not part of the triangle (hexagon?) and altho he knows a lot of who is crushing on who there is absolutely no form of torture that could get him to talk about it.

Steph and Cass are the only ones who have it together because they've been dating for a while and are pretty open about it. Even Bruce knows and acknowledges them. He will protect his girls if anyone says anything homophobic to them and u can quote me on that.

[kingwuko]

I'm rewatching rememberances & oh my GOD people cant tell me that the writers weren't writing wu with gay coding in mind 😭 I was at the part where Mako said "i had to realize who i was without a lady in my life" and Wu was like "i know what that's like" and then everyone silently looks at him for 2 seconds? and then he hesitates and is like "only because im absolutely swimming in dames they all love me 🤭". obviously the writers couldn't explicitly have their LGBT characters confirm their identities because of nickelodeon but its so blatant and extremely possible that wu is actually gay and hits on women and talks about them constantly (even though hes really weird about it) as a way to overcompensate. and when you think about it the character he has the closest relationship to is...Mako😭

I have SO MANY FEELINGS about remembrances. Normally 'flashback episodes' are kinda just filler, bottle episodes. But something about remembrances just HITS DIFFERENT.

Mako saying "I realized I had to figure out who I was without a lady in my life." will forever replay in my brain... Wu's response to it is so fucking funny I laugh every time. "I know what that's like." says the guy who has not been shown on screen to successfully interact with a woman besides grandma Yin. Sure buddy.

Also I will never get over the fact that Wu says the words "I was born that way" like WAAAAAT. You cannot tell me the writers, who were in the process of crafting a subtle sapphic story for endgame korrasami, wrote those words without knowing the implications. CMON.

And listen Mako's entire story is about his past relationships, like BARELY touching on the larger story. He just sat down for 10 minutes explaining to Wu that he's single and he and his exes are just friends. Why Mako. why. why did you need to explain that to WU.

And the fucking. homoerotic sparring of it all. @buckybarnesss always calls it 'the intricate rituals of male touching' lmaoooo. Every time Wu gets in Mako's face, clutching his arms, close enough to kiss... I'm just like. can I reach into the screen and nudge their faces together. Just a little nudge is all it would take. Look:

The writers and animators fucking KNEW what they doing. There's no way they didn't. its such a gay episode.

and lets not forget the sapphic side of things in that episode. Asami's like "I thought you might be cold so I brought you some hot tea." To KORRA. Korra, who grew up in the FRIDGID SOUTH POLE and is also a FIREBENDER who could warm herself up easy. Gurl.

and like. even outside the queer coding in this episode, it's just delightful. the fucking little chibi popups in his flashback. Yin implying that Bohai cheated on her in scenario as convoluted as Mako's love triangle. Tu dropping the most accurate and eloquent assessment of Mako's issues in a single sentence: "it seems like you're so afraid to disappoint anyone that you end up disappointing everyone." TU. WUT. WHEN DID TU GET WISE. Tu and Wu high fiving.

In conclusion. Remembrances is top tier Wuko content. It's way more than a flashback filler episode.

[tosahobi-if]

what are the ro's favourite tropes!!

sorry anon i couldn’t figure out exactly what you meant by this so i took it to mean their favorite fictional tropes! please feel free to correct me if i’m wrong ( ´ ꒳ ` )

jinwol isn’t really into a specific trope, though he adores animals (his life’s biggest tragedy is that most of them hate his guts) so he tends to gravitate towards stories or fables that feature anthropomorphic animals. he likes the simplicity of something that has a start and an end and a lesson (or two!) though he’d rather die than admit his tastes still run a little childish.

yul also falls into the category of "doesn't have a specific genre or trope" they prefer in fiction, but they love absorbing dense texts pertaining to historical events or manuals. they're a non-fiction stan through and through HAHAHA

iseul loves trashy romance texts. she'll go as far as to hide them in her cultivation manuals when she's supposed to be studying (she hasn't fooled anyone) but she's grown up with all sorts of fairytales and epics about great heroes. her favorites are the really convoluted, ridiculous love-triangle-square-whatever stories that are far longer than they ever needed to be and make zero narrative sense. they're a guilty pleasure.

??? is a poetry fiend, but they used to delight in scaring village children with ghost tales about murdered spouses and wronged criminals, etc. they're a great storyteller and tend to lean towards the macabre, though their enjoyment comes out of seeing the reactions of their audience than anything else.

[doamarierose-honoka]

SUMMARY

▪️Season 6 of Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir is set to be released in 2024.

▪️ Season 5 closed one door by opening many, including Sentimonster people and the prospect of a new villain.

▪️Miraculous is available on Disney+ with past seasons on Netflix, offering fans accessibility and canon content.

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir is one of the most interesting shows a person can encounter. The series has a big following of people of all ages despite being a kids' show, but there's a simple reason for that: the show keeps people wanting more. Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir, or Miraculous, has a lot of lore and potential and even though the execution sometimes comes into question, there's no denying that the show can be intense.

With the fifth season changing the show forever, many might wonder what's next for the characters. Certain characters have died, a wish was made, and new Miraculous lore was introduced. The next season will hopefully explore the many things the show has been dancing around, including Adrien's status as a Sentimonster and the long-awaited hero reveal. However, the series is often full of surprises, so only a few things can be certain when it comes to Miraculous.

What is Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir About?

Ladybug and Cat Noir's identities are secret to the entire world and to each other.

The series is set in France and is about a girl, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, and her life as both a normal girl, as the theme song shows, and as a superhero. While Marinette goes through a lot of normal childhood moments, such as embarrassing yourself in front of a crush or sharing hobbies with friends, Marinette no doubt lives a double life. She saves Paris daily as Ladybug from the villain, Hawk Moth, a super-villain with the Butterfly Miraculous, which makes the people of Paris turn into super-villains if they have too many negative emotions. However, Marinette doesn't do this alone.

Alongside Marinette's Ladybug is Adrien Agreste's Cat Noir. Ladybug and Cat Noir don't know each other's identities, and this simple fact is one of the markers that makes this show interesting. Miraculous is known for the iconic love square between the leads of the series, a variation of the love triangle everyone knows and loves. Marinette is in love with Adrien, while Adrien can't reciprocate because he loves Ladybug. Cat Noir is in love with Ladybug, but she won't reciprocate because she's in love with Adrien. In prose, the relationship is convoluted but, in short, Marinette and Adrien love each other but just don't know it yet.

On top of the love square are the real stakes the two encounter. The reason they have their powers is because of the Miraculous jewelry that holds a Kwami, a magical species. Kwami's grant the Miraculous holders powers of varying usefulness and are at the mercy of their holders. Hawk Moth's Kwami, Nooroo, is forced to aid his quest in terrorizing Paris in an attempt to take the Miraculouses, or magical jewels, away from Ladybug and Cat Noir. Unbeknownst to the superheroes, Hawk Moth is Adrien Agreste's father, Gabriel, who knows that using the Ladybug and Cat Noir Miraculouses together could grant him a wish. Gabriel lost his wife, and Adrien lost his mother to the broken Peacock Miraculous, and Gabriel has been chasing the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous to reverse the harm done to his wife.

Even though Gabriel's quest is mostly a noble one, his execution caused pain and strife for the citizens of Paris. Not only that but Adrien will definitely be affected by the revelation that his father is the villain he's been fighting. Season 5 saw the end of Hawk Moth's story and while his reign of terror has ended, the avenues left open for Season 6 are intriguing.

Miraculous' Season 6 Release Date

Miraculous' first season dropped in 2015 and seasons will continue up to Season 7.

After Season 5 came to a close, fans were already wondering when the next season would come out. With so many moving parts in the series, it's a blessing that Season 6 is on its way sooner rather than later. According to an announcement at LicensingCon, the release date for Season 6 should be in the 4th quarter of 2024.

Originally, the series was meant to come out in the third quarter, but had been pushed back. Even though the wait seems a bit long, a lot of fans have been waiting for certain arcs to come to light since the show's debut in 2015. While there is no specific date set for the release of the series, fans are excited to discuss theories for the new era of the show.

Upcoming Miraculous Cast and Crew

Character

Marinette Dupain-Cheng

Adrian Agreste

Tikki

Plagg

Alya Césaire

Chloe Bourgeois

Nino Lahiffe

Lila Rossi

Gabriel Agreste

French VA

Anouck Hautbois

Benjamin Bollen

Marie Nonnenmacher

Thrierry Kazazian

Fanny Bloc

Marie Chevalot

Alexandre Nguyen

Clara Soares

Antoine Tomé

English VA

Cristina Vee

Bryce Papenbrook

Mela Lee

Max Mittelman

Carrie Keranen

Selah Victor

Zeno Robinson

Lisa Kay Jennings

Keith Silverstein

The series usually doesn't stray away from its main band of characters, and because of this, the cast list usually remains the same. Both the French and English cast lists have not changed since Season 4. While different English voice actors have come in before for well-known characters, like Nino's new voice actor, Zeno Robinson. Outside of Nino's English voice actor changing in Season 4, there has been no change to the voice actors since. Season 6 will welcome all the cast that fans have come to know and love but has allegedly brought on new crew members.

Miraculous Could Explore Many Avenues in Season 6

Marinette lost the Miraculous Box to Hawk Moth at the end of Season 4 and was reunited with them in the Season 5 finale.

Season 5 of Miraculous brought an end to Hawk Moth, but the beginning of a whole new can of worms. While the first seasons of the series contain a lot of filler episodes, which are not inherently bad but were cited to be excessive by fans, the fifth season is full of plot-related episodes back to back. Season 5 confirmed the theories and encouraged fans to do more.

Continuously, the series finally reintroduced the arrival of a new villain. Since Season 3, in episode Timetagger, the threat of a new Hawk Moth has always been imminent, but the time for a brand-new villain is nigh. Fans theorize the next Hawk Moth will be Lila since she is the one in possession of the Butterfly Miraculous. Whether her status as the local bully will morph into her becoming a full-blown villain remains to be seen, but the newest season could highlight her ascension into power and perhaps descension into madness.

The love square is far from solved, but there was finally development in Season 5 with Marinette and Adrien finally getting together after 7 years, but only within a year's span in the show's time. Fans were excited after Marinette and Adrien finally got together. However, the show would often prove why this development wasn't a good idea. From accidental reveals to the existence of Chat Blanc, Marinette and Adrien's relationship always seemed doomed.

Season 6 could either confirm this doomed status, or it could lead the trail toward the final reveals. Since Miraculous is confirmed to have episodes up to Season 7, the likelihood of a reveal happening in the sixth season is low but not impossible. With Adrien needing to find out about his family and a new villain afoot, the relationship parts of the series might even take a backseat, especially now that Marinette and Adrien are in a good place.

Where to Watch Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir

The Miraculous Specials are more canon to the series than the musical movie on Netflix.

The series was known to hop from channel to channel, with fans of all ages outside of Europe and France resorting to watching early seasons on foreign channels such as Brazil's television channel, Gloob. However, Miraculous has finally found a home to settle into once and for all. Disney has become the home for the series for those watching outside of Paris.

Disney+ houses all episodes, from Season 1 to the upcoming sixth season and the confirmed seventh fans have also been promised. While Disney+ is one home for Miraculous episodes and all the Miraculous World specials, Netflix also has Miraculous episodes up to Season 4 and has the non-canon Miraculous movie. The exciting part of having Miraculous on a confirmed streaming service is its accessibility for both the newer fans and the ones who usually scour the internet for the next episode.

[artsy-hobbitses]

Ok one of the things that I never liked about rogue character and her relationship with gambit is how fricken wish’s washy and hypocritical she can be. I get it your power literally sucks and you want to be loved. But when you have someone who knows that and has a pretty shady past but still very much devoted to you and puts so much effort into trying to make it work. You constantly push him away and send mix signals and then jump into bed with these clearly unstable and in some cases much older dudes just because you could touch them and you feel a connection to them because you were a bad guy once.

I mean gambit is no angel either, he was still married when he and rogue met but due to circumstances he was separated from belladonna and couldn’t be with her or else he’d or she’d be killed. Then at one point she actually did die but got better but that still rendered their marriage null and void. Then there was the whole thing with sabertooth that took place in his teens and the morlock massacre that he tried to stop. But in comparison to Deadpool, the very unstable sentry, Magneto and his clone who btw did a lot worse and killed hundreds of people good and bad. Gambit is a freaking saint and he never tried to do anything like be controlling or possessive. And even when they were not dating, he was still loyal to her In fact he’s so fucking charming, romantic, passionate and patient with rogue, it’s taken 30+ years for them to tie knot. Which is why it continuously pisses me off that they keep pushing this love triangle agenda on rogue and gambit for the sake of drama. I mean don’t we get enough of that from Spider-Man , The FF and what ever convoluted mess the summers family goes through.

PLEASE DON’T GET ME WRONG I love me Romy BUT I’ d also just come back to the comic side of the fandom recently and what drama they have I get by osmosis from the series that heavily features them :’3

I agree! Though I also get it bc Rogue struggles issues most mutants don’t and that makes her a bit of a messy bitch who makes terrible choices, which is why I really love that series where they get couple’s therapy/lay all their cards on the table/get a peek into each other’s insecurities.

It felt like a necessary step to actually making them feasible as a couple and hey, it worked!

I’m genuinely not too mad about the RogueNeto angle bc that’s what writers do. They make drama. You can’t work a telenovela without drama!

I’m just keeping my eye on the endgame 👍🏼

[akstzs]

still so pissed about the Five and Lila thing bc the more I think about it the more unnecessary it becomes

one thing I noticed is that season 4 probably had the least romance subplots introduced compared to the past seasons probably because they introduced love interests for Luther. Diego, Allison, Klaus, Umbrella Ben, and Viktor in previous seasons

And the apocalypse of this season needed to have Sparrow Ben and Jennifer together for basically the whole season bc how else are they gonna touch each other so much they end the world /s

and Five was the ONE CHARACTER I was banking on not having a love interest outside of a mannequin but of course they have to set him up with Lila in the most convoluted way possible

it would have been SO EASY not to do that

It takes them six years trapped in the subway for them to get together? THEN DONT HAVE THEM TRAPPED THERE FOR SIX YEARS

six years was NOT NECESSARY, LITERALLY IF THEY HAD A MONTAGE OF THEM TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE SUBWAY FOR LIKE A YEAR OR EVEN A FEW MONTHS IT WOULDVE GOTTEN THE SAME POINT ACROSS

they literally could’ve fit their screen time in that episode with anything else: trying to develop ciphers to figure out the subway instead of another Fives notes just being there on the tracks and also show the emotional toll it takes on them in ways that DONT LEAD TO THEM KISSING EACH OTHER like Lila realizing how long it’s been since she’s seen her kids or Five writing in a notebook and realizing he’s basically doing the same thing he was in the apocalypse trying to find a way home and hinting towards the diner scene where Five realizes it’s all a cycle that leads to the end of the world everytime

we don’t even find out any specifics on how the dimension subway works other than each station is an alternate universe, sure wish we had time to explore it more but ig we just had to have Five/Lila strawberry greenhouse cottage core instead

fricking got my hopes up bc they started the mission by being like we’re going to try and stop Ben’s death which was SO INTRIGUING TO ME and I fully thought it was going to happen bc they brought back the other umbrellas’ younger actors but oops wrong train

hell throw a bit of comedy and show Five picking up another mannequin and taking it along with them with Lila openly judging him

and worst of all even after they get out of the subway the stupid romance subplot turns into a love triangle with Diego

what was even the point of the earlier episodes of the season where Diego suspects Lila of cheating on him and Five reassuring him that she would never do that when it turns out that he was right to be suspicious bc BOTH OF THEM BETRAYED HIM

and so for the rest of the show Diego and Five are just bitter and angry for each other and Five NEVER FUCKING APOLOGIZES and so the ending where they all die together does not feel as deserved as it could have been because there’s still unsolved tension within the family so they don’t even end it all being truly united and content

Steve fricking Blackman insisting that Five MUST have a romance plot, sir have you forgotten that the main theme of this show was supposed to be FAMILY? NOT EVERY CHARACTER HAS TO HAVE A ROMANCE. HE ALREADY HAD DOLORES. FIVE WAS GREAT IN THE LAST THREE SEASONS AND ONE OF THOSE REASONS WAS THAT HIS MAIN MOTIVATION WAS HIS FAMILY BUT NOO IN THE LAST EPISODE LILAS LIKE “it’s done” AND HE JUST FUCKING LEAVES THE MAIN BATTLE? HELLO?? HE CARES ABOUT PEOPLE OTHER THAN HER. Season one and two Five going “but what about my family” you will always be famous so sorry you were switched out with an imposter in the six year time skip

it’s such a shame bc I actually really liked the diner scene and the concept of the new dimensional subway thing but it just got completely ruined by this shoehorned romance and the butchering of Five’s character

[lehdenlaulu]

🔥 for either S&B or video game of your choice

Unpopular S&B opinions, eh? 😁

Probably most of them, honestly, since I've not read the books and therefore have no particular attachments to how things are in them.

But while opinions vary in a crossover fandom as big as this, I can't think of many that are more unpopular than being 100% cool with the show throwing Tolya in with the Crows, including the hints at a little something with Inej (and Kaz??). Honestly, I think the whole thing might be a genius move, and as of now, I'm not the least bit worried that it will lead to some convoluted love triangle bullshit.

Even Tolya's implied possible book canon aroaceness doesn't feel like an issue to me. I mean, I'm very much on both of those spectrums myself and I actually did kind of vibe with show Tolya on that level even before learning about that one line in the books that hints at it. I mean... that's Lewis Tan. He could have brought hella smolder to the screen. Instead, Tolya just had the absolute safest, warmest, chillest vibes, and his interest in Inej feels very much based on respect and admiration. It makes sense to pair him with Inej, who comes with plenty of trauma and complication and would not be well-suited for virtually anyone else. Especially since Kaz, her first choice, is clearly not ready to be what she wants him to be yet.

And I mean, personally... I might never have been in love and be generally perfectly content without a romantic/sexual relationship, but if I ever find someone I really click with, I'm not going to be mad about it, am I? Why would he be? I understand that we're not all the same and that some of us would like to see the kind of representation where a character has zero interest in any kind of even remotely romantic or sexual entanglement, but... since it's a spectrum, we are not all the same, so no matter what, no aspec representation will ever be able to represent all of us.

And then there's the part where at least a part of the fandom seems to be mad about this because they view Inej as Kaz's exclusive property. Which... is pretty mind-boggling to me, all things considered, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised. These attitudes die hard. But like... isn't it better if she goes be free for a while, grows and heals and finds herself for a bit, and then eventually returns to Kaz of her free will with a new Crow in tow? Would you rather she stick around out of guilt and duty and wallow in an unhappy, currently unresolvable situation?

I understand very well that book fans are attached to how things are in the books, but this has been a different story from the beginning, hasn't it? And I repeat: Tolya could be the best thing that ever happened to show Kanej. Not a threat but a possibility. I mean it.

[acacia-may]

Hi Acacia!

I hope you're doing well and are feeling better now ❤️🫶

For the ship bingo what about Langris x Finesse, Vanessa x Finral and if you'll allow me to be self indulgent my Nozelena 💕

Aww thank you so much Lola! I hope you’re doing well too! Thanks for the ask 💕

Langris x Finesse

I unapologetically adore this ship, and Langris (sort of) stepping aside for Finral to have a shot at taking over the House of Vaude out of real, genuine, selfless love for Finesse is a hill I will die on. Sorry not sorry. As conflicted as I am about this pairing because I generally have no patience for love triangles and this whole arranged marriage situation is a convoluted mess that makes me want to bang my head in a cabinet, I still love this pairing because it is easier for me to believe that it is Langris who genuinely loves Finesse for who she is as a person not this perfect, idealized view of her that his brother has. And this isn’t to say that Finral couldn’t eventually deepen his love for Finesse beyond that idealism, sentimentality, and infatuation but (I’m convinced) that Langris is already there. Why else hasn’t he married her all this time? He doesn’t think he can make her happy and that’s what he wants even if it means giving up his own dreams & what he has worked for his entire life. That kind of selflessness is real love in my opinion (regardless of whether you want to qualify it as platonic or romantic though I’m inclined to the latter seeing as they are engaged to be married).

And Finesse genuinely loves him too. She builds this friendship with him and grows to genuinely care about him in a way that (by her own admission) sees his flaws & has “no misgivings about him” but still recognizes the good in him and chooses to love him anyway. For Langris’ whole life all he has ever wanted was unconditional love. He has that with her (whether in a romantic sense or not) so of course I’m going to get a little feral about it.

I think everyone wants to be loved for who really are as a person, not this perfect, canonized version of themselves on a pedestal. In my mind, Langris and Finesse truly know each other and then choose to love each other anyway even when it’s hard or even when it means making sacrifices. And that’s why it’s my favorite in the whole “House Vaude Drama Cluster” (Not to mention the fact that I need this to be canon so Finral doesn’t go back to House Vaude, but that’s another story…)

Also, I’m a fan of people actually marrying their fiancee’s, you know? It would be nice to see that happen for a change instead of having somebody’s estranged brother swoop in to try to marry the girl who is engaged to his sibling… I don’t like when engagement or marriage is used as a plot device that can be discarded whenever convenient, and the execution of this entire Finral, Langris, & Finesse plotline has been beyond frustrating and unnecessarily complicated and I can’t stand it! Makes me root for this ship just on principle like…my boy, Finral, I love you but you can’t do this, sweetie! Ultimately I’m convinced Langris loves Finesse enough to just give up everything & step aside for Finral to marry her once he proves himself worthy of her (in Langris’ opinion) but that just makes me ship him with her more so…

Vanessa x Finral

I like this pairing a lot, but I feel conflicted because I also really like them as just platonic friends, Vanessa hasn’t shown romantic inclination towards him in the canon (even if there is a possibility feelings could develop in the future), and most of all because I don’t think the story is going in this direction & while I like Finral x Finesse it doesn’t have that certain something this one has and I can’t shake the thought that this pairing being end game would be better for him than returning to House Vaude but I digress… In that way, I think I prefer the their story that the actual pairing itself, even if their dynamic is fun to me! It’s definitely a guilty pleasure ship of mine, but I feel like I ship it very conditionally/under specific circumstances, and don’t feel a feral need for them to be canon if that makes sense?

Nozel x Helena

I love them so much! Nozelena has quickly become my favorite pairing with Nozel in it! Helena is such an amazing, dynamic and interesting character on her own, but pairing her with Nozel is just chef’s kiss. He deserves that sunshine princess and I adore how Helena and his love for her has inspired him to become a better person. Also I really just vibe with their opposite’s attract dynamic and find their interactions very fun! They’re so in love your honor! I don’t make the rules

[maya-matlin]

Thank you so much for being one of my first and only mutuals! I'm making a great first impression by sending you a terrible ask - how would you rate the six One Tree Hill seasons that Chad was on the show from your first to sixth based purely from a Brucas perspective? For instance, Season 5 is one of my least favorite seasons of the series but I love the Brucas content so would probably rank it as high as second on this list. I'm sorry if I worded this in too convoluted a way! Please don't feel pressured to answer.

You're welcome! You definitely aren't making any sort of bad impression and your question makes perfect sense to me.

1.) Season 2 - This one kind of has to be the best. It's the only season where there's less of a triangle between Brooke, Lucas and Peyton and much more focus on Brucas's individual feelings for each other with their potential relationship being given the room to grow. I loved watching their friendship form and seeing Lucas pine for Brooke. Plus, the chemistry between Chad and Sophia was so raw. So how do you not love it?

2.) Season 3 - I love the vast majority of the third season and watching Brooke and Lucas settle into their second relationship. So many of their most iconic moment happened this season. But, this was also when the ghost of Leyton started lingering in the background and eventually ruined everything.

3.) Season 5 - I agree with you 100% about season 5. It's a mess in a lot of ways and suffered somewhat due to the writers' strike. I'm fully aware a lot of the Brucas teasing only happened for the sake of the season's cliffhanger where they pretended for a few minutes that Lucas wasn't going to end up with Peyton, but still. I LOVED watching Brooke and Lucas support each other and spend time together as adults. The chemistry was as great as it always was. Regardless of the eventual endgame, it felt much more natural seeing Brooke and Lucas bonding and finding this new yet familiar rhythm than it did watching Peyton pitifully holding on to "true love always" as Lucas did all he could to spend time with anyone except Peyton.

4.) Season 1 - Obviously, things ended terribly. No matter how much Lucas liked Brooke and enjoyed spending time with her, he was way too fixated on the idea of Peyton and making something happen with his longtime crush to give their relationship a proper chance. In spite of this, Brooke and Lucas were very fun and had this great physical chemistry that was notably lacking with Lucas and Peyton. But even beyond that, the few moments where Brooke and Lucas connected on an emotional level were just... A+. It would have been so easy to make Brooke and her relationship with Lucas this throwaway thing. In fact, I'm sure many viewers would have preferred that, but the fact Brooke's heartbreak was taken seriously and Lucas was forced to deal with what he'd done was the much better writing choice.

5.) Season 4 - To be honest, both seasons 4 and 6 were big disappointments for different reasons. These are both Lucas/Peyton heavy seasons with minimal Brucas interaction. I hated the heavy handed writing meant to tear down Brucas's past and Brooke as a character all to justify Lucas and Peyton coming together. But, this season features the scene where Lucas shows Brooke what he wrote about her in his book. It's a very beautiful, underrated moment. Brooke's the other half of Lucas's book, indeed.

6.) Season 6 - In season 6, Brooke and Lucas barely seemed to acknowledge the other existed outside of their relationships with Peyton. They got a handful of moments, but not nearly enough for my liking.

[tezushin]

before i got to the heisei riders, i thought that inoue’s writing style was super convoluted. turns out it is but also i can easily point it out if it has the following:

romance between two characters that do not have any chemistry with each other

the most confusing love triangle you have ever seen

extremely abrupt ending

misogyny

food scenes

cocomelon-esque style of comedy

characterisation that feels extremely ooc to the source material

total lack of understanding the source material THAT HE CONTRIBUTED TO when it comes to writing spin offs

absence of themes and symbolism

[werenotacoupleyesyouare]

i'd sell a whole organ for quackity to have a weird love triangle with wilbur and luzu

If wilbur soot and luzu met either the world would implode or we would witness the most convoluted competitive political plot anyone has ever witnessed before and I’m HERE for it

[the-down-upside-finch]

Babe please tell me the random gay sub plot and werewolf character just popping up.

OH I see you saw my tags gksjgkskgksnjg--

The werewolf character literally popped into existence when I needed an excuse for one of the characters in the story to leave the house, and the excuse was that his friend needed to be picked up from a bar because

Drunk werewolf = problem for basically everyone involved (if it's getting late at night)

I'll leave that part somewhat vague because it does kind of feed into the plot of the first arc, but yeah. There's a werewolf character that's now actually relevant in the 25% Crisis series.

And, uh, as for the random gay subplot--

You know how sometimes characters just do what they want and how I (the author) am merely a messenger that relays the story of what they do? Yeah, so, it turns out one of the characters may or may not have a crush on the gay wizard.

Trust me when I say that this becomes possibly the most convoluted subplot that it possibly could be. It's like a love triangle but worse because it only involves two people and a really confused bystander. Everyone thinks they know what's going on and so they're trying to gently guide the other characters into making decisions.

Nobody has a clue what's actually going on and it's now a source of absolutely comedy for me to take full advantage of.

(These were the tags in question, by the way:)