#there's actually much more left to analyse and interpret

[anukkuna]

Day 10: Favorite bond in Spatort

I'll give the cliché answer and go with 'Leo and Adam'. After all, it's a major part of what got me into watching Spatort in the first place.

Also: Emphasis on Adam's side of the bond, 'cause I personally feel like I get him more and I like the whole conflict that evolves around returning to his home town and his childhood best friend.

So, things I'd like to mention: Adam obviously googled Leo from afar. He deliberately applied for the position in Saarbrücken. So, most likely, he regularly searched for "Leo Hölzer" online. Did he even become a police detective because of Leo?

"Als ich das Tauschgesuch deines Kollegen gesehen hab', hab' ich sofort zugesagt."

- Adam, Das fleißige Lieschen

But some things strain their bond and continue to do so for quite a while.

At first, on the roof in Ep. 01 (after the arrested Weißer) Adam tells Leo to just forget what happened, but over the course of the episode it becomes clear that it's not as simple as that (an important motif of this episode is that you cannot completely bury your past, no matter how hard you try).

Then Roland wakes up and Adam tries to protect Leo by not telling him, but that backfires as well. He needs to work together with him.

Adam truly seems terrified when he realises Roland remembers that it was no ordinary accident in the garage 15 year ago and that Adam and Leo tried to kill him back then.

We see them rekindle in HdS though. Leo decides to trust Adam and they get him out of prison at the end.

For a moment, we get a happy and hopeful ending, seeing how relieved they both are after the King is dead.

But this kind of peace only ever lasts so long... Next we get the end of KdE and the whole money-situation. Adam, once again, doesn't tell Leo - this time about the money. Ffs Adam... he is such an idiot. He also doesn't tell him about the attempted robbery and threat by Moritz Leimer and only reluctantly come clean about that.

Leo: "Warum meldest du das nicht? Oder erzählst es zumindest mir?"

- Leo, Die Kälte der Erde

It's not good, admittedly, but from Adam's perspective, I feel like this is all because he wants to keep Leo out of trouble. He sees how hard the past has been on Leo and how hard he finds it to forget... so his solution is to work around him. Try to keep him out of the heat. Protect Leo because Leo always put other people first and forgets to protect himself in doing so.

Don't get me wrong. Adam is a dumdum. More than that - what he does ist bad and dishonest and, regardless of one's intentions, it can easily be read as distrusting, careless and hurtful by the people who get left out as Leo does. But I'd still defend that intentions rightfully change how one should evaluate an action. Intentions aren't just add-ons - they provide necessary explanations to actions and I don't think one should fully evaluate an action, by only looking at it's consequences.

Also, I am sure that, regardless of all his secrecy and struggles, Adam would never abandon Leo again.

[lu-is-not-ok]

Hi! I was wondering what your thoughts were on the relationship between Hong Lu and Xichun. Namely (if I'm interpreting this correctly), how much he seems to care for her well-being. This has been nagging me since Canto 7 but he was so insistent on her being careful or joining up with him. Like you can tell how bothered he was. And HL, while often repeating some form of "my family sucks" doesn't usually let it linger? He makes a joke and moves on. I haven't heard anyone talking about it but this is the first time HL has shown care towards any of his family, even if later he is all "yeah if she dies, she dies, oh well". You're not fooling anyone, you.

You're right on the money with that one! When Hong Lu calls Xichun his 'most amicable sibling', I believe he's very much being truthful about that. Because while yes, she's rude and tends to do everything in her power to push him away, there are small moments that show that their care for each other is in fact mutual.

After all, she herself even points out that if it was any other sibling he ran into, he would have already been taken out. But Xichun doesn't do that. She doesn't kill him, or try to capture him, even though she's clearly aware that their Family is actively looking for him.

In a way, she's similar to Hong Lu in that she's never entirely straightforward with how she feels about things. She often puts on some sort of facade to hide the true meaning of her words, just in her case it's a mask of hostility, likely to defend herself in her position.

There's two moments in particular I feel that exemplify this by alluding to how Xichun actually feels towards Hong Lu, beneath her anxieties and prey animal rage.

The first one is this.

I've already gone at length about this scene from Hong Lu's perspective, how the thought of being an embarrassment to someone else in his Family causes him to shut down and default to trying to nod along and speed through the conversation as fast as possible. However, I think Xichun's response here is likewise notable.

Because she almost immediately backs up. It feels almost as if she's lamenting that he's still dealing with such situations as badly as he did back at home, and after giving one more 'jab' (one that you could even read as a backhanded form of assurance that she is in fact safe for him to be around), she takes the hint and ends the conversation.

The second one is the exchange that leads to them parting ways.

This is perhaps the most obvious Xichun has ever been about her own worries for Hong Lu. She's very visibly showing concern and outright anxiety over the thought that Hong Lu isn't taking things seriously and putting himself in danger. And then I believe she realized why that is.

If you've seen any of my analyses and theories, you know that I'm a firm believer that Hong Lu lied about the reason why he left the Jia household, and that in reality he's a runaway. This moment here is I believe the moment Xichun realizes that he ran away as well, and as such his goal is completely different from hers. As Hong Lu himself later states, "The path diverges, and we must each take the other trail."

After that exchange she continues to show concern for him, if somewhat indirectly.

I don't think she's saying this just to give advice on what Donqui/Sancho might be feeling at the moment. I believe she's implying that she's recognising that Hong Lu himself might be or at some point have been in a similar situation, and is thus attempting to empathize with him. Hong Lu's response here feels like he's taken the hint and is confirming it, clearly speaking from a much more personal place and experience.

And then, of course, is the moment they split up.

Another one of Xichun's backhanded assurances. She might sound rude here, but the essence of what she's saying is clear here. She will come back for him and maybe even support him.

So, yeah! Hong Lu not only cares about Xichun, but has every reason to! She's clearly one of the few Family members he has that actually seems to care about him in return! Even if it is buried underneath her harsh demeanor.

And regarding the one scene you bring up, well, I might as well repeat my own full interpretation of it now that we've gained more insight into Hong Lu after the check-up intervallo.

Note how Hong Lu directly interrupts Gregor here. I believe Hong Lu here is reacting very emotionally, effectively snapping at Gregor for what he implied. Part of it I believe is the implication that the death of a loved one would hold any substantial meaning to Hong Lu, something he is extremely philosophically opposed to due to viewing all kinds of death as meaningless.

But the other part of it is, well, that the thought of someone he loved dying in front of his eyes brings up memories he doesn't want to acknowledge. So he snaps back with as straightforward an answer as he can come up with so as to not give himself the time to dwell on the idea. Because it sure is suspicious he has yet to mention the one other person in his household that is ought to be very amicable towards him, no?

[under-lore]

The effects of LOVE are quite overstated.

It has been quite frequent to see the concept of LOVE mentioned by Sans in his judgments being interpreted as a force progressively depriving the person possessing it of all empathy or judgement until they are rendered into practical killing machines whilst approaching the cap of 20.

Whilst there are some truths to part of these concepts, interestingly, extrapolating implicit data from the game suggests that the effects LOVE have on a character's personality, whilst existing, are not as significant as they are generally believed to be.

Let's do a proper analysis of what we can say of LOVE's effects based only on the in-game content :

First, aside from Sans' words about it, do we dispose of any clear cut examples of changes relating to LV to analyse ?

That might seem like a silly question, but some of the lines that are often attributed to LV-induced personality changes turn out to not actually be LV-dependent once you check the game's code.

For instance, the narration of the bag of dog food is decided through kill count, not LV, meaning that it possible for instance to get the 'pessimistic line' despite not gaining any LOVE, and thus, this line cannot be attributed to changes related strictly to LV gain and isn't very useful to us here.

Actually, the amount of direct evidence we see of it having any effect at all which we can be certain off is quite small. But such a thing does exist via interactions relating to this dummy :

LV1 :

LV2+ :

LV5+ :

LV 8+ :

The only factor involved in deciding which of these lines will appear after deciding to punch the dummy is LOVE, it is notably distinct from other similar interactions like those mentioned above which tend to be governed by some variation of a kill count or a check regarding wether particular characters were killed.

As similar LV can be reached through killing various amount of monsters or varieties of monsters, unique or not, no equivalence can be built between the required LV for each of those interactions and particular character(s) or amount of monsters required to be killed to reach said LV.

We can thus only take the code of the game at face value and conclude that those changes are strictly caused by changes dependent on the influence of the LV we've gathered in our route so far.

The first pattern that can be established is that the narration in the left column reports Frisk punching the dummy with increasing levels of strength following our command as LV increases.

In the right column, there is a split between the four lines in the middle regarding the way the narration reports it.

The first two lines are narrated in the more common style, notably, explicitly reminding us that the actions or thoughts presented are Frisk's by refering to them as "you" as the subject of the sentence.

Those first two lines describe Frisk going from regret to a form of hesitant apathy regarding the fact that they've just punched a dummy as LV grows.

The latter two lines, however, mark a change in the narration type.

The "you" is dropped, and the thoughts presented are instead presented in a declarative form. This form is often used for first person affirmations, but can also be used outside of it in order to showcase a strong emotionally-driven reaction.

This ambiguity is particularly relevant here, as it blurs the line between wether those thoughts are Frisk's, the narrator's, or both. A detail that gains much importance under the NarraChara theory.

That being said, this nuance leads to a similar conclusion regarding LOVE in either case :

If the thoughts are fully Frisk's, then the last lines have Frisk moving from a hesitant apathy to a confident one before ultimately "feeling good". This would stay in line with the previous pattern.

(Although it is worth nothing that the "feel good" part may be at least partially due to a kind of natural endorphin release in Frisk's body from the physical exercise of "punching at full force", and thus could be only indirectly due to LV.)

If NarraChara is taken into account, then this would mean that this transformation in the tone of the narration in the last lines is due to LV related changes on Chara. And that this ambiguity in the phrasing of who those feelings belong to may indicate that the same observations we've just made on Frisk previously would apply to them similarly.

(Note : Given that the game code and files suggests that Chara and Frisk share their statistics, them both being affected by this same LV count would be coherent.)

In the official japanese version of the game, those lines for the dummy are mostly similar. However, the first two lines of the left column are a bit less distinct from each other, and the narration phrasing ambiguity seems to begin on the 2nd line of the right column rather than the 3rd.

Okay, so, what's wrong about the common perception, then ?

So far, it seems that LV does have some kind of trend that leads to growing apathy regarding the suffering of others and more aggressive actions being taken as a result of identical stimuli as it increases. That doesn't sound too far off ?

Well, sort of, but careless extrapolation made from those basic ideas have led to the emergence of theories and interpretations that treat those effects as being more consistent, generalised, and effective than can hold up to the scrutiny of our known cases through aggressive neutral routes.

Here is what i mean :

In some of the more aggressive variants of the neutral route, it is possible to attain a really high LOVE that comes close to what we see in the genocide route. Comparison between those routes and the genocide one, or sometimes content from these neutral routes themselves, can help show us incoherencies in some of those popular interpretations regarding how much difference LV really makes.

The first one that comes to mind is a popular one among 'Chara Defenders', suggesting that Chara's openly aggressive actions & narration which are specific to the genocide route in particular would really be a result of "corruption" induced by the LV-related changes which we would have forced onto them.

How well does this theory hold up through the aggressive neutral routes ?

Well...

Not very well.

To make a 'short' list :

Chara's "corruption" in genocide would generally begin to show as soon as LV3 at the end of the Ruins, however, they show no particular signs of this "corruption" in any neutral routes despite being able to reach much higher LV's of say, 14 near the end of the game.

It is possible to arrive at the end of the Ruins (or other areas) whilst having the same LV as in genocide during a neutral route, yet Chara shows none of those "corruption" lines in those cases either.

It is possible to finish many areas in the genocide route whilst having a lower/higher LV than usual by only fighting particular monsters who give you more/less EXP than average, yet none of Chara's genocide lines are changed to account for this lower of higher LV.

It is possible to abort the genocide route at many points by sparing a particular monster or failing to reach a kill count. When this happens, Chara's "corruption" lines suddenly disappear although the LV doesn't.

This still happens even if Chara's LV would have remained the same wether the monster was killed or not. Thus the lack of extra LV from the spared monter cannot explain this difference.

The aggressiveness shown by Chara does not seem to correlate with their growth in LV. For instance, they treat Toriel more harshly than Papyrus despite a past connection between Chara and Toriel and a lower LV at the time of that encounter.

Regarding some interpretations of the final genocide scene : Why would Chara oppose us for what we did at this point in time ? Shouldn't they still be "corrupted" ? The files at this stage still continue to list our LV as 20 indicating that they should.

Similarly, regarding some interpretations of the soulless pacifist route : If their previous behavior came from corruption, why would Chara kill at this stage or follow up on their previous plan ? By now our LV has long been reset to 1 and said corruption should no longer be in effect.

For all these reasons, it would not be coherent for the peculiarly aggressive behavior shown by Chara during the genocide route to be strictly caused by LV-induced changes.

To be fair, this time some minimum amount of LV is required to progress through the route and access many of those lines, meaning that a minor impact of said required LV cannot be ruled out, but this does mean nevertheless that the primary reason as to why Chara behaves this way in genocide is not related to their LV.

Actually, once you remove from consideration all those things, what you are left with in the rest of the genocide route is a Chara that hardly seems all that impacted by LV at all despite having a very high one.

In New Home, they still display some hints of emotional reactions in spite of a LV of 19.

And throughout the whole genocide route, NarraChara continues going through the regular encounters with the same jokes or sarcasm-filled comments as they would in any other route (If you take the time to ACT a bit or read the narration before killing that monster.) Once again, even with a LV of say, 15.

That doesn't make the very high LV's seem like they turn one into that much of a mind-numbed killing machine does it ?

Okay... Well, what about Frisk, then ? Our other example ?

There are some more narrations out there who can bring us a bit more information about Frisk :

The Sans fight can only be triggered if all previous checks of the genocide route have all been properly met up to this point. This means that it is not possible to start this fight at any other LV than 19, as the NEO fight is scripted to send you to that LV if the criteria for Sans are met.

Therefore, the narration of the Sans fight talks about a Frisk that necessarily has a very high LV of 19.

And yet...

Even at this point, Frisk does not seem to be immune to thoughts regarding the morality of the actions their body has undertaken. It quite literally appears to weigh on them.

This isn't a one-off case either :

If the genocide route is aborted in Hotland, Mettaton NEO has some special dialogue that goes in the same direction :

he says it quite clearly :

And, the same thing also applies regarding the regular encounters too. The ACTs Frisk can take and their behavior whilst executing them remain unchanged compared to a pacifist route, even during the end-stages of genocide in Hotland.

Of course, it isn't like we could have expected Toby to adapt the ACTs and narration of all encounters to vary depending on LV either, that would have been very tedious to code, but such a pronounced absense of any change is definitely noteworthy.

This all leads us to a few conclusions.

It is correct that LV can affect one's personality to some extent, but :

The effects of LV are not consistent through time & situations, they show up quite sporadically. Most of the time, you could hardly tell the difference between someone with high LV or merely LV1 during an average interaction.

Even having an extremely high LV does not dehumanise you. One can still feel emotions and conserve proper judgment or capacity for self-reflection.

The growth in LV magnifies the impact of its effects when they do manifest, but it does not seem to alter the frequency of such events.

It is not possible for LV to be the determining factor in Chara's behavior during the genocide route.

As Sans originally said : LV is above all a capacity to hurt, not a permanent necessary degradation of perception.

[katyspersonal]

Bloodborne anniversary today!!!

Well... what is this game for me? Too many things, actually. By far, it was my best videogame experience and my worst fandom experience, yet nonetheless I would not have had it any other way.

Bloodborne taught me to analyse and interpret fiction sooooo much better than I used to and Bloodborne was my first genuinely hard videogame that got me to give effort and adapt. My art changed a lot too just for the sake of drawing more accurate Bloodborne fanarts, and I find twisted enjoyment in this perfectionism and obsession with the details. Loredigging for Bloodborne was straight up brain-altering experience for me and I remember feeling my brain stretch and twist into a pretzel in the first big mystery for me (Fauxefka's situation)- yet, I am SO happy that this game taught me to properly utilise my autism. After four years I've figured just the right harmony between interpretation and scavenging for any fundament in canon. Not to mention how many emotions and creative motivation it gave to me, or how it gave me the first character I could truly spiritually relate to - something no other game or show could do!

Adeline and Rom were the most special for me, after all, they resonated with me like no other characters! Now, my focus is spread thin not only through all Bloodborne characters, but through all Soulsborne characters! But I still consider stuff like this the best thing I've created here. I've always had merely a hint of spiritual connection to the water and nightmares, but in Bloodborne I was able to make sense of it all. This game returned me my meaningful dreams (as in, the thing you see when you sleep lol). Dreams and nightmares both. For the first time, at least something made sense, and all I needed was to look through the prism of the right setting and characters.

At the same time, if Bloodborne itself altered my mind, fandom altered my heart. I've made a lot of sense of my dreams and feelings, but also a lot of sense of nature of humanity in general. When I first set foot into this fandom, it was fine, save for some extremely toxic Gehrman and Gehrmaria haters who felt personally attacked by facts, yet fandom rotted fundamentally before my very eyes. Not only way too many people for my liking here developed a weird kind of vitriol for loredigging and understanding of the source material, not accepting creative liberties but insisting on them. But also the fandom in general devolved into a bad place where there will be an "elite" determining who gets shunned through passive aggression and strings pulled from their dumb Discord servers and who gets praised and promoted. No matter how many of them leave, the attitude itself for sure left "successors", and I've seen way too many people 'fall out' of fandom due to failing to get on the good side of that "elite". "Cool guys" do not have your best interests in mind and will attempt to suffocate even new blogs with passive aggression, but the more people I saw waddling away from the fandom confused and heartbroken, the more my determination to just keep doing what I like grew.

No one should ever have this amount of creative and interaction control, I loathe people who do this and their fully complicit sheep who can't and won't think for themselves. Never will I hold back my cynicism even for the sake of the "few good ones", never will I cope by making up excuses for people who tolerate if not perpetuate it, and never will my hatred wane. At the same time, deep down I hold gratitude, because the knowledge I've obtained is way too precious. Besides, corrupt fandom shown me that I truly love Bloodborne, because true measure of love is adversity. Absolutely everyone is able to enjoy something when they have nothing but good experiences in their community, but if you enjoy something through reasons to loathe the community piling up... you KNOW you enjoy it. Remember to not clout-chase and to not get caught into social games, guys; none of this is worth as much as finding your true calling with characters, headcanons and fanart.

Years ago I still was not broke, and it feels like such a distant memory now... Yet, I bought PS4 just for Bloodborne, and I have no regrets. I've heard, however, that a progress was made in regards to placing it on PC via emulator or something alike? I sure hope more people will get to actually experience this game, its world is incredibly fun and worthy to immerse into.

[placingglaciers]

found em......its not good I'm actually pretty heartbroken

Hey! Sorry for the delayed response--I was busy and I really needed time to think about all of this (I got like, no sleep). I hope you're feeling a little better than last night. There have already been a few really great analyses/interpretations of these spoilers, but if you still have time for one more perspective, you can keep reading.

Firstly, I still stand by what I have said before, no matter how radically optimistic it sounds now. Feeling sad and awful about these spoilers is a normal, valid response. I sort of still feel that way, but let's talk this through.

Facts:

If these spoilers are true, they are written vaguely. I might even say a little over the top? Blown out of proportion? This all could be a bunch of nothing. This has happened before in previous seasons, especially with Nick's storylines. We have no context for any of this, so let's not worry too much.

Episodes nine and ten are still being worked on. So nothing has been said or seen about them yet. I know it seems silly to hope everything gets better and solved in only two episodes, but it's what we have to work with. Honestly? I wish this season were a little longer. What they seem to have planned is a lot to fit in ten episodes, right?

They still need an audience for The Testaments. This season has to deliver and make good, so we can keep following this story. Why make a terrible final season and then ask people to watch the sequel? I'll talk more about The Testaments a little later, so hold this thought.

We don't know what this "betrayal" even is yet. It's described as "big," "inevitable," and "devastating." But what has prompted this? Nick has been loyal to June, advocating for her safety and well-being up to this point. I'm still holding on to Nick's "Sometimes I think you're the only good thing in my life" quote. This has to mean something. I will believe in their love, even if I'm the only person left to do so!!!!

Given these spoilers, here's what I hope/want to see:

Luke finally fighting Gilead. June is "furious" over what this means for him, which might be fun to watch. He needs to step up, but he will probably quickly realize how inexperienced he is at this.

It seems like we will get some kind of Luke/Nick/June scene. I'm very intruged about this! Luke finally sees June and Nick and just knows they're in love. I want to know what June and Nick do/act to make Luke understand this.

We will get conversations between Nick and June that we've been hoping for. They've barely had any time together so far, so I'm hoping this will deepen their connection and love toward one another. I will probably not survive this lol

June being selfless/saving Nick in some way. Her turn is long overdue. Nick needs to know he means something to her.

I'm kinda over the whole "who June chooses in the end" debate. A lot of people want her to pick no one. However, we know for a fact that love is what has kept her going so far. June has become a fighter because of her relationship with Nick. I just want this settled once and for all.

More of Nick's backstory. It seems we are going to understand Nick's character a lot better, but to do that, we might have to go back. What all has really happened to him? What caused him to "break"?

Nick being more outspoken/advocating more for himself. It'll be nice to see him in a way that's separate from June.

Forgiveness for whatever this "betrayal" is. Perhaps this is the real test of character. If Nick and June's love is true, this will be no problem for them. Both of them are flawed people who have done bad things, yet here they both are, together still. Forgiveness and clear communication are a huge part of relationships, and seeing how they navigate this fallout will show us how they have matured as a couple. I have confidence in this!

A meeting/farewell between Nick and Holly/Nichole. Maybe this will ground him and remind him who he really is. Maybe the darkness will be less "tempting." I'm not quite halfway done reading The Testaments for the first time, but I know that Nick is alive and deep "underground." If Nick somehow becomes an "evil mastermind Commander" this season, how will this affect Nichole's story? This wouldn't make sense. I doubt they will bring back Nick and June for the sequel, so maybe by the end of the season, we will see Nick choose how he wants to be remembered as a father to her.

Speaking of fatherhood, I want to see how they handle this Rose and baby situation. Could this be part of the betrayal? Will June get to speak to Rose? Will Rose tell her something that makes her "spiral"? Hmmm...

Also...I just realized this...Serena will be Nick's mother-in-law, with baby Noah as his little bro??? How did it get this messyyyy

In conclusion, I'm glad I was at least warned about what might happen, so I won't get blindsided. I'm prepared, but still hoping for the best. It's been wonderful seeing Nick and June's relationship change over the years, their love being the one real thing they get to keep and treasure for themselves, and I hope we see them continue to get stronger together.

[bayetea]

so you’ve mentioned before the trouble with frazel raising a child. BUT, what stuck in mind was you said they’d have conflicts with having a son and not a daughter.

what do you think would happen if frazel had a son?

what do you think would happen if frazel had a daughter?

so this is informed by my own analyses of frank's canon material and upbringing, but at the end of the day this is my own interpretation, so you don't have to take this as like a fact or anything!

but the crux of my thoughts on this subject boils down to this: frank didn't grow up with any male role models that we know of, positive or negative. his household has always been highly matriarchal, especially after emily went to war and he was left in the care of grandma zhang, who is stern and unforgiving and absolutely impossible for frank to relate to at all. in an ideal world "male" and "female" role models wouldn't be a significant distinction at all and positive role models of any gender would be equally accessible for all children - but realistically kids often prefer people that resemble them in some way (gender, race, ethnicity, etc) as such, and frank appears to have had no men to help him develop and navigate his masculine identity. we can also note that in western pop culture asian men are most dominantly represented in two forms: martial arts action movie heroes or... brainiac nerds. frank is neither. like I'm not gonna get into this much (because it's a big topic) but like we know how asian men are stereotyped as and deemed less than for being """less masculine""" in the west so I think that might be a thing to keep in mind when considering frank's feelings, i.e. why he might care more than others about his own masculine self-image

anyways, there's this one line from grandma zhang in son of neptune that I've always found very poignant, and honestly kind of chilling:

Men do not cry. Especially Zhang men. You will endure, Fai.

it isn't made 100% clear when exactly she said this in the books but I believe the implication was that she said this to frank during emily's funeral - which is fucking crazy lol. his mom just died and his grandma is pulling a "boys don't cry" on him. I can see that she just wanted him to be strong but the complete lack of tenderness during the worst time of his life and emphasis put on his expression of sadness as a detriment to his masculinity would make any young man feel like shit. we aren't given any insight as to how frank felt about this line specifically in this chapter but we do know that frank almost never pushes back against the things his grandmother says, because emily zhang is quoted as once saying to frank:

There is no arguing with Grandmother. It'll only make you suffer worse.

now the line "especially zhang men" was probably quite meaningless to frank in the moment because he did not care even a little bit about his family name or his chinese ancestry - and he certainly doesn't see himself upholding his grandmother's notions of what a zhang man is supposed to be, but a man in general? what's a young boy to think when he has no men, no male role models in his life and his grandmother is telling him that men don't cry? he has no grounds to push back against that. and I think this teaching is exacerbated heavily by frank going to camp jupiter, which appears to uphold the same general principle that showing weakness is unacceptable - not for men specifically (as far as we know), but validating that idea at all is just. not what I think frank needed to be hearing

funnily the first positive male role model that we know frank to have had is percy, who is slightly older than him - and frank immediately attaches himself to percy and likes and admires and respects him so so much. and although percy is put through the freaking wringer in son of neptune, frank doesn't ever actually see percy shed tears (percy does cry/almost sheds tears/gets emotional to the point of his voice breaking about twice in son, but both instances occur in front of hazel, not frank). the only time he really sees percy showing emotional weakness is the scene where he gets so freaked out by evil centaurs that he gets triggered and can't move - and that wasn't even a voluntary moment of vulnerability, he was legit triggered and got physically sick over it. I'm not gonna go so far as to claim that percy becomes frank's image of what an ideal man should be, but ehhhhh from the way frank talks about percy throughout hoo and especially son I don't think that would be the biggest reach either

and there are several bits and pieces throughout the books where frank expresses a desire to assume a role of conventionally masculine importance. I'm not gonna go to the trouble of singling out like all of them but here are three instances that I consider most noteworthy:

frank in son:

Whenever [Hazel] wanted something, he had the irrational urge to provide it. He wanted to be the old-fashioned knight riding to her rescue, which was stupid, as she was way more capable at everything than he was.

frank in son:

If he admitted how weak he was, that his whole life depended on a half-burned stick... Hazel would never see him as a hero. He'd never be her knight in armor.

frank in hoh:

Frank was so pleased to be holding [Hazel's] hand, [...] He felt needed--useful. Not that Hazel required his protection. [...] Still, Frank liked being next to her, imagining he was her bodyguard.

all these of these instances are specifically related to hazel, which I find significant - because they say something about how frank thinks he needs to be for a female romantic partner. like the first quote literally has him wanting to be a provider for her and the second has him fearful that if he appears weak (think about the "men don't cry" line) then he won't be good enough for her, so I don't think it's wrong to assume that frank still has some not great ideas in his head about the specific ways in which he needs to be a man. do you guys know those jokes about "the masculine urge to bleed out in the snow" or however it goes. frank retweets the shit out of that post every time he sees it and piper is in his dms like "are you okay???" /lh

furthermore we see frank really taking pride in himself as a son of mars towards the end of son when he's mouthing off against alcyoneus - and I think his godly parentage plays a role in this. mars is a highly "virile" god and considered the second most important deity in cj's roman pantheon. he's a highly significant figure in the roman mythos because he is considered the pater (father) of the romans, the father of romulus and remus from whom all romans are descended - aka the father of rome itself. so there's something inherently paternalistic about frank, the son of mars, assuming the role of co-praetor at camp jupiter. it's the ultimate fulfillment of his repeatedly expressed desire to be able to perform his masculinity in the specific way that he really wants to

and alllll of that is basically just to evidence that I don't think frank would be the sort of father who's going to parent his kids the exact same way regardless of gender. I think I see frank being tougher on his son (if he has a son) in the future than his daughter as a result. not to such an extreme that he would say terrible harsh things like "zhang men don't cry" to his own boy (I don't think he ever wants to make his kids feel the way his grandma made him feel) but just in little ways that build up over time

whereas if frank had a daughter, I think he's more likely to spoil and be lenient and extremely protective her. not necessarily to the point of sheltering her excessively or refusing to let her fight (i.e. I think he'd be happy if his daughter joined the legion or ever became a praetor herself) but just in the way of not having the same kind of, say, rigid masculine expectations that he might have of his own son

and like. I'm worried that my saying this might incur frank hate or whatever but I want to say clearly that I think he'd still be a good dad? good enough anyway. obviously it would be great if frank could unlearn some of this and care less about gender norms but the books kind of just... put all of this stuff on the table and don't resolve/address it meaningfully so I'm just working with what we've got. hilariously despite being from the 1930s I think hazel would be more evenhanded towards their kids regardless of gender so I can totally see this being a thing that they clash over in the future. not in a relationship-ruining way but just as an add-on to the issues they'd have as parents that I mentioned in my other ridiculously long post on frazel child-rearing lol

(and if their kid is neither a girl nor a boy then I think frank would be a little confused lol but still highly supportive and willing to learn)

[cruyuu]

The Wasuke reveal made me realize his death scene has a lot of parallels with Sukuna's. They both lived a life of relative solitude and only had Yuuji at their sides during their death, yet both of them tried (and failed) to push Yuuji away.

But Wasuke died abruptly, so Yuuji didn't have a chance to say goodbye to him before he died. But Yuuji knew Sukuna was dying, so he had time to show Sukuna love and acceptance. And he was able to hold Sukuna, offering him comfort as he died. In a way, righting the wrongs of Wasuke's death. I think this could be extended to their final words to Yuuji. Wasuke's final words were him wishing for Yuuji to live a better life than him and some say that Wasuke's wish for Yuuji to help others unintentionally cursed Yuuji. If we go with this theory, then that's another way Sukuna's death contrasts, and "fixes", Wasuke's since Yuuji's last words to Sukuna lifted the curse Sukuna had been shouldering for his entire life.

I also think this might lend credibility to the theory I've seen that Sukuna rejected Yuuji's offer in part because he didn't want to curse Yuuji any further. It would parallel Wasuke's death scene even further if Sukuna intentionally avoided cursing Yuuji with his final words and by choosing not to burden Yuuji with his presence. I'm not saying this is canon or has a lot of evidence, but the Wasuke reveal and Sukuna seeing Yuuji as a refuge for his soul made me think that maybe Sukuna's first selfless action after Yuuji showed him the value of love was rejecting Yuuji's offer to live together because he realized he didn't want Yuuji to share the burden of his curse.

I could be completely wrong about this, but I think this would fit the themes and Sukuna's arc if it were true. Either way, I still think there's some interesting parallels between their death scenes to analyze.

Hi anon!

Oh let's not start 😭 I already have so much to talk about because Gege's very much interested in sukuita (as you may have noticed). If you love analyzing stuff like I do, you'll find a LOT of stuff leading right to them. Sure, Sukuna and Yuuji didn't share a lot of moments together, but their print is on the entire narrative.

Still! Yes, you're right about Wasuke and Sukuna. Thank you for writing it all out in my ask (I love reading analyses and interpretations from my fellow big brained sukuita enjoyers <3). As for the theory that Sukuna didn't want to curse Yuuji, it would totally make sense, considering what we know. The thing is that the entire Wasuke/Sukuna thing ended the opposite way— Yuuji had a good relationship with Wasuke yet Wasuke cursed him when he died. On the other hand, Yuuji had a bad relationship with Sukuna and Sukuna ended up not cursing him.

If we're suppose to take "love is a curse" thing (which jjk has a thing for) quite literally then Wasuke's death and him cursing Yuuji was a good thing.

Still, how?

That's totally not logical. If Yuuji was loved then he wouldn't be cursed. Right? Isn't love about making sure the person you care about wouldn't be hurt and all that? That they would be safe? It's so absurd to claim that love IS bad and that what Wasuke did was correct.

But jjk treats it as right because look where we ended up. It's treated as right because even if giving him a curse, it led Yuuji down a right path.

Here's the thing- sometimes love is more bad than good. I feel like jjk wants to claim that with the "love is a curse" thing. Sometimes, what's good for you actually isn't and what's bad for you turns out to be the best thing you could ask for. Everything is turned on its head in this one, folks, and Sukuna and Yuuji are the biggest examples of all of that. Not to mention the fact that Sukuna didn't even want to say anything to Yuuji as to not accidentally curse him (everyone who passed in Yuuji's life had left him with parting words about his future, all except Sukuna).

And to think these two used to ignore each other lmfaoooo

maybe Sukuna's first selfless action after Yuuji showed him the value of love was rejecting Yuuji's offer to live together because he realized he didn't want Yuuji to share the burden of his curse.

I thought so too when 268 dropped and I first read it. It's either that OR Yuuji had destroyed the curse which was laid upon Sukuna and therefore Sukuna couldn't return to him considering he was not totally "reborn" + was a curse. I'm still not really sold on the latter one since I still hadn't re-read jjk but it does sound plausible as far as I remember in canon.

Still, thinking of that being the first selfless action is better and would be an equal exchange because man. are Yuuji's words... something. Bro literally promised his forever to Sukuna without any hesitation.

There's so much to analyze about these two genuinely. Now, with the new reveal Gege had kindly given us, re-reading jjk will be quite a joy lol These two were beefing over nothing, they were just lovesick and in big denial.

[thehiddendooronserpentinesteps]

THE UNKISS – A KISS THAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED - PART 2.

This is the second part of my unkiss theory, where I’m gonna analyse Sansa’s memories in the light of my idea: that this kiss actually happened. :)

THE HOUND IS REALITY HIMSELF

Sansa’s memory of the kiss and that night is altering throughout the books. First, when she recalls the night of the Blackwater battle, she doesn’t even remember the kiss to be there:

“I wish the Hound were here. The night of the battle, Sandor Clegane had come to her chambers to take her from the city, but Sansa had refused. Sometimes she lay awake at night, wondering if she'd been wise. She had his stained white cloak hidden in a cedar chest beneath her summer silks. She could not say why she'd kept it.” (ASoS Sansa I.)

It’s only later on, when she starts to put the kiss at that particular night, but nevertheless, the kiss itself seems to be surprisingly real.

I find it striking, that the first time the memory of the kiss appears, it has nothing romantic about it. It really doesn’t sound like something a teenage girl who wants to create something romantic would make up. It’s also very important to look at the CONTEXT Sansa thinks about it, it’s very, very telling:

„Megga couldn't sing, but she was mad to be kissed. She and Alla played a kissing game sometimes, she confessed, but it wasn't the same as kissing a man, much less a king. Sansa wondered what Megga would think about kissing the Hound, as she had. He'd come to her the night of the battle stinking of wine and blood. He kissed me and threatened to kill me, and made me sing him a song.”

(…)

They (Megga and Alla) are children, Sansa thought. They are silly little girls, even Elinor. They've never seen a battle, they've never seen a man die, they know nothing. Their dreams were full of songs and stories, the way hers had been before Joffrey cut her father's head off. Sansa pitied them. Sansa envied them.” (ASoS Sansa II.)

For me this means, that Sansa, when comparing her experiences with the Tyrell cousins, thinks, she now knows more of the real life than them. That they’re dreamy little girls, while she has already seen more. The kiss, as she remembers here is rather disturbing than romantic. It comes with the threatening, how he stinked, etc. It sounds real, rather than pleasant to think of.

I think, the Hound all the way represents the harsh and bloody reality to Sansa, compared to the love songs and beautiful tales of knights and fair maidens.

As time goes by, Sansa’s memory changes… it’s very natural, regarding that more and more time passes by, we all start to think about events slightly differently, according to what’s important for us in that particular memory.

WHO’S KISS IS THIS?

The next unkiss memory takes place in AFfC Alayne II., and again, I think it is important to examine, in what circumstances Sansa remembers the Hound kissing her.

“Before she could summon the servants, however, Sweetrobin threw his skinny arms around her and kissed her. It was a little boy's kiss, and clumsy. Everything Robert Arryn did was clumsy. If I close my eyes I can pretend he is the Knight of Flowers. Ser Loras had given Sansa Stark a red rose once, but he had never kissed her . . . (…).”

 “As the boy's lips touched her own she found herself thinking of another kiss. She could still remember how it felt, when his cruel mouth pressed down on her own. He had come to Sansa in the darkness as green fire filled the sky. He took a song and a kiss, and left me nothing but a bloody cloak.”

This in my interpretation also shows the duality of fantasy and reality: first comes the fantasy, and then it’s overwritten by reality: she tries to imagine the Knight of Flowers, but Ser Loras NEVER kissed her. Her great crush, whom she most likely fantasised kissing her. Instead, she REMEMBERS another kiss: the Hound’s kiss.

Sansa even recalls how it felt physically, and I find it very interesting how she describes it: “his cruel mouth pressed down on her own.” means to me that it was a passionate kiss. One of my key arguments against her fantasizing, is that if Sansa’s ever make up a kiss fantasy, than it would be something delicate and beautiful… not heated and passionate.  It really sounds like Sandor, is it not? Strong and heated. It’s Sandor’s style, not Sansa’s.

It’s also very interesting, that she recalls this kiss rather than the one LF gave her, which already happened by this time. The way Petyr kisses her is not like the kiss she remembers. It’s again not Petyr’s kiss that comes to her mind later, when she’s asked about the details of the wedding night: “She thought of Tyrion, and of the Hound and how he'd kissed her, and gave a nod.” It is most natural, that she thinks of Tyrion, and the things that happened on her wedding night. But the fact that she remembers the Hound kissing her, means to me that she connects it with sexuality. The kiss was sexually charged. This, again seems to be something coming from Sandor, instead of her making up fantasies.

Plus, if my theory’s right, it also tells a lot about how it happened. Sweetrobin kisses her honestly and spontaneously, and I think the kiss she remembers was also given in the heat of the moment, driven primarily by emotions and not by lust. That’s why she links the two together. Given the circumstances they were in King’s Landing, it could not happen otherwise than incautiously. A member of the Kingsguard kissing the king’s betrothed? Well it would cost both their heads.

She also remembers the Hound on her wedding ceremony with Tyrion, in ASoS Sana III.: “He leaned forward, and their lips touched briefly. He is so ugly, Sansa thought when his face was close to hers. He is even uglier than the Hound.” If I play the same mental game like in the case of Sweetrobin’s kiss, this, for me means that Sandor’s face was close to hers too. The similarity of the situation makes her remember the Hound in both cases.  

THE IMPORTANCE OF A KISS

But if this scene with the kiss really happened, than why hide it? I have a proposal for this too. Well, usually a first kiss comes with some kind of declaration… or confession. It’s not like Sandor goes there, kisses her and immediately leaves her. I think Martin wanted to hide the surroundings of the kiss, which would help us decide what to think about him and his feelings towards her. Maybe that’s what he referred to, when he said about the unkiss: “That will eventually mean something, but just now it's a subtle touch…” But if that’s the case, Sansa should remember it too, does she not? I think she remembers it. We just don’t see the more important parts. Just like in Ned’s case. When he thinks about Lyanna, he usually remembers her asking for a promise. In AGoT Eddard I.: “He could hear her still at times. Promise me, she had cried, in a room that smelled of blood and roses. Promise me, Ned.” Of course, he remembers the rest of it, but we’re not allowed to see those memories, and for a very important reason.

I’m not the only one, who thinks that Sandor will return in the books too. And that he’ll play an important role regarding Littlefinger. If I’m right, he’s basically the only one, who could open Sansa’s eyes up about LF, by telling her how this man betrayed Ned Stark. I think that would change everything for Sansa. But for this, he must get close to her… and maybe play a double agent role, which, I think he’s very capable of, despite his hatred for liars. In AGoT Eddard VII. at the Hand’s tourney, Littlefinger bets on Jaime Lannister, against the Hound: "A hundred golden dragons on the Kingslayer," Littlefinger announced loudly (…) "Done," Lord Renly shouted back. "The Hound has a hungry look about him this morning." "Even hungry dogs know better than to bite the hand that feeds them," Littlefinger called dryly.” But eventually Sandor defeats Jaime, and LF loses the bet. Petyr misreads Sandor’s character, very early on. This could be pivotal later. The big question is, where does Sandor’s loyalty lie? Where’s his heart, what does he really want? What are his real feelings for Sansa? Is it just the lust of a brute man for a young girl, or is it love? The fandom for me seems to be puzzled about it, due to his mixed actions, and I think, we have to be uncertain about it, until his role regarding LF is played.

And it’s not just us, who are left in the dark about his motivations and feelings, but all the other players in the game, except for Sansa and himself. Did you realize, that basically all their important scenes together are hidden? They take place in the darkness… with only the two of them present. And from what we see their public interactions do not seem to be strange or suspicious for the other players. Their interactions in the darkness, with only the two of them present, and the Hound being at least tipsy of wine, could be… intimate from Sandor’s perspective. Scary from Sansa’s perspective. And hidden from everyone else’s POV, seemingly even from Varys and LF, which is actually a big deal. It’s left in the darkness…

There are two types of not-POV characters. The first is who’s simply not important to the story, and the second is who’s thoughts and feelings we are not allowed to see, in order to keep it secret or uncertain. I think Sandor is the latter.

IT’S STILL IN DARKNESS

Well, in the end, I can be mistaken, it’s just a theory. Sansa has no one to talk about the kiss she seems to remember. No Jeyne Poole, no one, whom she could gossip with or she could trust, who would know what was happening between her and Sandor. It’s still in the darkness. No one can confirm or deny her memories, no one to shed a light on what really happened… only Sandor. And I’m waiting for him to return and tell his POV. :)

In the next part I will reconstruct the missing scene based on hints and Sansa’s memories.

For Part 1. click here:

[thenerdofthegroup]

Analysing the Ballad of the Witches Road and I wanted to point out something. If others have figured this out then… I might be slow and just was dumbfounded by how beautiful Agatha was but here we go. The lyrics:

“Gather sisters far who water, earth and air darkest hour wake thy power, Earthly and Divine”

So this is slightly piggybacking on @trickofthelights blog (with your amazing Coven collage) but this is directly referencing the women in the coven. Later in the song it mentions ‘Familiar by thy side’ which is Billy Teen and this is purely the witches.

Agatha gathers a coven made of Alice (Fire- we see her associated with fire and red/orange a lot in the trailer), Jennifer (Water- we see her try and be drowned and she definitely fits personality wise) and Lilia (Air- we see her floating in the beautiful shot and she just gives ‘air’ vibes… so yeah we’ll go with that) to help her on her journey. The ‘far’ may reference the corners of the world they come from (Alice is linked to Homg Kong through her mother, Lilia is Sicilian).

The next line is more of a prophesy, it’s linking Agatha (divine) and Rio (Earthly) separately in being able to awaken agatha’s powers. I think this is telling us that at the end Rio will be absolutely crutial in getting agatha’s magic back. Some think it’s in a bad way, some think it’s in a good way, no one can really say. She is such an up and down character, but everything we have gotten leads us to the conclusion that she is obsessed with Agatha. Even looking back at the trailer, whenever she isn’t able to take the piss out of a situation or isn’t the centre of Agatha’s attention, she’s bored. That’s my interpretation anyway, proof here:

(i just think this photo is cute)

ANYWAY, the separation of them in the song tells us that those two are much closer and more intertwined than the others. I think that the other witches (probably won't die because I actually want to see them all together at the end, don't shoot me I know that's an unpopular opinion) will come of the road and the main three of the series, Agatha Rio and Billy will be left.

Short analysis whilst I am now on page 42 on my dissecting Agatha evidence document that I will never show anyone out of embarrassment if everything is wrong. But I am making theories every day. Only the ones I love and don't think have a chance of being bollocks do I share.

Also this is what I call them now “The Earthly and Divine” as you could probably tell by my fic title. But I’m trying to stay objective in these theory things because some people are getting quite violent over ships and shipping culture. The internet is a scary place and I don’t ever want to interact long on here because some of y’all are actually crazy and I cannot understand it…

Anyway, thanks to anyone who actually reads these theories, this was done at midnight because I can't sleep. Today your gift for reading this is this observation: The flower Rio plays with in the photo above is in most of the show (note, in the airport clips, in the solo posing that we can see because it is filmed atrociously I'm positive she's holding the same flower):

Right after this disco scene she gives it to Agatha trust I'm Jac Shaeffer-

[yuseirra]

I've actually become really.. Even more confident with my hikaai analyses (until I get proven wrong..haha) hear me out on why I feel this way, okay?

In the latest chapter, it was revealed that Ai's boyfriend is someone who offers things for Ai, and falls into ruin because of it. He believes there is some kind of destiny for himself. That much, we can all agree with, huh?

If that’s the case, then "Fatal" is this person’s song.

In that case, I’ve already secured the basic points if this were a test, and now I’m just waiting to collect the extra points!

It’s not really about me trying to convince myself...this is really true!

From the start, I always predicted that Hikaru’s breakdown only happened after Ai’s death. The question was never whether he fell apart, but rather how much. He’s always been such an ambiguous character whose exact actions were left unclear.

I got this part right, and honestly, it was the most important part. It wasn’t this person who harmed Ai. (So actually, Aqua’s target for revenge is no longer this person. It’s easy to miss this since the story moves so quickly.)

It’s also confirmed that he was originally a genuinely good person. This part was validated when the god herself confirmed he had a noble and refined soul.

This means Hikaru is not the kind of person who falls into ruin just because something bad happens to him. It was Ai’s death that led to his downfall. In fact, considering everything this character has been through, this makes him closer to "kind," and his mental fortitude is incredibly strong. The idea of him being "noble" aligns well with this. So, ultimately, this confirms that the personality depicted in the flashbacks(the movie arc) is accurate to his true character.

If this is the case, it also explains why Ai liked him so much and wanted to save him, making everything fall into place.

Now, the only question that remains is whether he will actually be saved or if he will remain a terrible criminal. (And honestly, this is the same situation the character was in before the movie arc—it’s like we’ve come full circle. However, now there’s the added advantage of two key pieces of information: Ai wanted to save him, and he really was originally a good person.)

To be honest... I feel like we need to see how the character himself acts before we can properly judge him.

It’s similar to judging a real person.

I feel it’s still too early to jump to conclusions just from seeing a text that goes he's a terrible guy who's killed a lot of people. There hasn’t been a single image of him doing anything specific yet... So, while we can take it into consideration, it is only when we get more detailed flashbacks or scenes where the character himself expresses his own thoughts, that will likely confirm everything.

Given that everything I predicted so far has been right(I really, really did get so many things accurately), it feels highly likely that the story will go the way Ai hoped, with this character being saved.

I’ve been following closely, and I've noticed that even in his "ruined" state, this character still shows a lot of kindness. Plus, he’s an actor and just as much of a liar as Ai was, so you have to really pay attention to interpret him correctly. You can’t just believe what you see!

Right now, I’ve scored over 70 points out of 100 if this were to be a test, but I feel confident that I’ll end up with over 90.

Since we’ve already established that he didn’t hurt Ai and that Ai genuinely wanted to help him, this means there’s a strong narrative push in that direction, and my conclusions about the character are likely to be right, which makes me feel even more confident.

If "Fatal" really is this character’s song, then yes, the emotions in that song—desire, disappointment, despair—are definitely present.

But surprisingly, the song has much less selfishness or possessiveness than one might expect. So, I felt like it wasn’t such a bad kind of love, which is why I’ve depicted that couple so much.

It’s a love where you give and give, without expecting much in return. You just want to hear their voice, to catch their gaze, to have them comfort your pain again. The lyrics even mention that their "fatale" belongs to "no one". It’s a kind of selfless love where you want them so desperately that you can’t live without them, while offering up everything you have, but asking for so little in return. This is a very devoted love. If it were one-sided, it might feel overwhelming or creepy, but with Ai and Hikaru, it’s mutual.

If you look at Hikaru’s actions in Chapter 160 (his testimony is likely the truth, even if Tsukuyomi’s stated goal is real, that kind of motivation would only arise after Ai’s death.) It means this person didn’t have confidence that Ai loved him, so he desperately craved her love in this way. That makes it pitiful. He makes a pass to be Ai's lover, in my book. He seems like a good person. And I take love VERY seriously... haha... I believe love isn’t about receiving, but more about giving. It’s about giving without regret... The narrators of "Mephisto" and "Fatal" embody this a lot.

They don’t ask for much from the other person while giving everything they have. That’s the kind of love Ai’s boyfriend has. What he gives may be a question,(or questionable) but I doubt Ai would have failed to notice a guy capable of harming Ruby(their own daughter for goodness sake) or involved in serial killings... haha. Plus, if he’s described as once having been "noble", a person like that probably wouldn’t cross that final line. Ruby didn't, and I find Ruby having taken after his character quite a bit, they make the same expressions. There’s a higher chance he kept his boundaries intact.

Things will unfold the way Ai wanted them to. The things this person has actually done are quite different from what’s been said about him.

He’s not someone who acts strongly or aggressively—he’s too gentle for that. It’s not that he’s pretending to be kind while having a foul heart; rather, I see he’s pretending to be dark when he’s actually not, which is why his true nature shows through.

It’s true that Ai found and fell in love with a genuinely good person, and they had a period where they were happily together. So I can already see the story heading towards him being saved after being broken by her loss. Ai wants to save the boy who's been deeply suffering and is straying far off after what's happened to her. That's the narrative the story is heading towards, it's the most natural path and I see it coming. Ai is right. She found someone REALLY sweet and he got destroyed, so she wants to help him get back to the way he was.

I’ve gotten the overall structure right, and now I just need to collect the extra points :)

[scoobydoodean]

Hi, pk! I'm in constant awe by how deep yet extensive your analyses are. (I'm the non-English equivalent of an English major and I like to joke that it might not have made me a better reader or writer, but it did make me a better "citer".) I've read you takes on spn's misogyny and Sam and I agree that it's a very nuanced issue, and you present it very well. That said, it's kinda funny to me that you read that scene with Jess in the pilot as a question of her being a woman. /1

I agree 100% that Dean was just trying to get the person who didn't know about the supernatural out of the conversation, but I don't think Sam took it as an issue of "let the men talk" as much of settling who makes up the unit there. When he insists that she can stay, he's drawing boundaries that he and Jess are the family unit now, not he and Dean and John. Dean (according to this interpretation of his) doesn't get to give himself priority or rights to speak to Sam, much less push Jess out. Which. Of course. Still backfires, because he IS keeping her out through his secrecy and, re: the supernatural, the Winchesters are still a unit, much as it pains Sam. (And it goes without saying that drawing boundaries was the last thing on Dean's mind, of course.) Anyway, so yeah, I saw it more as "we're the unit now, check yourself" on Sam's part than "don't talk to women that way". Like, he saw Dean as dismissing the new family he created and imposing the structure of the one he'd left behind by implying that Jess was the odd one out. None of this changes the fact that Dean was misread and really pretty considerate of Sam's new life and Sam was the one keeping Jess in the dark. Just adding my two cents, abt this being less Sam calling Dean out on nonexistent misogyny for superiority reasons and more abt a sign of his conflictive rship w his family and the supernatural.

Context

I actually think it's a little of both? The posturing over "who the unit is" is rooted in Sam's insecurity, and from that insecurity is borne not just a desire to set boundaries with Dean, but to reestablish to Jess that Sam is a more suitable partner because he (in theory) respects her more and is loyal to her.

Right before Sam makes a show of saying Dean can speak in front of Jess, Dean is flirting with her. I don't think he's serious about it, but Dean comments on the Smurf's shirt, and Dean's flirtatious "I wouldn't dream of it" when Jess talks about going to put on something more decent makes Sam look pretty put out. Dean is flirting with HIS girlfriend. Dean even tells her, "You are completely out of my brother's league."

I think you're right that Sam is trying to establish that he and Jess are a unit, but I think it has less to do with the "private family business" part of what Dean said and more to do with Sam's charming, attractive, sociable older brother smiling at Sam's girl. Sam starts season 1 with insecurities about not fitting in. In 1.01, Jess has trouble convincing him to go to a party, and in 1.06, he tells Dean he never felt like he fit in with anyone at Stanford. Sam shows a distaste for Dean's socialization in season 1 and 2—and especially in contexts with women (ex: 1.16) which I think also reflects some insecurities Sam feels surrounding connecting with people (especially women), and a jealousy over Dean being able to connect with people more easily than he thinks he can.

What Dean's comments toward Jess also demonstrate (to Sam) is Dean's lack of respect for a committed relationship, because he's willing to flirt with a someone he knows has a boyfriend. We might know Dean doesn't really mean it seriously and his giving Sam a compliment (in a teasing way) but Sam doesn't know that. We see the idea that Dean feels no respect for committed relationships (including as a specific view of him that Sam holds) deconstructed in 1.13.

The fact that Dean's request to speak to Sam alone comes right after all of this—in a different context without the hunting secret—would be a dogwhistle for "the men are talking" and I think Sam leans into that to try and posture a little, showing Jess that he would never dismiss her input or exclude her from the conversation (except he would) and remind Dean (and her) that Jess is HIS girlfriend.

At a certain point, there's only so much we can definitively conclude about this scene, and I'm open to various interpretations of it, but I do tend to think a little posturing over Jess and associating Dean with more misogyny than probably belongs to him is within character for Sam at this point in the series and reflective of other interactions we see between the brothers early on. I think this sort of narrative from Sam meshes well with—for example—Sam accusing Dean of ignoring cases because he's talking to female witnesses and Sam simply assuming he isn't doing the job (ex: 1.02, 1.16, 2.15, 3.01).

[neyafromfrance95]

Sorry just to further add but also Galadriel being reunited with C*leborn and having a family isn’t the happy ending some people think it is and how they always love to use it against Haladriel.

It’s actually kind of depressing since her daughter ends up leaving Middle Earth due to being traumatised,she will also never see her granddaughter again(maybe even all her grandkids since we don’t know what happened with Arwen’s brothers)and she left C*leborn behind with no concrete date of when he sailed for Valinor.💀

Again no dig at C*leborn fans like/ship what you want but when you compare how Aragorn and Arwen are written where Arwen basically becomes depressed and leaves everything after Aragorn dies it’s hard to take Galadriel supposedly leaving the husband she loves so much behind and Tolkien doesn’t even bother writing wether that’s affected her meanwhile he writes C*leborn as a bitter divorcee(the only defining thing about his character other than being racist toward dwarves💀)

Not to make fun of Ce!edrie!(is that their ship name lol)fans but threads like these prove how you shouldn’t really trust what is said in interviews:

https://x.com/rukiasbankaii/status/1853087603752411471?s=46

It’s nice to have validation that you’re analysing the story correctly but ultimately it’s meant to be fun and like in Celeb0rn’s case what is being said in interviews contradicts what the show’s doing.

And no offence but after everything Galadriel’s been through she’ll never be the same person she was when she met Celeb0rn. Realistically their marriage would be rocky to the least considering how long they’ve been separated and how Galadriel’s been fundamentally changed by meeting Sauron. That’s why the best thing would be to introduce Celeb0rn back at the end of the show otherwise they’re opening up a whole can of worms I’m not sure they even know how to deal with.

yeah, tbh, ppl can interpret galadriel's relationship with teleporno as "happy ending" if they want to, but it's easy to see their relationship as shaky.

it's easy to see teleporno as cold and bitter, and galadriel as detached and too fixated on her own mission (which is, beside ruling lothlorien, opposing sauron).

and the thing is, for me, that's more interesting. just like it's more interesting to interpret her tone after rejecting the one ring as sadness. bc she wants what the ring offers her, but she is resolved to do the right thing.

i prefer these interpretations bc they allow more complexity and ambiguity for galadriel, which is rare when it comes to the female characters.

but yeah, tbh, whatever their relationship is, i just don't care for it. especially when it comes to the show. it would definitely get in the way of haladriel, the dynamic that established itself as the core of the show. and i would just be both too frustrated and too bored to stay for that.

[io-lu-art]

just a looong ramble analysing and rethinking Rey's character and turning whatever conclusions I get to into my headcanon without changing any plot points in TFA because I don't have the energy for that....

First things first. With everything I write here and publish on my blog from now on I refuse to believe that TROS ever existed. Everyone is free to have their personal opinions as long as they don't harass or hate on anyone, and this is mine. Almost every choice in that movie has left me scarred, even up til now, 4 years after its release. I thought I can ignore it, like any other healthy human being, but - oh boy, I cannot. If you are interested in reading another ramble on that, here's the post.

Since I am writing my own take on what could happen after TLJ (you may call it a fanfiction, I'm gonna call it a fanscript since that's gonna be its format), this post serves the purpose of getting my head clear around what's the deal with Rey, analysing, and lying down a solid foundation for my WIP. The story I'm writing has barely reached the end of Act I (out of III) at the moment I am composing this commentary, and I constantly notice that I get stuck with Rey's character every time I have to think about her for different reasons I will address down below.

I will make some rewrites as I see fit and necessary along the way for her character to make sense to me. All rewrites are in Tumblr's

chat style

This post will be linked to my AO3 fancifction as a reference for people to understand how I treat her character as soon as that one will be finished... *clears her throat* ...ANYWAY-

Let's have a look at Rey, shall we?

Rey's introduction.

When we first meet Rey, there is already a lot we get to learn about her. She's a scavenger. On a pretty much deserted desert planet. Water and food are scarce. She gathers parts during the day to sell them in exchange for food rations.

She has no friends, no family. She's lonely. And has been for quite a while. And yet, though hard, it looks like a pretty peaceful and stable life. If it were significantly different, we would have gotten introduction scenes of her battling some gangs or other scavengers for parts or something. But instead we were provided with beautiful, peaceful cinematography and John Williams' incredible score.

She manages. She manages because she has to and has never known to do otherwise. This on its own is already a very solid introduction. And it becomes even more powerful as we are provided with additional context later on, as she tells BB-8 that she's waiting for her family.

We know who she is, what she does and what she wants. No more questions, right?

Well, this is where it gets confusing, at least for me: there's one shot in Rey's introduction which always leaves me puzzled about her actual wants. It's the moment she puts on the rebel pilot helmet.

Maybe I am reading too much into it, but it feels like it kinda wants to draw parallels to Luke Skywalker in ANH? What exactly is the purpose of this shot? Is she putting on the helmet just for fun? Is it to show that she is still a kid inside? She seems to enjoy herself. Is it to show us that she maybe wants to be a pilot...? The gesture on its own is too little information to imply that, let alone that she already is a very skilled one, so probably no. Then, is it, perhaps, to show us that she dreams of more? Like Luke, who wanted to get off the planet that is "farthest away from the bright center of the universe"?

The interpretations, especially when looking at it in context to the rest of the movie could go on and on and on.

Quick detour.

The reason it works so well with Luke's character is because from the very beginning, with everything he does and says, it is perfectly clear that he doesn't want to stay on Tatooine. It's his only want when we first meet him.

Luke has friends who tell him about the galaxy. He seeks adventure.

And he's very impatient about it.

Everything he says basically SCREAMS how much he hates it there.

Now back to Rey.

Am I expecting Rey to show the same interest in getting off Jakku with the same attitude and level of energy as Luke, should that have been what TFA was going for? No, of course not. They are (supposed to be) two different characters after all. But I do believe that, given the setup, that helmet scene leaves too much room for confusing and unnecessary interpretation. (More so because I am trying my best to avoid nostalgia bait wherever I can.)

I am not denying the fact that she wouldn't have heard about the wider galaxy, that she wouldn't wonder about what it would feel like, being out there. People travel. And with people traveling, so do stories. So if you want to hint at that, do it subtly, all the while keeping the focus on her biggest want.

I might really just be reading too much into it, but still, in my humble opinion, a way to solve this confusion is cutting out her interaction with the pilot helmet completely. Let me demonstrate.

Inside her home we already see this self-made rebel pilot puppet. Just like the puppet lying around, instead of having her pick it up and putting it on,

the helmet remains part of the environment, stuck in the sand. There could even be a close-up on it as Rey puts down her empty plate next to it when she has finished eating if you really want to show it. She then rests her arms on her knees and looks up into the sky, following the ship that has just departed from the far outpost into the high atmosphere until it disappears. Waiting.

What is achieved by changing the interaction with the helmet is that it keeps her wants just as clear as Luke's. Luke wants adventure. She wants her family back. Period.

...I rewatched this scene after writing these paragraphs and yes, I admit, in the end it happens so fast that one could probably just let it pass and interpret it as Rey being very bored and using it as entertainment to wait out the days. But even if it were just that, the effects this little tweak would have on the following scenes is quite interesting to look at nonetheless.

The tweak I am going with from now on: Having her not actively wonder about possible adventures at all. She doesn't believe those stories to actually be true, because she's never allowed herself to. She's never allowed herself to actually want to ever leave Jakku.

What would it mean for her characterisation? It would make her slightly more serious and grounded. And the movie (except for the helmet scene) actually already treats her that way. Notice how she, while fixing BB-8's antenna, takes a moment to look at him before asking:

She's never seen such a droid before. At least not in such good condition. So, of course, she's curious. But when BB-8 says it's classified, she only laughs about it. "Classified? Really? Me too. Big secret," as if to say, haha, yeah, right. She rejects that possibility. And she doesn't bother asking any further, because when she is confronted with the choice to go and explore, she is reminded of her promise to herself, which is that she will wait for her family until they return.

Now, here is where I insert some very subtle "rewriting". When Rey first meets Finn, she is suspicious of him...

...and should actually remain suspicious,

instead of admiring him and falling into this, let's call it, "excited, fangirly smile"...

She doesn't know him. She has no reason to trust him. Instead, the tone of this line should be one that reflects her emotions as it slowly gets to her that those stories she's been hearing about might actually have some truth to them, that there might actually be a wider world out there. So make her be gradually interested.

Huh. This man I just forcefully hit to the ground, a Resistance fighter, knows about BB-8 and his classified information. What are the odds of that?

"So you're with the Resistance?" Rey asks suspiciously, looking down at the man.

The man stands up, brushes the sand and dust off his jacket and answers, "Obviously. Yes, I am. I am with the Resistance."

Rey frowns, "I've never met a Resistance fighter before," scanning him with her eyes. Why would there be any on Jakku? Nothing ever happens here.

"Oh, this is what we look like, some of us. Others look different."

Rey cannot help a little smile at his strange attitude. She looks back to where BB-8 rolled off to. Puzzled, she tells him, "BB-8 says he's on a secret mission. He has to get back to your base..." Even hearing herself pronounce that out loud feels so surreal to her. None of this makes any sense. Why-

"Apparently he has a map that leads to Luke Skywalker and everyone's after it."

What? "Luke Skywalker?" she asks, confounded.

CUT TO ACTION.

Whether she wants it or not, the plot forces her into the stories she's been hearing of. You don't want to believe they are real? They're real, all right. She has no choice but to run and get along. And later, she does get more and more interested, specifically when she meets Han Solo, the legend himself. Her whole beliefs turn upside down. It's exciting and she embraces it. Why? She's made a promise to BB-8 that she will get him home, and those things kinda come hand in hand.

Rey's physicality.

Rey is very fast to jump into action. She doesn't think twice about what she's doing. She just acts. Because that's how she's learned to survive all this time on her own. When she but hears BB-8 struggling in the distant sand dunes the first time they meet, she immediately reacts and goes to help (which also shows how compassionate she is towards people - and droids - in need of help).

And she's incredibly stubborn about it. If I may even word it like this: it's something she carries with pride.

So she's a good fighter. And I have but one request: DO. NOT. FORGET. THAT. HER. FIGHTING. STYLE. IS. ROUGH. AND. DIRTY. AND. HAS. NO. TECHNIQUE. WHATSOEVER. WHILE. THE. STORY. PROGRESSES. OK? Ok. What else? Ah, yes. Piloting. I don't know which of the two aspects has brought more uproar in the SW community, with the addition of the Force to these 2 points making people call her a Mary Sue, her being overpowered and so on. Let's have a look at that.

Rey's piloting skills.

She obviously knows her way around the Falcon. And it's plausible. "This ship hasn't flown in years!" It's been there for quite a while. Maybe she has had the opportunity to sneak onto it once. What about her flying skills? Well, that takeoff definitely had me worried. At this point I am even amazed this ship is still all in one piece. Which has me thinking... just a thought...

While trying to get those TIEs off their tail, Rey damages a visibly big part of the Falcon's exterior. "Ups," she comments, hastily checking the controls. Ok... The ship still flies. All good.

"What was that?" Finn calls from the gunner position, seriously worried for their lives.

"Nothing to worry about!" Rey quickly shouts back. All in all, the flight is messy as hell, and the Falcon needs some heavy repairs. But they still manage to get out.

"Nice shooting!"

"That was some flying! How did you do that?"

"Thanks! I don't know! I've flown some ships, but I've never left the planet."

(This is me reacting to their dialogue in the new context:) Yeah, guys, good work! You've almost destroyed the Falcon in the process, but you're alive, so I guess it's fiiiiiine.

What am I going for here? Adding to their level of expectations, which are... pretty low, and hopefully Rey's likability.

And then, later, Han is horrified of the state his ship is in, "Who did that?" Rey doesn't answer his question, but instead immediately offers her help, "I can fix that for you," feeling a bit ashamed of handling the ship of a legend this carelessly. And Han is... well, Han about it.

When would the Falcon get those repairs, you might ask? Eh, *hand gesture* there's plenty of time on D'Quar for that while they discuss how to blow up the third Deathst- *clears her throat* Starkiller Base. And obviously it's not gonna be Rey doing those repairs.

This addition tones down her abilities, puts more focus on her skills as a scavenger and makes her more relatable. I'd also argue that it puts more weight to her decision to eventually decline Han's offer to join the crew because of her wants. You see, once immersed into the real thing, the stories becoming true, meeting the legends, she becomes genuinely curious. She asks questions. Why did Luke leave? What fight? She gets incredibly excited when Han offers her a job. And yet, despite all, she still wants to go back.

Nevertheless, Rey displays pretty amazing piloting skills under those stressful circumstances on Jakku. After all, flying the Falcon is....

Her instincts are implacable. One might even say that she*

She just isn't aware of it yet. It is not until some scenes with Han and the rathtars later that we get the first hint.

The Force.

Now I might be wrong, but I have a theory, which is that the piloting performance under high pressure on Jakku might have been it. The Awakening.

The Force calls to Rey through Luke's lightsaber. And she listens to it, not knowing what will follow. She experiences the Force vision, and is horrified.

"That lightsaber was Luke's, and his father's before him, and now, it calls to you!"

"I have to get back to Jakku." Again.

Even when Maz tells her, "You already know the truth. Whomever your waiting for on Jakku, they are never coming back,"

she still refuses to believe that.

Tears run down her cheeks

and she shakes her head. No.

"But there's someone who still could."

Rey frowns. What is Maz implying there? "Luke?" she asks and realises what it's leading up to, and doesn't like it. Her emotions are a mess. She gulps back and keeps shaking her head as Maz speaks.

"The belonging you seek is not behind you. It is ahead. I am no Jedi, but I know the Force. [...] The light. Feel it. [...] The lightsaber. Take it."

Rey doesn't want to hear of it. Any of it.

"I am never touching that thing again!"

Rey just witnessed complete horror. She is in denial. Keep in mind her clear wants from the beginning of the movie. Ideally her want for her parents to come back should be replaced by the character fulfilling her needs at the end of her arc. But we're not nearly there yet. What Maz tells her about the Force completely contradicts Rey's experiences. She cannot just accept the truth. And how does she handle it? She runs away. She's terrified.

She wants to go back to the way things were before any of this mess started. But the plot doesn't let her run away that easily. It knows she has to face her fears, one being her fear of the Force and one the fear of perhaps never making it back to Jakku ever again.

It forces her further into these situations, making it impossible for her to get out of them. She's trapped. Literally and figuratively. And fighting her way out won't work this time, the one ability she always relied on to save herself. It's her darkest moment. And if that were not enough, Kylo Ren, this stranger, this man inside that mask, the man from her vision, shoves all her insecurities right into her face.

"And Han Solo." Rey jolts up. Either out of fear of possibly betraying Han and slipping, giving away a location, or out of rage that Kylo has gone too far into her personal space. Either way, this rage gives her some strength to oppose him. "You feel like he's the father you never had. He would have disappointed you."

"Get out of my head!" He backs away for his own reasons, not wanting to think any more of his father, but still holds onto her mind. Rey does all she can to withstand him, and the longer she does, the more time it gives her to understand what is going on.

And Kylo senses it. What he's trying to do here is not working. Concern washes over his face, which makes him lose control over the situation. The connection opens, inviting Rey to tap into his mind. She's inside his head. Now she understands. She understands she can use this power on him, too. So she does.

And there it is. She's strong with the Force.

And that's intentional. Why? For reasons we discover in TLJ and numerous other fanfictions. (TROS? w-what's that-)

She has found a way out of the situation. Now, has she ever heard of Jedi mind tricks? Maybe? But remember what she just discovered: She just tapped into Kylo's mind. So she tries that again on the stormtrooper. Because when she knows how to act, she just does. She's always been confident in her physical abilities and skills. Why would she have to treat this new power any different? And luckily it works, after 3 tries.

And that's fine. Let's move on. Kylo kills Han. Explosions.

Notice this. Even though she knows she now has these new powers, the same powers Kylo has, she still draws her blaster at him after calling him a monster. She acts on emotion and choses the quick, familiar way.

I actually like to believe that Rey really doesn't know what the Force is and how it works, at all. How would she? Yes, Maz did tell her about it, but how do Force-powers manifest in people? She's never seen anyone use it before, upon meeting Kylo Ren. So in every scene she does use it, she just copies Kylo. That's the only reference she has. Remember how proud she is of her physical abilities. And she is so naive that she just goes and tries it for herself, without thinking of whether it will work out or not. And it works out for her. Because, again, she is strong in the Force.

It's true that her flaw, her naivety, is not really addressed in TFA. It never really backlashes on her. And, to be completely honest, I have no idea how to make room for that without some heavier rewrites yet. But maybe it's not necessary. TLJ takes care of that. TFA just introduces us to Rey as a character after all.

Now, is the force-summoned lightsaber making her overpowered? If you interpret it as "Kylo couldn't get that thing out the snow but Rey could," then yes, yes it is. BUT, if you see it as "while Rey is observing the fight, she sees Kylo trying to summon it, so she copies him, the way she copied him with the mind-tapping, and reaches for it the moment Kylo conveniently gets it out of the snow for her," I don't think it is, though I do agree that in order for the second version to be true, the scene happens too fast with too little shots to explain it. *OP takes a breath* So, here is what I suggest:

Kylo reaches out for the lightsaber. SHOT of the lightsaber in the snow, fidgeting slightly. BACK TO Kylo, pulling anew. BACK TO the lightsaber. It gets free. CUT. Another shot of it flying through the air towards the camera.

SHOT on Rey witnessing that - she is already on her feet again - and immediately reaching for it as well, outstretching her arm towards it.

SHOT of Kylo as he feels the momentum of his pull shift and dodges out of the way. The lightsaber flies past him, into Rey's hand.

Rey has always been fast to react to action. So it would make sense for her to be able to do that. Ok. Now to the fight itself.

*sighs* I don't even know where to start. ...One thing's for sure. Kylo at this point is pretty much destroyed emotionally from having killed his father, but he's still big and strong and aggressive in his movements. Rey, on the other hand, kinda seamlessly knows how to handle a lightsaber, which... is definitely not believable at all.

Let's step back for a moment. Why do we have this fight? Rey needs to get Finn and herself out of there and Kylo is pretty much in the way, so she wants to eliminate the problem. And what does Kylo want? Sure, he is interested in Rey and her raw powers which eventually adds up to them being equals in the Force, so he doesn't want to kill her...

But he also wants that lightsaber, doesn't he?

(God, I am looking at this fight to find any clues and I'm just sitting here, elbows on the table, resting my head in my hands, massaging my temples, wondering, "why the hell are there so many cuts in that fight scene?") (I am no expert in fight choreography, so bare with me as I try to make this work.)

Rey is the one who draws first at him.

She has never wielded a lightsaber before, but knows how to handle a staff... so she treats the lightsaber like a staff within its limitations.

Because remember, HER. STYLE. OF. FIGHTING. IS. ROUGH. AND. DIRTY. AND. HAS. NO. TECHNIQUE. WHATSOEVER. So, pretend we have some well thought out choreography in this part.

Kylo blocks her with ease. Rey is frustrated. The lightsaber feels heavy and difficult to handle. It doesn't take long for Kylo to

get her cornered at the edge of the newly formed cliff.

"You need a teacher! I could show you the ways of the Force!" he exclaims.

Rey considers, out of breath, "The Force?" Rey takes a moment as her mind connects the dots. So that's what these new powers are? Kylo watches her, waits for her to make a move. No time for pondering about the Force any more. Rey moves. Kylo LETS her duck and free herself from his block. She runs, backs away from the crater. He follows her. He outstretches his arm. Rey is stuck. She's literally petrified. Again. Kylo draws nearer. He twirls his saber, now holding it backwards (you know, Ahsoka style). "No," she hisses through her teeth, struggling. Heavy breaths. She closes her eyes. When he almost touches her hand holding the lightsaber, "No!" she RESISTS his force-cage and GOES FREE.

Because, you see, even though Maz told her to "close her eyes" and "feel the light", Rey has never done that before, and when under stress, I do believe she would rather choose a quick, familiar way to get out of the situation. The only thing she knows how to do with the Force at this point is to copy or resist Kylo. She wouldn't know how to to draw power from the Force, yet. She'll have plenty of time to learn that from Luke later, should she survive this fight, so we better continue.

Kylo stumbles back as she draws at him. Rey goes for a swing to hit from above, which Kylo manages to block last second, bringing his lighsaber up from behind his back. As their lightsabers are crossed again he quickly reaches for her right hand, which is holding Luke's saber, with his left hand and moves it aside to his right towards the ground, using his crossguard for more momentum to force her down. He steps his left foot accordingly to keep himself stable. Rey cries out from the unexpected movement. They are kinda back to back. His left shoulder against her right one. The position is uncomfortable. He squeezes Rey's wrist. Rey cries out in pain. Then, she realises how close they are.

Time for some close combat, ladies and gentlemen.

She gives in and lets go of the lightsaber, lets it fall to the ground. Kylo releases her to reach for the fallen lightsaber. But before he can pick it up, Rey KICKS his left hand away with her right heel and PUNCHES his JAW with her right elbow from below. Kylo's head rocks back. He stumbles backwards from the harsh impact, causing him to turn his back to her in order to catch himself. Rey summons Luke's lightsaber back into her left hand, and ignites it. When Kylo turns back to his opponent, left and unprotected side first, Rey is ready to stab him in his left shoulder.

Kylo stumbles back some more, she brings her hands together for another strike leftwards, he barely blocks it, he stumbles back some more, it leaves his posture open, Rey strikes again, rightwards, lower this time, wounding his leg, he falls to his knee, leaving Rey the final blow to provide him with his scar.

The reason I started writing this entire ramble in the first place is a conversation I had with my friend which brought up the fact that Rey should be able to beat Kylo by using her rough, unpredictable moves. Shout out to my friend who, bless her, is willing to listen to and survives every one of my sw rants and who pointed this out in the first place!

Is this a good fightscene now? I have no idea. I hope so? I do have it very clear in my head now though, so I might go and have some fun storyboarding it in the nearest future.

You know the rest. The ground splits, she runs to Finn, Chewie picks them up. . . .

There are some more moments which I believe need some tweaks, like the meeting with Leia, which is just so unfair to Chewie, really, but if I go on and on about this, I would end up changing the entire movie, which I do not have the strength for atm. This ramble was supposed to be about Rey and her alone, so I am done here.

I guess in the end Rey does realise her needs and is able to let her wants aside for a bit longer and focus her hope on actually helping the Resistance and get Luke. Hope that, with finding Luke, she will get to understand these new powers. I do feel like the movie could have provided us with a more emotionally rich reactive scene to the fight and her abilities, and generally just more of those, but then, what am I expecting from a JJ Abrams film? We have Rian for that.

My conclusion? I'm bad with conclusions and summaries, so here you have it, my take on Rey by only adding to the existing dialogue, changing some attitudes here and there, adding a scene, and changing the fight sequence at the end and how she treats the Force.

I do have a clearer understanding of her character now, which was the entire purpose of this ramble, so I guess, mission accomplished. Congratulations on having made it till the end. It was a long ride. I did consider splitting this beast into 2 parts, but while writing this, at one point I just decided to fully commit to it.

You are totally free to, of course, agree with me and stay tuned for my WIP fanscript or disagree, never read through this thing ever again, ignore it and leave it to die on Tumblr's graveyard.

Before you ask, because I also considered doing that just for the sake of having fun with GIFs on Tumblr (all text gifs are taken from YARN btw), I will not do a post like this on TLJ, since I have no problems with Rey's character there at all. Props to Rian Johnson at this point, for managing to make sense of her with what TFA gave us.

[empressofthewind]

What if the successors were raised at a loving orphanage?

Thank you so much for the ask!! I am SO so sorry about the very long wait with this response; I ended up going way overboard with it and writing a long four-part analysis instead of the brief response I was initially planning to give. Sorry if that's not quite what you were looking for!

The big thing that tripped me up with this ask is the lack of canon information about Wammy's House, which made me worry that there wouldn't be enough evidence to state that it was an unambiguously bad place to grow up. There are several scenes that seem to lead to that conclusion, and if you factor in the spinoff material, it's spelled out pretty clearly. But from the manga alone, we don't really get to see too much of the institution itself so much as we do the products of it. Thus, I wasn't confident that I could meaningfully comment on the characters' upbringing and how it affected them - which isn't to say I think it was a loving orphanage, but I wasn't confident that the manga delved into it enough to decide that based on facts alone. So what I did was first analyse the scenes from Wammy's House to determine whether there were any clear deficits in the way the staff handle difficult situations (spoiler: there were), and then theorise about how certain outcomes might have changed if things had been handled differently. Disclaimer that I have some foundational knowledge about parenting styles and childhood development, but I am by no means an expert.

Part 1: Analysis of Roger & The Conditions at Wammy's House

The only guardian we ever see interacting with the successors is Roger, and our very first introduction to that dynamic is in this scene:

The way I have always interpreted this is that Mello is dragging a kid through the hallway by his hair, and Roger silently removes Mello's hand. I actually ran a poll quite a while ago to determine whether Mello was simply trying to play or if he was outright bullying the kid, and the responses were relatively mixed. However, the consensus was generally that regardless of Mello's intentions, he's clearly being rough here, and the kid in question looks pretty miserable. So, I'm inclined to say that if a more responsible adult witnessed this situation, they would most likely step in. This isn't really what we see from Roger. He does not say anything about it; he just moves Mello's hand and holds his arm so he can't go anywhere.

What this seems to show is that there aren't really consequences for Mello's behaviour. There's no attempt to discipline him or even acknowledge the fact that he's clearly upsetting this kid. This could possibly be the product of Roger grieving - he's just found out that L and Watari are dead, so perhaps he's not in the mood to try disciplining Mello when he ordinarily would. But there's one particular scene later on which, to me, suggests otherwise:

Mello grabs Roger - by the shirt with one hand, and the shoulder with the other - and the only thing Roger does to stop him is quietly say his name. It's Near tipping his puzzle out onto the floor that pulls Mello away from Roger, not any attempt to discourage this behaviour. The fact that Roger does not react to this outburst, and the fact that Mello even feels comfortable doing it in the first place, suggests that this is a precedent that has been set. Mello has no qualms about acting out in front of Roger because he knows there won't be any consequences.

There's also the fact that Roger lets Mello leave the orphanage without any clear attempt to stop him at all, which, in my opinion, is the most egregious example of extremely poor guardianship. Regardless of Roger's mental state at the time, allowing a 14-year-old child to freely walk out of his primary place of residence with no supervision, no knowledge of where he's planning to go and zero indication that he intends to return, is beyond irresponsible. Wammy's House may have tried to track him down after he left, but they clearly had no success in that endeavour - and the fact that he was even able to leave in the first place after very clearly stating that this was his plan is negligence at its finest.

Based on all of this evidence, it seems to me that the primary issue with Roger's style of guardianship is a lack of care. Coupled with the detail in Volume 13 that Roger dislikes children, this makes perfect sense, and further suggests a pattern of behaviour rather than a particularly off day. I'm still hesitant to confidently state that Wammy's House as a whole was not a loving institution because we don't get to see how any of the other staff members interact with the children. We don't know if Roger was the most involved in their lives, or if he was more like a figurehead who only dealt with the serious matters, more like a school principal than a parental figure of any kind. However, I absolutely can say from the evidence here that Roger himself was, at the best possible interpretation, a pretty poor influence, and at worst, outright neglectful.

Part 2: Analysis of Mello

This brings me to my analysis of how things would change if Roger had been a responsible guardian with the kids' best interests at heart. I'll start with Mello as he, in my opinion, is the most obviously screwed up as a result of his upbringing. I can think of three main issues with Mello that Wammy's House failed to address:

His inferiority complex as a result of being pitted against & ranked below Near

His tendency towards rough and/or aggressive behaviour when interacting with others, which appears to cause distress to those who are directly affected

The fact that he was allowed to walk out of the orphanage at age 14 with no observed attempts from staff to prevent this action

I'll answer these in reverse order, as the last point is both the easiest to answer and the one that likely would not have become an issue at all if the first two points had been addressed.

Part 2.1: Allowing Mello to leave the orphanage

I ended up doing a fair bit of research to address this point, as I was curious about what protocol actual orphanages would have had to follow in a situation like this. What I found was mostly case studies/anecdotes from people with relevant lived experiences, and given that orphanages don't exist anymore (at least in the US, UK and Australia - I didn't do any research outside of those three countries), these mostly described either orphanages from the mid-20th century or present day foster care and group homes. According to the few resources I found on orphanages, it wasn't at all uncommon for kids between the ages of 14-17 to leave of their own accord, and the staff didn't really do much to prevent it. In the present day, the general first course of action for carers would be to alert the authorities upon learning that a child has run away from their place of residence.

In the panel where Mello is shown walking away, the sky is noticeably much darker than it was in earlier scenes from the same day, and this fact coupled with Mello's backpack and jacket - which he did not have when he first entered Roger's office - leads to the assumption that some length of time passed between leaving Roger's office and leaving the orphanage. This means that even if Roger was unable to stop Mello from walking out of his office, he should have taken extra precautions to prevent Mello from being able to exit the premises entirely. Possible steps to take would be to ensure the front gate is locked, alert other staff members, have him closely monitored until the staff could be sure that he's calmed down, or have him speak to a therapist or counsellor if possible to address the issue that prompted him to try and leave in the first place. If Mello did manage to get away despite all of this, the orphanage should have taken every possible measure to search for him and ensure his safe return.

Of course, Mello is a genius and very resourceful, so it's entirely possible that he could outsmart the staff and get away regardless, but with specific reference to how things might have changed if Roger were a more caring and responsible guardian, he would have absolutely pulled out all the stops. I suppose, technically speaking, we don't have any clear evidence that he didn't, but the behaviour we see from him in his office scene does not fill me with confidence.

Part 2.2: Rough and aggressive behaviour

This is specifically in reference to Mello kicking a ball at someone's head, dragging a child through the hallway by his hair, and his outburst in Roger's office that resulted in him grabbing Roger by the shirt. The fact that Mello goes on to join the mafia and canonically kill Soichiro Yagami and an unnamed mafia boss himself, as well as orchestrate the kidnapping and murder of many others, suggests that this is a pattern of behaviour that should have been addressed long before it reached criminal levels.

In my opinion, the absolute best-case scenario for Mello would be to see a therapist. Disciplining him might be temporarily effective, and it's something I definitely think a more well-meaning guardian would do, but ultimately it wouldn't address the core of the issue, and may simply result in Mello focusing on trying not to be caught rather than eliminating this behaviour entirely. There is a possibility that these tendencies are indicative of a deeper psychological concern, which is something that should be explored - and even if they aren't, I still think there's a lot Mello could potentially gain from therapy. Ideally, Wammy's House would have already had an on-site therapist available for the kids to visit (this is another case in which we don't have enough evidence to say that they didn't, but the mental state of the kids we see does not paint a very healthy picture). However, in the instance that they didn't, sending Mello to see an independent therapist would be the best course of action to take. Like anything on this list, I cannot state with any certainty that this would have changed matters, but it's the step I imagine a caring and responsible adult would take in Roger's position.

Part 2.3: Inferiority complex

This point is simultaneously the easiest to comment on, based on the abundant evidence that Mello's inferiority complex was very much a permanent and destructive force in his life, and the hardest to address. Unless we assume that Mello was raised at a different orphanage entirely, I suspect it would be incredibly difficult to run the successor program in such a way that Mello would not feel at least a little inferior to Near. His insecurities are the product of a systemic issue, and even if therapy might also help a little, he's never going to be satisfied as long as the competition is ongoing, the goal of becoming L is perceived as highly valuable, and Near outranks him in the running for it.

What we DO know is that Mello and Near are designed to function as the two sides of L; they have different strengths and weaknesses, and these are complementary to one another. We also know that Roger is aware of this to some extent, given that he suggested Mello and Near work together rather than attempting to choose one of them. Thus, if Roger had cared at all about improving Mello's mental state, the best course of action I can think of is for him to promote collaboration between Mello and Near, and potentially other students in the program as well. The fact that Mello asks "which of us did L pick" (or at least, he does the anime - technically in the manga this line is cut off, but this is the implied meaning) and then proceeds to look utterly horrified at the inference that he and Near might have to collaborate on the task suggests that he was taught to see L as a solo role. This is a very unhealthy mentality. Even though L was quite solitary and drove his investigations, he did not work entirely alone - he had Watari as his assistant, he needed the cooperation of the task force for the Kira case, and he also had Wedy and Aiber on standby to assist with more hands-on tasks, which suggests that the Kira case was not the first time he had used their help.

With this in mind, the program should not have been designed to raise one single capable successor to L, but rather as an educational program designed to teach kids about the realities of detective work and raise a new generation of capable detectives, with L as an inspiration rather than a goal. Using a ranking system, setting an incredibly lofty goal and enforcing the idea that only one kid would someday achieve said goal fosters a hostile environment that is more likely to contribute to problems like the deep-rooted and lifelong insecurities that affected every decision Mello made right up until his death. A more humane program would not have used competition as a driving force, but instead encouraged students to work together and combine their strengths, motivating them through challenging work and the desire to improve upon their own skillset.

Part 3: Analysis of Near

Near is a very tricky one to analyse, because none of his character flaws, to me, can be easily attributed to poor treatment in childhood. The one major flaw we see from him is complacency, which is what almost gets him killed at the end of the series. He is confident enough in his plan to miss the possibility that the notebook he tampered with is fake, and this would have been his downfall if Mello's kidnapping of Takada hadn't revealed the true location of the Death Note. I suppose you could argue that his confidence is the product of a system that raised him to believe he was superior to everyone else, but to me, he doesn't seem particularly smug or vain, especially compared to L and Light; it just seems like he became complacent and didn't think things through as well as he should have. And specifically in terms of the poor guardianship exhibited by Roger, overconfidence isn't generally an adverse outcome of neglect anyway. The only other character flaw I can really think of for him is that he has a tendency to be judgemental towards those with lower intelligences than himself, but again, I don't think this is really a product of poor parenting so much as it is just a product of him having grown up among peers with a similar intellect.

Additionally, Near is, in my opinion, extremely likely to be autistic. Many other, more knowledgeable people have talked about Near's autism at length and I don't think I have anything of value to contribute to the discussion myself, so I won't go into detail about it (although if you're interested in reading more, I highly recommend this very insightful post that breaks it down really well). My point in raising this is that autism isn't a product of trauma or neglect in childhood (nor is it a flaw or something that can be "fixed"), so we can't make any claims about the way Near was treated as a child based on the presence of behaviours that might, in a neurotypical child, be considered maladaptive. For example, neglected children can often have social challenges due to insecurities and feelings of worthlessness. However, despite lacking any close friends, this doesn't appear to be the case for Near. Based on the brief scene we see of him interacting with his peers at Wammy's House, he simply does not show any interest in socialising or conforming to social norms. He shows no signs of self-doubt or loathing, nor does he seem negatively affected by this lack of social closeness. So while a less negligent guardian absolutely would have been ideal in supporting his needs, I can't imagine we'd see any major difference in Near's core personality traits or behaviours given that many of them were likely not shaped by his upbringing in the first place.

One thing I CAN say, though, is that Near's future might have looked different if Wammy's House had been more loving. If we assume that the successor program is still a part of it, there is no chance that a caring guardian would have thrown a 13-year-old into the deep end on a case that killed the world's most proficient detective, who had 12 years of age and about 15 years of experience on Near. I don't know what this would have meant for the Kira case. Going by the LABB novel, a more loving orphanage might not have screwed up the previous generations and thus could have had older successors who could take the case instead. Otherwise, they could have just waited until Near was 18, and allowed him to take the case if a) Kira was still active which, given that no one else managed to solve the case during the 5-year timeskip, I presume he would be, and b) Near made the independent decision that he wanted to investigate it. Either way, he shouldn't have been put in such a high-risk position at such a young age, with so many factors at play that made him particularly vulnerable.

Alternatively, I suppose they could have allowed him to research the case from Wammy's House until he was 18, with restrictions on any activity that might have put his life in danger, and then let him move to New York to conduct a more hands-on investigation as an adult if this was the path he wished to take. This is pretty close to what happened in canon, but he established the SPK at age 17, so this would have just pushed the timeline forward by a few months. Still, taking measures to minimise (if not eliminate) the risks as long as he was still underage and in the care of Wammy's House should have been non-negotiable.

Part 4: Analysis of Other Wammy's House Alumni

L - we know even less about his past than we do Mello and Near's. Given that Watari found L and took him in and catered to his requests, it's implied that he did actually care about L to some extent, which is more than we can say about Roger "Hates Kids" Ruvie. I'm also inclined to say that the care he displayed for L wasn't purely driven by his potential to generate income (at least at first), since he already had many orphanages by this point that weren't set up like twisted science labs, and he most likely wouldn't have known when he first took L in that he would end up being so successful. The Wammy's House oneshot does give some interesting insight though, if we choose to take it as canon, and my main comment from that would be much the same as with Near; a different guardian might not have allowed L to enter such a high-risk career at age 10. The fact that Watari felt the need to establish a program to raise potential successors to a literal child suggests that he was very aware of the threat to L's life, so it was, perhaps, not the best move to venture into that endeavour.

A and B - TW for several suicide mentions here. I generally don't take the LABB novel as canon, but given these two characters only exist in the novel, I will consider it for the sake of this analysis. Like L, Watari was the primary guardian responsible for A and B, rather than Roger, but it goes without saying that he did a terrible job of caring for them. A more loving guardian obviously would not have created conditions that placed such immense pressure on the children involved that one felt the only way out was to take their own life. Similarly, B would not have been motivated by the desire to intellectually challenge L via several murders and a suicide, even if he had still gone down a path of crime anyway. The fact that B had the Shinigami eyes makes me think that he was pretty screwed up either way, but much like Mello, a more caring orphanage would have made an earnest effort to set him on an upward trajectory rather than encouraging his downward spiral.

Matt - I don't really have much to say about Matt, but the fact that he supports and assists Mello in his crimes further suggests that the kids at Wammy's House were taught very skewed morals. Thus, at a more loving (and morally reasonable) orphanage, Matt might have followed a different path.

[say-hi-intrepid-heroes]

what got you into greek mythology?

oh boy where do i begin

i wasn't allowed to read percy jackson as a kid (because oh no there were gay people and my parents would never allow that) so to fit in with my friends i read a shit ton of classical mythology. i dabbled in most ancient pantheons, but norse and greek/roman were the ones i studied the most.

more recently, i love to study the presence of queer people in history, especially ancient history. right now im taking a course that really dives into The Iliad, and i fear my copy is filled with annotations and tabs (im currently marking for colour mentions, specific imagery/metaphors, and prophecies, since this is working in tandem with an art course), especially on the chapters and bits about Achilles and Patroclus. pardon my mini tangent here, but it's so interesting to see their story play out: there are prophecies that are set in stone, and yet they still try to avoid their fates. there is a core belief in their hearts that they will avoid the prophecies, and yet they do not. and also, at the end of the day, achilles chose to go to war instead of take the option of the life of being unknown. it's just so interesting.

anyway to wrap this up and actually meaningfully answer the question, i find ancient greek mythology to be such a foundational set of tropes that are really good to call back to. they also have the positive element of being so separated from any authors that might exist that there is no "source material" and much is left up to interpretation, which opens the doors for feminist and queer analyses of the texts. i'm not a huge fan of most modern "retellings" (that's a whole other can of worms that i won't go into rn), but i think the integration of elements of the mythos in modern art and writing can create richer meanings without falling victim to the constant push for innovation and new ideas.

everyone should go real myths. i personally recommend Edith Hamilton's Mythology (i found my copy at a secondhand store, she's pretty well known) for general myths, although you can find pretty much anything online. if you're into the epics, Emily Wilson's translations of The Iliad and The Odyssey are more similar to modern syntax and grammar than some other translations i've read, and is just a really easy read (any minor changes she makes are either explained in the introduction or in the notes, and i've yet to find anything unjustified).

anyway i'll stop yapping about this but feel free to get in the reblogs/replies or send more asks about this cause i love talking about this stuff :D

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

The chances of anything coming from Mars New method to detect life makes Mars sample return protocols rock solid

Within the next decade, space agencies plan to bring samples of rock from Mars to Earth for study. Of concern is the possibility these samples contain life, which could have unforeseen consequences. Therefore, researchers in this field strive to create methods to detect life. For the first time, researchers, including those from the University of Tokyo and NASA, successfully demonstrated a method to detect life in ancient rocks analogous to those found on Mars.

We’ve all seen the movies, in which “Scientists bring back something from space, with disastrous consequences,” or with some similar premise. The idea makes for a fun story, but the idea of microbial aliens contaminating the Earth is based on genuine concerns, and is also nothing new. Back in the days of the Apollo program, on their return, the lucky astronauts who stepped foot on lunar soil underwent decontamination procedures and even quarantines, just in case. More recently, all eyes are on Mars, as multiple sample return missions are being planned.

In order to ensure that samples from Mars cannot contaminate Earth life, the international Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) developed the sample safety assessment framework, essentially a set of protocols for those involved in obtaining, transporting and analyzing Mars rocks, to avoid contamination. A key component of this is our ability to detect the presence or absence of life in a sample. The issue of course being, we haven’t actually got any. To plug this gap, Associate Professor Yohey Suzuki from the Department of Earth and Planetary Science at the University of Tokyo, and his international team, looked at ancient microbe-rich Earth rocks analogous to the kind of Mars rocks we might expect to receive from the red planet in the coming years.

“We first tested conventional analytical instruments, but none could detect microbial cells in the 100-million-year-old basalt rock we use as the Martian analogue. So, we had to find an instrument sensitive enough to detect microbial cells, and ideally in a nondestructive way, given the rarity of the samples we may soon see,” said Suzuki. “We came up with optical photothermal infrared (O-PTIR) spectroscopy, which succeeded where other techniques either lacked precision or required too much destruction of the samples.”

O-PTIR works by shining infrared light onto prepared samples to analyze; in this case, the rocks had their outer layers removed and were cut into slices. While slightly destructive, it leaves plenty of material intact for other kinds of analyses, or even those we have not come up with. This essence of preservation for the future also took place with samples from the moon landings. A green laser then picks up signals from the sample where it was exposed to infrared light. With this, researchers can image details as small as half a micrometer, which is enough to discern when a structure is part of something living.

“We demonstrated our new method can detect microbes from 100-million-year-old basalt rock. But we need to extend the validity of the instrument to older basalt rock, around 2 billion years old, similar to those the Perseverance rover on Mars has already sampled,” said Suzuki. “I also need to test other rock types such as carbonates, which are common on Mars and here on Earth often contain life as well. It’s an exciting time to work in this field. It might only be a matter of years before we can finally answer one of the greatest questions ever asked.”

IMAGE: Photos and outputs from instruments used for O-PTIR. Researchers can interpret the images on the left, made using different optical sensors, to produce graphs like those on the right, which show the presence of microbial life. Credit ©2025 Suzuki et al. CC-BY-ND