#there is absolutely zero reason it has to be this

[karmacharmeleon18]

Random things I've noticed in In Your Fantasy

as someone who doesn't know much about the lore and tends to point out the obvious a lot, so pls don't get mad at me if this is stupid

1) the red eyes

Jongho's and Yunho's are pretty obvious throughout the MV, but actually all of them have red eyes; it's subtle, mainly noticeable in the black-and-white shots

Yeosang's and Hongjoong's eyes were barely open, but I bet they were red as well (+ you can see the red hue in Yeosang's in another blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment, which was too quick for me to screenshot properly lol)

all we got of Mingi was his side profile (not complaining 🥴) but it's made up for by this shot right here:

Where everything about him is red and he looks like Luficer himself

(just my personal agenda, this has zero validity in the lore ahah)

There are similar shots with other members, but Mingi's gave me pause because the red light hits the white of his eyes as well, rather than it just reflecting off his skin or shining around him

The fact that they're also hiding behind red screens cannot be a coincidence

2) Yeosang's white shirt

Jongho is wearing a white shirt too, but it's covered by a black jacket so that he doesn't stand out among the others. Yeosang does stand out, and it might be purely because the MV director wanted to break the monotony and aggressiveness of the red and black, but... nothing is a coincidence with Ateez lol

Yeosang tends to represent something, like in The Real MV were he was a sort of "white dove of peace", surrounded by fellow white doves, and switched from an all-black outfit to an all-white one at the end

but in The Real that was possibly not the real (lol) Yeosang, but Hala-Yeosang? So who is this Yeosang?

also that thing crawling up his neck is suspicious™

3) as I mentioned in a previous post, this callback to Hala Hala:

At first I thought this meant these are Halateez, but @atiny-for-life theorized these might actually be Halazia's Ateez, doing that dance move as a nod of respect and a thank you to Halateez, who invited them into this Dreamscape to help free Strictland

I don't know much about the lore so I'm absolutely fascinated by this theory...

4) Wooyoung (sort of? maybe?)

Whoever they are, the reason for the red eyes has to be the Sopro, right? The red stone-spirit is kind of possessing them? Influencing them? Hiding all of them behind red screens? And making them "release their inhibitions"

Which might be why Hongjoong tears off his Captain band and throws it away, something that "regular" Hongjoong would never do

This thing right here:

Held by that man right there

Just like after Hala Hala, I'm left thinking "Why is it always you, you troublemaker?!?!" about Wooyoung lol

I've seen some Atiny mention that despite the vibes being completely different, IYF feels almost like Hala Hala's older sister... and maybe it's because we can feel that Halateez are near, if not in body then at least in spirit, and the callbacks really sell it for me!

So in my eyes we got two callbacks to Hala Hala (the dance move + troublemaker Wooyoung) and a possible connection to The Real

Which... mean absolutely nothing to me LMAO

But maybe more cultured Atinys will find this useful for their research 🔍

💗💗💗

Btw in case anyone's curious (I know nobody is, but y'all can't stop me 😌) my personal theory is:

Ateez and Halateez... are one and the same. And World A and World Z... are one and the same, too.

The Cromer/Time travel is a thing here, right?

What could turn Ateez into Halateez is the Sopro with its ability to manipulate emotions. And the change that turns World A into World Z could also be triggered by the Sopro 🤔 accidentally or by Halateez themselves

So maybe Ateez aren't supposed to free Strictland... but stop it from ever becoming a thing in the first place?

(Ateez turn into Halateez through the Sopro and trigger World Z, regret it, find a way to time travel to contact past Ateez and change the course of history)

But in the meantime, Halateez (aka Future Ateez) are stuck in World Z and need to dismantle its oppressive government

(is that still a thing btw, because between shots of lemon drop and Magic Ateez right here, I'm losing sight of what the end goal is lmao)

Or maybe that would be too paradoxical; no World Z would mean no Halateez and no MVs

So maybe the goal not to change history, but to damage control: we must topple this oppressive government and have the World return to what it was before we fucked it up, metaphorically turning things back in time

But in either scenario, In Your Fantasy would happen before Halazia, for example

You know how Halazia-Ateez "want to feel"? Wanting implies that you have the ability to feel something already, you know? You can't want things if you're completely empty of all emotion. So Halazia-Ateez are stuck in a moment where emotions have been stripped from them, but their memory of them is still alive in them (Live Alive!) and ao strong that tehy can still feel want. They don't know how to feel all emotions, but their mind/spirit/heart still longs for them, and for the time where they could feel them freely. Longing is an emotion. That's why the lyrics talk about how "everything has become barren" (implying it's a recent development) and "getting used to the feeling of losing" (because something is being taken from them right now). The city around them is in rubble but it's also still burning up/full of smoke, because something major just happened. The rap parts are full of emotions... all negative ones: desperation, fear, anger... Halazia is a prayer to a deaf god that very likely doesn't even exist, and in the end they realize that no one is coming to save them, they will have to save themselves

I know Halazia is technically a spinoff and it was supposed to be a B-side, but to me it's such an important song.

iirc it's with Halazia that we get the first mention of the Sopro?

(again I don't know much abt the lore so take this with a salt flat of salt)

I feel like Halazia might represent one of the moments where World A starts turning into World Z

Or maybe it's the final moment, the final nail in the coffin...

They've just lost the most important battle

But among the destruction, the loss so fresh they still burn, and despair and long for something else, San's Herculean effort represents a new fragment of hope for the Rebellion

And that will eventually lead to the sparks of Revolution

To the beginning of the real war

In Guerrilla, Bouncy, Crazy Form, they all "join forces" or rather, become one again, in order to rebel

Ateez - Halateez - Halazia-Ateez...

They're one and the same, just at different points in time; one morphs into the other

Halateez caused World Z, realized their mistake and were the first Resistance

Halazia-Ateez have lost the decisive battle, they burn the Black Pirates' clothes in mourning, and symbolically to "burn away" their past, what they did, but they also represent the undying spirit of Rebellion

Ateez (past/present) are the missing piece, what Halateez and Halazia-Ateez need to start the proper Revolution

(my bff and I also love the idea of the name Halateez being an amalgamation of Halazia-Ateez, so we've also come up with a scenario where Halazia-Ateez come before Halateez: Ateez -> Halazia-Ateez -> Halateez, thought the burning of the Black Pirates' clothes makes less sense this way)

This is why to this day the Answer MV gets me emotional, when Ateez and Halateez - the past/present and the future, in my theory - see each other face to face and they make a toast like a thunder together

Wonderland and Guerrilla are war anthems, but Answer feels hopeful. It's like they're looking at each other and thinking: "This is it. We are doing this. Together". And to this day it still gives me chills 💗

So in this scenario, IYF is the beginning of the end, that crucial moment in time when the Sopro starts taking over, and Ateez start changing

Dun dun duuuuunnnnn 🔪🔪🔪

Wooyoung, when I catch you, Wooyoung!!!

I know this makes little sense, and that's why I hate time travel and its paradoxes, but this is the beauty of an incomplete story, anyone can fantasize as much as they want 💗 it's all in good fun!

[leifyposting]

y'all i finally figured out what's going on with diluc's tcg deck

a little while ago i made this post about mond trio playing tcg, because jean and kaeya's decks make sense but diluc's doesn't - he has razor and xiangling in his deck, neither of whom synergize with him, and no healer for some reason??

then i thought about it a little bit more and now i think diluc's deck is actually an excellent representation of his character: because tcg is a game that revolves around a team and diluc is a man who is used to fighting alone

ok let me explain

^ first things first! this is the diluc card. the diluc card is a hypercarry, which means you want him on the field as much as possible. there is nothing diluc wants more than to use his skill and use it often - and for good reason! if you use his skill 3 times in one round, it deals a total of 11 damage, which is insane if you consider that each character card only has 10 health. he can basically solo a character in one round!

there's just one problem. using diluc's skill 3 times requires a total of 9 dice... and you only get 8 dice per round

there are ways to get around this, and diluc's support cards are absolutely laser-focused on making sure he can use his skill. so much so, in fact, that he doesn't even have any cards that would let him heal himself?? more on that later

the point is: diluc needs all his dice to fuel his attacks. doing literally anything other than attacking (ex. swapping off or healing) would nerf his damage output. this deck is designed for one thing and one thing only: doing as much damage as possible in the shortest amount of time possible

okay now let's talk about his team comp. cause like *waves hands vaguely* what the heck is going on here, man.

^ diluc's teammates are razor (whom he's met like once in canon) and xiangling (whom he's met a grand total of zero times). most characters' tcg decks are comprised of other characters they at least vaguely know. but not diluc's

and this doesn't make sense from a gameplay perspective either. razor is also a hypercarry - he likes his field time as much as diluc does. and although xiangling is a sub-dps who does off-field damage with her burst, her element is the same as diluc's which means she can't trigger reactions with him. neither of them synergize very well with diluc

and i think that's intentional, because xiangling and razor synergize very well with each other. my theory is that these two cards are meant to serve as a kind of "second line of defense" and take over when diluc falls

because the one glaringly obvious issue with diluc's deck is this: he has no way to heal

there are a couple of different healing mechanics in tcg. the most obvious one is to have a healer (which diluc doesn't). the second most obvious one is to have food cards that heal (which diluc doesn't). the third most obvious one is to have location cards that heal (which diluc, you guessed it, doesn't)

if you play diluc as an on-field hypercarry, you'd probably want at least 1 of the above mechanics to, you know, keep him alive. but diluc doesn't have any. and i think that's intentional

because i think the diluc card in this deck is meant to burn brightly but very briefly. i think he's meant to do a ton of damage with his skill, tank the enemies' attacks without healing, and then die. and then xiangling and razor come along after him and finish off the remaining enemies - if there are any left standing

which... you know...

... is not a bad encapsulation of his character overall!

so, you know what, i owe diluc an apology. i was not familiar with his game. this tcg deck is awful if you want to play tcg in the intended way, but it perfectly fits his character and approach to life - because this deck is the deck of a man who only knows how to fight alone

[leonidas1754]

What's been driving me absolutely bonkers lately is that it's so fucking clear that both Eito and Takumi independently have some massive issues that need genuine help (though Eito's are directly touched upon in the game while Takumi's aren't as much), and they could help each other... If they hadn't been put in a situation where doing so is borderline impossible.

Spoilers, you know the drill, mainly Route 0, 2nd Scenario, SF, Coming of Age.

Look, just. Outright, plainly, Takumi has depression. It's not even subtle and it's been driving me absolutely nuts because I haven't seen anyone else talk about it yet (though tbf I haven't gone looking too hard since I haven't played all the routes).

He has no hobbies. His main interest is sleeping. He has no friends aside from the single one, and it's unclear whether he even cares about his family all that much, as far as I can remember any worry about them barely if ever comes up, it's always Karua. The literal FIRST THING WE SEE ABOUT HIM is that he sleeps in the same clothes he wears daily. He's self-sacrificing and he has absolutely zero confidence in himself or his decisions. He has absolutely nothing but his care for his friends and allies, and for the most part, he's not allowed to have anything more than that. He's so focused on others to the point of it being selfish in its own way, and he can and will destroy himself over and over again if he believes it's needed to help those he cares about.

We see him lean on Eito in Route 0, but honestly, I don't believe it's to the degree everyone else seems to think. To me, it always felt like Takumi and Eito were propping each other up, doing the best they could in the insane and terrible situation they were thrown into. It was a little more give on Eito's side and a little more take on Takumi's, but sometimes relationships are like that, some people have more/bigger needs than others, and that doesn't mean the relationship is inherently bad or unhealthy. It's only amplified as the others start to look to Takumi more and more as a leader figure.

Obviously, it's clear in hindsight that Eito was manipulating Takumi to a degree, but much of Eito's actions are done basically entirely on his own, without manipulating Takumi other than in the sense of having his trust. Destroying Sirei, killing Hiruko, letting Eva escape then killing her, destroying their food supply, even convincing everyone but Takumi (and Nozomi) to give in to V'exhness' false surrender offer (that he wasn't aware was a farce), they were all done by Eito alone.

I think part of the reason people interpret it that way is because of what happens AFTER Route 0. Because the problem ultimately is that Takumi still highly values Eito's friendship, he hasn't magically processed that betrayal in the 5 days between when it happens and when he turns back time, in no small part because he has a lot of other shit to work through as well. And once he turns back time, he gets basically no opportunity to do so. He's immediately forced to choose to either kill or spare Eito, and then Sirei names him leader of the SDU. Takumi's entire focus is on keeping everyone alive. Both the time travel and Sirei effectively isolate him. Of course Eito is still on his mind a lot, of course he mentally references what he thinks Eito would say or do, and of course he misses that friend he'd counted on throughout such a stressful and confusing situation.

Something that also drives me crazy is the way the subject of Eito wanting a cure comes up in the SF route. It just really comes out of almost nowhere, with another timeline's Eito admitting to it because ???????? genuinely why? It would have been incredible to have a route that focused on Takumi doing his best to get close to Eito and truly understand him, gaining his trust and having Eito eventually admit that way that his cognitive distortion has caused him a lot of isolation and pain, and that he wants that human connection more than anything.

Because that's the biggest issue, really, on both sides of it; neither truly get the opportunity to try and understand one another. Takumi doesn't get a chance to process that betrayal and grief, to actually be able to approach Eito with a clearer picture.

To Takumi, everything he knew about Eito was false, and Eito is purely a man of spite and malice due to his cognitive distortion.

He doesn't get the chance to wonder if maybe, just maybe, not all of it was a lie, and that Eito is ultimately just another person with wants and needs and pain, someone who doesn't need to be saved, but to be helped.

And Eito, god, it's more obvious, but I really wanna touch on the fact that despite what he says on day 95, it's pretty clear that he was at least somewhat genuine in Route 0. Yes, he hid his disgust and hatred of humanity, but that doesn't mean he didn't form some level of actual connection with the others, especially Takumi. He just can't admit it because it's dissonant with everything he believes he wants, along with his cognitive distortion making it impossible for him to truly connect in the ways he might want to and the ways he knows would be wanted from him, all tied up with a nice bow of fear of how Takumi might react to learning about said cognitive distortion.

Eito's behavior in the Defense Room on Day 95 reeks of someone putting on an act to convince both themselves and others of something. In Eito's case, if Takumi completely hates him and believes Eito truly never felt any friendship or positive things for Takumi or anyone else, then Eito can shove out any and all doubts from his own mind, all the reasons he might cave to a Takumi that instead tries to plead with him and insist that Eito isn't alone.

Of course, after Route 0, Eito doesn't have that connection with Takumi, there's nothing to pretend isn't there because for him, it's not. His fascination with Takumi is born from Takumi's time travel and that he stopped Eito from destroying Sirei, and likely also how Takumi acts towards him, clearly still feeling the pain of that betrayal.

[[ To preface this next bit, I feel the need to be clear that I think the SF Route sucks as a 'true end', but that's an entire long post all on its own. That said, this next bit is going to be written with the approach of addressing the route as the story is rather than blowing Takumi's behavior off as the hasty and inconsistent writing it feels like ]]

Even in the Coming of Age and SF routes, Takumi isn't allowed to actually connect with Eito in any meaningful way.

In Coming of Age, he suggests the DCRT because he sees it as an opportunity to help Eito. There may be some delusion that he could have his false friend for real this time, but more than anything, it read to me as a genuine desire to rid Eito of the clear problem he has, being that his cognitive distortion prevents him from connecting with others and being happy.

Takumi has no context for how terrible the brainwashing machine is in this timeline, only getting the barest hint of it with Eva, so it never really read to me as "being willing to put Eito through something horrible to get route 0 Eito back" (though that's not something that's necessarily off the table for him, at least in some routes) and more as genuine intent, especially when Eito comes back "cured" and Takumi is clearly weirded out, but accepts it. This Eito isn't the one he had back in Route 0, but it's an Eito who seems to truly be happier, even if he's kind of weird about it.

And in SF, we don't even get that much. They find a potential cure again, but Takumi literally doesn't even get the opportunity to try and get to know Eito as he is because Hiruko uses the brainwashing machine on him. And yes, again, Takumi doesn't really have context for how terrible the machine is, not to mention he's hyper-focused on the lead they have for breaking out of the time loop, so he's willing to simply accept it at face value again.

What both of them need, more than anything, is a genuine, mutually supportive connection. And I truly believe it's something they could find in one another, if circumstances allowed for it.

Takumi needs someone who will help him, yes, but also someone who can get him to push back as well, someone who won't put up with him destroying himself for their sake. Because Takumi will, we see him do it several times over in various routes, and it's in no small part because he is being placed in that position of responsibility without proper support, along with that lack of any motivation outside the lives of his friends and the absence of self-worth.

Eito could support him quite well, if given the room to breathe, if he can let go of the idea of using Takumi as a tool to further his own goals. But he's trapped in a cage, given no compassion by Sirei, and no opportunity to pull himself out of the mental trap he's in: viewing his distorted sight as a gift as the only coping mechanism he has for the isolation it caused and continues to cause him.

Eito needs someone who truly wants to help him, but not diminish him as he so often was in his false childhood memories. Someone who wants to cure his condition because of how it affects him rather than it (mainly) being about them, though it's impossible for there to be no self-interest in such a thing, let alone have Eito believe there isn't.

Takumi may have difficulties dealing with the other members of the SDU at times, but he accepts them as they are, and there's no reason to think he couldn't do the same with Eito given the time to actually process his grief over Eito's betrayal, to find that balance between wanting to help others and respecting both himself and others' strengths and struggles.

They just don't have the opportunity, or rather, Takumi doesn't have the opportunity. They're both open wounds; Takumi is reopened over and over and over again, given no time to heal, while Eito is left to fester without care.

God I just want them to get the help they fucking need.

[iuseatranslator]

Not canon, not even headcanon, but more like a “wouldn't it be fun if—?” kind of thing... I’m not sure what to call it. Anyway, here are my top 3 picks for that kind of setting.

1. Mickey and Mandy look a lot alike.

Black hair, blue eyes, pale skin. If we’re just talking colors, then yeah, I’d say they’re already about 50% alike! lol

But since it’s never actually mentioned in the show, it’s not canon. And Even as a headcanon, it still feels like it’s missing that last 2%.

Still, I love this idea so much.

I posted about it before, but I really enjoy the notion that Ian rejected Mandy, only to fall hard for her male version. I imagine Mandy, upon finding this out, thinking something like,"What the fuck? That asshole pushed me away but clings to the guy version of me—with a dick and an even more fucked-up personality?!"

Maybe they really do look alike. But Mickey’s just such a filthy mess that no one’s ever thought to draw the comparison. Maybe Ian only started noticing the similarities once he and Mickey got involved. Or maybe the reverse—he starts seeing bits of Mickey in Mandy.

Lip would never admit they look alike. Even if he did notice something, he’d deny it with everything he had. lol

(On a related note) I’ve always had a headcanon that Colin/Iggy and Mickey/Mandy are half-siblings through different moms.

And I’ve got a visual headcanon for Mickey and Mandy’s mom too! lol Basically, she looks like Mandy but taller and with a more melancholic vibe. (I know it doesn’t make much sense for her to be tall, considering Mickey and Mandy’s height) She probably married Terry, had the kids, but couldn’t survive his violence and either ran away within a year or two, or died. I really hope she’s alive and doing okay somewhere out there.

2. Mickey’s first crush was Lip.

This pops up in fics from time to time, and I find it super entertaining. I wouldn’t call it my headcanon, but I love the idea and it’s fun to imagine.

Mickey around 7 to 9 years old. Back then, Lip might’ve been a bit taller than the other kids, or at least smarter, and good at making friends. Mickey might’ve looked up to him, or had a shy little crush.

But as Lip grew up into someone completely not Mickey’s type, those feelings would’ve faded quickly. During puberty, Mickey might’ve even had a wet dream or two about him—but by then, the emotional part was long gone, and he probably woke up feeling sick with guilt and shame.

The reason I like this idea is that it adds more flavor to the weird dynamic between Lip and Mickey. And of course, it’s also because of how Ian would react. lol

Ian would be a little jealous at first, maybe get kind of pissy about it. But then he’d just end up laughing like, “Are you serious?” Considering how much they hate each other now, it’s hilarious to think there was ever something like that. At this point, Ian might actually be hoping the two of them get along for once.

3. Clayton Gallagher leaves part of his estate to Ian after his death.

I wish this would happen… But yeah, it’s about as close to zero as a possibility can get. lol

The chances are low, but I hope Ian got to see Clayton again after canon. I'd just like Mickey to have seen Ian's biological dad at least once.

And I wish they had met Ian's half-brother, Jacob(Is that even the right name?). According to Lucy, he looks just like Ian.

In my mind, Jacob is a little smaller than Ian, wears glasses, and has this classic “nerdy” Ian energy.

The reason I want them to meet him is simple. I want to see Mickey being low-key into someone who looks exactly like Ian.

Ian’s got this half-brother he loves—Lip—who Mickey fucking hates. But then this random-ass half-brother, Jacob, who Ian barely knows? Mickey kinda likes him. Of course Ian would hate it. And yeah... that’s exactly what I want to see.

Anyway, back to the main point: I just want Ian to inherit some of Clayton’s money and live a comfortable life with Mickey. That’s it. Will it happen? Absolutely not. But somewhere in the infinite multiverse, I choose to believe there’s a world where it does.

[aurorafandomblog]

Actually, nevermind. im making my own post instead of waiting for some rando's permission to info dump. tags exist for a reason.

Why is no one talking about this scene except for the critics???

Superman 2025 spoilers below; please engage with me in this discussion please, i feel like im going feral over this. lol

The scene I am specifically talking about is the criticism about the writing choice to have Luthor broadcast to the world Superman's Kryptonian parents' message in full.

Critics think this is the writers deciding to demonize Clark's biological parents.

I personally think anyone who says that is missing the point of the scene.

If we back up, the audience is specifically made aware that Luthor is determined to dig up dirt on Superman, at any and all cost. We see his absolute hatred of Superman be underscored and emphasized over and over from the beginning to the end of the movie. So when he went into the arctic fortress and he saw the first half of the message and that the file was corrupted, he KNEW that Superman had only ever heard the first half. It was OBVIOUS the first half that Superman only ever got to see had zero indications of some ulterior motive. Saying otherwise was a blatant lie. He knew that the second half couldnt possibly affect Supermans behaviour or motives. He. Did. Not. Care.

Instead he subjected a woman into physical and memtal distress to force her to recover what was very corrupted data with zero concerns for her well being because Luthor was laser focused on his hatred of Superman. We see this obsession highlighted later when he risked the destruction of planet earth itself just so he could have a chance to kill Superman. Its even the one thing that made him start the war: his hatred for Superman. He wanted an excuse to kill him and he didnt care how many human lives were killed or ruined in his determination to do so.

Then we hear the second half and it is very clearly spoken in Kryptonian. This is not just a foreign language, this is a language that didnt even originate on Earth. This message is the only known Kryptonian media for translation teams to work with.

To fully understand the gravity of how cruel and deliberate Luthor's 'exposé' on Superman's parents was, you also need to understand how language and translation actually works.

Do you know why Google Translate is so bad at actually translating from language to language? Its because of word for word translations. Its because it is a robot that cannot understand tone or linguistic mannerisms or language culture. It is over literal and cannot translate with any nuance.

now dont get me wrong, translating word for word absolutely has benefits, namely for learning a new language and to help you understand the way that language culture thinks. But it is trash for actually conveying true meaning. All word for word is, is a STARTING place for translating. Thats it.

We see the issue of language culture and mannerisms clearly when we compare the English language from the United States to Europe to Australia. The same word can mean drastically different things, but it is all still English. Thats because culture has a massive influence to the actual meaning of the individual words.

This is true of ALL. LANGUAGES. And then on top of that, you have individual mannerisms and tonal inflections. In some cultures, talking loudly is considered normal communication style while in a different person or language culture, speaking loud is rude and indicates anger and conflict. Even pacing of the syllables can change a meaning and so can facial expressions!

All these are nuances within just the languages on earth where there is (usually) a very great abundance of material for translators to work with.

But Krypton has only one known living person in existence (until Kara shows up, but thats neither here nor there). This lone survivor knows NOTHING about his own people. planet. Culture. If not even HE knows anything, there is no way possible to form an iron clad translation of the only kryptonian material they have to work with.

So when Lex Luthor told the interviewer and the world that Superman's "secret goal" was to build a harem and rule the world.... thats the interpretation he was looking for. Not the actual intent behind the message. The interviewer even ASKED Luthor if there was any room for an alternative interpretation. But Luthor, despite everything he should know about linguistics that i stated above, LIED and said no.

FYI, there is ALWAYS room for interpretation, even in your own native language. Thats why we have dictionaries! and the thesaurus! Thats why you have to be certified to become a language interpreter! Thats why its called spinning a story in your favour- which, by the way, is exactly what Luthor was doing.

He made the most disingenous interpretation of the message he possibly could. A much more likely and KINDER interpretation of the footage would be something to the effect of "You are the last survivor of Krypton. Please, do not let us go extinct. Get married and have children so that the legacy of Krypton will live on. The people we sent you to are of a much simpler civilization, they are very far behind technologically. you must help guide them to a better way of life."

So what Luthor effectively did was destroy Superman's reputation, self esteem, sense of identity, sense of purpose, AND stripped away from him the one and only thing that tied Superman to his birth world and people, parents, and culture.

The movie didnt ruin his parents. That was solely Luthor's manufacturing.

[wistfulcynic]

the main problem with this discussion in the wider sense is that we are actually talking about at least three different things and the threads are getting muddled. To clarify, the main points of contention seem to be:

the sexuality of the real paddy

the sexuality of show!paddy and his relationship to eoin

the relevance of both of the above to what sort of fanfic people are writing and how people's fic preferences influence the way they interpret characters

tangentially, there is also the "but bisexuals!" argument, which is an offshoot of all three but also kind of its own thing.

@torakowalski has hit all the major points relating to number one, in my opinion, namely that there's no way we can know but the evidence that does exist all seems to point to him being some flavour of queer. Bi is certainly not out of the question though i would contend that bisexuals of the past would have been more comfortable falling in line with the heteronormative standards of the day than the real paddy seemed to be. Anxiety around women and wishing to avoid them strongly suggests that he was keen to prevent any potential misunderstandings or situations where he would have to reject advances or produce an explanation for why he wasn't interested. Whereas if he'd had an interest in women, this would not have been an issue.

but still, all of this is speculation and, i STRONGLY contend, entirely irrelevant to the major issue, which is the way paddy is portrayed in fic. Because none of us is reading or writing RPF here. The only, and i mean the ONLY reason why anyone brings up the real paddy's sexuality is because they are groping for justifications to write show!paddy as straight, or at least willing to fuck women.

which brings us to point two, my major point and the one i covered extensively in my OP. There is also this gorgeously written post which goes more in depth about the way the show frames, very deliberately, paddy and eoin. We are meant to understand, even without explicit confirmation, that the two of them are in love. We are meant to understand that paddy is gay and deeply conflicted about it. We're meant to understand that this informs nearly everything about him, from his discomfort with eve and scorn of alessia to his belligerence and violent behaviour to his lack of respect for authority to his ambivalence about his own survival. He's forced by the society he lives in, by his religion, by the military, by the laws of his country to hide a fundamental aspect of himself and he chafes fiercely at that. He hates it and also hates himself for being something that has to be hidden. He's essentially the poster child for internalised homophobia and that more than anything else is why he was never going to kiss eoin, never going to call him more than a friend, why he couldn't even hold his hand until eoin was dead. This is such an absolutely immutable aspect of who show!paddy is that to ignore it is to make him someone entirely different. And that is why i personally have such a problem with fics that pair him with women.

there is of course a grand tradition of fanfic being out of character. It's almost impossible for it not to be, at least a little bit, because we as fic writers aren't the original writers, so we can't ever exactly match what they produce. Our versions of the characters will always be influenced by our own identities, experiences, etc. And that is, of course, fine. Part of the fun of fic is changing elements of canon, turning it upside down and shaking it to see what falls out. For instance, despite what i just said about paddy and his homophobia i have zero problem with fics that have him fucking eoin. If writers want to make the canon environment freer and more gay then absolutely more power to them. If they want to keep eoin alive, add augustin to the mix, i wish them strength and stamina. Because these changes are small and incidental but within the fic environments the characters remain fundamentally themselves.

it's at this point that someone will inevitably jump in and say "but but! we write straight characters as gay all the time!" and this is true. It is also very different.

it's different because straight is the default setting. It's what most normie viewers assume about everyone unless explicitly shown otherwise. Straight characters aren't conflicted about their sexuality nor do they have to fight for it. It defines them far less than queer characters are defined by theirs. This isn't fair of course but it is How Things Are. Writing a "straight" character as gay is not erasing a vital aspect of their identity the way writing a gay character as straight would do. Not to mention that queer representation in media is still so scarce even a quarter of the way through the 21st century, that forcing heterosexuality onto even one of them reads as an act of violence. Why would you do that, when there are so many straight characters to play with? Why is it so important to you to write paddy fucking women?

and here is where we arrive at the crux of the thing. You want to write/read paddy with a fem reader or oc because paddy is hot af and you personally want to fuck him.

this is obviously not a new or unique impulse. AO3 is littered with fics where straight male MCs are written with their canon love interests made almost unrecognisable so the writer can insert themself into the fic in that character's place. The rise of popularity of x reader fics is just that same thing made more straightforward. It's wildly solipsistic in ways i admit i don't understand but it's also i suppose largely harmless with a few very notable exceptions. Like when you have to try to argue that the real person your fuck toy is based on was never proven to be gay, How Dare You Erase The Possibility That He Was Bi, or that he and his onscreen love interest could totally just have been best bros, they didn't even kiss! Like when you have to engage in some gnarly mental gymnastics in order to arrive at a place where you can plausibly insist this character would even want to fuck you.

and here's the thing about that: he wouldn't. The less known offshoot of "he would not fucking say that" is "he would not fucking fuck you." He just wouldn't.

for some folks, this is a tough pill to swallow. If you are a straight white person you're used to nearly everything in media being for you and are very unused to being told you can't have something you want. So the impulse to push back against that and to dig for justification, or to fall back on the standard argument of "it's just fanfic who cares? Everyone does what they want in fic!" is nearly impossible to resist. But you should resist it.

because listen, like i said above, no one is going to stop you writing whatever you like. But for your own edification and growth as a human it might help to ask yourself why you think everything has to be for you. Why can't you let this one hot guy go and instead focus on the many, many other characters whom you don't have to strip of their whole marginalised identity in order to get them to fuck you. Some of those are even played by the same fucking guy! Lady Chatterley's Lover is literally all about fucking women. Maybe play in that pool instead and let the queers have this one (1) hot dude for themselves.

idk, like i said i am not the fic police and i've already spent so much more time on this issue than i intended to, especially when it's unlikely to make any kind of difference. i do feel like some issues never get brought out into the open when they really should be, though, and so just like my own pet straight man who i have made queer, bill stirling, i will fall on my sword to protect fictional paddy mayne in all his gay ass glory.

I like the paddy/eoin content a lot BUT Paddy Mayne was a real person who was fucking women irl, and the show has been intentionally playing with queerness for the story line (which is problematic in many many ways). You can't be mad at people for writing what is canonically correct (with real life as the original source material). The middle ground is him being considered bisexual and then everyone can write the fics they want to write about a dead man

hoo boy.

i really should ignore this but hey ho what the fuck. Let's dive in.

so i AM going to ignore your mind boggling assertion that paddy 'was fucking women irl' because what. lol. and focus instead on 'the show has been intentionally playing with his queerness as a story line' and 'the middle ground is him being considered bisexual' because again, lol, but at least with this we are getting close to the actual issues here.

firstly, what the real paddy did or didn't do is irrelevant because nobody, and i mean nobody in any way involved in this conversation is writing RPF about a dude dead these 70 years. Do not come in here pretending that the paddy x f!reader or fem!oc is actually about the real paddy mayne. That is a straw man argument and i personally will laugh you out of the room if you (general 'you', not just anon) keep putting it forward. It's ridiculous, fucking stop.

what we can talk about is how his sexuality is portrayed on the show. In order to do that we all need to put our media literacy hats on, but i know some of you don't have those so in that case just try to pay attention.

we have to start by talking about what the show is, primarily that it is ahistorical. It says so right on the tin and of course no one is expected to believe that the real SAS went around blasting Highway to Hell for extremely obvious reasons. The show also as we know has taken some liberties with the characterisations of the real people involved. This again is irrelevant because we are not writing RPF. Discussions about how real people can/are/should be interpreted in television and films are interesting and valid but they don't belong here. We're looking *only* at the show characters and how they are portrayed and what we as viewers are intended to understand from that.

now despite my having just said that the show is deliberately ahistorical it is still firmly set in the past and certain expectations arise from that. We expect the characters to dress in period fashion, we expect them to drive period accurate vehicles and shoot period accurate weapons. We expect them to talk about killing Germans and Italians which they clearly would not do today. We also expect them to display period accurate attitudes to certain social issues, namely in this case homosexuality or queerness in general.

we expect this because while we are able to suspend disbelief about the soundtrack or the choice to cast a 5'7" actor to play someone who was 6'4" irl, suspension of disbelief refers to the reader/audience's willing choice to accept the artistic premise of what they are reading/watching for the sake of the story being told. Suspension of disbelief refers to accepting improbable coincidences that move the plot along or not thinking too hard about the timeline, as in the case of SAS:RH. It does NOT mean shrugging away anachronisms built into the story itself.

think of it as the walrus/fairy question that was all over tumblr last year. We are unfazed by the appearance of the fairy at our door because that only requires us to accept the existence of something we thought wasn't real. We are fazed by the walrus because how the fuck does a walrus--something we already know is real and therefore has to follow the rules of this reality--get to our door? How does it ring the bell? We accept a soundtrack of AC/DC and Judas Priest because it sets the tone of the show and is a clear artistic choice. If paddy were to appear in onscreen wearing an AC/DC t-shirt we would immediately react negatively and be taken out of the scene because even though the show is ahistorical he simply wouldn't do that. He couldn't do that. It's impossible within the premise of the show that we have already accepted.

so when you, anon, and others like you, claim that show!paddy's queerness is something the show 'intentionally plays with as a story line' what you mean is that he's not portrayed as a modern queer character would be. He doesn't kiss eoin, only ever calls him a friend, doesn't apply modern terminology to himself or speak openly about any of this. Because of course he fucking doesn't. That would be wearing an AC/DC shirt whilst sulking like achilles in his tent. It would be out of place in a way that goes against the established premise of the show. It is not reasonable to expect that from this show or this character.

as for it being fundamental to the story, well, yeah. That's storytelling. Eoin's death and paddy's reaction to it drives paddy's arc in a way that we the viewers are clearly intended to understand. That's not 'playing' with his queerness, it's drawing a very clear and logical line from 'the man he loves but can't express that love to dies tragically' to 'he isn't able to talk about his grief because that would mean articulating things he can't even acknowledge to himself' to 'the internalised grief, anger, and homophobia drives him to behave in ways that would have him locked up in another context but in the SAS has him wreathed in medals'. His queerness and our the viewers' understanding of it is essential to the show but it is not the point of the show. If you want an exploration of what it meant to be queer in the british army in wwii then that is a fanfic you should write but again, you shouldn't expect it of this show. SAS:RH is about beautiful men blowing shit up. It's not a treatise on historical queerness. Manage your expectations.

let's move on then to the laughable notion that bisexuality is in some way a 'middle ground' between straight and gay, some sort of compromise that we the audience can strike amongst ourselves so that everyone can be happy. And on this point let me just say again, hoo boy.

i've been accused of bisexual erasure in the notes of my original post which is very funny to me considering i've written bill stirling as bi in two longish fics now, in a very pointed way that involves a self-realisation arc for him. i am also old enough to have lived through the days when homosexuality was becoming more widely accepted but people on both sides of the issue were united in their refusal to admit bisexuals were real. A gay friend of mine, fresh out of the closet in 1998, told me flat out that people claiming to be bi were just 'too afraid to come out for real' so you know. I've been in the trenches.

however, none of this is relevant to the show, which very deliberately and pretty fucking obviously gives us canon gay paddy but makes an equally deliberate point of him not being into women. How do we know he isn't? Consider the loving way the camera lingers on every single touch shared between him and eoin, the softness in how they look at and speak to each other, the fucking rowboat scene, hold all of that in your mind and then compare it to how he's shown with the two women he interacts with on screen.

in the very first episode we see him in the club when eve approaches him, visibly unnerved by her and wanting to make it very clear that he's not after what he thinks she's offering. He throws the flower over the balcony in a clear statement against any potential misunderstanding. He's absolutely desperate to avoid any situation wherein he might be hit on by a woman and have to extract himself without arousing her suspicions as to why. Eve of course clocks him instantly, as we have seen her do before and more explicitly with dudley clarke. Her gaydar is spot-on and she is able to smooth his ruffled feathers at least enough to get a bit of conversation out of him before he runs away. Her approach to him is so dramatically different to the approach she takes with david in the very next scene that it's impossible not to notice. A bisexual paddy, particularly one who has a sexual history with women, would not be so afraid of being hit on by one.

which brings us to alessia, with whom he has basically no direct interaction. We do however see him being scornfully dismissive of riley's attachment to her. He doesn't really seem to understand it and views it mainly as an obstacle, which is why he makes a point of separating them in s2e5. None of this is indicative of someone who has a romantic or sexual interest in women. None.

so, to recap: show!paddy is very clearly portrayed as in love with eoin, conflicted about it, conflicted about himself and his own identity, uninterested in women and unnerved by the possibility that they may have a sexual or romantic interest in him. This is not a bisexual man and saying so is not erasure of bisexuality, it's simple media literacy and not attempting to force a non-textual interpretation to justify the kind of fic you want to write. now let me be very clear on this. Of course you can write whatever fic you like. i am not the fic police or the SAS:RH police or any kind of cop (ACAB now and always). My point is not that you aren't allowed to write paddy with women, but that if you do you are making a very particular sort of decision, which is to deny and dismiss a fundamental aspect of his character and characterisation in order to justify your choice to write self-insert fantasies wherein your fic avatar is fucking not any version of paddy mayne either real or fictional but more your fantasy version of jack o'connell in a british army uniform with an irish accent. Which you know, whatever, you do you. Just do it with the full acknowledgement and recognition of what you are doing and what that says about you, as well as accepting that the ability to do something does not imply any freedom from criticism for choosing to do it. If you write paddy fucking women the cops won't break down your door but myself and the other viewers/writers/readers who are interested in the actual character from the show as he is actually portrayed are absolutely going to judge you for doing that.

basically, have the courage of your own fucking convictions. You think it's okay to ignore the sexuality of this character and by extension all the points made by the media he's in about what that sexuality means for him and his arc within the story. You want, essentially, to make him into a different character in order that you can fantasise about fucking him. Go right fucking ahead, no one is going to stop you. But don't pretend that this action isn't tone deaf, ignorant, and fucking homophobic. Don't pretend that it's something that shouldn't make other people mad, because hey ho we can all just headcanon him as bi.

nope. lol. not happening.

[auncyen]

There's already the theory that the island got moved into the future and that that's the vision of the future everyone sees but also just...

Maybe it's better if the King is just 'some guy'. But like he manages to be terrifyingly strong with Wish Craft that is seemingly all his own (as opposed to 'unintentionally fueled by whole country') despite the amnesia, and so at some point today my brain just went. Well.

If the country got wished into the future, inadvertently or purposefully, to avoid a threat.

What if he'd been the threat? And then without the memory he starts with a more benevolent purpose at first (wanting to preserve the country hospitable to him) but like. trauma did NOT improve the morality.

[meanderfall]

decided that the reason why 2003 splinter can be so laid back at times about the adventures his sons get up to is bc he knows he's unleashed hellions upon the world

[ghost-bxrd]

Ngl I'm lowkey intrigued by the idea of Jason being considered an actual "Al Ghul Prince" (even if Damian is still the Al Ghul heir) and what kind of drama that could entail in your fic XD

A…. lot. Honestly at this point “What you’re longing for” is more of a soap opera than anything lmao.

I’m not sure if it’s gonna fit into the fic yet, most likely it will stay heavily implied, but if the Bats do end up finding out about Jason’s status as, well, royalty in a way, Bruce is sure to get some more gray hairs lmao.

Jason for his part… mostly doesn’t realize what it means to be so thoroughly incorporated into the al Ghul family. He just thinks he’s finally lucked out on a family that would (and has already) killed for him. He remains largely oblivious to all the deference the regular league members show him now and thinks it’s due to his rank as a general.

(He is also not aware of the couple Shadows that Talia and Ra’s have tailing him at all times in case he ever gets in over his head with a bust, but that’s neither here nor there.)

[isaythingz]

Hey, totally fine! I need a fellow theorist for this masterpiece of a show!

I actually forgot that the bellhop was a side character of Hotel Tulipan. What I meant to say is that Lalo never mentioned anything about torturing the professor who worked the hotel, even when he provoked Hector. Now, Hector is absolutely a sadist just from what we hear and see (hello, twins flashback). But the fact there was also a bellhop there makes me think he just wasn’t there at the time this happened. I am also willing to accept your head-canon age for him at 22, and that he did shoot the professor’s wife for the sake of no witnesses.

About keeping the bell against Hector’s wishes. It may have been because he was so young, he was still getting a warped sense of “this is a moment between me and my uncle, who I will do anything for” as opposed to something as simple as “I liked that we tortured a guy.” He may have forgotten about the bell until that very moment. Lalo is good at coming up with ideas on the fly and his life is so chaotic that he can only sleep a couple hours at a time. A random bell isn’t going to be his top priority when his uncle is walking around and healthy.

You got two points from me there! 😊

As for Fred, the best line up with his preceding actions would be Logic Theory. He is indeed close to a town and a woman knocked on the door right after he killed the poor kid. From this, that worry of a gunshot being heard and that taking more time away from his chase is very plausible. It lines up with his previous calm calculation, as you stated.

Or we pull Occam’s Razor and introduce Option 4: The gun jammed and he had no other choice.

Additional Points w/ Lalo’s Emotions

He was very upset when his cook and people were killed by Gus, also because Nacho betrayed him, the same man he visibly worried for when sending him to Don Eladio. He seems to hold onto that until Point and Shoot, where he tells Saul exactly what they did, in detail (also low-key think Yoli was his favorite).

There’s also what you mention with his rage about the wire being tapped by Gus later on. He does feel intense emotions, which for me knocks him off the ASPD bracket. He may be cold and calculating, but he also feels a LOT throughout the show. For Nacho, Tío, the Hacienda Family, and Kim (for some reason).

We don’t have enough information about Lalo’s childhood (compared to Gus, who I do believe is a psycho). But given what the twins went through, nurture did a LOT of the heavy-lifting against their better nature. We also see very few members of the Salamanca family in both shows. 4 Cousins, 1 Uncle, 1 Grandson, and Abuelita (who reads as a very sweet lady with zero psycho tendencies). Given how absolutely fucked Lalo and the others had it from Hector’s sadistic shit, combined with Abuelita not having any tendencies or signs visible at all (ASPD does have a few genetic predispositions), I am inclined to believe the following.

Lalo has his power from competency and ability to craft a frightening reputation, rather than by committing actions of sadism. He is fiercely loyal to his family and will do whatever it takes to make them happy. Even if it means retelling a story he doesn’t care for anymore, or killing people when he absolutely must. Killing is just business with him because he’s been exposed to it since he was young. Hector does it so much around them that it’s like putting a dog down. And la familia es todo, so it’s not like he can just walk away.

Hector could very well be the reason many of the Salamancas are gone before BCS and Breaking Bad. Maybe they didn’t want to be part of the cartel and were fatally punished for it. I can imagine the old sicko has no problems doing that in front of the kids.

I find it really interesting that we never see Lalo take pleasure in hurting and killing other people. it's always business-like, very 'doing what needs to be done'

I'm definitely not saying I think he doesn't enjoy it; he was way more brutal than he needed to be when he murdered Fred Whalen, and of course we have him grinning as he recounts the 'fond memory' of the time he and Hector tortured and murdered a hotel owner, an event that meant so much to him that he risked his own life to go back inside the burning building for a souvenir. I do absolutely believe he gets, at minimum, some satisfaction from killing his enemies/people who get in his way or piss him off

but it's strange, isn't it? how he has the most kills out of every BCS character (seventeen in total) and yet we the audience never get to see him display any delight in the killing. we hear his gleeful recollection of the hotel murder, we hear that he beat Fred Whalen to death despite having a gun he could've used to end his life quickly, we hear about instances of him enjoying torture and murder, but we never see it. it's not that his sadism is being hidden, it's just that the audience is never shown his sadism directly. every time we see him kill or maim, it's all business

like I said, it's very interesting. I wonder why that decision was made for his character

[discordiansamba]

the first time zuko meets toph beifong, it was when grandpa kenzo had brought him along to meet a client of his. lao beifong was from the neighboring city of gaoling, and was a nobleman and a merchant of good reputation, he'd said. he'd introduced him to the man as his grandson akiyoshi, and zuko had tensed underneath his gaze.

...only to exhale, when he didn't even blink.

grandpa kenzo seemed to believe he was his grandson, but zuko knew it wasn't true. he hadn't meant to stick around as long as he already had, but...

grandpa kenzo was so nice.

he didn't think much of toph the first time he met her. it was by chance, really. they'd crossed paths as they were leaving. zuko still wasn't in the habit of bowing to people who weren't his father or grandfather- he'd needed grandpa kenzo's gentle nudge to remind him of his 'manners'. right. he was supposed to be a commoner's child.

toph, like grandpa kenzo, was blind.

toph, unlike grandpa kenzo, seemed to wilt with it.

he would later learn that wasn't true at all. it was a shock, seeing her at the earth rumble. she'd been so... different. her earthbending was like nothing he'd ever seen before- which wasn't saying much. before he'd been fled to the earth kingdom, the only earthbending he'd really seen was well... his own. and considering he'd barely known what he was doing before grandpa kenzo started teaching him...

...well. even he could tell toph was something special.

she'd threatened him at first when he'd approached her- until he'd promised he'd keep his mouth shut. he understood a thing or two about keeping secrets from your parents. she'd arched a brow when he'd said that, but she'd seemed to believe him. he didn't realize at the time that she could sense it was the truth-

-just like she could sense that aki wasn't his actual name.

he asked toph if she would teach him.

he'd expected her to reject him- but instead she'd agreed. if grandpa kenzo was a patient and understanding teacher, toph was... very much not that. she was definitely frustrated that he'd gotten to the age of thirteen without learning proper bending. he bristled when she said that- of course he didn't! he was born in the fire nation!

he didn't say that of course. he wasn't a complete idiot.

they ended up becoming friends.

she was, zuko thought, his first friend. he'd been afraid of letting anyone get too close to him before- afraid that they might find out he was an earthbender. his fears had been well founded, since the moment his father had found out, he'd declared him a bastard and had ordered his execution for the crime of posing as a member of the royal family for so long.

(he didn't think he actually was. a bastard, that is.)

now. if he could just get her to stop calling him mudslinger.

[buddietommys]

"Why not?"

"I wish you were a girl."

[damnation-valley]

sitting staring at the ceiling. does anybody here want to talk about bloody cop ezu. does anyone see his eternal struggle for power. did anyone notice just the slightest hint of panic and desperation in his voice when he talks about proving himself and getting that promotion. does anyone see that the only reason somebody would strive so hard to get up is that they're deathly afraid of being at the bottom. does anyone else see a small scared boy behind the blood-stained mask and bitter laughs. can you hear me. is anyone there.

[twobellsilence]

Watched Emilia Pérez to see what all the fuss was about. I might drop an essay at some point, or maybe I will write it before angrily deleting it and trying not to think about this crap ever again, but just know that I am absolutely LIVID.

The people praising this are so hypocritical I hope that when this pompous piece of SHIT of a director decides to make a film "exploring usamerican society" where a school shooter transitions and becomes an anti-school-shooting advocate that helps locate the bodies of missing school shooting victims with the help of other school shooters and they die and become a national hero, and also all the actors are like Russian or some shit and don't even know how to speak English for more than two sentences and also the director refuses to record in the US because "it didn't fit his image of the country" despite it literally being the same fucking country he's "inspired" by, y'all praise him once again for his bold narrative and unashamedly "real" representation. Fuck you

[rensply]

Zenless Zone Zero allowing me to replay cutscenes is very important because I have been studying the 1.6 main quest a lot over the past couple of days with a friend and holy shit there’s a good bit one might miss on a single play through.

On a completely related note: I’m never allowed to call my own prose “purple” ever again because I have absolutely NOTHING on Maurice Leblanc.

[willowser]

willow your text with bakugou hc is so accurate but now im just wondering how he is when you send pictures of yourself lol

you: hi :) (pic of pretty face reader)

bakugou: thumbs up

he’s so 😭😭😭 he loves your face TRULY but it would make you crazy

LMAOO i know 😭😭 he's so RIDICULOUS like i think you send him a cute selfie and his tummy gets tight and his face gets hot and he stares at it for a long time, but he just responds with "how are you?" LMAOOOOO i think he'd be the absolute WORST at snapchat too, like. he's sending you pictures from angles like

or if he DOES try it's like

DARK AS HELL CANT SEE A THING LOL he's TERRIBLE at it sigheisndjskqk