#the quote also applies to what you get excited about *for* other people

[brown-little-robin]

I am trying to become

easier to impress

[genderqueerdykes]

the post you just shared about being both a trans man and a dyke reminded me of something that ive been wanting to talk about for a while now but haven't been able to so far.

im brazilian. the country with one of the biggest pride parades in the world while also being in the highest rates of violence towards lgbt people. queer culture here is weird, and maybe i missed out on it because i was able to find refuge online among the english speaking community relatively early.

ive been observing something that i wrongly assumed was our own version of the butch/femme community, and for a second i got really excited bc we all know butch loneliness, but the more i started looking into it, the more of its completely rotten entrails they showed me.

it's a disfigurement of the ideas that i have held to my heart so dearly ever since i read stone butch blues for the first time, and even more as i discovered leslie feinberg, and found out that there really were others like me. they use the term "desfem" (as in "defeminized"), and the definition explicitly states that the individual must be a cis woman, quoting some terf-tier bullshit that would make joanne proud.

hating men is their entire personality, and it's so shallow and based on cishet gender roles that there is no "femme" counterpart, because they see no way to perform femininity outside of patriarchal roles. they want the aesthetics of butchness without the hardships of living as one. the trans community carries these people on their backs and still they're more worried about how some dykes are trans too.

i don't know where im going with this, i just need to get it off my chest to someone who would at least have an idea of what im talking about. it's so disheartening to see the community head towards this direction, and i grow less and less interested in forming bridges with cis people as time goes on lol

i wanted to thank you for taking the time to send it, i really appreciate these thoughts! i get contacted by a lot of brazilian people. i think that's super cool! i've heard that despite how large your queer scene is that it's still very queerphobic and that's unfortunate, but it does happen.

"hating men is their entire personality, and it's so shallow and based on cishet gender roles that there is no "femme" counterpart, because they see no way to perform femininity outside of patriarchal roles."

i really appreciate the way you said this! i've been trying to point this out for a while now and i'm glad you've come to this realization, yourself.

for whatever reason, cis lesbian, dyke and sapphic spaces are obsessed with the butch-femme binary. it's romanced to hell and back but it's very restrictive and patriarchal. implying that romantic relationships must fall into a masculine partner + feminine partner structure is cisheteromative. there's not much representation for butch4butch, butch4all, femme4femme and femme4all people. the idea that the masculine partner must be strong and protect the weak feminine partner that can't defend themselves is a patriarchal dynamic.

all of the lesbian yearning posts are about how butches are tops and doms and how all femmes are bottoms and subs. butch becomes synonymous with penis and femme becomes synonymous with vagina. calling butches 'chivalrous knights' dehumanizes them and reduces them to being protector figures. the way cis femmes online go on and on and on about how they "need" a butch is very alarming. femmes are being framed as dependent and as though they can't function unless they have a butch in their life, which is very misogynistic.

it's just a repeat of cishet- the patriarchal relationship formatting applies here, even if the genders are slightly tweaked. it's in the coding. it's literally a copy and paste job. it's lazy and toxic as hell and it leaves out all of the diversity that comes with lesbianism and how butches and femmes can experience life and love and sexuality in a variety of ways.

the thing is, as a genderqueer person, i've never understood why people are so attached to this binary. it's so restrictive. i'm butch, but not in the way that white cis lesbians define it. the way they tlel you how to be butch is so restrictive it's not even funny. it's like you gotta pass a test. you gotta be stereotypically masculine 100% of the time or else you're not a real butch. you're expected to emulate a cishet guy, but if you identify as a guy, all hell breaks loose. if you think about it people basically force butches to identify as men and then hold it at arm's reach away. like you have to act exactly like a man but be a Woman. and it makes no fucking sense.

lesbians are some of the most gender diverse people out there. it's crazy to me that people are trying to force lesbians, people who are known for being gender weird, into a male-female cishet binary but with a lesbian Womyn coat of paint. i wish you better luck in finding community that wants to stick together instead of fight over petty bullshit that doesn't matter. take care of yourself. feel free to stop by again any time

[sy-on-boy]

My 2 cents on the plot / thematic relevance of Ch 95

This is not about advancing Plot B or showing Anya's school life (which is still true but has been discussed), but rather the overall theme of education and war. There was an excellent post about how Eden is at the frontline of the cold war and it is subtly shown through the innocent lens of the first graders (I can't find it now, would link it if I could). And I think that perfectly applies to Ch 95.

Quick recap on some references about education/students/war throughout the series (that I remember at the moment):

Sylvia gravely condemning the Berlint University Student Terrorists during the Doggy Crisis arc (Ch 20) and saying "did you learn nothing about war at your university?"

Henderson talking about his experience as a history teacher (Ch 27.5, Short Mission 4) and quote: "Yes, well, I have always maintained that there is nothing to be learned from the memorization of time lines. From the grand efforts with which our forefathers crafted society to the foolish notions that sent them racing to war, to not study the human element at history's root is to not understand history at all"

Note that Damian's best subject has been established to be history, and his family (father) has been involved in war, at least Donovan was PM during most of the war (established by Melinda in Ch 91). Donovan is also a graduated Imperial Scholar (Ch 64).

The Red Circus group started out as a peaceful student demonstration "advocating for peace and quality" (Ch 72) and "speaking out to protect the weakest members of our society". And Billy Squire said, "We were a respectable movement that fought for our cause with respectable means. It was the state that turned violent against us. So I'm not taking criticism from a member of the establishment (referring to Henderson, an educator). I'm gonna see to it that they reap what they've sown." Billy's daughter Biddy was killed by the state at a protest.

Less of a point, but Becky is the daughter of the CEO of a major military manufacturer. Despite their very likely involvement in military conflicts because they sell arms, the Blackbell cohort has been depicted positively so far: Becky being a kind, wonderful friend to Anya, Becky's father doting on her, and Martha again being kind and dignified (and also being an ex-soldier and acquainted with Henderson).

Eden Academy is a major setting for SxF and the themes of politics, education, and war are embedded in it. The students involved in protests/groups are older (the university students, Billy's daughter), but the political implications remain even among the youngest of the students— the first graders.

Hence, Ch 95. When mere first graders are shown to fight to gain connections, which can be political as pointed out by Henderson: "In the world of politics, dances serve as major social events". But of course, they are kids, so they see it more playfully and innocently, especially Becky with her shipper lens on.

Of course, there is also the aspect of getting to know other people better out of interest (the boys asking Anya and Becky to dance because they were impressed after the bus hijacking). But as people have mentioned, nobody mentions this to Damian despite him being equally involved in saving the class (all three of them got a star). The girls aren't interested in Damian as a person, they're interested in him as an asset because of his family and their power.

And I can see the teachers trying to diffuse the tension and create camaraderie with their friendly competition. To me, this reads as the teachers fully realizing "the battlefield of political maneuvering", and they want to remind the kids to have fun, to show good sportsmanship, to unite the kids, to operate as a class and be friendly with one another, and overall make it more lighthearted. It's nice to see the classes work together and get excited / win as a unit, especially compared to the more "individual" bits of fighting for a dance partner later.

We get a bit of comparison between Bill and Damian, with Bill showing good sportsmanship while Damian scoffs at him. But Damian ends up becoming ultra competitive and telling his classmates to not screw it up.

Like the Dodgeball chapter, Damian is clumsily attempting to lead the class by doing good in his quiz, while getting stressed and yelling at his peers when they don't succeed like he did. So he's not really a good leader. Like how him being good at history does not necessarily mean he is good at being peaceful (Short Mission 4 ends with Henderson staring in exasperation at Damian + Anya bickering with each other). But obviously, he is merely a child, and he is naturally immature.

At first Loid is all for advancing Plan B and analysed Anya's suitors in a rational (reductionist?) way by ranking them in terms of gaining intelligence, but he remembers this is just a dance, Anya is a kid, and she should do whatever she wants. Loid (and the adults) are very aware of the political side of the gala, but ultimately they want the kids to have fun and not worry / worry less about politics.

Because they're kids! They'll grow up and learn more and be politically active later, but right now, they're just kids. Kids who don't know much about the world but are eager to make the world a better place.

In the end, we get a panel of Anya and Loid "teaming up" to win Damian's hand for Plan B / world peace. The Damian-Anya dynamic is cushioned with the silly crushy feelings, but underneath it, Operation Strix continues to be a core motivation.

I find it interesting that Endo chooses to focus on the first graders and their innocent view of the world / politics. It's embedded everywhere and especially in a prominent school like Eden, but the kids don't really realise it / realise the severity of it. Heirs and heiresses are educated at Eden and grow up to have incredible influence and the power to shape the world. Our protagonist's best friend comes from a family that manufactures arms. Henderson mentions the importance of learning history to avoid making the same mistakes (ie. war).

So Ch 95 is a cute prom chapter. But I think it also helps to show the themes underneath the fun, bubbly interactions.

[botanphal]

THE VIVIBELLA BIBLE IS HERE AND IT’S QUEER

ENJOY

PREFACE

so you’re probably wondering. What is this weird sapphic tirade of 3K words? Well, this “note bible” was originally something I was going to keep for myself but figured others may want to see it too. This document is similar to a character bible, hence the name, except it’s more of a deep dive into two particular characters, strung out like notes. Please keep in mind that this document does not go into every idea I’ve had about these two but is more or less the basic ideas for the sake of consistency. This goes over canon and non-canon information which are separated so you know what’s true vs my own interpretations, though depending on which version of this post you’re reading, you may notice that there’s only canon information—which is more or less to let you have your own ideas from their purely canon-selves without the inspiration of my own non-canon ideas—the cut version of this document is also considerably smaller (1.7K). If you’re not on the canon cut version, then obviously the previous statement can be ignored. Regardless, I hope you have fun reading!

BOTANPHAL/PALIN’S VIVIBELLA BIBLE

LINKS

Just some links to their actual profiles for ease of access, as well as quotes and their theme music

Goombella:

https://www.mariowiki.com/Goombella

https://www.mariowiki.com/List_of_Goombella_quotes

https://youtu.be/1EmkKFaT7V4?si=erWshNwVBU5sfbo_

Vivian:

https://www.mariowiki.com/Vivian

https://www.mariowiki.com/List_of_Paper_Mario:_The_Thousand-Year_Door_quotes_by_character_(S–Z)

https://youtu.be/6WubRL1mPlQ?si=cY_tWs5TwyKZsr39

ESTABLISHING THE IDIOTS

let’s get down the gist of these sillies!

Goombella:

A junior at the university of Goom majoring in Archeology and seems to also consider herself a historian

- sassy, genuinely seems like she’d bite people’s fingers off sometimes

- nerd (but would backfire if you called her that given the note above)

- confident (of course, there are moments where she loses this but most of the time she seems rather self-actualized about things)

- kind, but does tend to poke fun at others (I can’t believe she called Koops cringe)

- curious

- knowledgeable (though she does make her mistakes regarding things like being fooled by Doopliss)

- excitable (after reading her dialogue over and over she uses a LOT of exclamation points. Girl calm down)

- kind of a hot head at times and jealous type, especially with how Ms. Mowz goes after Mario (Goombella definitely had a crush on him as well) and snaps back a lot though this could just be related to her mentioned sass

- this isn’t so much a character trait but she says “totally” a lot as well as “oh my gosh” which this one may be a catchphrase

Non-canon interpretations:

- has ADHD, needs meds or she loses her mind and becomes scrambled (top of the line “gifted” kid)

- possibly has a fear of heights given her comments at Hooktail’s castle making her nervous

- most Goombas seem to have two prominent fangs so I assume she’s missing one

- half Australian and half Maltese (has slightly an Australian accent but mostly sounds American)

- intersex, given Goombas are based off of mushrooms (and also chestnuts but I digress) and mushrooms are intersex, took estrogen to appear more feminine and identifies as a woman (this still applies to her gijinka, just that her species of demi-human is also all intersex)

- futch (femme/butch, will wear either or-or dress equal)

- has a lot of (unsuccessful) relationship experience which adds to her anxiety about her feelings for Vivian, specifically having dated three other people

- Full name is (Goom)Bellami Alessia Bones (Goom is a family title and not actually required to say, though she prefers to be called Bella than Bellami)

- 21 years old (while she has no confirmed age her being in her early 20s makes the most sense given she’s a Junior at university)

- has an earthy/dirt yet flowery scent

- has a cut on her right eyebrow

- loves savory flavors but occasionally enjoys spicy and sweet (Goombas have a main diet of meat so she tends to eat a lot of that)

- executive dysfunction sometimes causes her to not clean herself, but if someone complains then she will (she tends to carry around a perfume bottle)

- pansexual (possibly a coping lesbian)

- (gijinka) is missing the majority of her right forearm though she has a prosthetic for it (was born like that) and is missing almost all of her left arm aside for the shoulder (incidental)

- swears fairly often

Vivian:

Youngest of the three shadow sirens/sisters with the ability to use fire magic

- shy/somewhat reserved (opens up more later on, still shy but less reserved)

- cutesy (how the fuck did she speak with a heart symbol in one of her quotes)

- graceful

- polite

- sweet/kind (there should be no mistake to how far Vivian’s forgiveness goes considering she’s willing to forgive her own family that abused her for years—Vivian disowning them is not something Vivian herself would do)

- empathetic/sympathetic (I think about her random glitz pit dialogue a lot and how she worries if her and Mario did a bit too much on the enemies. But also she sometimes says “NO MERCY” she’s so silly)

- curious (moreso about most things being new to her due to being sheltered by her sisters for so long)

- submissive, though gains some confidence later on (this is just my own take but I feel like it’d take her longer than it does in-game to be more confident given the severity and length of abuse she experienced)

- struggles with an inferiority complex (this is actually a canon thing and made mention of) at the hands of her sisters abuse

- says “gee whiz” a lot, might be a catchphrase

- tends to stutter when nervous (possibly easy to fluster, especially considering she likely has not received a lot of compliments in her life)

Non-canon interpretations:

- possibly has athazagoraphobia (the fear of being forgotten) or just has general struggles with the concept

- given her trauma (mental/emotional abuse, unsure if there’s ever been physical though in one of the translations of the game Beldam apparently starved her, neglect from Marilyn), she probably would struggle with depression, anxiety and PTSD

- dysphoric, obviously feels better about herself the further into her transitioning (something about Vivian makes me feel like she’d struggle with dysphoria—it’s already a lesser discussed topic among fictional transwomen and given Vivian’s upbringing I think it’d make sense that she particularly has this and would make mention of it)

- she’s autistic and I can’t exactly explain why but someday I will (this very well could be projection uhhh. Anyway she probably doesn’t even know she has it or what it is, has had struggles to learn magic as the ways her sisters were trying to teach her weren’t working for her)

- demisexual-biromantic (I feel like it just makes sense for her to be this way given how she warms up to Mario and the same would apply to Goombella)

- has a beautiful singing voice partially learned from vocal training herself, however she is also called a shadow siren

- a piece of the Shadow Queen, her future

- has no exact ethnicity hc aside for being black as a gijinka, she’s something else entirely and can speak all languages (including sign language and braille) but mainly speaks English and Latin (if she were to be an actual human she’d be Eritrean and Sammarinese)

- femme (specifically loves to wear flowy things like dresses and skirts, the most “masculine” thing she’d wear is a suit)

- Has no full name, simply known as Vivian (if her and Goombella were to marry then she’d be Vivian Bones :flushed:)

- 20 years old

- has a smoldering lavender scent

- (gijinka) actually lost one of her legs while learning to veil, simply conjured up a convincing new one that she can freely remove

- can swear, refuses to do so (she’s too nice and polite the silly thing)

- is a pure-magical being so she requires frequent mana consumption to live, fire flowers are her favorite thing to use for this

- unaffected by fire and heat, can touch it without pain, body temperature is always high, only sweats when she’s sick, it’s very unusual for her to feel cold

- loves sweet, spicy and hot flavored things

- very clean, loves to shower or bathe (sometimes very atmospheric about it with hot water and candles)

- I like to think that she becomes a bookworm and wants to learn more about magic, but also reads up on psychology after the things she’s been put through

- shadow’s eyes are extremely sensitive to light, their hats have magical properties that keep them safe and shadow over them, without it she can only open her eyes in complete pitch-darkness, otherwise she keeps them closed (their gloves also work as buffers for their magic to make spells less intense, they’re sorta limiters in a way, Vivian especially has to wear them due to having fire powers and well… fire is commonly seen as destruction more than life)

- left handed, can use right okay

- knows how to cauterize wounds using her magic

- during new moons her appearance changes to more resemble the Shadow Queen, gaining more shades of purple and little stars speckling all over her, as well as having her eyes always shown

HOW THE FUCK DID WE GET HERE?

vivibella stems from Goombella’s tattle dialogue during the first battle with the three shadow sirens as shown:

note that this dialogue varies from the original GameCube version of the game compared to the Switch remake above:

unfortunate how the dialogue was nerfed compared to the original, making her seem jealous rather than having some kind of sapphic awakening but now I think of it as she’s deflecting what she’s feeling

DYNAMICS

- has a sort of opposites attract kinda thing going on, Goombella being the more open and expressive one while Vivian is the shy and reserved one

- enemies to friends to lovers

- love triangle (for the fact they both had a crush on Mario at one point but Goombella never seemed to be bothered by Vivian’s feelings for him unlike how she’s felt about the other women pining after him, she probably respects Vivian’s feelings for him given what he meant to her)

- the studier (Goombella) and one to be studied (Vivian) idk if there’s an actual name for this dynamic but I went into this concept a bit in this tweet:

- yapper x listener (I don’t think I have to explain who is who)

THAT ITALIAN GUY

Before we get into the meat of vivibella, it must be understood what Mario meant to these two. As it goes in TTYD, Mario for some reason is just a MAGNET for ladies and Goombella and Vivian are no exception to this, most of the female characters seem to express having a crush on him but let’s take a look at them individually:

Goombella particularly seems to fall under having a crush on him but she’s rather dismissive of it/acts like she doesn’t in a teasing way. She expresses jealousy whenever other female characters pursue him (think of Flurrie and Ms. Mowz, even speculates on Lady Bow post-game) but doesn’t with Vivian, likely due to the fact that Vivian doesn’t express her feelings for him around anyone (aside for the finale) considering during Chapter 4 it’s only her and Mario together when she kisses him��we don’t exactly know how Goombella would feel about Vivian’s feelings for Mario, but I think she’d probably be the most respectful to her given the things she’s been through and how Mario helped her open up and improve. During her letter to Mario at the end of the game, she talks about a “secret” which I imagine has to do with her crush on him, but she doesn’t follow through with it likely due to Mario’s pursuit of Peach

Vivian and Mario have a much deeper relationship compared to all the female characters that fall for him. Vivian definitely has a crush on him but also seems to actually be in love with him given the events that transpire; Mario helping her through her trauma and accepting her without question and also being a lending hand to someone in need despite his own troubles at the time of having lost his name, body and trusted companions. Even after realizing who he is and leaving given that he was her enemy at a certain point, she comes back upon realizing what he showed her and valued that over everything else as being the first person to EVER be kind to her. She turned her back on her family for him. During the final battle Vivian attempts to confess to him as well as during the end of the game when he’s leaving, but hesitates again due to the fact that she knows that he’d choose Peach and even thinks that the two would make a great couple. I’m sure it would be hard for Vivian to move on from him, he’s probably the first person she’s ever loved in such a way and again, he’s the first person to show her real kindness

THINKING TOO HARD

Goombella is obviously the one to crush first given her tattle dialogue, she may be kinda sassy about her feelings for her when teased by others but when she’s actually around Vivian she’s more reserved and anxious due to her shy and gentle nature, in some ways I feel like she may fear possibly scaring Vivian away by being too forward and is also afraid of the possible rejection as she’s aware of Vivian’s feelings for Mario despite him eventually not being in the picture (and of course possibly being unaware to the fact that Vivian is bi). Goombella’s probably very likely a girlfail and a fumbler when it comes to flirting but god if she isn’t confident about it and Vivian finds it endearing. I think it makes the most sense for her to confess later on as I’m sure she probably reaches some form of boiling point and just drops all her words out after being unable to hide it anymore (Vivian doesn’t like to assume things about others typically so that’s why I don’t see her confessing first instead)

Goombella falls first but I feel like Vivian would fall harder as the two of them grow closer, Vivian already experienced rejection from Mario so in some ways she probably wasn’t expecting to find successful love anytime soon nor in a more similar way to how Mario was with her. Of course, Goombella isn’t exactly like him at all but the kindness and patience is still there, albeit with some attitude which Vivian doesn’t mind. I think it would take a bit for Vivian to catch onto Goombella and her own feelings given her experience with Mario. This being her second experience with love, she’s definitely very inexperienced regarding all of it which is why she holds back. With my hc of Goombella having been through her own form of transition, a lot of comfort is to be found there for Vivian as they’re somewhat similar due to that. I don’t think Vivian really knows how to flirt but she’d give lots of compliments and do gestures, she’s also a girlfail but in a graceful way and tries not to show it, she’s kinda a secret dork (and I mean. With the fact she stutters when nervous. There isn't anyway this girl isn't also a girlfail of her own like come on now)

Regarding my own lore, I like to think that these two live together in Goombella’s Uni dorm after the events of TTYD. Vivian switches on Fridays to live with her sisters then back with Goombella the following Friday so on and so forth to help rebuild a healthy connection with them while with Goombella she explores herself given she’s been stuck with her sisters for so long. Their situation isn’t helped by the fact that they have to share a bed due to the limitations of Goombella’s Uni dorm size, though it is fancier as it’s more like an apartment with separate rooms, (basically consists of two small bedrooms, the other bedroom being her roommate’s, a living space and kitchen combo as well as a bathroom) still small though

Goombella tends to go to Flurrie for advice regarding her feelings for Vivian, while Vivian goes to Lady Bow after forming a friendship sometime after TTYD’s events. I also like to think that Flurrie and Lady Bow end up coming together to scheme about the two of them (neither are aware of this until they start dating)

Their relationship builds off of living together and Vivian learning about herself, Goombella there to guide her as someone who already knows her own life and the steps she took to get to where she’s at—the two spend a lot of time together obviously and Goombella strives to try and get something out of the two of them than just a friendship given her own growing feelings, even if it takes being more patient

Even on the weeks when Vivian’s living with her sisters Goombella tends to visit her and hang out, sometimes sleeping over as well. Vivian along the way starts to realize how Goombella’s care for her is much deeper than she originally thinks it is—in some ways Vivian already feels inspired by someone like her who is so confident and self assured, she could use someone like her to give her a nudge in the right direction

They probably even go out on adventures together which further strengthens their bond, which of course may stir up trouble and that leaves room for needing to rely on each other or help each other in such times of need (who doesn’t love some hurt and comfort mmmm)

CLOSING STATEMENT

Anyway, that’s really all I have though I have a feeling that even AFTER publishing this I’ll be still tweaking this until the day I die. I love these two very much if that uh….. Isn’t obvious at all. uh huh. I hope you gained some kind of enjoyment and understanding out of all this gay nonsense from these strange little sapphic creatures that have been rotting my brain for months :3

the canon version of this post will come out soon! This just took so long to do I’m going to explode rn

[darkcircles4lyfe]

There's something that's been bothering me for a while now, in terms of bnha's ending and it's final canon pair. I had a hard time understanding the way people seen to interpret their "superiority" over other pairs because they are "pure, healthy and wholesome", adding in how strange the author's intentions came across, and just feeling even more confused.

Until i came across a NileRed video of all things. (It feels so bizarre bringing such a random video to this discussion but bear with me lmao) Where he attempted to make "the world's purest cookie" by creating it in a lab, basically. Using the purest form of every ingredient he was able to find because "well it's pure, so it must be better, right?". And it was very amusing watching a guy who never baked before struggle to make even something so basic, with a decent, easy recipe. Everyone was excited until it came time to taste it, and it ended up being the blandest thing he's ever tasted.

And then another youtuber, Ann Reardon, who's a professional baker, not only explained the wrong in the use of the ingredients showed in the video, but also tested the recipe he used normally, and the result was just a nice choc chip cookie. There was nothing wrong with it.

Nile's entire problem was that he didn't know a thing about the nuances of baking as a science of it's own, and only went by what he, a chemist with no experience in baking, thought would work the best.

To me, that is literally that pair's entire existence in physical form. People in favor of it use the first basis of how "pure and predictable" is good regardless, because they deemed it inherently healthy but didn't bother with actually analysing it further. The story had the recipe for a regular, typical shonen romance, but both use of it and ingredients were all totally wrong.

And the author, not having any experience with writing romance, did what he thought was best, (maybe because he liked them together and was attached), but fumbled tremendously when he realized he wouldn't be able to make them happen organically, because it was too late, it didn't fit anywhere else in the story, and there were too many things in the way as well. So he did what he could to side step them into a believable conclusion, but in doing so, he sacrificed his story's flavor and complexity for something that fell flat and became unpopular among true fans of the series.

"I think that my interpretation of purity was naive... Purity didn't have anything to do with flavor or smell or texture. Purity is its own thing, and if you want to achieve true purity, you must sacrifice everything. Everything that makes it worth it."

(fantastic quote from the NileRed NileBlue video)

Anon, you've really charmed me with this metaphor, and I think it works. The details get a little fuzzy once you know that the "pure" ingredients he got are actually made so you know exactly what's in them, not necessarily so that they are impurity-free. But he still applied an extreme level of hubris in using chemistry lab materials to make a "perfect" or "better" cookie, without understanding anything about the very different science that is baking. Like, he didn't know what baker's chocolate even is. Besides, what he sought was impossible, because chocolate practically cannot be made 100% without "bug parts" etc. And in the end, he made a really fucking terrible cookie anyway. I'm fascinated by the fact that it didn't even have a smell...

I'm definitely not one to judge ships against each other to say that one is inherently better, but when the other side keeps pushing this idea of purity, it does make me pause. Do they like it because it's bland? Because it ticks off all their morality requirements? Because it affirms their idea of normal? Honestly I'd have a lot more respect for them if they openly rejected what the source material has given them in favor of what their own imaginations can come up with. Some do, to be sure, but most still try to defend canon. Come on. Give them something to struggle with each other over and grow from. Anything but this constant unspoken blushing awkwardness.

I do want to put a small wrinkle in what you've said, though. I don't want to assume Horikoshi was doing what he thought was best with 431. Think about it this way. If he, much like many shonen mangaka like Oda for example, set out to write a story where romance is not the focus because he wasn't interested in writing those kinds of plots, but instead more interested in developing plots that are based in politics, friendship, family, sacrifice, and examining the dichotomy of "good" and "evil," why not maintain that priority through the end? Why would he spend dozens of pages systematically dismantling everything he cared about in the first place for the sake of something he clearly viewed as secondary? Like yeah, maybe he did think they were cute and was still attached to the idea of them ending up together, but I can't believe he thought they were worth this much compared to everything else he actually put effort into.

However, this "pure cookie" metaphor you've made fits quite well with how publishing can operate, where the rules of marketing are often erroneously applied to art of storytelling, like lab chemistry to baking. The things that give the story its uniqueness and flavor are refined and boiled down for the sake of making it predictable, benign, safe, easy to digest. So it can sell. So it can avoid controversy with conservative society. I'm honestly really sick of debating all the points of this ending as if they are definitely 100% only Horikoshi's vision or personal mistakes. We really don't know that and maybe we never will. I for one at least hope that we keep in mind that censorship is still a very real and current issue, and I'm not going to speak ill of the dead, as it were.

btw, I was largely inspired by this thread about Steven Universe on twitter, and tbh I include this reasoning not just for 431, but other things along the way, especially the last 10-15 chapters or so.

[pippin-katz]

I understand being upset that Mary & George is about filthy sex vs. RWRB but also... As a queer person, straight people have shows like GoT which are mostly filthy hetero sex so we can have the same.

People had sex for power throughout history, that's just how it is. And George was mentioned in the RWRB novel by Henry specifically so to have Nick portray him in this show is pretty cool.

You misunderstand me.

I have absolutely no qualms about Mary & George being the show that it is. I have no problem with it being raunchy and sex-filled. I'm entirely for variety of content and genres for all groups of people.

What I was pointing out is that this show is truly getting attention. There's interviewers, articles, social media posts, etc. that are all buzzing about it. It's not just a niche group of book fans that are anxiously awaiting the adaptation. There is a lot of hype, and one of the first things everyone mentions when discussing this show is the sex.

That's all completely fine, but I can't help but feel like this excitement and anticipation would not have applied to Red, White & Royal Blue, even if it had gotten the promo it should've.

People love getting excited/flustered/teasing/curious over sex on the screen, particularly if it's dirty and/or kinky. "Sex sells" is a saying for a reason.

It hurts to finally get a movie like Red, White & Royal Blue, that is beautiful, hopeful, funny, happy, and unapologetically queer, without it being the center plot point, and know deep down that it would never get as much praise or attention as something like Mary & George would.

The painful truth is that for the general masses, gay relationships boil down to sex. It's what they think of first. It's what some of them only think about. When a ship/pairing is proposed, what's one of the very first questions asked or teased about?

"Who's the top and who's the bottom?"

It is treated as something that they are expected to share based on how casually it's asked. You would never ask that question to a heterosexual couple even though those terms can be applied to them too. It's all they want to talk about, and yet they're also oblivious and ignorant. I mean, for fuck's sake, at least 75% of the viewing population of RWRB, even those who would consider themselves dedicated allies, did not know that men could have missionary sex. All they picture when they think of gay sex is rough, back-to-chest sex where they aren't facing each other. It did not even occur to them as a possibility that men could have gentle, face-to-face sex.

Loving sex is rarely depicted between queer couples on the screen, which is what made Red, White & Royal Blue so different and important.

The film is also not centered around their sexualities. They are contributing factors to the plot, but they are not the focus the way it is in movies like Love, Simon. Taylor recently quoted Matthew with this phrase: "It is not a gay love story; it's just a love story."

Henry and Alex's relationship is depicted no differently than any heterosexual romcom couple. If you switched one of them to a woman, you could play the plot out the exact same way; all you would change would be the scrutiny based on their sexualities, which can be substituted for class differences, race, or literally anything else that the public could hold against them.

And to clarify again, there is nothing wrong with showing the other side of this. I have no problem with it whatsoever!

It is just disappointing and frustrating to see how fast and easily the media flock to a show like Mary & George because it's so "outrageous" and "sexy", while Red, White & Royal Blue has practically been brushed off only six months following its release after it dominated the worldwide charts for several weeks.

I know what people will say: "Oh, the window for promo has passed!" "Oh, they're still talking about it a bit!" "Oh, it's because of the strike!"

Yes, it was, but I cannot shake the feeling that even if it hadn't happened, Red, White & Royal Blue would have still gotten the short end of the stick compared to something like Mary & George, or The Idea Of You that's coming out later. I'm pushed more towards that mindset after RWRB lost the SAG award the other night even though it was easily the best one on that list.

RWRB is treated as inferior and has already suffered from homophobic Hollywood standards multiple times, but I almost guarantee you that M&G will receive mountains of praise and awards, despite being way more explicit than RWRB is.

That is what I have a problem with.

[indiaalphawhiskey]

Hii India

You already said a few things about Harry taking a break.. now that the last show is over and Harry saying goodbye over Instagram, what do you think?

A lot of people have the opinion he’s going to be gone for quite a while now. Whatever it is I’m glad he’s taking the break. For me it’s a confirmation that he’s still dealing with the mess that fame is in a healthy way and I’m going to be here for when he decides to come back. I’m going to miss him so much though.

And I would love to hear your take on things. Do you think this is a goodbye for a longer time period? Or is it more an goodbye for him, to be okay with the fact that things might never be the same as they were during this tour? That his fame is changing and he accepts that he doesn’t have to control it?

Hi, love 🩵

Hmm. So, I can’t believe I’m actually going to say this, but practically speaking, for the first time, the set up of a new stunt is a hopeful sign. If they’re finding a way to keep Harry in the press, however low the profile (🤞🏼), it’s for a reason. My hunch is that he is tying up with Loewe in some way, and in that sense, I don’t think it will be long ‘til we see him again, physically (however infrequently).

But, I also think touring is tougher than he makes it seem, physically, mentally and emotionally. I think all the things he realized during COVID, about being a better son/brother/friend (and partner) is a driving force in this seemingly more urgent need to find balance. It’s certainly a shift from the way he was working/talking during Fine Line, but I also think that’s the point.

He’s now in a very rare “natural” break in his career as a musician. We haven’t had any confirmation that he’s re-signed with Columbia (although I have no doubt that he has), so for all intents and purposes, he’s currently publicly free from professional obligation for the first time in a long time (at least in terms of his music) and that is going to feel very, very odd for someone who’s been working essentially non-stop (whether in the spotlight or behind the scenes) for over a decade. I think that novelty and sense of impermanence is something he’s trying really hard to embrace; to meet with excitement rather than fear. So, for the most part, I stand by my original thoughts.

But, if I can add:

I think Harry is the kind of person that is very aware of the gravity of fate and sheer magic that has gone into his success. You can see it in the way he talks about there being “no reason he should be getting to do this instead of anyone else” and how “we’re all the same” and “this doesn’t happen to people like me very often”. In this way, I think there’s a constant groundedness about his person and an acceptance of the vulnerability of his career and his success — in other words, he knows that lighting really might not strike thrice, and I think he’s preparing himself for that. There was a moment on the last Late Late show, when he was comparing himself to Will Ferrell and he said something like “Will has longevity and I’m more a flash in the pan” (untrue, but I digress) and what struck me about that line was how acutely aware he is that things can change for him at any moment. It’s similar to his “whatever people say about you, it’s not true. If people say you’re the best thing ever, it’s not true” quote on Howard Stern; like I think it’s one of the themes of his life, having to have a firm hold on reality so that the ‘inevitable’ crash is manageable.

He also seems to be trying to learn from the lives of other musicians/celebrities, and take those lessons to heart by applying them to his life and his work. in the end, I think what he’s trying to do is just accept that there are no guarantees; that he doesn’t know and has no control over whatever happens to the world while he’s away or what he’s returning to. I think the reason it sounds so definitive and scary and existential is because it is all of those things, for him. This is a big change, and he’s giving it its space and weight for the first time, because it is the first time he’s been able to say a proper goodbye (1D hiatus was rushed, HS1 went directly into FL, FL ended abruptly during COVID… there’s a pattern.)

Bottom line though, is that I know for certain Harry fucking loves music and touring. It’s a compulsion, for him. It’s in his DNA. And that’s why I’m not scared that he’ll leave forever, because I’ve always hard the feeling his music nourishes him just as much (if not more) than it nourishes us. He does what he does for himself, and we’re a bonus, and as an artist, that is the best reason to do anything and the only reason to keep coming back to it, regardless of the uncertainty that awaits him.

Not to make this novel any longer than it is, but I’ve also had a recent thought that occurred to me: Harry is 29, which means he’s currently going through his Saturn return.

I’ve asked my therapist (who is also an astrologist) for a bit more literature on Saturn returns, cause I’m super curious about how that might be affecting him. (For background, all my friends got married around the times of their Saturn return, and both my best friend and I picked up and moved halfway across the world during ours so at least for the people in my life, it seems like it is consistent with big change, and from the way Harry is talking, it seems it might be affecting him the same way.) I’ll get back to you. 😉🪐

[thecomfywriter]

How to deal with Imposter Syndrome as a Writer:

Blog Intro ToV Official Synopsis Buy my book Join the ToV Community! Read ToV Free

Learn to appreciate your own work:

You will never know how to accept a compliment from someone else if you cannot see the merits in your own work. You have to learn to love your work yourself first, independent from everyone else’s opinion, before you try to garner approval from them. So how do you go about this? Reread your work and try to find your favourite parts: What is a line you really enjoyed writing? DId you enjoy reading it just as much as you intended for the reader to enjoy it? Did any other lines catch your eye that, during the writing process, you didn’t even realize were so profound or impactful? What about the characters? Whose your favourite? Who makes you laugh the most? Who would you most likely be friends with? Whose very presence in a scene makes you want to commit a felony? By finding the components of your writing that evoke an emotional response from you, you allow yourself to be emotionally impacted– and by extension (hopefully) emotionally attached– to your work. Find the gems in your writing that make your book the favourite on your future shelf. Art and Moodboards! Create art (doodles, sketches, paintings) for your ocs, certain scenes in your books, settings, landscapes, aesthetics, outfits, or all of the above! Moodboards using Pinterest and Shuffle also help if you don’t want to draw, or commissions from artists. Lowkey, I’d be down to open commissions for oc artwork in the writeblr community, but idk i’m just throwing stuff out there. The point is, plenty of artists and writers offer their services to draw, or you can take up the skill yourself and give it a shot! The point of this is to get yourself excited for your writing. Why? That brings me to my next point. Treat your book like it’s already published with an established fandom, and you’re its biggest fan? What kind of fan behaviour are you engaging in? Headcanons? Incorrect quotes? Character edits? Song designation to certain scenes or ocs? Fanfics of fluff scenes? Guess what, chief? You’re the author. Not only do you get to do all that stuff, but it gets to be canon if you want it to be. Or, you can be like me and gatekeep an entire wiki page in your Notion/the drafts for no one to see unless they beg for it. It’s your perogative. But be your biggest fan until someone else comes along, recognizes your passion, and challenges you for that title.

Share your work, and your reactions to your work:

Everything we just did in tip one, I want you to go ahead and share it on your writeblr. Let the community see how much you care about this project of yours. The parts that make you cry; the parts that wrench your heart out,; the parts that were so cinematically aesthetic, you just HAD to draw it. Let the community see not only the fruits of your labour, but the ones you found sweet enough to call nectar. Let them feast on that ambrosia and join the fandom.

Accept feedback graciously:

It’s never easy getting criticism on your work. Whether its positive or negative feedback, the most important thing to do is not react to it defensively. Instead, thank the person who took time out of their day to try and help you fine-tune your craft by giving you tips to improve it. Then, reflect on the feedback and how it aligns or misaligns with your vision. Is this feedback derailing the intentions you have as a creator? If so, how do you try to incorporate the advice so that you are able to stay true to your vision and represent it in a way that allows readers to appreciate it the same way you do.

The most important part of receiving feedback is being open to it. If you close yourself off to changing your work or others’ opinions, you are limiting your potential for growth. Assume the best of intentions from people who comment on your work, and take it with a grain of salt when applying it to your project. Ultimately, you know your project best, but the community will try to help you enhance your work to make it better. The best thing you can do for the trajectory of your writing career is take what they say– not to heart, but to the mind for further reflection.

╚══ஓ๑♡๑ஓ══╝✧༺♥༻∞╚══ஓ๑♡๑ஓ══╝

I genuinely don’t know how this turned into a toolbox post LMAO. I had another post in queue today, but I saw this reblog and had to respond. If you guys have any additional tips, comment below! It’s always a join to help the community out, since I know how much we all deal with this.

Obviously, since I made the og post, I deal with it too. But these tips are what help me trust myself and my writing, and affirm to myself that no matter how undeserving I feel of praise, my book is good enough. And most importantly, I enjoy it.

I’ll link the rest of my TCW toolbox posts down below, which has a section of affirmations for writers. Anyway– go buckwild! Go crazy! Cheerios!

Happy Writing! :)

✧༺♥༻∞

[scienter]

Oh wow. I have so many thoughts about Wind and Truth chapters 3 & 4.

Who or what the fuck is the Wind? 🤔

“Is the wind a god?” Kaladin asked.

“When this world was created,” Wit said, long before Honor, Cultivation, or Odium arrived, Adonalsium left something behind on it. Sometimes it’s called the Old Magic. Sometimes that term is applied to the Nightwatcher, who came – with Cultivation’s efforts – from one of those ancient spren. Listen to the Wind when it speaks, Kaladin. It’s weaker than it once was, but it has seen so very much.”

Now I just want to go back through the series and note every passage mentioning Kaladin and the wind or a voice in the wind. I know there's a lot of them there.

Also, I've seen people mention this quote from the series:

"We took them in, as commanded by the gods . . . For their betrayal extended even to our gods: to spren, stone, and wind."

 So the wind is . . . a deity?

I kept thinking about Syl's explanation of the wind at the beginning of Oathbringer. She said something about honorspren being connected or related to the wind, and that the wind had been with Kaladin since his childhood. 🤨

So much to think about . . .

“Listen,” Wit said. “Everything you’ve done—Kal, everything you’ve been—has prepared you for what’s next. It’s going to be hard. Fortunately, life has been hard, so you’re working under familiar constraints.”

Kaladin glanced to the side, where Wit was staring off into space, idly spinning the red flute in his fingers. Something in his voice… his face…

“You’re talking,” Kaladin said softly, “as if one of us won’t survive this.”

“I wish I were optimistic enough to think one of us would survive.”

NO, NO, NO! 🙈🙉🙊

I hope to god all the Kaladin-is-going-to die foreshadowing is a red herring. I don't want Kaladin to die an early death. Not after he struggled so much with suicidal ideation. It'd be a shitty end to his story if he dies as a hero/martyr after overcoming his self-destructive impulse to kill himself. Please be a misdirect! 🙏

“Simply trying to give you a proper send-off,” Wit said. “We’re at the end, Kaladin, and you are needed. I want you to march off to your divine destiny with a spring in your step.”

A PROPER SEND-OFF?

A DIVINE DESTINY?

What does that mean!?

Does Kaladin die? 😭🤬

Does Kaladin ascend? 😯🫨

Does Kaladin merge and/or bond with the wind?? 🤔🤯

“You know what first drew me to you, Kaladin?” Wit asked. “You did one of the most difficult things a man can do: you gave yourself a second chance.”

Wit gets it.

“I took that second chance… maybe a third,” Kaladin admitted. “But now what? Who am I without the spear?”

“Won’t it be exciting to find out?” Wit said. “Have you ever wondered who you would be if there was no one you needed to save, no one you needed to kill? You’ve lived for others for so long, Kaladin. What happens when you try living for you?”

Oh, I am SO ready for this next step in Kaladin's journey. I'd love to find out who Kaladin is beyond the battlefield. There is more to Kaladin than just being a soldier or a hero. It's one of the reasons why I want Kaladin to survive this book. I want to see Kaladin living for himself.

And yeah, I need to go back through and give all the wind references another look. I thought it was noteworthy before, but I believed it was just connected to Kaladin being a windrunner. But it looks to be something more than just that. Is it connected to the Stormfather calling Kaladin "Son of Tanavast" or Kaladin's "divine destiny"?

[arizonaraine]

Sorting Hat Chats: Jumanji (2017)

I still remember the first time I saw this movie-- I went in with super low expectations and LOVED it. It's regularly quoted in my household. "Oh, you have allergies, Spencer? I'm missing the top two feet of my body!" So, without further ado...

Spencer is a Badger primary. He was devastated when his childhood best friend, Fridge, backed away from him in search of a cooler crowd. But he doesn't let that stop him from doing Fridge's homework in hopes that he'll win a place in his life again. He's an affable, sweet young man, who notices people who typically fly under the radar-- like Martha. In Jumanji, his primary concern is keeping the group together and alive. He's non-confrontational (until he has to be) and tries to find ways to break bad news gently ("that's not how I would have put it..." he says after Fridge drops the bomb on Alex). He builds people up by talking about their strengths. He has a very clear Bird secondary-- he's the guy who plays video games. "That's literally the main thing that I do." He strategizes rather than charges and sees his physical strength as Dr. Bravestone as a skill, narrating the steps to himself ("uppercut!").

Fridge starts off as a self-centered Snake primary. He traded Spencer in for a cooler crowd to boost his own social status and is primarily concerned with his own football career-- not the impact that cheating will have on his or Spencer's lives. It's not until he gets to Jumanji that he starts to look outside himself. He seems to take special care of Bethany-- urging her to get up when she's fallen down, trusting her when she tells him the cake is bread (oops...), etc. It takes him and Spencer some time to work out their grievances, but once he's in, he's in, and Fridge helps to build up his courage in a moment when he needs in the most. Fridge is definitely a Lion secondary, he's the guy who's always shouting and making his displeasure known, who picks fights with Spencer, but who also charges in to save the day ("Zoology, bit***!")

Bethany begins the film as a myopic Badger primary, whose definition of "people" is pretty limited. She has the best growth arc of the movie, IMO. She cares a lot about what other people think of her, works hard to look perfect and appeal to her boyfriend, and tries to charm her teacher to get out of detention. She shares parts of her life with Martha and is offended when Martha acts "judgy," but accepts her influence and grows. In a conversation with Alex, she says something to the effect of, "sometimes, you get so caught up in your own stuff that you forget other people have stuff too..." She also gives up one of her lives for Alex, so he can get home too! She tells him, "you're our missing piece--" bringing him into the group. In the second movie, she's been off on a humanitarian trip, is so excited to get the group back together, and starts a cheerleader-style chant before wading into battle. The flirting lessons for Martha?? Badger, badger, badger. Her strength is in connecting with and encouraging others-- a Badger secondary.

Martha is kind of hard to read, but I see her as a Bird primary. She's a little black-and-white in how she views the world-- "gym class is not going to get me into Princeton!"-- and has ambitious goals that are largely focused on external things. She sees Bethany as fitting into the "hot, popular girl" mold and it takes her some time to see past that to the real person. She, like Spencer, is a Bird secondary. She's very systematic in how she approaches things, takes the skills that her character (Ruby Roundhouse) has very literally, and applies what she's learned to other people and situations ("Alex, if I can fight those guys, you can fly that helicopter!").

Bonus! Alex is a Snake primary, Bird secondary. He thinks a lot about his parents and says that he's a drummer, "just like my dad." Though he likes the rest of the group, he has a special bond with Bethany. He offers his life for hers, and when that doesn't work, he charges at the big bad guy to rescue her. When he sees them all again after getting out of Jumanji, Bethany is the first one he recognizes (he still calls Martha "Ruby Roundhouse"-- did he forget her name, or was he teasing? IDK). He names a daughter after Bethany, the girl who saved his life. His Bird secondary has burned after being trapped in the game for so long, he doesn't trust himself and his skills anymore and has been living in limbo.

TL;DR:

Spencer: Badger Primary, Bird Secondary

Fridge: Snake Primary, Lion Secondary

Bethany: Badger Primary, Badger Secondary

Martha: Bird Primary, Bird Secondary

Alex: Snake Primary, Bird Secondary

[sad-eyed-lady-of-the-paperbacks]

I don’t know how I never discovered Petscop before. I guess looking at the dates, it came out during a time I wasn’t online as much. If it had come out a few years earlier I would have been all over it.

But instead, I just stumbled across the completed series yesterday, and damn. It resonated so deeply with me. I have very little idea of what the hell is going on in terms of any kind of coherent linear narrative, but the raw emotions and themes? Haunting.

I’m going to ramble a bit under the cut, and this is going to go into some really dark themes. Trauma, violence, child abuse, lots of dark implications. Also spoilers for a webseries that is over 5 years old and probably everyone but me has seen at this point.

One part of dialogue in particular, or rather a note, is just playing over and over in my head. It’s one of the most chilling things I’ve ever read, and what makes it so effective is how much it leaves to cryptic, horrifying, but very poetic implication.

Your wife says, “Care isn’t growing eyebrows.” You say, “That’s a puzzle.” You’re secretly very excited to hear this news. You’re in the bathtub thinking about her. I have a guess at which child you’ll pick next. When you find her room, the passage to my right will lead to her. She’ll appear from the darkness, limping, and I’ll shoot her in the head. Tiara says young people can be psychologically damaged “beyond rebirthing.” A young person walks into your school building. They walk in with you. You’re holding their hands. They come out crying into their hands, because nobody will love them. Not ever again. “Nobody loves me!” They wander the Newmaker Plane.

This is a note from Rainer to, presumably, Marvin. Later, in Toneth’s description, Rainer begins to rant about his dog getting hit by a car and surviving, and him being the only one who still wanted to put it down, because “A dog is an innocent” and he believed that even when the dog wagged its tail after that, it wasn’t real. This immediately made my mind go back to the quote: “She’ll appear from the darkness, limping, and I’ll shoot her in the head.”

And it made me reflect on the A, B, and NLM states that Rainer assigns to Care before, during, and after her abduction. Later, in the “Care A” description, Rainer expands on this, applying it also to his brother, Michael.

When the emergency began, you were all looking for Care A. I told you all, we would never find Care A. When Care A goes missing, she goes missing forever. My brother didn’t want us to find him, because he knew we were all looking for Michael A.[…] If you think they’re worth any effort, see if you can save Care B, or Care NLM. Care B is in the school, of course.

For Rainer, this A/B/NLM divide is absolute, and there is no recovery possible, which is also implied in the quote he attributes to Tiara. Once the dog has been hit by a car, it should be put down. Once Care emerges from the darkness, limping, she should be shot in the head. He refuses to entertain the possibility that someone can come back from a traumatic experience and be happy again. You can try to salvage what’s left of them in their B or NLM states, if you think it’s worth the effort, but they’ll never be A ever again. That is what Rainer believes.

Interestingly, I think it’s possible that Rainer himself was abused by Marvin (“I’m back. This is my Christmas gift to you” implies that he himself was also missing, wandering “the Newmaker Plane.”) But he does not seem to place himself into the category of victim. Above, he refers to Marvin’s victims as “they”, “them.” Not “we.” Rather, he seems to categorise himself as being culpable together with the adults in the family (“Fuck you all, and fuck me as well.”) Paul says that Rainer (Daniel) was older than the other kids, so it’s very possible that he might blame himself for “failing” to protect the others. Or worse, he might have even been pulled into playing a role in abuse, or otherwise perpetuated it.

I believe that from the description ending on the ominous note of “Merry Christmas. Check your bathroom now.” we are to assume that Rainer killed himself. This would certainly feel like the inevitable conclusion of the nihilistic, hopeless, wounded perspective we have been given glimpses into through his various notes and through the design of his game itself.

But rather than support Rainer’s tragic outlook, the series gives me hope in how it ends. Paul rebelling against what Marvin tries to make him participate in, “closing the loop” and putting Care in the safest place he can think of really got to me. And that last scene between Paul and Belle/Tiara at the end of the soundtrack… Oh my God. The gentle blueish dawn on the Newmaker Plane. “Boss” (Lina??) “waiting for her son.” !!!!!! And this. Oh my God.

Belle: Do You Remember Being Born? Smuggled Away Driving Too Your New House

Boss In Driver Seat

Me In Back

I Could Not Wait Too Be Your Friend

Paul: Family

Belle: We Can Investigate This Together

This made me actually cry. It’s so utterly beautiful and hopeful. They did it.

I don’t pretend to fully understand everything that’s going on here or who all the characters are, but I kind of think that’s not the point. I know when this was coming out people were treating it as an ARG to be solved, but I don’t see it that way. I think it’s just a piece of art to be interpreted, and resonates beyond any one literal narrative or meaning.

Also, the other part that made me cry was watching Care’s dancing video synced up to “The Sign” by Ace of Base. It just struck all the right chords: a song straight from my own childhood, the fact that making a video game avatar dance to a popular song is absolutely something I did as a kid and just imbues the character of Care with so much humanity, the fact that the literal meaning of the lyrics is so cathartic after all that Care is implied to have gone through… God it just got to me.

[rainbow-starlight]

time for EVEN MORE CHARACTER ANALYSIS 🎉

(this time, with enneagrams!)

So, I love a good personality test, as I know many Tumblr users do. I’m particularly fond of Enneagram, because I feel like it gives a lot more insight into someone compared to, say, MBTI.

So, of course, I sat down and took the test twice: Once for canon Sun, once for canon Moon. A lot (and I do mean a lot) of this is based on speculation, so if you disagree, please let me know why!

I mostly did this because, y’know, there isn’t a lot of characterization for these two, and I wanted to see if I could gain any new knowledge from this. (Which, yep, it absolutely worked.) Hopefully this can be useful for anyone who wants more perspective on writing these two in a more day-to-day sort of setting. It’s almost all speculation, but I found it really interesting.

So, drumroll please… 🥁🥁🥁

Sun is a 2w1, and Moon is a 8w7!

Pretty different from what I found for them online (Sun as a 7w6, Moon as a 1w2). Thoughts on what these mean under the cut.

Most of my information comes from here! Some paraphrasing, some direct quotes. I won’t be directly citing everything because this isn’t an essay.

Sunny

The biggest and most interesting takeaway from Enneagram, to me, is the core hopes and fears.

Sun’s primary hope is to feel loved, and his secondary hope is to be good, have integrity, and be balanced.

Sun’s primary fear is of being unwanted and unworthy of being loved. His secondary fear of being corrupt, evil, or defective.

This is really interesting to think about in the context of the virus. He’s scared of being left behind, maybe doesn’t even understand why Moon is acting the way that he is and is terrified something’s just wrong with them. This could even apply in regards to being moved from the stage to the daycare, in a way.

His main motivations are to express his feelings for others and be needed and appreciated. His secondary motivations are to improve everything and be beyond criticism so nobody can say anything bad about him.

When going through a period of stress, Sun would become more like Moon’s worst traits. He’d be more proud, egocentric, confrontational, aggressive, dominating, vengeful, and demanding of obedience. If he were in danger during this period of time, he’d likely become destructive in his attempts to get out of it, even if that’s not the best way to handle it. He’d also likely become depressed, moody, irrational, hopeless, and ashamed of himself, more prone to self-destruction. He’d probably chase away people who try to help him and self-isolate.

I think that can definitely be seen in the ruin part of HW2 with Sun’s voice lines to the player, as well as how harsh he is on the player during arts & crafts.

When going through a period of growth, Sun would be creative, self-aware, introspective, gentle, compassionate, excitable, spontaneous, cheerful, and productive. He’d be able to be vulnerable yet emotionally strong, grateful for what he has, and excited about just existing. Very much like fanon Sun, honestly.

An unhealthy Sun would likely be manipulative, inflexible, self-serving, and domineering, able to excuse and rationalize his behavior because he sees himself as a victim. He’d likely be obsessive about others’ imperfections and wrongdoings, perhaps to the point of cruelty. He’d be prone to nervous breakdowns.

An average Sun (closest to what we’ve seen so far) would be people-pleasing, orderly, abrasive, overbearing, impatient, self-sacrificial, and codependent. Full of approval and flattery for others. He’d likely hover and mettle in others’ business and scold others for anything done not to his exact specifications.

A healthy Sun (unheard of so far in the games lmao) would be unselfish, compassionate, caring, hopeful, warm-hearted, forgiving, encouraging, and appreciative. He’d actually take care of himself, too.

To help Sun grow into that healthy category, here’s some stuff that would help…

Addressing his own needs before others’.

Not expecting appreciation for the good things he does.

Asking people what they need from him instead of just assuming and trying to help, and accepting that sometimes people don’t want his help without assuming that they dislike him or are rejecting him.

Not trying to call attention to his own hard work.

Learning to recognize the affection and good wishes of others, even if those things take a different shape than he’s familiar with.

Learning to relax and take time for himself, without feeling like this will lead to chaos and disaster.

Not expecting others to change immediately when he explains something, because what’s obvious to him isn’t always obvious to others and people just don’t typically change right away.

Not getting worked up about others’ (or his own) shortcomings, because frustrated with others gets him nowhere and harsh self-criticism just makes him feel worse.

Getting in touch with his own feelings and needs.

Moon

Now, this one was definitely harder. We get so little characterization for him. And yet…

Moon’s primary hope is to protect himself and be in control of his own life and destiny. His secondary hope is to be satisfied and content, and have his needs fulfilled.

Moon’s primary fear is of being harmed or controlled by others, and his secondary fear is of being deprived and in pain.

This is really telling compared to Sun’s. Moon isn’t scared of some sort of fundamental flaw within himself. He also cares much less about what others think of him, and just wants to be happy and safe.

His main motivations are self-reliance, to prove his strength, and to be important and in control of his environment and situation. His secondary motivations are to maintain his freedom and happiness, to avoid missing out, to keep himself excited and occupied, and to avoid pain.

I feel like this definitely tracks. He’s a gremlin that makes a hobby out of bothering the staff by pretending to be a boogeyman. That’s not “security” work (sorry, Moon).

When going through a period of stress, Moon becomes secretive, fearful, perfectionistic, and critical. He’d be reclusive and out of touch with reality, obsessed with yet frightened by his violent thoughts, and incredibly self-destructive. He’d judge others harshly while rationalizing his own actions and wouldn’t hesitate to punish others to get rid of perceived ‘wrongdoers’.

This aligns pretty well with what we’ve seen of Moon with the virus.

When going through a period of growth, Moon picks up some of Sun’s best traits. He becomes open-hearted, caring, focused, compassionate, encouraging, nurturing, loving, perceptive, curious, independent, innovative, and whimsical.

We haven’t really had a chance to see anything like this with Moon, but it feels closer to popular fanon perceptions as well.

An unhealthy Moon would be ruthless and violent. He’d be reckless about his own safety and straight-up murderous. He’d be impulsive and never know when to stop or when he’s taking things too far, and eventually run out of energy or get too broken-down and just give up on himself.

An average Moon would be self-sufficient, hardworking, hyperactive, self-centered, and proud. He wouldn’t pay much attention to his own emotional needs. He’d be combative and intimidating to get his way, and not shy away from threats to get obedience. He’d always be doing things to avoid boredom and have a larger-than-life persona just for the fun of it.

A healthy Moon (at long last…) would be brave, confident, resourceful, decisive, cheerful, passionate, and assertive. He’d actually be very extroverted and easily excited, which goes against a lot of popular headcanons for him, but then again this is the guy whose entire characterization is one long performance of hide-and-seek/tag with the monster under your bed. I feel like it makes sense that he’d be more social when the threat of his worst fears coming true isn’t looming over his head.

How would Moon reach that healthy category?

Recognizing that he’s at his best when he does things like take charge or help people through a crisis. He needs to use some self-restraint and try to inspire others to do what he wants instead of just forcing them.

Learning to let others have their way sometimes, and recognizing that doing this usually won’t mean sacrificing his power or his real needs.

Recognizing that the world is not against him and letting in the affection that’s available.

Accepting that he depends on others and not alienating them.

Not overvaluing being feared/obeyed, and recognizing that those things are not a stand-in for love.

Learning to be less impulsive.

Learning to listen to others, as well as learning to be comfortable without constant stimulation.

Accepting that he doesn’t have to have everything immediately.

Choosing quality over quantity in experiences.

Making sure that what he wants will really be good for him in the long run.

What do these types mean for their relationship and how they’d interact with each other?

They’re more alike than they initially appear!

Both are action-oriented and want to have a personal impact on their environment.

Both can be sentimental and deeply feeling, with a soft side that isn’t as apparent.

Both can play the roles of provider, protector, caretaker, and nurturer while avoiding or even denying their own needs.

Both tend to overwork themselves and be the ‘strong one’ in relationships, although Sun’s type is more likely to be the power behind the throne whereas Moon’s type is more likely to be the one on the throne, which I found really interesting.

Both are passionate, generous, and have good people skills.

Both are strong-willed and like taking on responsibility, as long as they choose it themselves.

Both easily play the roles that the other needs and wants. They see each other’s best qualities and can be the other’s strongest supporter and admirer. They also have clearly-defined roles, so they tend to not get in each other’s way. They make powerful allies who complement each other’s strengths, particularly the good effects they have on others.

However, they have very different values: Sun’s type is more person-oriented, and Moon’s type is more practical. Sun’s type also tends to be more indirect, whereas Moon’s type tends to be more direct. Sun’s type is much more likely to get attached to people and see things from their point of view, whereas Moon’s type does not.

When they’re not doing so good, they may be prone to arguments over whose views are correct: Moon’s confrontational attitude and tendency to shut others out, or Sun’s possessive and self-sacrificial behaviors. Sun’s type is more likely to get caught in a codependent relationship with Moon’s, becoming an apologist and enabler for his bad behavior.

The breakdown in mutual communication/respect/trust would involve Moon seeing Sun as insincere and manipulative, and Sun seeing Moon as cruel and domineering. They’d both become more controlling and harsh with each other, both prone to paranoia and fear of betrayal.

I feel like that’s kind of where we’re at in the games. Sun chooses not to outright warn people about Moon a lot of the time, and they both try to gain total control of their shared body and shut the other out.

AAAAND… DONE!

I hope this was at least an interesting read for you guys, and offered a new perspective on these characters! I recommend checking out the link for further insights into the personality types, because I tried to just limit it to character motivations and interactions and that alone has been ridiculously long.

hey, sunnie, why’d you do this?

neurodivergency. next question.

[alwayschasingrainbows]

What do you think about Anne and Gilbert arriving at their house of dreams after the train ride right after their wedding, having dinner with Gilbert's great uncle, his wife, and Captain Jim, and chatting until nightfall?

I saw in some comments that people didn't like it and found it ridiculous and unrealistic. Do you think so? I'm just curious about your opinion.

0 not

Thank you so much for this question, dear @pinkenamelheart! I feel "tickled as a dog with two tails" (to quote Perry Miller) each time I get to talk about my favourite writer and her books! And Anne-related questions are such a treat since I am rereading the series right now!

Now, about the question. I think that some readers tend to project their own feelings and emotions onto their beloved characters (well, at least that's what I used to do). And so, before I'll give you my own opinion, I'd like to look at the situation from such a reader's perspective.

Maybe I am wrong, but I assume that most newlyweds would prefer to spend the first hours after the wedding party together, just the two of them, basking in the glow of their new happiness and love. Objectively, Anne and Gilbert had experienced a day full of elation, delight, joy, but also nerves. Their wedding reception had just ended: wonderful, longed for moment, filled with stress and excitement. Moreover, their union brought further changes, including the need to leave Avonlea, say goodbye to beloved family members and start a life together in a new place. In short: they had every right to be tired. They had every right to want to spend some time together, learning and teaching each other the secrets of married life.

Readers very often identify with their beloved characters and think: "I wouldn't be satisfied", "I would feel so tired after my wedding", "I would certainly have a headache after such nerves", "I would rather cuddle up with my husband/wife" . In other words, they convey their own emotions, thoughts, dreams and desires to the book characters and since this solution would not suit them and they would like to experience the first moments after marriage in a different way, they assume that it definitely applies to the book characters.

Now the question is, if I were Anne, would I be happy if my husband's relatives came to my new house immediately after the wedding reception and stayed for the next few hours? Well, since I don't have a husband, it is completely hypothetical answer, but I'm afraid I wouldn't. I am a completely different type of person - an introvert who would need to "recharge her social batteries". Naturally, I would appreciate an extremely kind gesture from the people who prepared a meal for me and welcomed me to my new place. But deep inside I would probably feel a bit overstimulated and very tired.

However, I am me and Anne is Anne. Despite her dreamy and slightly pensive nature, she is an extremely sociable girl who thrives in the company of other people. Gilbert is a warm and family-oriented person, always appreciating the kindness of others. They were both touched and pleased by the visit. For them it was a beautiful, new experience that they could share together. First memory of a dinner as husband and wife. They had their whole lives ahead of them: many days and nights together, full of kisses, whispers, tender hugs and caresses. I guess the fact that their longed for "alone time" took place a few hours later didn't make it any less romantic. In my opinion, this dinner was lovely for both of them; they made their first friend in Four Winds, listened to fascinating stories, received support and sympathy.

Moreover, this scene was much more interesting from the reader's point of view. Personally, I really enjoyed it. I also believe that Maud, for obvious reasons, could not have written scenes that are now a popular part of fanfiction. Anne and Gilbert's marriage is described in a very subtle way, yet none of us readers ever doubted that these two shared a deep, passionate love. I think that Montgomery approached the matter very skillfully, describing a scene that was interesting for the reader and (between the lines) she wove a lot of romantic feelings and warmth that the couple had for each other. In my opinion, this is a move that perfectly illustrates Maud's artistic talent and her firm belief that literature would lose its charm if it told the world everything.

That's partly why I really like this scene; it shows how warm, family-oriented and friendly people Anne and Gilbert were. Perhaps other characters, such as Valancy and Barney, would need only each other to be happy. They could have existed in a magical circle created only by the two of them. But... Anne and Gilbert needed something more. They wanted to share their happiness with the world and make the lives of others around them better.

I think that every scene should be assessed not only from reader's own perspective. We always have to take into account the characters' personalities, hopes and dreams. Anne and Gilbert were happy and thriving in this situation and that's more than enough for me.

Thank you very much again for this great and interesting question. I'm sorry that the answer is so long, I hope I won't scare you away :) I will be happy to answer any question about Montgomery's books, which I love!

[spacefinch]

Star Wars Rebels Incorrect Quotes

Ezra: *pulls out lightsaber* We have ways of making you talk.

Imperial officer: *nervous*

Ezra: *cuts cake*

Imperial officer: Can I have some?

Kanan: Cake is for talkers.

Mart: Big mood.

Rex: What does that mean?

Mart: Well, it kinda means, like, me too, I guess.

Rex: Thanks kid.

*1 week later at a command briefing*

Commander Sato: I’m kind of worried about this mission.

Rex: Big mood, Commander, big mood.

Sato: Mart, what did you do?

Rebel soldier, throwing a detonator: YEET!

Sato: Excuse me?

Soldier: You see, Mart told me—

Sato: WHEN WILL YOU PEOPLE LEARN?

Inquisitor: IS THAT THE BEST YOU CAN DO?

Ezra: Look, I’m 15. I’m trying very hard. You gotta work with me here, bud!

Zeb: Here’s the plan.

Zeb: I go in.

Zeb: I start hitting people hard in the face.

Zeb: And we see where that takes us.

Hera: No.

Kanan: This is not the time for your shenanigans.

Ezra: It was a single shenanigan.

Ezra: I have cat-like reflexes.

Sabine: Prove it.

Ezra: *sees a cat*

Ezra (instantly): I like that cat.

Spaceport desk person: Would a Commander Sato please come to the front desk?

Sato, arriving at the desk: Hello, is there a problem?

Desk person: I believe they belong to you?

Ezra and Sabine, simultaneously: We got lost.

Sato: I didn’t even bring you two here with me.

Ezra: On a scale of one to ten, how bad do you think it would be if—

Kanan: At least twenty.

Ezra: Oh, just so you know, it’s very muggy outside.

Hera: Ezra, I swear, if I step outside and all of our mugs are there..

Hera: [Gives Zeb the Look of Disappointment]

Zeb: [sips coffee from bowl]

Sabine: [locked up by the Inquisitor]

Sabine: [mockingly] Oh look, I’m the Inquisitor.

Sabine [slips metal pin from boot]: I’m a big scary guy with a red lightsaber.

Sabine: [begins to pick the lock on the cell door] I’m going to hunt down all the Jedi and their rebel friends.

Sabine: Gonna lock up the girl instead of killing her because she’s not really dangerous to my evil master plans.

Sabine: [kicks down the door]: Oops, she got out.

Sabine: I have a plan.

Kanan: It can’t involve blowing stuff up.

Sabine: I have no plan.

[Explosion in background]

Ezra [off camera]: This was a horrible idea.

Zeb [also off camera]: THIS WAS YOUR IDEA, EZRA!

Ezra: It’s time for Plan B.

Sabine: We have a Plan B?

Ezra: No, but it’s time for one.

Mart: I have a question.

Wolffe: Okay, shoot.

Mart: [shoots blaster at the ceiling] All right, can I ask it now?

Kanan: Go clean your bunker.

Ezra: [waves hand] I don’t need to clean my bunker.

Kanan: [waves hand] Yeah, you do.

Jonner: Oh, that’s so nice, you brought us snacks!

Mart, holding the snacks close: I never said that.

Sato: What is the proper way to deal with someone annoying you?

Ezra: A lightsaber.

Sato: No.

Ezra: Two lightsabers.

Sato: No!

Hera: I’m leaving. Kanan’s in charge while I’m gone. I’ve left notes for each of you with instructions.

Ezra: Mine just says “Ezra, no.”

Hera: And you can apply that to any situation.

Mart: If you had to separate your Loth-cat from 49 other identical Loth-cats that were all equally excited to see you, how would you determine which one is yours?

Ezra: Easy. I would take all 50 Loth-cats home.

Hera: So how are you and Chopper getting along?

Sato: I think he’s finally warming up to me.

Sato: [sees Chopper rolling by]

Sato: Hey, Chopper.

Chopper: [zaps him]

Sato: It’s a work in progress.

Ezra: Here is my award for the most direct orders ignored.

Kanan: That’s not an award. That is an angry letter from Commander Sato.

Ezra: Well, it says most, so I’m calling it an award.

Zeb: [sitting outside listening to the radio]

[something explodes in distance]

Zeb: [turns up the volume]

Sato: Are you in my ceiling, Bridger?

Ezra [muffled]: No.

Sabine: How’s it going?

Kanan: Fine. Except for this headache that comes and goes.

Rex: [enters the room]

Kanan: And it’s back.

Sabine: [looks right]

Sabine: [looks left]

Sabine: [runs through hallway] I’m such a good spy. I’m so sneaky.

Ezra: [in the vent above her; can hardly keep himself from laughing]

Phoenix Squadron Rule #56: No, the command ship isn’t haunted, it’s just Ezra in the vents.

Mart: I am the most responsible person here.

Gooti: But you just flooded the bunker.

Mart: Yes, and I take full responsibility for that.

[record scratch] [freeze frame]

Mart, narrating: Yup, that’s me. Mart Mattin Sato. Now, you’re probably wondering how I ended up in this situation.

Mart: I have two best friends I go to for advice.

Mart: One rationalizes, uses logic. and the other one hypes me up to do dumb stuff.

Mart: Balance.

Sato: For this mission we need a good pilot. Anyone interested?

Mart: [raises hand]

Sato: [sigh] Someone who doesn’t want to wreck their starfighter?

Mart: [puts hand down slowly]

Wolffe: I thought you said you knew how to fly this thing.

Mart: I said “how hard could it be?”

Wolffe: No, don’t hit the button, just press it, gently.

Mart: I am pressing it gently! It’s not working!

Ezra: You can drink drinks but you can’t food foods.

Kanan: Excuse me?

Sabine: Eza has no survival skills. His need to win has replaced them.

Mart: That can’t be true.

Sabine: Watch this. Ezra, race you downstairs!

Ezra: [shatters the window with his lightsaber] [jumps out the window] [parkours all the way to the ground]

Mart: I see what you mean.

Imperial officer: I have an army.

Sato: We have a Jedi.

Kanan: Let’s go to your happy place. Think of things you love.

Ezra: My family, the color orange…

Kanan: Okay.

Ezra: Loth-cats, Jedi stuff…

Kanan: Good.

Ezra:

The Sith Holocron

Kanan: No!

Zeb: What are you going to do?

Ezra: I don’t know. Something dramatic, I hope.

Wolffe: Do you know how to fly this thing?

Mart: We’ll see.

Wolffe: That’s a yes or no question.

Mart: Yes.

Kanan: Is everything a joke to you?

Ezra: Funny things are.

Rex: Hey kid, have you seen my helmet anywhere?

Ezra [wearing Rex’s helmet]: No. Can’t say I have, sir.

Ezra: So I have some good news and some bad news.

Sato: Good news first.

Ezra: Well, the ejector seats in the A-wings work amazing, sir.

Ezra: [trying to climb onto the roof to do a backflip off the roof]

Kanan: [Trying to stop Ezra]

Chopper: [Cheering Ezra on]

Zeb: [making a bet with Sabine on whether or not Ezra will hurt himself]

Hera, looking into the camera like she’s on The Office: I need new teammates.

[while stuck on Phoenix Nest]

Sabine: I know what to do! We should play another game of hide and seek!

Ezra: Oh no, never again.

Sabine: Why not?

Ezra: You left me in the vents last time!

Sabine: IT WAS ONE TIME!

Ezra: I WAS THERE FOR TWO DAYS!

Kanan: It’s quiet. Too quiet.

[blaster bolt barely misses him]

Kanan: To be honest, I preferred the quiet.

Mart: Four months?

Jonner: What is he talking about?

Gooti: It’s not that big of a deal-

Mart: You stood by and watched me water a fake plant for FOUR MONTHS?!

Hera: I can’t submit this mission report. Who wrote it?

Kanan: Why, what does it say?

Hera: All it says its “Bad guys went pew-pew, we went pew-pew better.”

Ezra: … Was I wrong, though?

Kanan, exasperated, in Ezra’s direction: YOU ARE A BOY, NOT A TREE!

Kanan: [casually blocks incoming blaster fire with his lightsaber]

Sabine: [resting face while throwing a detonator into the stormtroopers’ midst]

Hera: While Kanan and I are gone, you’re in charge, Ezra.

Ezra: YES!

Hera to Sabine: You’re secretly in charge.

Sabine: Obviously.

Ezra: [suspiciously walking away from Kanan’s room, snickering]

Hera: Ezra!

Ezra: What?

Hera: I was just looking for you.

Ezra: Why? I didn’t do anything.

Hera: What?

Ezra: What?

Hera: [gives Ezra the Look] What did you do?

Kanan: [walks in with whipped cream on his face] It’s not funny. I was sleeping peacefully. Very funny, Ezra.

Ezra, laughing: I didn’t.. I didn’t do it.

Kanan: Uh, well, Sabine…. I don’t appreciate—

Sabine: Don’t look at me!

Kanan: Okay, well, Hera!

Hera: Nope.

Kanan: Well, who was it then? I know it was one of you!

Sato: [smiles]

[creature roaring in background]

Ezra: DUDES! YOU’RE ON YOUR OWN! [runs away]

Sato: I am at a loss for words.

[cut to shot of Mart looking straight at the camera like he’s on The Office]

Mart: Despite being at a loss for words, my uncle scolded me for three minutes straight.

Imperial officer: Your insolence goes too far!

Ezra: Wrong. It can go a lot further.

Ezra: [reminds Sato of his younger self]

Sato: I like this kid, he’s my son now.

Kanan: Wha- wait! I already called it!

Sato: Where’s Ezra?

Rex: Doing stuff.

Sato: Then where’s Kanan?

Rex: Trying to stop Ezra from doing stuff.

Sato: So where is Sabine?

Rex: Stopping Kanan from stopping Ezra from doing stuff.

Sato: If they’re doing all that, why are you out here?

Rex: Someone has to keep you distracted, Commander.

Chopper: (translated from droid binary) <I despise you with every inch of my being.>

Mart: Well, it isn’t a lot of inches.

Ezra, barely holding Chopper back: RUN

Mart: THE FLOOR IS LAVA!

Hera: *helps Sabine onto the couch*

Chopper: *pushes Ezra off a chair*

Mart: As you can see, there are two types of people.

Mart: We have good news and bad news.

Gooti: Okay, bad news first.

Jonner: The fire we started in the bunker is out of control—

Gooti: THE WHAT—

Mart, holding a perfectly roasted marshmallow: Wow, so you don’t even care about the good news?

Ezra: I’m in me mum’s car, vroom vroom.

Hera: Get out of me car!

Ezra: Aww.

🎵You are my dad🎵

YOU’RE MY DAD!

🎵Boogie woogie woogie🎵

— Ezra to Kanan

Hera: Let me see what you have!

Chopper: *droid sounds* (translation: A knife!)

Hera: NO!

Ezra: 🎶 I want to see my little boy 🎶

Sabine: *holding Loth-cat* Here he comes!

Ezra: 🎶 I want to see my little boy 🎶

Mart, Gooti, and Jonner (gathered around a lettuce): Cabbasu, cabbasu, cab-a-su, LETTASU, LETTASU, LETTASUUUUUU!

Ezra: On all levels except physical, I am a Loth-wolf. *barks*

Mart: Hey did you hear that Joe contracted ligma? They had to do a surgery on his updog.

Sato: Who’s Joe? What’s ligma? What’s updog?

Mart: *inhales*

Sato's revenge:

Mart: Hey uncle, what are you eating?

Sato: I'm having jogan fruit and amatta. Do you want some?

Mart: What's amatta?

Sato: Nothing. What's ammatta with you?

[presleyannn]

advice from Taz - 9.25.23

One thing about me is that I am a big fan of anime. Not only that, but my brain loves to hyperfixate on things. Therefore, I am often hyperfixated on anime.

My latest hyperfixation is One Piece. It really is crippling in law school when your every waking moment is consumed with thoughts of One Piece lol.

So as you might imagine, as a One Piece fan, I was extremely excited for the live action. I really admired all the time, effort, and love that was put into the show from Oda and the cast and crew, so I could feel it in my bones that it would be good. It was btw. If you haven't seen it, you definitely should. Even if you're not a One Piece or anime fan. I got my best friend to watch it and she loves it. It has been a true joy to see so many new people get into One Piece.

But anyway, being a fan of the live action, I feel that it's only natural that I fell in love with the cast too. The time and energy they put in and the dedication to the accurate portrayal of their characters is extremely admirable. If nothing else, watch the show just for them.

Although I love all the cast members, Taz Skylar really captured my heart. There is so much to love about him. I could go on about him all day, but that's not what this diary is about, so I won't.

ANYWAY, my point in mentioning this is that I booked a Cameo from him awhile ago, and he gave me the sweetest message and advice that really stuck with me, so I wanted to share it here.

I am in law school at only 20 years old, so I am one of the youngest in my class. I know that there are a few other 20 year olds in my class, but I have yet to meet any of them. As a result, I have been suffering from some pretty severe imposter syndrome. I often feel like a baby sitting in class, and I generally just feel out of place.

So, I shared this with Taz, and he reminded me of the quote, "Be less impressed and more involved," which I believe was coined by Matthew McConaughey. He said that he deals with imposter syndrome every day (as many of us do), but he repeats that quote to remind himself to be less concerned with everything that is going on around him, and more involved in what he needs to do to accomplish his goals and truly enjoy the experience.

Specifically, he told me to be less impressed with how smart everyone is around me, and more involved in what I need to do on a daily basis to achieve what I want to achieve. This really struck a chord in me and put things into perspective.

I find myself comparing myself to my classmates all too often. Seeing them seemingly prepared and on top of work knowing that I am behind has only put me more behind. I convince myself that they're already leagues ahead of me and I have no chance of catching up, so why even try?

But this quote really stuck with me and has helped me to detach myself from everything that's going on around me in order to focus on what I need to do in order to do my best on all my exams.

Of course the imposter syndrome has not gone away completely, I still have my moments where I feel like I'm not cut out for law school. But I also have moments where I remember what I'm here for in the first place, and I am able to remind myself that all the other standards I've been setting for myself don't really matter at the end of the day.

All I want is to be is a good lawyer that can help people who need it. However, law school loves to push the competition of it all, and it's hard to not get caught up in it. There's so much pressure to finish at the top of your class, and while that would be wonderful, as long as I can finish school with the ability to successfully represent my clients and achieve their deserved justice, nothing else matters to me. This is what I have to remind myself of each day when I find myself applying too much pressure to be “better” than my peers.

I need to be less impressed with how well everyone is doing around me–because I only end up thinking that I could never measure up to them and should just give up–and the fact that I even ended up in law school in the first place, and instead be more involved in my dreams and what I have to do to achieve them.

If you have a dream, a goal, something that you really want more than anything in the world, you CAN, and you WILL achieve it. Just remember to be less impressed with what is going on all around you (whether it be what other people are doing or even the awe of being in the situation you find yourself in), and be more involved in the work that must be done in order to achieve your goal. If you remain concerned with what people are doing around you or feeling like you are undeserving of the opportunities you are given, and fail to take advantage of those opportunities and put in the required work, then you will remain right where you are while everything else outgrows you, including your dreams.

But I believe in you, and I am manifesting it for you. You WILL achieve your dreams. You got this!

And here’s Taz for you :)

[irrealisms]

jun wu or bwx for character asks? 👁️

starting off: hi yen if you're reading this it's got spoilers so pls skip this post ty <3 u can come back to it when u finish tgcf which at your current rate will be in like. a couple days lol

How I feel about this character

Im Normal About Him.

the ending is. perfect. the bamboo hat. it's never too late. when he's defeated he looks relieved. quoting myself from discord:

he cannot face being proven wrong, because it means he’s done terrible things and hurt people when he didn’t have to. he wants so badly to be proven wrong, because it means that maybe there’s good in the world and not just endless crushing pain and evil.

i have a lot of thoughts abt him & the tragedy of him & his entire ideology!!! i am sort of failing at condensing them but i have a lot of thoughts about him .

All the people I ship romantically with this character

hehe. xie lian (i am a sicko). i can also justify this to some extent--jun wu/bai wuxiang (i think mostly bai wuxiang, actually?) remarks positively on xie lian's appearance a notable amount, there's the "makes one ache, makes one excited" bit which i cannot read as anything other than Kind Of Weird And Horny, there's the thing where jun wu tests xie lian's virginity by making him bleed on jun wu's sword (i have another whole meta in my heart about swords as blatantly phallic in tgcf but i assume you do not need to be convinced of this lol)--but honestly i don't fully stand by it. this is a ship i have at least 80-90% because i am a sicko. i hope you can all understand

My non-romantic OTP for this character

ALSO xie lian. im complex. i contain multiple guys. the thing is that i have a beautiful google doc that consists of every time jun wu/bwx is analogized to a parent/teacher and xie lian is analogized to a child and it has . like. 30 quotes? somewhere around there? it's a lot! it's a lot. "i have decided that we are the same guy due to The Parallels but also i am going to enforce this and Make us the same guy by Molding You into Becoming Me" is an incredibly good dynamic whether it is slash or gen, and i do think the "weird forced adult-child relationship going on" reading is in fact more supported by the text than a shippy one. also when i'm not being a sicko about it there's also something deeply beautiful to me about their ending, about xie lian defeating jun wu but also showing him this moment of grace. and of course the Parallels which apply equally when it's slash vs gen. also you may have noticed that neither this question nor the last one do i bring up guoshi. this is bc idgaf about him. sorry mei nianqing . he exists i just Do Not Care

My unpopular opinion about this character

im gonna be so real i have no idea what is and is not popular wrt jun wu. what are the popular jun wu opinions.

One thing I wish would happen / had happened with this character in canon.

once again im kind of at the same place i am wrt mu qing of, like.... nothing, honestly? i am incredibly happy with what we got, i think it's beautifully written and the resolution is perfect, mxtx is a good writer and tgcf is a good book, no complaints

having a bit more of his backstory with mnq might be cool, i guess? we get the huge infodump but it's kind of just an infodump, it is just Pure Exposition, going into that a bit more / more naturally than "guoshi helpfully exposits for us" could be neat even tho i dont think its necessary. as mentioned i'm p much happy with what we got

(ask game, give me a character)