#the people on either side of me are all super young and clearly don't know how to live in an apartment

[cuntwrap--supreme]

Not my neighbors getting day drunk, falling down their stairs, busting a hole in the drywall, and attempting to fix it at 8:30pm 🫣

[kanmom51]

https://www.tumblr.com/kanmom51/712812388735418368/is-letter-a-song-for-army-the-baby-jm-never?source=share

I was going through this particular post and felt emotional...

Jm really calls jk baby isn't it?? We saw in the show too...things are slowly falling back to places just like many had doubts like why would the two bandmates supposed friends or the worst "not good mates, hate eachother so much to breathein the same place" travel to countries shooting a show in their last moment of freedom instead of laying happily beside their supposed gf or bf right.

They did tell us indirectly that they are together in their life without saying anything...just like everytime they did...

Hey there. :)

This is the post you linked:

Just read it again and ok then, what can I say, I am impressed. Quite the talented writer whoever wrote that one.😜

But seriously, am I a fortune teller or what? This was way before we even dreamt of a Jikook travel show giving us 9 hours more or less of authentic Jikook interactions. I'm not going to say uncensored, because there was clearly some censorship going on, at times on their part (awareness of cameras) and at times from the editors. But man, even with all of that, now that we are on the other side of this show you need to be really daft not to see they are telling us they are a couple. And if the show didn't convince us, well, this HAD to:

Oh, and JM calling JK baby... lol.

You know, like he did while talking to him in Letter...

Admit it.

You weren't surprised, right?

Only surprise was that once again it was allowed in.

But then again, purposefully so.

I know many are calling it a soft launch and well maybe you can call it that. But I would rather not label it. I will just sit here and enjoy what they have given us, which is so so much.

In this show we basically got first and foremost JM and JK telling us and showing us that they are, without a doubt, the closest duo in the group of 7. This comes on the tail of a couple of years where oh so many were claiming and reveling in what they thought was an apparent distance between the two. Apparent to those that for some reason think that these young superstars live their private lives for us to fully see. I guess (more so hope) that those ideas were laid to rest. And that for once and for all people finally realize that the two actually have a private life that we are not fully aware of. That the two spend time together even if we don't hear about it. That the two were and still are super close - intimately close.

And that takes me to my next point. It's not that the show revealed something that we weren't aware of when it comes to the level of intimacy between the two of them. It's not that they hadn't told us all of this over the years. It's that people were unwilling to hear it or see it and with the show we got to see it, 9 hours worth of it. Them on their own and them with their good friend that insisted on joining and was for most part allowing them to do their own thing. Not only did Tae's presence not disprove Jikook's closeness and intimacy (something many were hoping for), it actually highlighted it. It highlighted just how different, how much MORE JM and JK are with each other as opposed to either of them with Tae. Even when the three were spending time together (and I say even because much of the time Tae just left them to do their own thing or even if he was with them).

So yes, this was them allowing us to see just a little bit more of THEM. Together. The playfulness, the chemistry (again, something we were "warned" about in the promos - their known chemistry...), the way they just flow with each other, JK clearly being JM's cook (we get that in words and actions) and so much more.

I am not a fortuneteller and as such I can only write in hopes and wishes. I do hope and wish that this is them setting a new reality for the fandom. Yes the fandom should have caught on by now just how close they are. They basically never hid it, even if at times they pulled back with what we were shown (for many many reasons, some personal some towing the company line). But I am really hoping that post AYS Jikook will indeed be louder in the sense that they will allow us to continue and see THEM without the pullback we got at times. Because Army will accept THEM and embrace THEM. That the Jikook we get post military will be able to mention one another and it will be a new normal, not an eyebrow raising event. That JK won't have to say he'll get his toiletries and go over to shower at JM's because they will be living together in JK's new mansion. That they wouldn't have to hide it because people would finally accept them for who they are and who they love.

[sonicjustbecause]

Shadow generation. Impression (from the videos).

Only about the story.

Actually I didn't play the game, I just watched the cutscenes. Maybe I will buy the game someday.

First - the non spoiler thing:

Shadow's story has few aim: being fun and having a compelling character to control. Nothing complicated. So, although nothing special, it is pleasant, simple and relaxing. Also for once Shadow is not tied on certain Sonic rules that don't allow for more than few actions. Is a character that can open several scenarios. Speed and agility might be the mandatory characteristics but he can potentially do many things Sonic can't.

Shadow himself is better than what he used to be the last decade. Is not perfect (but I'm a fan of Maekawa's Shadow as I stated more than once in previous posts), but finally is relatable again. Seeing emphasis on the Doom Powers in the preview, I excepted him being a super edgelord, even worse than the one in IDW comics and without flaws, instead we see him being vulnerable, suffering the side effects of not taking care of his well being and a interesting side about his personality that can teach one thing or two to Sonic.

The spoiler (characters):

Maria, how much we waited to know her.

We hear about her since 2001, we saw pictures of her over and over but we never knew who she was. She was this gostly, mysterious figure in Sonic adventure 2 (I was wondering: "How comes this innocent looking good girl wish for total destruction? Something is not right!"). For long people assumed she was pretty much a strong person, but we never knew for sure.

She is a young teenager. The way she thinks shows that she's not exactly a child. But she's still extremely spontaneous because she has no real life friends around telling her she must act like an adult. So she still jump when excited and has lots of childish characteristics normally at her age and maturity she would have outgrow.

Her only two friends on ARK are one literal child, and an alien/hedgehog with no social skills. They would not pressure her into acting proper because they know nothing.

Idealized? Maybe. But we are seeing the story through Shadow's eyes. That's the point.

Also, finally she doesn't look anymore like a vintage italian doll. First time I saw her I wondered who was the one who though at that, uh, not so great design.

Gerard

Hints from Sonic Adventure 2 suggested that Gerard and Shadow are very similar. But Gerard has on his side the wisdom that comes from age. Also, unlike Shadow, his way longer life experience has been varied, with both good and bad moments, shaping a more mature and less emotional personality.

We never knew what was the relationship between Shadow and Gerard. For now we learned the bads, Gerard getting mad and turning Shadow into a weapon, condemning him to a miserable life.

But, both the Maria and Gerard we see in SxS gen are from before the raid, so we see the fatherly side of Gerard. Surely when he created Shadow, he didn't consider him a living being. But then he learned to love him. He's rightfully his son after all, even if an artificial being.

I'm glad Gerard and Maria aren't Black Doom illusions who serve him but they're the real ones, and they truly help Shadow though this adventure. Clearly they understand what is going on, and even that in the future they will not be on Shadow's side. So they decided to help him as much as they can to make him taking the right decision.

Shadow

Now, I think I have a lot to say about Shadow, he is both the protagonist and the main character.

He showed us sides of his personality that were either hidden and/or forgotten for a long time. Knowing his story he gave me the impression he was just forced to grow against his will.

Maekawa's Shadow used to be balanced, surely stubborn/laser focused, very quiet but also mischievous, good hearted and capable to take care of his well being. But after Sonic 06 his personality was changed into a cold, selfish mean edgelord without remeding qualities, that was on the good side just because of his whims. That was what made him into a joke among fans and a hero only among (few) kids aged 15 and below.

But now we seems we are starting from the basis. Peraphs Shadow will one day be similar to what he used to be. His personality will not change overnight, that would be jarring, it will be gradual. I hope he will act more rationally and balanced from now and in the future.

The side effect of his lack of self care.

They started from his superhuman laser focus and his stubborness, traits that were especially underlined after Sonic 06:

What if this slowly takes a tool on his mind? From dark beginnings, we see that Shadow is at his limits. His focus start to fade, he gets distracted easily by both his own tiredness and outside distractions. Dangerously on breaking point since he can get on the verge of panic attacks. And he is very harsh toward himself. Not just 'focus' but also 'what are you doing? Stop daydreaming'. Seems the hard hearted father toward his son. The only reason he doesn't get slapped for not being a good boy is because he can't slap himself.

Family.

Though he is nowadays known to be a loner... I wasn't and I am not so sure about this trait. Introverted for sure but I remember him always surrounded by friends (still in smaller groups than Sonic) in Maekawa's stories. Rouge and Omega in Heroes and 06, Knuckles, Amy and Blaze in Black Knight. In Adventure 2 he was alone, but he was a good team worker.

He feels more like lonely. In SxS Gen he was so happy to have found his family again and so hopeful to have a second chance that he seemed quite in good mood with everybody. Rouge, Gerard and Maria were very kind toward him, but they also did want him being real, to prepare him to the outcome. A real family (Maria and Gerard) and a real friend (Rouge).

Now, that's might be my interpretation, but Shadow seemed to wanting to show his progresses to his family, maybe to hear their approvations. And he searched their advices, listening carefully, being a good boy for people that are way kinder toward him than himself.

And now the thing Sonic needs to learn from Shadow (perhaps also Shadow from himself). Shadow is capable to be open and sincere toward his family more than how Sonic is toward those that consider his family (Tails). Maybe Shadow is afraid to open up toward Rouge because of this, SxS Gen, Sonic Adventures, Heroes, 06 and Sonic Battle showed that contrary to popular beliefs, Shadow is quite bad at hiding his emotions. He might not cry but is behaviour pattern changes noticeably. And he doesn't seems that annoyed when Rouge lend him her voice when he is unable to speak.

Normal and upset.

Mmmh is OK, I was just a bit tired, you know, running around...

Shadow is surprising again.

Well when you see a face like this:

What do you think the outcome would be?

The first surprise was discovering he was way more chill than what his face suggest. It is always a welcome feeling when a character surprises you in one or more ways. I'm always on the edge when I see Shadow approaching somebody or being approached in the game. And then, he just acts normally.

Though this is logical and excepted, no, this is not Shadow.

Compassion was the thing that saved him originally. And then this trait was removed. Now he is compassionate again.

David Humphrey on what he was told about Shadow when he worked to SA2. You can see the interview with him and Scott Dreier on YT.

It should be underlined that Shadow doesn't know yet who the girl is.

Better to avoid to compare with IDW or Sonic Team Racing, when he doesn't save Rouge and Tails and when he even steal popcorn from a chao.

Doom Powers

They are helpful in game, but what I focus on is how Shadow is always in pain, maybe even afraid everytime he gets a new power. The 'NO!' plead was in Italian too. Another thing is the colour distortion when he gets seemily possessed by Black Doom.

In another videogame I used to play (Saints Row 3 and 4) the same colour distortion was there when the character was high.

So I associate that efect with altered consciousness.

Shadow's body language and expressions...

I did noticed he was very expressive in the trailer. But so he was the whole game. He communicates/emotes through both his face and his body. With the player and with the NPCs around. If his personality keeps improving and he will be back to the Shadow we all loved, and maybe they will keep that friendly attitude toward the player, baybe making a Shadow games not every year, but occasinally when they have a good story, he will be super fun to play.

[goodluckclove]

My Medical History: A Comedy of Errors

This is long as shit but since it's finally sort of resolved itself I figured it'd be worth documenting. Strap in, folks.

Me, age 12: I have Experiences

Doctor: You're schizoaffective you need many pills.

Me: Sure, I guess.

Me: Dad I experience these kinds of things being schizoaffective.

Dad, also schizoaffective: Huh I relate to none of that.

Me: Should we look into that discrepancy further?

Dad: Nah.

Me: Mom I forgot to take one of the seven medications I'm on for over a month and felt no effect from not taking it. Is there a chance I'm potentially on too much medication?

Mom: You need to take all the pills the doctors give you.

Me: I'm on more Seroquel than both you and Dad combined and have been since I was 13 is that bad?

Mom: No it's normal and good, actually.

Me: I have nothing to compare this too and if I disagree too hard with you I might be left to fend for myself in the wilderness like a newly-stray cat.

Different Doctor: I don't think you're schizoaffective because you were way too young to show signs when you were diagnosed.

Me, age 17: Oh? What do you think I am?

Different Doctor: No idea. Moving on!

Therapist: You aren't bipolar.

Me, age 18: What am I, then?

Therapist: Probably nothing. It really doesn't matter.

Me: I don't know what to do with that information.

An additional doctor: Yeah, I agree with that doctor you saw almost a decade ago. I don't think you're bipolar.

Me, 26, very tired: Okay.

Additional doctor: You're too traumatized for me to diagnose, though.

Me: Uh-huh. That's - fine. I guess.

Additional doctor: Here are some anti-psychotics though.

Me: These anti-psychotics make me throw up at least once a week can we switch to a different kind?

Additional doctor: Eh I don't know. They're not making you psychotic so it's probably fine.

Me: cool okay

Me: Hey I was on 900mgs of Seroquel from ages 13-21 do you think that could be a bad thing for me health-wise?

A doctor, at some point: It is a medical improbability that taking that much of that medication for that long didn't give you diabetes.

Me: Great. Love that for me.

Me: Therapist I need a diagnostic I'm losing my mind.

Therapist: I'm reading your diagnosis and you actually don't meet the basic clinical criteria for really any mental illness.

Me: ??????? cool

Therapist: You might have ADHD though.

Wife: You absolutely have ADHD.

Me: Can I get treated for ADHD please?

New psych: I can't treat you for ADHD if you're diagnosed as bipolar.

Me: I have had multiple doctors say I'm not bipolar. I have a diagnostic that says I'm not bipolar.

New psych: Someone at some point said you were bipolar.

Me: I was 12.

New psych: Either way. Also this diagnostic you took says you have BPD.

Me in my next therapy session: Hey uh Therapist when were you going to tell me I have BPD?

Therapist: You...don't? You don't have that.

Me: My psych said the diagnostic you sent her shows I do.

Therapist: She apparently doesn't know how to read the diagnostic then because that's - um. Incorrect.

Wife: You need to stop telling new psychs you were ever diagnosed bipolar it's clearly making them biased.

Me: That feels like denying medical people medical information they need for medicine.

Therapist: I agree with Wife actually.

Me: You - really? Fuck. I mean, okay.

Me, in an intake appointment: I was never diagnosed bipolar.

Current psych: Uh okay.

Me: I'm lying.

Current psych: Oh. Oh?

Me (Sobbing): I'm so sorry I'm lying I just lied.

Current psych: It's okay. You're - um -

Me (Weeping, shame spiraling): You seem so nice -

Current psych: Wow. Wow you are struggling.

Few Sessions Later

Current psych: Yeah you could have ADHD. Probably wanna be careful though because ADHD meds can cause mania in bipolar people, so even though you haven't really shown any signs of bipolar or schizophrenic symptoms we should still air on the side of caution.

Few More Sessions

Current psych: Ah yeah you're super ADHD. That makes sense and surprises nobody.

Me, 27, lying face-down on the floor: rad hooray for medicine.

[supersoftly]

My mom was telling me she remembers from her childhood that they were still receiving American condensed milk rations post WWII, and her younger brother was only just a little too young to remember that before it got phased out. They really pushed in public schools at the time to "finish your plate or you don't go home", which now is considered almost fiendish, but at the time, where a country had just barely survived and was doing it's best to avoid mass starvation, it was law that probably saved more than hindered.

It just reminded me personally as someone who is lucky enough to be outside of war that I think we forget how difficult life is even after recovery; the country and its people are still there, still growing and living and trying to get back to a sense of normalcy, even after being exposed to the deepest depths of human cruelty and suffering. War feels like the blade that keeps cutting away, even after it's over, yet we all have to deal with the consequences of the choices of people who may no longer even be alive anymore. And it's not like my mom is super old either, it was just how things were, especially in rural Japan where a new house on the block was considered a big event.

Recovery simply just doesn't happen overnight, it happens in each generation with what we give and take, and also with what we choose to leave behind. If we only choose to carry the burdens of the past to lay at the feet of the future, expecting them to carry it, where are we going but only towards a future where children will always bear the responsibility of our cruelty and evil? Is this really the path towards a future where we raise up and support the human experience to a much grander scale, where we minimize the suffering of all innocent people and work together towards something better than what we had prior? I want to believe in our vast interconnectedness, people find each other closer than they ever did before on an unprecedented scale and this is what will raise us up as a human race, simply communicating with each other as the necessary step towards real peace... And I really haven't changed my mind, even with everything going on, with the lies, the propaganda, the control of information... People still actively choose not to pass on hate as their sole inheritance, even when hurt beyond understanding, there is deep resolve and courage in those who continue to choose love when the rest of the world permits otherwise.

This ramble really didn't have a purpose in mind, just thoughts rotating in my brain, and I suppose putting clearly to words why I'm grateful as a hafu that both sides of my family chose love when they easily could've blamed each other given the circumstances. And I know some people will always believe and vocalize that my family made the wrong choice in the grand scheme of things, but for me, the simple happiness of being here today, having the time to just exist alongside my husband and my children, is a joy that keeps stoking the fire to a thankful heart.

[k-looking-glass-house]

The wedding tailor~

As I already said once, when Mister Crewel doesn't make some outfits (which actually never happen...seriously Cruella!!), K is the one doing the job!!

You know the groom edit collection in collab with my dear @twiwoncrackpopcorn !! Thanks them, they were the one coming up with the idea and the special click and drag game...

Well in my lore, K is the one who designed most of them!! And gave everyone perfect groom outfits after the event....a bit too late... But fashion doesn't wait... neither some fanservice!

She is also the one who sew Idia's suit, as she never question people when they asked her an outfit, except size color and so on! She would be like "Sorry, not sorry Idia hn!! But you are so handshommeee!"

She also sew the rescue team groom's outfits, but greatly questionned back then Sam's taste on some patterns, as it was either truly "avant-gardiste or old fashioned". But told him if he already knew about the issue, since he asked her to sew them a month ago out of nowhere...

She was officially presented to the current NRC's chara cast during this event!

She clearly sided with Riddle and Epel about "their size don't matter" as she is 148 cm without heels... Which make Riddle feels super tall....

She tried to sell all Sam's good part to Eliza, as Mister Crewel failed without even trying, but she got engrossed in a quiproquo!

K: Sam is the besht!! Princessh, you'll get 3 no 4 to 5 meals a day, with pocket money!! Lot of free time! Good clothes and headpat!! A warm bed with fresh clean sheets! And champagneeee!! Marry Shaaaamm! Eliza: ...How do you know that my dear, sounds indeed very lovely? K: Becaushe Sam treats me like this!! Everyday, all time I am sho spoiled *dummy smile*! *NRC cast* facepalm mentally or not: That rabbiiiiit is no good either! Eliza: Awww my, you are his wife I seeee, how lovely! K *flustered*: *turn to Sam* Am I your WIFE?? *sparkle* Sam: Of course NOT!!!! K *turn to Eliza*: I am NOT!! Sam: Whyyy do you evennn ask.... *facepalm* Eliza: Ah ah, young weds are so shy, Idia darling we'll be the same!! K: Hihihi hihihiii congratulations!!! I am the rabbit who shew your hushband suit! Idia: Arwwwghhhhh HELP HELPPPP the rabbit was also an enemy since the beginning what a shojo-ish plot twist! Sam: Da*n.... I could have the princess ghost under my care... I mean saved the blue flamme kooni-chan! Divus: She didn't even look at me.... and think Sam is married and is a good husband......*depressed* I am not paid enough... *hugging dogs*

Eventually she was ready to put a forbidden love potion in the wedding champagne cup of Eliza to make the mission successful!

She kept trolling Crowley about why doesn't he also help and seduce the bride! And to save his dignity he graciously paid 3 times the prices for all her fashion design work, which made her silent and happy!

Ultimately she ends up with real K drinking champy and singing "kiss her, kiss her!"

K is heavily inspired by Paris "belle epoque"! Her outfit is part of Ann Demeulemeester F/W19 Women's collection (totally inspired... I was in love back then)

K the rabbit with real K (Cass') ready to drink Champagne I mean save Idia.... More like come on boys let's catwalk on those outfits!! Now turn....ah yes roll on the floor!!!

[frasier-crane-style]

Okay, that's True Grit. That's entirely True Grit. Exact same plot, exact same tone, exact same Coen-wannabe dialogue (and Tom King is no Coen Brother)... all King did was transpose a bit of a by-now-generic high fantasy/space opera setting onto True fucking Grit. It's not even that obscure a work to rip off. There was a remake in 2010. Hailee Steinfeld debuted in that movie and she's still playing a 'Young' Avenger.

Oh, but hey, there's Supergirl in the Rooster Cogburn role. That's different, right? Because Supergirl is Supergirl and not a drunken, cynical badass type?

And if you've seen True Grit, either version, you pretty much know how it goes (aside from a shock value ending that is, surprise, deeply cynical and mean-spirited). King mercilessly mischaracterizes Kara into this very 90s bad grrl caricature--she calls Superman a little bitch at one point, because he's not as tuff as herrrr--and the bad guys all go "oh, you can't beat me, you're just a girl!" Aren't we past this?

I found the premise pretty unbelievable... I know comic writers have to know up with far-fetched scenarios, since the real top-tier superheroes are unbeatable otherwise... but Supergirl has turned 21 and wants to get drunk. She doesn't want to do this with any of her friends, apparently, so she takes a barely controllable starship to a sector of space with only red suns... she can't just borrow a red sun room in the Fortress of Solitude or wherever... and she lands on this world that's a hellish dictatorship where people are killed for laughing at jokes about the king... she brings Krypto along, who is also depowered... and she doesn't bring any kind of communication device so she can call a Green Lantern or someone for help... and she's gone for months, but no one thinks to look for her.

And the villain... this is another one of the very few changes from True Grit, where the killer is just a random thug, the kind of guy you'd expect to impulsively kill someone. Here, he's a criminal mastermind that can summon up magic that nearly kills Supergirl and he almost randomly hooks up with this gang of superpowered mass murderers (who indulge in ethnic cleansing so frequently that you'd think a Green Lantern or someone would go after them--seriously, they are depopulating planets on a weekly basis) so it takes more than five seconds for Kara to rout him.

There's also a super heavy-handed segregation/racism metaphor. I mean, it is TOS, "all his people are black on the left side and white on the right side!" blatant. Like, embarrassingly hamfisted.

And this comic is WORDY. Not only is OC donut steal Hailee Steinfeld doing her Coen act every time she speaks, but she also narrates, choking every panel with multiple paragraphs of PROSEPROSEPROSE. Everything is a speech, everything is a monologue. Mike Flanagan would read this and say "hey, buddy, don't you think you're overdoing it a tad?" And there's some good art here--that's the one real positive of the comic--but it is just drowned out by King not trusting his artist one iota to tell a story.

Supergirl is given this really stock "it sucks to be Superman" angst, which we're all tired of with Clark, right? Is it really fresh to just transpose him being broody and violent onto Kara? All the cursing and casual violence would be a little more appropriate for Power Girl, but I guess that wouldn't subvert expectations like making the main character an embittered Supergirl. Clearly, we're supposed to find all this shocking and edgy, but it just comes off risible. You're really going to have Krypto the Super-Dog and dead babies in the same exact story?

And since when does Supergirl hang out with Krypto? I thought her pet was Streaky. King goes all pre-Crisis with Comet the Super-Horse showing up and really being a man with a magic spell cast on him, but he doesn't know that Supergirl's pet is Streaky the Supercat? Boooooo.

[hopeymchope]

"Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" might've had a lot less kaiju action than the previous attempt to translate Godzilla into a TV series, but it more than made up for that in quality storytelling!

My sundry observations, gripes, praises and questions:

They really went out of their way to honor the Japanese roots of the source material, didn't they? We're in Japan for a ton of the show, dealing with Japanese and/or Japanese-descended characters for the majority of it, and have a surprising amount of Japanese dialogue throughout — it's nice.

I know Wyatt Russell is a Nepo Baby, but he's honestly still very good at what he does. I don't think the series has any bad acting... but the two Russells (because Kurt Russell is, ofc, amazing), Mari Yamamota (Keiko Miura) and Joe Tippett (Tim) are still the absolute highlights for most of the run, IMO. The Russells and Yamamota do the emotional heavy lifting with aplomb, whereas Tippett is so naturalistic and likable that it's hard not to find him engaging.

Cate starts off the series being such an asshole who doesn't show any empathy for people going through the EXACT SAME SHIT that she is, but I think the later reveal of her trauma on "G-Day" somewhat explains her attitude problem. She then manages to pivot to being much more likable JUUUUST in time for the episode where we get the flashbacks revealing she was a shitty person even BEFORE G-Day. LOL.

May ALSO swings between being likable and being a total ass, and while that sounds like a complaint, I actually sort of appreciate it. We're seeing the main female characters get the kind of nuance and depth to them that they aren't often afforde in mass-market media, and that's cool.

On the flip side, there's Kentaro. The fact that both Cate and May get to act both likable and dickishreally me expect the same thing for Kentaro. They're the trio of young people who make up the titular "Legacy," right? (Well, I guess that's mostly meant to refer to Cate/Kentaro.) So... I was shocked when Kentaro's chance to be a total prick never came around. He's pretty likable and understandable throughout! Even when he's being SUPER harsh on Hiroshi, I still understand it in light of what Hiroshi's done to their families. I feel like maybe Kentaro got something of a short shrift on this front. He gets adequate backstory, mind you, but he also never gets either A) as much focus time as May and Cate, nor B) a chance to come off like kind of a dick like May and Cate sometimes do? It's a little tempting to say that making him the more "pure" of the trio comes off as sexist, but... the way that he gradually is shoved into the background of the story's focus and doesn't even get to go on the big final adventure makes it pretty clear that this ISN'T because the producers favor Kentaro. More like the opposite....

In fact, take particular note of how nobody really gives him credit for how he was the ENTIRE REASON THEY SURVIVED Episode 4. They diss him and don't believe him, and when he's ultimately proven right in a way that saves all their asses? May gives the credit for her survival to Cate for some inexplicable reason. (Except for ONE later moment when neither Kentaro or Cate can know or hear her admit Kentaro saved them.) WTF. I found that frustrating.

That episode was the start of Cate and May becoming incredibly tight-knight with one another, and I'm still not clear on how/why that happened. Is it just because they both vascillate between being chlidish assholes and likable adults?? By the halfway point of the show, I was really getting strong shippy vibes off them. Which would be super cute and sweet if it wasn't also, y'know... kinda shitty. Because May used to be with her brother? Who clearly still had feelings for her when the series starts, just a few days prior? MMM.... not cool, May. To be fair, however, not always caring about their own hurtful/sketchy behavior is actually pretty in-character for them both, so maybe it works. And I suppose you gotta take that happiness where you can get it in this crazy, now-kaiju-laden world.

The character who shows up at the end of Episode 9 completely shocked me. They got me there. And in light of that twist — that character who disappears near the end of the finale? Perhaps this goes without saying, but there's no way we've seen the last of them. ZERO chance... unless the person portraying them doesn't renew their contract for season 2 or something. :P

This is, of course, a "Monsterverse" series. But the logic of how the Hollow Earth works in this show doesn't seem to REMOTELY align with how it was portrayed in Godzilla vs Kong, does it? Not even KIND OF. I wonder if Godzilla x Kong will get that disconnect to retroactively make sense.

At least one returning actor from the Monsterverse films shows up to provide a link... for one scene.

And speaking of the Monsterverse, that's hardly the only Continuity Sketchiness going on here! Serizawa only gets name-dropped ONCE in this series despite the fact that he's still presumably the HEAD DUDE IN CHARGE over there. They keep calling Verdugo the Deputy Director because Serizawa is the director, right?? Though Verdugo sure does make unilateral decisions about the whole-ass organizations multiple times in this show.

All of my prior point is especially goofy when the idea of HELPING Godzilla is treated as this shocking, bizarre concept ..... despite the fact that it's Serizawa's entire fucking philosophy since BEFORE this takes place???

Okay, let's shift back to positives: Takehiro Hira doesn't get as much screen time as many cast members, but his performances over the last two episodes are friggin' emotionally devastating. Fantastic.

The lack of more Toho monsters in the Monsterverse has been something of a downer for me personally, but they still do pull out some really cool original designs. That Frost Vark is pretty badass.

[toruro]

sending in my lists and scenarios but its not a scenario it's just what anime character do you think each member is most like (w/ explainations pls hehe)

it doesn't have to all be from the same anime just in general, also getting back in my anime phase but maybe ill send an actual scenario later

svt as anime characters

literally pulled up myanimelist for this ... retrieving memeories from the 100+ anime i've watched and now i feel like a nerd.

seungcheol — chrollo from hxh in the sense that they're both leaders and above all, they prioritize the group. thinking of when cheol said the members are more important to him than the company & when chrollo said that keeping the group intact is more important than his life

jeonghan — howl from howl's moving castle i refuse to elaborate

joshua — this was actually so hard but i think sugawara from haikyuu like he's nurturing ... but also super chaotic and good at hiding it

jun — lev from haikyuu ... they're both tall, cute, funny, and kinda weird jdksdnjks

soonyoung — i feel like the only fitting respond is naruto ?! they're both so passionate and dedicated to what they do, and they clearly have a lot of care for others around them even if they have funny ways of showing it also furry

wonwoo — guys i know it's kind of stereotypical but it would be a crime for me to say anything other than kenma. like definitely on quieter side and enjoys gaming and CAT CAT CAT and also just very good at what he does in general

jihoon — shirogane from love is war! both are kinda funky when it comes to showing affection but also both sososo hardworking and genuinely caring (i was joking w jj and said i'll make everyone sasuke but actually jihoon and sasuke are both tsundere freaks sasuke is just insaner)

seokmin — nel from bleach. i don't know how to describe it like guys they're the SAME. cute and kind and fun and bubbly but also badass and the embodiment of power and talent !!

mingyu — i've said this before but he's so bokuto to me like ... big golden retriever energies from both like they are either very hyper or pouty and sulky and like their duality is ... crazy.

minghao — megumi frok jjk ... blunt and funny and IT'S JUST THE VIBES U KNOW ... emo little shits

seungkwan — killua from hxh. they both just care so much and bring out so much from the people around them, but also has a fun, witty, and snarky sort of humor. there's actually so much more i have to say about this comparison but my head is pounding out of my skull rn but yes

vernon — mob from mob psycho 100! i feel like they both have this very fun and kind energy to them but they're both on the quite side too! cares a lot about the people around them and is maybe a little awkward at times but literally the sweetest and understanding souls ever

chan — nishinoya from haikyuu! both are so talented and so good at what they do but also so bright and fun and literally brings up the mood of everyone around them (also kiki from kiki's delivery service. i feel like they're both so talented and were thrust into a big big world from a young age and worked really hard to navigate through it, made friends along the way and !! does this make sense ?!)

[jamesfalt]

the kabru post and then also that farcille post has me thinking about how people do take these gay ships and just completely mischaracterize them for the sake of having ship content. and i could make a whole long ass post or even video essay on this all but i'm gonna try and keep it short here

i feel like ship culture has gotten like....extremely tropey lately? like you have your ships and they HAVE to behave in certain ways or else you can't enjoy content of them. this is like super vague but i've noticed this in like ao3 fics of a lot of ships i'm into where they'll take the ship and just completely mischaracterize one or both of the characters for the sake of the ship

and in some cases i'm like it's bc the fandom is a bit younger, for example naegami is a ship i can't really read fics for bc all the fics are out of character and tropey. they erase how each character actually feels without giving any explanation as to why they would be like that. but i know that the fandom is by default young teenagers bc i was a young teenager when i was really into it.

and a common thread that i see in these types of ships characterizations is taking characters who aren't "soft" characters and making them soft. with naegami it's taking togami, a cynical bougie asshole who although does soften a bit by the end of the first game and is clearly friends and cares for his friends by dr3, and turning him into a guy who's only care in the world is naegi and he loves naegi soooo much and it makes him weak when we know how he interacts with naegi and it's not that.

kabru gets this exact treatment. where the haphazard feelings he has towards laios throughout THE WHOLE series get quickly thrown away to be the guy who is totally on laios's side all the time bc he loves him sooo much

laios isn't much different in this regard in the handful of fics i've read either where a lot of his tenacity and straightforwardness have been whittled down bc "oh he doesn't understand social cues he doesn't know what to do :(" which is so baffling i literally will close the fic the minute i see him portrayed like this.

i'm gonna go through the farcille ao3 tag next it's just taking me a bit to get through the labru one but from what i've seen on just tumblr and twitter alone it's clear to me that they're taking marcille and making her super soft and one track minded when she has other traits that kind of overwrite that? they forget that she joined laios not just bc she wanted to save falin, but bc she knew he wouldn't make it far without someone who could heal him. she's sharp and quick to jump to conclusions

where was i going with this. it's been a hot minute since i interacted with a fandom that's not gacha based (last time was beastars but that fandom wasn't too bad honestly) and so i just see the way a lot of people take characters and i'm just so baffled bc i'm like we have all the content we need why are you insisting they're not that, this isn't a gacha game where we're waiting several months for their story to progress to get a little more info on how they act. we KNOW how they act. you don't need to make up personality traits for these characters if you just read them.

[hag-o-hags]

There's a trainer in my area who's apparently considered a ~wonderworker~ with Problem Dogs. My friend took her boy to this lady's program and came back with

Detailed instructions for using the shock collar

Spray bottle

Wand of Rolled Up Newspaper

Bigger issue with defensiveness over the dog's behavior, reactivity, and needs than before

NOW, this poor boy won the Behavioural Issues Lottery

(weened at 4 weeks)

(because his dam was too young and trying to kill her litter)

(herding dog mix)

(first 13ish months living mostly in an apartment)

(mom works in the hospitality industry so schedule and stability for dog is NOT GREAT!)

(several issues with VERY BAD pet sitters) (all relatives of mom or other mom) (moms were furious and none of those people are allowed to be alone with EITHER dog)

so like. I'm not at all gonna pretend like this kiddo doesn't have some pretty bad issues. I've been on the receiving end of his warnings a couple times, but he was warning me -- very clear visual snarl that he didn't want me near the barrier that he was behind (kennel once, pet gate once). I backed off and we were immediately cool. I got some sniffs when we were back on the same side of the gate.

And that's my thing with this boy. He's got Needs. Me too man, I'm right there with you.

I'm pet sitting right now, and in all honesty, all we're doing is hanging out. Nobody's getting redirected beyond "don't jump on me, and quit mouthing my sleeve". We had one incident of Misdemeanor Countersurfing and Resource Guarding with Intent. And I know -- I know -- how scary and intimidating it is to be on the receiving end of a reactive dog's warning! Second Mom is very scared of trying to take food from him and they have a whole protocol that uses the Wondertrainer's techniques.

But all he needed to give up the forbidden food was a normal ass dog biscuit. Swapsies, nabbed the remains, reactivity back to zero.

This dog, not least because of Our Lady of Aversion Training, is treated like a live grenade and the moment something SLIGHTLY bad happens, oh god no, klaxons, strobing lights, women and children to the lifeboats first.

He's not, though, he's just a boy who has had ALL his boundaries and communication ignored, and people are stressed out AT him. All the time. I'm sitting outside writing this, and the dogs run up, get up in my business hoping that this is a Sharing Doughnut I've got here (NOPE!!!!!) We started this weekend with him kinda sorta being okay with some ear scritches after he gave my hand a good sniff. This morning he wasn't fully sure about me initiating head pets, but he communicates that super clearly if you know what you're looking at. I'd offer, he'd get tense, I'd back off, and WHAT DO YOU FUCKIN KNOW. Now he running up and shoving his head into my elbow for pets.

BECAUSE IT WASN'T A BIG DEAL WHEN HE TOLD ME NO. Nothing he can do can make me freak out, so HE'S not gonna freak out.

Super bonus, I've been working on muzzle desensitizing with him as well, because right now the method is Mom And Only Mom Traps Him And Tough Tits If You Miss The First Time, Call The Vet to Say We'll Be Really Really Late. Which. Mmrg. Muzzle was a requirement to attend the Wonderclasses, which I get, it's a basket muzzle, we want everyone to stay safe. I guess the instructions were "Bring the dog muzzled and shock collared and be prepared to zap him if he gets aggressive or out of line." (FUCKIN. WHAT ARE PEOPLE PAYING THIS LADY FOR. JESUS FUCKING. SHRIEK.) (I mean where even is the fucking spray bottle in this hierarchy? FUCK.)

Anyway, boyo does not care if I walk around with the muzzle, will HAPPILY eat peanut butter off a plate with the muzzle ... this is a very, very teachable dog. He's not a live grenade, he's like. At WORST a firework. If you're a moron and you fuck around, sure. Finding out may involve losing your arm. But MAYBE you shouldn't have been fucking around that hard and engaged your giant primate brain for 12 seconds. Don't try to douse a fire with gasoline maybe?

[ourceliumnetwork]

I get it. I get why my aunt wanted to push back against the negative view I have of my parents and the family most closely associated with them. I understand why she wanted me to consider their side of things - she's a parent too, after all. And it's hard, it really is, to see a child disown their parents instead of the other way around. It's hard to see it the other way around too, don't get me wrong, but like. Kids aren't "supposed" to disown their parents.

I don't doubt that my parents believe with their whole chests that they love me and have done their very best with me - in fact i agree that they did their very best with me that they possibly could have.

Their best was just bad. Because I was self-sufficient it makes sense that they assumed i didn't need their help - wrong though that assumption may be. They were young, they were figuring out what to do next now that they both had a kid and a spouse they weren't super sure they were ready for. I get it.

Also that's her older brother i'm shit talking, and I do acknowledge the things they have done for me that were good. Because even a stopped clock is right twice a day.

But they ignored me, intentionally or not. They dismissed my interests or made fun of them so hard that I not only stopped bringing them up on my own, but I have a hard time engaging with some of them to this day because i was shamed out of enjoying it. They do not ask about what else I do because they do not care to learn if they have anything in common with me anymore.

Dad was passive aggressive as fuck about me setting a reasonable boundary. My aunt was immediately just "Sounds good, I can do that, I wanna hear about your personal life more anyway."

And you know what? I've literally never had any single person in my family do that for me and actually pay attention as I talked and asked me questions about things. And that's what she can't see, when I say that my parents see me only as a status symbol. That's why she pushes back and says that of course it's different - they wouldn't say horrible negative things about me being a leftist/"liberal", queer, Weirdo because I'm their kid.

Except i heard what they said about *her* and she's closer to center than I am. I heard what they said about anyone who was left of where they were. It...was not kind.

at best, they called people stupid for thinking the way they did. Brainwashed. I won't repeat at worst, for my own sake.

Anyone who falls away from their path is unintelligent or gullible or easily swayed and manipulated. Anyone who does not think the way they do after being presented with their facts is an idiot. I am likely labeled both, whether they say the words or not. I have received the patronizing smiles and the polite capitulations that say very clearly that i just don't know what i'm talking about, even if—especially if—i know more on the subject than they do.

I don't blame her, though. And it...didn't hurt as much to have her push back on it. I get it. I didn't want to know these things about my parents either. I didn't want to see it happen at me. I didn't want to realize how things were going.

My parents are not good people. At best they are polite. I will not say what they are at worst. Not tonight.

But tonight I will say that I had one of the most fulfilling conversations with a family member I've ever had. I will say that I felt loved and respected the whole meal. I am looking forward to getting to know her—and everyone else my parents spoke poorly of behind their backs—and have a relationship with her. I'm finally looking forward to the future and it...it looks safe. And filled with family—found and otherwise—who love me.

Tonight I had a good time.

Plus also we looked hella good for being out in a proper sitdown restaurant for the first time since moving up here lol.

[scholar-of-yemdresh]

Master of Poisons by Andrea Hairston

Haven't really posted any book reviews on here for a while, so before the yeah is up I'm once again asking y'all to read this book.

This was a "reread" for me I read it as an ebook 3-ish years ago and decided to try it out as an audiobook. And I've got to say the audiobook really elevated this book for me. The way the book is written is clearly pulling from African oral traditions and I feel listening to it rather than plain reading it really connects to that. A tangent but I saw some people saying that the female narrator was bad? And no she wasn't??? She was fine to me.

I always hear how fantasy now at days has lost the whimsy and magic. That everything is either "grounded low on magic & the fantastical or it's too rigid with it's sanderson "hard magics". To an extent I agree(and I don't it's complicated but tldr there's more to fantasy than GRR Martin or Brandosando clones).

I will place this book in the amorphous "literary fantasy" grouping but it doesn't fall Into the trap that a lot of literary sff falls into, which I greatly dislike. That being de-emphasising and limiting any fantastical elements so it can be taken "seriously" not this book! There's just so much serious literary" SFF that only has a sprinkle of a fantasy that adds nothing and the fantastical element isn't even engaged with all that much, it makes me question why the author even bothered, like just write realistic contemporary/historical fiction and drop the pretense of writing SFF. (No I'm not talking about magical realism or books that aren't super dense with fantasy/sci-fi nonsense)

And like a most litfic it's got big Themes™. The most obvious (to me at least) is the environmental message. This is probably the only Climate Fiction book that I enjoyed mainly because it wasn't as dour and depressing as other Climate Fiction. Yes the poison desert is creeping in destroying the ecosystem and people are starving but the more fantastical elements acted as cushion for me. Because just reading about straight "the earth is dead humanity is dying shit sucks the seas have boiled etc" is not a fun time and hits to close to current reality 😢

I loved the prose and writing style too! It's so depressing that it's got such a low score on Goodreads(3.3/5) with a lot of reviewers saying the book had bad grammar??? Hell no! it's one thing if the writing style isn't for you or found it confusing to follow but bad grammar? It's giving racism. Sorry not sorry, different writing and storytelling traditions and techniques especially when executed so masterfully are not "bad grammar". Stop the cap!

And as a little treat this book does have queer representation, but goes about in a way I wish more modern capital q Queer SFF followed. Basically it doesn't rely on fanfic/romance tropes(you know the ones) or making every queer person a conventionally attractive able-bodied smexy snarky/quippy 22 year old (can you tell I'm not a fan of that style lmao). Both of our "main view point characters are queer. One is a Bisexual middle-aged man(he's currently married to a woman but past relationship with third gender person and attraction to men is implied) and a young wlw girl, with significant characters of a Third gender, called Veson who use "vie" pronouns. Plus a good portion of the side characters were some flavour of queer.

There's so much magic and weirdness it honestly throws you into the deep end with all the new fantasy stuff it hits the reader with. There are some heavy themes this isn't "grimdark" by any means but shit happens.

Highly recommended for people are into: African inspired fantasy, Stand alones, magic that feels magical and unknown, climate fiction, a book that reads like folklore, queer representation especiallyin adult SFF, interesting prose/writing style and being a bit confused when reading.

CW: violence, a bit of gore, slavery, misogyny, transphobia/Binaryism, Sexual violence(off screen), xenophobia, mild sexual content, and the ages of certain characters weren't explicit so certain sexual situations could've involved minors.

[csmeanerr]

I don't like to be petty but I'm annoyed. There's a user in a CS discord I'm in that I felt like blocking ages ago because they gave me super weird vibes, and lately they've been getting on my nerves. I've noticed multiple times that when a specific topic is brought up they interrupt and try to change the subject and we're even at the point now where they're flat out trying to diss on people who like the thing just because they personally don't like that specific topic.

"I don't see the appeal of this character/series/hobby, I don't know why people like it." Well clearly people do because many people including the server owner themself are into it and enjoy talking about it? It's valid to not like something because everyone has things they love and hate but if you don't like it then just don't participate instead of pissing on everybody else for enjoying something and trying to change the topic mid-conversation. At first it felt like a coincidence but it's happened enough times now to know it's definitely intentional. If they aren't successful with changing the topic and nobody pays attention to them they'll even reply to themself to continue their own conversation in the middle of everyone else talking and it's so weird. Read the room, fam.

Really though how hard is it to just ignore a conversation if it's not about something you like? Just wait for the conversation to die down and then try to bring up your own interests once the channel has fallen quiet. It's not like the server has dozens or hundreds of actively posting people, it's a small enough server that sometimes the channel goes silent for hours before someone bring it back to life. There's plenty of time for them to try and talk about their own interests without interrupting the flow of conversation but it only ever happens when something specific is brought up. I've thought about bringing it up to the server owner as a mild complaint but I don't feel like it would do any good. I think they're friends with the server owner and past experiences have shown me that the server owner will always side with their friends. I think I should just block them. I hate to though because they'll definitely notice since they interact with the content I post and I feel like it'll cause problems.

It makes me not want to talk about that topic there anymore even though I and others all have characters relating to it and we all really enjoy it because this person just saps the fun out of it with their hate. None of us have said anything bad to them about their interests either so I don't get why they're going out of their way to be an asshole to everyone else about it.

Sorry mod I just had to get that off of my chest. I get that the person is barely into adulthood which is still kind of young but also they should be old enough by that point to know the world doesn't need to revolve solely around them and their interests and that's the vibe they're giving for real. How does that meme go? "I am uncomfortable when we are not about me"? It feels like that.

Maybe I should just tolerate it and wait it out. The species is going to die soon anyway I'm sure so when that happens it won't matter because I won't be seeing them around.

keep your peace. block them

[poisonouswritings]

*cutely crashing into your house* hey girl~

Listen I've just finished reading "heir to love and lies" and "two against the world" and I'm obsessed with El Fantasma and Nicky

Can I have a request of M3 with mc who's a boss of a Mexican cartel? They are an expert on weapons, Martial arts and street fights but they have a soft side to their loved ones (like Nicky)

Also they take pride in being the youngest cartel boss that ever made the government and other bosses kneel before them (for the sake of the request let's say that mc is about 28 and they've been in the business since they were a teenager) but also not so proud because the only reason they went through that business is to feed their family and provide good life and better education to their younger siblings and they did pretty nasty things in the past to reach that point

Ok thank you bye~~ *cutely jumping out of your window*

*sighs and calls up my woodland critter friends to help me patch up the damages* My poor metaphorical inbox-house

GN!Reader, not explicitly a Mexican cartel thing it's more just a gang/mafia thing, I didn't read either of those stories so bare with me here, nor did I finish watching The Godfather but I saw enough to get the idea

Felix Escellun

Okay,, so I feel like Felix isn't all that opposed to your background honestly. Like, he does necromancy. He is morally questionable and flexible.

Finds your knowledge of fighting, weapons, etc. to be pretty cool! I don't think he'd have as much of an interest in that sort of thing as, say, Anisa, but he'd definitely appreciate how clever you'd have to be to maintain all that.

I think your knowledge of how a criminal cartel works would actually prove to be useful with maneuvering the situation with Escell and all that. Since Felix has never really been interested in the political side of things, your knowledge of power-structure dynamics would actually be pretty useful.

Similarly! I think your relationship with Escell would improve. The two of you can likely relate on several points. He still might not like you per-say, but there's definitely mutual respect. I think he trusts you a little more with Felix too, once he knows what you're capable of.

Florian finds out too of course. I think he feels bad that someone so young had to go through everything you did for the sake of the people you love. Probably good at offering advice and comfort when your guilt bubbles up.

,,,Felix asks you to help him steal stuff he needs for his studies. Better not get caught.

Honestly he thinks you're cool. I think he also lavishes you a bit, all things considered.

Anisa Anka

,,,, okay so,,,,,,,, she's a uh,,,,, she's a knight. A Lieutenant at that. I Do Not Think that she would be particularly enthused about the stuff you've done. But once you explain your reasoning I think she'd be a lot more sympathetic.

Your knowledge of cartels is also useful to her! Obviously Anisa does have a better understanding of politics than Felix, but I also think she wears rose-tinted glasses. She tries to ignore problems within the Sunstone until she's literally looking cultists in the face. She's an optimist y'know? And you love that about her, you really do, but it means she can be a little naive.

She!! loves hearing about your experiences. Holds you during the sadder ones and praises you during the more impressive ones. I think she has a lot of respect for you, honestly.

M,,maybe don't tell Ayanna about it. At least not until she's calmed down with thinking you're gonna become the next LoS. Otherwise I think she's gonna try to use it against you.

Wish we could have gotten a liTTLE MORE INFORMATION AND ALL THAT BUT NOW THERE'S A FUCKING HIATUS

Anyways

I think she's especially interested in your weapons knowledge. She finds human ingenuity super interesting.

Sage Lesath

Alright so I don't think I have to explain how much Sage resonates with that. And I think he really appreciates the fact that you can clearly take care of yourself. It makes him feel a lot better about this whole partnership.

Haha I accidentally wrote 'partnerfish' up there. Yes I know no one but me finds that funny but shh

He uh,, he finds your fighting abilities to be really hot. Sorry not sorry. The first time you beat someone's ass to the ground like it's nothing and he is Completely At Your Mercy.

Simp!Sage Simp!Sage Simp!Sage !!!!! I just really love when traditionally masculine characters are complete lovey-dovey fools and simps for their partners asdgfkrefjsd

I think you guys both feel guilt about the things you had to do in the past. You help each other with that. Sage had to take care of Tulsi and Balsam and Lucan, and you had to take care of your family. It was - still is - ugly at times, but it was worth it too.

I think you're both proud of how far you've come. And you'll get even stronger together - hopefully with your morals a little more intact this time.

[sweetbitterimpossiblecreature]

A Brief And Concise Summary Of Is Wrong With The ACOTAR Series

I think we can agree that a lot of ACOTAR is pretty iffy. Consider this a very brief refresher.

What's Wrong With Feyre/Rhysand (juxtaposed against Feyre/Tamlin)

Rhysand drugs and sexually assaults her in Book 1

This is "for her own good". Because he "has no choice". Despite the fact that, from what we know of the plot, Amarantha thinks that Clare Beddor was the one Rhysand was diddling, and is only interested in Feyre because Rhysand, "her" man male, has taken an interest in her.

If we extrapolate from this we can figure that Rhysand is the one directly putting her into danger.

Now, let's be clear: drugging someone is bad. Sexually assaulting someone is bad. One could argue there were extenuating circumstances. But if, in such a situation, what your mind goes to is "I know, I should assault this person... for their safety" I have questions about your moral qualities. There were a million things he could have done. He could have done whatever he did to Clare - that is, remove her ability to feel any pain - easily. He could have helped her escape. Under The Mountain, he - while still there unwillingly - has a lot of power, as Amarantha's side piece. Maybe this would have resulted in him being punished- however, he is hundreds of years old and a badass motherfucker, and she is a nineteen year old human girl.

Now, onto Tamlin. Obviously not a lot of people really ship F/T anymore after ACOMAF, because compared to F/R, it's boring. I read another person's post about it, which was very enlightening: they said that Feyre's personality is essentially a mirror. When she is with Rhysand, she's snarky and malicious- because she is "bouncing off" his energy. When she's with Mor she's super feminist and "in awe of her strength". On the other hand, Tamlin is kind of an empty character. He's a pretty boy with anger issues, which should be more interesting than it is. SJM manages to make him bland. Because Feyre has nothing to bounce off of, (a lot of this is from the person's post), she and Tamlin together is mainly just him introducing her to his world.

What Tamlin Does: prevents a skinny twenty year old from going on dangerous missions with him and combat-trained soldiers, accidentally blows up a room with her in it, and, at the end, prevents her from leaving the house.

This is not a Tamlin apologist post. Obviously it was really fucking gross of him to do that, and their relationship was toxic. However, a lot of his abuse stems from their inability to communicate, as well as own negligence. He does not knowingly and purposefully sexually assault her or rape her mind. And tbh, leaving a girl without combat training at home while he goes on missions with a bunch of muscled sentries is... kind of reasonable?

Again: not a Tamlin apologist post. It was abuse. However, if Rhysand is "allowed" to sexually assault, mind-rape, and drug Feyre "for her own safety", why is Tamlin demonized for preventing her from leaving his mansion "for her own safety"?

Another pertinent point: Rhys is never punished for sexually assaulting her. It is brushed off as part of his "mask" or that his hand was forced. Jesus Christ my dudes, his hand was not forced under her skirt. If he has to maintain his gross rapist abuser tyrant oppressor mask... why? Who did that benefit beside him? None of his actions remotely helped Prythian. They were done solely for his buddies - five people safe in a rich hidden city - and no one else, which is explicitly stated.

Finally, the power dynamic is fucked up. Feyre is less than twenty five years old. Rhysand is 500. There is a tendency in fantasy romance to romanticize a centuries year old man with a young girl, because the man does not show symptoms of age, and so it is easily ignorable. However, can we just briefly acknowledge how fucked up it is? Rhys is over five times older than Donald Trump, Harvey Weinstein, Jeffrey Epstein, and other known predators/abusers. She is twenty. That is really fucking gross. She is in a vulnerable position and he takes rampant advantage of that.

If he had wrinkles, liver problems, and erectile dysfunction, more people would acknowledge it.

Let's be clear: I'm not saying writing a book with an uneven power dynamic is automatically bad. For example, in The Locked Tomb series, which is in my opinion THE BEST FANTASY SERIES THAT HAS GRACED THIS EARTH (lol i'm starting fires), one main character Harrowhark Nonagesimus is in a position of power over Gideon Nav, the other main character. However, this is not glossed over or romanticized. Gideon resents Harrow for this- there is a relationship of mutual antagonism, fraught with unwilling familiarity and intimacy from growing up together. They are roughly the same age. While there is a certain power dynamic (in that world, there is a dynamic of necromancer and cavalier, i.e. sorcerer and sword) the "empowered" character (Harrow) emphatically respects her and does not abuse this power, although both would of course deny this, and she does make a show of threatening and being aloof. In short, while Gideon obeys her, Gideon also has power over Harrow, and the idea of what is essentially slavery is not romanticized.

Feyre Doesn't Face Any Consequences For Her Own Actions

Let me present a radical notion: a guy preventing you from leaving his house does not justify completely fucking ruining his country and harming the people inside it.

In other words: Tamlin does not deserve what she did to him.

I know that sounds iffy. We're conditioned to think that if someone is an abuser, then they are the scum of the earth, they deserve to die, torturing/murdering/doing anything to them is completely A-OK. However, here's another radical notion: someone harming you does not justify you doing worse.

Obviously, the effects of psychological abuse can cause you to hurt other people (see: Nesta), but Feyre deliberately and maliciously (oh, God, that insufferable POV of her in Spring Court; she reads like a cartoonish Disney villain) dismantles his country. She uses sexual manipulation (Lucien), torture (causing the sentry to be whipped), and mind-rape (who didn't she do this to? lol).

A summary of the entire first half of ACOWAR: "It smelled like roses. I hated roses. For this capital offense against my olfactory system, Tamlin and the entire Spring Court deserved to burn in hell. I knew exactly what I was doing. I smiled at him sweetly: no longer a doe, but a wolf. He didn't see my fangs.............." *aesthetic noises*

Man. I'm starting to think SJM had a horrible experience at a Bath & Body Works and took it out on the rest of us. Don't do it, Sarah!! I know Pink Chiffon and Triple Berry Martini are way too strong, but don't take it out on an innocent population!!

She steals from Summer Court (there are, yk, other solutions to theft. Like maybe asking politely) and ruins Spring Court. Her boyfriend - yeesh sorry, MATE - does nothing while a dozen Winter Court children are murdered.

Now: moral ambiguity is not automatically bad. Again using The Locked Tomb as an example, in the second book (spoiler alert), Harrowhark has a sort of moral ambiguity. She was raised from the beginning to worship the King Undying as God, and so she obeys him without question. Because of this, she commits a lot of crimes in His name: she "flips" - i.e. kills - the life force of planets, and she plots murder (albeit the murder of someone who tried to kill her first). There is no attempt to justify this. There is also no attempt to paint her as a virtuous and yet also badass Madonna figure. She is desperate, plagued with the "wreck of herself", and the book clearly displays her moral pitfalls. While her POV is of course colored by her mindset, it also is limited by her lack of information, and we as readers can acknowledge that.

BACK TO ACOTAR: Feyre is seen by everyone as gorgeous, formidable, and essentially perfect. Rhys sees her as flawless, "made for him", wonderful, beautiful, blah blah blah. (THEY ARE SO BAD FOR EACH OTHER; THEY EXCUSE AND GLORIFY EACH OTHER'S CRIMES, IT'S SO BAD, GUYYYS). Tamlin is insanely batshit in love with her, or whatever. To the Night Court she's the High Lady. In this way she personifies the Mary Sue character. (Excerpt from the TV Tropes page on Mary Sues: "She's exotically beautiful, often having an unusual hair or eye color, and has a similarly cool and exotic name. She's exceptionally talented in an implausibly wide variety of areas, and may possess skills that are rare or nonexistent in the canon setting. She also lacks any realistic, or at least story-relevant, character flaws — either that or her "flaws" are obviously meant to be endearing. She has an unusual and dramatic Back Story. The canon protagonists are all overwhelmed with admiration for her beauty, wit, courage and other virtues, and are quick to adopt her as one of their True Companions, even characters who are usually antisocial and untrusting; if any character doesn't love her, that character gets an extremely unsympathetic portrayal." Sound familiar?)

There is the Ourobous scene. And yet, paradoxically, while presented as an acknowledgment of her flaws, it is in fact a rejection of them. She sees her own brutality... and instead of recognizing that she has these deep, deep moral flaws and realizing that she needs to grow and be better, she in fact "accepts" them.

Guys: Self love means: "I'm important to me, so I'm going to get a massage today after work", or "heck, why not splurge on some expensive lotion, you only live once" or "you know what? I had a tough day today. I'm going to get that strawberry cupcake". SELF LOVE DOES NOT MEAN "oh, I accept all the war crimes I have done, I love myself". LOVING YOURSELF DOES NOT MEAN ABSOLVING YOURSELF OF ALL WRONGDOING.

It's this refusal to acknowledge wrongdoing that is so grating about ACOTAR. It's so goddamn one-sided. And you can tell that after Book 1, SJM decided to completely change the trajectory simply because of how jarring Book 2 reads compared to the first one.

Also: Feyre is a very, very young girl (compared to the other ruling fey) who did not know how to read for the majority of her life. She has no experience whatsoever in politics. Her being High Lady is not a win for feminism.

Rhysand: He Sucks

First, he is 500 years old. He should be written as such, not as some 20 year old virile frat boy feminist. Fantasy is all the more compelling for its elements of realism, which is a concept that SJM does not appear to grasp.

Second of all, his morals are absurd. He is written as the Second Coming of Christ, as someone who can do no wrong, ever, and his flaws only serve to make Feyre love him more. Anything shitty he does is written as part of his "mask" and she can See Beneath It and knows that it "hurts" him to maintain this "mask".

Fellas, WHY DOES HE HAVE TO MAINTAIN THIS MASK???? There is no reason for it. If A) he does not give a shit about Court of Nightmares (we'll get back to that), only about Velaris, and B) Velaris is hidden/protected from the world, what is he pretending for?

It would not hurt him politically to be seen as someone who cares about his country.

"Pretending" to be "Amarantha's whore" does not in any way shape or form benefit the macro-world that is Prythian. In Amarantha's name, he commits atrocities. He commits war crimes; he systemically oppresses entire societies. It doesn't even really benefit Velaris, because Velaris is already hidden.

Let me put this in a real-world perspective. This would be like if Donald Trump was suddenly like: "I know I was a shitty president but IT WAS ALL PART OF MY MASK, WHICH WAS TO PROTECT THIS MICROCOSM OF PRIVILEGED PEOPLE THAT I CARE ABOUT". Like: okay? Sorry, or whatever, but I don't actually give a shit. What about the parents of the children who died? What about Clare Beddor? What about the people who were held in slavery, murdered, tortured?

Rhysand: omg it sucks that my cousin Mor was oppressed by this toxic misogynistic culture from the Court of Nightmares.

Also Rhysand: lol whatever, who gives a shit about Court of Nightmares. They all suck. They meanie. Lol what did you say? That there might be other girls just like Mor who are oppressed by this system? Lol whatever. I can't do anything, I gotta maintain my Mask. I gotta sit on this throne and show the entire Court that not respecting women is completely okay.

In summary: by parading Feyre around as his "whore" (!!) he demonstrates by example that it is completely okay for the Court of Nightmares to abuse their women.

A good ruler cares about all his people. Rhysand cares about a tiny tiny fraction of his people: those who were fortunate enough to be born into Velaris.

God, I'm exhausted. Onto Nesta:

The only character who successfully breaks the Mary Sue effect Feyre exerts on her people is Nesta. Her POV for the first half is a joy to read.

Obviously it sucks that Nesta was a huge bitch to Feyre for the beginning of her childhood. However, it was wrong for Rhysand to threaten her- he is a man male with a huge insane amount of power, and it is not okay for him to threaten to bring the brunt of it down on a young girl because she was a bitch to his girlfriend.

I've seen a lot of discourse on the morality of F/R sending her out of Velaris. Here is my two cents:

It was okay for them to cut her off of their money. If they don't want to enable her self-harm, that is their choice. Again, it's their money, even if it wasn't fairly earned (Rhysand born into an enormous fortune).

It was not okay for them to banish her from Velaris with the implication that she was an embarrassment. Let me explain.

If Rhysand and Feyre are talking to her as sister/brother-in-law, then that is that. They have the complete right to express disapproval and try to help. However, they should not be using their royal privilege against her.

If they are talking to her as ruler to subject, then they have the power to banish her from the city. However, a ruler would not give a shit about a random subject getting drunk and having sex. So, they should not be talking her about her problems as a ruler to subject.

I've heard it compared to her being sent to rehab. However, rehab is a system designed to help people with certain problems. It has specialized medical centers and involves therapy. Nesta gets her life threatened multiple times. It is not rehab.

In summary: why did SJM inflict this upon us. Throne of Glass was actually good! GAHHH! After the first few books she completely whipped around and introduced the idea of males and mates and fey and that C is actually A and the quality took a huge nosedive. Sigh.

Final horrible but unmistakable truth: The entire ACOTAR series reads like a bad A/B/O fic. I hate to say it but it's true. We're lucky there were no heat cycles. OH WAIT