#there's more to it but i don't have the energy to extend the comic

[system-unknown]

does anyone know what i mean

[teaboot]

Batman? As in extended batman universe, specifically batman, or movies batman? I'm going to die from the hilarity of /accidentally/ following another batman fan. Generally it's on purpose lol

I was actually absorbed into the Fandom by osmosis before I even touched any of the Canon material

Even now I've only seen the Affleck movies and the Battinson one, plus a couple cartoons and like. Four comics out of order

With next to zero evidence tho I have decided that

Dick Grayson has Eldest Daughter syndrome that, speaking as an Eldest Daughter (tm) really should be addressed in the lore somewhere before he goes on a drunken bender, gets a tramp stamp, kills a man, and has a full-on mental breakdown when the Repression Dam breaks

Stephany Brown radiates "angry teen girl needs a hug" energy imo but I feel like she might break my arms? I don't know anything about her except her dad sucks but honestly same boat, would hang

Timothy Drake cannot be the helpless boohoo I see a lot of, but somehow the cool, collected, hypercompentant, übermensch-tweenybopper look is kinda sadder, like seeing a twelve year old buying groceries at the store by themselves. I want to send his ass to normal kid summer camp

I don't know pretty much anything about Duke Thomas except that he's a meta whose parents might be alive but crazy. I can only conclude that he suffers from Black Character White Fandom syndrome. I headcanon that he had an embarrassing weeb phase in middle school because he feels like the kind of kid Who'd have gone through a phase of saying "ohaio" with peace signs as a baby tween. I have no evidence to support this

Cassandra Cain might be my favourite. I think she deserves to go on an angry, irrational rampage or two, as a treat. Aggretsuko vibes that I cannot explain. I bet her favourite colour is purple

Jason Todd is my guilty comfort character and I refuse to believe he kicked the shit out of a fifteen year old while wearing a legless adult onesie. I refuse. Also yeah as a huge angry-kid-book-nerd there is no way that pride and prejudice was his number one fave, my money is on the Percy Jackson series but that could just be me projecting

Damian Wayne is Autistic, personal subscription. Because I am too and I said so. Reminds me of my baby brother, but crankier. Like a tiny old man who doesn't want to be at bingo with the other folks at the senior center.

I feel like Alfred should be allowed to be wrong about something sometimes but I still love him. Give that grandpa a gun

Bruce Wayne strikes me as a man who should have put a lot more thought and study and personal therapy consults into the idea of adopting multiple highly capable highly traumatized children he's never met before before but fuck pobody's nerfect am I right. Bisexual

[prof-ramses]

Decided to rant about Striker's character and why I think he works (Warning: This ended up being massive)

The best analogy about Striker that I can make is that he isn't really a cowboy, but a comic book villain who themes himself around being a cowboy. Now that I've done the meme-y version, allow me to actually explain.

A lot of people seem to overlook that there is a single thread that holds together Striker's personality, and is the root of most of his characterization. And that thread is a need for respect.

Let's look through his appearances and explore how his obsession manifests:

Harvest Moon Festival:

In his first episode, Striker presents himself as a model Wrath imp in order to gain the trust of Millie's family and Blitz. The only person he breaks character around is Moxxie, since he assumes Moxxie's insecurity about not being good enough in the eyes of his in-laws will make him automatically respect someone who they do approve of.

He later breaks character when Blitz catches him, he tries to convince Blitz that they're too good to live their lives around the whims of nobles, he tries to show himself as someone who can get Blitz what he wants, or rather, what Striker thinks Blitz wants, again to seem like someone who's "got it figured out" .

Another note worthy thing is his very professional way of speaking with Stella in both this and the next episode he's in, we'll get back to this later.

Western Energy:

The first point of interest is easy to miss the significance of, when breaking into the Richest Cup he makes it as dramatic as possible, he's trying to show himself as dangerous enough to warrant such cocky recklessness while surrounded by goetic demons.

After he takes Stolas we see his hideout which is full of scavenged western imagery that looks like an ominous lair, but upon closer inspection is actually a meager living arrangement for a deeply troubled demon.

His actual rant to Stolas includes a line about nobles taking everything lower class demons care about, showing WHY respect is important to him, he's never felt that he, or the part of society he belongs to, have been respected, or as he later says, all nobles do is try to talk over them.

Striker torturing Stolas shows how his need for respect is reflected in him being an assassin, he thinks he can get respect through fear, that having the most primal form of authority over someone will make him feel more significant. And this is why Stolas and I.M.P. are his greatest enemies, their irreverence makes them the only targets that don't play his game, that remind him of what he really is, a desperate, fragile, hero in his own mind, willing to do whatever it takes to prove his importance, not to others, but to himself.

Once again, he's begrudgingly cordial towards Stella despite his hatred of royals, in an effort to get even a fleeting acknowledgement of his worth. Showing that his belief that he can play into people's minds to get what he wants extends to his emotional wants as well.

Oops:

Here we see Striker in a much different light, mostly due to his new employer. First off, he's much more open with his frustration and moments of weakness, despite Crimson actually being physically present there and being able to see and hear everything. I think this is because Crim is a rare example of someone Striker doesn't feel he needs respect from. Crimson is, at least in Striker's eyes, an imp who has found moderate success by mimicking the lifestyle of a royal. He might not show it, but Striker probably resents Crimson just as much as, if not more than, he resents Blitz and Fizz, since Crimson has no actual royal support (that we know of).

Speaking of Blitz and Fizz, in his interaction with them in the cage scene we get the most blatant example of Striker thinking that his victimhood as an imp makes his "accomplishments" more worthy of respect, as he completely skirts around the fact he's the only hybrid out of the three, and we also learn he's aware of all this on at least some level when he threatens Fizzarolli for comparing him to a royal due to his arrogance.

And lastly, the climax when he grabs Fizz and the moment when we get the immortal line "Why is it always a sex thing!?", and why is it always a sex thing? Why do the members of IMP and those close to them not fall for his act? Put simply, it's due to trust, no matter how skilled or intimidating he is, Striker is still a loner with no one and nothing to fall back on beside his own skill. In sharp contrast to this the main cast have strong enough bonds that they know someone will oppose him. For example, Striker's attempt at demoralizing Stolas fails because he didn't think Blitz would trust his employees enough to do the saving.

So, yeah, I think Striker currently has a better thematic through line than any other villain in the series and I'm interested in seeing where they take him next. That being said, I feel Crim could be just as great and will probably make a similar post for him after his third episode.

[scarlet--wiccan]

Sorry to send another AAA question and I didn’t personally watch the show but that one post got me wondering about like. The worldbuilding. Is magic just something that happens to certain people in the mcu? Is it like mutants or dc’s homo magi?

Not that it never happens that way in 616 ofc like there are still Emily brights and such but I feel like magic is generally like. A family tradition passed on, something someone specifically pursues like any other skill, or something that develops out of existing abilities/circumstances. Idk if I’m wording this successfully or not but I’d appreciate your interpretation of that

No, I understand what you're saying. Broadly speaking, people don't just manifest magical powers for no reason in Marvel comics. There's usually some kind of context or circumstance to justify it, and spellcasting typically relies on study and practice. I'm not saying that's executed perfectly or consistently, but that's the overall gist.

In Agatha All Along, most of the worldbuilding revolves around the Witches' Road, but the series finale reveals that it's all a fabrication. We do learn a fair amount about each character's past--enough to make sense of their motives, at least-- but the show dances around answering questions such as where their powers come from, or why all witches are seemingly immortal. We never find out how Agatha came by her unique "dark magic," as WV describes it, or how she obtained the Darkhold. The most interesting thing we learn is that each witch has a different specialty, but this is extended into an arbitrary and non-comprehensive taxonomy of "witch types," a trope which I find personally annoying.

The show poses a dichotomy between what it calls "analogue magic"-- literal witchcraft, with material tools, spells, and rituals-- and more overt magical superpowers-- the flying, the energy blasts, and so forth. The former is more common than the latter. Seemingly anyone can study and practice witchcraft, but those flashy superpowers are apparently harder to come by. But the thing is.... everyone seems to have them. Agatha's energetic vampirism requires the witch she's draining to assault her with an energetic attack, which she then absorbs. In episode, we see her draining countless witches over the course of at least two hundred years, many of whom appear to be relative novices. And since there's no prerequisite for a witches' extended lifespan, the viewer is left to assume that America has been littered with immortal women who can shoot lasers from their hands since at least the 1600s. I walked away feeling like "witches" had joined the ranks of the Inhumans and Eternals-- a whole race, as it were, of super-people that have apparently existed this whole and are only now being clumsily retconned into the M C U's world... and will probably fade into the background again sooner than expected.

[zahri-melitor]

Okay a loose Recent Reads roundup:

Birds of Prey: Sirens of Justice: so I was lured (tricked) into reading this as Gail Simone wrote one of the stories, even though it, sigh, contains far too much Harley Quinn due to movie synergy. The Dinah and Helena banter is decent, but otherwise this felt...aggressively fine. The Helena story is very pat in terms of how people tend to write Huntress shorts, though I guess it wasn't 'Helena worries about a student' this time.

The Question: The Deaths of Vic Sage: very much in conversation with O'Neil's run, of course, and also clearly reacting to contemporaneous US racial discussions. Shifting Myra to be the Mayor's sister not wife definitely alters her position in the narrative, particularly in terms of her obligations and response to situations. It is incredibly bleak in places, but that simply reflects the run it is based on and is a tribute to.

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen: This is definitely for the Silver Age fan. Matt Fraction manages to string together solving a complex assassination plot over 12 issues by telling the story in short, 2-4 page sections that wildly jump around the timeline and are framed by 'the many ridiculous things that have happened to Jimmy Olsen'. I have absolutely no handle on the canonicity of some of this, particularly the extended Olsen family, and not knowing probably makes this read more easily. Looking at it as a whole, I'm impressed how well Fraction stitched what was effectively episodic 2 page fills into a complete narrative. The energy of the story is relentless. Best read in small doses.

Batman: Pennyworth R.I.P: god this comic could have been so much better than it was. It’s fine and accomplishes exactly what it was intended to do - tell a story of how Alfred influenced and looked out for each of Dick, Jason, Tim, Damian and Barbara - and sets everyone up to be mildly pissed at Bruce. But just for one example, it would have been HUGELY more powerful if they’d been able to use Dick, with his memories just restored, facing the fact he wasn’t there when Alfred needed him and his last interactions were so impersonal and spent pushing Alfred away.

Catwoman 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular: again, underwhelming. Tom King played shipper and wrote his version of how the Helena Wayne story should work; the Dixon story felt 90s appropriate but the art was dire; Brubaker’s felt like a missing scene to his run; Dini’s honestly wasn’t up to the standard I’d hope for from Dini. The art pieces were great though; a lot of good commissions.

Robin 80th Anniversary 100-Page Super Spectacular: I cannot work out who chose the covers used in the issue, which swing between 'iconic' and 'reminding everyone ASBAR exists was unnecessary, DC'.

Generally: they did manage to round up fairly iconic lineups for most of the stories, with some chopping and changing for a few.

Wolfman got another run at trying to frame the 'Dick quits v Bruce fires him' debate; Dixon and Grayson both submitted literal fills (Dixon's is a scene immediately after Nightwing #19 1996 and before #20; Grayson's is at least just an extra story that fits into #1-12 of her Titans 1999 run on a day all the second stringers didn't come to work). I don't actually have a problem with any of these - they're nice additional material, but mostly more of the same. Seeley & King's suffers from the usual Seeley problem for me where it would be vastly improved by having a different focus; but it does feel straight out of his Grayson run, with everything that implies (down to the St Hadrian's student I wish was not present). All of the Dick stories are basically "we got the team back together" creative line ups.

Jason, in contrast, makes it really obvious that nobody can define a definitive Jason run, and so gets the tiniest story with Winick and Dustin Nguyen. I checked, and Nguyen did draw part of UTRH, but I wouldn't have associated him as a character-defining artist for Jason. The story's cute. Winick sidestepped having to commit to anything about his opinions on post-Flashpoint Jason direction.

Tim got Adam Beechen (which honestly makes me happy, I don't care about anyone else's opinion) and luxuriates in Tim having to play civilian; Tynion gets a Rebirth story that I can't quite work out his timing on (it's supposed to be a prequel, but Dick is already back in costume as Nightwing and talking to Tim, suggesting that several issues of the Rebirth Nightwing take place significantly before 'Tec #934) that is a classic 'Tim tells everyone how he feels about his brothers' story. I realise everyone boring has complained about Tim calling Damian a 'horrible gremlin' but the thing is you see I can only read nicknames like that as full of affection. The back and forth is an important part of their relationship, as shown by Damian snapping 'you're only listening to the insults'.

Steph gets her 71 days as Robin slightly padded out and Amy Wolfram manages to pick up Willingham's tone pretty well; I suspect she liaised with Damion Scott quite a bit on this piece.

Damian has a Super Sons piece from Tomasi, because it's the most lighthearted option available and it sells very well (it's sickly sweet). Which was probably the right call as the other piece is clearly written by Robbie Thompson to accompany his Teen Titans run and for the downward spiral going on there. Which is honestly a bit of a pity for Damian, given everyone else got feature pieces from favourite runs, and he got the 'this slots into your current story' piece.

[billykcplan]

okay because i'm feeling bold. thoughts on agatha finale below.

first and foremost, let me be dramatic: enough of the fuck billy bullshit. if you don't like the twist with the road, can we direct that energy at the writers please. you never have this energy for other characters and it speaks volumes.

being on the billy defense squad for 13 years now, i'm not letting y'all clown him for anything.

if you dick ride for agatha killing coven after coven after coven for no real reason or wanda mind controlling a town or killing a bunch of people in multiverse of madness, you realllllly don't have a leg to stand on and you just sound like you hate gay men. go ahead, keep calling him a twink when we all know what you really want to say. it's exhausting.

i am still processing the twist. parts of the groundwork were laid, but it wasn't what i expected at all. the show took a pretty big tonal shift after episodes 6-7 seemed to set up more of a somber tone which was lessened i'd say in episodes 8-9.

let's start off what i didn't love but am still processing:

billy manifesting the road twist was theorized but i kind of tossed it aside and thought the bedroom would be more of the easter egg stuff and less meaningful. or that the road was just adapting to billy who may have been like the key traveler. evidently not. but spontaneous creation? reality manipulation? demiurge???? like it's in his wheelhouse and it's not that surprising. i think i'm moreso frustrated by the other witches not knowing what was happening and by agatha's confusing actions if the road wasn't real. like why did she tell lilia the secret about blasting her? why'd she recruit a bound witch? if that was the goal for her? those are some tricky plotholes. but i still think jac schaeffer is a phenomenal showrunner.

i thought we would see agathario from the start - not just after nicky was born. they needed more context to their relationship because without it, they are solely reliant on kathryn and aubrey (who do a phenoemenal job!) but they need story to back them up. i'd love to know how they met, how they got together. if they broke up pre-nicky and why. and why did agatha get the darkhold? i thought it'd have been interesting if agatha was using nicky to drain covens to extend his life or if she had gotten the darkhold to try to resurrect nicky and that was why rio and agatha's relationship had gotten so toxic because agatha was messing with the balance. but again, this is coming from my expectations.

was really hoping that we would get some resolution to the "am i william or am i billy?" question. truly thought agatha would help restore his memories of william and billy or merge their souls or something. and that he'd leave the road going by "billy kaplan" just like the comics in recognition of both identities. that's not really what happened clearly, but i also think this is still something that could happen later on. the moment is not gone.

if the road was popping them out when they got what they were missing, i'm confused as to why alice wasn't popped out after lifting her curse. or lilia after closing the loop on her memories, though she does make this conscious choice to fight the salem seven and in some ways, this seems to be a pre-determined future for herself.

agatha dying in the end was an interesting choice. clearly she will continue on in ghost form. but it done so campy that it takes so tonal adjustment to get me there.

onto what i loved or at least liked:

billy as fucking wiccan. that's my baby and that suit looks so fucking good. and that crown looks amazing. i am so fucking excited for his future. wiccan, young avengers, children's crusade, scarlet witch. i just need to see him again. and i am so desperate for him to go on this journey and meet teddy along the way. for him to find tommy.

billy's guilt - straight from the comics as well. they make it all morally gray, just like they do with wanda. but billy is desperately upset about potentially leading these witches to their death. it's a really complex situation, but that's what makes the maximoff's so interesting. they're not all good or all bad. and that's very true in the witch corner. billy going on a hero's journey attempting to atone for mistakes he believes he has made (and has in some cases). it's difficult to say anything but the road killed sharon. and it's difficult to say that lilia and alice would have ever died if they weren't put on the road. but it was all unconscious and there are other things at play here. it makes it all so fucking interesting narratively.

tommy!!!! i'm so excited to see tommy wherever he ends up showing up. super interesting more question posed again - "am i killing this boy so my brother can live?" because billy isn't afraid to ask the question.

billy and agatha's relationship. they are such complex interesting characters and have had some an amazing dynamic throughout the show. and i'm so excited to see that dynamic continue in the future.

i'm hopeful death will cotninue to play a role going forward and who's to say we're done with agathario. who's to say agatha has to stay a ghost. the future is bright.

overall this show is still peak to me and i think i just need to keep processing everything and my subverted expectations.

[quirkwizard]

I've looked up different people's takes on what Deku's Quirk would be if he had a natural one. One idea I frequently come across is Heat Absorption (which combines Hisashi's fire quirk with Inko's attraction quirk). However, what if this idea was taken further? What if Deku could take the heat energy he absorbed and use it to enhance his physical abilities (like Sunspot from the X-Men comics)?

Hi Wiz! Dollar-store-quirks here, with the shadow of an idea! (I have been so drained of ideas, you don't even know). I saw a ask about Izuku inheriting a possible Fire Breath x Attraction of Small Objects Quirk and I'd like to add my two cents! as in, I have two other takes on the concept.

My first concept is a little less directly related to his parents. I'm calling it Will-o-Wisp, and it leans a little more into the psychic nature of his mother's quirk. It might work where Izuku can breath out ghostly incorporeal "fire" which he can control - that's both telekinesis and fire breath! Only when this incorporeal fire makes contact with a physical object will it turn into real fire, which he might not be able to control. There might be a maximum limit of how much ghostly fire he can control, and he might unlock the power to choose when his ghostly fire becomes physical, or some way to control his fires after they become physical (say, if some amount of ghostly fire stayed incorporeal and that allowed him to influence the physical fire).

Second, I think there's potential in a very direct mix. Let's call it Attraction of Fire. This would function by allowing Deku to draw in and control fires near him, possibly extending the length of its fuel or managing its temperature. This would depend on fire from outside sources, still leaving Deku in an underdog position for narrative reasons and requiring a lot of inventiveness to make it feasible. Fire might still burn him, giving him the same self-destructive nature as in canon. And it'd give him plenty of need for support equipment and collaboration with other heroes, which is also meaningful for story reasons. These are mostly narrative reasons why I think this is compelling quirk, but aren't those the best reasons? If someone wrote an AU with another student gaining One for All, I think this kind of quirk would allow Izuku to remain in the story in roughly the same position in Class A, power-wise.

Thanks for reading all this! I hope this is a fun addition to the discussion!

Wow, @dollar-store-quirks. Now there's a name I haven't seen in a while. Hope you're doing okay. And here's the post for any of you that are curious about it.

I'm not sure if any of these are in the cards for Izuku, at least in their entirety. I too have discussed absorbing heat for Izuku's power, but why would it enhance his body? Nothing about either parent Quirk implies that would be possible. Shooting the fire back out makes more sense because that's in line with what the father does. Izuku breathing out fire that he controls makes some sense, but having it turn intangible is such a deviation that I struggle to imagine it fitting as a power. And honestly, I don't even think he'd be able to even come close to the canon story line with that kind of power. On that note, you're final idea does have some merit. I do think attracting fires makes sense for Izuku. Heck, it's even what based his Quirk Marriage around. The thing is though that attracting fires is such a specific power that I struggle to think of anything that interesting you can do with it, let alone have it be include amongst the Heroics Course. It's good for a firefighter and that's it. There's making a character an underdog and making his power barely useful. It's why I felt the need to be as liberal as possible with Izuku's potential powers. Something that'd fit the parent Quirks, yet still make standout abilities in their own right.

[lunarsilkscreen]

Rethinking the DC Universe

Most superheroes were created from the process; "Make up random s* and see what sticks". So both Marvel and DC are generally... Well they seem random as all get out with no coherency between ideas; and A LOT of campy ideas that are just so outdated they could be considered queerphobic, sexist, AND racist.

<aside>When these were originally drawn up; it was an attempt to be inclusive. But you know how the overton window goes; as it slides what used to be "progressive" gets used for very unprogressive things.</aside>

What this means is that a lot of the authors don't actually know what audiences enjoy about their media; and so they pair down their content to the "greatest hits" they can repeat, and save the rest for when audiences ask for more.

But generally that "More" is really bad not-thought out rehashing of things that audiences didn't really like. Or audiences liked the concept of the ideas presented, but they cam packaged with all the *really bad ideas*. Because creators aren't certain which bits to keep, and which bits to change.

Because; gotta stay true to the source material or fanboys will get cranky in-between their rounds of Madden.

So without further ado; Kryptonite.

Kryptonite unfortunately isn't the material on Earth from the comics. It was a mineral that was new at the time of the comics, and it was introduced in order to influence readers (YA) to learn their elemental tables.

A lot of the sci-fi is about introducing concepts to younger audiences so that they get interested in *real* science. But it often falls short because the original scientists were closer to carni-folk and further away from being very studious.

So in DC comics; Kryptonite is a mineral that came from Superman's home world: Krypton. The joke was intentional. And then it was given a bunch of different variations and mystical magical powers that affected SuperMan in strange ways.

Honestly--To start; I'd get rid of the moniker "SuperMan". Its whole concept is goofy these days. Unless you want to go to more of a less serious DC, which some people *might* want.

The reason it's silly is because the S on his chest that he used to create his hero name "SuperMan" is actually a "K" in his home world's language and stands for his family crest. Indicating his true name: Kal-el and home planet Krypton.

And his stage name: Super Man.

Now, This moniker comes from the carnival strong man days. That's why it sounds so corny. It's also why he wears the ridiculous get-up. Because that's where it comes from... Even the WWE has better outfits and monikers these days.

Keep his real name "Kryptonian" and have everybody else call him "Super Man". In a way that the audience knows; the crowd calls him that, but he doesn't go by *that* name.

Kryptonite; in order to not confuse children with the real thing. Change the name of this Mystical mineral. I'm not sure what to.

BUT. I have an idea that will link it to Green Lantern.

This stone that can take away Superman's powers? Why can't it be the same rock that powers the lantern corp ring?

And because both come in an array of colors that depict different (but the same) varying effects; this can be used as a plot device.

This balances SuperMan's infinite power by making Green Lantern at least as strong as SuperMan, AND it prevents superman from doubling up on super powers.

This pseudo-science extends to many DC characters as well; like the flash. Who ends up building his own Hadron Collider which he uses as his own personal running track. (And also can contain all the energy he emits).

Why is literally every superhero in DC a literal Super-Genius?

I know why; it's to inspire young audiences to be well rounded individuals. But holy shit if doesn't come off as preppy rich-people worship.

In DC there are several Billionaire Genius' that all become some variant of Batman. This can be streamlined. Instead of introducing them all separately; which is done because; VIEWERS NEED TO KNOW WHICH SUPERHERO CAME FIRST, AND WHICH ONE IS THE 'AAA' MOVIE HERO AND WHICH IS THE B-LIST TV SHOW HERO.

They are all Batman, they all want justice. Perhaps they should just... I don't KNOW form some sort of league where they assist the law with dishing out justice instead of all being super unique brooding vigilantes.

Just a thought.

What this does so far is separate each type of hero into a different "threat category". The Batman's care about street-level crimes; they assist the cops, they take down the corrupt politicians and law enforcement.

The spacemen (green lantern, superman;) they deal with inter-galactic threats.

And heroes like the flash who have a tendency and ability for inter dimensional travel? They deal with inter dimensional threats.

Which gives a better reason why these separate teams don't often intersect, opposite "Well, we've heard of them but *CRIME* IS JUST SO BAD YOU GUYS. otherwise we'd have contacted them by now."

If only crime was so bad in real life that superheroes were just always booked solid because law enforcement can't keep up or do its job properly.

Which is why storylines where the heroes leave the country to some island work so much better than just... The entire city is full of criminals and no matter how many you *send to the hospital* they just keep popping up!

Like it's some sort of simulation.

This idea that every series needs to start with Batman and Superman *and then* Justice League *and then* other superhero teams is silly.

When you could take all of the ideas built over the years and take the best bits to make a whole new thing.

Which would honestly feel more honest to viewers than rebooting every series from its first comic.

In the age of Video Games, this would really give gamers a lot more content to play through, and feel less railroady as well.

It even gives reason for villain teams to exist, or not exist.

Also; Batman should be a detective. He's not a direct combat guy, same with all the other superheroes that are Batman clones. They all have extensive martial arts training, so they all should know; The best victory is when you win without fighting.

Also like... They keep trying to make the *same* exact series with different street-level characters that you really start to see why people stopped enjoying superheroes to begin with.

[quillpaw]

okay listen it's five in the morning and i should be asleep but the manic energy got me so instead i made this diagram and i'm now going to explain it to you. don't bother getting up, i've locked the doors.

okay so like an ogre, there are layers of engaging with a work, and i think a lot of disagreement in fandom comes from fundamentally misunderstanding which layer of engagement someone else is working in. so let's break it down. under the cut because fuck dude this got long.

LAYER 1: CANON. this is the core layer. this is the work itself. this is everything contained within the book, the show, the movie, the podcast, the interpretive dance, whatever. the thing itself and only the thing. if it is shown on screen, written in the text, heard with thine own ears, it is canon. i hope you guys are staying with me so far.

LAYER 2: EXTENDED CANON. this layer contains other media that is explicitly connected to the canon work. this is the cinematic universe, the spin-off comics, the tie-in novels, what have you. any work that is not the original canon thing but is clearly, explicitly connected to the canon thing is here, okay? so if we're talking about the avengers, then this is the rest of the mcu. depending on what is being discussed, this might also include sequels and prequels. if you're talking about star wars as a franchise, this layer is legends, but if you're talking about star wars: a new hope, then this layer is star wars: the empire strikes back. general consensus is that extended canon is still canon, but sometimes it sucks real hard and it isn't. i know that makes this a little fuzzier but just try to remember that this is just the shallows as we wade out beyond the original work.

LAYER 3: WORD OF GOD. here's where the arguments start. (unless layer 2 is already where the arguments start, which, god help you.) word of god is anything stated outside the original work by the work's creators or people who can otherwise speak authoritatively on the work. this can range from statements by the author about intent, to interviews with actors about their mindset while playing a character, to supplemental material containing details about a character or setting not specified elsewhere (unless that supplemental material is considered extended canon, which people can and do and will argue about). by the strictest technical definition, word of god is NOT canon, BUT it is commonly folded into interpretation of the canon work with the knowledge that the creators want or expect it to be canon. unless it sucks ass and everyone agrees the author doesn't know what the fuck they're talking about, but that's something else to argue about.

LAYER 4: FANON. ooookay. i could probably divide this layer into like four different layers but i don't wanna so this is the murky, terrifying deep end of the canon spectrum. fanon is interpretations of the original work that incorporates elements not present in the original canon but does not openly contradict it. this ranges from in-universe explanations for plot holes to fan theories about future events to guesses at what a character's favorite food is based on a photo of their actor snacking in costume. fanon is not canon. fanon can be great, fanon can be more coherent and thoughtful than canon (hello danny phantom enjoyers) but it is NOT canon. the interpretations that exist here do not exist within the original work, and that's okay. fanon can be meaningful and inspiring and a wonderful addition to how you engage with a creative work, but none of that makes it canon, and that's okay. fanon can also be absolute reeking dogshit and that is also okay because- if you guessed this already you get a cookie- it's not canon.

okay thank you for coming to my deranged ted talk, my assistant has unbarricaded the doors for you have a good day.

[animehouse-moe]

Monthly In the Garden With My Landlord, Volume 1: Surprising Charm

Based on the just the synopsis, I'd say I was curious about this series, but I don't know if I was ever fully sold by it. Because of that, I'm very glad that I ended up picking it up regardless, as there's a lot of charm and energy that this first volume brings, making it a series centering around adult romance that I think quite a few people will enjoy, and for quite a few reasons that I'd love to illuminate.

Let's start with the idea of the story. Asako Suga is a manga editor that was just dumped by her girlfriend, leaving her in an apartment full of memories and firsts that are tied to her now ex. Because of that, in a spur of the moment decision she decides to move into a house that's being rented for pennies on the dollar and seems to have nothing wrong with it. That is, until she moves in and finds out that her 19 year old Landlord, and ex-idol, is living there with her.

I think it's an idea that a lot of people could be turned off by, but here me out on it. It's actually really fun, and well executed. Asako, and Miyako (the ex-idol-now-landlord) have just the right balance of comical and shallow traits as they do deep and impactful ones.

Sure, Asako might be a sucker for a pretty face, and that might have played into sticking around. But, she's more than that. She doesn't immediately fall in love with Miyako because she's pretty, but rather she struggles to maintain an appropriate amount of distance from this young adult, largely because Miyako struggles to be an adult.

And really, that idea itself opens up the story so much.

Asako and Miyako struggle to form deep relationships with people. Asako falls under the stereotype of being suckered in by looks, and Miyako is in the position where looks is all that people care about. Neither are able to directly connect with someone and form a deep and emotional bond, not even in the romantic sense necessarily.

I mean, the manga itself addresses that as Miyako takes to calling Asako onee-san a whole bunch, which perfectly highlights their beginning relationship. Miyako relies heavily on Asako, while Asako is babying Miyako.

The idea of romantic feelings is present, don't get me wrong, but it's absolutely an undertone to the pair forming a deeper relationship that extends past superficial tendencies. Because of that, I really hope that in future volumes they struggle with the expression of those feelings and they struggle with how it changes the shape and form of their relationship.

Anyways, let me share my love for the art. It's got a very light feeling, but that doesn't diminish the feeling of it or the detail in any fashion. It's still very present and strong, but it's not not got a heavy lineweight or strong shading or lighting and whatnot. I guess you might call it "flat", but I don't really think it's a bad thing.

I think the only thing I could really complain about is the environment art, since there isn't too much of it, but that's par for the course with a lot of manga these days. What's good though is that the mangaka fills that vacancy very comfortably. Subtle screentones that fill gaps, intelligent paneling and focus, and mindful layouts that work to really fill panels and use negative space. It's not anything incredible, but it does plenty to be aware of the gaps in backgrounds.

I think most important though is their willingness to break molds. They really don't restrict their characters to the confines of panels, routinely breaking out from those lines or existing entirely separate from them, or even having them partially cut off from them.

Speaking of characters, these designs are really damn good. The level of detail and uniqueness they carry is really great, and something that I think can be very rare to see.

Just look at the smaller details, Miyako's eyes are a different shape to Asako's (which are then also different to Hatomori's, who is a supporting character). Then look at the noses and mouths as well. Asako generally has a more squared off mouth, while Miyako's is rounder. Similarly, Asako has a more prominent nose while Miyako has overall softer and rounder features, but has larger/more prominent eyes.

It's really great design language that is very rare to see in a lot of series these days.

Even better is the expressiveness of these designs though. Character acting has a prominent role in a series like this, and Yodokawa's designs work wonders in regards to that. They work great both in terms of subtle and extreme moments, which creates a really nice feel to both ends of the first volume.

Also, the design sense and posing? Absolutely sublime. Yodokawa really has considered everything about these characters. Asako tends to wear more plain and "typical" outfits, while Miyako brings more energy and style, and all of Miyako's outfits are just so pretty.

Really, there's not much of an end to how much I enjoy the various pieces of this first volume. There's so much that I'm not doubt leaving out a considerable bit of charm and quality from this post, so I really recommend people give the manga a try. It's promising to bring a much more friendly and positive adult romance story, but not without depth or emotion. The art is endlessly engaging and fun, very stylish and well utilized, and the characters are such a treat. Just read it if you can.

[guardednight]

okay because i'm feeling bold. thoughts on agatha finale below.

first and foremost, let me be dramatic: enough of the fuck billy bullshit. if you don't like the twist with the road, can we direct that energy at the writers please. you never have this energy for other characters and it speaks volumes.

being on the billy defense squad for 13 years now, i'm not letting y'all clown him for anything.

if you dick ride for agatha killing coven after coven after coven for no real reason or wanda mind controlling a town or killing a bunch of people in multiverse of madness, you realllllly don't have a leg to stand on and you just sound like you hate gay men. go ahead, keep calling him a twink when we all know what you really want to say. it's exhausting.

i am still processing the twist. parts of the groundwork were laid, but it wasn't what i expected at all. the show took a pretty big tonal shift after episodes 6-7 seemed to set up more of a somber tone which was lessened i'd say in episodes 8-9.

let's start off what i didn't love but am still processing:

billy manifesting the road twist was theorized but i kind of tossed it aside and thought the bedroom would be more of the easter egg stuff and less meaningful. or that the road was just adapting to billy who may have been like the key traveler. evidently not. but spontaneous creation? reality manipulation? demiurge???? like it's in his wheelhouse and it's not that surprising. i think i'm moreso frustrated by the other witches not knowing what was happening and by agatha's confusing actions if the road wasn't real. like why did she tell lilia the secret about blasting her? why'd she recruit a bound witch? if that was the goal for her? those are some tricky plotholes. but i still think jac schaeffer is a phenomenal showrunner.

i thought we would see agathario from the start - not just after nicky was born. they needed more context to their relationship because without it, they are solely reliant on kathryn and aubrey (who do a phenoemenal job!) but they need story to back them up. i'd love to know how they met, how they got together. if they broke up pre-nicky and why. and why did agatha get the darkhold? i thought it'd have been interesting if agatha was using nicky to drain covens to extend his life or if she had gotten the darkhold to try to resurrect nicky and that was why rio and agatha's relationship had gotten so toxic because agatha was messing with the balance. but again, this is coming from my expectations.

was really hoping that we would get some resolution to the "am i william or am i billy?" question. truly thought agatha would help restore his memories of william and billy or merge their souls or something. and that he'd leave the road going by "billy kaplan" just like the comics in recognition of both identities. that's not really what happened clearly, but i also think this is still something that could happen later on. the moment is not gone.

if the road was popping them out when they got what they were missing, i'm confused as to why alice wasn't popped out after lifting her curse. or lilia after closing the loop on her memories, though she does make this conscious choice to fight the salem seven and in some ways, this seems to be a pre-determined future for herself.

agatha dying in the end was an interesting choice. clearly she will continue on in ghost form. but it done so campy that it takes so tonal adjustment to get me there.

onto what i loved or at least liked:

billy as fucking wiccan. that's my baby and that suit looks so fucking good. and that crown looks amazing. i am so fucking excited for his future. wiccan, young avengers, children's crusade, scarlet witch. i just need to see him again. and i am so desperate for him to go on this journey and meet teddy along the way. for him to find tommy.

billy's guilt - straight from the comics as well. they make it all morally gray, just like they do with wanda. but billy is desperately upset about potentially leading these witches to their death. it's a really complex situation, but that's what makes the maximoff's so interesting. they're not all good or all bad. and that's very true in the witch corner. billy going on a hero's journey attempting to atone for mistakes he believes he has made (and has in some cases). it's difficult to say anything but the road killed sharon. and it's difficult to say that lilia and alice would have ever died if they weren't put on the road. but it was all unconscious and there are other things at play here. it makes it all so fucking interesting narratively.

tommy!!!! i'm so excited to see tommy wherever he ends up showing up. super interesting more question posed again - "am i killing this boy so my brother can live?" because billy isn't afraid to ask the question.

billy and agatha's relationship. they are such complex interesting characters and have had some an amazing dynamic throughout the show. and i'm so excited to see that dynamic continue in the future.

i'm hopeful death will cotninue to play a role going forward and who's to say we're done with agathario. who's to say agatha has to stay a ghost. the future is bright.

overall this show is still peak to me and i think i just need to keep processing everything and my subverted expectations.

[skeleton-in-a-hoodie]

I don't think about the far future of DDMG (as in the stuff that happens after the main story is concluded) much compared to the rest of the au. Part of it is I want to see how these characters grow and change, so how their story end feels organic and earned, and if my ideas are set in stone there might not be enough wiggle room for that to happen.

I have an idea of what jobs the Turtles will have. Leo becomes a park ranger, Raph works in turtle conservation, Donnie is a scientist and has a lot of projects he's working on at once, and Mikey goes into animation and makes his own comics. April gets into investigative journalism, and Casey runs a mechanic shop + is April's cameraman.

I've got vague ideas of their relationships and if they have kids:

Leo adopts two girls, Lita and Yumi. He adopts Lita first, but Yumi is older. I don't know if he's dating anyone, or who that'd be, and the answer often changes. DDMG's Usagi is the main contender right now, who I think is related to Miyamoto but I've not figured out how exactly.

Raph adopts Chompy after Tokka dies in a work accident - they were on a boat, and they got hit by a bad storm. Chompy was very young when it happened, and Raph makes sure that Chompy remembers his mama loved him. Raph also marries Mona, but I flip flop between them dating as teenagers, or meeting after Raph adopts Chompy. They go on to have more kids, and Chompy loves being a big brother.

Donnie I don't know right now, so I'm going to see how his relationships with other characters develops. May end up with April and Casey, someone else entirely, or with no one at all.

Kinda like the idea of Mikey dating Woody and Renet. Don't know if those two are also dating, or if they're friends who are both dating Mikey. For a while, I didn't think Mikey would have kids, mostly cause I imagine him enjoying being the fun uncle, but I recently remembered the TMNT short set in the future (think it was called Teenge Mecha Ninja Turtles or something?) and the kids in that. Mikey essentially pulls a Splinter and accidentally adopts four kids. After he's done panicking, which is in no small part due to an emegency phone call to rat dad who calms him down, his brothers lightly tease him for it ("How do you 'accidently' adopt four kids?" "Shut up Leo.")

Bonus:

April and Casey have Shadow, who is a ball of energy. Her and Chompy are about the same age, and get into a lot of mischief together. She has her uncles, grandpa Kirby and grandfather Splinter wrapped around her little finger.

Robyn, Casey's little sister, becomes a vet and takes over from Socorro when their grandmother eventually retired. Has a son with an ex-boyfriend, and eventually dates her roommate, Ananda.

I've not figured out what happens with Venus yet, but she takes over Tseng's monster themed tourist trap/ tea shop.

Miwa and Shinigami had twins: Izumi and Yoshi. A few years later, they have another child, Hana. Miwa is a locksmith and runs a dojo with her brothers + extended family.

[godstaff]

It's a kind of magic...

This is a topic I touched some time ago, but it's still happening and is still bothering me: Everything human heroes do is perfectly natural. Everything metahumans do need to be explained scientifically.

Batso, like Cyrano, can beat 100 opponents at once because he practice a shit ton of martial arts. No questions asked. This is so. Period.

Green Arrow can place an arrow in the asshole of a cockroach a 100 yards away. Okay, he's an artist with the bow. He was alone on a desert island an practiced a lot. Cool.

Superman flies. How the hell can Superman fly???? Well, he manipulates gravity forces and such...yeah. But how can he change directions so fast? He manipulates gravity very fast, even in deep space, where gravity is so thin, you must go near a solar system to feel some. But...how???

Bullets bounce out of his chest. His body is as hard as steel. Better yet: he projects an energy field about one inch around his body which deflects the bullets, that's why his clothes are unharm...or his clothes are indestructible...or something...

How??

How??

But...how???

It never ends. It's a kind of magic.

For humans doing the impossible is like breakfast: happens every day. It just is.

For Supers it's like going to the Moon: there has to be an explanation, a reason why this is so.

Iron man has metal shrapnels inserted milimeters from his hart. He parties, drinks, fights, has sex. No problem. Business as usual. Batso has his entire body scarred and sewed together like a map. It only bothers him when he laughs. No biggy. Nothing too severe.

Superman catches a tiny fragment of Kryptonite in his torso, every human around him must carry his fainted body to the nearest meta medical emergency facility before he dies.

I know it is to celebrate the immense resilience of the human condition...but, how about extend the same courtesy to the metas and aliens?

In the end, all explanations reach a loop. A neverending circle where How and Why are repeating incesantly ad infinitum, like Pi. Then writers, exhausted their meager imagination, conclude shouting "It just is!" in annoyance. Then why didn't you say that earlier, instead of the scavenger hunt for explanations, one more idiotic than the other. (it must be said that scientists stil have supercomputers working 24/7 on Pi, it must be the same sentiment).

DC went so far as to post a book, supposedly written by Batso, called "Anatomy of a Metehuman", which offers little or none answers to the big "how" and "why". It just complicates matters. For a price.

Basically, don't look for answers there. It's a waste of your hard earned money and your precious time.

Interesting thing is: in spite considering Superman a different species than us all together, he still has sex and reproduces with a human...sort of.

Like in the fifties Sci Fi movies, where aliens abducted women to procreate.

No so different after all.

Guys...

Just admit it's a kind of magic and everybody happy. Stop digging for plausible explanations that don't exist.

Remember in the "Golden Age" of comics when couples got married and children magically appeared from the woodwork? No questions asked.

Let's leave it at that. The better answer is always the simpler one. Specially in literature.

[danidoesntdie]

One Year On Levothyroxine: Retrospective

Last year in October, I finally went to an endocrinologist and had my hypothyroidism officially diagnosed and was put on a small dose of levothyroxine. Two days later I cried because I could finally feel something other than empty and depressed. Now it's been almost one year since I started this life-changing medicine and I wanted to think back on all the ways it has impacted me in the long term.

During my Junior fall semester of college, I was barely able to move. I was not attending class, not doing my homework, and unable to concentrate. I was basically living with some of my friends in their dorm (which technically wasn't allowed) because I didn't think that I would be able to stay alive if I was on my own for so long (I did not tell them this). At this point, I had been diagnosed with MDD for 8 years. I was tired of good days meaning that I ate and bad days meaning that I'd stand on the side of the road.

Now I've been on medicine that works for a year and I feel like a completely different person. In fact, I feel like I never knew who I was before then. When I was younger, I assumed that I was going to die young and so had no ambitions. Now I can reasonably see myself living for another several years. This was so startling for me. I had all this time and I had no idea what I wanted to do with it. The past year has been a lot about self-discovery.

I started drawing comics last November as a way to cope with the several changes that were happening in my life: dropping out of college, moving into my first apartment alone, working two part-time jobs, and breaking up with my then-boyfriend. I know now that I love drawing comics, and that I don't want to stop anytime soon. I'm hoping that I can share my comics with more people to give them a sad chuckle when things are hard. I want to share what it is like to be depressed so that others can recognize it in themselves and in the ones close to them. This is the first aspiration that I have had for myself in a very long time.

I care more about my appearance. Granted, I'm still not the most hygienic. But I wear more than a T-shirt and khakis every day. I dress up for myself even when the only thing I'm doing that day is going to Walmart. I've learned that I love wearing bold and colorful eyeshadow.

I'm more likely to go out with friends. I'm more likely to make time for my friends. I'm more likely to care about my friends, what they like, their past, etc. That extends to my family as well. I have three different social circles which is way more than I've ever had in my entire life.

I don't shake as much at restaurants. Bright lights don't bother me as much. I eat when I'm hungry and have gained about fifteen pounds. I don't feel as lightheaded anymore. I poop every day (yeah, apparently you're supposed to? Didn't know that before). I have much more energy so I don't need to nap. I can count the number of days that I have spent in bed not moving on my fingers, whereas before I could go for weeks without leaving my room except for food.

I'm happier with myself and more forgiving. I'm moving forward with my life and am wondering still what I want out of it.

Thank you for being a part of it.

[protozoan-pen-and-pigment]

I've been trawling through a few writing projects recently and came across this one. This was intended as a novelisation of a previously intended comic story, originally called "Spiral" [of which some breakdown sketches can be found here], which fell through after poor mental health robbed me of the proclivity and ability.

Still, I've a way with words, so I'm posting this here in the hope that it may spur me into some kind of activity. It still requires a shit-ton of work; it's very nebulous and I've a lot to figure out, but I hope to summon some creative energy to start putting together something more cohesive.

Just don't hold your breath for it.

But hey, I mocked up quite a nice cover, right?

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

“Hey.” The soldier beside him grunted an expletive and continued to snooze.

“Hey, Sarge!” he said again, giving his comrade in arms a nudge with his elbow.

“What is it?” the rudely awoken soldier mumbled, consciousness dragging him begrudgingly into the world of dirt and blood.

“Do you believe in fate?” he asked. His comrade turned to him with gritty, semi-open eyes and regarded him.

“Sixty-seven, I swear, if our reserves weren’t as low as they are, I’d shoot you in the face right now!” he growled. “At least in the stockade I’d get some fuckin’ sleep! You woke me up for that?!” The front line along which they were fighting had fallen into something of a impasse and an uneasy silence had fallen across the battlefield. However uneasy the silence was, it did allow for some to rest and recharge, for whatever calamity was inevitably to follow. Sixty-seven and the rest of the squadron had taken advantage of the area’s geography and dug in behind a tall ridge overlooking the plateau which formed the latest scrub of territory to contest. He regarded Sixty-seven and his expectant, albeit muddied and slightly bloodied, face; he was strangely inquisitive, for a Sigma.

“You mean, like predeterminism?” he asked his irritating conrade. After a moment’s pause, Sixty-seven shrugged a little and nodded, somewhat uncertainly, his features becoming dimly illuminated by the growing dawn twilight of one of Europa IV’s binary suns.

“No.” the other said bluntly. A silence came between them then and he lowered his eyelids, believing this disruption to his rest to be at a terminus.

“How come?” said Sixty-seven, forcing a weary sigh from his comrade. This is the first shut-eye I’ve managed to find in thirty-four rotations and this prick wants to start asking dumb questions. He shot an askew glance at Sixty-seven through narrowed eyes, hoping that he’d get the message that his questions were pissing him off. It was ineffective, of course, as Sigmas such as he and Sixty-seven and the rest of his squad generally aren’t programmed to respond to or even recognise such subtle cues, even though that aspect had slowly started to develop even in Sigmas, during the scant quiet time between sorties. They were made for battle, not socialising; if you want socialising - or what some of the colonists refer to as ‘socialising’ - you go see a Gamma, they’ll give you the best damn socialising of your life - and they won’t even give you the clap!

“I don’t like the idea that I have no say over the events that govern my own life.” he said, and if one were to ask, one would find that’s the general consensus amongst most Sigmas; indeed, amongst most who owe their existences to the labs of Masakado Industrie, the existence of the product of those places were to assist with those who’d come to settle on this brave new frontier, and the others that were springing up in this little corner of the galaxy, as humanity had finally developed the capability to extend its reach beyond their own place of birth, to establish homes elsewhere, or to travel the stars in perpetual exploration.

“I much prefer the notion of 'destiny'.”

“Isn't that the same thing as fate?” Sixty-seven said.

“I don't believe so. To me, a destiny is something I can choose, a decision I can make. Do I go left or right, or make a different choice altogether? Fate makes it seem that I've no say in matters that govern my own life.”

“I can look to a point on the horizon or a point on a map and say 'That's my destiny.' And if I don't find what I'm looking for there, I can choose another path, another destiny and make toward it with the hope that I'll find what I'm looking for there.”

“To be honest, I think you're being far too literal.”

“Pfff, whatever, grunt. You asked, so I answered. Not my fault that it doesn't quite mesh with your own world view!”

“So, what is it that you are looking for?”

“Isn't it obvious? I'm looking for...”

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

[inkfamy]

what do you mean by vetting people for server invites?

I guess it sounds a bit serious. I started my comic club server with the intent of it being more of a group chat than A Community Space. I don't really have the time or energy to have to moderate an open environment, and it's not something I'm interested in doing.

To those ends, I reserve the right not to extend an invitation to someone whose views/politics/behaviours are ones that I would find unenjoyable to be around - everyone in the server is someone I'd quite happily chat to in private as well as share a group space with them. This isn't to say that everyone has to think what I think (and they don't), just that I'm curating the space.

So far I've invited friends, mutuals, and people I haven't spoken to before and everyone has turned out to be really lovely and fun to be around. I really like the space that's been created and all the people there, so I'm keen to keep it that way and part of that is continuing to keep it a private space rather than an open community server.

All that said, people are free to ask to join and ive only declined 1 invitation so far.